Chapter 3 — 120 Thousand Yuan And A Divorce

He walked over to the bed, cautiously, almost condescendingly, wanting to take my hand.

"Nam Nhiem, I beg you... can we not divorce? Please don't go... for the sake of the child, can you give me one more chance, give this family one more chance?"

He thought, the baby is my weakness. But he is wrong. The baby… is my armor. I hugged my child, leaning away to avoid his hand.

“Chu Minh Khai, it's late.”

At that moment, the doorbell rang. Chu Minh Khai seemed to have grabbed a lifeline and immediately ran to open the door, perhaps thinking that his uncle had returned, bringing with him a solution. But the person standing outside the door... was my mother, Vuong Nha Cam. Together with Aunt Truong, her close neighbor for many years. As soon as my mother walked in, seeing the tense atmosphere in the room, her face immediately darkened.

“Infection.”

She quickly walked to the bed, saw that the baby and I were okay, and then breathed a sigh of relief. Aunt Truong is a straightforward person, has a loud voice, and carries two large bags of pineapples. She glanced at Luu Que Phuong and Chu Minh Khai, snorted, said nothing, but the disdain in her eyes was clear.

“Mom, Aunt Truong, you two are here.”

I smiled slightly.

"Where are the things? Mom, help me clean up."

My mother's eyes were a little red, but her voice was extremely determined. She didn't ask anything. But she understood everything. Chu Minh Khai and Liu Que Phuong were both stunned. They didn't expect my mother to come so quickly and bring someone with her.

“In-laws… this lady is…”

Luu Que Phuong stood up, his expression confused. My mother didn't even look at her, just said to me:

"Don't rush, take it slow, you can't be tired while you're in confinement. I'll just do it, mom and aunt Truong will do it."

Chu Minh Khai was completely panicked and quickly stopped in front of my mother.

"Auntie...don't...please listen to my explanation, it's just a small misunderstanding between me and Nhiem Nhiem..."

“Misunderstanding?”

My mother looked at him coldly.

“Tieu Khai, my daughter just gave birth to your child and is still in bed, how is your family treating her like that?”

“Forcing him to report to the police, to take his child to his mother's house, is this called a misunderstanding?”

Chu Minh Khai's face immediately turned red.

“I… I don't…”

“I told you to stay away.”

My mother's voice was not loud, but it carried such power that people did not dare to resist. Chu Minh Khai reflexively stepped aside. I, my mother and Aunt Truong didn't pay attention to them anymore and started packing things. I don't have many things, just a few changes of clothes, baby things like diapers and bottles. With each item collected in the bag, Chu Minh Khai's face became a little whiter. Luu Que Phuong sat there, looking at us busy, as if he had an acupuncture point, not moving. At that moment, Chu Minh Khai's phone rang again. The bell rang loudly and urgently, ringing loudly in the silent room. He glanced at the screen, his hands shaking, almost dropping the phone. It's Chu Kien Quan again. He picked up the phone, looked at me, then went out to the balcony, his voice was as low as possible, but I could still hear a few fragmentary words.

“What… the bank… suspended work… so quickly…”

There was undisguised panic in his voice. A few minutes later, he returned, like a lost soul. He looked at me, his eyes were extremely complex, both surprised, scared, and also had emotions that I couldn't read. He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse.

"Uncle said... the bank has temporarily suspended Chu Minh Hao's work."

He swallowed hard, then said another sentence that surprised me a bit.

“The bank assistant manager… is on his way, saying… he wants to meet you in person to discuss compensation.”

People from the bank... are coming soon. This news was like a bomb, causing the frozen atmosphere in the room to instantly explode. Luu Que Phuong jumped up from the sofa, his eyes shining brightly.

"Compensation? Does the bank want compensation?"

She quickly ran in front of Chu Minh Khai and grabbed his hand tightly.

"Son, is it true that as long as Nhiem Nhiem receives the money, there will be no further prosecution? Minh Hao will be fine, right?"

Chu Minh Khai's face turned pale and he shook his head.

“I… I don't know… you said the bank's attitude is very serious, this has a very bad impact…”

“So the money is not enough!” Luu Que Phuong was impatient, turned to me, and immediately had a pleasing smile on her face that I had never seen before.

"Nam Nhiem, my good daughter-in-law, listen to me... this is my fault, I'm confused."

As she spoke, she lightly slapped herself in the face twice.

"I'm sorry! The bank people will come later, can you just say it was a misunderstanding? We're all family, do you really want to see Minh Hao arrested?"

My mother and Aunt Truong both stopped and looked at her as if they were looking at something very strange. As for me… I just feel nauseous. This is my mother-in-law. When nothing happened, she was a greedy beast. When things got out of control, she immediately turned into someone who bowed her head and begged. In her eyes, there is no right or wrong. Only beneficial or harmful. I didn't pay attention to her, just calmly looked at Chu Minh Khai.

“Chu Minh Khai, is this also your idea?”

His eyes avoided, not daring to look at me. His hands were twisted, his voice stuttered.

“Nham Nhiem, Minh Hao… after all, he is my cousin… the bank has proactively compensated, this is the best result… or should we… stop here?”

“Stop here?”

I repeated those four words, then burst out laughing. Laughter rang out in the stuffy room, sounding strangely shrill.

"Chu Minh Khai, do you think that I called the police and made such a big deal... just to get money?"

“I didn't mean that…” he hastily explained.

“So what do you mean?”

I interrupted him.

"In your eyes, as long as the bank pays, my privacy will be violated, my mother's old age pension will be watched by others, and the resentments I suffered during my stay... can all be erased, right?"

He opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word. My mother walked up to me and held my hand. Her hand was warm, as if giving me strength.

"Nam Nhiem, don't talk too much to them anymore. Do whatever you want, I'm always on your side."

She turned her head to look at Chu mother and son, her eyes cold.

"My daughter is not for you to bully any way you want. Today, we will definitely bring her home."

Hearing that, Luu Que Phuong tried to rush forward and pull.

"Thong master, don't be like that, what are you talking about..."

Aunt Truong plopped the pineapple bag on the ground, blocking it in front of my mother. The tall figure stood there like a wall.

"When you talk, say it kindly, don't move your hands or feet. You guys have bullied other people's daughters to this extent, are you still going to not let them go?"

Liu Que Phuong was forced back by that momentum step. Just as the air was as tense as a string, the doorbell rang again. This time, everyone knew… who was coming. Chu Minh Khai took a deep breath and ran to open the door. Outside the door was a woman wearing a business suit, over thirty years old, with delicate makeup and a sharp temperament. Behind her is a young man carrying a briefcase.

“Excuse me, is this Ms. Tu Nhiem's house?”

The woman smiled, but the smile did not reach the bottom of her eyes.

“I am the assistant director of the city agricultural bank, my family name is Ly.”

Chu Minh Khai immediately bowed his head.

“Yes yes, please come in Ms. Ly, please come in.”