Chapter 18 — After All, We All Learn How to Be Better People

Six o'clock Saturday night. I parked the car in front of the old house gate. I've been walking this road for more than twenty years, even if I close my eyes I'm used to it. Pushing the door in, the scent of cinnamon flowers in the yard has bloomed. Tiny yellow flower clusters cover the branches, and the sweet smell permeates every breath. When I was a child, every season, my grandmother picked cinnamon flowers to make jam. She is no more. But the flowers still bloom. I walked into the living room. There were fewer people sitting around the table than I expected. Grandfather was in the master position, in front of him was a bowl of porridge that was almost untouched. Dad sat on the left, quietly peeling peanuts. Mom was next to me, and as soon as she saw me, she stood up.

"Tieu Thanh! You're home!"

Her voice could not hide her joy. The eldest uncle sat opposite. Tien To Phuong sat next to him. Diep Minh Huy was not present.

“Where is it?” I asked.

No need to call names, everyone understands. The eldest uncle replied:

"Upstairs. Won't come down."

I sat down next to my mother. There are only a few simple dishes on the table. Cabbage tofu soup, stir-fried shrimp with garlic, sweet and sour meat. Compared to the party the other day — like two worlds. Grandpa looked up at me. His facial expression was worse than when he came to the studio. Wrinkles deepen, eyes become cloudy. Then he bent down again and ate porridge. No one spoke. The sound of chopsticks hitting bowls echoed clearly in the quiet space. Finally, Tien To Phuong put down his chopsticks.

“Tieu Thanh, I have something to say.”

I looked at her. The person in front of her was no longer the sharp woman that day. Swollen eyes, drooping mouth corners, visibly aging.

“I know you hate me.”

Her voice was very low.

"I hate you for saying those words at the dinner table. I hate you for inciting grandpa to leave all the money for Minh Huy. I hate you for oppressing me in front of the whole family."

I said nothing. She continued.

"The letter I saw - An An said - was written by you. At the end of last year, before my grandfather made a will. In the letter, you defamed me, said I was unfilial, said that if I got married in the future, the money would also belong to outsiders. Those words... I wrote them intentionally."

The whole room went silent. Only the sound of insects remained in the yard.

"I want grandpa to leave all the money to Minh Huy. I think he's a son, he should get more. Tieu Thanh... I admit it - I'm biased, I'm selfish, I used tricks behind your back."

After speaking, tears fell from her eyes. No more crying loudly. Just... each drop fell silently onto the table. The chopsticks in my father's hand stopped. Mom's hand under the table gently squeezed my hand. The air... seemed to be so tense that with just one word, it would crumble. And this time— No one can pretend like nothing ever happened anymore. Grandpa put down the bowl of porridge. He looked at me from beginning to end.

“Tieu Thanh.”

He spoke up.

"What my aunt-in-law just said, I heard it. She was wrong. But... the person who makes the final decision is not her, it's you."

He stopped for a beat.

“You're looking at the wrong person.”

Those six words, spoken from the mouth of a person who has been stubborn all his life... are heavier than any reproach. My mother's hand squeezed mine.

"He wasn't confused. At that time, he really thought Minh Huy had a better future. A civil servant, a stable payroll, and a boy... in the eyes of his generation, that was the best path. As for the things his son did... design, investment, technology... he didn't understand, nor could he see it. He just saw it—not trustworthy."

He stopped.

“But you are wrong.”

"I... am better than him. Much better than him."

"You gave the best things to the most unworthy people. Then you single-handedly pushed out the most deserving people."

Having finished speaking, he leaned on his cane down to the ground once. Not angry. It's... to keep my voice from shaking.

"Tieu Thanh, I don't ask you to forgive me. I know I don't deserve it. Today I just want to say one thing in front of you—"

“I'm sorry.”

The room was as silent as breathing. The scent of cinnamon flowers from the yard drifts in gradually. My mother cried non-stop. Dad bowed his head, his shoulders shaking slightly. Tien To Phuong face down on the table, crying. The eldest uncle sat still, his face gray. I looked at my grandfather. The person who once carried me on his shoulders to fly a kite. Someone once rewarded me with a hundred yuan, saying I was the pride of the Diep family. The person once asked my grandmother to secretly give me twenty thousand yuan. And also the person... looked at me with cold eyes like a stranger, saying "The Diep family has no children". All… are the same person. Voice hoarse.

“What you said, I heard.”

“But the three words ‘sorry’—are not enough.”

The whole dining table seemed to stop breathing. I withdrew my hand from my mother's hand.

"Grandpa, I didn't come here to apologize. If you think saying 'sorry' can pretend like nothing ever happened... then you're the wrong person."

His hand tightened on the stick. Knuckles turn white. But he did not get angry. For the first time in my memory— He was refuted… without getting angry.

“So what do you want?”

His voice was very low.

“I don't want anything.”

I stood up.

"Your money, you keep. In the future, you can give it to whoever you want. I have never aimed for your legacy. Not before, not now, not in the future."

“So you finally—”

“What I want… you can't give it anymore.”

My voice was strangely calm.

"I wanted that night, right at this table, you could look at me one more time. Not looking at an outsider, but looking at your niece. You couldn't do it. That moment is over. No matter how many 'sorry' you say you can't get it back."

His hand dropped from the stick. Put it down on the table. Trembling very clearly.

“But I still came today.”