Chapter 9 — After Divorce, I Am a Real Angel

"This is the Criminal Investigation Team of the City Police Department. We are handling a case. We would like to invite you over to assist in the investigation. I wonder if you are convenient now?"

My heart sank: "What case?"

"It's not convenient to talk on the phone, can you come to the Department? The address is..."

I wrote down the address, hung up the phone, feeling restless. Are the police looking for me? What do I have to do with any case? Could it be Pho Kinh Nghien? He thought my divorce was a trick, but now he's so embarrassed that he's angry, and he wants to correct me? That's not right, although Pho Kinh Nghien is cold, he's not to the point of using such despicable tricks. So what is it? I hailed a taxi and went straight to the Police Department. Along the way, my mind was uncertain, my mind running through countless possibilities. When I arrived, the person who welcomed me was a middle-aged police officer in his forties named Tran, with a very gentle attitude, led me into the interrogation room, and even poured me a glass of water.

“Miss To, don't be nervous, just asking a few customary questions.” Officer Tran opened his notebook, "Do you know To Quoc Vi?"

To Quoc Vi is my adoptive father, the head of the To family.

“I know, he is... my adoptive father.” I hesitated, "What happened?"

Policeman Tran looked at me: "To Quoc Vi is suspected of economic crimes, and is currently in detention. During the investigation, we discovered that he may still be involved in an infant kidnapping case 22 years ago." My head made a "buzzing" sound.

“Kidnapping… babies?”

“That's right.” Police Officer Chen nodded, "Twenty-two years ago, To Guo Wei and his wife gave birth to a child in a nearby city hospital, but on the third day after the baby was born, the hospital had a fire and the obstetrics department records were in chaos. After order was restored, the baby that Su Guo Wei and his wife carried away was not their biological child."

I clutched the glass of water tightly, my knuckles turning white.

“What do you mean… I… I wasn't carried by mistake? But kidnapped?”

“Currently still under investigation.” Police Officer Tran's voice was cautious, "But according to the clues we have, the fire that year may not have been an accident but intentional. Someone took advantage of the chaos to swap babies. Whether To Quoc Vi and his wife knew about this or not, we need to investigate further. We called you here because we wanted to find out some information, maybe it can help solve the case."

I sat on the chair, my whole body was cold. 22 years ago, hospital fire, baby swap... If I wasn't carried by mistake but was kidnapped, then who are my biological parents? Where are they now? Do you know that your daughter was stolen by someone, came to be someone else's family for 20 years, and then was thrown away like trash?

“Miss To?” Officer Tran called me.

I woke up, my voice trembling slightly: "What do you want to ask?"

"Do you have any impressions about what happened 22 years ago? Or, have To Quoc Vi and his wife ever mentioned anything related?"

I shook my head: "No. I always thought... I was their biological child, until three years ago, when the DNA test results came back, they said I was carried by mistake."

“So how have they treated you these past three years?”

“Very cold.” I smiled wryly, "The real gold has returned, I've become redundant. They forced me to marry into the Pho family, just like... recycling trash."

Officer Tran took notes, asked for a few more details and then closed the book.

“Thank you she cooperated. If there are new developments, we will contact you again. Besides..." He hesitated, "This case may be related to a number of characters. Lately, you should pay attention to safety. If anything happens, just let us know immediately."

I nodded and walked out of the Police Department in a daze. The rain outside is still falling, heavier than before. I didn't bring an umbrella, nor did I want to call a car, so I just walked aimlessly along the street. The rain soaked my hair and clothes, very cold, but not as cold as the chill in my heart.