Chapter 4 — After My Mother-in-law Bought Me a 3 Million Yuan Death Insurance Package

Aunt Truong did not respond. Just avoid my eyes. I carried the basket through the market. In front, behind, all eyes. It's like needles are sticking into my back. No one took the initiative to talk. No one said hello. As if I were some kind of walking genie. When I was about to leave the market, my close friend Luu Tieu Yen suddenly ran out from the fruit stand.

"Tu Lan! Wait!"

Her head was covered in sweat, her apron hadn't even been removed yet, and she still held a bunch of keys in her hand.

"I just heard them gossiping, I'm so angry! Vuong Thuy Hoa's old face is really getting thicker and thicker, going around the village making up stories about you having cancer. Why don't you argue back?"

“Is there any use in arguing?”

"So you just have to endure it like that? Go to the hospital and get a health certificate! Slap her right in the face!"

I looked at Tieu Yen. I really want to tell her the whole truth. Wanted to tell her that Vuong Thuy Hoa wasn't just making it up. She is setting a much bigger trap. But Trieu Loi has already said it. The less people know, the safer it is.

"Tieu Yen, I'm okay. Don't worry about me."

Liu Tieu Yen was so angry that she stomped her feet.

"You really are too gentle and stupid! If it were me, I would have stood in front of the Tran family's door and cursed, letting the whole village see who was the sick one!"

I shook my head, smiling slightly.

"Wait a little longer. There are some things that can't be said right now."

Tieu Yen looked at me suspiciously.

“What are you planning on doing, right?”

"No. I'll go home first."

I carried the basket and went home. When passing by the Tran family's alley, I saw Tran Nhi Ho's motorbike parked outside the door. A brown, bulging envelope was tied to the back of the car. I don't stop. But still silently remember the size and color of that envelope. Do not reveal anything. But my eyes must always be open. During the next week, my homestay did not have a single guest. Former regulars called and said they were too busy these days and couldn't come over. There was avoidance in his voice. I went online to see the comments. Someone posted on a local forum, saying the homestay owner was seriously ill and the food hygiene issue was very worrying. Below are a bunch of extras. I took a screenshot and saved it all. On the fourth day, Dr. Chu from the village came to the door. Chu Kien Quoc is over fifty years old, wears glasses, and on his shoulder is still the black medicine chest that has followed him for more than twenty years. When he entered the yard, I was washing vegetables. Seeing him, I stopped.

"Doctor Chu? Why are you here?"

"Auntie Thuy Hoa told me to come. She said you haven't been feeling well lately and asked me to come check on you."

I turned off the faucet and wiped my hands on my apron.

"I'm very healthy, I don't need to be examined."

Chu Kien Quoc stood in place, his eyes slightly avoiding.

"Tu Lan, I know you're frustrated. But if you have an illness, you have to treat it. It can't last long. Let me check your pulse and blood pressure. I won't charge you any money."

I looked at his avoiding eyes and suddenly asked directly:

“Doctor Chu, the diagnosis paper that Vuong Thuy Hoa gave to the insurance company… were you the one who wrote the initial examination record?”

Chu Kien Quoc's face immediately turned pale. He took half a step back, unconsciously reaching out to grab the handle of the medicine box.

"What... what nonsense are you talking about? What insurance? I don't understand what you're talking about."

“Last November, was Vuong Thuy Hoa Bring my ID to you and ask you to put my name in her medical record?

"Do not have! There is no such thing!”

His voice suddenly rose.

“Tu Lan, don't slander others! I have been practicing for decades and have never done that kind of unethical thing!”

Having finished speaking, he turned and left. Almost ran out of the field. I stood next to the water tank, looking at that panicked back. His reaction said it all. I went back to my room, took out my notebook, and wrote down every sentence and every word about today's conversation: time, location, content. Then take a photo and send it to Trieu Loi. Very soon after, he texted back:

“Chu Kien Quoc, has a practicing license from the village medical station. I will check the code. You're doing great, keep it up.”

I deleted the message and put the notebook in the iron box under the bed. In the evening, Liu Tieu Yen arrived. Her expression was very unsightly. After sitting down and taking a sip of water, I opened my mouth:

“Tu Lan, I'll tell you this... but don't get angry.”

“This afternoon, Vuong Thuy Hoa stood at the grocery store in the village and told a group of people that not only did his body have problems, but his mind was also not normal. She said you always suspect others of harming you, are too suspicious, and say you're haunted..."

Tieu Yen stopped for a moment.

“Say what else?”