Chapter 3 — Back Before The Wedding Day

The small garment factory located deep in a familiar alley still retains the same smell of new fabric and the steady rattling sound of sewing machines as it has for the past twenty years. Khanh Linh stopped by on the first weekend after signing the contract, carrying a bag of cakes that her father still liked, filled with a rare sense of peace that she had lost during the years immersed in the flashy upper-class world in her previous life.

"Are you back?" Mr. Do Van Tai looked up from the old sewing machine, his hand still holding the unfinished piece of fabric. "It's been really busy lately, hasn't it? I haven't come by all week."

"I'm sorry, Dad," Khanh Linh replied, sitting down on the wooden chair next to her, watching her father's calloused but skillful hands gliding across the cloth. "From now on I will try to visit dad more often, no matter how busy work is."

Mr. Tai looked at his daughter in surprise, not used to this unexpected change, but just smiled kindly and did not ask anything more. Khanh Linh looked around the small garment factory, her eyes stopped at the corner of the wall hanging a few suits waiting for customers to pick up, one of which made her pause - it was the suit she clearly remembered, her father had sewn it for free in her previous life for a young man with financial difficulties, who later became a falsely accused victim in the Bao Tin group's embezzlement case.

"Dad, whose suit is that?" she asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

"Ah, from a young man named Bao, who came to order a suit for a job interview," Mr. Tai replied, still not stopping his work. "He said he didn't have enough money to pay it all. Dad saw that he was honest and hard-working, so he only took half the salary. He will come tomorrow to pick up the things."

Khanh Linh's heart beats faster. Lam Quoc Bao - the name she can never forget, the man in her previous life who was falsely accused of colluding with her in the embezzlement case, losing all his career and honor just because he accidentally stood near the source of the conspiracy that Mrs. Kim Chi had plotted. She remembers, in her previous life, it was not until her third year working at Bao Tin that she happened to meet him during an interview for a project financial manager position - unexpectedly, fate arranged for them to meet much earlier, right at her father's garment factory.

"Can...can I meet him when he comes to pick up his things?" Khanh Linh asked, trying to keep her voice natural.

"Okay, why do you care about this?" Mr. Tai looked at his daughter, his eyes slightly curious.

"I just think Dad is so kind, I want to thank him on his behalf," she replied, smiling to cover up the confusion in her heart.

The next morning, Khanh Linh deliberately arranged her schedule to visit the garment factory on time for Lam Quoc Bao's appointment. When she walked in, a tall, thin guy with a calm but tired face was waiting in front of the counter, holding a small envelope containing the missing wages.

"Hello, I came to pick up the suit," he said to Mr. Tai, his voice was warm but a bit reserved like a person going through a difficult period in life.

"Here, try again to see if it fits," Mr. Tai handed him the suit, waving his hand when Lam Quoc Bao tried to hand over the money envelope. "Just keep it. You can return it to dad when you have a stable job. There's no rush."

Lam Quoc Bao hesitated for a moment, his eyes showing both gratitude and shyness. "Thank you very much. I'll definitely come back and pay in full when things settle down."

Watching from afar, Khanh Linh couldn't help but step forward. Proactively introduce yourself. "Hello, I'm Khanh Linh, Mr. Tai's daughter. From what dad told me, are you looking for a job in the financial sector?"

Lam Quoc Bao was a bit surprised by her initiative, but still politely responded. "Yes, I just graduated with a master's degree in finance, looking for a suitable opportunity. What industry do you work in?"

"I work as creative director at Bao Tin fashion group," Khanh Linh replied, carefully observing his reaction. "Incidentally, we are looking to hire a financial manager position for our upcoming spring collection project. If you are interested, I can introduce you to the human resources department."

Lam Quoc Bao's eyes brightened a bit, although he still maintained his usual calmness. "I'd really appreciate it if you could help. I'll prepare the complete documents to send over."

After exchanging phone numbers, Lam Quoc Bao bowed to both father and son and left, his body straight even though his suit was still a bit loose compared to his thin body. Looking at his back disappearing behind the corner of the alley, Khanh Linh smiled slightly, a new ray of hope arose in her heart.

"Do you know him already?" Mr. Tai asked, his eyes searching and full of meaning.

"Not quite, but I think this could be a good start," Khanh Linh replied, her eyes still following the direction of the alley where Lam Quoc Bao had just disappeared.

She knew that bringing Lam Quoc Bao to work at Bao Tin early was not only a way to exonerate a good person who had been unjustly harmed, but also a strategic move - a trustworthy ally who understood finance well could help her detect unusual signs in internal transactions before they could turn into disasters like in her previous life.

In the evening, the whole family gathers around a simple tray of rice in the cozy small kitchen. Mrs. Hanh picked up food for her husband and children, constantly telling stories about her neighbors and about the garment factory being more crowded these days thanks to a few large orders from a high school ordering uniforms. Khanh Linh sat quietly observing her mother, her heart tightening as she remembered the evil disease that took her life just two years later, in her previous life - a malignant tumor discovered too late because she was subjective and afraid to go to the doctor, only when the pain became unbearable did she go to the hospital, by which time the disease had metastasized.

"Mom, have you had a dull stomach ache lately?" Khanh Linh asked, trying to keep her voice natural like an idle question.

Mrs. Hanh paused slightly, surprised by her daughter's unexpected question. "Why do you ask? Sometimes it happens, but I think it's probably due to erratic eating, nothing serious."

"I think mom should go for a general check-up just to be safe," Khanh Linh said, her eyes determined even though her voice was still gentle. "Recently, my company has a health check-up package for employees' relatives. Let me register for you as a gift to celebrate my new position."

"Oh, mom is fine, there's nothing that requires an expensive general examination," Mrs. Hanh waved her hand, but seeing her daughter's eyes were unusually serious, she softened her voice. "Okay, if you want, I'll go so you can rest assured."

Mr. Tai, sitting next to him, also contributed his support. "That's right, go see a doctor to be sure. At this age, you shouldn't be subjective about your health anymore."

Khanh Linh breathed a sigh of relief in her heart, even though she knew this was just the first step in a long journey to change her mother's fate. She told herself, this time, she would not to let that painful history repeat itself — if detected early, the doctor had told her in her previous life that the chance of a complete cure was very high.

After dinner, while helping her mother wash the dishes, Khanh Linh couldn't help but hug her from behind, causing Mrs. Hanh to turn around in surprise.

"What's wrong, why are you suddenly hugging me?" she asked, but still wrapped her arms around her daughter, her voice full of affection.

"I just miss my mother," Khanh Linh replied, her voice a bit choked, her eyes stinging. "I promise, from now on I will pay more attention to home and take better care of mom and dad."

Mrs. Hanh smiled and patted her daughter's head like when she was a child. "My daughter has been acting strange lately. She must be a big boss so she's more affectionate." Little did she know, behind that warm hug was the steely determination of a child who had to witness and then personally send her mother off in another life - and now, she will do everything to make sure that never happens again.

That night, when she returned to her room, Khanh Linh opened her notebook and wrote a note full of determination: "Lam Quoc Bao — met three years earlier than in her previous life. Will be introduced to the position of project financial manager. This will be the first person to stand by my side when the storm really hits. Mom — has scheduled a general examination, must follow the results closely to promptly intervene if abnormalities are detected."

She closed the notebook, placed it on the desk, then lay down on the bed, looking up at the familiar ceiling. Outside, the sounds of traffic passing through the small street echoed steadily, strangely peaceful compared to the sleepless nights full of anxiety and planning that she had experienced in Dang Khoa's luxurious apartment in her previous life. She realized that it was this simple peace - family meals, the sound of her father's sewing machine, her mother's gentle smile - that she almost completely lost just because she was busy chasing frivolous illusions in the marketplace.

"This time," she whispered to herself before falling asleep, "I will hold on to what is most precious, and not let anyone have the opportunity to turn me into a pawn in their game again." Sleep came more gently than she thought, no more nightmares about the sound of broken glass and dark water, leaving only a smoldering determination, ready for the next steps on the journey to rewrite her own destiny.