Chapter 4 — Back Before The Wedding Day

The design room on the fifteenth floor of Bao Tin Group is filled with natural light from a row of large glass doors, and moodboards hang on the walls with fabric samples, sketches and colorful collages. Khanh Linh stood in front of the largest board, pencil in hand, sketching the first lines for her spring collection — this time, she decided to follow a creative direction that was completely different from her previous life.

"What do you intend to do with the idea of brocade combined with European shapes?" Bao Ngoc asked, walking over to stand next to him, his eyes looking curiously at the unfinished sketches.

"I want to make a collection that tells stories," Khanh Linh replied, continuing to draw lines on paper, "not only beautiful but also with a story behind it — about modern Vietnamese women, preserving their roots and confidently stepping out into the world."

Bao Ngoc nodded, her eyes shining with admiration mixed with something hard to name - perhaps an implicit comparison between her friend's talent and her own. "You always have such unique ideas. I'm still struggling to find my own direction."

"Don't think like that," Khanh Linh stopped writing and turned to look at her friend with sincere eyes. "You have your own strengths in color and accessory coordination that I don't have. This time, I want you to be in charge of all the color coordination and accessories for the collection, which is no less important than the shape design."

Bao Ngoc's eyes lit up, a rare genuine smile appeared on his lips. "Really? You trust me with that part?"

"Of course," Khanh Linh replied, "we're a team."

This is one of the moves that Khanh Linh has carefully calculated - instead of making Bao Ngoc feel inferior, always standing in her shadow like in her previous life, she proactively gave her an important, clearly recognized role. She hopes that if Bao Ngoc feels her own value from the beginning, perhaps the seeds of jealousy will have a hard time growing like before.

In the afternoon, Khanh Linh received a call from the human resources department informing her that Lam Quoc Bao's profile had been approved for the first round, with an appointment for a face-to-face interview at the end of the week. She smiled, feeling that everything was gradually going according to the plan she had outlined.

At that moment, Dang Khoa appeared at the door of the design room, holding two cups of coffee. "I stopped by on the way and brought you a cup of coffee to stay awake for work."

Khanh Linh looked up, a bit surprised by his appearance. "Thank you, but you don't have to do that."

"It's okay, after all, we are colleagues on this project," Dang Khoa replied, placing the cup of coffee on her table, his eyes scanning the sketches on the board. "Your idea is interesting. The collection tells the story of a modern woman — I think this will be a very potential marketing campaign."

"Thank you for your appreciation," Khanh Linh replied, keeping a polite enough distance. She realized that Dang Khoa in this life still retains the sophistication and intelligence in business that she was passionate about in her previous life - but this time, she sees it with more sober eyes, not letting herself get carried away by emotions.

"This weekend the company is holding a small gala to celebrate the launch of the project," Dang Khoa continued, his voice a bit hesitant, "I... can I be your companion that evening?"

Khanh Linh paused for a moment. In my previous life, here That was the evening when she and Dang Khoa officially started their relationship, after a romantic dance under the lights and sweet confessions. This time, she doesn't want to rush to repeat the old path, but also understands that refusing outright can make everything awkward, affecting common work.

"The gala is a common event for the whole project," she replied, cleverly avoiding the direct question, "I think I will attend with the whole design team, including Bao Ngoc. Anyway, this is also an opportunity for the whole team to bond more together."

A moment of disappointment flashed across Dang Khoa's eyes, but he quickly regained his familiar polite demeanor. "Then I'll see you at the gala."

After he left, Bao Ngoc, who had been quietly observing the entire conversation from the corner of the room, approached, his eyes full of teasing. "Do you have something with young master Dang Khoa? Looking at the way he looks at you, it's obvious that he has an idea."

"It's nothing," Khanh Linh waved her hand and laughed, "it's just a normal colleague relationship."

"Yeah, that's all I said," Bao Ngoc smiled, but her eyes flashed with something elusive — perhaps curiosity, perhaps a more complex emotion that she herself hadn't yet clearly recognized.

In the evening, when packing up her things to prepare to leave, Khanh Linh opened her notebook and wrote a few more notes: "Bao Ngoc - has been assigned the role of color coordinator, reacting positively. Dang Khoa - still pursuing like in the previous life, needs to continue to keep a tactful distance, avoiding affecting common work. Weekend gala - need to be careful, this is a sensitive time in the previous life."

She closed the book, looked out the window where the sunset dyed the city sky orange, feeling both relieved that everything was under control and anxious about what was waiting ahead - the weekend gala, where her previous life marked the first turning point that put her on the path to tragedy.

On the way home, she called Nguyen Thu Ha, her close friend since high school, who is currently working as an editor at a famous fashion magazine. In her previous life, Thu Ha was the only person who warned her about the abnormality in the relationship between Dang Khoa and Bao Ngoc, but at that time Khanh Linh dismissed that warning, thinking that her friend was just overthinking things.

"Hey, are you free this week? Let's go get coffee," Thu Ha shouted over the phone as soon as she picked up, her voice still as vibrant and straightforward as ever. "I haven't seen you for a long time. I heard you just accepted the position of creative director? Congratulations!"

"Thank you," Khanh Linh replied, smiling slightly when she heard the familiar voice of her most cherished friend. "I have a company gala this weekend. Let's meet for coffee afterward. I have a lot to talk about with you."

"What makes it sound so serious?" Thu Ha asked, her voice immediately turned curious. "Is it a romantic thing? I heard that young master Dang Khoa cares about you a lot."

Khanh Linh was silent for a moment, not knowing how much to share with her friend at this time. She can't tell Thu Ha yet about her reincarnation - it's too unbelievable, no one would dare to believe it if she told her - but she knows, Thu Ha will be one of the most reliable allies on the upcoming journey.

"Not really a romance," she replied, choosing carefully words, "I just... want to be more careful in all relationships, both work and love. Lately I often feel like there are things that seem good but have many potential risks that I can't foresee."

"You sound so philosophical," Thu Ha laughed, but then her voice lowered and became more serious. "But I understand what you mean. The upper class may look flashy, but inside it's very complicated. Just be careful, just call me if you need anything, I'm always here."

"Thank you," Khanh Linh said, her voice sincere, "I also want to ask you something — if in the future I intend to create my own fashion brand, not dependent on any corporation, what do you think?"

The other end of the line was silent for a moment because of surprise, then Thu Ha replied, her voice full of excitement. "I think that's a great idea! You have talent, you have vision, you just need enough resources and the right time. But why are you suddenly thinking of this, it's only been a few days since you signed the contract with Bao Tin?"

"I'm just thinking a little further," Khanh Linh replied, smiling slightly to cover up the seriousness behind the question. "Nothing is forever. I want to always have a way out, a foundation of my own so I don't have to depend completely on anyone."

"You've become more mature these days," Thu Ha commented, her voice mixed with surprise and pride. "Okay, if you really start your own brand in the future, remember to call me, I will help you communicate and promote as best I can."

The two chatted for a while more about trivial things in life before hanging up. Putting down the phone, Khanh Linh felt much more relieved — having a truly trustworthy friend, who will never turn her back no matter how the situation changes, is one of the most precious things she has learned to appreciate after everything she went through in her previous life.