Chapter 8 — Between Two Worlds: A Bride Exchanged for a Dumpling

In the largest house in Bai Tro village, where Village Chief Ma Dac Uy still maintained a more prosperous life than most villagers thanks to his habit of cutting down on the relief food allocated from above, the atmosphere in recent days had become heavier than usual. He sat in front of a tray of rice containing both dried meat and wine - luxuries that no one in the village dared to dream of - but his taste buds seemed to have lost their appetite because of the concern that had been lingering in his mind for the past few weeks: the name Ky Thua An.

From a wanderer of unknown origin, in just a few short months, Thua An built a business that made even Ma Dac Uy, who had governed Bai Tro village for many years, feel guilty. His warehouse is growing, his workforce is growing, and most importantly, his prestige in the hearts of the villagers is far surpassing the position of village chief that Ma Dac Uy holds. People now go to "Ky Ky" whenever they encounter difficulties, instead of going to the village chief's door as before, which seriously threatens his power and dignity.

"Secret treasure vault in abandoned warehouse floor." Ma Dac Uy repeated that story over and over in his head, the more he thought about it, the more unbelievable it became. He had lived in Bai Tro village since he was young, and knew well the fortune of the rich Duong family who starved to death last year - that family was rich, but not to the extent that they could hide a vault of wealth enough to support such a large business for many months without running out. There is something wrong with this story, and Ma Dac Uy, with his inherently suspicious and greedy nature, decides to find out the truth.

He called his most loyal employee, a man named Tu, who was famous for being clever and not afraid to do shady things if he was paid well. "You try to sneak into Mr. Ky's family and work for him," Ma Dac Uy instructed, his voice low even though there were only two people in the room. "I don't need you to do anything too much, just quietly observe, see where he really gets his wealth from, where he often goes at night, what he does. Every month I will pay you double what he pays."

Ga Tu nodded and agreed without thinking much. A few days later, he came to apply for a job as a porter in Thua An's labor team, with a simple, hard-working appearance that made no one suspicious. Thua An, even though he was naturally cautious, had no reason to refuse a job applicant when he needed more manpower, so he accepted him to work with the others, only instructing the managers to keep a closer eye on newcomers.

In the first days of work, Ga Tu appeared diligent, showed no suspicious signs, and gradually gained the trust of those around him. But late at night, when everyone was asleep, he secretly followed the direction Thua An usually went - towards the old warehouse located separately at the edge of the land, a place few people frequented because of ghost rumors from the time when the rich Duong family was still alive.

One night, Ga Tu hid behind a dry bush, holding his breath as he watched Thua An enter that warehouse alone, closing the door carefully. He crept closer, peering through the gap in the rotten wooden wall, just in time to see a strange light blue light flashing from the inner corner of the room, then disappearing immediately afterwards. He rubbed his eyes, not sure if he was mistaken or not, but one thing was certain: it was not the light of any ordinary oil lamp or fire.

He intended to move closer to see more clearly, but at that moment, a stray dog lurking nearby suddenly barked loudly, causing him to panic and quickly retreat into the darkness before being discovered. The next night, he returned to report to Ma Dac Uy about what he witnessed, even though he could not clearly explain what the phenomenon was.

Ma Dac Uy finished listening, his eyebrows furrowed tightly. A strange light in the dead of night, a warehouse that was always carefully locked, and an unusually wealthy inheritance of unknown origin - all these fragmentary clues made him even more convinced that there was some big secret behind the story of the "wealth vault" that Thua An kept spreading. It could be sorcery, it could be a connection with some force that he doesn't understand, or worse, it could be that Thua An is secretly trading prohibited goods that, if discovered, would be enough to confiscate his entire estate and punish him for a serious crime.

"Just keep watching," Ma Dac Uy ordered Ga Tu, his voice full of calculation. "I want to know exactly what that strange light is, and I also want you to pay attention to see if anyone from other places comes to do business with him. A person of unknown origin, suddenly so unusually rich, must be suspicious."

Not only stopping at monitoring Ga Tu, Ma Dac Uy also secretly asked people to inquire about the families who had sold antiques to Thua An, trying to find inconsistencies in the story. He discovered a remarkable detail: the amount of money and food that Thua An paid for those antiques, although generous compared to the famine situation, was still much lower than how large the secret treasure trove had to be to be able to support all of his relief activities and expand his business. There was a logical gap where Ma Dac Uy himself, although not smart enough to deduce the truth, was sharp enough to realize that something doesn't fit.

Rumors about Ma Dac Uy's scrutiny sooner or later reached Thua An's ears, through a person in the work team who was acquainted with the family of the village chief's clerk. When he heard the story, Thua An did not show any signs of panic, but in his heart he clearly understood that this was what he had been afraid of for a long time - quick wealth is always accompanied by probing eyes, and once Ma Dac Uy, the man in charge of the local power, began to pay attention, things would no longer be as simple as before.

That night, when he told Tieu Mien about what he heard, he saw that his wife was also worried. "Do you think Ga Tu is working as a spy for Ma Dac Uy?" she asked, her voice filled with caution.

"Very likely," Thua An replied thoughtfully. "From now on, we need to be more careful in everything, especially when going in and out of the warehouse at night. I will think of a more reasonable story to explain the source of this wealth, to avoid giving Ma Dac Uy an excuse to cause trouble."

Tieu Mien nodded, held her husband's hand tightly, her eyes determined. "No matter what happens, we will face it together. You have helped countless people in this village, I believe that reason will be on our side."

But both understand that, in a world where power and greed often overwhelm reason, that belief will still have to go through many tough challenges ahead.

A few days later, Tieu Ha returned from a purchasing trip, bringing news that made the whole family more wary. While visiting a neighboring village, she overheard the story of an old acquaintance, saying that the clerk under Ma Dac Uy had secretly inquired everywhere about the "wealth vault" of Master Ky, and even hinted to a few families who had sold antiques that if they were willing to tell the "truth", the village chief would not prosecute them for hiding previously undeclared heirloom assets. That was clearly a pressure tactic to extract more information, although not all families were easily swayed by that enticement.

"This Ma Dac Uy is not as simple as I thought," Tieu Ha commented, her voice filled with worry. "He is not just suspicious, but is actually trying every way to create a story unfavorable for his brother-in-law. We must prepare countermeasures before he acts, otherwise we will be passive."

Thua An nodded, mentally reassessing the entire situation. He realized that the story of "secret wealth vault" alone would not be able to stand up forever under the increasingly intense scrutiny of a powerful and motivated man like Ma Dac Uy. He needs a different story, more coherent, more reasonable, strong enough to withstand all questioning, and also needs to strengthen relationships that can protect him once a direct conflict occurs. That night, lying next to Tieu Mien, he lay awake for a long time thinking about his next steps, understanding that the battle to maintain his inheritance and secret had just begun.