Chapter 8 — CEO Phong, Stop Chasing Her—She Already Has a Marriage Certificate

The lawyer's office is located on the twelfth floor of an office building near Truc Bach Lake, the space is quiet, luxurious but not ostentatious. Nhã Kỳ sat opposite lawyer Đặng Việt Anh - Tú Anh's old classmate whom she introduced, specializing in divorce cases in the business world - clutching a cup of tea that had long cooled.

"Have you thought carefully?" The lawyer asked, his voice calm but not lacking in sincere concern. "Divorcing from a large family like the Phong family is not as simple as signing a form. There will be many issues related to property, child custody, and public pressure that you need to mentally prepare for."

"I thought very carefully," Nhã Kỳ replied, her voice so calm that even she was surprised at her own steadfastness. "I don't want to dispute my husband's property. I just want custody of the children, or at least the right to meet and take full care of the children. For the rest, I will take care of my life with my own abilities."

The lawyer looked at her with eyes filled with surprise and admiration. Most female clients in similar situations often come with the mindset of demanding compensation for the years of sacrifice, but Nhã Kỳ chose a different path - the path of self-esteem, although much more difficult.

"Then I will draft the application according to your wishes. But I advise you to have an independent financial reserve before officially applying, to avoid falling into a passive position." The lawyer added, handing her a brochure with instructions on the steps to prepare.

Leaving the lawyer's office, Nhã Kỳ went straight to a small nearby coffee shop, where she made an appointment to meet Lâm Bảo Duy - an old friend from student days, who has now become the creative director and investor of an independent fashion incubation fund, specializing in supporting young designers with potential but lacking start-up capital.

"Long time no see, Nhã Kỳ." Bảo Duy stood up and shook her hand with a friendly smile. "Hearing Tú Anh say you want to return to design, I'm so happy. You know, back then I always regretted that you didn't continue pursuing this path. I still remember your graduation collection until now."

Nhã Kỳ opened her bag, took out an old leather notebook, and placed it on the table. "I brought along some old sketches, and also some new ideas I've come up with in the past week. I don't know if they're still worth anything, but I want to try."

Bảo Duy carefully turned each page of the notebook, his eyes gradually became more serious and focused. "Nhã Kỳ, these drawings are not outdated at all. On the contrary, they have a very unique, very personal design language - something that many young designers today are trying to find but not everyone has. If you seriously want to come back, I am ready to support you in building your own brand, from the first steps."

"I'm serious," Nhã Kỳ replied without any hesitation. "More than ever."

Bảo Duy ordered more coffee for both of them, then told Nhã Kỳ about the journey of the incubation fund he was running, about the young designers he had helped, some of whom now had their own brands appearing at international fashion weeks. "This industry is very harsh, Nhã Kỳ. You don't have to have talent to be successful. It takes perseverance, a little luck, and most importantly, you have to find your own story to tell through each design."

"My story..." Nhã Kỳ mused, "is probably the story of a woman who learned to stand up after spending all her youth on others, now returning to find herself." Bảo Duy nodded, his eyes full of sympathy. "It's a story powerful enough to touch many people, especially women who have been going through similar situations to you. I think, if you turn your own experience into design language, that will be what makes NK Atelier completely different from other brands on the market."

They discussed until late afternoon about specific steps — from building their first collection, finding a suitable garment factory, to positioning the brand in a market that already has many big names. Bảo Duy proposed the brand name "NK Atelier", taken from the first two letters of her name, simple but personal, easy to remember.

Nhã Kỳ returned home when it was dark, filled with a new feeling that she had not experienced for a long time - the feeling of someone who is truly in control of the direction of her life, instead of just revolving around meeting other people's expectations.

In parallel with preparing the divorce documents and finding a way to return to the design profession, Nhã Kỳ also began to quietly build an independent financial position. She gradually withdrew the personal savings she had saved over the years from family expenses — not to hoard selfishly, but because she had always had the habit of saving a small amount each month, just in case something needed it, a habit that now turned out to be an important foundation for her independence plan.

She also began selling some of the jewelry and designer handbags she rarely used — not gifts with special sentimental meaning, but items she received as part of the "wifely appearance" that the Phong family required her to have when appearing in public. She deposited the proceeds into a separate bank account, in her name alone, completely separate from all common assets of her husband's family.

In the evening, when Chính Nguyên made a video call from Singapore for Bảo Nhiên to chat with his mother, Nhã Kỳ still maintained a calm appearance, smiling and talking to her daughter as if nothing had happened. She chirped about the places she visited, the new toys she bought, without mentioning the birthday party or the name Diệp Uyển Thi at all - perhaps for a six-year-old child, it was just one of countless fleeting events, leaving no special impression worth recounting to her mother.

Chính Nguyên, standing behind his daughter in the call frame, did not notice anything unusual in his wife's voice or eyes. He only asked a few brief questions about housework and his mother's health, then hung up to continue an evening meeting with his partner. That familiar indifference, this time, no longer made Nhã Kỳ as heartbroken as before - it only strengthened her determination about the path she had chosen.

That night, before going to bed, Nhã Kỳ opened her notebook and added to her list: "Complete my first collection in three months. File for divorce after Chính Nguyên returned from Singapore, so as not to interrupt his important work — this is the last respect I have for a marriage that once existed, not because I was hesitant."

She closed the notebook, turned off the light, and fell asleep with a much lighter mind than the previous nights - not because the pain had completely subsided, but because she had found a clear direction to move forward, instead of forever being immersed in unknown torment.

In the following days, Nhã Kỳ began to spend most of her time in her old office, turning it into a miniature design studio. She woke up earlier than usual, taking advantage of the hours when Bảo Nhiên was still asleep or at school to sketch new designs, combining old ideas from her student days with the experiences and emotions she had accumulated during the seven years of being a wife and mother. She realized that those seemingly wasted years have now become the richest source of inspiration for her designs - patience, endurance, and recovery from trauma, all of which can be told through every stitch, every fabric choice, every bold cut that she has never dared to try before.

Mrs. Ngọc Hân, occasionally passing by the office, saw her daughter-in-law working hard at the drawing table. She seemed a bit surprised but did not object. "Are you drawing something?" She asked, her voice not reproachful as Nhã Kỳ feared.

"Yes, I'm trying to redo some old designs from when I was in school, mom. It's just a personal preference," Nhã Kỳ replied, not wanting to reveal too much about her real plans at this time.

Mrs. Ngọc Hân nodded, remained silent for a moment, then added, her voice somewhat distant: "Once upon a time, I also had a personal passion, before becoming a daughter-in-law in this family. I left it behind, never regretting it publicly, but never really forgetting it. Just do what you feel is necessary, Nhã Kỳ, don't let yourself be like me." Having finished speaking, she turned and left, leaving Nhã Kỳ standing silently watching, her heart aroused with a sudden sympathy for this inherently strict woman.