Chapter 17 — Champion Bodyguard of the Female President

After five days of persistent exploration in the northern border area, Bach Nguyen and Dinh Phong Vu finally found the whereabouts of old herbalist Khe, a simple wooden house deep in a remote valley, surrounded by rare medicinal plants. At first, Mr. Khe was extremely wary, even holding an old hunting gun ready when he saw a stranger approaching.

But thanks to the extensive knowledge of herbs that Bach Nguyen learned from his master, he gradually gained the old man's trust, proving that he was not a person with bad intentions but truly understood and respected the old man's traditional profession. After many hours of conversation, when Bach Nguyen frankly explained the true purpose of the trip — not to denounce his business activities, but to find out the truth behind a poisoning incident targeting a respected businessman — Mr. Khe finally agreed to cooperate, on the condition that his identity must be kept absolutely confidential from the public.

"I remember that man very clearly," Mr. Khe said, his voice deep and hoarse with age. "He came to me about four months ago, asked to buy Blood Van Thao in large quantities, paying three times the market price, without bargaining. I originally suspected the intended use, but because the money was too attractive, and he pledged to only use it for medicinal research, I sold it." He paused, his eyes dull with age suddenly narrowing cautiously. "These past few days, there has been a stranger wandering around this area, asking about an old man selling medicine. You should leave quickly, don't let anyone know you came looking for me."

"Did you keep any evidence of that transaction? Receipts, text messages, or pictures?" Bach Nguyen asked, trying to keep his voice calm even though his heart was surging with hope and a premonition of insecurity at the warning just now.

Old Khe nodded, rummaged through an old wooden box, took out a handwritten transaction notebook and a few old messages saved on an old brick phone. "I have a habit of recording every major transaction, in case there is a dispute later. Here, the phone number he used to contact, and the license plate number of the driver who brought him there."

This is the key evidence that Bach Nguyen and Tue Lam have been searching for weeks - a direct, specific, verifiable link between Luong Khac Viet and the poison used to harm Mr. Kieu Thanh Nghia. After convincing Mr. Khe to agree to be a witness under the protection of the law, in exchange for a lenient sentence for his previous illegal medicinal herb trade, Bach Nguyen and Phong Vu hastily arranged to return to Saigon that night, not forgetting to instruct a nephew of Mr. Khe to stay and watch around the house, in case the strangers came back.

On the return flight, Bach Nguyen called to tell Tue Lam the good news, his voice filled with rare excitement. "We already have direct evidence. Lao Khe agreed to be a witness, has all the records and uncle Viet's contact phone number when making the transaction. Just compare this phone number with his records, we will have enough grounds to bring the case to light."

"How wonderful." Tue Lam's voice was full of hope over the phone, but there was still a bit of anxiety that wouldn't leave. "Please go home quickly, we need to hand over this evidence to lawyer Khang as soon as possible before anything unexpected happens. I have a strange feeling, I've been feeling restless these past few days."

"I'll be back as soon as the plane lands," he reassured her, even though he couldn't explain why Mr. Khe's warning lingered in his mind the entire flight. "Don't leave the company or apartment alone, even for a short distance. I'll call you back as soon as I get to the airport."

But that call, even though it was made through a supposedly secure line, was accidentally intercepted by a sophisticated eavesdropping device that To Manh Kha had silently installed in Tue Lam's telecommunications system in advance, a backup measure he had prepared in case an insider in the company was discovered - and was also the source of the strangers who had been loitering around Mr. Khe's house in recent days, always just one step behind Bach Nguyen.

Luong Khac Viet, after listening to the call recording, his face darkened, his hands shook not because of fear but because of anger mixed with despair rising up to his neck. Thirty years of patience, everything he has worked hard to build, can now collapse just because an old drug dealer foolishly kept a few pages of the books. He immediately summoned To Manh Kha to meet privately, his voice filled with fierce desperation. "They have found Mr. Khe and have evidence of the transaction in hand. If they let them turn that evidence over to lawyers and authorities, it will all be over."

"What do you want me to do?" To Manh Kha asked, his eyes clearly showing readiness for any cruel command, but in his voice there was still a bit of unrelieved bitterness from his previous failure - the time he had to leave three subordinates behind and jump a rope to escape the apartment in the pouring rain.

"Arrest Kieu Tue Lam tonight, before that boy can return to Saigon," Luong Khac Viet ordered, his voice cold and chilling. "We will use her to force the boy to hand over all the evidence in exchange for her life. Once we have the evidence in hand, it won't be too late to deal with both of them."

To Manh Kha slightly curled his lips, a cold murderous aura flashed in his eyes. "Last time I despised my enemy and let him corner me to the point that I had to run away like a wild dog. This time, I want to deal with him personally, not through anyone else's hands. You only need to take care of the evidence, leave the rest to me."

That night, when Tue Lam had just left Khang's lawyer's office after discussing a plan to receive evidence from Bach Nguyen, her car was suddenly blocked in the middle of the road by two large trucks approaching from both sides. Before the accompanying security team could react, a group of armed people rushed in, controlled the entire security team, broke the car window and dragged Tue Lam out amid panicked screams.

"Let me go!" Tue Lam struggled to resist fiercely, her nails scratched the wrist of the man who was holding her tightly, the heel of her high heel kicked another man's shin, causing him to curse. But before the overwhelming power of the professionally trained kidnapping group, all her resistance quickly became futile. Right before a cloth soaked in anesthetic was pressed tightly against her nose, she had time to do the only thing within her reach - forcefully throw the handbag she was carrying on her shoulder into the roadside sewer, where the phone inside was still with positioning turned on, before her consciousness sank into darkness.

When Bach Nguyen had just landed in Saigon, the phone call he received was not a call from Tue Lam as scheduled, but a cold text message from an unidentified phone number: "She's at our place. If you want her to be alive, bring all the evidence you have to warehouse number 7, East Industrial Park, alone, before dawn. Less than four hours left. Report to the police, she's dead."

Bach Nguyen's whole body froze for a moment, eighteen years ago rushing back to his mind - a night like this, the same suffocating feeling of helplessness, when he stood in the middle of the yard, watching the fire devour the people he loved the most without being able to do anything. His fingers tightened around the frayed red thread on his wrist, like a reflex to find the only fulcrum left from his childhood. Then a cold anger rose in his heart, so strong that even Phong Vu standing next to him shivered at the murderous look that suddenly flashed in his junior brother's normally calm eyes. This time, he absolutely will not let that painful history repeat itself again.

"What are you going to do?" Phong Vu asked, his eyes not leaving Bach Nguyen's suddenly changed face.

Bach Nguyen squeezed the phone until his knuckles turned white. "I will arrive at the rendezvous point. But I will not go empty-handed, and I also have no intention of letting them achieve their goal easily."

He immediately called lawyer Tran Huu Khang and briefly explained the emergency situation. "I need you to immediately back up all the evidence we have just collected in an absolutely safe place, and at the same time prepare documents to transfer to the investigation agency as soon as I give the signal. But absolutely do not call the police loudly right now, otherwise Tue Lam's life will be in danger."

"Are you planning to handle this alone? It's too dangerous," lawyer Khang protested over the phone.

"This is the only way to ensure her safety at this time." Nothing in Bach Nguyen's voice left any room for argument. "But I need you to quietly arrange forces outside the industrial park, ready to rush in as soon as I send out a safety signal. Phong Vu will contact you directly to coordinate. In addition, I need you to ask someone to check the location signal of Tue Lam's phone. Even though it is turned off, it may still be near the place where she was arrested."

Meanwhile, in a dark, damp warehouse in the eastern industrial park of the city, Tue Lam gradually woke up from the effects of the anesthetic, her mind still dizzy, her hands and feet tied tightly to an iron pole in the middle of the warehouse. The only light in that vast space came from a hanging light bulb, creating flickering, threatening shadows around. Even though her whole body was still numb, she still tried to force herself to stay awake, her eyes silently scanning the detention space - counting the number of footsteps echoing from the rolling door, memorizing the location of a small dusty window near the ceiling, and the faint words painted on a nearby package, "WAREHOUSE 7 — EAST LINE", as if accumulating the smallest pieces of data that could become a weapon if she still had the chance to use it.

"Are you awake?" a cold voice rang out from the darkness. To Manh Kha stepped out, turning the familiar stick in his hand. "You can rest assured and wait for your bodyguard lover to bring a gift to ransom you back."

Tue Lam raised her head, her eyes still hazy from the anesthetic, but still shone with unyielding resilience. "You will not escape. Bach Nguyen will come, and you will pay for everything you have done."

To Manh Kha smiled faintly, bent down to her eye level, his eyes glanced at the silver bracelet on her wrist with contempt. "Still having this childish thing after all these years. So touching." He stood up straight, not showing any signs of worry at that threat. "But you should know, last time I let him escape because I still despised him. This time is different. If he doesn't show up by five o'clock in the morning, or dares to bring the police, I won't wait another minute, move you to another place immediately, and perhaps, he will never find you again."

He turned and walked out of the light, leaving Tue Lam alone in the cold darkness of the warehouse. She tried to twist her tied wrists, feeling the tight rope cutting into her skin, but could find no way to free herself. She carefully memorized the threat she had just heard—five o'clock in the morning, a second date if the first failed—perhaps that detail would be useful if she had the chance to pass it on to anyone.

She closed her eyes, trying to dispel the fear that was gradually taking over her mind, replaced by the image of Bach Nguyen with his steadfast eyes every time he promised to protect her, the image of the frayed red thread on his wrist, and the naive words of a nine-year-old boy under the old poinciana tree: no matter where I had to go, I will always come back to protect you. She believes that no matter how dangerous the situation was, her Little Bear will find a way to save her from this place, just like the promise he had kept for the past eighteen years since that fateful night of fire.