Chapter 3 — Dead Man's Special Award

Nam helped Thu request an extract of the death certificate. The person who signed the paper was Dr. Son, whose real name appeared on the list of Minh Khang's shareholders under a shell company.

Thu did not want to believe that Huy was turned into a dead person to cover up an embezzlement case. But the numbers on the memory card don't lie. The total "consulting" amount is nearly equal to the fifty-two billion award.

They went to Huy's old apartment. The landlord said Huy checked out three weeks before the fire. In the drawer, there is also a tape recorder and a notebook recording the names of people who have withdrawn money.

The last page has a line: **The final recipient is not me.**

The recorder can only play one segment. Huy told someone: "I will submit all the data. If I disappear, find the ticket holder."

Thu turned over the ticket. “The ticket holder is you?”

Nam looked at the warning note. “Or the person chosen to plead guilty.”

Another lawyer came to meet Thu, claiming to be Huy's estate representative. He issued a will in which all assets, including the award, were left to director Minh Khang for "supporting his younger brother during difficult times."

Thu tore up the photocopy right in front of him.

That night, Huy's social network account posted a confession of embezzlement. The article included a video of Huy bowing his head, saying he had embezzled project money.

Thu recognized the spliced voice. Huy has a habit of lengthening final sounds when stressed; In the video, each sentence is cut too cleanly.

Nam took her to a friend's studio. They analyzed the noise and found the background sound of photocopiers, along with the error sound of the Minh Khang warehouse system.

Huy recorded the video in the warehouse, not where the company announced it.

Letter of decision to apply to work again at Minh Khang as a temporary auditor. Nam objected, but she only said: "Huy left the door. I have to find the key."

The next morning, the company's recruitment email was sent to her. The signer is Trong.

In the last line, Trong wrote: **We are very sorry for your loss.**

Thu did not sign the contract immediately. She asked to see Huy's old office, but Trong said that place was sealed. The letter asked about the filing cabinet, he said it was all burned. The way he answered so quickly made her believe otherwise.

Nam found a locksmith who used to work for Minh Khang. This person could open Huy's door without leaving a mark, but demanded that Thu hand over the ticket as a fee. She refused. Nam paid with his own funds, saying this was the last time he worked outside the contract.

That night, they opened Huy's room. The smell of smoke remained in the curtains, but the wall behind the bookcase was not burned. A hollow brick conceals a document box. Inside were photocopies of the IDs of dozens of workers, along with Huy's photos of each person.

Thu realized that the people in the photo were all retired employees but still had the project account in their name. Huy gathered evidence, not to denounce a number, but to prove that each person was deceived.

A stack of papers with the name **Duy** appeared at the end. Duy is the legal manager and also the one who sent white flowers to the funeral.

Thu heard the door downstairs. The two turned off the lights and hid behind the cabinet. Trong walked in with a woman. She said: "The ticket is locked. Just need the Will Clerk to finish."

Trong replied: "She will sign when she knows Huy has no way back."

Thu turns on the recorder. Nam signaled not to move. The woman dropped an envelope on the table and left.

When they got down, the envelope only had a photo of Huy tied up with a message: **Don't let your brother die a second time.**

Photo letter. She no longer just investigates faked deaths; she was racing against time for someone who might still be alive.