Chapter 1 — Diary of Someone Who Shouldn't Exist

My mother is the general director of a listed corporation, has both money and power, and loves me like her life. What about dad? He had an affair right in the marriage, then just because his mistress was pregnant with a daughter, he beat her to the point of having a miscarriage, and was finally sent to prison. That's why, when the judge stood in front of many people and asked me if I wanted to live with my father or mother, everyone thought this custody battle was just a formality, the result was obvious. Until... I walked over my mother's shaking hands, firmly choosing... dad. The whole courtroom was silent. No one could believe the words that just came out of my mouth. In my previous life, I chose my mother - the woman who loved me to the core. As soon as I blurted out that I craved a cream cake in Nam City, she immediately bought the whole store. I complained about the sun being too hot during military training, so she immediately ordered four helicopters to spread nets to shade me from the sun. Afraid that I would have a hard time eating at school, she loaded VND 100,000 directly into my meal card. Mom turned me into a real princess, clearing away all obstacles on my life's path. But... in this life, I don't want to have anything to do with you anymore. My mother - a powerful female CEO, the most brilliant woman in Hai Thanh, her tears are now like a broken dike, rushing non-stop. She trembled and reached out to me: "Nim Niem, come to mom..." On my right, is my father - Lam Kien Quoc. A man was just released from prison ahead of schedule for intentionally causing injury. Having an affair, having a miscarriage, doing all kinds of dehumanizing things, the bad reputation spread throughout the city. At this moment, he folded his arms and leaned against the chair, his eyes full of contempt looking at me. Everyone thinks this is a no-brainer question. But I smiled and firmly said: "I choose dad!" As soon as the words ended, the entire courtroom seemed to explode. All eyes were on me - surprise, disbelief, and... waiting to see how I was going to play this game.

“Is this girl's brain waterlogged?” “How could she choose such a scumbag?” “Perhaps he was threatened by his father!” In the courtroom, the jury whispered, each word was like a knife stabbing into their ears. My father finally recovered from the shock. He stared at me, a look of surprise that flashed and was immediately replaced by hatred. He spat on the ground, gritted his teeth and scolded: "You're unlucky! Raising you is a waste of money! Raising a pig's head is more valuable to me than raising you - you bad girl!" My mother - the woman who once called rain and wind in the business world, known as "the strong woman without tears" - was completely devastated at this moment. She disregarded her image, rushed forward, grabbed my shoulder tightly, her voice trembling and muffled: "Tham Niem! Do you know what you are saying?!" “Have you forgotten what kind of person he is?!” She almost screamed, her voice hoarse: "Because he was dating another woman, he left me in the car in the middle of the hot noon sun, causing me to go into heat stroke and have to go to the emergency room!" "Because he loved gambling, he left his child in the park all night and was almost kidnapped!" "For a few hundred dong in hospital fees, he let me have a fever and convulsions, leaving me alone in the house!" “Have you forgotten all of this?!” I looked at my mother's face full of tears, her makeup smudged, and calmly replied, the corners of her lips curling up in a faint smile: "I haven't forgotten." “But I still choose him.” As soon as the words ended, my mother's face immediately turned pale pale, as if blood had been drained. She staggered, but luckily my uncle was able to catch her. “Tham Niem!” He looked at me, so angry that he was trembling all over, shouting: "Are you crazy?! You chose him?!" “You chose someone who treated you like a burden for the past sixteen years?!” “For your mother, you don't even need your life... Is that how you repay her?!” I coldly pushed his hand away, without a wave on my face. “This is my choice.”

In front of the courthouse, layers of reporters had already crowded in, flash lights flashing like a storm. “General Manager Mo, what is your opinion on your daughter's decision?” "Mr. Lam, did you use some trick to gain custody?" My father was overwhelmed by this scene, as if he was being praised to the heavens. The tyrannical man put his arm around my shoulder and smiled arrogantly in front of the camera: "What's the trick? Blood is deep in love, do you understand?" “My daughter, of course chooses her biological father!” After speaking, he even glanced proudly at my mother - her face was pale, her lips trembling. He sneered, his voice full of sarcasm: "Mo Uyen, see? No matter how much money you have, you can't buy my daughter's heart!" At that moment, a figure suddenly rushed out from the group of reporters. In his hand, a dagger sparkled, his eyes were red, as if crazy: "Lin Kien Quoc! You animal! You killed my sister, you don't even want to live today!" I recognized him - the younger brother of the woman whose father had miscarried her child years ago! My father's face immediately changed color. He almost reflexively pulled me back, shouting: "Nim Niem! Get out of the way!" But in that moment, a white shadow like the wind passed by. A strong force pushed me aside. “Poof!” — a cold sound rang out. My mother… stood in front of me. Fresh blood immediately stained her pure white business suit red. She looked at me, her lips trembling but her eyes were radiant, as if a burden had been lifted: "Nim Niem... baby... okay... so good..." After saying that, her body went limp and fell right at my feet. Surrounding judicial police quickly responded, controlled and disarmed the attacker. I stood still amidst the terrified eyes, looked down at my bloody shoes, frowned slightly, and took a half step back to the side. Then I grabbed the hand of the man next to me and said calmly: "Dad, let's go... let's go home." I followed Lam Kien Quoc back to the place he called "home" — a dirty, messy apartment filled with the smell of old beer and rotten food. Moldy bottles and food boxes were scattered all over the floor, and flies were buzzing. He kicked a beer can hard in the way, the metal can rolled under his foot, then roughly pushed me inside. “Clack” — the door slammed shut, locked tightly. “Where is the money?” He held out his hand in front of me, his voice thick with alcohol. I quietly took down my bag, neither speaking nor handing it over. He immediately grabbed the briefcase, throwing all its contents onto the floor. A few books, a few pens, and a family photo fell around. He bent down and picked up the photo. In that moment, his eyes turned red, then he tore loudly - the photo was torn to shreds, pieces falling apart. “Mo Uyen, that cheap woman, didn't give you any money?!” His voice was hoarse with anger, almost roaring. Seeing that I was still calm, he suddenly waved his hand and slapped me hard. A loud “chat!” rang out, my head was thrown to one side, my cheeks burned. "Fuck you! I'm asking you! Are you dumb?!" Without waiting for me to recover, he grabbed my hair, pulled it back, and then "bang" - slammed my head hard against the rough wall. "You think big and tough, right? You dare to hide money from me? Or are you on that woman's side to harm me?!" A stream of warm liquid flowed down from my forehead, sticky and fishy. My vision was blurred, my ears were ringing, every sound seemed to be drowned in water. In a daze, memories suddenly rushed back... That year, the winter was bitterly cold. My fever reached forty degrees, my whole body convulsed, and my consciousness was blurred. My mother was abroad discussing a cooperation contract worth tens of billions, but when she heard the news that I was in critical condition, she immediately left everything behind and walked out of the meeting room, leaving behind a long row of stunned faces of foreign directors. She jumped on a private plane, sat for more than ten hours straight, just to come back and hug me. That night, she held me in her arms, shaking and crying, as if the world was about to collapse. Only later did I learn that that deal... was my mother's three-year passion.

"Speak! What is your purpose?!" Lam Kien Quoc's angry roar pulled me back to reality. He looked at me, his eyes full of suspicion and hatred. I remained silent. That silence seemed to add fuel to the fire. He raised his foot, "bang" — kicked me straight in the stomach. The pain spread throughout the body, curled tightly in every muscle. My breath caught in my throat, I crouched down and hugged my stomach, but my eyes were still coldly looking at him... I convulsed on the floor, my stomach cramped as if someone was stirring inside, my breathing was chaotic, waves of sharp pain shot through my body. “Call Mo Uyen!” "Call now! Tell him you need money, the more the better!" I tremblingly took the phone and nodded slightly: "Okay... I'll call." I dialed the familiar number and quickly thought of the reason: "The school needs to pay 50 thousand to guarantee participation in the excellent student contest." But... the other end of the line only heard a cold voice: "The number you dialed is currently unreachable..." I hung up, then immediately dialed again, the result was still the same. “Maybe… Mom is in surgery, so she can't answer the phone.”