Chapter 18 — Eighteen People, One Meal, One Divorce

She snorted coldly and then turned away, not looking at me anymore. Trieu Khai gritted his teeth and walked into the bedroom, returned a moment later, and threw a card and a small paper package onto the tea table.

“Here is your card, you know the password, this will be returned to you too.”

I opened the paper package, inside was a familiar gold necklace.

“Please take it back, I don't need it.”

"What you once gave me, I don't want to keep anymore. You can sell it or throw it away as you like."

“Want some money?” he smirked, his voice full of sarcasm.

“I just want to get it over with,” I said, looking straight at him.

“This rope is all the ‘good things’ you once gave me, but looking back now, behind all those things there is something else.”

“I don't want to carry it anymore, you keep it or leave it, I don't care.”

He looked at me for a long time, as if he wanted to say something but couldn't.

“You go, step out this door and don't come back.”

“Don't worry, I won't come back,” I put the card in my pocket, walked to the door, put my hand on the handle and paused for a second.

“Trieu Khai, if you still have any conscience, don't drag anyone else in.”

“You can call me a bad person or an ungrateful person.”

“But your mother's relatives don't have any grudges against me, I don't want to see their names appear on the news one day.”

He didn't answer, the air was silent as if it had been cut off. I walked out into the hallway, the light was a bit dark, but when my feet touched the tile floor, I felt strangely steady. Going down the stairs, I met a young woman holding a baby. She looked at me curiously and then at the door behind her. I just nodded slightly, then continued to walk down, without stopping. The wind in the yard blew strongly, I pulled my scarf a little higher. The phone vibrated and Lam Tinh texted: "Did you get your card yet?"

“I got it,” I replied, “the contract hasn't been signed yet, he refuses to change that clause.”

“Then don't sign,” she texted back, “you have the card in your hand and the statement, don't rush.”

I stood on the side of the road, looking at the milk tea shop opposite, on the glass door were the words "Happy New Year". I went with Trieu Khai before, he criticized it for being too sweet, saying it was something for childish girls. At that time I laughed, thinking he was just being a bit difficult. Now I understand, he never saw me as someone who needed to be loved, he only saw me as someone who could spend money and effort. I sent a photo of the contract to Lam Tinh, she marked each problematic point and then sent a few sample judgments.

“Don't be intimidated by the phrase 'the garage is in his name',” she said, “the law not only looks at the name, but also looks at where the money comes from.”

The bus stopped in front of me, I didn't get on, I called a taxi to go home. Getting in the car, the driver casually said: "It's very rare to go alone on Tet like you, there are all families out there."

“I'm also going to see my family,” I replied, my voice as light as the wind.

Outside the window, the apartment complex gradually receded, eventually becoming just a blur in the rearview mirror. When I got home, my mother was drying clothes on the balcony. As soon as she saw me, she quickly ran to open the door.

“What's wrong?” she asked, her voice filled with worry.

“I got my things back,” I held up the bag, trying to smile lightly.

She breathed a sigh of relief, her eyes reddening: "It doesn't bother you, does it?"

“There was a few arguments, but it's okay,” I said, then recounted what had just happened, including the amount of six hundred thousand and the risk warning.

My mother's face changed continuously, from Angry to the point of fear.

“That house… I thought they were gentle before,” she muttered, her voice choked.

My father sat on the sofa silently for a long time before saying a word.

“Call the police.”

I paused: “Dad?”

"You young people often think about things inside the house, so don't let the outside know," he said slowly.

“But there are things that cannot be hidden and can be overcome.”

“If that company has problems, sooner or later something will happen.”

"At that time, not only their family, but also our family will be involved. Don't your friends have acquaintances? Ask first, save whoever you can save."

That evening, Lam Tinh and her police friend and I met in a tea shop. His last name was Trieu, in his thirties, flipping through the pages of documents, his eyebrows furrowing more and more.

"This company, we did receive a complaint a while ago, and we are still investigating."

He spoke slowly, looking straight at me, "Your case is very typical, enticed by high interest rates, introduced by an acquaintance."

“To establish a case, the police need more specific evidence.”

“You can make a detailed report first, later if the prosecution will use it as evidence.”

“As for your personal money being transferred, you can sue your husband privately.”

He looked at me for a moment, his voice softened, "but right now the most important thing is to settle the divorce first."

"As for property, anything that can be fought over will be fought over."

"As for the other company, there is someone in charge of monitoring, you don't need to bear the burden alone."