Chapter 9 — Fake Lover Turns Out to Be Fiancee

The rain had not completely stopped when Gia Khue called his father, his voice on the phone trembling with emotion and confusion. "Dad, I need to see you right now. It's very important."

Mr. Duong Khac Nguyen, hearing his daughter's strange voice, did not ask further but immediately agreed and arranged to meet at his home as soon as the two of them could arrange to move in the middle of the heavy rain.

Nearly an hour later, when the rain had subsided, Gia Khue and Bach Dang walked into the villa's living room together, where Mr. Khac Nguyen was waiting, holding a cup of tea that had cooled since then, eyes full of worry as he watched the two enter.

"What's the matter, child?" He asked, trying to keep his voice calm but unable to hide his tension.

Gia Khue said nothing, just quietly placed the two completely assembled pieces of jade pendant on the table in front of his father. Mr. Khac Nguyen looked down, his whole body suddenly stiffened, the tea cup in his hand almost fell to the ground, he had to quickly put it on the table to keep calm.

"This is..." He stammered, his eyes never leaving the jade piece, his trembling fingers reached out to gently touch the perfect seam of the two lovebird pieces. "This is indeed a pair of jade pendants from the past."

"Dad, please tell me." Gia Khue sat down opposite his father, his voice both determined and trembling. "What is this? Why does Bach Dang have a piece of jade that matches the piece my mother left for me?"

Mr. Khac Nguyen sighed, a sigh that contained twenty-five years of concealment. He motioned for them both to sit down, then began retelling the old story, his voice slowly as if he was going through each page of memories covered with dust over time.

"Twenty-five years ago, when Dad was still a young man just starting to build his career, he met a soul mate on a business trip to the northern mountains. That person was Huyen Van. At that time, he had not yet become the head of the Tieu Dao Coc sect, just an enthusiastic young disciple of the sect." He stopped and took a sip of cold tea. "We were sworn brothers, as close as flesh and blood. At that time, your mother had just given birth a few months ago, and Huyen Van had just adopted an anonymous baby boy found at the foot of the mountain. That was you, Bach Dang."

When Bach Dang heard this, his heart pounded, it felt like the origin of his life that he had never known for a long time was being gradually revealed.

"During a drink, we both half-jokingly and half-seriously promised each other that if the two children grow up to have compatible temperaments, we will get married, which will strengthen our brotherly bond." Mr. Khac Nguyen continued, his voice a bit nervous. "As a pledge, we broke a piece of jade passed down to the lovebirds, divided each person into half, and agreed that when the children grew up, they would use these two pieces of jade to recognize each other."

"So why didn't you ever tell me this?" Gia Khue asked, her voice choked with emotion and a bit of blame.

"Not long after that, my mother became seriously ill and passed away." Mr. Khac Nguyen bowed his head, his voice sad. "Dad devoted all his attention to taking care of you. Gradually, he had less contact with Huyen Van. He only heard that he had become the head of the sect and continued to live in seclusion in the mountains to raise a disciple. He kept the piece of jade pendant, intending that when you were old enough to tell this story, but the longer it lasted, the more scared I became. I was afraid that if I told you too soon, you would feel forced and wouldn't have a chance to find happiness on your own the way you wanted."

Gia Khue was silent, looking down at the two pieces of jade on the table without really seeing them anymore. She recalls her mother's vague words in her childhood memories about "the friend in the mountain" and "the old promise", all of which have now been pieced together into a complete story.

"So what about the piece of jade my mother left me? How did she know and give it to me before she passed away?" She continued asking.

"Your mother is the only person I confide in everything. Before she passed away, she told me to give the piece of jade to you as a souvenir. Perhaps my mother also hoped that one day that promise would be fulfilled, even if she didn't say it out loud." Mr. Khac Nguyen looked at Bach Dang, his eyes were complex and mixed with both guilt and emotion. "As for you, Bach Dang, you grew up healthy and talented like this. Huyen Van brothers must have put all their heart and soul into raising you."

Bach Dang bowed his head and bowed in accordance with the style of his sect. "Master always taught me to live uprightly, be kind, and not be ashamed of my heart. I didn't expect that the unfinished wish you mentioned before pushing me down the mountain was actually this marriage contract."

Mr. Khac Nguyen nodded, then suddenly burst out laughing, a laugh of relief mixed with emotion. "This old friend, he knows everything but doesn't say it straight from the beginning, just let the two of us explore it ourselves. It's true that Huyen Van's personality is that he likes to let things happen naturally rather than rigid arrangements."

Gia Khue looked at his father, then turned to Bach Dang and let out a short laugh, half amused and half unable to believe his own ears. The man sitting next to her, who just a few days ago she dragged in to pretend to be her boyfriend on a blind date, now turned out to be the fiance that had been destined for her since before she was even born - think about it, the most ironic "fake boyfriend" drama of her life turned out to be the real person in the most ridiculous way possible.

"So now, what should we do?" Gia Khue asked, her voice genuinely confused for the first time since the story began.

Mr. Khac Nguyen waved his hand, his voice serious but warm. "I don't force you two to get married immediately just because of a promise from twenty-five years ago. Love matters must be left to you two to decide. But I think, at least now you two should call brother Huyen Van to let him know, so that he can feel secure, and also so that you two can better understand each other's situation."

Bach Dang nodded, took out the phone that Gia Khue had instructed on how to call before, and tremblingly dialed the only contact number that his master had told him to use in case of emergency, a phone number of the ranger station near the foot of the mountain that could transfer messages to Tieu Dao Coc.

The person on duty at the ranger station answered the phone, his voice was somewhat sleepy because it was late at night. "Hello, Vo Danh ranger station please listen."

"Uncle, I am Bach Dang, a disciple of Tieu Dao Coc. I need to ask you to go up the mountain to tell my master something urgent." Bach Dang said, trying to keep his voice calm.

"Hey, Mr. Bach Dang? The director told me that if you call back, you must report it immediately. I'll go right away." The station operator replied, then quickly turned off the phone.

The three people sat waiting in the living room, an atmosphere of tension mixed with suspense permeating the space. Nearly an hour later, the phone rang, an unknown number appeared on the screen. Bach Dang quickly picked up the phone and turned on the speaker so that both Mr. Khac Nguyen and Gia Khue could listen.

"Is that Bach Dang?" Master Huyen Van's familiar voice rang out over the transmission line, a bit muffled, but still as dignified as ever.

"Master, I have found two pieces of jade pendant that fit together." Bach Dang said immediately, without beating around the bush. "I was at Senior Tang's house. He told me about the old engagement agreement between master and him. Why didn't master tell me directly from the beginning?"

The other end of the line was silent for a moment, then a cheerful laugh rang out. "If you speak frankly, there's nothing interesting anymore. I'm just afraid that if I tell you in advance, you will reluctantly go down the mountain to find someone you've never met, and then treat that person as an obligation, not with sincerity. I want you to experience it yourself, feel it yourself, and then decide for yourself."

Mr. Khac Nguyen, hearing his old friend's voice on the phone, could not contain his emotions and took the phone from Bach Dang's hand. "Huyen Van, twenty-five years later, you still haven't changed your personality, you just like to beat around the bush and challenge others."

"It's Khac Nguyen, your voice still sounds as healthy as before." Master Huyen Van laughed loudly. "I heard that your daughter and my disciple have met, and the jade pieces have been reassembled, so it seems like our old promise has a chance of being fulfilled."

"So what do you plan to do now? Are you going to go down the mountain?" Mr. Khac Nguyen asked.

"It's not the right time." Huyen Van replied, her voice becoming thoughtful. "Let the two children get to know each other first. We old people should not interfere too much. When fate is ripe, I will automatically go down the mountain."

The call ended, leaving all three people with many mixed and indescribable emotions. Gia Khue looked at Bach Dang and smiled slightly. "Your master sounds so funny."

"My master is always like that, preferring to let things happen naturally rather than rigid arrangements." Bach Dang replied, feeling relieved after hearing his adoptive father's familiar voice echoing from far away.

That call, and the meaningful answer that director Huyen Van sent back over the phone, opened a completely new chapter in the relationship between Bach Dang and Gia Khue, a relationship that is no longer simply that of bodyguard and master, but of two people who are gradually learning to accept a destiny that has been written for a long time, in their own very own way.