Chapter 26 — Female Lawyer and Torn Will

Three months after the confession in the sunset garden, Duy Bach officially proposed to Tue Minh in a private evening in the small apartment where she lived, not fancy or extravagant, but simple and sincere just like him. He knelt down, his hands trembling as he opened the small box containing a simple but delicate ring, his eyes filled with sincerity and suspense.

"Tue Minh, from the day we met through a turbulent case, you taught me that true justice lies not only in the law, but also in the way we choose to live and love," he said, his voice choked with emotion. "I want to spend the rest of my life building a real home with you, where both of us, who have lacked a complete family in our own ways, can find that together, every day that passes. Do you agree to be my wife?"

Happy tears rolled down Tue Minh's face as she nodded, unable to speak in that emotional moment. "I do," she finally said, her voice trembling with utter happiness. "I agree, Duy Bach, with all my heart, without any hesitation."

The ring, when Tue Minh looked closer under the light, had a simple but sophisticated design, the small stone in the middle was cut in a shape reminiscent of a piece of paper assembled from many separate parts - a detail that Duy Bach had custom-made at his request at a familiar jeweler.

"I want this ring to have a special meaning," he explained when he saw her eyes land on the unusual design. "It symbolizes our story — starting from seemingly irreparable broken pieces, but eventually being pieced together into something more complete, more beautiful than ever."

Tue Minh hugged him, tears rolling down her eyes because she was touched by the sophistication and sincerity in every little detail that he had dedicated his time to preparing. "I love you," she whispered. "And I love how you always turn the seemingly most painful things in our journey into beautiful symbols for the future."

The good news about the engagement quickly spread to close people who had gone through the recent tumultuous journey with them. Anh Vu and Thanh Nha were the first to come to congratulate, bringing small but meaningful gifts. "You and I deserve this happiness more than anyone," Anh Vu said, hugging both of them in sincere joy. "After everything you've done for my family, this is the most wonderful thing I've ever witnessed."

Amid the joy of the engagement ceremony, Tue Minh also did not forget his responsibility to those who are still paying the price for past mistakes. She and Anh Vu and Thanh Nha arranged a visit to the prison where both Quoc Hung and Kim Yen were serving their sentences, a humane gesture that the whole family unanimously performed periodically every few months, regardless of the deep hurt they had caused.

Quoc Hung, after many months of serving his sentence, has become somewhat thinner, but his eyes radiate a calmness that was rarely seen before. "Thank you for still coming to visit me," he said when meeting Anh Vu and Thanh Nha through the glass partition, his voice quiet. "I don't deserve this tolerance, but I am truly grateful, more than I can express in words."

"You're still my family, no matter what happened," Anh Vu replied, his voice sincere. "I believe, everyone deserves a chance to redeem themselves, to find the right path, no matter how far they have strayed from their original values."

Quoc Hung nodded, his eyes filled with tears. “I have spent the past several months reflecting on my mistakes,” he said. "I realized that fear and greed caused me to lose the most precious things - love, self-esteem, and my own soul. If I had a chance to do it again, I wish I had chosen to face the truth from the beginning, instead of letting it weigh on me for twenty-five years, leading to so much suffering for everyone around me."

Kim Yen, in another visit, also expressed similar deep remorse, especially when talking about her two children. "I just hope you won't follow in my footsteps," she told Thanh Nha, her voice filled with confidence. "I hope they learn that no wealth or position is worth the price of integrity and friendship, which we have sadly lost."

These visits, although unable to completely erase the wounds caused, gradually opened a slow but sustainable path of reconciliation between members of the Dam family. Minh Quan and Bao Tram, the two children of Quoc Hung and Kim Yen, have now completely returned to their academic life, supported both financially and mentally by Anh Vu and Thanh Nha, gradually rebuilding their faith in a future no longer weighed down by the ghosts of the past.

Minh Quan, in a letter sent back from the university, shared with Anh Vu about his new decision. "I've been thinking a lot about what happened to my family," he wrote. "I decided to study ethical business administration, a new major being taught at the school, with the hope that one day I can contribute to rebuilding the reputation of the Dam family, in a completely different way from what my parents did."

Mr. Vu read that letter with an indescribable emotion, feeling that, despite having to go through so much pain, the younger generation of the Dam family is gradually finding its own way to redeem itself and rebuild the values that were once lost. He wrote a response letter, encouraging Minh Quan to pursue his chosen path, and promised to create conditions for him to intern at the corporation after graduation, if that was still what he wanted.

The evening after the visit to the prison, when Tue Minh returned home, Duy Bach prepared a cozy dinner, knowing that she would need some silence to balance her emotions after a heavy day. "How was today's visit?" he asked, gently rubbing her back as she sat down at the dining table.

"Heartbreaking, but also full of hope," Tue Minh replied, recounting in detail what she witnessed during that long, emotional afternoon. "This, I think, is the deepest lesson this whole case has taught me — that even people who have made the most serious mistakes, still deserve a chance to get back on the right path, as long as they are truly willing to face the truth and take responsibility for their actions."

Duy Bach nodded and gently held her hand. "That's what makes the difference between true justice and mere retribution," he said. "And I believe it's the way you look at this problem, with both rigor and tolerance, that makes you a lawyer, and a person, truly more admirable than anyone I've ever met."

A few days later, when Tue Minh and Duy Bach started planning the wedding, they decided to hold a small, cozy ceremony, inviting only those who were really close to them instead of a lavish, ostentatious event. "I don't need a big wedding to prove our love," Duy Bach said as they sat down to discuss the guest list. "I only need you, and the people who have truly accompanied us throughout our journey."

Tue Minh agreed, feeling relieved at the simplicity that they both aimed for. "I think, after everything we've been through together, a warm, sincere ceremony would be much more meaningful than a lavish and ostentatious one," she said. "I want to invite Ms. Sau Cam, Mr. Doan, Mr. Sang, and of course, Anh Vu and Thanh Nha — the people who have become my real family through this case."

When the guest list was completed, the two realized that, although there were not many blood relatives in the traditional sense, the list was still filled with the names of people who had accompanied them on a meaningful journey — a living testament to the fact that family is not necessarily defined by blood, but by sincere connections built over time, through challenges overcome together, and through the choice to be together every day, whether in good or bad circumstances. the hardest of life.