Chapter 3 — Final Record

The place where Chu Duc Hai arranged to meet me... was a private tea shop. Quiet space, faint scent of incense. He sat at the other end of the red wooden table, in front of him was a steaming purple teapot. Chu Van Ban sat next to him, his head bowed, like a child who had done something wrong. Don't dare look at me. I came alone. The caregiver and nutritionist waited for me outside the car. I sat down, not touching the cup of tea in front of me.

“Is your body better yet?”

Chu Duc Hai opened his mouth, his tone like a gentle elder. I don't answer. He continued speaking himself.

"One family, no overnight enemies."

“If Van Ban is wrong, I will force him to correct it.”

“We will make up for your loss.”

He stopped, his eyes gradually becoming cold.

“But you can't be that selfish.”

"Just because of your own anger, do you destroy the whole family and destroy An An's future?"

I finally raised my head to look at him.

“Now you are talking to me… in what identity?”

“Is An An's grandfather?”

“Or is it the chairman of the Zhou group?”

His expression darkened.

“What's the difference?”

“Of course I do.”

I smiled softly.

“If you are a grandfather, then what you should be concerned about is… your grandson almost lost his mother because of your son's irresponsibility.”

“If you're the chairman, what you should worry about is... whether your company's books can withstand being investigated.”

The cup of tea in Chu Duc Hai's hand was placed hard on the table, the tea splashed out. Chu Van Ban was startled and trembled.

“Tinh Tinh, don't be too harsh!”

Chu Duc Hai's voice no longer had any pretense of gentleness. Only threats remain. I leaned back in the chair. The postpartum body is still weak. But my aura... is enough to crush them.

"Exaggerated?"

“I could be even more outrageous.”

“Chairman Zhou, bid.”

Chu Duc Hai was stunned. He didn't expect me to be so straightforward. He narrowed his eyes, reassessing me like the first time.

“How much do you want?”

In their world, money can solve everything. That's the only logic. I raised a finger. Chu Van Ban's breath choked.

“One hundred thousand yuan?”

I shook my head. The corner of Chu Duc Hai's mouth twitched slightly.

“One million yuan?”

I still shake my head.

“Tinh Tinh, please don't be too greedy.”

His voice began to carry a warning.

“Ten million yuan?”

I laughed.

“Chairman Zhou, you misunderstood.”

“I mean… I don't need a penny.”

The atmosphere fell silent again. The father and son looked at me like I was crazy.

“I just need what's written in the agreement.”

“Chu Van Ban... left empty-handed.”

“The entire Chu family… leave my house.”

“It's as simple as that.”

Chu Van Ban finally couldn't bear it anymore, slammed the table and stood up.

"Tinh Tinh! If the things in that notebook are exposed, you will go to jail! We all have to go to jail! You will also be ruined!"

He thought it was my weakness.

“Failed body and reputation?”

I looked at him, my eyes carrying a bit of pity.

“Chu Van Ban, do you know… when a woman is no longer afraid of death, what is she still afraid of?”

He was dumbfounded. I stood up. The conversation… ended.

“President Zhou, give you a day to think.”

“By 8:00 a.m. tomorrow, if you haven't moved out yet…”

“Then my lawyer will send a copy of that notebook... anonymously to the tax authorities and the economic investigation team.”

I turned around and walked towards the door.

“Ah yes.”

I stopped, turned his head to look at Chu Duc Hai, his face was gray.

“Compared to taking care of the company…”

“Maybe you should worry about your eldest son's family matters now.”

“Anyway… there are holes, which are more difficult to fill than the company's books.”

Having finished speaking, I opened the door and walked out. It was the sound of a tea cup being smashed. I returned home, or to be more precise… my home. The caretaker cleaned everything up without a speck of dust, the room was so quiet that only the steady breathing of An An sleeping in the crib remained. I stood looking at my child's tiny face for a long time, feeling strangely calm, as if all the recent turmoil was no longer relevant to the world of mother and child. Everything I do... is for my children, for a clean future without lies, without dirty transactions, without being engulfed in a family rotten from the beginning. At four o'clock in the afternoon, lawyer Truong's phone call came on time. His voice carried a bit of surprise that he couldn't hide.

"Miss Tinh, your guess is right, your sister-in-law - Ly Mai - is indeed preparing to get pregnant, but the method she chose... is not simple."

“She went to a top medical facility abroad to do third-generation IVF, the type that can select gender, which is extremely expensive.”

“The most recent payment account was three days ago, the amount amounted to 500,000 USD, and the source of the money… came from an overseas shell company closely linked to the Chu group.”

I listened silently to everything, not surprised, just seeing everything gradually coming together like a pre-painted picture.

“I don't know,” I laughed softly, “it's just that someone who always says he's weak, can calmly drink the thing that saved my life the day after I almost died... is definitely worried about something more important than so-called health.”

“For example… a son can help her stand firm in this house.”

The other end of the line was silent for a few seconds, then lawyer Truong responded, his voice completely serious.

“Understood, so what are you planning to do next?”

"No rush," I said slowly, "let them mess around a little more. Right now the person with the biggest headache... has to be Chu Duc Hai."

I hung up the phone, opened the remote monitoring software, and the screen showed the Chu family's living room, where I had installed a camera for security reasons but no one noticed. In the picture, the storm has already started. As soon as Chu Duc Hai returned home, he threw the ashtray on the ground, his face darkened, and Vuong Thuc Lan stood next to him, not daring to say a word. Chu Van Ban cowered in the corner, like a cornered quail, without any of the energy of the person who spoke loudly to me that morning.

"Refuse!" Chu Duc Hai pointed straight at his son's face, saying each word, "What kind of woman are you marrying? What exactly does that book say!"

Chu Van Ban trembled, his voice cracked, saying he just accidentally saw it in my office, thinking it was a normal diary so he didn't pay attention.

"Diary?" Chu Duc Hai laughed coldly, "Whose diary is filled with a list of project fees, customer names and commissions every penny!"

Hearing that, Vuong Thuc Lan's face also turned pale, his legs softened, he sat down on the chair, and began to cry and panic, asking what to do. Chu Duc Hai didn't pay any attention and called directly, his voice as cold as a storm about to fall.

“Van Phong, Tell Ly Mai to immediately come back here for me, right now.”

Half an hour later, Chu Van Phong and Ly Mai appeared, she was still holding her husband's arm, smiling and talking normally until she saw the living room in ruins. The smile on her face froze for an instant. Chu Duc Hai sat in the main position, his eyes like knives, little by little gliding over Ly Mai's body.

“Ly Mai, tell me, have you had to spend a huge amount of money recently?”

Ly Mai's face changed immediately. I leaned back on the bed, picked up my phone, and calmly composed a text message.

"Dad, congratulations on having a grandson, I just don't know... is the money to buy him clean?"

On the screen, Chu Duc Hai's phone vibrated. He looked down, finished reading, then slowly raised his head to look at Ly Mai. That look... was no longer anger, but naked murderous intent. I smiled softly. The first crack in the Chu family… was torn apart by my own hands.