Chapter 17 — I Don't Cancel the Marriage, I Cut My Losses

The furniture was also changed. Even the old bookshelf my mother left behind... It's no longer there. There is still a very faint engraving on the window sill. That's the mark my mother used to make to measure my height when I was a child. I stood silently before that engraving. Gently touch it with your hand. Suddenly there were footsteps outside. I turned my head. Tang Hoai Tu is standing in front of the door. Compared to the last time we met... He has aged a lot. The suit is wrinkled. Dark eye circles. I had no intention of inviting him in.

"This place..."

"You are not welcome."

Tang Hoai Tu smiled wryly.

"I just wanted to come take a look."

"Come to see what?"

He looked inside the house.

"Before..."

"My mother and I have also been to this place."

I calmly replied.

"So after that..."

"I just transferred its name to Tang Ngung."

Tang Hoai Tu's face stiffened. He bowed his head.

"I was wrong."

I looked at him. Later than I thought. When the Tang family's assets were frozen... He didn't say he was wrong. When Tang Ngung was kicked out of that house... He didn't say he was wrong. It wasn't until Tang Group was about to be liquidated... that he came.

"I know it's too late to say anything now."

"But anyway..."

"I also took care of my child for thirteen years."

"What do you want?"

Tang Hoai Tu's lips moved slightly.

"Tang Group still has some employees."

"If Qin Thi can postpone the arrears..."

I laughed.

"It turns out..."

"You didn't come to apologize."

Tang Huai Tu's face was full of awkwardness.

"There is no other way."

I looked straight at him.

"You always have a choice."

"That year..."

"You can't take my mother's money."

"Don't edit my property name."

"Don't force me to get married."

"At that time..."

"You all have the right to choose."

Tang Hoai Tu was speechless. I closed the door. Just as the door was only half closed... He suddenly spoke.

"My mother..."

"I didn't expect you to hate us so much."

I stopped. Look at him with cold eyes.

"My mother..."

"I just hope I get back what belongs to me."

The door... Closed right in front of Tang Hoai Tu. He stood for a long time. Finally... Quietly turned around and left. Downstairs... Pho Minh Te has just arrived. He and Tang Hoai Tu met right in front of the building. The two looked at each other. No one said a word. In Pho Minh Te's hand was a small box. Inside... Is an engagement ring. He was going to bring it back to me. But when he walked to the door... He suddenly stopped. Because he heard a very soft sound coming from inside the house. Not a cry. It's the sound of a window being opened. The sound of a gentle wind made the curtains move. I am not suffering at all. I'm just... Brushing off the dust of the past in the old house. Pho Minh Te stood silently outside the door. Suddenly... I no longer had the courage to knock on the door. He put the ring box down in front of the door. Not long after... The door opened. I saw that box. Don't open it. No hesitation either. I conveniently threw it straight into the box of items waiting to be processed next to it. Pho Minh Te stood at the corner of the stairs. Seen it all. At that moment... He finally understood. There are things... You don't just have to return them... You can start over from the beginning. I don't need it anymore. Even looking one more time... There's no need. The last time Chu Niem Duong appeared in front of me... It was during the founding ceremony of the Tan Thi Charity Fund. She wore a mask and stood quietly at the back of the crowd. Waiting for the ceremony to end... She walked over.

"Tang Tri Van."

I stopped walking. Chu Niem Duong took off his mask. The whole person lost a lot of weight.

"I'm leaving this city."

I didn't reply. She smiled bitterly.

"I know you don't care."

"I just wanted to tell you..."

"Those things..."

"I have returned them all."

I calmly replied:

"That's what you have to do."

Chu Niem Duong's eyes turned red.

"Before..."

"I'm really jealous of you."

"You don't need to fight about anything..."

"But it has everything."

"Engagement with Minh Te."

"Property of the Qin family."

"Everyone's eyes."

I looked at her.

"You're wrong."

Chu Niem Duong was stunned. I said slowly:

"What I have..."

"It's all something my mother left behind."

"It's not..."

"It's your giving."

Chu Niem Duong bowed his head. She really wanted to say sorry. But when I looked into my eyes... Suddenly I saw that those three words no longer had any meaning. Finally... She just bowed deeply. Then quietly turned away. I never looked back. Seven days after the Tan Van Ninh Charity Foundation was established... The old house in Thanh Nam reopened. But I didn't move in. I renovated that place into a small-scale volunteer counseling center. In front of the door hangs a wooden sign. Tan Van Ninh Women's Rights Support Center. The first day... Not many people came. There was a woman whose property was appropriated by her ex-husband after marriage. There was a girl whose compensation money was taken away by her family. There was also a student who had just turned eighteen years old. The girl tightly hugged the stack of guardianship account statements. Sit in the corner of the room. Don't dare speak up. I personally poured her a cup of warm water. The girl asked softly:

"Miss Tang..."

"If I take back what belongs to me..."

"Are you very ugly?"