Chapter 10 — I Returned After 18 Years and Found Mother's Lifelong Secret

I've thought about this.

“Because she is a coward.” I replied. “And because she loves my brother more than anything.”

Lam Dao shook his head. There was sarcasm in that smile. And a little… enjoy.

“You are wrong.”

“You don't understand your mother.”

“She is not a coward.”

“She is the smartest gambler I have ever met.”

I frowned.

“What do you mean by that?”

“Report to the police?”

He flicked his cigarette ash and smirked.

“What's the point of reporting?”

“Let your father go to jail for a few years, then what?”

"The Lam family's debt is over?"

“Can my brother's life be restored?”

"No. That's too cheap for the Giang family."

His voice grew colder.

"Your mother understands very well. What I want has never been justice on paper."

“What I want… is for the Giang family to not be at peace for the rest of their lives.”

He looked at me.

“So she gave me something better.”

“Something ten thousand times more valuable than your father's freedom.”

My heart sank.

“What did she give you?”

“Give me six and a half million.”

He said every word clearly.

“But it wasn't hush money.”

“It's not even compensation.”

“That was my first startup capital.”

My mind exploded.

"That's right." He smiled, enjoying my amazement.

“Your mother was my first investor.”

“She used your money… to raise her enemies.”

“From a street thug, she turned me into a boss.”

“Do you know why?”

I can't answer. This truth is too absurd. Too cruel.

“Because she needs a rope.”

He answered himself.

“A rope strong enough to tie your brother for life.”

“She knows exactly what kind of person Giang Minh is.”

“Mud cannot build walls.”

“She was afraid that after she died, no one would be able to control it.”

“So she chose me.”

“She gave me money to make me stronger.”

“So powerful that it can decide Jiang Ming's second half of his life.”

“I promise her, as long as he is obedient, I will let him live a full life.”

“But if it continues to cause trouble…”

The corners of his lips curled up, cold and chilling.

“I will personally take him down… to make amends for my brother.”

I got it. This is my mother's deepest chess game. She did not save Giang Minh. She imprisoned it. Use enemies as prison guards. And I — and six and a half million — were the sacrifices to build that cage. I am just a chess piece from beginning to end.

“Do you understand now?”

Lam Dao looked at me.

“You should be proud of your mother.”

“For her son, she is willing to sacrifice everything.”

“Sacrificing my daughter's happiness.”

“Sacrificing the enemy's future.”

He leaned forward. His eyes suddenly became hot.

“And in return…”

“Your mother also promised me something.”

“One last thing.”

“A legacy… needs you to fulfill it for her.”

“The Last Legacy.”

My eyes glanced slightly towards my backpack. Mahogany wooden box. Rough diamond.

“She told you?” I asked, my throat dry.

"Of course."

Lam Dao stubs out the cigarette end.

"She knows that if that thing falls into the hands of that trash boy, it will only bring disaster."

“It would be even more of a waste to fall into the hands of her cowardly husband.”

“Only you.”

He looked at me, his eyes sharp as knives.

“Giang Vi.”

“You were her only choice.”

“And also the only one who can solve the puzzle she left me.”

I was silent.

“My brother, Lam Phong.”

For the first time, when he mentioned that name, his voice wavered.

“That year, my brother was more than just a construction site technician.”

“He has a gift for geology.”

“Before the accident, he discovered that in the mountains at the construction site there was an extremely rare diamond vein that had never been explored.”

My heart twitched. Diamond circuit.

“The rough diamond you are holding is the sample my brother took out.”

“Just a proposal gift for your mother.”

“Just a card to change the fate of the Lam family.”

“Unfortunately…”

His voice lowered.

“He couldn't wait for that day.”

“The geological map clearly stating the location of the mineral vein... also disappeared with him.”

“Everyone thought it was canceled.”

“But your mother doesn't believe it.”

“She searched for thirty years.”

“She believed my brother had hidden the map in a place where only she could find it.”

“And that diamond in the rough… is the only clue.”

His eyes were fixed on my backpack. Greed is no longer hidden.

“It's in your hands now.”

“Your mother's calculations were perfect.”

“She used you to lead me out.”

“She threw this secret at both of us.”

“She knows I won't kill you, because I need you to solve the clue.”

“I also know you won't be easily subdued, because your bones are as hard as hers.”

“She placed a bet.”

“A game of chess that forces us to cooperate.”

I got it. Mom did not leave a simple apology. Not just relics. It was a fortune so heavy that it could crush anyone. Love. Sin. Money. Revenge. She used her death to push me to the center of the chessboard. Make me take the last move.

“Your conditions?” I asked, looking straight at him.

He replied briefly.

“Let's find the mineral vein.”

“You solve the clues, I handle the trouble.”

"Profits are divided seven-three. You seven, I three."