Chapter 10 — Language is Wings

She used her phone, took a screenshot, then added my avatar and name.

“Tieu Manh, do me a favor.”

“You work in administration, can you get the attendance record last Wednesday afternoon, with the meeting room usage history?”

"Get it for me. And To Uyen Tinh's completed documents—do you still keep those several trips to the resort?"

Tieu Manh's eyes lit up.

"Yes. Are you finally going to use it?"

"It's not for attack. It's for self-defense. If she pushes to the end, I need Trinh Hao Nam to understand... her reliability."

“Understood.”

That night I didn't go home. Sitting in the tea room, I gathered all the documents related to the project—email exchanges, translation files, editing history. Every file has a timestamp. The real chat between me and Phuong Vien is on the internal system, with a log server. Photos can be fake. But system data is not. At eleven o'clock at night, the phone rang. Co Than Chau.

“I heard you were accused.”

“Really fast news.”

"Phuong Vien said. Do you need me to intervene?"

"No need. I can handle it myself."

“Are you sure?”

"Okay. If it's not okay, let me know."

“There won't be that time.”

I continue to complete my profile. Nien Cao has no one to feed him tonight. I texted Tieu Manh:

"Come over to my house to feed Nien Cao. The key is under the carpet."

"Receive orders! Cat, let me worry, you keep fighting!"

The next morning, at eight thirty, I walked into Trinh Hao Nam's room. There were three people in the room. Trinh Hao Nam. Tran Vu Phi. To Uyen Tinh. On the table in front of her were several sheets of printed paper—the “evidence.” The air was as tense as a piano string. Trinh Hao Nam looked at me.

"Lam Dao, To Uyen Tinh accused you of revealing the internal pricing strategy while working with Dong Thinh. This is the evidence she provided. Please explain."

I glanced through the papers. My avatar. My name. The content is so realistic that if you don't pay close attention... you will believe it. But the words... are very awkward. Not the way a negotiator speaks.

“All these photos are fake.”

To Uyen Tinh smiled coldly.

“Of course you would say that.”

“I can prove it.”

I opened my laptop, logged into the internal system, and pulled out the entire chat history with Phuong Vien.

"This is the entire real exchange between me and Phuong Vien, timestamped and saved on the server. Please compare."

Trinh Hao Nam held the phone and looked closely. Then looked at those printed papers again.

"The time does not match. This photo says it is Wednesday afternoon, two o'clock. But the system log shows that at that time, Lam Dao and Phuong Vien had no communication."

To Uyen Tinh immediately intervened.

“She could have deleted—”

I interrupted, my voice very calm:

“Server data cannot be deleted by user account.”

The meeting room fell silent. I looked straight at To Uyen Tinh. This time, no more dodging.

“On the contrary, I can prove… at the time in that photo, I was in the company's internal meeting room.”

I rotate the screen.

"Here's the attendance history. Here's the meeting room usage log. And here's the attendee list—all present."

Evidence by evidence, one by one. But enough to… crush a lie. The atmosphere is no longer tense anymore. Which is… cold. Like the moment before someone realized— I just made a wrong move… I can't help it.

“Enterprise WeChat is stored on the server, even if the user deletes it, the data is still there.” I said, my voice monotone.

"In addition, last Wednesday afternoon from two o'clock to four o'clock, I was in an internal meeting at the company. Timekeeping and meeting room booking schedule can all be proven."

I placed the printout Tieu Manh prepared on the table. To Uyen Tinh's face changed clearly.

“One more point.” I picked up the photo and pointed to the upper right corner.

"The battery interface here is iOS. I use Android. Team leader To, your phone... is an iPhone, right?"

To Uyen Tinh jumped up.

"That doesn't prove anything! You can change the phone—"

"I've worked here for three years. IT's device records show that I've never used an iPhone."

Trinh Hao Nam slowly put down the paper. He looked at To Uyen Tinh.

“Uyen Tinh, where did you get these photos?”

“I… I found it on her computer—”

"Since the time my computer was opened by you, I changed my password. These files never existed on my computer."

“I say it straight.” I looked at her, my eyes not avoiding her.

"You've never seen these pictures on my phone. Because in the first place, they don't exist. You created them yourself."

The meeting room was silent for five seconds. Trinh Hao Nam said:

“Uyen Tinh, is there anything else you want to say?”

To Uyen Tinh looked at Trinh Hao Nam, then turned to Tran Vu Phi. He bowed his head, not looking at her.

“General Tran!” Her voice was urgent, “Say something!”

Tran Vu Phi finally looked up.

“Uyen Tinh... you've gone too far this time.”

As if all her strength had been drained from her, she stood there, her face ashen. Trinh Hao Nam sighed.

"Falsifying evidence to slander colleagues is a serious violation. Uyen Tinh, your team leader... is dismissed from now on."

“General Trinh—”

"Evaluation at the end of the year is lowered by one level. If the violation continues, the contract will be terminated immediately."

To Uyen Tinh's lips trembled.