Chapter 9 — Mother and Twin Daughters

The older sister never harmed their mother for the sake of inheritance, nor did the younger sister grow up isolated and steeped in suffering. Because on that fateful day, the mother refused to abandon either of her children.

The lines of text slowly dissolved into nothingness. In the kitchen, the wontons bubbled to the surface, bobbing gently in the boiling broth. Kieu Kieu poked her head through the doorway, her voice bright and demanding.

"Mom, I want extra seaweed in mine!"

Jing Hua chimed in immediately, her tone ever-pragmatic.

"She already had an extra serving of shrimp yesterday."

Kieu Kieu puffed out her cheeks in defiance.

"Tran Jing Hua, are you seriously going to police my shrimp consumption now too?"

Jing Hua replied with unbothered calm.

"I am merely upholding the principle of fair distribution of household assets."

I ladled the steaming wontons into two separate ceramic bowls, garnishing one generously with ocean-harvested seaweed and loading the other to the brim with plump, succulent shrimp.

"Alright, settle down, both of you. There is plenty for everyone."

The two young women sat side by side at the rustic wooden table—one radiant and spirited, the other steady and composed. They still bickered, still playfully vied for the upper hand, yet neither would ever truly let go of the other.

A sudden wave of memory washed over me, carrying me back to the bleak day of my divorce when Tran Canh Xuyen forced me to choose, demanding that I take only one child with me and leave the other behind. How fortunate I was that I refused to obey him. My daughters were never the cold-hearted villains people whispered about, nor were they mere pawns destined to fulfill some tragic prophecy. They were my flesh and blood, the little ones I fought tooth and nail to bring home, raising them together through every storm.

One of them had learned to stop using silent tears as a weapon to hurt those who loved her. The other had learned to use her voice as a shield to protect herself from the world. Looking at them now, I knew with absolute certainty that the single greatest decision of my entire life was made on the day when the whole world tried to force me to choose just one, and I walked away with both of them in my arms.