Chapter 2 — My Home, No One Should Touch It

Ten minutes later, a middle-aged man leisurely walked out. White shirt, black pants. The top two buttons were unfastened, revealing a shiny gold necklace. Her hair was slicked back with gel, and even if a fly landed on it, she would trip. The corner of his mouth hung with a fake smile, as if the whole world owed him a blowing kiss. The nameplate on the chest clearly states: Real estate manager — Vuong Duc Hau. Vuong Duc Hau. I remember this name. He glanced at my contract, then glanced at me some more. His eyes swept over me, a look that made people extremely uncomfortable... as if judging a customer for "causing unreasonable trouble".

“Miss Tham, right?”

He prolonged his voice, stuffed his hands in his pockets, and stood as loosely as if boneless.

"I already know the story. The key was actually received by someone yesterday. Your younger brother, Tham An, brought the household registration book, saying he was authorized by you to receive it on his behalf. My side has verified the information, the process is no problem."

“No problem?!”

My voice rose.

"I authorize? I just received the handover notice yesterday, today is my first time coming! What do I authorize?!"

Vuong Duc Hau still kept his smile, even shrugged his shoulders, the "I can't help it" style made my blood pressure skyrocket.

"You see, it's difficult for outsiders like us to judge when it comes to internal family matters. Maybe you and your brother discussed it before, you just forgot?"

He smiled faintly.

"We've encountered this many times. It's normal for brothers and sisters to gift a house. If you change your mind, just go back and negotiate with your brother, no need to vent your anger on the management."

That sentence again.

“Vent out your anger on the manager.”

I just got annoyed by the receptionist, and now I add him. I got it. From top to bottom, this place... is the same. Push responsibility. Blame the landlord. I still feel like I'm extremely right.

“Previous discussion?”

I stared at him, my voice lowered so much that I felt cold myself.

“Manager Wang, I'll tell you two things.”

"First, I and that so-called 'family member' have long since severed our relationship. Tham An is Tham An, I am Tham Thanh Vy. We have no connection whatsoever."

I stopped for a moment, each word felt as heavy as a falling stone.

"I bought the house, you guys let someone else take the keys. I don't accept it."

“I don't need that house anymore.”

“It's already occupied by someone else.”

“I feel… dirty.”

Hearing the words "change house"... Vuong Duc Hau burst out laughing. Not the kind of laughter that can't be contained. It's like... straight-faced laughter, as if I were telling a joke. He pushed up his glasses, his tone full of sarcasm.

"The house has signed an electronic contract, the registration has been completed, are you saying you can change it? You thought you could buy vegetables from the market. If you don't like them, then change them to something else?"

He curled his lips.

"Moreover, the key was actually received by your relative. This responsibility does not belong to our management. Or... should you go back and talk to your family again?"

"Relatives?"

I took a step forward.

"I'll say it again. Tham An and I do not have any relationship."

My voice was so cold that every word seemed to fall to the floor.

"Legally, cutting off the relationship does not require going to the civil service to complete the procedure. Ten years of no contact, no financial transactions, no living together... that is called no longer a relationship."

"I never authorized it. You did not fully verify it but still handed over the key.”

“I tell you, that's called irresponsibility.”

“Call it dereliction of duty.”

“It's called an infringement of my property rights.”

The smile on Vuong Duc Hau's face finally couldn't be held anymore. His face darkened and his voice began to stiffen.

“Miss Tham, pay attention when talking.”

“We follow industry practice. It's very normal for relatives to replace keys, we're not the only ones who do that."

“If you are not satisfied, you can complain, you can call 12345.”

He looked at me, his eyes full of challenge.

“But about changing houses… you should put that thought aside soon.”

“Industry practice?”

I laughed coldly.

“Don't you Cam Tu Hoa Dinh claim to be a top 500 enterprise nationwide?”

“This kind of management level?”

“Your ‘customs’… are they recognized by the law?”

“If something happens, can you bear the responsibility?”

Vuong Duc Hau was cornered by me until his face turned pale. I was about to say something when— The homeowners who were lining up to receive the keys next to me gathered around. A woman with curly hair spoke first:

“Little sister, what's going on? Was the key taken by someone else?

I turned around and quickly summarized the situation. After listening, her eyes widened:

“What? The key was taken by someone else? What does this management team eat to do business like that?!”

A guy wearing a suit next to him also chimed in. After hearing this, he immediately became angry:

“Oh my god, is my house going to be taken over by someone? What kind of managers are these? Can you just give the key to someone else?!”

Another young girl pointed straight at Vuong Duc Hau, her voice filled with indignation:

“Cam Tu Hoa Dinh, you guys are a top 500 business and do business like this? Even if the owner's house is left indiscriminately to someone else? I also came to pick up the keys today. Hearing what she said, I felt scared. What if someone else took my house keys?!”

The air immediately exploded. Vuong Duc Hau began to sweat. He took a half step back, his hands out of his pockets, trying to calm him down:

“Everyone, everyone calm down… this is a special case, an internal family conflict, not a common situation…”

“What is popular?”

The curly-haired woman shouted loudly, her voice echoing throughout the floor.

“People clearly said they cut off relations! Are you guys blind or pretending to be blind?!”

“A household registration book is enough to get the key?”

"So tomorrow I'll take my younger brother's household registration book and come here to get his house key, will you guys give it to me?!"

The vest guy hit the counter hard.

“I spent money to buy a house, but you guys gave the keys to someone else, clearly irresponsible!”

“I won't accept keys anymore today, you guys explain this to me clearly!”

“Why did something like this happen to her?”

“Why is your management so unreliable?!”

The whole crowd was angry. Vuong Duc Hau's face turned pale. He kept wiping his sweat, and his shirt was soaked under his arm. Just as she was about to open her mouth, she was interrupted by the curly-haired woman:

“Don't say it! Let this girl speak first! Today we stand here and listen clearly to see what you guys have done!”

A warmth suddenly arose in my heart. Just now, when I was so angry that I was shaking... I thought the whole world would advise me to hold back. They will say "we are all one family, don't make a big deal out of it". The people who stood up for me were strangers I had never known. At that moment— A middle-aged man wearing gold-rimmed glasses walked out. He coughed, looking like a "understanding person", his tone full of reason:

"Everyone, calm down a bit. As I see it... we're all one family, so why is there such a need to be so tense?"

"It's a good thing for an older sister to buy a house for her younger brother. If the family is in harmony, everything will be prosperous."

“There is no need to report to the police or sue, doing so will hurt feelings…”

I glanced at him. His eyes were cold as ice.

“Who are you?”

“Oh, I'm the owner of the apartment in building 12, last name is Luu, just doing a little business.”

He pushed up his glasses, smiling gently to the point of being fake. The "I'm doing good for you" kind of thing makes people just want to take three steps away.

"I just think... family is more important than anything. Houses, you don't take them with you when you're born, you don't take them away when you die. For the sake of a house, if you sue your younger brother, it wouldn't sound good if it spread out."

He shook his head, his voice full of logic: