Chapter 14 — Old Street Corner Gold Shop

That weekend, Vy and Khoi returned to Ky Thi Doan's house, bringing with them all the documents they had collected - old receipts, copies of household registration records, and the story Mr. Thinh had just told. This time, Mr. Doan looked healthier than last time, sitting straight in the armchair, his eyes sharp as if he was ready to tell the whole story.

"I've been thinking a lot after you guys asked me last time," Mr. Doan started, his voice slower but more certain than the first time. "She thinks she shouldn't hide it anymore, even though she has never told anyone about this, including her children and grandchildren."

Khoi and Vy exchanged glances, both sensing that this would be an important conversation. They sat silently, patiently waiting for Mr. Doan to begin.

"That night, as you said, it rained very heavily, the whole neighborhood lost power," Mr. Doan began, his eyes gradually becoming distant as if he were going back in time. "But what she didn't finish was that after seeing the Uong family coming to look for Mr. Phat, she was curious so she didn't go home right away like she said last time, but hid behind the low wall next to the shop window and looked inside."

Vy held her breath, feeling that the story was about to enter the most important part.

"She saw Mrs. Tuong - Mr. Khai Tuong's wife - kneeling in front of Mr. Phat, crying and begging," Mr. Doan continued, his voice shaking with emotion as he recalled that heartbreaking scene. "She said the family had to leave at night. Someone had arranged the boat, but she couldn't bring bulky property, afraid of being discovered. She asked Mr. Phat to help keep the jewelry, promising that when things were stable, she would find a way to come back to pick it up, or have a trusted person come pick it up on her behalf if the family couldn't return."

"How did your grandfather react at that time?" Vy asked softly.

"He was very hesitant," Mr. Doan replied. "She heard him say that keeping such large assets in the house was very dangerous. At that time, anyone found to be harboring large amounts of gold and silver of unknown origin could be accused of smuggling and speculation. But Mrs. Tuong kept crying and pleading, saying there was no one else to trust, Mr. Phat was the only person in the neighborhood that her family trusted enough to entrust the most valuable possession of their life."

Mr. Doan stopped for a moment, sighed deeply before continuing. "Finally, Mr. Phat agreed. She saw him take a small notebook, scribbled a few lines, and gave it to Ms. Tuong to sign. But at that moment, there was a car horn screeching on the street, and a dog barking fiercely throughout the neighborhood. Mr. Khai Tuong panicked and pulled his wife up, saying he had to leave now, there was no time left. They hurriedly left the store, running toward the end of the alley, and Mr. Phat stood still, still holding the notebook, his face pale.

"And what happens next, ma'am?" Khoi asked, his voice unable to hide the tension.

"Just a few minutes later, a few people in uniform came, knocked loudly on the door, saying it was a surprise household registration check following the crackdown on gold and silver smuggling going on throughout the city at that time," Mr. Doan continued, his voice trembling because he was still scared even though forty-five years had passed. "She was so scared, she wanted to run away home, but she still had time to see them searching the whole store, finding the jewelry set that Ms. Tuong had just sent back, still on the table before being put away. One person in the inspection group, apparently a commanding officer, picked up the jewelry set to examine, then said something to Mr. Phat in a threatening voice. Mr. Phat tried to explain, but they didn't listen, demanded to make a confiscation record, and then escorted him away that night."

Vy felt her heart tighten when she heard this part. "So it was the government who confiscated the jewelry, not your grandfather who kept it?"

"That's right, according to what I saw with my own eyes," Mr. Doan nodded affirmatively. "But she heard rumors that later, in that inspection group, there was a corrupt officer who took advantage of the raid to pocket the confiscated assets, without fully paying them into the public treasury as prescribed. Perhaps most of the jewelry fell into that person's hands, and was not handled properly according to the law at that time."

This information made both Vy and Khoi speechless. If what Mr. Doan told was correct, then the whole story would have turned in a completely different direction - Mr. Tan Phat did not appropriate or even retain anything, but was a victim of an unjust system at that time, losing both temporary freedom and honor just because of the kindness of wanting to help a family in trouble.

"How long will my grandfather be held?" Vy continued asking, her voice shaking with emotion.

"She heard that after about a week he was released, because in the end there was not enough evidence to accuse him of illegally storing gold and silver - perhaps because he only kept it for him, not the owner, and there were no trading transactions," Mr. Doan said. "But since then, his personality has completely changed, he's quieter, always on guard, careful in everything. I think maybe he's afraid, afraid of further implicating his family, so he chooses to stay silent about this forever."

"So what about the remaining jewelry? If there is any, do you know anything?" Khoi asked, remembering the details in the receipt that did not have a complete signature.

Mr. Doan shook his head, his expression thoughtful. "I don't know, dear. But I remember, after Mr. Phat was released, one time she happened to see him sitting alone in the shop, holding something small, sparkling in his hand, admiring it for a long time before putting it away. She didn't dare ask because he seemed very emotional at that time, but now that I think about it, perhaps it was a small part of the jewelry set that he hid before the inspection team came in, or they missed it and didn't confiscate it all."

That sentence made Vy stunned, a thought flashed through her mind - could it be that something was still lying somewhere in the house, in the family safe, that she had never paid close attention to because she thought it was just an old piece of jewelry of unknown origin?

After thanking and saying goodbye to Mr. Doan, on the way home, Vy shared with Khoi the thought that had just flashed in her mind. "Mr. Khoi, I think I need to go home and carefully check the family's old safe. Maybe there's some clue that I've missed for a long time."

Khoi nodded, his eyes filled with hope. "This may be the last piece of the puzzle we need, Vy. If we find specific physical evidence, combined with my grandmother's story, we will have enough basis to present the whole truth to Mr. Chi Thanh, not just relying on inferences and fragmentary memories anymore."

The two walked in the sunset, their hearts both heavy because of the heartbreaking story that had just been revealed, and full of hope because of the feeling that the truth was gradually appearing more clearly than ever, with only one last step left to reach.

When we got back to the shop, it was already dark. Vy didn't have time to eat, so she quickly took the key to open the old safe in Mr. Thinh's private room - where the family still keeps special valuable jewelry, memorabilia that is not for sale but only to keep for generations. Mr. Thinh, hearing his daughter recount Mr. Doan's words, also sat quietly next to him, his eyes both nervous and worried.

Vy took out each item in the safe in turn - a few ounces of reserve gold, some real estate documents, and a small wooden box tinted with time that she vaguely remembered seeing since childhood but had never opened to look closely, because Mr. Thinh always said it was "an unimportant souvenir, no need touch it". She opened the box, and inside were a few small pieces of jewelry — a plain ring without stones, an old leaf-shaped pendant, and at the bottom of the box, a single earring, delicately carved in the shape of tiny flower petals, the hook slightly bent as if it had been hastily separated from a larger set of jewelry.

"Dad, do you know whose this is?" Vy asked, her voice shaking, showing her father the earring.

Mr. Thinh took it, turned it around under the light, frowned and tried to remember. "I vaguely remember when I was little, seeing your grandfather keep it in a separate box, telling no one touch it. I thought it was a keepsake left by my great-grandmother, so I didn't ask any more."

Vy picked up the earring and looked at it carefully under the familiar lamplight. The carving, gold quality, and even the tiny petal patterns are reminiscent of the traditional wedding jewelry making style of well-off families from the middle of the last century - completely consistent with what lawyer Khang once described about the Uong family's jewelry set. Her heart pounded, both nervous and emotional, realizing that perhaps, after forty-five years, the final piece of the story was right in her hands.