Chapter 6 — Old Street Corner Gold Shop

A week after the first meeting, Giang Viet Khoi returned to Tan Phat gold shop, but this time not to pick up the repaired ring, but to bring a leather briefcase full of papers, with a completely different demeanor - serious, professional, just like a bank employee on a business trip.

"Hello, Ms. Vy," he opened, his voice somewhat different from last time, "I am Giang Viet Khoi, a property appraiser at Dong A Bank Hai Dong branch. I am assigned to handle loan applications for my store."

Vy paused for a few seconds, taking a while to connect the man in front of her with the customer who brought an old ring to repair last week. "You... you're the one who brought grandma's ring to fix it the other day?"

"That's right, what a coincidence," Khoi smiled slightly, a bit embarrassed. "I didn't know that you were the owner of the store when I received the application, but only when I looked at the address did I realize. I hope you don't mind because I am both the customer and the appraiser."

"It's okay," Vy replied, although she was a little confused because the professional and personal boundaries seemed to be overlapping right from the second meeting. She invited him to sit down at the small table next to the glass cabinet, a place often used to receive important guests.

The loan application that Vy submitted a few weeks ago — before Hao Kim opened, when she simply thought that this small loan was just to import more gold materials and slightly expand the display space — now takes on a much more urgent meaning. Khoi spread the papers on the table and began asking detailed questions about revenue, operating costs, and collateral value.

"Can you show me the revenue books for the last three months?" he asked, his voice calm but his eyes observing very carefully, not missing any detail.

Vy handed over the notebook, secretly worried because she knew that in the past month, since Hao Kim opened, revenue had decreased significantly. Khoi flipped through each page, his eyes lingering longer on the data lines of the last two weeks.

"I see a clear decrease in revenue compared to previous months," he commented, not to criticize but as if analyzing objectively. "Is it because the Hao Kim branch recently opened?"

"That's right," Vy admitted, not hiding it. "But I believe this is just a temporary effect of a newly opened store. Customers are curious, then they will realize the difference between handmade goods and mass-produced goods."

Khoi nodded, but did not make a hasty comment. "I understand that you believe in the value of your products, and to be honest, I felt the same when I held my grandmother's ring. But in terms of financial appraisal, I need to evaluate based on actual trends, not just on beliefs. Do you have any specific plans to maintain revenue in the near future?"

That question made Vy feel a bit nervous, because to be honest, she didn't have any specific plans other than continuing to work hard and hoping that her regular customers would come back. She was silent for a moment, trying to think of a convincing answer.

"I'm thinking of focusing on restoring heirloom jewelry," she said. This idea popped up almost immediately, even though it had been silently forming in her mind since she redid a pair of rings for Mr. and Mrs. Van Thinh. "That's something big chain stores can't do, because they don't have skilled workers who have the patience to handle each old item individually."

Khoi looked at her for a moment, his eyes changed slightly, as if he had just seen something more interesting than the numbers on the paper. "That's a wise direction. Can you write this idea more specifically in the additional documents? It will help me have a basis to propose a more preferential interest rate for your loan."

After completing the paperwork appraisal, Khoi did not rush to leave immediately but lingered, looking around the shop space with undisguised curiosity. "Can you show me how you work? I've never seen the actual handmade jewelry making process, I only know it through books."

Vy was a bit surprised by the offer, but did not refuse. She sat down at the workbench, took out Mrs. Doan's ring that was waiting for restoration, and began the process of reattaching the loose gemstone. She used small, specialized pliers to gently straighten the golden nails holding the stone, each movement slow and precise to every millimeter.

"This stone is a real emerald, not an artificial stone," she explained when she saw Khoi attentively observing. "This type of stone is quite soft compared to other gemstones, so when reattaching it, you must be careful, don't press it too tightly or it will crack, but also don't be loose or it will fall off."

"How do you know the exact amount of force to use?" Khoi asked, his voice full of genuine curiosity, not courtesy.

"By the feeling in my hand, through many years of practice," Vy replied, without stopping. "My grandfather once said that each type of stone and each type of metal has its own 'voice' when touched. A good craftsman is one who knows how to listen to that voice, not just rely on a pre-existing formula."

Khoi silently observed for a long time, seemingly absorbed in the meticulousness of the work before him. “My job is the exact opposite,” he said after a moment. "I work with numbers, financial reports, everything must be clear and measurable, with no room for emotion. Watching her work, I see something... very different, but also very admirable."

"But why did you choose the appraisal profession?" Vy asked, not stopping, her eyes still focused on the emerald that was gradually being firmly fixed again. "It sounds much drier than my profession."

Khoi laughed, pulling his chair a little closer to observe her movements more clearly. "I thought I'd go into engineering, but then I realized I'd rather understand the true value of things than just make them. Asset appraisal, for me, isn't just about reading numbers, it's about trying to see the real picture behind the numbers — is a business really alive, or just dying. You might find it funny, but I consider it a form of craft, except I work with paper instead of metal."

"It's not funny," Vy replied, looking up at him for a moment, her eyes softening. "I think anyone who does any job with dedication deserves to be called an artist in their own way."

That sentence made the atmosphere between the two of them slacken a beat, it was no longer a conversation between a customer and a shop owner, or between an appraiser and a borrower, but like two people were gradually finding something in common beyond work. Khoi was silent for a moment, then smiled slightly, did not say anything more, just continued to follow each of Vy's quick but patient movements until the stone was completely attached to the ring socket.

"It's done," Vy said, holding the ring up to the light for a final inspection, the sparkling emerald reflecting the soft light. "The only thing left to do is re-polish the entire ring to complete it. I'll probably finish it this weekend."

"Maybe our two jobs are not as different as you think," Vy replied, looking up at him for a moment and then looking down to continue her work. "You also have to feel what the real risks are, what's just the surface numbers, right? I think it's also a form of 'listening to the voice' of work, just with different materials."

Khoi laughed lightly, seemingly impressed with her comparison. "You're right. Maybe I never thought about it that way."

Before leaving, he added that his grandmother, Ky Thi Doan, after hearing him tell about the old photo and the name in the diary, was very moved and offered to meet Vy in person to talk, if she didn't mind.

"My grandmother is weak this year and can't walk far, but if you have time to stop by my house, she will be very happy," Khoi said, his eyes sincere. "I think she might know more about your grandfather than you think."

Vy nodded, both nervous and looking forward to it. She arranged to visit on the weekend, when the store closed earlier than usual, and recalculated her work schedule so as not to miss any unfinished orders. After Khoi left, she stood silently for a moment at the workbench, looking at Mrs. Doan's nearly completed ring. An indescribable feeling of both anxiety and excitement arose in her heart - as if she was standing on the threshold of a story much bigger than she had ever imagined, a story that could change the way she sees her own family and the legacy she is trying to preserve.