Chapter 23 — Post-Divorce Rebound: Claiming My Daughter and Starting Over

Was the Co conglomerate truly teetering on the brink of ruin? Back at the Co estate, one might have expected the mansion to be in total, chaotic disarray. Yet, contrary to the explosive, fiery scene I had envisioned, the study was draped in a silence so heavy it felt suffocating. Co Dinh Tham stood before the floor-to-ceiling window, his back turned to the door. A cigarette was clamped between his fingers, thin wisps of smoke curling upward, yet they failed to soften the biting chill radiating from his frame. In the crystal ashtray, seven or eight extinguished stubs were already piled high.

Chu Bich Hoa sat on the sofa, her face a ghostly, ashen grey. The arrogance she had worn earlier that day had vanished, replaced by an unmistakable tremor of panic. She opened her mouth several times as if to speak, only to lose her nerve. Observing the rigid, icy silhouette of her son—a man who looked like the very embodiment of an oncoming storm—she eventually resigned herself to silence. Lam Vy Vy approached with a cup of ginseng tea, stepping with practiced, delicate caution.

"Dinh Tham," she said, her voice soft and soothing. "You shouldn't smoke so much. It's bad for your health. Have some of this tea. Calm down. Every problem has a solution."

Co Dinh Tham did not reach for the tea. He did not even turn his head. His voice, raspy and thick with the exhaustion of a sleepless night and suppressed fury, sliced through the air. "A solution? How exactly do you suggest we solve this?"

"Today, the economic crime investigators arrived at the office. Every question they asked hit the bullseye. The cash flow for the southern urban development project, the offshore shell companies, even the equipment we purchased four years ago... how did they gain such specific intelligence?" He spun around suddenly, his eyes bloodshot, glaring at Bich Hoa and Vy Vy like a cornered beast.

He pointed a shaking finger at Bich Hoa. "And you! I told you to stay out of trouble. I told you to leave Diep Thanh Uyen alone. And what did you do? You kidnapped her daughter and left behind physical evidence. Are you trying to hurry my demise?"

Bich Hoa trembled violently, scrambling to justify her actions. "I did it for the sake of this family! I wanted to get a hold of the child to force her mother to keep her mouth shut. Who could have known that Diep Thanh Uyen would turn into such a rabid dog?"

"Shut your mouth!" Dinh Tham roared, the veins on his forehead bulging with rage. "Is the disaster not enough for you? Now that Tham Du Minh is digging his claws into this, he wants to prosecute you! Do you have any idea what kind of signal this sends to the world? The mother of the Chairman of the Co conglomerate suspected of illegal child abduction? Do you realize the magnitude of that scandal? Our competitors are watching, and our business partners—those fickle fair-weather friends—what will they think?"

Bich Hoa was cowed into complete silence, not daring to utter another syllable. Vy Vy set the tea down, gently touching Dinh Tham’s arm. "Dinh Tham, please don't be so angry. Your mother only acted out of confusion. Right now, our priority must be how to navigate this investigation. As for the company..."

"The company?" Dinh Tham brushed her hand away violently, pulling at his necktie with frantic agitation. "The company is already giving me a migraine! Today, the major shareholders haven't stopped calling, firing question after question at me. Even the banks have changed their tone. It’s as if... as if there is a pair of eyes hidden in the shadows, seeing through everything we have ever done."

He turned his gaze sharply toward Vy Vy, his eyes as cold as a blade. "Vy Vy, tell me the truth. Back when Diep Thanh Uyen lived at the Co estate, was it possible for her to see or hear things she shouldn't have?"

Vy Vy’s heart skipped a beat, but her expression remained a mask of gentle, tender concern. "Her? She spent her entire day focused on the children and the housework. How could she have possibly known anything?"