Chapter 3 — Real Child in a Fake Family

“All three, not one.” Six words. Every word looks like it has just been fished out of an ice cellar. Having finished speaking, he laughed. That smile—I've never seen it before. Not mockery, not anger, not sadness. It's a feeling of... complete, utter absurdity, pouring out from the very marrow of my bones. Like the smile of someone who suddenly discovers that more than twenty years of his life have been a hoax. It's the empty space after all meaning is disassembled. He raised his head to look at the ceiling, his fingers lightly tapping twice on his knee. Then his hand stopped. Stand up. Store the envelope in the inside pocket of your vest. Go to the door. Stop. “Nien An.” Without turning around, he called out to me. Of course I couldn't respond. "Thank you." Then he went out. The door gently closed. I heard him calling in the hallway, his voice was very low, but my ears were sharp. "Old Tran, inform the legal department, I need a complete asset separation plan." "...Yes, all trust funds, insurance, and share allocations associated with the status of 'eldest son, second son, third son of the Co family', all frozen for review." "...No, not moved right now. Wait for me to say." "...Also, the assets in To's name." Uyen Ninh, investigate clearly what happened before marriage and what happened after marriage." "...Hua Kien Quoc's story, follow closely." His voice gradually faded away. I lay on the bed, looking at the small airplane-shaped wind chimes rotating on the ceiling. It rotates slowly, very quietly. But I know— This family's storm has arrived. It's just that no one has heard the wind yet. Besides me and Co Dien Chau. I took a deep breath—okay, a newborn's deep breath is just half a breath more than usual—and closed my eyes. A thought popped into my head: 【Dad, when are you planning to take action?】 There was no answer. He went away. But I know the answer. Almost there. Very quickly. 【Chapter 5】 For the next week, the Co family's exterior remained calm and peaceful. Every day, To Uyen Ninh comes to visit me once, holds me a little, kisses me a little, and says a few words like "What a good baby." Co Thua Vien returned once, stayed home for two days, and reported to Co Dien Chau on the internship situation at the company. Co Dien Chau listened, smiled, nodded, and said, "Not bad, keep trying." His tone was peaceful as if nothing had ever happened. I watched from the side, with only one word in my heart. Top. This performance, if placed in Hollywood, would be enough to win an Oscar. When Co Thua Vien left, he even deliberately came to the baby's room to visit me. "Fourth sister, I'm going now. I'll come visit you next time." He reached out and poked my cheek. I looked at his face that completely did not match Co Dien Chau's. Hold on. Don't think anything. Right now my psychological defense is very solid. As long as I have the Co family by my side, my brain will automatically switch to "surrender mode" - not thinking about anything, not caring about anything, focusing on being a child who only knows how to eat, drink, and excrete. Until that night. About the tenth day after my full month. Late at night. I woke up. The nanny takes care of the baby who sleeps in the next room, and I'm the only one in the baby's room. Very quiet. But I can hear noises downstairs. Very quietly, very far away, but it's really there. It's an argument. To be more precise, one person is questioning, the other is explaining. I put my ears up—of course, babies can't put their ears up, they're just trying to pay attention. Co Dien Chau's voice: "Who gave this necklace?" To Uyen Ninh's voice: "What necklace? Which thread?" "The thread in the second drawer of the dressing table. Cartier, limited edition, it has engravings on it." A short silence. "That's... I bought it myself." "The receipt shows it was purchased on March 14, 2002. White Valentine's Day." Silence again.

silence. "The buyer is not me." "..." "It's Tran Quoc Luong." There was a long silence. I can imagine the scene downstairs—To Uyen Ninh's face went from calm to stiff, from stiff to pale. But after all, she is a woman who has lived in the wealthy world for more than twenty years. "Dien Chau, listen to me explain—that was a long time ago, when we were not married yet—" "In 2002. Thua Vien was one year old." To Uyen Ninh's voice fell silent. This one sentence blocks all retreats. In 2002, they had been married for three years. Co Thua Vien is one year old. If the necklace was purchased before marriage, the timing does not match. If it's after marriage— That's even more interesting. A married man, on White Valentine's Day, gave a necklace to another man's wife. Also engraved with words. What letters are engraved? I do not know. But definitely not "Long Live Friendship". There was silence downstairs for a long time. Then To Uyen Ninh's voice came up, carrying a tremble: "Dien Chau, what do you want to say?" "I don't want to say anything." Co Dien Chau's voice was as calm as water, "Just asking." "Are you investigating me?" "Investigating?" He laughed, "What are you investigating? What do you have to investigate?" "You..."