Chapter 3 — Reborn to Love the Perfect One

The summary meeting that afternoon took place in the large hall of Vệ Thịnh Group, where departments reported quarterly business results before entering the graduation season and the end-of-school vacation of young employees in upcoming training. Ánh Vy sat in the front row, next to her father, watching Bách Nam stand on the presentation podium, confidently presenting a report on the progress of a real estate project he was in charge of.

She listened to every word, and for the first time in her life, she realized that the numbers Bách Nam gave were somewhat exaggerated compared to reality. In her previous life, she never bothered to verify his reports, trusting him completely because of the sisterly love she had placed. But now, with the eyes of someone who once held a senior management position and has gone through countless financial reporting meetings, she immediately recognized the unreasonable points in the way Bách Nam presented the project's capital disbursement progress.

After the meeting, when everyone had left the hall one by one, Ánh Vy held Bách Nam back. "Can you review the detailed report on the disbursement progress of the Eastern urban area project? I think there are a few numbers that need further clarification."

Bách Nam paused for a moment, the smile on his lips was slightly stiff. "Sister, I have fully presented the report at the meeting. If there are any problems, just ask directly and I will explain right away."

"I want to see the original text, not the summary you presented." Ánh Vy's voice was still gentle but without any hesitation. "As an older sister, you also need to clearly understand the work I'm doing so that I can support you when needed, right?"

There was a moment of confusion that flashed across Bách Nam's face, so quickly that if Ánh Vy hadn't witnessed his entire betrayal in her previous life, Ánh Vy would probably ignore it. "Yes, let me email it to you later."

He left quickly after that, and Ánh Vy stood alone in the empty hall, feeling both pain and determination. She knew that this was just the beginning of a series of small signs that she had previously deliberately ignored, because blind love had obscured all necessary sanity.

That evening, when returning to the villa, Ánh Vy found Uncle Chu Văn Đạt who was resting in the small room reserved for service staff, cleaning the car he had been with for nearly twenty years. She sat down next to him, gently asked about his health, and asked about his family's life in recent years.

"Miss Ánh Vy is so kind, always cares about our family." Chu Văn Đạt smiled gently, his age-wrinkled eyes shining with sincere gratitude. "Thanks to you, my Bách Nam is where he is today. I really don't know how to repay all the gratitude from you and the chairman."

Ánh Vy looked at the man in front of her, her heart suddenly filled with an indescribable sadness. Uncle Dat was an honest and simple person who had never made any demands or calculations towards the Ve family. In his previous life, when Bách Nam's story was exposed, he was the one who suffered the most. He knelt down and apologized to Ánh Vy on behalf of his unfilial son, even though he himself was not involved in any conspiracy.

"Uncle Dat, there's no need to say such things," she replied, her voice gentle. "You have devotedly served my family for many years, that is what I and my father always appreciate. As for Bách Nam, I think it's time to let him stand on his own feet, uncle. I will still support him when necessary, but maybe I shouldn't protect him too much like before." Chu Văn Đạt was a bit stunned, then nodded in agreement. "You're right. I've also noticed that lately he's been spending a bit lavishly, dressing up to follow his new friends in the upper class. I've reminded him a few times but he said I'm worrying too much."

Uncle Dat's words made Ánh Vy's heart sink. In her previous life, she had never spent time talking to her uncle in this way, never knew that even Bách Nam's biological father had uneasy premonitions about the change in his son's personality. If she had listened then, perhaps things would not have come to such a tragic end.

"Do you know who Bách Nam has recently met? In the upper class you mentioned," she asked, trying to keep her tone natural, not revealing any scrutiny.

"It seems like there's a model or something in the media, named Kiều Ý Nhi. He mentioned this name a few times, saying he just met him at a project launch party." Chu Văn Đạt frowned, his voice somewhat worried. "I think she doesn't seem simple, but Bách Nam is very excited when talking about her."

Ánh Vy clasped her hands on her thighs, trying to keep her expression calm. Just as she predicted, Kiều Ý Nhi began to appear, earlier than she remembered in her previous life. Perhaps, it was because she changed the way she treated Bách Nam from the beginning, making him feel mentally lacking earlier, so he found new relationships to fill that void faster than expected.

"I understand, thank you for sharing." She stood up, smiling softly to reassure the man in front of her. "Don't worry too much, let me pay more attention. After all, Bách Nam has grown up and needs to learn to distinguish right from wrong."

Returning to her private room, Ánh Vy sat down at her desk, opened her notebook, and wrote down the name Kiều Ý Nhi along with today's date. She knew that from now on, all her actions needed to be doubly cautious. She cannot openly confront Bách Nam right away, because that will only push him faster towards Kiều Ý Nhi, making him feel doubted, hurt, and thus easier to be taken advantage of.

What she needs to do is quietly build her own information network, quietly strengthen her position in the company, and most importantly, silently collect evidence right from the first signs, so as to never fall into a passive position like her previous life again.

She looked out the window, the moonlight was bright tonight, illuminating the quiet garden of the villa. Tomorrow will be Bách Nam's graduation ceremony, which is also the day that she died in her previous life. But this time, she will enter that ceremony with a completely different mindset, a thorough preparation that she never had in her previous life.

She opened her computer and began drafting a personal plan for herself, divided into many specific stages. The first phase, lasting over the next few months, is to quietly observe and collect evidence, absolutely not acting hastily to make the opponent wary. The second stage is to strengthen your position in the company, building more trustworthy alliance relationships, especially with truly capable but rarely noticed personnel like Dịch Phong. The final stage, when all the evidence is complete, will be when she takes decisive action, showing no mercy to those who have taken advantage of her kindness.

Writing here, she stopped and looked out the window again. She remembered the feeling of extreme helplessness in her previous life, when standing in front of the board of directors, being looked at by dozens of eyes with contempt and suspicion, without having a single piece of evidence in hand to vindicate herself. That feeling was more painful than the physical pain when the truck crashed into her on the dark road. At least, death only lasted a moment, and the humiliation of being betrayed by the person she loved ate away at her heart until the last moment.

"It won't be like that this time." She told herself, closed the computer, stood up and walked out to the balcony. The cool night wind blew on my face, carrying the scent of magnolia flowers wafting from the garden below. She took a deep breath, feeling life filling every cell of her body, a precious feeling that only those who have faced death can fully understand.

She thought of her father, a strict man but always silently watched and worried about her in his own way. In his previous life, when she was slandered before the board of directors, his face turned pale, his eyes shone with pain and disappointment when he believed that his daughter had betrayed the trust of the entire family. This time, she determined to never let her father suffer that pain again. She will prove to him that the daughter he was always proud of was not wrong in believing in goodness, but was simply not alert enough to protect her.

That night, Ánh Vy slept a rare good night's sleep, no longer haunted by nightmares about death like the previous nights. She knows, from tomorrow, a completely new journey will begin, and this time, she will be the one in control of her own destiny.