Chapter 5 — Reverse Chess

I opened my eyes wide, but my pupils trembled, my vision blurred because of the steam. It's so painful that no words can describe it. He bowed his head, leaned slightly, got closer, his voice was low and hoarse, but each word went straight to the bone: "You thought... you found the truth. You thought... you got revenge." “But from beginning to end… you were just a pawn in my hand.” My eyes darkened, the air seemed to choke in my throat, each heartbeat felt as heavy as a stone falling into the abyss. “It was you... who put Du Du in prison.” "Perfect." “I needed a perfect ‘scapegoat’…” “And you… helped me do that.” Finally, Luc Can Ngon smiled. That's not the gentle smile I once loved. There is no gentleness, no disguise. It was a cold, sharp, cruel smile to the end. He tilted his head, the light of the crystal lamp reflecting on his cruelly handsome face. “Hua Niem…” “Thank you.” “Thank you… for helping me clean the house.” He finished speaking, his voice was low, each word was like a knife carved into my heart. Then, Luc Can Ngon turned around and left. Amid the frightened, suspicious, and chaotic eyes of hundreds of guests, he walked step by step, calmly, elegantly, as if the person who had just trampled my life was just an uninterested bystander. I stood still in place, my whole body cold as ice, the blood seemed to stop flowing in my veins. The surrounding sounds disappeared, whispers, gossip, footsteps, all were swallowed by the numb emptiness in my head. I felt like I was falling into a bottomless abyss, without light, without air, without any way out. I thought I had a firm grasp on the truth. I thought I caught the killer. I used to think that with all my efforts, I had given justice to my mother. But it turns out... I'm nothing more than a puppet. A pathetic clown, played with in the palm of his hand by a real demon. I… personally pushed the only person who knew the truth — the person who could be the only witness — into a hell with no escape. While the person behind it all... the one who manipulated everything... leisurely escaped the siege, without a speck of dust. Are not. It can't end like that. I cannot bear to lose. I rushed out of the hall. Outside the long red-carpeted hallway, bright white light shined on the cold tile floor. I saw Luc Can Ngon preparing to board a luxurious black car. Next to him were four bodyguards wearing dark suits, standing seriously, like a wall between me and him. I ran straight towards them, my heart was pounding, my voice was hoarse, almost breaking into a scream: "Luc Can Ngon!!!" “You stop!!!” He stopped walking. Slowly turning around, his eyes were gloomy under the light, the corner of his lips curled up into a cold and cruel curve. On his face, there was a look of evil enjoyment, as if he was watching a hooked fish struggling in despair. His voice was low and slow, carrying an arrogance that was hard to hide: "What's wrong? Miss Hua, what else do you want to teach me?" I stood facing him, my hands clenched into fists, my nails digging into my skin until they bled. “Why…” I looked straight at him, my eyes were bloodshot, each word coming out as if mixed with blood and tears: “Why did you have to do that?!” "Mom I don't treat you badly.” My voice trembled, tight in my throat, but I still tried to stay calm: "I... I ask myself, I have never done anything wrong to you. So why… why do you have to treat us like that?!” "Why?" Luc Can Ngon slightly raised his lips, his eyes darkened, as if he had just heard an extremely funny question. “Hua Niem…” His voice was low, mixed with a bit of cold sarcasm: “Are you… too naive?” He took another step forward, each step stepped directly on my heartbeat, his eyes were sharp as knives, each word was like a needle piercing my chest: "Do you really think... I married you... for love?" “Shock——” A shattering sound rang out from deep inside, as if my heart had just been torn into countless pieces. I stood there, trembling, my lips moving, but no sound could come out. He looked at me, the corners of his lips curled into a cruel line, his voice was hoarse and low, cold as a winter night: "Why did I marry you?" “Because you are the daughter of the Hua family.” “Because your mother, Lam Uyen, is an excellent biologist.” “And most importantly…” He bowed his head, close to my ear, his voice was like a sharp knife cutting through my skin: “In her hands… she holds a technology patent that I must have at all costs.” My whole body stiffened. My brain made a buzzing sound, so empty that I almost lost all awareness. “Patent…?” I repeated those two words unconsciously, my voice trembling, as if I couldn't fully understand what he was saying. Luc Can Ngon laughed softly, a cold laugh, but full of contempt: "Don't you know?" His eyes were filled with bitter sarcasm. “That's true… Your mother always protected you so well.” “She did not let her access any of the company's core operations. She was afraid she would be caught up in dirty business wars.” He paused for a moment, his eyes darkened, the corner of his lips curled up into an even colder smile: "Unfortunately... she can protect everyone, but she can't protect... her own head of the bed, and her second biological daughter." His voice was low, each word like a hammer hitting my heart: “That patent… involves a new type of targeted drug. Once the research is successful and launched on the market... the value will be calculated in hundreds of billions." My eyes widened, my whole body felt like it was being swallowed by a storm. But Luc Can Ngon did not stop. “But your mother is too conservative,” his voice became colder and colder, “she believes that this technology is not yet mature enough and has huge potential risks, so she always refuses to commercialize it.” He raised his head, squinted his eyes, his smile slowly bloomed, his voice carrying cruelty and calculation: “But I can't wait. My opponent… can't wait either.” He took a step closer, standing so close that his breath fanned my cheek. His voice was low and clear, each word nailed into my brain: “So I have to have it.” “And you, Hua Niem… are the door for me to approach her.” “The most perfect… chess piece.” I suddenly saw everything crumble before my eyes. Fragments of memories assembled, sharp enough to cut the soul: From the day he appeared... From the moment I was moved by a look on campus... From the confession of love under the shadow of the sunset... From the gorgeous wedding that I thought was proof of love... Everything... Just is a deception. A perfectly staged drama. Step by step, he led me into the golden cage that I thought was heaven. He loves... never me. "What you want..." My voice was hoarse, trembling like the cold wind blowing through dry leaves: "...is what's in my mother's hand. It's the entire Hua family." I looked straight at him, feeling my chest being constricted, but still tried to force out each word: "That's why... you approached me... Pretending to be gentle, pretending to love, making me trust you wholeheartedly, loving you to the point of willingly pouring out my heart." "You marry me..." I smiled faintly, each sound trembling, full of pain and humiliation: "...so that you can step into the Hua family, become the golden son-in-law, and sit on the company's board of directors." I raised my chin and looked straight at the handsome face that once made me blindly infatuated: "You took advantage of my absolute trust, extorted the company's commercial secrets, and seduced my sister - a shallow, jealous, ambitious girl - to turn her into a tool to deal with my mother." Luc Can Ngon tilted his head slightly, his eyes were dark, the corner of his lips curled up in a faint, cold line: "Not too stupid." His voice was indifferent as if he was praising a student who had just done the math correctly. I clenched my fists, digging my nails into my skin until it bled. I looked straight at him and asked the most important question: "Have you gotten the patent yet?" He did not avoid it, his tone was calm to the point of being brazen: "Not yet." This one word is as heavy as a rock falling straight into my heart. He continued, his voice low and even, each word echoing in my ears: "Your mother... is extremely vigilant. She hid all the core documents very carefully. I searched for a long time... still couldn't find them." Then he paused, the corner of his lips curled up in a smile that made my blood run cold: "But... it's okay."