Chapter 23 — Seventy-Eight Billion And The President Has No Heir

The handbook is not just a paper copy.

Vu's mother once forced her son to take pictures of each page because she was afraid he would forget. Vu kept a copy in a cloud account, but the old password was locked when he went missing.

Khang suggests checking the account creation date. He doesn't work in technology, but understands backup systems from years of repairing computers.

"People often remember passwords. Few people remember recovery questions."

Vu tried the question: the dish his father cooked for his first birthday. He replied "sour snakehead fish soup". Open account.

In the copy, we found Quoc Tai's entire history of money transfers, along with a note: "The ticket is not the only source of money. Check who has been fired."

I reread that sentence many times. Father Vu knew someone whose signature was used, but never found anyone. I'm not the first victim.

We contacted four former employees. Two people were afraid, one person received money to keep quiet, the other person was Mr. Vinh who was in the hospital.

Vinh regained consciousness and agreed to testify. He said Quoc Tai had threatened his child, then gave me an old recording.

“Don't fix the numbers,” my voice said on the record. “If I lack money, I will notify the council.”

Then came Quoc Tai's voice:

"You can't report it. I'll make you a signer."

This evidence is enough to connect the old company with Tan Cuong.

To protect Vinh, we transferred him to another hospital. Khang drove, Vu sat next to me, I kept the records.

On the road, a truck passed close by. Khang did not panic, just changed lanes and called the traffic police. The truck drove away, but a dashcam recorded the license plate number.

The license plate belongs to Minh Chau's company.

Chau was arrested that night on charges of obstructing the investigation. Khai has not yet been arrested because of the lack of a direct signature.

In the interrogation room, Chau looked at me.

“I just want my father's position.”

"You have a position. You want someone else's life."

Chau burst into tears for the first time.

"You don't understand my family. If I don't take their side, I'll be the next one left."

I understand that feeling. But understanding does not mean forgiveness.

That night, the court issued a summons to Khai. Vu was temporarily restored to executive power.

As soon as he signed the first document, the entire Tan Cuong system lost power.