Chapter 58 — Shrimp Street Without Name

Three days after information about "Hoai Seo" was transferred to the investigation agency, an unexpected event caused the group to face the biggest challenge since Kien's car accident many weeks ago. In the morning, when Hai Yen was preparing to leave her mother's house to go to a meeting with lawyer Hoang, she discovered that all four tires of her car had been punctured during the night, an act of sabotage that was clearly intentional and could not have been a random accident.

At the same time, Kien called to report the news, his voice filled with worry: Mrs. Sau's dried shrimp stall at the market was also sneaked in by someone who threw red paint on all the goods during the night, causing considerable damage, accompanied by a hastily written note on the wall: "Stop before it's too late."

“This is clearly a carefully calculated warning,” lawyer Hoang commented when the group had an emergency meeting that morning. “They targeted both my means of transportation and Uncle Sau's livelihood at the same time, a way to apply maximum pressure without resorting to direct violence that could result in more serious criminal prosecution.”

Hai Yen felt a surge of anger, not because of the material damage, but because her mother, who had bravely testified, now had to bear the direct consequences of that courage. She immediately went to the market and saw Mrs. Sau trying to clean up the mess with red eyes, even though she tried to act strong in front of the people around her.

“Mom, it's okay,” Mrs. Sau said when she saw her daughter, her voice shaking but determined. "It's just a few goods, I can make it again. Don't be swayed by this."

“I don't waver,” Hai Yen replied, hugging her mother, her voice choked up. “I'm just angry because they dared to target mom, someone who did nothing wrong but speak the truth.”

The lieutenant arrived at the scene immediately afterward, made a record, and promised to increase patrols around Ms. Sau's house and the Hai Yen route she often traveled. But he also admitted that these types of acts of vandalism, although condemnable, are very difficult to find the perpetrators without direct witnesses or security cameras recording.

While the group was dealing with the aftermath of the incident, a neighbor of Ms. Sau, Mr. Nam Kiet, stepped forward, hesitated for a moment, then spoke. "Miss Yen, last night I saw a strange motorbike parked nearby. Two people were wearing black coats and hoods covering their faces. At that time, I thought people were drinking late at night and didn't pay close attention. Now that I think about it, I think it's suspicious."

“Do you remember any other features, like the license plate number?” Hai Yen asked, quickly taking notes in her notebook.

"I can't see the license plate clearly, it's too dark," Mr. Nam Kiet replied, his voice apologetic. “But I remember, one of them was tall, walking with a slight limp in his right leg, as if he had some sort of injury.”

That small detail, although not enough to determine a specific identity, was still carefully recorded by Hai Yen, knowing that in investigation work, sometimes the most seemingly trivial pieces of information can become important keys when paired with other data.

In the afternoon, when the situation had calmed down, Hai Yen convened an emergency meeting with the entire group to reassess the safety level and decide on the next steps. The atmosphere in the room was much heavier than before, as everyone realized, the attacks had now become much more direct and bold.

“I think it's time for us to take credit "Disclose everything that is happening to the public," Minh Khang proposed, his voice fierce. "Not only the content of the investigation, but also these acts of intimidation and sabotage. If the public knew the extent to which they were willing to go to silence us, public pressure would become an additional layer of protection.”

Lawyer Hoang nodded in partial agreement. “I support the release of part of the information, but we need to be careful not to affect the ongoing criminal investigation process. We can announce incidents of sabotage and threats, but we should not reveal details about Nguyen Dang Hoai or Hoai Seo until the investigation agency has enough grounds to act."

Hai Yen agreed with that cautious approach, although inside she couldn't help but feel tired of having to constantly balance the need to protect herself, her family, and preserving the integrity of the investigation. She looked around at the familiar faces in the room, all bearing traces of lingering tension, but also exuding an unwavering determination.

“We will not let fear win,” she said, her voice ringing with determination in the still room. “No matter what they do, we will continue, more cautiously, but never back down.”

After the meeting, Kien stayed to help Hai Yen replace four new wheels, a simple job but with great symbolic meaning at this time - a way to affirm that, even though attacked, they will not stop, will continue to move, continue to act.

“You know,” Kien said as he tightened the last screw, his voice thoughtful, “I think a lot about the saying on Uncle Sau's wall, 'stop before it's too late'. It sounded like a warning, but it also sounded like a sign of desperation, as if they felt time was running out to stop us.”

“I think so too,” Hai Yen replied, sitting down next to him on the sidewalk, looking at the car that had just been repaired. “Perhaps, the closer they get to the truth, the more reckless they become. That's both scary and a positive sign, in some strange way.”

They sat quietly together for a while, the sunset dyed the sky red on the distant horizon, reflecting on the water of the nearby canal. Even though today was full of disturbing incidents, this small moment of peace between the two of them still brought a much-needed sense of comfort.

“Thank you,” Hai Yen said, resting her head lightly on Kien's shoulder. “For always being here, no matter how bad things get.”

“I will always be here,” Kien replied, his voice soft but full of sincerity. “No amount of vandalism, no amount of threats, can change that.”

In the evening, before going home, Hai Yen stopped by the police station to send more information about the limp man Mr. Nam Kiet described, hoping that this small detail would soon be compared with the records of those involved in the criminal network they were searching for, closing another circle around those who were still trying to hold on to the darkness surrounding the truth.

On the way home, she received a text message from Ms. Hong, who was still closely monitoring the situation even though she had quit her job a long time ago. “Miss Yen, I heard about the incident this morning, I'm so worried. Do you need any help from me?”

Hai Yen replied, thanking you for your attention Ms. Hong's concern, and at the same time asked if she had heard any new information from old acquaintances in the company, even though she had quit her job. Ms. Hong responded immediately, saying that she had vaguely heard that the company was strengthening internal security, prohibiting employees from talking about the incident, and seemed to be preparing for something bigger, possibly a press conference or a new legal move.

That information made Hai Yen more alert, she immediately passed it on to lawyer Hoang and the lieutenant to closely monitor developments in the coming days. Returning to her mother's house, she saw that Mrs. Sau had finished cleaning up most of the mess in the stall, although there were still a few streaks of red paint that could not be erased on the tile floor.

"I plan to go to the market to sell normally tomorrow," Mrs. Sau said, her voice determined when she saw her daughter's worried questions. "I can't let them win. I can live with being single for a few days, but quitting my job because of fear, I won't do it."

Hai Yen hugged her mother, admiring her resilience, a resilience that she realized she had inherited a lot from this small but strong woman, who had silently endured so many difficulties throughout her life without ever once complaining or giving up.

That night, before going to sleep, Hai Yen sat down and wrote down all the developments of a stormy day in a notebook, from the property destruction, the warning on the wall, to the new clue about the limp man and the news from Mrs. Hong about suspicious moves within Dai Duong. She realized that every day that passes now brings both progress and new challenges, a stressful but also determined rhythm that she has gradually become familiar with since the beginning of this journey, since the first day she set foot at Nam Can port container yard.