Chapter 14 — Stupid But Strong

Nhieu Trong Khai read Bach Duy's post over and over again on the computer screen in his private office. Each time he read it, the veins on his forehead deepened with anger and fear. He originally thought that, after his brother passed away, all traces of the old plan were safely buried along with Tang Ninh's years of silence and Bach Duy's disappearance from her life. He did not expect that fate would bring the two people back together, and worse yet, turn that relationship into a public topic before millions of followers.

He immediately called his most trusted assistant, a man who had worked as chief accountant for the Nhieu family company for many years, who had directly helped him and his brother prepare authorization documents and fake signatures related to Bach Duy's shares in the past.

"Did you see the news this morning?" Trong Khai asked, his voice rough over the phone. "That kid and Tang Ninh are openly having a relationship with each other. If they continue to be close, sooner or later she will search for old documents, and then everything we have done will be exposed."

"Don't worry too much," the accountant replied, his voice somewhat reassuring but unable to hide his own insecurity. "Those documents have been kept very carefully. They are not easily discovered without someone specifically looking for them."

"Just because it's not easy doesn't mean it's impossible," Trong Khai grumped. "I need you to find a way to ensure that all traces related to the incident that year are erased, as quickly as possible. At the same time, I need a plan to extinguish public attention on the relationship between the two of them. If public opinion turns against them, they will naturally drift apart, and we will have more time to handle everything smoothly."

The accountant was silent for a moment, then proposed a plan that he himself knew was dangerous. "I can contact a few connections in the media who are willing to write articles upon request if the price is right. We can create more negative stories about their relationship, causing the public to lose sympathy, or even make his entertainment company consider terminating the contract because the image risk is too great."

Trong Khai nodded, his eyes flashing with cold calculation. "Do it. I don't care what method you use, just make sure that their story never has a chance to touch on what happened in the past."

After the call with the accountant, Trong Khai sat alone in the office, looking out the window at the city lights. He recalled the years when his brother, Mr. Nhieu Trong Nhan, was still alive, the two of them carefully discussed how to keep control of the shares left by Tu Quang Binh, in case the only son of his late business friend grew up and was incompetent or no longer trusted the Nhieu family to manage the assets on his behalf. The initial plan was simply to prolong the guardianship period, creating many legal barriers to delay the transfer of ownership, but over time, greed made the two brothers gradually go further, to the point of forging a number of authorization documents so that they could withdraw part of the capital from an account named Bach Duy without having to wait until he was twenty-five years old.

Now, with Bach Duy becoming a celebrity and having enough financial resources and reputation to hire a good lawyer, the possibility that he will request a re-audit of his entire inheritance is completely present. Trong Khai clearly understands that if that happens, not only his honor but also the future of the Nhieu family company, on which hundreds of employees depend, will also be seriously threatened. That fear, mixed with years of deep-seated greed, made him more and more determined in finding a way to extinguish the relationship between Bach Duy and Tang Ninh before it had a chance to threaten his position.

In the following days, new articles began to appear on small entertainment news sites, with increasingly malicious perspectives on the relationship between Bach Duy and Tang Ninh. One article even quoted a "source close to the family," implying that Tang Ninh had "impure intentions" with Bach Duy since he was a sixteen-year-old teenager who had just lost his parents, a completely fabricated accusation but enough to seriously damage her reputation.

Tang Ninh read that article while preparing to open the shop in the morning, her hands shook with anger and hurt. She had never done anything wrong during the two years of taking care of Bach Duy, and now, those blatant slanders were deliberately distorting everything she had sacrificed.

She immediately called Bach Duy, her voice choked with anger. "Have you read the latest article? They're saying I've had plans for you since you were sixteen years old. That's a blatant lie."

"I saw it," Bach Duy replied, his voice could not hide his anger. "This is not just another random post, Ms. Ninh. The way they used the words, the way they quoted 'sources close to the family' — I think someone is deliberately orchestrating it to destroy us."

Lam Nha Thu, after receiving an urgent call from Bach Duy, quickly called the company's legal team in to find out the origin of that malicious article. After a few days of investigation, they discovered that the article was posted by a small, little-known news site, but showed signs of receiving a significant amount of funding from an anonymous source right before the time of posting - a first clue that this was not a natural scandal, but a deliberate sabotage campaign, arranged by someone with no small motive and financial potential.

"Someone is deliberately trying to ruin both of their reputations," Lam Nha Thu said in an emergency meeting with Bach Duy and Tang Ninh, her face full of seriousness. "The most important question now is, who has the motivation and financial ability to do this?"

Tang Ninh and Bach Duy looked at each other, the same thought flashed in both of their heads. "Uncle Trong Khai," Tang Ninh said, her voice shaking. "Only he has enough reason to be afraid of our relationship, and only he has the financial potential to orchestrate such a large-scale sabotage campaign."

Bach Duy clenched his fists, a cold determination rising in his heart, completely different from the angry impatience of the previous days. "If it's true that Uncle Trong Khai is behind all of this, then this is no longer just about me and Ninh. This is about my father's legacy, about the justice my father deserves after his death. I will not let this matter sink like it did six years ago."

Lam Nha Thu nodded, although her face was still worried. "If we want to directly confront a person with power and financial potential like Mr. Trong Khai, we need really solid evidence, not just speculation or hunches. Once we take action, we must be sure to win, because if we fail, the consequences will be much more severe than at present."

The meeting ended with a tacit agreement between the three people - from now on, they will not simply defend against media attacks, but will proactively search for evidence to reveal the entire truth about the old property conspiracy, knowing clearly that the road ahead will certainly have many dangers awaiting.

That night, Tang Ninh returned to the restaurant alone, standing silently in the familiar space that had been with her for the past six years, her heart both scared and determined. She opened the old drawer where she kept a few copies of company documents from her years working there, hoping there might be some useful clues left among them. She knows that the journey ahead will require her to face her biological uncle, whom she has always respected since childhood, but now she understands that sometimes justice must be placed above blood relationships. She sat down at the table, began flipping through old pages under the yellow light, preparing herself for a battle that she knew would not be easy.