Chapter 12 — The Beggar Husband Turns Out to Be a Dragon

In the following days, Tuyet Nhi noticed that Bach Tranh had changed significantly, even though he tried to hide it as much as possible. He became more alert every time he went out, often looking around as if looking for something, and there were nights when she woke up in the middle of the night and saw him standing quietly by the window, his eyes looking out at the dark sky, his face full of confidence.

"Can't you sleep?" She asked, one night when she discovered he was still awake at nearly three in the morning.

"Yeah, just having a little trouble sleeping." Bach Tranh replied, turning back to look at her, trying to give her a reassuring smile, but Tuyet Nhi still noticed a bit of awkwardness in that smile.

"Are you worried about anything?" She asked further, walking over to sit next to him by the window. "I can tell you, even if it's just part of it."

"It's nothing, just a random thought." He replied, gently holding her hand, trying to appear more relieved than he actually was.

She is not a woman who easily ignores unusual details. Over the past few weeks, she had quietly recorded many strange things: the ancient jade piece that he always kept hidden and did not want to explain clearly, his extraordinary swimming ability during the accident on the bridge, the secret phone calls he often made at late hours with a serious voice different from usual, and now his excessive vigilance every time he went out.

One evening, while Bach Tranh was taking a shower, his phone, which he left on the guest table, suddenly vibrated, alerting him to an incoming text message. Tuyet Nhi accidentally glanced at the screen and saw the text appear from an unknown number: "Your Highness, Ngao Viet Phong is still in the eastern area of the city, with no signs of movement. Be careful."

She was stunned looking at that text message, her heart pounding. "Your Highness"? "Ngao Viet Phong"? These words were completely unfamiliar, unlike any form of address she had ever heard in everyday life, and even more inappropriate for a husband who used to be a wandering beggar like Bach Tranh.

When he walked out of the bathroom, he saw Tuyet Nhi sitting quietly on the sofa, her eyes looking at him were somewhat strange, Bach Tranh slightly froze. "What's wrong?"

Tuyet Nhi looked at him for a long moment, torn between wanting to ask directly and the vague fear of what she might hear. In the end, she decided not to mention the message and just shook her head. "Nothing, I'm just a little tired."

During dinner that night, even though she tried to stay normal, Tuyet Nhi still couldn't help but notice her husband's every little gesture, the way he constantly glanced toward the window, the way he ate and drank more quickly than usual. She remembered the first time she met him on a rainy night, remembered the strange feeling of supporting a skinny body that was much heavier than it looked, and now, all those disparate pieces seemed to be trying to piece together a picture that she didn't have the courage to look directly at.

"You eat so little?" Bach Tranh asked, realizing that she kept stirring her chopsticks in the bowl but couldn't eat much.

"I'm not very hungry." Tuyet Nhi replied, trying to smile, then changed the subject. "Work at the charity fund has been so busy lately, I'm probably just a little tired."

Bach Tranh nodded, without any further doubts, but in his eyes there was a hint of guilt that was hard to hide, as if he also felt the vague distance creeping between the two of them, even though both of them deliberately did not mention it.

That night, after Bach Tranh fell asleep, Tuyet Nhi lay awake, her mind reeling with a series of unanswered questions. She remembered every little detail over the years, the moments when he dodged questions about his past, the times he demonstrated profound knowledge far beyond what a former wanderer could have, and now a mysterious message with an authoritative address.

She can choose to question him immediately, demanding that he explain everything clearly. But when she looked at his face sleeping soundly next to her, a face that in rare moments of weakness still contained some deep pain, she couldn't bear it. She remembered everything he had done for her and her family, his kindness, his sincerity, and his love for her, which she firmly believed could not be fake.

"Perhaps, he has some reason to hide it." She told herself, her eyes looking up at the ceiling in the darkness. "Maybe, it's something too painful, too dangerous to say right now."

The next morning, Tuyet Nhi decided to meet her close friend, On Nha Ky, a magazine editor with wide connections in high society, to ask if anyone had heard of strange names like "Ngao Viet Phong" or had any clues about some mysterious organization, although she deliberately did not clarify the real reason behind her question.

"Nao Viet Phong? I've never heard of this name before." Nha Ky shook her head, her eyes looking at you curiously. "Why do you ask? Is something wrong?"

"Nothing, I just happened to hear this name somewhere, I'm curious." Tuyet Nhi smiled wryly, avoiding the question.

Returning home, she was even more confused because she couldn't find any useful clues. She sat in the living room, looking out at the small garden in front of the house, her heart heavy with thoughts. She thought that maybe she should trust her instincts, trust the person she loved and chose to stick with for life, instead of letting doubt tear apart the relationship that the two of them had built together with so many difficulties.

In the evening, when Bach Tranh returned from his part-time consulting job, he saw Tuyet Nhi waiting for him in the living room, her eyes looking at him filled with confidence.

"Is there something you want to tell me?" He asked, sitting down next to her.

Tuyet Nhi was silent for a moment, then looked straight into his eyes, her voice gentle but full of sincerity. "Mr. Bach Tranh, I know you are hiding something big from me. I don't know what it is, but I feel that what is happening is not as simple as you say."

Bach Tranh stopped, his eyes looked at her, both afraid and surprised at his wife's sophistication. "You... have you discovered something?"

"I don't know exactly, but I saw a message with a very strange way of addressing you on your phone." She replied, her voice still calm. "I could have asked you to explain right away, but I decided not to."

"Why?" Bach Tranh asked, his voice was a bit shaky, he had never seen him lose his temper like that before.

"Because I trust you." Tuyet Nhi held his hand, her eyes determined. "I believe that whatever the secret is, you have a good reason to keep it hidden, and one day, when you're ready, you'll tell me yourself. I won't force you to tell me before you really want to."

Bach Tranh looked at her, with an indescribable feeling in his heart, emotion mixed with deep gratitude for the tolerance and absolute trust she had for him, a trust he knew he did not deserve to receive so easily, especially when the secret he was hiding could bring deadly danger to her.

He thought of those who had been by his side in the past, the courtiers in Long Uyen's court before the incident, those who seemed absolutely loyal but in the end easily leaned towards the stronger when times changed. Compared to them, a human girl who had never known anything about the dragon world and was willing to give her all her trust without any evidence or explanation was truly something that made him reconsider everything he once thought was the truth about loyalty and love.

"Maybe." He thought to himself, his arms tightening around her shoulders. "True strength does not lie in how many people kneel before your throne, but in having someone willing to stand next to you even if you don't know who you are."

"Thank you, Tuyet Nhi." He said, his voice choked, pulling her into a tight hug. "I promise, when the right time comes, I will tell you all the truth, no matter how much it may shock you."

"I will wait." Tuyet Nhi replied, resting her head on his chest, clearly hearing his heart beating faster than usual. "Whatever the secret is, I will face it with you."

That night, in each other's arms, neither of them knew that the "right" time that Bach Tranh mentioned would come much sooner than he expected, and when the truth was finally revealed, it would come in a more dangerous situation than either of them could have imagined.