Chapter 4 — The Bride Strikes Back: Exposing the Liar

I immediately called Tieu Truong, the broker who was in charge of our house transaction. He remembered me very clearly, because there weren't many young couples who bought a wedding house for several million yuan like us.

"Miss To? Hello, hello!"

His voice was still as enthusiastic as before.

“Tieu Truong, I need to confirm something.”

“Just say it!”

“When you bought the house, did you still save the deposit transfer documents?”

At that time, I was a bit cautious, because most of the deposit was paid by me. Trieu Khai said that his family had difficulty raising capital, so he temporarily took the bride price money I gave him to pay in advance, then asked me to contribute an additional 200,000 yuan, his family only put up a few tens of thousands as a token. Wait until they have the money, they will return it to me. At that time, I believed him and thought he was honest. Now that I think about it... it's all holes. Tieu Truong searched for a while and then said: "Found it."

“I still have a scanned copy of the bank receipt, a total of three amounts transferred to the investor's account.”

“One is 188,000 yuan, one is 200,000 yuan, and one is 32,000 yuan.”

“Is there a problem?”

My heart sank little by little.

“Send me the scan.”

“Yes, I will send it right away.”

I hung up the phone and opened my laptop. The email arrived very quickly. Three receipts appear clearly on the screen. The first note, the person who transferred it was me, the amount of 188,000 yuan was the bride price money my parents gave me, I gave it to Trieu Khai in its entirety to pay the rent. The second bill, the one who transferred it was still me, 200,000 yuan, was my own savings. The third note, the person who transferred it was Ly Thuy Lan, Trieu Khai's mother, 32,000 yuan. The total deposit is 420,000 yuan. My family spent 388,000 yuan. The Zhao family... only spent 32,000 yuan. But what did Trieu Khai say before? He said his family put in 220,000 yuan, my family's 188,000 yuan was still a little short, so he asked me to make up an additional 20,000 yuan. I didn't doubt it, I happily compensated, thinking that the extra amount would be considered as contributing more to the family home. He tricked me. Calculated my money from the beginning. Chu Duyet standing next to him was also dumbfounded.

"Oh my god! He cheated you of more than 300,000 yuan!"

“This is no longer love, this is fraud!”

I stared at the screen, my fingers clenching until they turned white. It turns out that the words "in the future I will raise you" are not sweet words. It's the cake drawn from before. The house that I thought was my home was actually a trap they set up for me. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath, then opened them. There was only coldness left in his eyes.

“Yeu, come with me to the Department of Real Estate Management.”

Chu Duyet was bewildered: "What are you doing there?"

“See the legal status of the house.”

I have a very bad feeling. If Trieu Khai cheated on the deposit, then other places certainly have problems as well. We drove to the Real Estate Management Department, got a number, and lined up. While waiting, my heart hung in suspense. Finally it's my turn. I gave my ID card and sales contract. The employee operated the machine, then looked up at me with strange eyes.

“Are you sure this is the room?”

My heart sank: "Sure, what's the problem?" He pointed to the screen: "This house was mortgaged three days ago."

“Mortgage?”

I felt like I had been hit hard in the head.

"No way, the book is in two people's names, how can he alone mortgage it?"

The staff explained: "He has your notary power of attorney." Power of attorney… My head is pounding. I remember now. Half a month ago, Trieu Khai gave me a stack of papers, saying it was a loan procedure I was busy preparing for the wedding so I didn't read or sign all of it. There is definitely an authorization letter in there. I personally... handed over the right to handle the house to a fraudster.

“How much does he mortgage?”

My voice trembled.

“2,000,000 yuan.”

The house costs 3,000,000 yuan. Deposit 420,000 yuan, bank loan 2,580,000 yuan. The loan has not yet been paid a penny... but he has mortgaged it again. He mortgaged the house and took out 2,000,000 yuan, as if this whole marriage was just a show in exchange for money. Chu Duyet quickly caught me, his voice trembling: "Du Du, are you okay?", but I just shook my head, leaning on the counter with my hands to keep from falling down. In that moment, everything in my head felt like it was being torn apart and then put back together, pieces of the cold truth gradually becoming clear. The Trieu family is not just short of money, they are holding a huge hole, possibly due to gambling debts or irreparable business losses. That's why they set up this marriage, swindled my bride price, swindled my savings, and even swindled the house in my name. The empty wedding envelope was not impulsive, but a premeditated plan of humiliation, a step that paved the way for the entire plot. They are sure that I will endure, for the sake of dignity, for the so-called grand situation. As long as I endure, the wedding will be completed and I will become their daughter-in-law. At that time, the assets in my name will automatically be controlled by them, and even if I find out, I will not be able to turn back. Is it easy for a married woman to escape? They bet everything on my weakness. This calculation was both cruel and terrifyingly accurate, making my spine cold as if ice was flowing through it. I pulled out my phone, my hands shaking so much I could barely hold it, then dialed my dad. His voice immediately lowered: "Du Du, what's wrong?"

"The house... was mortgaged by Trieu Khai."

I said everything, every word seemed to fall into an abyss, and on the other end of the line there was only terrifying silence. Nearly a minute later, my father spoke up, his voice compressed like an underground wave before exploding: "Don't be afraid, let me handle this matter."

“Even if I have to spend all my assets, I will make them pay.”

I hung up the phone, wiped away my tears, my fear and pain completely swallowed by anger. Trieu Khai, Ly Thuy Lan, do you think that you can destroy me? No, you just ignited my fight. I called Trieu Khai, the bell rang for a long time before someone picked up, the other side was as noisy as a karaoke bar. He's still in the mood to sing, he's truly shameless to the core.

"Hello?" His voice was mixed with alcohol and also carried contempt.

“After thinking about it, are you planning on coming to beg me?”

I smiled coldly, my voice calm: "Trieu Khai, you mortgaged the wedding house for 2,000,000 yuan, right?" The other side immediately fell silent, as if the throat was choked, even the music seemed to disappear. A few seconds later, his voice rang out, no longer drunk, just panicked: "You... how did you know?"

“It doesn't matter what I know, what's important is that I give you 24 hours to return the 2,000,000 yuan and release the mortgage on the house.”

“If not, I will sue you for fraud and falsification of documents, and let you spend the rest of your life in prison.”

Trieu Khai was completely frightened, his voice cracked: "To Du Du, don't cause trouble, this is my wife's common property." husband!"

"Couple?" I burst out laughing, each word cold as a knife, "Trieu Khai, have you forgotten, the wedding is canceled, we were never husband and wife."

“The marriage certificate in your hand… is fake.”

That sentence was like a bomb thrown straight at him, leaving the other end of the line completely dumbfounded.

“No way, that's a legal registration!” His voice started to panic.

"So please take a closer look and see if my ID card number is on there... is there a wrong number?"

The other side was as silent as a cemetery, only the sound of rummaging through things rang out urgently, followed by an almost desperate scream.

“To Du Du! You plan on me!”

I laughed, a feeling of relief spread throughout my body, as if I had just cut off a rope that had bound me for two years.

“It's a quid pro quo, I learned from you and your mother.”