Chapter 19 — The Brilliant Wife and the Mute CEO

The meeting with Nguyễn Văn Khoa took place in an old warehouse in the suburbs, under the careful arrangement of Mr. Ky. The man who was once a promising chief engineer was now gaunt, his eyes always wandering around warily like an animal that had been hunted for a year.

"I'm sorry, I'm really sorry," Khoa said, his voice choked as soon as he saw Bách Chu sitting in a wheelchair in front of him. "That night, Mr. Vĩnh Khôi's people came to me, threatening to harm my entire family if I dared to inform you about the stolen money. They forced me to cut the brakes on your car, saying that if you were only slightly injured and took some time to recover, it would be enough for them to resolve everything smoothly. I did not expect the consequences to be so serious... I have lived in torment for the past year."

He tremblingly took out a small hard drive hidden in the lining of his jacket, along with an old recording saved on his phone, clearly recording the voice of the person who threatened him, a trusted assistant named Thanh who worked directly under Vĩnh Khôi.

"This is the entire original financial report I backed up before being forced to hand over the original copy, and the recording of the threatening call. I kept it for my own safety, but I didn't expect to use it one day," Khoa said, handing the hard drive to Xuân Lam. "I am willing to testify before the law, no matter what the cost."

Bách Chu looked at the engineer who had accidentally been dragged into his tragedy and signaled a short, sincere sentence: "Thank you for your courage. In your matter, I will ensure justice."

"There's one more thing you need to know," Khoa added, his voice still shaking. "The mechanic who directly cut the brakes on your car, his real name is Duc, has a scar on his chin as you remember. After finishing the job, he was also forced by Mr. Thanh himself to disappear from the city at night, just like me. If he is found, his testimony will completely match what I just told you, enough that no one can deny it anymore," Xuân Lam quickly wrote down that detail in her notebook, then asked Mr. Ky to continue searching for the whereabouts of the mechanic named Duc in the little time left before the congress. She also asked Khoa to record the entire testimony on a short video, both as backup evidence and so that he would not have to risk appearing publicly too soon before having full protection from the law.

"Can you keep my family safe?" Khoa asked, his eyes filled with worry. "My mother is old, I don't want her to suffer because of me."

"I promise to take good care, both in terms of safety and legality, for you and your family, once everything comes to light," Xuân Lam replied, her voice firm as an honorable pledge. "You were brave enough to tell the truth, we won't let you bear the consequences alone."

Having the core evidence in hand, Xuân Lam and Bách Chu spent the remaining days carefully preparing, comparing each number in the original financial report with the official report that Vĩnh Khôi had presented to the Board of Directors over the past year, clearly marking each difference, each signature, each suspicious seal.

On the morning of the shareholders' meeting, the large hall of Úc Thịnh Group was filled with people, from members of the Board of Directors, large and small shareholders, to media representatives invited to report on the most important event in the group's recent history. Bách Chu, sitting in a wheelchair, appeared with Xuân Lam by his side, the eyes of the entire hall were focused on them with all kinds of emotions, curiosity, sympathy, and even calculating, searching looks.

Vĩnh Khôi stood on the podium, his demeanor still calm and mature as usual, but anyone who is observant will notice drops of sweat on his temples, a sign of extreme tension being suppressed.

"Dear shareholders, today we are gathered here to make an important decision, affecting the future of the entire corporation." He began, his voice filled with false solemnity. "For more than a year, my nephew, Bách Chu, has endured a heartbreaking event. We all hope he recovers soon, but because of our responsibility to thousands of shareholders and employees, we need a decisive decision for the leadership position."

He signaled his assistant to put up on the big screen a document stamped by a psychology clinic, claiming it was the latest "objective" assessment of Bách Chu's mental condition.

"This is the latest psychological assessment, conducted by leading experts, concluding that due to prolonged social isolation and severe psychological trauma, Mr. Bách Chu's ability to judge and make decisions is no longer reliable enough to assume a senior leadership position." Vĩnh Khôi read aloud, his voice full of fake pain. "Therefore, I propose that the Board of Directors and all shareholders approve the decision to permanently dismiss Mr. Bách Chu from all positions in the corporation, and officially appoint Mr. Gia Bân to the position of General Director." The whole hall was buzzing with discussion. A few shareholders nodded in agreement at the "scientific objectivity" of the document, while others, including Mr. Dang, frowned and expressed doubt but had no basis to immediately refute it.

"Mr. Vĩnh Khôi, I would like to ask clearly, which clinic performed this evaluation, and was Mr. Bách Chu informed and directly present during that evaluation?" Mr. Dang stood up to question, his voice was sharp and rare for a normally peaceful person. "I find it strange that such an important decision does not have direct consultation with the litigant."

"Mr. Bách Chu is currently not in good health condition to directly participate in complex evaluation sessions. We have worked with the main treating doctor to get the most objective evaluation," Vĩnh Khôi responded smoothly, not showing any signs of embarrassment, although in his heart he began to feel a vague insecurity before Mr. Dang's sharp eyes.

"Then I propose to postpone the vote until there is a second independent review, to ensure fairness for all parties," Mr. Dang continued, refusing to back down.

"Further delay will only further destabilize markets and shareholder sentiment." Vĩnh Khôi immediately objected, his voice starting to sound a bit harsh. "We've waited long enough, Mr. Dang."

Xuân Lam squeezed Bách Chu's hand under the table, clearly feeling that his fingers were also shaking, not because of fear, but because of a pent-up anger. This was exactly the worst scenario they had feared, a carefully prepared attack aimed at cornering them right in front of all shareholders, with no way back.

"If no one objects, I suggest we proceed with the vote now," Vĩnh Khôi said, his voice full of confidence, his eyes glanced at Bách Chu with a hint of triumph that was hard to hide.

Gia Bân stood in the front row, unable to hide his satisfied smile, while a few strange bodyguards he hired privately stood guard at the entrances to the hall, a preparation to prevent any unexpected events that only Xuân Lam, with her inherent sharp observation, could recognize.

She quickly counted with her eyes, there were a total of four guys standing scattered around the hall, dressed like logistics staff but their posture and alert eyes clearly betrayed their true nature. She immediately guessed that this must be Gia Bân's backup force, ready to take action if the situation deviates from the predetermined scenario, possibly to suppress anyone who dares to protest too aggressively, or worse, to destroy evidence if necessary. She quietly tightened her grip on the small bag under the chair, where copies of all documents and the precious hard drive were kept, mentally preparing for the worst that could happen at any time.

Just as the secretary of the congress was preparing to hand out voting slips, a wheelchair engine sounded in the tense silence of the hall.

Bách Chu, both hands gripping the chair, slowly moved forward, his eyes glowing with an unprecedented determination, heading straight towards his uncle standing on the podium, preparing for the moment he had secretly worked hard for many months to achieve.

The whole hall suddenly fell silent, hundreds of eyes focused on the gently moving wheelchair. No one knew what was about to happen, but everyone felt that something big was about to explode in the tense atmosphere of the shareholders' meeting room that day.