Chapter 23 — The Brilliant Wife and the Mute CEO

Just a few months after all the events calmed down, the upper class's attitude towards Đàm Xuân Lam changed so dramatically that she herself had to laugh every time she thought about it.

The party to celebrate the half-year anniversary of Bách Chu's official return to operating the Úc Thịnh Group was solemnly held at the government residence, gathering almost all familiar faces in the city's business and upper class circles. The lady who once let out a sarcastic comment about Xuân Lam at her debut tea party last year, now slowly approached her, her bright face with no trace of her previous contempt.

"Oh Auntie Lam, it's been a long time since we last saw each other." She held Xuân Lam's hand, her voice was sweet and friendly, as if the two had been close friends for a long time. "I have to be honest, from the first time I met you, I saw that you weren't an ordinary person, you just hid your talents too well."

Xuân Lam looked at her and couldn't help but laugh at the sudden change, but she still maintained a polite attitude and only smiled slightly in response. "You're so praising, I'm just doing what I need to do for my family."

Ms. Ut of the Tong family, who once criticized Xuân Lam for liking to go into the kitchen and chop meat, "not forgetting her original profession", now proactively came to her, offering to learn some experience in choosing fresh food from Xuân Lam herself to "take better care of her family's health", making Xuân Lam have to try not to laugh at the change in attitude as quickly as turning a hand.

"You said before that cutting meat is my nature that is difficult to change, but now you want to learn from that experience?" Xuân Lam teased lightly, her eyes mischievous.

Ms. Ut blushed, hesitated for a moment, then laughed it off, not daring to bring up the past anymore.

Even the group's major business partners, who once called to express concern about the family's image when false rumors about Xuân Lam spread on social networks, now do not hesitate to praise her bravery and intelligence in official meetings. A few business magazines even asked to privately interview Xuân Lam about the story of "from a girl slaughtering pigs to being the benefactor who saved a business empire".

"I don't think I deserve to be called a benefactor at all," Xuân Lam answered in the interview, her voice humble but sincere. "I just did what a wife should do: protect her husband from bad people and believe in righteousness. If anyone deserves to be praised, it must be Mr. Bách Chu himself, who did not give up hope even through the darkest days."

Mrs. Tuệ Phương, sitting and observing the entire change in attitude of everyone around Xuân Lam at the party that day, could not help but smile with satisfaction. She pulled Xuân Lam closer and whispered a meaningful sentence.

"You see, people now compete with each other to flatter you, but don't pay attention to what they said before. Life is like that, the wind covers every direction. The important thing is that you still maintain your honest nature from beginning to end, that is the most precious thing."

"I don't mind, Grandma." Xuân Lam smiled, her voice gentle. "I just find it funny because they change so quickly; it's like flipping rice paper."

In the middle of the party, an elderly businessman, owner of a long-time partner corporation of Úc Thịnh, who had publicly expressed concerns about Xuân Lam's "inappropriate image" when false rumors spread before, proactively came to apologize directly.

"Miss Lam, I sincerely apologize for hastily believing in baseless rumors before, even calling to express my doubts to the group," he said, his voice sincere. "Looking back now, I see how wrong I was to judge a person based on rumors and background."

"There's no need to apologize to me, at that time everyone was easily fooled by rumors," Xuân Lam replied in a tolerant tone. "I just hope that in the future, people will recognize a person by their true actions, not by rumors or appearance." The businessman nodded in appreciation at her openness, turned to whisper to Bách Chu that this was the reason he decided to expand long-term investment cooperation with Úc Thịnh in the near future, because he believed in a board of directors with both talent and heart.

As for Kiều Nhã Vy, after the incident calmed down, she quietly left the city, apparently moving to live somewhere else to avoid the disapproving eyes of the upper class who knew clearly about her role in the entire conspiracy. Occasionally someone brought up old stories, Xuân Lam just shook her head slightly, not wanting to talk about the unhappy past that had ended.

Xuân Lam's rustic simile made Ms. Tuệ Phương laugh out loud, a burst of laughter rarely seen in an older woman who always maintains a dignified and noble appearance.

Not only the upper class outside, even within the Úc family, those who were once reserved and afraid of Xuân Lam's background now had sincere respect for her. A few distant relatives who once stood on the sidelines, not daring to publicly support Bách Chu during the most difficult period for fear of offending Vĩnh Khôi's faction, now proactively came to apologize for their previous silence.

"Miss Lam, we sincerely apologize for not having the courage to speak up to protect Mr. Bách Chu and you during the most difficult time." A distant uncle of Bách Chu spoke, his voice somewhat ashamed. "Fortunately, I have you, otherwise I don't know whose hands the family's hundred-year-old inheritance would have fallen into."

"Forget the past, the important thing is that now everyone clearly understands right from wrong," Xuân Lam replied, not caring about the past, her tolerant and straightforward personality once again made those around her more respectful.

Even the head chef and the servants in the mansion, who were once cautious and curious about her on the first day she stepped into this large house, now see Xuân Lam as a sister and close friend in the house. Diep, the girl who was rescued by Xuân Lam from Gia Bân years ago, has now completed the office skills course, was accepted as an assistant for a department of the corporation, and still occasionally stops by to visit and bring Xuân Lam a few small gifts from her hometown to express her gratitude.

"Mother Lam, if it weren't for you that day, I would have quit my job a long time ago. I wouldn't have the opportunity I have now," Diep said, his eyes shining with sincere gratitude. "I always remember what my aunt said that day, that whoever bullies honest and hard-working people, she will not leave it alone."

Xuân Lam patted the young girl's head and smiled kindly. "Just try to do a good job, I just do what I think I have to do."

Standing from afar watching his wife skillfully handle every situation in the complicated crowd of the upper class, Bách Chu couldn't help but feel an indescribable pride welling up in his heart. He walked over and naturally put his arm around her shoulder, an intimate gesture that he had never dared to show publicly before.

"My wife is so popular today." He teased lightly, his voice full of laughter.

"Of course, not everyone has the ability to conquer a difficult upper class just by being honest." Xuân Lam's response was not appropriate, they both burst out laughing at the admiring eyes of the surrounding guests.

That party night ended in a rare warm and joyful atmosphere, marking a completely new chapter in the history of the Úc Thịnh Group, where human values were finally placed above superficial prejudices about origin or status, thanks to the sincerity and extraordinary strength of a girl who had been looked down upon by the upper class from the first day she stepped into this prosperous place.

When most of the guests had left, Xuân Lam stood on the second floor balcony looking down at the garden shimmering with hundreds of small lights. Her heart felt a sense of peace that she never thought she would have on the first day she reluctantly stepped into this strange mansion. Bách Chu walked over to stand next to her, putting a thin coat on his wife's shoulders as the night wind began to cool.

"Do you remember the first day you came here? At that time, you threatened me that you wouldn't let anyone look down on you," he asked, his voice full of nostalgia.

"Remember, how could I forget." Xuân Lam smiled, leaning her head on his shoulder. "At that time, I didn't expect that I would eventually conquer this demanding upper class, and also have a handsome husband who knows how to talk and laugh." Bách Chu laughed, wrapped his arms around his wife, and both looked out at the sparkling garden, fully enjoying the sweet fruits of the long and arduous journey they had gone through together.