Chapter 27 — The City Behind the Mist

The trial of Ho Xuan Truong opened on an early winter morning, when the weather in Van Son began to cool, bringing with it a thin mist that lightly covered the hillsides surrounding the town. The courtroom was packed with attendees, including the victims' families, local residents, and a large number of reporters from all over the country, all waiting for the moment when justice would finally be served for a case that had lasted for fifteen years.

Khanh Linh and Viet Hoang were present early, sitting in the seats reserved for the victims' families, along with many other families who lost loved ones in the landslide disaster in the past. The atmosphere in the courtroom was solemn and heavy, mixed with the nervousness of all those present.

When Ho Xuan Truong was led into the courtroom, his image was completely different from the powerful, confident man who had dominated Van Son Land Company for many years. He was noticeably thinner, his eyes lowered, not daring to look directly at any of the victims' families present at the trial.

The representative of the Procuracy presented a detailed indictment, based on all the evidence collected throughout the investigation process - from the swapped technical records, the testimony of Mr. Ho Van Tien, to the notebook recording illegal expenses found at Dai Phat Materials warehouse. "The defendant's behavior is not just a personal mistake, but a series of systematic calculations, lasting for many years, to hide responsibility and protect personal interests at the expense of the lives of hundreds of people," the representative of the Procuracy announced in court, his voice sharp.

When it was his turn to speak, Ho Xuan Truong, just as he had promised Khanh Linh before, did not deny any of the accusations. “I accept full responsibility for my actions,” he said, his voice shaky but clear. "I know that no apology can compensate for the losses I have caused to the victims' families, and to Mr. Bach Vinh Son's family. I just hope that my sentence can somehow bring the justice they deserve."

His defense lawyer, although trying to present some mitigating circumstances related to the defendant's proactive cooperation and voluntary return of ill-gotten assets, could not deny the seriousness of the entire incident. After many hours of intense deliberation, the jury announced the sentence for Ho Xuan Truong - twelve years in prison for the crimes of falsifying documents, giving and receiving bribes, and irresponsibility causing serious consequences leading to death.

When the verdict was read, a heavy silence filled the courtroom, mixed with sighs of relief from many victims' families. The mother of one of the youngest victims of the previous disaster could not contain her emotions and burst into tears. "Finally, my child can rest in peace in justice," she said, her voice choking between tears.

For Mr. Ho Van Tien, due to his old age and weak health along with proactively confessing and actively cooperating with the investigation agency right from the early stages, the court decided to impose a suspended sentence, accompanied by strict supervision conditions at his residence, a somewhat humane decision given his severely weakened health situation.

After the trial, Khanh Linh walked out of the courtroom and took a deep breath of the chilly air of Van Son's winter morning. Her emotions were a complex mixture of relief, satisfaction, and even a sadness that was hard to name at the complete collapse of a person, even though that person was the one who had caused so much suffering to her family.

"How do you feel?" Viet Hoang asked, putting his arm around her shoulder as they both walked down the court steps, where a large number of reporters were waiting to be interviewed.

"I think, this is a fair ending," Khanh Linh replied, her voice thoughtful. "But I also realize, no sentence can truly return what was lost — the lives of seventeen people, fifteen years of humiliation for my father. The only thing we can do is make sure those mistakes will never have a chance to repeat."

In front of the press lens, Khanh Linh spent a few minutes giving a brief speech, calling on authorities across the country to draw lessons from the Van Son case, strengthen supervision and transparency in all construction projects related to community safety. “I hope our story will serve as a wake-up call, so that no other family has to go through what mine did,” she said, her voice filled with determination in the pale sunlight of the winter morning.

At the same time, a separate trial was also opened to try Mr. Dang Quoc Huy, owner of Dai Phat Materials, for fraudulent construction product quality certification. Faced with irrefutable scientific evidence and the testimony of the workers who worked at the factory, Mr. Huy was sentenced to three years in prison and an additional fine equivalent to all the illegal profits earned from the contract to supply poor quality materials for the project.

Mr. Luong Dinh Khai, interim deputy director of Van Son Land, repeatedly obstructed Khanh Linh's quality supervision work. Although he was not criminally prosecuted due to insufficient evidence to prove intentional violations, he was forced to resign immediately after the results of the investigation into his indirect connection to irregular construction decisions were announced. "It is a wake-up call for anyone who puts financial interests above people's safety, whether they have directly committed a crime or not," Mr. Bui Quoc Bao commented in an interview with the press about this incident.

That evening, at Mrs. Diep's house, Khanh Linh's mother, a cozy family meal was held to celebrate the trial results. Mrs. Diep, even though she had followed all the developments through the news, still could not hide her emotions when she heard her daughter recount in detail the moment the verdict was read. "I wish your father could live until today, to see justice being served with his own eyes," she said, her voice choked, her eyes red even though she tried to suppress her emotions all evening.

"I believe, dad is always watching over us, mom," Khanh Linh replied, holding her mother's thin hand. "And believe me, I will be proud of what we have accomplished together, even though the journey was full of pain and tears."

Viet Hoang, sitting next to Khanh Linh at that cozy meal, also received a warm welcome from Mrs. Diep, who now considers him a true member of the family. "Thank you, Viet Hoang, for always being by my side, protecting my daughter throughout the arduous journey," she said, her eyes filled with sincere respect for the boy who had accompanied her daughter through many ups and downs.

When leaving the court area, Khanh Linh and Viet Hoang stopped by the small cemetery on the hillside, where her father was buried, to inform him of the final results of the trial. “Justice has been served, father,” she whispered, placing a bouquet of white chrysanthemums on the simple grave. "I believe, now you can truly rest in peace, no longer having to carry any injustice."

Viet Hoang stood quietly behind, allowing Khanh Linh to have her own space for her last words of confidence to her deceased father. When she stood up and turned to look at him with slightly wet eyes, he gently raised his hand to wipe away the remaining tears on her cheeks. "I think, your journey to find justice, although full of hardships, has finally reached the destination it deserves to reach," he said, his voice gentle like a sincere word of comfort.

On the way back, the rare winter afternoon sunlight penetrated through the pine trees, shining down on the road leading out of the cemetery, creating sparkling streaks of light amidst the thin mist that remained from early morning. Khanh Linh smiled slightly, held Viet Hoang's hand tightly, feeling a rare complete peace creeping throughout her soul, after many months of struggling with injustice, threats, and even sleepless nights worrying about the safety of an entire town.

“Now, we can truly look forward,” she said, her voice gentle but determined, “not to forget the past, but to carry the lessons from it, building a better future for all of Van Son, and for ourselves.”