Chapter 3 — The City Behind the Mist

The next morning, when the thick fog had not yet cleared, Khanh Linh and Viet Hoang were present at the temporary market - where merchants moved to do business after the old market was partly buried, not far from the old location. Mrs. Ut Suong was already sitting at her small vegetable stall, her hands quickly arranging bunches of vegetables still covered with dew, but her eyes were always looking towards the entrance, as if waiting.

"You're here," she said when she saw Khanh Linh and Viet Hoang, her voice somewhat relieved. "I was afraid that after I calmed down, you would think I was just a doting, unreliable old woman."

"I believe you, Mrs. Suong," Khanh Linh replied, sitting down on the small chair she offered, her voice sincere. "I've been waiting fifteen years to hear anything that might help me better understand what really happened."

Mrs. Ut Suong sighed, her hands paused the work of arranging vegetables, her eyes looked far away as if she were going back in time to that fateful night. "That night, I was packing up my goods and preparing to go home when I heard a loud argument coming from the construction site office, near the area where the drainage system was being constructed," she said, her voice shaking. "I recognized the voice of a young engineer named Truong, and another voice that I didn't recognize clearly, probably a construction worker."

"Do you remember what they said?" Viet Hoang asked, his voice tense.

"I only heard a few sentences, because I was quite far away," she replied, trying to remember the details. "But I remember clearly, the other worker said something about 'the pipe is not the right size as shown in the drawing, how can it fit,' and Mr. Truong shouted back, saying to just do what he instructed, no more questions."

Khanh Linh felt her heart beat faster when she heard those details. "Did you report this to the investigation agency after the disaster?" she asked.

Mrs. Ut Suong shook her head, her eyes full of regret. "I was so miserable over losing my husband and losing my children that I didn't have the heart to think about it," she said, her voice choking. "And then, when I saw that the whole town unanimously blamed your father, I also thought it must be true, because he was the leader, the person most responsible. I never thought about the possibility that someone below had arbitrarily changed what had been approved."

"Why did you decide to tell me now?" Khanh Linh asked, wanting to understand her motives.

"Because I saw Mr. Truong's name reappear, now as a wealthy investor, presiding over the project that will rebuild on the same land that took away my husband and children," she replied, her voice filled with suppressed indignation. "From the day I heard that news, I kept tossing and turning, remembering every detail of that night, and I began to suspect that, perhaps, the truth had been hidden for the past fifteen years."

Khanh Linh was silent for a moment, trying to rearrange the pieces of information she had just heard in her mind. "Do you remember the other worker's voice more clearly? Are there any recognizable features?" she continued asking, trying to get more out of every little detail.

"I remember, his accent has a clear Central accent, different from the local accent of the majority of workers here," Ms. Ut Suong replied, trying to recall memories that had faded over the years. "I still remember, after the disaster, a few workers suddenly left town that same week, without saying goodbye, causing many people to talk, but then everything was forgotten because there were too many other painful things to face."

"Do you know the names of any of them?" Viet Hoang asked, hoping to have more specific clues.

Mrs. Ut Suong shook her head, her face full of regret. "I'm just a vegetable seller, I don't know much about the construction workers. But I remember, my husband, when he was alive, used to work as a security guard at the construction site at night. Maybe he knew more about those people. Unfortunately, he is no longer able to tell me what he knew."

Speaking of her deceased husband, Mrs. Ut Suong's voice choked and her eyes filled with tears. Khanh Linh held her wrinkled hand, a sincere gesture of comfort. "I'm sorry for bringing back your pain," she said softly. "I'm really grateful for your courage in sharing all of this with me."

"No, it's me who should thank you," Mrs. Ut Suong replied, quickly wiping away her tears. "For the past fifteen years, I have always carried a vague sense of injustice in my heart and did not know what to do about it. If you can find out the truth, whatever it may be, at least the souls of my husband and children can rest in the truth, instead of in false rumors."

Viet Hoang, listening attentively, asked an important question. "Do you know anyone else who worked directly with Khanh Linh's father at that time, who may still have documents or more detailed memories of the original drawings?"

Mrs. Ut Suong thought for a moment before answering. "I remember, there was an architect named Thinh, who worked very closely with your father. He often went to the market to buy breakfast with him before work. I heard that he had retired, but still lived in town, in a small house near the northern lake area."

"Kieu Xuan Thinh," Khanh Linh repeated the name, a ray of hope flashed in her heart. "I remember, my father mentioned him a few times, saying he was his most trusted colleague."

"If anyone still has the evidence, perhaps it is Mr. Thinh," Ms. Ut Suong said, nodding firmly. "But you need to be careful, because he has lived in seclusion for many years, rarely interacting with strangers, and I heard that he is also quite scared of Mr. Truong's current power."

Before leaving, Ms. Ut Suong held Khanh Linh's hand tightly again, her eyes serious. "You have to be careful, Khanh Linh," she advised. "Mr. Truong is no longer an ordinary engineer like he used to be. He has money, connections, and can turn a lot of things around in this small town. If you really find evidence against him, keep it carefully, don't reveal it before you're ready to confront him head-on."

"I will remember what you said," Khanh Linh replied, feeling the weight of that warning. "I will act very cautiously."

Khanh Linh thanked Mrs. Ut Suong profusely, promising to come back to visit her if she found out any more information. When she and Viet Hoang left the temporary market, walking through the mist that still lingered on the small streets, both were filled with new determination.

"We need to go see Mr. Thinh as soon as possible," Khanh Linh said, her voice filled with determination. "If he really still keeps the original drawing, it will be the most important evidence to prove my father's innocence."

"I agree," Viet Hoang replied. "But we need to approach carefully and tactfully, so as not to frighten him and refuse to cooperate. I think, perhaps we should let you, the daughter of his old colleague, be the one to come directly to meet him first."

Khanh Linh nodded in agreement, feeling a faint but certain ray of hope gradually growing in her heart, after fifteen years of living in the darkness of doubt and blaming herself for what her father might have done. Now, for the first time, she felt she was getting closer to the real truth.

On the way back to the hotel, Khanh Linh called her mother, Ms. Tran Ngoc Diep, who was still living in another town more than a hundred kilometers away from Van Son. Her voice trembled with anxiety as she listened to her daughter tell her what had just happened. “You have to be careful,” she said over the phone, her voice filled with fifteen years of accumulated fear. "I already lost your father because of that town, I don't want to lose you too."

"Mom, I need to do this," Khanh Linh replied, her voice firm but loving. "You need to know the truth about father, and perhaps, mother also needs to be freed from those years of living in unjust humiliation."

The other end of the line was silent for a long time before Ms. Diep spoke, her voice choked. "If you can really exonerate your father, I will support you wholeheartedly, no matter what you face. As long as you promise me, you will always be careful."

"I promise, mom," Khanh Linh replied, tears welling up in her eyes as she heard the sincere support from her mother who had silently endured so much suffering for so many years.