Chapter 6 — The City Behind the Mist

The additional geological survey began early in the morning two days after the tense meeting with Ho Xuan Truong. Viet Hoang led a small technical team of three people, carrying modern measuring equipment - a drill to take soil samples, equipment to measure soil moisture and compactness, and a highly accurate GPS positioning system to map the area in detail.

Khanh Linh was present early to monitor the survey process. Even though it was not her expertise, she still wanted to witness with her own eyes every step in this journey to find the truth. The morning mist still hung, making the scene of the empty land where Van Son ancient market used to be both familiar and strange, like a land frozen in time.

"We will drill and take samples at five different points in the area, focusing on where landslides have occurred," Viet Hoang explained to Khanh Linh as his team began work. "This will give us detailed data on soil composition, stability, and load-bearing capacity at various depths."

When the first drill began operating, penetrating the topsoil to take samples at a depth of three meters, Viet Hoang attentively followed each indicator displayed on the measuring device. "Here it is," he said softly, his voice tense as he looked at the results screen. "The moisture content of the clay layer at this depth is unusually high, much higher than the safe level allowed for construction above."

"What does that mean in practice?" Khanh Linh asked, even though she somewhat understood the serious meaning of those numbers.

"Meaning, this layer of soil is very susceptible to slipping, especially when there is additional load from construction works above, or when the amount of groundwater suddenly increases during the rainy season," Viet Hoang explained, his voice serious. "These are exactly the conditions that led to the disaster fifteen years ago, and the official Van Son Land survey report makes no mention of this issue at all."

Throughout the morning, the survey team continued to take samples at different points, and the results showed similar worrying signs. At noon, when they were preparing to move to the fourth survey point, a luxury pickup truck stopped near the area, and a man in a business suit got out, introducing himself as the legal representative of Van Son Land.

"Excuse me, do you have an official permit for this survey?" the man asked, his voice somewhat stiff and bureaucratic.

"We have received official approval from the Town People's Committee, along with the approval of Mr. Ho Xuan Truong at the meeting two days ago," Khanh Linh replied, trying to keep her voice calm despite sensing the provocation behind the question.

“I need to see the official document, ma'am,” the man said, his voice still outwardly polite but filled with an underlying threat. "We are responsible for ensuring that all activities on land under the company's management comply with legal procedures."

Khanh Linh presented the written consent, although she could not help but feel uncomfortable at this unnecessary intervention. The representative carefully reviewed every detail on the document, even taking photos, before reluctantly nodding to allow the survey team to continue their work.

"This is clearly an action to put pressure on us, making us feel like we are being closely monitored," Viet Hoang said quietly to Khanh Linh after the representative left. "I think they're trying to find any reason to suspend or delay this survey."

"We need to be quicker and more careful," Khanh Linh replied, her eyes steady. "If they are truly afraid of our survey results, that only proves that we are on the right track."

While waiting for the survey team to move to the fourth measuring point, one of the young technicians in Viet Hoang's team, named Phong, approached him with a troubled expression. "Mr. Hoang, I discovered something strange," he said, pointing to a small area near the edge of the clearing. "It appears that the soil in this area has been recently leveled and is not the original natural soil layer."

Viet Hoang walked over and carefully observed the area Phong pointed out. Just as he had commented, there was a patch of land with a distinctly different texture than the surrounding area, a sign of relatively recent artificial leveling. "Mark this spot, we'll take another separate survey sample here," he directed, his voice filled with curiosity mixed with caution.

Khanh Linh, watching from afar, came closer when she saw the unusual attention of the survey team. "What's up?" she asked.

"It seems like this area has been interfered with and leveled recently," Viet Hoang explained, his voice serious. "I'm not sure what the reason is, but any interference with an old crime scene is worthy of our attention, especially in the context of this investigation."

Results of soil samples taken from the leveling area revealed something surprising — under the new layer of soil, technicians discovered a broken piece of concrete pipe, likely a remnant from the same old drainage system that caused the disaster fifteen years ago, which had never been completely cleaned up during the recovery process.

"This could be important physical evidence," Viet Hoang said, carefully taking photos of the broken pipe from many different angles before collecting samples for further analysis. "If we can determine the exact diameter of this piece of pipe, comparing it with the parameters in your father's original drawing, it will be additional physical evidence, not just relying on documents or witness statements."

Khanh Linh felt excitement mixed with nervousness before this unexpected discovery. "We need to preserve this piece of pipe very carefully," she said. "It could be the connecting link between the documentary evidence and the actual scene."

That afternoon, when the survey team finished sampling at all five planned sites, Viet Hoang took the soil samples to a small laboratory he had privately rented in a neighboring town, to avoid any suspicion that the results could be tampered with if a local laboratory connected to the government or business was used.

"It will take me about three to four days to get the full analysis results," he told Khanh Linh as they together carefully packed the soil samples into specialized sealed boxes. “In the meantime, I think we should find a way to further verify what happened with the official records at the town's construction department.”

"I'm also thinking about that," Khanh Linh replied. "If we can prove specific differences between the original drawing that Mr. Thinh gave us, and the drawing that is currently officially archived, it will be irrefutable evidence that there was a document swap."

Viet Hoang nodded in agreement, but his eyes flashed with a hard-to-conceal worry. "I just hope we can find enough evidence before they realize the severity of what we're investigating, and find a way to erase any remaining traces."

Khanh Linh looked toward the mist that was gradually falling into the valley as sunset approached, feeling a new urgency driving her every action. She knew that time was running out, and every day that passed could be an opportunity for those hiding the truth to find a way to erase all remaining traces of a tragedy that had lasted for fifteen years.

That evening, when Khanh Linh returned to the hotel, she received a call from Mr. Kieu Xuan Thinh, his voice was unusually worried. "Linh, I just wanted to let you know, this afternoon a stranger came to ask the neighbors about me, asking if I had received any strangers recently," he said, his voice trembling. "I think, perhaps they have begun to doubt our meeting."

That news made Khanh Linh worried about his safety. "Do you need me to make any arrangements to protect you?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.

"I've lived alone for many years, I don't have much to lose anymore," Mr. Thinh replied, his voice still surprisingly calm. "But you, and Uncle Hoang, should be more careful. Don't give them a chance to find out what we discussed."

That call made Khanh Linh more clearly aware of the level of danger that was gradually surrounding her investigation, but instead of backing down, it only made her more determined to quickly collect all the evidence before it could become too late.