Chapter 11 — The Day I Overthrew My Husband's Family

The next day, I didn't go to the company. I delegated all the work to my subordinates, from that moment on, there was only one thing left for me to do. Investigate the death of Chu Kien Quan. A case that has been buried for more than twenty years, wanting to dig it up... is as difficult as going to heaven. Old acquaintances have scattered, there is no evidence left, I cannot report a case without evidence in hand, if I make one mistake, everything will disappear like smoke. I need a breakthrough point, a gap enough to break through Luu Ngoc Mai's defenses. I drove to the old neighborhood in the south of the city, a place that was once a memory of both families. Twenty years have passed, this place is deserted, the old walls are covered with the word "release" bright red like dried blood. I stood in front of the Chu family's old house, the gate was locked, inside was overgrown with weeds as if swallowing up all traces of the past. I didn't stand for long, turned to the house next door, where my mother once mentioned a person... Mrs. Truong. I knocked on the door, and a long time later I heard slow footsteps. The door opened slightly, a wrinkled face looked out, eyes both alert and tired.

“Who are you looking for?”

“Mrs. Truong, she is the niece, daughter of Tham Kien Quoc… Tham Nguyet.”

She was silent for a few seconds, her dull eyes gradually brightened, as if a distant memory had been awakened.

“Ah… Nguyet Nguyet, is it this big already?”

She invited me into her house, the room was small but neat, with the faint smell of medicine of old age. I don't beat around the bush, I'm straight to the point.

“Grandma, I want to ask about someone… Luu Ngoc Mai.”

As soon as that name was uttered, her hands shook slightly, her eyes immediately changed.

“He… is not a good person.”

With just one sentence, I knew I had found the right person. I briefly told my father's story, saying that he was caught up in an old incident and was put at a disadvantage. After hearing this, she slammed her hand on the table, so angry that she was shaking.

"I knew it! That woman is more poisonous than a snake!"

“That day I saw that something was wrong with Kien Quan's death!”

My heart clenched and I quickly asked again.

“You said Uncle Chu's death… was a problem?”

She lowered her voice and pulled me closer, as if afraid the walls themselves would hear.

“The night before he died, I clearly heard the couple arguing.”

"Luu Ngoc Mai forced her to buy insurance, she refused, saying she only wanted money."

“She cursed him for being useless, cursing him badly.”

“The next day… it died.”

I felt my heart beating so hard it almost burst. The first piece of the puzzle fits.

“What happens after that?”

She smiled coldly, her eyes were cloudy but full of bitterness.

“She then received a large sum of money from insurance.”

"The funeral was very big, but I saw... before the first week was over, she sneaked behind the mountain to burn things."

“Burning… laughing.”

“That laugh… I still remember it.”

I clenched my fists, a horrifying image appeared in my head. A woman stands in front of her husband's grave, destroying evidence, laughing like a devil who has just completed her ritual.

“Did you see what she burned?”

"It's too far away so I can't see clearly, it just looks like a few bottles... like medicine bottles."

Everything suddenly became clear like a blade cutting straight through the mist. I understand. Chu Kien Quan did not die of illness. He was killed. Luu Ngoc Mai is not just a greedy person. She is a murderer, a demon willing to poison her own husband for insurance money. I walked out of the house, the sunlight was shining outside bright, but inside my heart is cold as ice. In my hand right now… there was a blade. A blade sharp enough to cut off Luu Ngoc Mai's entire life. But I still need it to be sharper. I took out my phone and called an old friend who worked in the insurance industry.

“I need you to help me look up a compensation file from more than twenty years ago.”

“Insured: Chu Kien Quan, beneficiary: Liu Ngoc Mai.”

I hung up and watched the screen darken. The corners of the lips curled slightly, so cold that it no longer resembled a smile. Luu Ngoc Mai. Her time... is over. Half an hour later, my friend called back.

“Nguyet Nguyet, I found it.” His voice was low, carrying a bit of heaviness.

“It is true that there is such an insurance contract, purchased more than twenty years ago, the insurance amount is up to thirty thousand.”

Thirty thousand. Plus twenty thousand from the textile factory. Fifty thousand. That was the beginning of Luu Ngoc Mai, a sum of money stained with blood and sin.

“What about payment records?” I asked.

"The procedures are very complete, the death certificate states acute myocardial infarction, there is hospital confirmation, so the money is paid very quickly."

The four words "full procedure" were like a cold knife, proving how perfect her plan was that year. I hung up the phone and sat quietly in the car, knowing full well that just one set of insurance documents could not convict her, and Ms. Truong's words were just secondary evidence. I need something more direct. Or… I have to make her say it herself. I looked at Luu Ngoc Mai's phone number in my contacts, and a plan quickly formed in my head. I don't call. Just send one message.