Chapter 25 — The Empty Rescuer and the Female President Hide a Will

The new rain came earlier than forecast.

The temporary settlement lost power and the pump stopped running. I divided the rescue team, Vy sent Thien Ha's car to transport people. No one asked if she was still president or not.

Quan discovered that the discharge door was locked with a new lock. The bronze key in Vy's hand fit perfectly.

“The city still has people outside,” I said.

“Then open quickly.”

Water flowed through the clearing, but the east side remained flooded. Khang used a field kitchen to cook porridge and distributed portions in waterproof bags.

A resident was trapped on the roof. I swam over and realized it was an employee who used to work for Thanh Tin. He hugged the camera.

“I want to deliver this,” he said.

“First let me get you out.”

The camera recorded Thanh instructing valve welding before the flood. The employee secretly filmed to protect himself.

Nam broadcast the final part live, but covered the cameraman's face.

The police used evidence to arrest three more people. Quoc Thanh has no way to deny.

When the water receded, Vy sat on the roof of the car, her hair wet and her hands covered in mud.

“I used to think being president was about standing on high,” she said.

“Now you know?”

“It's knowing where to stand when others are sinking.”

I gave her a bottle of water. None of us talk about titles anymore.

The Council held an emergency meeting. Resident representatives requested that the fund have the right to veto all projects affecting the riverbank. Vy agreed.

A shareholder objected, saying this would result in loss of business rights.

I asked him if he had ever lived under water.

He was silent.

The trust fund's charter was amended. Money cannot be used to buy land without an independent safety assessment.

When I signed, I remembered my father's words: one person understands the flow of water, one person understands the flow of money.

Vy and I wrote together.

After the meeting, Hanh's mother gave me a last letter from father. He wrote that he wanted to tell Vy, but was afraid that Quoc Thanh would kill them both.

“Your father is not a perfectly good man,” my mother said. “He was just trying to do right at the end of his life.”

I put away the mail. No one needs to be perfect to be forgiven, but everyone is responsible.