Chapter 3 — The Gift I Left After My Divorce

Chu Minh Hien felt like the whole world was spinning. Art? Performing arts? The scene that made him go crazy... was it just a damn work? He suddenly remembered the last text message I sent.

“Wishing you and your family… a happy life.”

Turns out... this is the true meaning of the word "fun". Officer Wang stood up and looked at him from above.

“You can go now.”

“Because of your stupidity, the whole police station had to stay up all night playing with you.”

“Next time you call the police, please understand the situation first.”

When Chu Minh Hien walked out of the station, it was already morning. He is no longer a murder suspect. But the feeling of humiliation... is even heavier than being convicted. He became a laughing stock. A huge joke... so stupid that it's irredeemable. And I, the director of this play, am currently thousands of kilometers away. My lawyer called.

“Miss To, everything has been handled.”

“They were very angry, but they couldn't do anything.”

“Chu Minh Hien has also left.”

I quietly said "yes".

“It's been hard.”

I opened a group of residents of the villa area. In the group… there was an explosion. The second gift I carefully prepared... it's time to appear. Chu Minh Hien returned to the villa. The blockade wire has been removed. But in front of the door, on the ground, there are still footprints left by the police and forensics. Like every ugly scar. He pushed the door open and entered. In the house... there was no one left. Chu Dinh and her husband, Ly Vi, soon grabbed their child and ran away. Even my luggage didn't have time to carry it. There are still take-out food boxes on the table that haven't been eaten yet. It's cold. Chu Minh Hien went to the second floor. Standing in front of the master bedroom door... he didn't dare enter. The room was ransacked after the examination. The silicone doll was stuffed in a large bag, leaning against the corner of the wall.

The "blood stains" on the bed sheet and carpet are still there... so glaring and scary.

In the air, the sweet, fishy smell seems to have not yet dissipated. This place is not home. Which is the starting point of the nightmare. He took out his phone. Messages in the resident group were jumping up frantically. At first… it was last night's panic.

"What happened to number 1? Why are there so many police cars?"

“I heard there was a murder!”

“Oh my god, this area is not safe anymore!”

Then gradually... the wind direction changed. A person claiming to have inside information began spreading the news.

"Latest news! No murder! The homeowner's ex-wife is an artist!"

"I heard that she is a nervous artist who deliberately created fake scenes to scare her ex-husband's family to death."

“False police report, waste of resources, this house is really strange.”

"I heard that my ex-wife left empty-handed and even gave her the house, so she probably didn't want to take revenge so she took revenge."

"So who else dares to live in this house? Thinking that there used to be a 'false body' next door gives me chills."

"Not to mention, now the whole city knows that this area has 'houses with stories', even though it's fake, it's still creepy."

"House prices like this are probably going to fall, it's really a disaster."

Public opinion... is fermenting as I predicted. Chu Minh Hien looked at those news lines and his hands and feet felt cold. What he received... was not a villa that made others admire. It's an unlucky place, famous throughout the city. A joke. He wants to sell the house. Right away. He opened the brokerage app and called an acquaintance.

“Little King, it's me, Chu Minh Porch. Apartment number 1 in Lam Vinh area, please help me sell it."

The other end of the line was silent for a few seconds.

“Chu… Mr. Chu, has something happened to your house…?”

“I just saw online that realtors are all talking about that apartment.”

“Says someone died... then says it's fake, some kind of art…”

"Mr. Chu, my house... I'm afraid it will be difficult to sell."

“Even if there are buyers, the price will have to drop sharply.”

“I'm telling the truth, at least it should be reduced to seven parts... but I'm not sure if anyone would dare accept it.”

A villa with a market price of one thousand five hundred thousand... evaporated nearly five hundred thousand in the blink of an eye. Chu Minh Hien's heart felt like someone had carved out a piece of it. But that's still not the worst. The worst thing is... he basically can't sell it. Who would buy a house where such a myth happened? No matter how cheap it is... there will still be questions in the buyer's heart. He's stuck. I used the very house he craved... nailed to the spot. He was indignant. Not satisfied. Want to find me to settle accounts? He turned over my phone number and called. A tone rings— The subscriber number you just dialed... does not exist. I changed my number a long time ago. He couldn't find me. Can only be locked alone in a giant, cold cage, full of humiliating memories. At that moment, his phone rang. It's the hospital calling.

"May I ask, are you a member of Ms. Truong Lan's family?"

“She's awake.”

“Emotions are very exciting, you should come immediately.”

Chu Minh Hien quietly stood up and walked towards the hospital. He knows, a new storm... is waiting for him. Posting a new article on my art blog. The title is: “On the intervention of installation art in society.” I carefully explained the creative idea of the work "Dowry".

“When greed is materialized into a house, it is no longer a residence… but a tomb.”

“My work is just to organize a burial ceremony for that grave in advance.”

“Thank you to my 'audience', they used their most honest fear... to complete the final, and most important, part of the work.”

The article does not mention anyone by name. But every sentence, every word... is a direct slap in Chu Minh Hien's face. I don't just want to destroy his property. I also want to… crush him from the inside.