Chapter 4 — The Heiress and Her Scholarship Friend

The city library appeared before Minh Dang's eyes as a completely different world compared to the familiar scene of the small boarding house - the main hall was soaring with oak bookshelves stretching to the ceiling, natural light poured in through the giant glass windows, creating a quiet, solemn space.

Khanh Vy was already waiting in the private reading area on the third floor, which she reserved as a VIP member of the library — a privilege that Minh Dang had never known existed until today.

"You're here," she said, looking up when she saw him coming, closing the book she was reading. "I found some documents about policies to support renewable energy for poor households, but there are some data I'm not sure about."

The two quickly got to work, Minh Dang explained in detail what he had witnessed in the neighborhood where he lived - how households had to calculate every penny of electricity bill, how a small solar panel could significantly change the life of a working family.

"I've never thought about such specific details," Khanh Vy admitted, taking careful notes in her notebook. "In books, everything is presented as macro data, but listening to you tell me, I can better understand the real impact on each specific person."

"That's what I always thought," Minh Dang replied, his voice full of enthusiasm. "Sometimes, the people who have the power to decide policy are those who have the least contact with the reality that policy affects."

Khanh Vy was silent for a moment, her eyes looking at him with new respect. "You're right," she admitted. "I grew up in a world where every problem was solved with money or relationships. I never really had to face the hardships that most people go through every day."

"It's not your fault for being born into that situation," Minh Dang said, his voice gentle. "The important thing is whether you are willing to listen and understand other perspectives, and I think, you are doing that."

The working session lasted until late afternoon, the two together completed almost the entire main content of the presentation. When the sunlight began to fade through the glass window, Khanh Vy suggested that they both take a break and go down to the library's small canteen to have a cup of tea.

"You know," Khanh Vy said as the two sat across from each other over a cup of hot tea, "this is the first time I've really enjoyed doing group homework. Usually I just do everything by myself because I don't trust others to do it as well as I expect."

"So why are you different this time?" Minh Dang asked, curious about that change.

Khanh Vy pondered for a moment before answering, her eyes looking down at the steaming cup of tea. "Maybe because you don't try to please me like everyone else. You simply are yourself, saying what you think, without fear or flattery. That makes me feel genuinely respected, not for who I am, but for who I am."

Those words made Minh Dang feel a warmth spread in his heart, a feeling of sincere connection that he had never experienced with anyone since moving to this strange school.

"Thank you for saying that," he replied, a warm smile curling the corner of his mouth. "To be honest, I didn't think I would have a friend like you at this school, which I thought was full of arrogant, aloof people."

"Maybe we were all wrong about each other at first," Khanh Vy said, smiling slightly, a genuine smile she rarely showed in front of people other than her close family.

When the two were about to leave the library, it was completely dark and the street lights began to light up along the central street. Khanh Vy's car was waiting, but this time, she was not in a hurry to get in the car like usual.

"Can I take you home?" she asked, her voice somewhat hesitant. "Anyway, it's quite late, and the bus route to your area is probably sparse at this time."

Minh Dang was somewhat surprised by that proposal. At first he was about to refuse because he didn't want Khanh Vy to see the poor neighborhood where he lived, but in the end he nodded and agreed, partly because it was late and partly because he didn't want to disappoint her sincere kindness.

In the car, the atmosphere was quiet but not awkward, the two occasionally talked about light topics - favorite movies, unfinished books, childhood memories. When the car gradually entered the small alley area where Minh Dang lived, the driver was somewhat confused because the road was too narrow compared to the size of the luxury car.

"You can stop here," Minh Dang said, feeling a bit embarrassed when he noticed the stark contrast between the shiny car and the old, narrow houses around.

But instead of looking annoyed or surprised like he feared, Khanh Vy just looked out the window with eyes full of sincere curiosity, without any contempt. "This area looks cozy," she commented, making Minh Dang surprised by that reaction.

"Cosy?" he asked again, somewhat skeptical.

"Yes," Khanh Vy nodded, her eyes still following the small houses close together, where warm yellow light shined from the windows, and laughter echoed from small sidewalk eateries. "My house is big but always quiet. Here, I feel like everyone is closer and cares about each other much more."

Minh Dang remained silent before that unexpected comment, clearly feeling a deeper sympathy from Khanh Vy, completely different from what he had imagined for a young lady born in luxury.

"Thank you for taking me home," he said as he got out of the car and stood in front of the door of his small motel. "And thank you for not... judging."

"Why should I judge?" Khanh Vy asked again, her serious eyes looking straight at him through the slightly open car door. "Where you live doesn't define you. How you treat others, how you stand strong in the face of difficulty, is what really matters."

Those words made Minh Dang's heart beat strangely, a feeling he had never experienced before. He stood there, watching the car gradually disappear around the corner, his heart filled with a complex, hard-to-name emotion - not just pure appreciation, but also mixed with something much warmer and deeper.

Entering the house, Mrs. Hanh was still working hard at the sewing machine, looking up at her son with curious eyes when she saw his strange expression. "What's wrong? You look unusually happy."

"It's nothing, Mom," Minh Dang replied, trying to hide the smile that was constantly growing on his lips, but in his heart, he knew clearly that something important had begun to change since the day he walked through the gates of Anh Duong school for the first time.

He sat down next to his mother, helping her fold up the stacks of fabric that had been cut during the day, his heart still lingering on the image of Khanh Vy looking out at the poor neighborhood with eyes that were not disdainful, just full of sincere curiosity. He never thought that a young lady born in luxury could view the world around her with such openness.

"You seem to have made some friends at your new school," Mrs. Hanh commented, her voice filled with the warmth of a mother who always follows her son's every step. "I'm so happy. I was just afraid you would feel out of place in such a different place."

"I used to be afraid of that too," Minh Dang admitted, his hands still quickly folding each piece of fabric. "But it seems, not everyone there is like what I initially imagined."

Mrs. Hanh smiled, did not ask for more details, just quietly observed the rare joy evident on her son's face, a joy that she had not witnessed for a long time since the day her husband - whom she had never mentioned in front of her son - disappeared from their lives forever.

That night, before falling asleep, Minh Dang lay on the small bed in the cramped room, looked up at the ceiling, reviewing every moment of the past afternoon. He wondered if the new, warm feelings that were gradually growing in his heart were just a temporary illusion, or the beginning of something much greater, far beyond what he had dared to dream of when he entered that strange noble school, without knowing what challenges were waiting for both of them ahead.