Chapter 13 — The Heiress's Selection of a Husband

The private investigation report that Chu Bach Dinh outsourced was finally sent back after nearly three weeks of waiting, but the results made him even more uneasy instead of reassuring. Investigators could not find any official records of a girl named Do Thi Thu living permanently in the village she declared, and discovered that her citizen identification card, although seemingly valid, had some unusual technical features that only people in the profession could recognize.

"Fake background." Bach Dinh mumbled to himself in the office, clutching the report tightly. He had no doubt that the girl was definitely hiding something important, and the highest possibility was the connection to Ton Dac Nghia's family that he had always feared for many years.

But he understood that he could not act openly. If he directly accused the girl of being Dac Nghia's daughter without valid evidence, he would have to face difficult questions from his brother and grandchildren about why he cared so much about this matter. He needed a reasonable excuse, a crime serious enough to kick her out of the mansion without anyone suspecting the true motive behind it.

An idea suddenly flashed in his mind when thinking about the family heirloom diamond necklace, a precious piece of jewelry passed down through many generations, currently stored in Lam Ngoc Dung's private jewelry cabinet, only brought out for use on important family occasions.

Bach Dinh planned meticulously, taking advantage of his close relationship with the housekeeper in charge of Lam Ngoc Dung's bedroom area to gain access to the jewelry cabinet without arousing suspicion. He personally stole the necklace late one night when the whole family was asleep, then secretly hid a small piece of fabric from the scarf that Anh Thu often used, which he had secretly taken from the laundry basket a few days ago, right inside the drawer where the jewelry was kept, like a deliberately left mark.

He also secretly placed a small part of the bracelet, the delicately carved silver clasp separate from the main bracelet, into Anh Thu's personal belongings drawer in the annex, taking advantage of the time she was busy cleaning in the main kitchen in the afternoon.

After completing the plan, Bach Dinh personally brought the real necklace, removed the lock, and carefully hid it in a deposit box at the bank under the name of a trusted acquaintance, in case someone accidentally discovered the clue and tracked it down to his house. He carefully calculated every step, from the time of committing the crime to the most natural way to reveal clues, without leaving any loopholes that could make others doubt his true role in the entire incident.

He also did not forget to prepare a reasonable story to explain his unusual interest in the case, in case anyone wondered why a busy Vice President would pay so much attention to the petty theft of the housekeeper. In his mind, the perfect scenario had been outlined: as long as that girl was kicked out of the mansion in disgrace, all risks of having her past exposed would automatically disappear, and he could continue to live peacefully with the respectable cover he had built over the past twenty-five years.

Two days later, when Lam Ngoc Dung was preparing jewelry for an important partner reception, she discovered that the diamond necklace had disappeared from her wardrobe. The whole mansion was in chaos, Mrs. Xuan was ordered to summon all the maids to investigate, while Bach Dinh played the role of an outsider, appearing worried to help in the search but in fact was silently leading the investigation according to the script he had arranged.

"Miss Xuan, I think we should carefully check all the maids' rooms, maybe there are some clues." Bach Dinh suggested, his tone of concern so sincere that no one doubted the true motive behind it.

When the security team in the house searched Anh Thu's room, they quickly found a silver lock hidden in her closet, mixed in an old sock that Bach Dinh himself had deliberately arranged. The news spread quickly throughout the mansion, causing everyone, from the maid to the family members, to pay attention to Anh Thu.

"I didn't steal anything!" Anh Thu knelt down in the middle of the large living room, where the entire Chu family had gathered to hear the report about the incident. Her tears flowed endlessly because of the feeling of extreme injustice. "I swear on my parents' spirits, I have never touched anything that doesn't belong to me."

"So why is the clasp of the necklace in your locker?" Vinh Bach growled, his eyes full of anger and disappointment. "I warned you from the beginning that you weren't trustworthy, now the truth is clear."

"I don't know why it's there, I swear I didn't put it in my closet!" Anh Thu choked, her eyes looking for help looked towards Vinh Khang who was standing silently in the corner of the room, his face did not express clear emotions but his eyes were full of inner conflict.

Lam Ngoc Dung stood next to her, her face slightly sad and disappointed. "I really don't want to believe this, she once left a very good impression on me. But the evidence is so clear..."

Ms. Mai stood among the maids, her red eyes looking towards Anh Thu, not daring to speak up in defense for fear of getting involved, but her eyes were full of sympathy and suspicion. She knew her roommate's personality well over the past few months, knew that Anh Thu was always careful and upright in the smallest things, and absolutely not the type of person who was greedy for wealth. But in a powerful mansion like this, the voice of a small maid like her did not have much weight to change the situation.

Vinh Bach stood with his arms crossed, his eyes filled with the harshness of someone who had guessed correctly from the beginning. "I told you from the first time I met you, a person with such an ambiguous background would cause trouble sooner or later. It's just a shame that at that time no one listened to me, and now the family has to suffer like this."

Bach Dinh stood quietly behind, the corner of his lips curled up in a cold, hard-to-recognize smile, quickly hidden by the fake serious expression he always wore every time he appeared before the family. "This is truly a pity, but we need to handle it seriously. We cannot ignore the crime of theft of family heirlooms because of personal feelings. I recommend reporting it to the police for investigation."

That suggestion was like a knife stabbing straight into Anh Thu's heart. If the police investigate, it was likely that her true identity would be revealed before she could complete her mission of exonerating her father, and worse, she might have to be unjustly imprisoned for a crime that she absolutely did not commit. She raised her eyes to look at Vinh Khang again, her eyes contained both despair and the last fragile hope, waiting for a miracle from the only man in this room who could trust her unconditionally.

Vinh Khang stepped forward, his voice resounding in the tense and stuffy atmosphere of the whole room. "Before reporting to the police, I suggest checking all the security cameras in the house over the past few days. If Ms. Thu is really the culprit, the cameras will record clear evidence. But if not, we should not rush to accuse a person just based on a found item, which may have been deliberately set up by someone."

That sentence made the whole room suddenly silent, and Bach Dinh's eyes flashed with a flash of panic very quickly before he promptly regained his usual composure. He did not expect that Vinh Khang, his nephew who was always careful and fair, would make this suggestion right in the middle of his script seemingly so perfect that it could not be overturned.

"I don't think it's necessary to be so complicated, the evidence is so clear." Bach Dinh spoke up, trying to keep his tone calm, but a bit of unusual haste slipped through the cracks of his fake calmness. "The security camera in the annex has always had problems. It's unlikely that it can record anything useful. It's just a waste of time."

"If there's nothing to hide, then further inspection won't hurt, sir." Vinh Khang replied, his voice remained calm but his eyes looked straight at Bach Dinh with a steadfastness that made it impossible for his uncle to continue protesting without causing unnecessary suspicion. "I will personally go down to the technical room to check tonight."

Chu Vinh Toan, sitting quietly in an armchair in the corner of the room since the beginning of the meeting, nodded slightly in agreement with his second son's proposal. "Vinh Khang is right, the Chu family has always handled everything fairly. We cannot let injustice happen just because of hasty conclusions. Just check carefully before deciding."

The family head's words made no one in the room dare to object further, including Vinh Bach who was eager to quickly handle the matter. Bach Dinh had to nod in agreement, secretly calculating how he could interfere with the camera system before Vinh Khang could take a look, a risky gamble that he knew he did not have much time to prepare.