Chapter 12 — The Inn at the End of the Pass

The town's cultural house was packed with people that Saturday morning — not only residents of Back Deo neighborhood but also people in neighboring areas affected by the project came. Thao arrived early, brought Gia Binh and Mr. Bay Trinh, chose a row of seats near the middle of the hall, her heart heavy with bad premonitions.

Khai Dang, as promised, was present in advance, standing in a back corner with a few other colleagues in the survey team, wearing a neat business suit, different from the image of rolling up his sleeves chopping firewood that Thao was familiar with. When their eyes met through the crowd, he nodded slightly, a short gesture but enough to convey silent support.

The meeting began with a presentation by a representative of the Project Management Board, using a projector to present a detailed planning map and data on the economic benefits that the new tunnel will bring - shortening travel time from more than one hour to twenty minutes, minimizing traffic accidents due to dangerous steep terrain, promoting trade between highlands and plains.

When it came to the question and answer session, the atmosphere in the hall became tense. Many people stood up to question the level of compensation, the resettlement roadmap, and whether there was any plan to retain part of the old road. La Duc Vinh, answered most of the questions, maintaining a professional attitude but the answers were still stereotypical, avoiding specific commitments.

When it was her turn, Thao stood up, her hands shaking slightly but her voice still maintaining the necessary stability.

"I am Do Mien Thao, owner of End of Pass Inn. I want to ask, does this project consider the plan of retaining the old pass road as a secondary route, serving tourism or local people, instead of completely closing it after the tunnel opens to traffic? This pass is not only a traffic road, but also the livelihood of dozens of households who have been attached for many generations."

Her question made the whole hall silent for a moment, many people nodded in agreement, clearly this was what many of them wanted to ask but didn't know how to express it.

La Duc Vinh paused slightly at the question that was not in the prepared script, glanced down at the document before answering. "In principle, the current design plan does not have a plan to retain the entire old route due to the budget issue of parallel maintenance of the two routes. However, we acknowledge this opinion and will report to superiors for consideration."

The diplomatic answer, without any specific promises, caused many people in the hall to whisper, some showing obvious frustration.

"I took note and left it there, I heard this sentence in another project, in the end I didn't see anything!" An older man sitting in the back row spoke up, his voice full of frustration, receiving many applauses of approval.

The atmosphere in the hall began to become chaotic, many people simultaneously stood up to question, demanding clearer answers. At that moment, Mr. Bay Trinh stood up, his voice was loud and powerful like that of an experienced person.

"I have lived in this pass for nearly sixty years. I am not opposed to building a tunnel, because I understand that it is a matter of general development and cannot be stopped. But I suggest that you must have a specific plan for people like us, you cannot just talk and let the people fend for themselves. If the old road cannot be maintained, at least there must be a policy to support the transition to a proper livelihood, not just a few dollars in compensation and then abandon it."

Mr. Bay Trinh's speech received the loudest applause from the beginning of the meeting, causing even La Duc Vinh to nod and acknowledge it more seriously.

The meeting ended after nearly three tense hours, with no specific conclusions other than a promise to "consider and synthesize people's opinions." But for Thao, today's meeting planted a seed of an idea in her heart - if the project company does not proactively propose a plan to retain the pass, then perhaps the people of Back Deo hamlet themselves need to propose a specific plan, instead of just waiting and protesting.

While everyone was still discussing after Mr. Bay Trinh's speech, Gia Binh, sitting next to Thao from the beginning of the meeting, suddenly spoke up, his thoughtful voice different from his usual indifferent attitude.

"Miss Thao, when I heard what Mr. Bay said just now, I felt... I felt like I should also contribute and not just stand by and watch." He said, his eyes still glued to the stage where officials were packing up documents. "Before now, I thought it was enough for you and the elders in the neighborhood to worry about this matter. I just needed to figure out my own way out. But seeing Mr. Bay standing up and speaking on behalf of the whole neighborhood like that, I felt so selfish."

Thao turned to look at her younger brother, unable to hide her surprise at this sudden change in attitude. "I'm very happy when you say that. But you still have the right to plan for your own future, I don't blame you."

"I know. But at least, let me see if I can help in the meantime. As for whether to stay or go, we'll figure it out later." Gia Binh replied, his voice more decisive than usual, making Thao feel a ray of warmth kindling in her heart, as if today's tense meeting, in addition to worries, had also unintentionally planted a seed of solidarity in her younger brother's heart.

After the meeting, when everyone filed out, Khai Dang came to Thao, his eyes full of worry mixed with admiration.

"You spoke very well. Your question caught the attention of the entire board of directors." He said, his voice sincere.

"But the answers are still just empty promises." Thao replied, her voice a bit tired. "Do you think there's any way to turn the idea of keeping the old path into a proposal that actually has weight?"

Khai Dang pondered for a moment, then his eyes lit up as if he had just thought of something. "I have read about a few projects abroad, when there is a new replacement route, people do not completely abandon the old road but convert its functions, turning it into a heritage route, serving experiential tourism and sightseeing. If Vuc Suong pass has such a beautiful landscape, combined with a unique indigenous culture, it is entirely possible to build a similar project, sister."

Thao's eyes lit up at that idea, a ray of hope flashing through the gloomy days of the past. "Are you serious? If we can do that, maybe not only can we save my inn, but we can save our whole neighborhood."

"I'm serious." Khai Dang nodded firmly. "But to do it, there needs to be a systematic project, with data, and a specific plan to convince the competent authorities. It won't be easy, and I'm not sure of success, but at least, it's a direction worth trying."

"So where do we start?" Thao asked, her voice mixed with excitement and worry.

"First of all, it is necessary to survey the entire landscape and cultural value of the pass - the beautiful sightseeing spots, the typical activities of the hamlet, and even the historical stories associated with each turn. Then, consider drafting a project, finding a tourism consulting unit, and most importantly, having the consensus of all the people in the hamlet." Khai Dang listed each step, his tone became completely professional when discussing his expertise. "I can help you with the technical survey, because after all that is the expertise I am doing for the company. I will just have to do this overtime, silently, because if the company knows that I am helping the party opposing their plan, it will definitely get into a lot of trouble."

Thao looked at him, feeling a gratitude that was hard to describe in words for his willingness to put his entire job at risk just to help her and this small neighborhood.

On the way back to the inn, sitting in the back of Khai Dang's car to take her home because Gia Binh's motorbike ran out of gas along the way, Thao felt a new vitality creeping into her heart, different from the feeling of helplessness and confusion that had followed her for many weeks. For the first time since hearing about the project, she felt like she was not just waiting for her fate to be decided, but actually had a chance, however slim, to write her own story on the pass.

Arriving at the restaurant, Nhat Minh had been waiting outside in the yard for a long time, his face worried because the whole family had not returned from a meeting all day. Seeing Thao and Khai Dang getting out of the car, the boy ran out and asked questions.

"What's wrong, sister? Did they say we'd be sent away?"

"Nothing is certain yet, but I and Uncle Dang just came up with a great idea." Thao rubbed his brother's head, trying to give the boy a little optimism. "Maybe I will find a way to keep the old road, turning it into a place for tourists to visit, admire the scenery, and learn about the culture of our neighborhood."

Nhat Minh's eyes lit up, the imagination of a twelve year old child immediately flew away. "So we'll make a real tourist map, right? I can draw it, I draw it very well!"

Nhat Minh's laughter, although innocent, was like a spiritual medicine to somewhat relieve the tension accumulated during the recent stressful meeting. Thao looked at her little brother jumping into the house to show off to Thuy Duong about his new idea, her heart suddenly felt strangely warm, as if in the midst of an approaching storm, her small patchwork family was still finding a way to hope together.