Chapter 9 — The Life-Changing Journey of the 200 Billion Shan Tuyet Tea King

The sound of the aerator pulled Loc out of his thoughts right before the decision was signed. Loc did not rush to conclusions. People who are accustomed to mountain dew, nectar-stained hands, and tea-burning wood stoves understand that one small sign can be the consequence of a whole series of wrong choices. Loc placed the map folded in four next to the notebook, circled the unusual spot and reminded himself of the ancient tea tree and the promise to the village.

Chapter 9 revolves around orders demanding retrieval. Loc divided tasks into components that can be inspected: who goes where, what samples to take, who to notify and where to stop if there is a risk. May recorded each milestone in the shipping manifest; they did not allow vague memories to replace data. Cuong may say the project only needs a boost, but in the tea village on the Hoang Lien range, a wrong decision often costs many years.

In the afternoon, a new detail appeared: the order demanded retrieval. It forced Loc to look again at his motives. They were so focused on winning over Cuong that they forgot their original goal of protecting the ancient tea tree and their promise to the village. May just asked: "If you win but everyone still loses what they need, what kind of win do you call that?"

A copy was sent unexpectedly. It showed that Cuong did not act alone and that the retrieval order was just the outer layer of a longer plan. Loc compared the signature, file creation time and narrative. Each piece was small, but when placed next to the others it pointed to a door that no one dared to open before.

Loc returned with the testing sheet and delivery schedule, this time with another person to avoid one voice deciding everything. They compared mountain dew, nectar-stained hands, and tea-heating wood stoves with the previous day's data, asked the person who witnessed the order to retrieve it, and clearly wrote down the unknown part. The method was slower than a statement, but each step left a trace for later inspection. When May said she was tired, Loc put away the documents, poured water and reminded: "You can rest, but don't skip the question."