Chapter 15 — The Mask Isn't Real

Five people sat around a long wooden table in the Moon Painting studio — a meeting that just two weeks ago, Uyen Nhi would never have imagined she would be chairing.

Nha Uyen sat on one side, her hands still shaking a little every time she looked at Tuyen. Boi Tran sat opposite, with the stern look of a person accustomed to meticulously analyzing every detail. Tuyen sat next to the door, closest to the exit, as is the habit of someone who is always ready to leave if needed. Nhat Vu sat next to Uyen Nhi, laptop open, evidence documents neatly arranged into sections.

"Before we begin, I want to make one thing clear." Uyen Nhi spoke up, her serious voice covering the whole room. "I did not convene this meeting to judge who is right and who is wrong. I convened to find a way to stop this, in the fairest way possible for everyone, including the six other families of artisans who are being exploited without their knowledge by Ho Bao Ky."

"What are you going to do?" Tuyen asked, her voice tense. "Report everything to the police?"

"Not yet." Uyen Nhi shook her head. "Nhat Vu and I discussed carefully. If we report to the police right now, with the available evidence, the highest possibility is that both uncle and sister Boi Tran will be prosecuted at the same time as Ho Bao Ky, because on paper, they are both the direct producers and participants in counterfeiting. He, with his financial potential and connections, can completely hire a good lawyer, prolong the case, and even put all the responsibility on the two of them."

"So what's your plan?" Boi Tran asked, her eyes sharp and searching.

Nhat Vu spoke up, opening his laptop for everyone to see. "My plan is to publish a full investigation, with authentic evidence, right at the most sensitive time for Indochine Heritage Auctions — right before their next big auction, when the international media is paying the most attention. At the same time, we will proactively send all the evidence to the auction house's senior management before the article goes live, giving them the opportunity to handle it internally, withdraw all related lots, and officially apologize to the public. declare."

"And what about me and Ms. Boi Tran?" Tuyen asked, her voice still worried.

"This is the most important part." Uyen Nhi looked straight at Tuyen, then at Boi Tran. "Both of them will proactively cooperate, providing all information and evidence about Ho Bao Ky's role in directing, organizing, and consuming counterfeit goods. In return, I will find a lawyer to advise the two of them, to ensure that this cooperation is recognized as a significant mitigating circumstance, and can even avoid criminal prosecution if we commit to completely stopping production activities and compensating as possible."

Nha Uyen, silent from the beginning of the meeting, finally spoke up, her voice choked. "As for the medical expenses for Mr. Tuyen's son, I would like to take full responsibility, not as an exchange, but as part of the responsibility I owed twenty-two years ago. This is not a condition, but something I must do, no matter how things turn out." She added, her voice trembling slightly: "I also contacted a friend who is a doctor at a higher hospital, asking about the possibility of a kidney transplant for him when eligible. I know money cannot compensate for everything your family has endured, but that is all I can do right now."

Tuyen looked at Nha Uyen, his eyes were red, he was speechless for a moment and couldn't say anything. "You don't need to do that."

"I need." Nha Uyen replied with a rare resolute voice. "This is the only way I can live with myself after all that has happened."

Boi Tran, observing the emotional exchange between the two, cleared her throat to bring everyone back to the real issue. "I agree to cooperate fully. But I need to know for sure, does this plan take into account the possibility of Ho Bao Ky counterattacking? He is not a person who is easily subdued, and he has enough resources to fight back fiercely if he feels threatened."

"That's why we need to act synchronously, quickly and decisively." Nhat Vu replied, his voice full of confidence of someone who had carefully planned, his eyes scanning each person in the room as if confirming everyone's agreement before continuing. "Once the evidence is sent to Indochine's leadership and the article is ready for publication at the same time, he won't have enough time to maneuver, disperse the evidence, or put pressure on any of us."

The room fell silent for a moment, each person pursuing their own thoughts about what was about to happen. Uyen Nhi looked around the table, looking at each face — the woman burdened with guilt for twenty-two years, the man who had been wronged and was now trying to redeem himself, the restoration expert tempted by injustice in the profession, and the journalist friend willing to put his professional reputation on the line for a story that could change an entire art industry.

The fluorescent lights on the factory ceiling shine down on five faces, each with a different expression but sharing the same quiet tension. Outside, the sound of insects on the summer night still chirps incessantly, the sound of motorbikes occasionally passing through the village road, normal life continues as if nothing had ever been disturbed, while inside this small workshop, five people are together charting the path of a decision that can change the fate of not only them.

"I have a question." Boi Tran spoke up after a moment of silence, her voice still maintaining its usual matter-of-fact tone. "If Ho Bao Ky is exposed, the auction house will definitely open a comprehensive internal investigation. So will the story of me and Mr. Tuyen be completely brought to light, or is there a way to keep it somewhat private, at least until Mr. Tuyen's child's health is more stable?"

"I can't promise everything will be kept completely confidential." Nhat Vu answered honestly. "But I can guarantee that, in my article, I will focus on Ho Bao Ky's organizing and profiteering role, presenting the two men as important cooperating witnesses, not as conspirators. That narrative is not only true, but it is much more equitable than equating them all with the same level of responsibility."

"There's one more thing I need to clarify." Uyen Nhi spoke, her voice slow but steady. "After everything is over, no matter the outcome, I want the Moon Painting workshop to move in a new direction - completely transparent about the origin, and if Mr. Tuyen agrees, I want to invite him back to work, publicly under his own name, no longer having to hide in anyone's shadow."

Tuyen looked up at her, so stunned that he couldn't say a word for a few seconds. "Are... are you telling the truth?"

"Real." Uyen Nhi nodded, her eyes determined. "Your skills are not inferior to my teacher. I have seen that through the works you have created, even if they are fake. The only thing wrong is the way you use it. If you are willing to start over, right, I believe my teacher, if he were still alive, would also agree with this decision."

Tears rolled down Tuyen's haggard face, for the first time in the whole story, not because of pain or fear, but because of a glimmer of hope that he had never dared to think about since the day he was kicked out of the factory twenty-two years ago.

The meeting lasted until late at night, every detail of the plan was discussed, edited, and agreed upon. Nhat Vu drafted the article outline on the spot, read each paragraph aloud for everyone to comment, and edited details that could cause misunderstandings or cause unnecessary hurt to those who cooperated. Nha Uyen proposed to use her relationships in the international collector world to ensure that the article, when released, will be widely shared with the most influential people in the industry, instead of being lost among countless other news.

Tuyen, before leaving, lingered for a moment next to the stack of wooden molds on the shelf, gently touching a unicorn head mold, feeling the smoothness of the wood again under her fingertips, as if greeting an old friend after many years of separation. "If all goes well," he said quietly, more to himself than to anyone else in the room, "I hope to one day stand here, working in the light, no longer having to hide anything."

When everyone left, Uyen Nhi stood alone in the middle of the workshop, looking at Mr. Tuyen's photo on the wall, whispering softly as if reporting to her teacher about a big decision she had just made - a decision she believed that, although not perfect, was still the closest path to justice that she could find in the middle of a maze with no clear exit.