Chapter 10 — The Mighty, All-Powerful Genie

A few days after the inauguration ceremony, Bách Nguyên accidentally witnessed a moment that he knew Nhã Kỳ would never want anyone to see. It was late one evening, when he passed by her private office on the third floor to bring up a cup of warm ginger tea according to the habit he had silently maintained for many months, even though she had never once thanked or even touched those cups of tea in front of him.

The door to the room was ajar, and through the small gap, he saw Nhã Kỳ sitting alone in front of her desk, holding an old photo frame that had faded over time - a photo of her as a child, standing between her parents at some picnic, all of them smiling brightly. Her shoulders were shaking little by little, and even though he couldn't hear her crying clearly, he could still clearly see that she was trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to flow.

Bách Nguyên stood silently outside, not daring to step in, not daring to disturb the rare moment of weakness that she always tried to hide from all eyes around her. He quietly placed the cup of tea on the nearby windowsill and left, his heart filled with deep sadness at the image of the arrogant, strong girl he had often seen, now so fragile when facing alone the pain of loss that has never subsided.

That night, he couldn't sleep, he kept tossing and turning thinking about what he had just witnessed. He remembered all the times Nhã Kỳ treated him coldly, even contemptuously in front of others, and for the first time, instead of feeling hurt as usual, he saw those actions from a completely different perspective — not innate cruelty, but a defense mechanism built from the pain of losing her parents at a young age, from growing up in a family where feelings were always measured by benefits, from the fear of being taken advantage of again, as her father had been. Her mother was probably taken advantage of by relatives when she was alive.

"She doesn't hate me for who I am," he whispered to himself in the darkness of the room, an understanding slowly creeping into his mind. "She's afraid to trust anyone, because every time she trusted someone in the past, she lost them."

From that night on, although on the outside everything remained the same - Nhã Kỳ was still cold, still kept his distance, still sometimes said words that hurt him - Bách Nguyên began to look at the relationship between the two with a much deeper patience and understanding than before. He no longer simply fulfilled his promise to Vĩnh Bảo as an obligation to fulfill, but began to truly desire to see Nhã Kỳ happy, to witness her opening up, even if just a little, to the world around her.

He began to notice small details in her life that he had never observed so closely before. He realized that she liked to drink warm ginger tea on cold days, even though she never said it, just because he noticed that she always took a small sip every time she found the cup of tea he had placed on her desk, even though she always pretended not to touch it. He noticed that she had a habit of gently rubbing her left wrist when she was stressed, a small faint scar there that he guessed was related to the accident that took her parents. He realized that she often had trouble sleeping on the nights leading up to the anniversary of her grandfather's death, even though she had never told anyone about it, just because he noticed that the light in her room was always on until late on those days every year.

He also began to notice how she always ordered chicken pho instead of beef pho every time she ordered food home, how she always sat at the corner of the table with her back to the window in the meeting room, how she often clenched her hands every time she had to make an important decision in front of a crowd of people. Each of those small details, when put together, gradually paints a fuller and more honest portrait of the true person behind the arrogant shell that Nhã Kỳ always puts on in front of the world.

"You are observing Mistress very closely." Đắc Tường commented one morning, when he saw Bách Nguyên quietly preparing a warm scarf to leave on the sofa in the living room, right on the day the weather forecast said the temperature would drop sharply in the evening.

"I didn't mean to observe her," Bách Nguyên replied, somewhat confused. "It's just that I started to notice the little things that made her more comfortable, and I wanted to do what I could to help her, even if it was just little things like that."

"Master, I think this is no longer simply about keeping a promise to the old boss." Đắc Tường smiled, his gentle eyes looked at the young man who was slowly but surely falling in love without even realizing it.

Bách Nguyên remained silent, not denying that comment, because he himself could not deny the truth that was gradually becoming clear in his heart. He thought about the times Nhã Kỳ treated him badly, and realized that, although those words still hurt him, they no longer made him want to retreat or give up. On the contrary, every time he witnessed the hurt hidden behind her arrogant appearance, he became even more determined to stay, patiently waiting for the day she could learn to trust someone, even just a little.

"Aren't you afraid of waiting without results?" Đắc Tường asked, his voice a bit worried for Bách Nguyên. "Five years is not short, but it is not endlessly long either. What if in the end she still cannot return your feelings?"

"Then at least I tried my best, with all my heart," Bách Nguyên replied, his eyes calm but determined. "For a thousand years, I have never been able to choose anything for myself. Now, no matter the outcome, at least this is my own choice, no one is forcing me. That alone is worth more than any wish I have ever granted others in the past millennium."

One rare weekend evening when Nhã Kỳ didn't have to work, Bách Nguyên happened to see her sitting alone on the porch, looking up at the starry night sky, her face had a thoughtful look that was completely different from the sharp, decisive look she always showed in public.

"Can I sit with you?" He asked, his voice gentle, without any pressure.

Nhã Kỳ glanced at him for a moment, a little hesitant, but in the end she just nodded slightly and said nothing. The two sat silently together for quite a while, with only the sound of the breeze blowing through the leaves of the trees in the garden and the chirping of insects somewhere in the darkness.

"Do you ever feel lonely?" She suddenly asked, her voice soft and different from usual, perhaps because the night and the privacy of that moment made her somewhat relax her familiar defensive wall.

"I was lonely for a thousand years," he answered honestly, even though she wouldn't understand the true meaning behind that statement. "A loneliness so long that I used to think it was the natural nature of existence, like the way people accept that they will grow old every day. But now, sitting next to you like this, I don't feel lonely anymore."

Nhã Kỳ turned slightly to look at him, a bit surprised by that sincere answer, but she quickly averted her eyes, not wanting to reveal the small disturbance that had just arisen in her heart. "You say strange things."

A gentle breeze blew, carrying the scent of milk flowers wafting from the garden behind. Nhã Kỳ shivered slightly, pulling her coat closer to her body. Bách Nguyên, without saying a word, took off his coat and placed it lightly on her shoulders. She was about to refuse, but then stopped, leaving the warm shirt on her shoulders, a small gesture that neither of them commented on further.

"Maybe so." He smiled slightly, not trying to explain further, just quietly enjoying the rare moment of sitting next to her in this rare peace, even though he knew clearly that, as soon as this night was over, all her familiar defensive walls would most likely be erected again the next morning. But even so, he still cherishes every small moment like this, seeing them as the first bricks in a long journey that he is determined to patiently pursue, not because of the promise he made to the deceased, but because his heart now truly belongs to the girl sitting quietly next to him under that starry night sky.