Chapter 15 — The Mighty, All-Powerful Genie

After that night, Nhã Kỳ couldn't stop thinking about what she had witnessed. She began, unconsciously and then gradually became intentional, to recall the entire journey of more than a year and a half since her grandfather's death, each milestone of success that she was always proud to attribute entirely to her own abilities.

She sat in front of her desk for many hours, surrounded by stacks of old files pulled from storage cabinets, the desk lamp shining down on pages that had yellowed over time. One weekend evening, when Bách Nguyên went out to buy things, Nhã Kỳ stayed alone in the office, taking out all the archived files on the Southern inter-regional transport project - the first project she was in charge of and also the first important turning point in her career. She carefully reread every detail, trying to recall the exact source of the key information that helped her discover the problem with the poor quality warehouse partner.

"Vệ Thanh Hoài found this problem," she muttered to herself, trying to remember the meeting that year. But when she contacted Thanh Hoài again — now promoted to the position of strategic analyst team leader thanks to that exact achievement — and asked more closely about the origin of the discovery, she received an answer that made all the pieces of the puzzle start to fall into place.

"Actually, I received an anonymous set of analytical documents sent to Mr. Đắc Tường at that exact time, Ms. Nhã Kỳ." Thanh Hoài recounted, never thinking that this detail was so important. "I have verified all the data myself, but the original suggestion did come from an unknown source."

She sat quietly for a long time after that call, staring at the turned off phone screen, unable to believe what she had just heard. Nhã Kỳ felt her heart skip a beat. She remembered that evening, when she happened to meet Bách Nguyên sitting reading a book on the steps of the annex, and he said something that she didn't pay much attention to at the time: "I believe you completely deserve that success." A sentence so sincere that she still clearly remembered the look in his eyes at that time, which now had a completely different meaning.

She continued to search for other landmarks. A series of consecutive successes helped her be appointed CEO — one of which was that she suddenly had accurate inside information about a negotiating partner who was having financial difficulties, helping her negotiate contract terms that were much more favorable than the board's original expectations. When she asked again where the source had come from, the answer was similarly vague — a chance encounter, a suggestion from an unknown acquaintance that led her in the right direction.

And most recently, the recent stock crisis - Bách Nguyên herself directly presented evidence to help her solve Việt Long's conspiracy, no longer needing to hide under any cover of anonymity.

She flipped through a few more old files, finding even smaller deals that she once thought were simply lucky — a chance meeting with a reputable supplier just when she was stuck looking for a replacement source, a timely warning about the legal risks of a contract she almost missed. The deeper she dug, the more she realized the density of those coincidences, so thick that they couldn't possibly be coincidence.

Nhã Kỳ sat quietly in the office, her mind reeling with a series of questions and a feeling of deep shock gradually spreading throughout her body. Over the past year and a half, she had been proud of each of her successes, convinced that she was worthy of the position of the youngest CEO in the corporation's history, and had openly mocked the role of her husband, whom she had considered useless in front of the press—when in fact, almost every most important turning point in her career had the silent hand of that same man behind it.

She felt embarrassed, hurt, and deeply grateful that she had never experienced before, all blending into a complex storm of emotions that she didn't know how to handle. She remembered all the times she treated Bách Nguyên badly - pushing him to live in the annex like a stranger, forbidding him from appearing in front of business partners, openly mocking him in front of the press on the most important inauguration day of her life - while he never once spoke up to ask for any recognition or gratitude, only silently standing behind, protecting and cultivating her success without needing anything in return.

"Why did he do all this?" She asked herself in the darkness of the room, a question to which she did not yet have a certain answer, although in her heart, she began to suspect that the reason behind it was not simply a promise to her grandfather.

A person who only kept his promise out of obligation wouldn't have to be so meticulous, wouldn't have to hide his name every time he helped, wouldn't have to endure her contemptuous words for so long without complaining. There was something deeper than that, something she began to feel but didn't dare to name.

She remembered the night the two of them sat together on the porch under the starry sky, when he said that sitting next to her, he no longer felt lonely. She remembered his eyes every time she accidentally caught him looking at her, a gentle look that she had always deliberately ignored before because she didn't want to face the true meaning behind it. She remembered how he always knew exactly how much she liked to drink ginger tea when it was cold, always had a warm scarf ready on days when the weather changed, and always appeared at the right time every time she needed some small support that she had never asked for.

It had been completely dark for a long time, but she still sat there, not bothering to turn on the lights, letting the darkness gradually cover the room as if reflecting the chaotic mood in her heart. That night, when Bách Nguyên returned home after a shopping trip, he saw Nhã Kỳ sitting quietly on the porch, her face carrying a deep contemplation that was different from usual.

"Are you still not sleeping?" He asked, sitting down a reasonable distance from her.

"I just talked to Thanh Hoài," she spoke, her voice soft, lacking any usual sharpness. "About that year's anonymous documents."

Bách Nguyên paused for a moment, immediately realizing that she had begun to piece together the truth. He did not deny it, nor did he try to deny it. "You already noticed."

"It's you, right? Not only that project, but also many other things over the past year and a half." She turned to look at him, her eyes sparkling with unshed tears. "Why didn't you tell me? Why do you keep letting me boast about successes that are largely thanks to you, while I treat you so badly?"

Bách Nguyên was silent for a long time, his eyes looking into the distance, weighing each word before responding, as if this answer was more important than anything he had ever said to her before.

"Because I don't want you to think that your success is not due to your own ability," Bách Nguyên replied, his voice sincere. "I only give small suggestions, necessary clues, but you are the one who makes the decisions, the one who convinces the board of directors, the one who takes responsibility and shoulder the pressure of each project. That success really belongs to you, I am just the person behind the support."

Nhã Kỳ looked at him, tears finally rolling down her cheeks, a complex mixture of regret, gratitude, and another emotion she hadn't dared to name was welling up in her heart, as she realized that the man she had always despised for over a year was actually the only person in the world, besides her grandfather, who truly cared about her happiness and success unconditionally, without asking for anything in return.

She quickly wiped away the tears, but they continued to fall, as if a year and a half of suppressing her emotions was now about to burst out. Bách Nguyên quietly gave her the handkerchief, without saying another word, just sat quietly next to her, giving her the space necessary for her own emotional storm to subside in the most natural way.