Chapter 12 — The Scales Are Finally Balanced

As soon as he saw me enter, his expression immediately tensed.

“Tieu Dao, you're home.” My uncle-in-law, Trieu Lan, quickly walked over and wanted to hold my hand.

I don't sit in my old position anymore. Which stood straight in the middle of the living room.

"Tieu Dao, if you have anything, sit down and talk..." The eldest uncle spoke up to conciliate.

"No need." I calmly replied. “After I finish speaking, I will leave.”

The whole living room immediately fell silent.

“Today I called everyone here for three things.”

I opened my bag and took out a document bag.

“First thing.”

I pulled out the black and white photo, placed it on the tea table and pushed it towards Tan Duc Hau.

"Three." I looked straight at him. "Who is the woman in this photo? Please tell everyone."

Tan Duc Hau's face immediately turned pale.

“Tieu Dao…”

“Dad, say it.”

Everyone else in the room craned their necks to look at the photo. Tan Duc Hau's lips trembled a few times.

“This is…” His voice was hoarse. "Your grandfather's daughter. Co Uyen Thanh."

“Who is Co Uyen Thanh?” The eldest uncle asked in surprise.

“It's your mother.” I replied slowly. "Your mother's name is now Trang To Thanh. But her real name is Co Uyen Thanh, the only daughter of the Co silk family in Hu Chau."

The whole living room immediately exploded.

“What?” The eldest uncle-in-law was frightened.

“No way…” The second uncle also stood up.

The chopsticks in Tan Hao's hand fell straight to the ground.

"Three." I looked at Tan Duc Hau. “Dad, keep talking.”

His hands clenched the armrests of the chair until they turned white.

“Forty years ago…” He closed his eyes. "When Dad was doing business in the South, it was Co Duc Vinh... Tieu Dao's grandfather... who lent him money to start a business."

"How much?" The eldest uncle immediately asked.

Tan Duc Hau was silent. I pulled out my grandfather's notebook from my document bag, opened it to the same page, and placed it on the table.

"Thirty-five thousand. 1983." I look at everyone. “It's your grandfather's own handwriting.”

“Thirty-five thousand?!” The eldest uncle's tone immediately changed. “So it's not about selling construction materials for our house…”

“Yes.” I calmly replied. “All of the Qin family's startup capital came from your grandfather.”

“Not even a single penny has been paid.”

“It's been forty years.”

The eldest uncle turned to look at Tan Duc Hau.

“Dad… is it true?”

Tan Duc Hau closed his eyes, unable to say a word.

“Second story.”

I took out another document.

“Before he passed away, your grandfather established a family trust fund, the beneficiary of which is your mother.” I stopped for a moment and then continued. “Including investment profits over the past forty years, the current amount is…”

“One hundred and twenty million.”

This time even the eldest uncle-in-law jumped up. The teacup in the second aunt's hand hit the table hard, making a "click" sound. Tan Hao sat dumbfounded and looked at me, as if meeting the person in front of him for the first time.

“In addition to your grandfather's old house in Huzhou, the market price is about thirty million.”

“Plus the money and interest that Tan Duc Hau must repay…”

Tan Duc Hau suddenly opened his eyes.

“What exactly do you want to say?”

I looked straight at him, each word falling clearly and coldly.

“I mean…”

“Dad said I'm an outsider.”

“Dad kicked me out of the family group.”

“Dad took your name and Noan Noan out of the will.”

"Dad used your grandfather's money to build the Qin family's business..."

“Then he called his grandchild an outsider.”

I looked at the old man in front of me, my voice calm cold.

“Thirdly, the debt to the Co family… is not just money.”

“It's the conscience of being human.”

The whole living room was so quiet that you could hear the sound of breathing. Tan Duc Hau's face was sometimes red, sometimes white.

“Third story.”

I took out the last document from my bag.

“This is a legal opinion prepared by lawyer Tran.” I put the papers down on the table. “It clearly lists three options.”

"First, the Qin family uses their current assets to repay the entire debt to the Co family, an amount ranging from eighteen million to thirty million."

"Second, if I refuse to negotiate, I will sue in accordance with the legal process and at the same time publicly disclose to the media the true origin of the Qin family's business."

“Are you threatening me?” Tan Duc Hau stood up from his chair on his hands and knees.

"Are not." I looked straight at him. “I'm just telling the truth.”