Chapter 7 — The Switched Heiress: The Battle for Wealth

"Eighteen years ago," Bich Van continued, her voice calm but carrying a weight that made the entire banquet hall listen in silence, "Diem Thu and I gave birth together at Hong Phuc Obstetrics Hospital. That night, I accidentally woke up, went to the hospital hallway to find some water, and witnessed something I never thought I would have to witness in my life — my best friend was secretly swapping the identification bracelets of the two newborns in the room according to follow."

Diem Thu, still standing on stage, her face immediately changed color, her eyes widened in surprise. "What... what are you saying? Are you making up stories to deny the truth?"

"I'm not making up stories," Bich Van replied, turning to look straight into Diem Thu's eyes, her eyes never wavering. "I witnessed it all, and that very night, I silently swapped the bracelets to make them correct, before the nurses carried out the baby handover procedure the next morning. You didn't know that, right, Diem Thu? For the past eighteen years, you have always believed that you were raising my biological daughter, when the truth is, from the morning after that fateful night, each child was given to its correct biological mother."

The entire banquet hall shook a second time, even more violently than the first time. The whispers could no longer be suppressed, resounding like a huge wave rolling throughout the room. Diem Thu stood frozen, her lips trembling, trying to say something but couldn't make a sound. Her face changed from the initial fierce look to one of extreme confusion, as if the entire foundation of trust she had built over eighteen years had just been destroyed in an instant.

"This... this is nonsense," Diem Thu stammered, her voice completely lost. "If you knew from that night, why didn't you say anything? Why did you let me raise Han Nghi for eighteen years while knowing clearly that she was not your biological child?"

"Because I need to know the truth," Bich Van replied, her voice still calm even though inside her heart was churning with so many pent-up emotions for nearly two decades. "I need to know why you - the friend I trust the most - could do such a cruel thing to your own child and my daughter. I waited, watched, hoped that one day you would come to me yourself, confess everything in private, so that together we could correct the mistake as peacefully as possible for both children. But you didn't. Instead, eighteen years later, you stand here, publicly slandering us. me in front of hundreds of people, deliberately turning my biological daughter into an outsider with no rights, just to gain a position as heir that does not belong to your daughter."

Khanh Thi, still standing next to her mother on stage, squeezed Bich Van's hand so tightly that her knuckles turned white. She didn't know whether to feel relieved at what her mother had just said, or continue to panic over the fact that her mother had kept such a big secret for eighteen years without ever revealing it to her. Those two conflicting emotions kept tugging at each other in the heart of the eighteen-year-old girl, making her stand still, speechless, only clinging tightly to her mother's hand as the only fulcrum in the midst of the storm swirling around her.

Below, Han Nghi was no better. She looked at her mother on stage, at the file trembling in Diem Thu's hand, and a cold feeling began to spread throughout her body when she realized that perhaps everything her mother had just announced in front of hundreds of people could be just a distorted truth, a false belief built on a false foundation for eighteen years.

Bich Van turned and signaled Trac Minh Thu, who had just received a black leather briefcase from his assistant, to step onto the stage. Minh Thu opened her briefcase and took out a thick file, neatly arranged by year. Inside were copies of DNA test results, notarized medical reports, and a detailed report.

"This is the result of a DNA test performed periodically every three years for the past eighteen years, at many different independent testing centers both at home and abroad, to ensure absolute objectivity," Minh Thu said, her voice professional and clear, towards the crowd and especially towards the board members standing nearby. "All results confirm that Ton Khanh Thi is directly related to Ms. Chuong Bich Van, with an accuracy of over ninety-nine point ninety-nine percent."

Bich Van picked up the file and held it high in front of the crowd, the reporters' flashes flashed continuously. "I secretly kept this evidence for eighteen years, not because I doubted my daughter, but because I knew, one day, I would need it to protect her against a plot like this. I was right."

Diem Thu took a step back, holding her own file with both hands like a fragile shield that was no longer strong enough to withstand the oncoming storm. "No... it's impossible. My test results clearly show that Han Nghi is related to the Chuong family. I took her for testing myself, I..."

"Where did you get tested, and who referred you?" Bich Van asked, her voice sharp as a blade. "Are you sure that the test results are completely independent, not interfered with by anyone, not pre-arranged by anyone to make you believe something that is not true?"

That question made Diem Thu pause, her face showing deep confusion. She recalled, the person who introduced her to that testing center, the person who encouraged her to get tested in the first place after she casually mentioned some vague doubts about what she witnessed in the past - was none other than Ton Hoai Nam, whom she had always trusted as a silent ally all these years.

She turned to look at Hoai Nam, her eyes filled with panic and a suspicion that had just arisen. But Hoai Nam, standing there with a calm and cold expression, just shook his head slightly, his eyes sent her a clear implicit message: did not say anything more, did not reveal anything.

"I also have the testimony of a witness who worked at the maternity ward of Hong Phuc Obstetrics Hospital at that time," Bich Van continued, not giving Diem Thu any silence to calm down. "This person is willing to testify before the law if necessary, confirming that he saw a woman whose appearance matched Diem Thu appearing suspiciously in the baby room area that night."

The entire banquet hall was now engulfed in a heavy silence, with only the clicking sound of the cameras continuously recording every moment of one of the most shocking family scandals the city's business community had ever witnessed. Diem Thu stood there, the file in her hand gradually becoming meaningless, her face as pale as if there was not a drop of blood left, her legs shaking so much that she had to hold on to the edge of the microphone to keep from collapsing on the stage.

Bich Van looked at her old friend, a complicated feeling arose in her heart - not the gloating of a winner, but a deep sadness mixed with pity. Eighteen years ago, she had loved this woman like a real sister. Now, standing in front of her was a person who had been pushed to the final step of betrayal by the calculations, pressures of life, and perhaps even the manipulation of someone else.

Behind Bich Van, a few members of the board of directors began hastily taking notes in notebooks, while the elderly Honorary Vice Chairman stood silently, his eyes both admiring and sad looking at the daughter of the late Chairman Chuong Bao Long - whom he had followed since her days as a fresh graduate, now standing steadfastly in the midst of the storm that shook the whole family without showing any weakness in public.

"Diem Thu," Bich Van said, her voice softening a bit, "I don't want to humiliate you in front of everyone here. But you forced me to do this, when you chose to publicly slander me instead of coming to me to clarify the truth. So now, I only have one question for you, right here, in front of everyone: who told you to do this, eighteen years ago, and who pushed you to stand up on this stage tonight, right now? at my daughter's own party?"