Chapter 7 — The Wedding That Became a Goodbye

Someone posted a photo from the scene on their Moments with the caption: "At the old hotpot place, coincidentally ran into the bride who is breaking the internet today. She's even prettier in person than in the video, sitting right there in her wedding dress eating tripe hotpot." Three minutes later, that snapshot was screenshotted and uploaded to Weibo with the headline: *Bride plays cheating video at her own wedding, now goes out for tripe hotpot.* The comment section instantly erupted into a frenzy.

"This sister is an absolute slay."

"Now this is the role model for modern women."

"Wearing a wedding dress to eat hotpot, what kind of divine move is that? I want to marry her!"

"Oh, stop daydreaming, you don't deserve her."

Lam Tran was completely oblivious to all of this. She was focusing intently on cooking a piece of duck blood when her phone suddenly buzzed continuously. Picking it up, she saw nothing but notifications from Weibo. #BridePlaysCheatingVideoAtWedding# was ranked number one on the hot search. #WearingWeddingDressToEatHotpot# sat at number three. #TwentyMillionYuanBreachOfContractFee# came in at number seven. She froze for a full second before bursting into laughter. Chu Tieu leaned over to take a look and gasped sharply: "Tran Tran, you're trending on the hot search."

"I see it." Lam Tran calmly picked up a slice of lotus root.

"Aren't you scared?"

"Scared of what?" Lam Tran chewed the crunchy lotus root. "I didn't do anything shady. The ones losing face are Luc Hoai Chu and To Van Y, I'm just out here enjoying a meal."

"But people online are cursing you, saying you're too cold-blooded, not leaving an ounce of dignity for the man."

Lam Tran rolled her eyes: "When he was out cheating, why didn't he think about leaving me some dignity? What a bunch of hypocrites." Tran Tranh slammed the table and laughed heartily: "Spot on! Total hypocrites!" Halfway through the hotpot, Lam Tran's phone rang again. This time, it was Luc Hoai Chu calling. She hesitated for two seconds before pressing answer.

"Lam Tran!" Luc Hoai Chu's voice was hoarse, sounding as if he had just been crying, or perhaps as if he had consumed a great deal of alcohol. "Did you upload the video to the internet?"

Lam Tran frowned: "No."

"Then why is it trending?"

"Because of the wonderful things you did, the whole country wants some drama, am I supposed to take the blame?" Lam Tran said, "Luc Hoai Chu, if you called just to argue, I don't have the time. I'm eating hotpot, and we're running out of tripe."

"I'm standing outside your apartment building," Luc Hoai Chu said, his voice suddenly softening. "Tran Tran, can we please talk properly? I know I was wrong, I truly know I was wrong. Give me another chance, let's start over from the beginning, I'll listen to everything you say from now on..."

Lam Tran set down her chopsticks and let out a sigh.

"Luc Hoai Chu, standing there crying and whining outside my door, don't you feel any shame?"

"I don't care about losing face, I just need you—"

"Well, I care." Lam Tran cut him off, "What I care about is that the boyfriend of Lam Tran cannot be the kind of man who stabs me in the back while fooling around behind my back. If you can't even manage that, don't come begging me to lower my standards. My standards will never be lowered for anyone, not even you."

The other end of the line fell dead silent.

"And another thing," Lam Tran added, "Tomorrow morning at ten, don't forget to come sign the settlement agreement. If you don't show up, I will file a lawsuit. By then, with the compensation and court fees combined, you can calculate for yourself which option is more costly."

She hung up. Her three best friends at the table were all looking at her with complex expressions.

"What?" Lam Tran raised her glass of beer, "Do you think I'm being too ruthless?"

Chu Tieu shook her head: "I think you're badass beyond words." Lam Tran gave a faint smile, tilted her head back, and drained the glass of beer. The television mounted on the wall of the hotpot restaurant was broadcasting the local news. On the screen appeared the profile of a man—dressed in a sharp suit with crisp, striking facial contours, stepping out of a courthouse entrance surrounded by a swarm of reporters. The subtitle read: Tham Do—Partner lawyer at Hang Thai Law Firm, selected among the "Top 10 Outstanding Young Lawyers of the Province."