Chapter 11 — Thirty Years Later, We Brought Mom Home

The next morning, at exactly nine o'clock, Tham Ngoc Nhu accepted a livestream interview with a local news channel. The chosen location is the living room of Van Giang Cong Quan apartment. Behind is a view of the river, and on the wall is still hanging the painting my mother once bought. She wore light-colored clothes and her eyes were red. The host asked:

"Why did you decide to make everything public?"

Tham Ngoc Nhu raised her hand to wipe her tears.

"I don't want to hurt my children. But Hoang Vien fell ill. As soon as he returned, they demanded to check the books, demanded the house, and wanted to transfer him to another hospital. I really couldn't bear it anymore."

The comments section was filled with words of sympathy. Tham Gia Thu also appeared in front of the camera. He put his hand on his mother's shoulder.

"How my mother has lived for the past thirty years, relatives and friends have seen with their own eyes. We are not afraid of being investigated, we are only afraid of the elderly being provoked."

The number of livestream viewers quickly exceeded 100,000. Tri Dao put the tablet down on the table.

"Sister, okay."

I nodded. Exactly ten o'clock. Tri Dao, as lawyer, officially released the statement. There are no long sad words. Attach only five documents. The first document is a summary of mother's will and trust contract. The second document is the Van Giang Cong Quan apartment purchase contract and payment documents. The third document is Hua Hoanh Vien's commitment to manage the assets on behalf of the company. The fourth document is the hospital transfer assessment record and hospital fee payment documents. The fifth document is an email sent by Tham Gia Thu asking the three of us to sign a paper relinquishing all rights to claim the property. At the end of the statement there was only one sentence: We are not fighting over our stepmother's retirement home. We just reclaim the legacy left by our biological mother. Half an hour later, the wind direction on the Internet immediately changed direction. Someone started comparing real estate addresses. Someone discovered that the living room where Tham Ngoc Nhu livestreamed was the 28th floor apartment of Van Giang Cong Quan. Some people even dug up the photos she took during previous interviews. The jade pendant around her neck was identical to the one in my mother's old photos. The comment section exploded even more violently. At noon, Tham Ngoc Nhu was forced to turn off the livestream. Tham Gia Thu called me.

"Do you want to destroy my mother?"

I calmly replied:

"When your mother publicly defamed my three sisters, didn't she also want to destroy us?"

The other end of the line gasped.

"Don't be so quick to get complacent."

I hung up. In the afternoon, the court's decision to apply property preservation measures was issued. Van Giang Cong Quan apartment is blocked. Part of the stores belonging to the ancestral house were blocked. Income from the shares of the old factory land was also frozen. Even the guarantee related to Tham Gia Thu's company account was discovered, the bank immediately stopped extending the loan. This time he was really frantic. In the evening, Tham Gia Thu rushed straight to the hospital. At that time, I was standing outside the hospital room discussing the rehabilitation plan with the doctor. Tham Gia Thu pushed a nurse aside.

"Hua Tri Chanh!"

Everyone in the hallway turned their heads to look. His eyes were bloodshot and his tie was askew one side.

"Are you satisfied? Tomorrow my company has to pay the supplier! You just blocked my account, what should I pay?"

I looked at him.

"Use your own money."

He gritted his teeth.

"But that company also has my father's passion!"

Tri Dao walked out of the doctor's office.

"The capital to establish his company came from the mortgage loan of the Van Giang Cong Quan apartment. While the ownership of that apartment is in dispute, it is completely normal for the bank to temporarily suspend the loan."

Tham Gia Thu pointed straight at Tri Dao.

"You guys have already planned this!"

Tri Dao nodded. Tham Gia Thu was stunned. Tri Dao continued:

"What we consider is the legal process. Not crying, not pretending to be pitiful, and not secretly taking photos of patients."

In the hallway, there were people quietly chatting.

"It turns out it was the family in the online case."

"I saw the correction, that house seems to have been left to her daughter by her biological mother."

Hearing those words, Tham Gia Thu's face became even more ugly. He moved closer to me, lowering his voice.

"You name the price."

"Van Giang Cong Quan apartment, shops, old factory land... you just name the price. Don't investigate anymore."

I looked at him. Thirty years ago, he wore new sneakers and stood in the middle of my living room, whistling. Thirty years later, he stood in the middle of the hospital hallway, asking me to bid for the legacy my mother left behind.

"I don't bid."

He got angry.

"What do you want anyway?"

I looked straight into his eyes and slowly said each word:

"I want..."

"You guys..."

"Give it all back."

Tham Gia Thu laughed until his whole body trembled.