Chapter 20 — Wind and Snow Falling, Ancient People Return

The Truth Exposed

Cung Vinh Vuong's testimony was quickly transferred to the city's economic investigation agency, opening a series of official working sessions to clarify all activities of Van Hoa Cao Nguyen. Just three days later, based on the testimony and documents provided by Viet Bang's lawyer, the authorities decided to search the company's actual office and confiscate data from the internal server in accordance with the legal process. Within a week after the incident at the flower shop, Ta Bao Tram was invited to work with the authorities to explain her true role in this company.

Before entering the office, Diep Khanh stood silently for a moment in the hallway, his hand tightly holding Bach Du's hand next to him. It wasn't because she was afraid of facing Bao Tram again — she had faced her once before, at Lua La Event's luxurious office, and survived it. What made her heart beat faster right now was another, much more vague fear: fear that when she heard her old friend admit everything, a certain part of her, the part that still remembered her carefree student years, would crumble once again.

"No matter what happens in there, I'll be right by your side." Bach Du said, squeezing her hand in response, his eyes filled with stability. Diep Khanh nodded, took a deep breath, then walked with him into the room where Bao Tram was already sitting.

Diep Khanh and Bach Du, as victims, were also invited to participate in the official confrontation, witnessed by lawyer Viet Bang representing Diep Khanh's interests. The office at the investigation agency has a solemn atmosphere, different from the luxurious and flashy space at the Lua La Suen Kien office where Diep Khanh previously confronted Bao Tram.

Bao Tram walked into the room still trying to maintain her composure, her ash gray suit was neatly ironed without a single wrinkle, as if she came here to attend a partner meeting, not an explanation session before the investigation agency. But her eyes, when passing by Diep Khanh and then stopping at Bach Du for a moment longer than necessary, no longer maintained the sharp and confident look like the previous meetings.

"I told you, I no longer have anything to do with Van Hoa Highlands three years ago." She opened her mouth before being asked, her voice decisive. "If a former employee makes a false statement to reduce his own guilt, I have no responsibility to bear it."

"Mr. Cung Vinh Vuong is not a former employee, Ms. Tram." The investigating officer replied, his voice stern, pushing a thick file across the table. "And this isn't just his testimony either."

Bao Tram glanced through the file, her lips curled into a thin smile. "A few lines of matching addresses and an old capital contribution statement don't prove anything. I've invested in many places, doesn't mean I control them all."

"What about the emails extracted from Van Hoa Cao Nguyen's server?" The investigating officer turned to another page and read each line slowly. "Specific instructions on making false invoices for Diep Suong shop, sent from the same personal email address you still use to transact with Lua La Event, at the same time, on the same server. Do you want to explain further?"

This time the silence lasted much longer. Bao Tram sat up straight, her hands clasped together on the table, but her knuckles were starting to turn white.

Diep Khanh, sitting opposite, did not wait for the investigation officer to continue. She spoke, her voice light but each word clear, as if she had practiced this sentence in her head for many sleepless nights. "Tram, I won't ask you about the bill anymore. I want to ask you something else." Her voice lowered, quieter but much heavier. "Not long ago, I found a letter that Mr. Du left for my mother to keep before his flight, a letter saying that he would wait for me. That letter did not reach me, because my mother was also seriously ill at that time, perhaps she had forgotten, and I don't blame her for that. But you are different, Tram. That night, who held my phone while I fell asleep in the hospital hallway? Do you dare to look me straight in the eyes and answer that question?"

That question, unlike the previous times, no longer carried a harsh accusation, but carried such a naked pain that it made the whole room completely silent. Bao Tram sat there, her lips pressed tightly, and for the first time, Diep Khanh saw a streak of moisture suddenly rising in the corner of her old friend's eyes, even though she tried to raise her head high so it wouldn't fall.

No one said anything for a long while. The wall clock ticked steadily. Bach Du squeezed Diep Khanh's hand under the table. Viet Bang sat still, his pen stopped completely on the page.

Finally, Bao Tram also spoke up. Her voice was no longer sharp. It broke, word by word, like a dike that had tried to hold up too long.

"Alright." she said. "I admit it. I'm the one behind everything."

She looked up, her eyes looked straight at Diep Khanh, then turned to Bach Du, pausing there for a long beat before continuing. "I set up Van Hoa Cao Nguyen with a clear purpose from the beginning, targeting small flower shops on Xuan Huong Street, including Diep Suong, to gradually eliminate competitors, paving the way for Silk La Event to monopolize the wedding event market in the area, especially after the renovation project caused the commercial value of this street to skyrocket. I was also the one who told Vuong to blur the old copies of capital contribution records, in case someone found out. termite before I could prepare."

She stopped, took a deep breath, clenched her hands so tightly that her nails dug into her skin. "As for five years ago, yes, I was also the one who sent fake messages to Mr. Du that night, using Diep Khanh's phone when she fell asleep at the hospital. I lied to Diep Khanh that Mr. Du actively wanted to end everything. I did all that, because I loved Du for a long time, but never had a real chance, while Diep Khanh got everything so easily."

Diep Khanh sat silently, even though she had already sensed most of the truth, but when she heard Bao Tram admit it all, a sharp pain shot up the bridge of her nose, her throat was so tight that she couldn't swallow. Bach Du sat next to him, his hand tightly holding Diep Khanh's hand under the table, like a silent but powerful sharing, his fingers were shaking equally.

"Tram, why could you do such cruel things?" Diep Khanh asked, his voice hoarse, his hands gripping the edge of the table so tightly that his knuckles turned white. "We were friends, we went through many memories together during our student days. Have you ever thought about what Mr. Du and I have had to endure over the past five years? Have you ever thought about my mother, who carried a letter that she never understood why it was in her drawer, until the moment she died?"

Mentioning her mother, Diep Khanh's voice cracked. It was a question she didn't mean to ask, but it bubbled up from a deep place she never knew she held.

Bao Tram was silent for a long time, her eyes revealed something akin to regret, but was soon overshadowed by the bitterness that had been ingrained in her for many years. "I don't expect you to understand my feelings, Diep Khanh. You've never had to stand by and watch the person you love giving all the attention to someone else, you've never had to live in the darkness of comparison for many years. You don't know the feeling of standing behind the two of you at every group meeting, every outing, just to hear people ask 'eh, Tram is going too' as if my presence was a surprise."

"But that doesn't mean you have the right to destroy other people's lives." Bach Du spoke up, his voice was stern but still maintained the necessary restraint. "Tram, what you did not only hurt Diep Khanh and me for five years, but also my mother, who has been tormented for many weeks because she believed what you said at the airport that year. And also for how many other small flower shops have become victims of the company you set up, people who don't even have the opportunity to sit in this room to demand justice like Diep Khanh does today. You need to be responsible for all of that."

The investigating officer continued to record testimonies, confirm details related to organized financial fraud and intentional falsification and concealment of documents, and announced that he would prosecute the case in accordance with the law, with crimes related to fraudulent appropriation of property and falsification of documents. Bao Tram, after admitting all her actions, sat silently in her chair, her once straight and proud shoulders now slumped, as if the entire calm shell she had worked hard to build throughout the working session had finally completely collapsed, with nothing left to rebuild.

News of the incident, after the authorities announced the initial investigation results, quickly spread throughout the Xuan Huong street area and the wedding event business community in the city. Many customers who signed contracts with Lua La Event immediately requested to cancel the contract, and business partners also quickly severed relations to avoid involvement. Bao Tram's once flashy company fell into serious crisis in just a few short days.

Diep Khanh and Bach Du left the investigation agency when it was late afternoon, pale sunlight penetrated the thin mist covering the familiar street. The two stood quietly together for a long time, neither of them said anything, simply enjoying the feeling of relief after the entire burden that had been suppressed for many weeks was finally released.

"So it's over." Diep Khanh said, her voice carried both relief and an indescribable sadness when thinking about the time lost because of her old friend's schemes.

"The story about the debt and the fraudulent company is over." Bach Du looked at her, his eyes contained a deep gentleness. "But I think, between us, perhaps there are still many things that need to be said, fully cleared up, so that we can both truly move forward."

Diep Khanh nodded, feeling in her heart that, even though the truth about the conspiracy had been exposed, the healing journey between her and Bach Du still had a way to go, and needed to be walked together slowly and sincerely, to truly heal the wounds that had existed for the past five years.

On the way home, the two stopped by the small cafe where they used to sit and chat after the project's groundbreaking ceremony. That familiar space, this time, has a completely different meaning, no longer a place to examine and probe each other, but becomes a place where both can truly listen and truly open their hearts. Diep Khanh sat opposite Bach Du, her hands holding a cup of hot tea, her eyes looking out to the outdoor yard where wild sunflowers were still showing off their bright yellow colors in the afternoon sun.

"I'm still in shock." She said, her voice soft. "For the past five years, I thought I understood everything and accepted the fact that you intentionally left me. Now that I know the truth is completely different, I don't know whether to feel relieved or regretful for the lost time."

"I have the same feeling." Bach Du replied, his hand gently placed on her hand on the table. "But I think, instead of regretting the past, we should cherish the present, cherish the opportunity to be together again, even though it comes five years later than what could have been."