Chapter 7 — World Chess Game

09 Call from an ex Those two names are like two needles, stuck deep in my memory. We used to be college friends and stayed in this city to start a business together. We loved each other so deeply that we considered getting married and drawing a future together. But in the end... still turned away. The last straw that broke our relationship... was this so-called "family" of mine, where each person considered it frighteningly obvious to extort money from me. My parents, my eldest uncle and the whole family are like a bunch of bloodsuckers who never know enough. Today Tham Hao wants to buy a computer, tomorrow he wants to change the electrical appliances in the house, there is never any stopping. They took my money naturally, and it was even more natural to think that Lam Phong's money... should also belong to them, as if he was born to support this family. But Lam Phong only comes from an ordinary background, our salary has to cover rent, living expenses and future plans, which are already struggling to the point where there is no way back. Faced with my family's endless demands, he went from understanding, to helplessness, and finally... only absolute disappointment.

“Tham Nguyet, this is not a family, but a bottomless pit.”

“I love you, not the greedy bunch standing behind you.”

That was the last sentence he said before leaving, cold but also so true that I couldn't refute it. After breaking up, we erased all contact, like two strangers who had never entered each other's lives, completely cut off. He moved to work at Dang Duoc Group, his career progressed continuously, but I was still stuck in this mud, being dragged down by my family every day. Unexpectedly, after two years, we would meet again... in such an ironic way. Mr. Truong's company and Dang Duoc Group are direct competitors, competing for such an important project that they will stop at nothing. All clues are pointing towards Dang Duoc, from Ly Thien, the briefcase with the golden wolf head logo... to the "second contract" that the other person mentioned. All of this... absolutely cannot be a coincidence. I had to contact Lam Phong, I had to know something from him, even if it was just a small piece of the puzzle. I avoided the complicated eyes of the people outside the living room, returned to my room, locked the door, my heart beating so fast that I was almost suffocated. I searched through my old phone, looking for the number that I thought I had long forgotten, but in fact it was still engraved in my memory and could not be erased. My finger hovered over the call button for a long time, hesitating, struggling... then finally pressed it down. The phone rang for a long time, so long that I thought he would never pick up, but in the end it was still connected. His voice rang out, both familiar and strange, deeper and colder than two years ago. My throat is dry.

“Tham Nguyet.”

The other end of the line was silent for a long time, so long that I could hear his suppressed breathing.

"What is up?"

In the end, he just asked coldly. I took a deep breath, forcing myself to calm down.

“I want to ask you something, related to the project that your company is competing with Hoanh Dat Group.”

Hoanh Dat... is Mr. Truong's company. He laughed softly, a laugh full of sarcasm, not hiding it at all.

“Tham Nguyet, I think we still have enough money now How to talk about work?

“Or is your family short of money, wanting to extract some trade secrets from me to sell to a competitor?”

His words are sharp as a knife. But I have no right to blame.

“No.”

I swallowed the sour taste.

“Lam Phong, this is very serious.”

“It involved an accident… maybe even a murder.”

“I'm caught up in it, and I'm in danger.”

I speak frankly, without concealment. The other side was silent for a beat.

“…Where are you?”

His tone finally changed.

“I understand.”

He was silent for a few seconds.

“Tomorrow, ten o'clock in the morning, meet at the old coffee shop.”

“But Tham Nguyet, I warn you.”

“This project… is extremely dangerous.”

“Internally within the company, it is called the ‘second contract plan’.”

“The people who were involved… there were a few people who disappeared for unknown reasons.”

10 Warnings from Lam Phong

“Second contract”… missing… every word he said was like a hammer hitting my tense nerves.

I stood by the window for a long time after hanging up, looking at the bright city lights but feeling cold to the bone, as if being dragged to the bottom of a lightless abyss. That night, I didn't sleep.