Chapter 2 — You demand justice, I'll show you what justice is

Vuong Que Chi sat down angrily. I went into the room, closed the door, put the sashimi box on the small table, opened the tablet, and ate while reading the report. On the other side of the wall, there was the sound of messy eating, the sound of chopsticks hitting bowls, mixed with the baby's screams. Twenty minutes later.

“Knock knock knock.”

I opened the door. Tran Lam stood outside, holding Lac Lac.

“Vy Vy, Lac Lac wants to eat my fish, can I share some?”

The baby raised his big eyes and looked at me.

“I ate it all.” I pointed to the empty box.

Tran Lam's expression changed slightly.

"So... is there any fruit in the house? Lac Lac wants to eat strawberries."

"I bought the strawberries in the refrigerator. You can go down to the supermarket to buy them yourself, they're there downstairs."

She stood there, her expression constantly changing.

“We are your family—”

“I am a member of Tran Hao's family.”

I smiled and corrected. Then close. Outside, the sound of Tran Lam mumbling in frustration was heard.

"What kind of sister-in-law is she? There is no human love at all!"

“After three years, it's getting more and more excessive.”

Vuong Que Chi's voice was high-pitched. Tran Hao said nothing. He is washing dishes. Before leaving the house in the morning, I drew a roster on the whiteboard. Washing dishes today: Tran Hao. He saw. I heard the bowl hit the sink with a heavy "clack" sound. On the morning of the third day, at half past five, I was awakened. In the kitchen, the sound of the pan hitting the bottom of the pot was heard. I put on my nightgown and went out. Vuong Que Chi is frying eggs. There was flour left on the stove, and she was steaming dumplings. The hood didn't turn on, the whole living room was filled with the smell of grease.

“Auntie, remember to clean up after using the kitchen, the ingredients—”

“I know, I know, the ingredients were bought by Tran Hao.” She didn't turn back. "Do you want to eat too? Sit down, I'll get you a bowl of porridge."

I saw six sets of bowls and chopsticks on the table.

“No need, I'll eat it myself.”

I opened the refrigerator, took out a carton of milk and a sandwich. I prepared the food yesterday. Vuong Que Chi stood next to me, watching me eat breakfast alone, shaking his head.

"What family lives like this? Eating and drinking with my aunt's feces?"

“Tran Hao said, fair.”

I finished eating, washed my cup, put it back in its original position, and then went to work. When I arrived at the company, my assistant gave me a stack of documents.

“President Lam, the last advertisement you told me to temporarily suspend approval—”

“Keep stopping.”

“But on the other side, that guy Tran Hao has urged him several times, saying the project can't continue any longer—”

“Tell him the budget is being reviewed, let him wait.”

The assistant nodded and left. I leaned back in the chair. The largest advertising customer of Tran Hao company, "Tan Duyet Media", the person behind it is me. He doesn't know. He only knew that his wife had a monthly salary of 20,000 yuan and worked at a "small company". He didn't know that the "small company" was actually a subsidiary established to optimize taxes, while I hung on as an ordinary planning employee, receiving 20,000 yuan in basic salary. While Tan Duyet Media's annual revenue exceeds 300,000,000 yuan. So when he offered to split the cost, I had to try not to laugh. At two o'clock in the afternoon, the phone rang. Tran Hao's WeChat messages.

"Wife, can you cook dinner tonight? I have a late meeting. There are five people in the house waiting to eat."

I replied:

"Today it's your turn to cook. You can order food and schedule delivery."

“You can't help me with just one meal?”

"The person you invite back, you can take care of yourself. Me too I'm almost done with work, I still have to work overtime."

He sent an ellipsis. Five minutes later, he called his sister and told Tran Lam to go to the kitchen to cook rice. I took a sip of coffee. On the desk is this month's financial report. Tan Duyet Media's profit grew 23% over the same period. Monthly salary of 20,000 yuan? Just a number... just to give others peace of mind. It's just my pocket money. On the fourth day, the conflict began to escalate. When I got home at nine o'clock in the evening, there were two more pairs of slippers in front of the door. A male couple, brown leather. A women's pair, floral motifs. I pushed the door and walked in. There are two more people in the living room. A middle-aged man wearing a neat suit sat cross-legged on the sofa. A flashy dressed woman was standing in front of my mirror applying lipstick. Tran Hao stood next to him, smiling flatteringly.

“Wife, this is my brother-in-law, Trieu Quoc Dong, and this is my sister-in-law Truong Le. They go to the city for work and stay for a few days.”

There are seven people. My house has three bedrooms, the main room is mine, the extra room is occupied by his parents, the small office becomes a temporary residence for Tran Lam's family of three.

“Where?” I asked.

“It's okay to spread the mattress in the living room.” Tran Hao replied.

“Your sofa is really beautiful.” Truong Le put away her lipstick and patted the sofa cushion. “Real leather? What company is that?”

“Tran Hao.” I didn't even look at her, just called him by name. “Come here for a moment.”

He followed me to the balcony.

“Are you opening a hotel?”

“Just staying for a few days—”

“The person I'm in charge of is now seven people. Don't forget to divide it in half, I'll take care of your people."

“Can you not be so calculating?”

“It was you who proposed the division, not me. What do you say? 'Fair'."

He scratched his head.

“Okay okay, I'm worried, okay?”

“Electricity and water bills are divided per person. Seven people with you, me alone. This month I pay seven-eighths.”

"Fair. You said it yourself.”

He choked. I turned around and entered the room. Passing by the living room, I heard Truong Le talking to Vuong Que Chi.

“Sister, your daughter-in-law is really terrible.”

“Don't mention it again. It's been three years since I got it, and I've never cooked a proper meal."

“The salary is only 20,000 yuan? I heard that Tran Hao earned 60,000 yuan. In my opinion, if you have a husband like that, you should know that it's enough, what else can you do?"

"That's right." Tran Lam added. "Someone else must have taken good care of her mother-in-law a long time ago."

I closed the bedroom door, cutting off all sounds. Open the phone. A new message. My close friend, To Lac, sent to:

“I heard that your husband wants to split it in half? Is this really a joke?”

“What is wrong with him? Does he know how much money you receive each year?

“He doesn't know.”

“What are you going to do?”

“Let things play out a little more.”

"Okay. I sit and wait to see your good drama. Well, next week there is a trade association banquet, many businessmen in the city are attending, it seems that Tran Hao is also invited.

I thought for a moment.