Chapter 5

15

I had a daughter.

I named her Ky An.

Nothing grand. I only hoped she would have a safe, peaceful life.

During my month of recovery, the woman looking after us took excellent care of me.

My eyesight finally returned.

Everything seemed to be falling into place.

That afternoon, on my daughter’s hundredth day, I took her into the back garden for some sun.

Tieu Tri appeared in front of me.

Just like the hallucination on the day I gave birth.

He smiled, his eyes tender, and came over to put an arm gently around me.

“Let me hold her.”

Before I could collect myself, he had taken Ky An into his arms with such practiced ease that I could only stare.

He looked down at her, his smile full of affection.

“An An’s eyes are more like mine. But her mouth is yours. Small and soft.”

My throat tightened.

At last, I couldn’t hold back the questions.

“How did you know I was here? And your fiancée… what about Tham Tri Y?”

He frowned slightly, handed Ky An to the woman caring for us, and drew me into his arms.

He brushed his teeth lightly against my lip.

“Do you have to ruin the moment?

“I’ve finished what I needed to do. My arrangement with her is over, of course.”

“Arrangement?”

I looked up, bewildered.

He raised an eyebrow and smiled meaningfully.

“Rather like yours with Tu Triet Hao.”

Then he seemed to remember something.

His expression darkened with a trace of jealousy.

“Except he went a little too far. ‘My wife’ this, ‘my wife’ that. I haven’t even had the chance to call you that!”

Only then did I learn that the engagement had been a mutually beneficial business deal from the start.

Tieu Tri wanted his father to let down his guard.

That would give him time to build his own power within the company and prepare to take control.

Tham Tri Y wanted a two-percent stake once he became the person in charge.

It should have been a profitable arrangement for both of them.

But she grew ambitious.

She began doing things behind his back.

Those actions made him suspicious.

He investigated and uncovered everything she had done.

Then he quietly arranged for his mother to take me abroad, so he could concentrate on removing his father’s old loyalists and sidelining the children his father had kept hidden.

Now the company was firmly in his hands.

He no longer had to hold back.

His life. His marriage.

He could decide for himself.

16

I asked him, “If you hadn’t met me at the hospital, and if the accident hadn’t happened… would we have lost each other?”

He shook his head.

His gaze was steady and serious.

“On the day we broke up, I did believe you. I thought you only wanted money.

“But I never gave up on us.

“I was always certain you wouldn’t fall in love with anyone else. I just wanted to become strong enough to come back for you.”

He paused and took my hand.

“I didn’t expect to find you pregnant. With a man who was exactly the kind you’d once told me you wanted to marry.

“I panicked.

“That’s why I said those cruel things.”

He went on.

“The night I came to your door, it took drinking to give me the courage.

“And that was the night I began to suspect that this husband of yours might not exist at all.”

I laughed softly, my voice unsteady.

“So Heaven hadn’t quite given up on us.”

No.

Somehow, we had found our way back before it was too late.

Afterward, Tieu Tri, Ky An and I returned to China.

There was no lavish wedding.

We simply registered our marriage.

But the security he gave me was worth more than any grand ceremony.

His mother adored Ky An.

She said the little girl made up for her regret at never having a daughter.

I never met his father.

Apparently, he had retired and moved to Sanya.

I still saw Tham Tri Y at the occasional party.

She had married someone from a suitable family.

She remained beautiful and immaculate, but weariness lingered in her eyes.

Her husband was often surrounded by young women. Preserving appearances cost her considerable money and effort.

When Tieu Tri learned that she had used a scheme like that against me, he was furious.

“She’s vicious.”

I laughed and patted his shoulder.

“Vicious? She gave me five million.

“Clearly, she’s a bodhisattva.”

He frowned and pressed me back onto the bed.

“Am I only worth five million? What if I give you a hundred million now? Will you take it?”

I laughed.

Before I could answer, he bent down and kissed me.

“You’re taking it whether you want to or not.”

And this time, I no longer tried to escape.

The End.

**Enjoyed this story?**
Discover more completed short romance stories at **NovelPotato.asia**.