I looked at Hac Thanh Dien quietly.

Four years had passed, yet he hadn’t changed much.

He still loved turning money into proof that he was superior to everyone around him.

The only difference was that now he actually had money.

Tham Di smiled and leaned closer to him.

—Thanh Dien, don’t waste time on her. People like her always invent stories because they can’t accept reality.

Then she pointed toward the door.

—Please escort her out.

The staff finally approached me.

Before they could touch my stroller, a middle-aged man hurried into the waiting room.

The moment he saw me, his face changed.

—Miss Lam!

The entire room became quiet.

He was Director Zhou, chairman of the organizing committee.

Hac Thanh Dien immediately smiled.

—Director Zhou, perfect timing. Your staff accidentally allowed an unrelated nanny into the VIP area.

Director Zhou stared at him.

—Nanny?

Then he turned toward me and bowed slightly.

—Miss Lam, I apologize. We weren’t informed that you had already arrived.

Hac Thanh Dien’s smile disappeared.

I adjusted my son’s blanket.

—It’s fine.

Director Zhou looked at the staff.

—Why is Miss Lam sitting in the auxiliary lounge?

Nobody answered.

He became visibly angry.

—The main hall has been waiting for her.

Tham Di frowned.

—Director Zhou, perhaps you’ve mistaken her for someone else.

—Mistaken?

He looked genuinely confused.

—This is Lam Ha.

Hac Thanh Dien laughed.

—I know she’s Lam Ha. We attended university together.

Director Zhou’s expression became strange.

—Then you should know who she is.

Hac Thanh Dien stopped smiling.

I stood carefully with my son in my arms.

—Director Zhou, has my father arrived?

—Chairman Lam is already inside.

I sighed.

Of course he was.

My father had probably arrived an hour early just to make sure I couldn’t escape.

Director Zhou gestured respectfully.

—Chairman Lam specifically requested that you sit beside him during the announcement.

Hac Thanh Dien suddenly stepped forward.

—Wait.

His eyes moved between us.

—What Chairman Lam?

Director Zhou answered:

—Lam Quoc Minh.

The name silenced the room.

Even people who rarely followed business news knew it.

My father had remained at the top of the national wealth rankings for eleven consecutive years.

Tham Di’s face stiffened.

—That doesn’t mean—

Director Zhou continued:

—Although technically, after today’s announcement, we should probably say former Chairman Lam.

He smiled at me.

—Miss Lam formally assumed control of Lam Holdings two years ago. Today’s ranking is the first published under her name.

Nobody spoke.

Hac Thanh Dien stared at me as if he had forgotten how.

—You’re…

I finished for him.

—The poor scholarship student you tested.

His face turned pale.

Four years earlier, he had placed a mortgage agreement in front of me.

Five million yuan.

He had wanted me, a newly graduated woman supposedly without family money, to assume the debt on a house registered under his name.

When I refused, he called it proof that I didn’t love him.

Three days later, he bought Tham Di an eight-million-yuan villa in cash.

Then he revealed that he had been hiding his wealth to test my character.

He never knew I had been doing exactly the same thing.

The difference was simple.

I never asked him for money.

He asked me to risk my future to prove my love.

I walked toward the main hall.

Behind me, Hac Thanh Dien suddenly called:

—Lam Ha!

I stopped.

He approached quickly.

—Why didn’t you tell me?

I turned.

—Tell you what?

—Who your father was!

There was genuine anger in his voice.

As though my identity had somehow cheated him.

I almost laughed.

—Would it have changed your test?

He opened his mouth.

No answer came.

I nodded.

—Exactly.

Tham Di hurried toward him.

—Thanh Dien, she’s deliberately humiliating us.

I looked at her.

—Actually, I haven’t done anything to either of you.

That was what made her expression worse.

Inside the main hall, hundreds of guests were already seated.

My father saw me enter and immediately frowned.

—You’re late.

—Your conference interrupted my day with your grandson.

His entire expression softened.

—Give him to me.

The country’s richest man immediately forgot the room existed.

He took my son and started adjusting the child’s tiny hat.

I sat beside him.

Across the hall, Hac Thanh Dien and Tham Di entered.

Their seats were fourteen rows behind ours.

Then the ceremony began.

The host announced the updated rankings.

Number fifty-two.

Forty-seven.

Forty-three.

When Hac Thanh Dien’s name appeared at forty-eight, applause filled the hall.

He stood proudly.

Four years earlier, he had still depended heavily on his family’s capital.

Reaching the top fifty really was an achievement.

I applauded politely.

His eyes found mine.

For a moment, that old arrogance returned.

Perhaps he thought that even if my father was wealthy, the fortune still belonged to him.

Then the host reached the final announcement.

My father’s photograph appeared on the screen.

But his name was crossed by a ceremonial transition line.

The host smiled.

—After officially completing the transfer of controlling interests in Lam Holdings, Mr. Lam Quoc Minh will retire from this year’s individual ranking.

Then my photograph appeared.

The hall erupted.

My name stood at number one.

Hac Thanh Dien stopped clapping.

My father leaned toward me.

—Smile.

—I hate photographs.

—You’re number one now. Suffer.

I nearly laughed.

After the ceremony, people surrounded us.

I had almost escaped when Hac Thanh Dien appeared again.

This time, he was alone.

—Lam Ha.

I stopped.

His voice had changed.

—Back then… if I had known—

—Don’t finish that sentence.

He froze.

I looked at him.

—If you had known I was rich, you would have treated me differently.

His silence confirmed it.

—That’s precisely why I never told you.

His face darkened.

—But you were testing me too.

—No.

I shook my head.

—I simply wanted to live normally before entering my family’s business.

—I never asked you to prove anything.

—I never demanded access to your money.

—I never made your willingness to take on my debt a measurement of love.

He couldn’t answer.

Then his gaze shifted toward my son.

—Whose child is he?

Before I could respond, a man’s voice came from behind me.

—Mine.

I turned.

My husband had finally arrived.

He had come directly from the airport, still wearing a dark business suit.

He walked toward us, took our son naturally from my arms, then kissed the child’s forehead.

Hac Thanh Dien stared at him.

His face changed again.

Apparently he recognized him.

—You…

My husband extended one hand calmly.

—Gu Yan.

Hac Thanh Dien didn’t take it.

He couldn’t.

Gu Yan was the youngest chairman of Tianyu Capital.

More importantly, Tianyu was one of the largest institutional investors in Hac Thanh Dien’s company.

My husband looked at me.

—Your father told me someone tried to throw you out.

—A misunderstanding.

—Really?

I smiled.

—Someone thought I was a nanny.

Gu Yan looked at Hac Thanh Dien.

The silence became uncomfortable.

Then my assistant hurried over.

—Chairman Lam, I’m sorry to interrupt.

She handed me a tablet.

—There’s an urgent matter concerning Hac Technology.

Hac Thanh Dien immediately looked at her.

I frowned.

—What matter?

—The investment committee completed its quarterly review this morning.

She hesitated.

—There are serious discrepancies in the company’s growth figures.

Hac Thanh Dien’s face changed.

—That’s impossible.

My assistant ignored him.

—Tianyu Capital requested an independent audit.

Then she looked at me.

—But there’s another issue.

—What?

She opened a document.

—Three years ago, Hac Technology’s first major expansion was financed through an anonymous private fund.

—I remember.

My father had mentioned it once.

My assistant continued:

—That fund wasn’t anonymous.

She turned the screen toward me.

The beneficial owner’s name appeared clearly.

LAM HA.

I stared at it.

Then at my father across the room.

He suddenly became extremely interested in playing with his grandson.

I understood immediately.

—Dad.

He avoided my eyes.

My assistant lowered her voice.

—Chairman Lam invested using your personal trust account before transferring control of it to you.

Hac Thanh Dien looked stunned.

—What does that mean?

Gu Yan answered calmly:

—It means the woman you called a poor nanny owns part of your company.

Hac Thanh Dien’s face went white.

But my assistant wasn’t finished.

—Chairman Lam, there’s something else.

She opened the original investment agreement.

—The fund holds conversion rights triggered by inaccurate financial disclosures.

I looked at the percentage.

Twenty-nine percent.

Enough to change the balance of power inside Hac Technology overnight.

Hac Thanh Dien stepped forward.

—Lam Ha, listen to me—

I raised my hand.

Then my assistant showed me one final page.

A payment authorization.

Eight million yuan.

The exact price of the villa Hac Thanh Dien had supposedly bought for Tham Di four years ago.

But the money hadn’t come from his personal account.

It had been withdrawn from Hac Technology’s first investment round.

From the capital supplied by my trust.

I slowly looked up.

For four years, Hac Thanh Dien had believed he bought another woman a villa to prove how rich he was.

He had never realized whose money he had actually used.