The ring

On Saturday morning, Yen checked the hotel rooms to prepare for guests arriving at noon. Working in the tourism industry is like being a daughter-in-law to a hundred families; guests come from all walks of life with diverse personalities. Some are easygoing and might overlook minor flaws like a not-so-clean room or small stains on the sheets, pillows, and towels. But there are also some extremely picky people who will make a fuss over a single strand of hair on the floor and call the hotel owner demanding a room change. They might even threaten to take pictures and post them online to boycott the hotel.

Illustration: MINH SON

I don't know about other professions, but in the hotel service industry, customers are treated like gods. Whenever a hotel experiences a problem like a power outage, a broken shower, or a malfunctioning air conditioner, a hot-tempered guest might yell and scold the receptionist, forcing the hotel owner to apologize, call a technician to fix the problem, and even reduce the room rate. Therefore, since starting her hotel business, Yen has always worried about potential problems that could lead to business failure. Before guests check in, Yen meticulously inspects every small detail herself, fearing that housekeeping staff might make mistakes that displease guests.

In fact, Yen had never received any training or experience in the tourism and hotel business before. Due to life's circumstances, or perhaps fate, Yen ended up in this uncertain business.

Yen comes from a poor family in the northern coastal region. Her father was a martyr who died in the Spring Offensive of 1975 to liberate the South. Her mother was a teacher at the village school. Yen was born after her father's death, so she only ever saw his face through a photograph her mother placed on the altar.

Despite her young age, Yến's mother didn't remarry, instead devoting her love and care to Yến's education. After graduating from university with a degree in business administration, Yến was hired as an accountant at a real estate company. The company director, Hùng, had inherited a large fortune from his parents. With her captivating beauty, Yến received special attention and affection from Hùng from the moment she started working there. As a young woman inexperienced in life, Yến quickly fell for Hùng. Nearly a year later, Yến agreed to marry Hùng.

Being a patriarchal and ostentatious man, after getting married, Hung said, "You're the director's wife, you have a mansion, a car, and luxurious amenities. If you go to work, people will look down on me. From now on, you just stay home, take care of your appearance, and give me a son. The housework, laundry, and cooking will be done by the maid!" For him, the ultimate goal was a mansion, a car, a beautiful wife, and intelligent children so that everyone would bow down in respect.

Hearing her husband's words, Yen couldn't help but feel conflicted. After all, she still had her elderly mother who had recently retired, earning a meager salary, and desperately needed care and financial assistance. If Yen didn't work, would she have to ask her husband for money every time she needed to send it to her mother? Yen told Hung she wanted to continue working, but Hung firmly declared that there would be no more arguing; from now on, she had to stay home and fulfill her duties as a wife, managing the household, handling domestic and external affairs, and helping him with his business.

Yen was very upset, but she understood that she couldn't go against her husband's wishes. Besides, young couples should be understanding of each other. So Yen reluctantly accepted quitting her job. The following year, Yen gave birth to a beautiful baby girl, who looked exactly like her mother, and named her Binh An, fulfilling the young mother's dream.

Three years passed quickly, and Yen devoted herself to being a wife and mother. Her small family seemed to be forever peaceful and happy.

When little Binh An turned four, Yen considered sending her to kindergarten so she could find a job, also as a way to help her husband ease the financial pressure during increasingly difficult times. At that time, Hung's company borrowed over ten billion dong from the bank to invest in building a luxury apartment complex with the ambition of making hundreds of billions of dong in profit. However, due to a lack of practical experience and lax personnel management, the construction quality was poor and it was not yet permitted for use. While the apartment complex was unsalable and the bank debt with interest was growing daily, the company was on the verge of bankruptcy. Hung was terrified and panicked, often losing his temper and blaming his wife for all the difficulties. He demanded that Yen tell her mother to mortgage her house to borrow money from the bank to save the company. Yen refused, saying that her mother was elderly and only had a meager pension, insufficient to pay the monthly interest, and certainly could not borrow billions of dong. Hung cursed his wife, calling her useless and incapable of helping him during difficult times. For years, he had been supporting his wife and children while also providing financial assistance to his mother-in-law, which was why the company was in such a predicament. Yen was deeply hurt; he was the one who forced her to quit her job, yet now he was boasting about her contributions, being petty and calculating, and blaming her for the business failure. Then, what was bound to happen, happened. Yen decided to divorce him, taking custody of their child, Binh An, without requiring any financial support from Hung.

While Yen was struggling to find a job, her close friend from university, who lived in a southern coastal city, called and invited Yen to help her with her hotel business. Her friend said that she had been undergoing radiation therapy for a breast tumor for the past two years and her health was poor. Knowing that Yen was divorced and hadn't found a job yet, she decided to ask her friend for help. She said it was also a way to change her environment, and maybe Yen would find life better.

Initially, Yen hesitated because she was worried about her elderly mother and young child. If she worked thousands of kilometers away from home, and her mother or little Binh An fell ill, Yen wouldn't be able to return immediately. Who would take care of them? Moreover, she didn't know what the job would entail, and she couldn't bring her mother and Binh An along.

Seeing Yen still hesitating, her mother said, "The coastal city is where your father died in his last battle. I heard from your father's comrades that his remains have been moved and reburied at the city's martyrs' memorial. I've wanted to visit his grave for a long time, but I haven't been able to. Now that you have the opportunity, you should go boldly. It's also a good chance to visit where your father rests."

Following her mother's advice, Yen decided to leave her child with her grandmother and go to the coastal city to find a new job.

Stepping foot in the coastal city, Yen felt a strange sense of familiarity. On her very first day, she went to the Martyrs' Memorial on Ngoc Tuoc Hill to pay respects to her father and other fallen heroes. Yen stood silently, tears streaming down her face. "Father, I've come to be by your side so you can see the daughter you never had the chance to meet…" Yen whispered to her father, listening to the wind rustling through the pine-covered hill.

The scenery of this coastal city is truly magnificent. Perched precariously along the coast are two mountain ranges embracing the city center, dotted with numerous spectacular and ancient temples. It's a renowned tourist service center in the South. During the dry season, while the climate in other provinces and cities in the region is usually hot and humid, here the sea breeze is strong, and the weather is always pleasantly cool. On weekends, tourists from Ho Chi Minh City and neighboring provinces flock here in large numbers.

Yen's friend owns a 15-room hotel near Thuy Van beach, an ideal location for tourists who enjoy the feeling of gliding over the white-crested waves. The hotel is always bustling with guests, and business is lively and fast-paced. Initially, Yen worked as a receptionist to explore this new business field. She felt a strong connection to the city and to the profession. Yen's friend's husband works in the oil and gas industry, and their family is well-off, so she wanted to hand over the hotel to Yen so she could focus on her medical treatment.

Yen's hotel business seemed to be doing well. In the very first month, Yen earned a profit of nearly twenty million dong. So, Yen decided to stick with the business long-term. To keep costs down, Yen only hired one part-time housekeeping staff member and one part-time security guard, while handling all other tasks herself, such as reception, marketing, and maintaining relationships with the sales team (i.e., brokers).

The penthouse on the 6th floor is the most luxurious apartment, costing two or three times more than regular rooms. Therefore, Yen always checks everything carefully both during check-in and check-out. The day before, a guest checked out late, so the housekeeping staff had to clean all evening in preparation for a group of guests from Central Vietnam arriving this afternoon. The penthouse is nearly a hundred square meters, with two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a large living room, making it easy for mistakes to happen.

Yen quickly checked the two bedrooms and then opened the cabinet under the sink. Oh my God, what kind of cleaning was this? They'd left behind a bag of trash full of shrimp and crab shells, emitting a strong, unpleasant smell. Yen picked up the bag of trash, placed it temporarily on the sink, and then used a wet cloth to wipe the cabinet clean. As Yen pulled the cloth out, she saw a metal object fall in front of her. She bent down to pick it up. It turned out to be a gold ring with a diamond setting. Yen guessed the ring was worth hundreds of millions of dong. Perhaps the owner of the diamond ring was the guest who checked out of the penthouse yesterday. Thinking this, Yen cleaned the ring and put it in her jacket pocket, waiting for the owner of this precious item to return so she could give it back to them.

Carrying her trash bag from the elevator, Yen walked out to the reception area, intending to throw it in the trash can. Suddenly, a man appeared before her, walking alongside a woman, both looking distraught. He anxiously asked:

Are you a hotel employee? I have something important to discuss with the hotel owner.

Yen looked closely and realized the man standing in front of her was Hung, her ex-husband. Just a few years after their divorce, he had changed so much; his face was chubby, and his belly was big like a pregnant woman's. The fair-skinned, plump woman accompanying him was probably Hung's new wife. She seemed older but had the air of a wealthy lady. Yen was wearing a face mask and dark sunglasses, so Hung didn't recognize his ex-wife. Yen calmly said, "If you need anything, just tell me."

- She's just a hotel employee; how could she possibly handle our request?

- Don't worry. The hotel owner has put me in charge. Just explain everything clearly, and I'm sure I can handle it.

After a moment of hesitation, he said in a serious tone, "Yesterday, my family rented a penthouse at the hotel. When checking out, my wife left behind a diamond ring worth nearly a billion dong. We want to retrieve it. She told the hotel owner that the diamond ring is a valuable asset, and if it's not found, I will have to report it to the police so they can investigate."

Yen silently observed her ex-husband, thinking to herself, he had changed a lot in appearance, but his arrogant and pragmatic personality remained unchanged. Yen casually remarked, "I thought it was something serious, but it turns out it's just a trivial matter."

Then Yen took a diamond ring out of her pocket and gave it back to his wife.

- Is this the ring? Such a valuable item, you should take good care of it. Luckily, I found it in the drawer under the trash bag. If you hadn't come back to look for it, I would have handed it over to the police so they could find the owner and return it. Our hotel operates honestly and values ​​trustworthiness.

Hung bowed his head and thanked her profusely. Seeing her ex-husband's pathetic demeanor, Yen sighed.

Short stories by TRAN QUANG VINH

Source: https://baobariavungtau.com.vn/van-hoa-nghe-thuat/202504/chiec-nhan-1038823/