Soon, the old house will disappear. It is called the old house because here, Nhi had peaceful days as a village school student who was away from home for the first time to enter university. Xuan's family gave her a second home, and besides tutoring Nam and helping Xuan with some kitchen chores, she had more time to study and take exams. In the first few months of staying with Xuan and her mother, Nhi did not hear Nam mention his father, but it was not convenient to ask. Xuan's open and friendly way of speaking, sometimes serious and sometimes cold, made a country girl like her feel shy. It was not until the day she returned from class in the middle of the session that she met a guest of the family, when Xuan was not home. It was the person who had been absent from this family for a long time, since Nam had just turned one. That's what he said. Xuan arrived shortly after and the meeting was short, less than ten minutes.

That evening, Ms. Xuan sat with her for a long time in the living room after Nam had gone upstairs to study. She just sat and kept quiet more than she talked. It seemed that what had passed and become a part of life, this woman did not need to explain. She ended the evening with her by saying with a half-smile, not sure if it was sad or happy. "Sister, only when you are alone and do not feel lonely, will you have enough courage to walk, whether life is kind or not."

Ms. Xuan's shoe factory is small, and her younger sister manages it, and most of the workers are relatives, so she is not very busy. After her sad marriage, she often comes to the factory to find work to entertain herself. Having another female student come to the mother and daughter at this time is also reasonable. Nhi's behavior is also very satisfactory to her, especially little Nam, who always clings to Nhi when she comes home. Nhi feels extremely lucky to live with this small family that is always full of joy.

That Tet, Xuan's distant cousin came back to Hue to visit her family and Nhi had another acquaintance. Khai was a member of the management team of a company in the North, knowledgeable and elegant, unlike the gentle but monotonous and clumsy boys in her class. Once she told Xuan that, she just laughed. A few days later, Khai came to visit and stayed for dinner before going back to work, she helped Xuan make many delicious dishes. Everything was Tet, but Hue Tet had many dishes that were not only delicious but also pleasing to the eye, going out there would make her miss Hue more. Xuan wanted to remind her younger brother like that. Khai seemed to understand, smiled lightly and did not forget to look at Nhi, making her confused.

After Tet, Khai left Hue but it seemed like he still left her a warm and bright spring through each call and text message. Sometimes, looking at her innocently not hiding her joy, Ms. Xuan blurted out: "Khai or the carefree friends in class, are just starting. You need time..." Nhi did not understand, or rather, did not pay much attention because she thought that Ms. Xuan had a strict prejudice against men. For her now, everything is starting with the wings of hope.

The following Tet, Khai did not return as promised, although he was still warm in every call. She had not yet had the chance to ask Xuan, but many unfortunate incidents happened to her family. She had just finished taking care of her mother's funeral when she and her daughter had an accident when returning home. The child was fine, but she was seriously injured from the waist down. After a year of treatment, she was now healthy, but her right leg had not fully recovered, and she had to use crutches or a wheelchair to walk. Looking at her motionless figure sitting by the window, she felt sorry for her, even though to everyone else, Xuan had not changed at all. This strong-willed and adaptable woman only felt restless when she was not busy. Right at this time, Khai returned to Hue and visited his cousin. That elegant man brought his girlfriend to introduce her, and informed her about the upcoming engagement ceremony. Xuan only smiled and asked politely, but she, for some reason, still felt indifferent and cold to all surprises, even disappointments.

When she received the notice of land clearance for housing in the planning area for the new bridge, Ms. Xuan decided to take her daughter back to her maternal grandparents' house in the hills near the southwest of the city. In her current health condition, she did not want to consider building a new house. Nhi is in her final year of school, busy with studying for exams and doing internships, and her house is far from school, so sometimes she has to take a nap or sometimes stay with a group of female friends in a student dormitory. When she is at home with little Nam, she spends a lot of time reminding and taking care of her homework. When she was sorting through the pile of colored papers that she had not used for a long time, she absentmindedly remembered many happy and sad things, and her hands also absentmindedly folded the pieces of colored paper and placed them before her eyes.

She remembered her grandmother with her five-color cakes. On every occasion of the New Year, she often arranged the cake mold into a square block from six sides of paper, including white and five colors blue, green, red, purple, yellow, wrapping the cake inside with jam, very sweet with many scents of ginger, tangerine peel... but only to eat for a few days. Nowadays, people call it Phap Lam cake, and many places have replaced the cake with Banh Bo to make the cake last longer. Nhi immediately tried to repeat the steps after calling the village to ask her mother. That afternoon, she went to Xuan's room, intending to tell her about her past, a colorful childhood with her grandmother and mother in a flower village on the outskirts of the city. Unexpectedly, the story and the colorful paper boxes had such an appeal that Xuan was very happy, calling her younger sister to buy Banh In and bring it over right away. The following days, after school, Nhi and her mother sat together, folding paper molds and putting cakes into the molds, chatting and laughing, awakening the dreamy, thoughtful look that had long existed in the old house...

- Sister, buy me some tickets!

Nhi turned back. The little boy was jumping from behind, offering her a stack of lottery tickets. His pale face under the brim of his cap was covered in sweat. He raised his sleeve to wipe his forehead, looking at her expectantly:

- Buy it for luck! This series is very promising!

She laughed at the boy's old-fashioned chatter, opened her bag and took out the money:

- Then take two bills and set them aside, keep them for me, don't sell them to anyone else, okay? Here's your money!

- Oh, so it's teeth?

- I'll check it tonight. If we win big, we'll split it in half. You'll take the money to go to school and not have to sell lottery tickets anymore. If we win small, I'll give it to you!

Nhi got on the motorbike, started the engine, and smiled happily when she saw the boy's round eyes happily looking at her. She brought that little joy home when Ms. Xuan was just arranging the tray of five-color cakes on the altar:

- Is it beautiful? Please give me a score!

Nhi stood back and exclaimed:

- Your skills are top notch!

Sister Xuan smiled, the candlelight sparkling in her radiant eyes. It was the first time Nhi saw Sister Xuan smile with eyes that had always been calm, her gaze unclear of joy or sadness.

Tet season came early with the yellow apricot blossoms in the large garden, perhaps because this winter has been warm and sunny. After much effort in physical therapy, Ms. Xuan was able to walk by herself, although only for short walks. Today Nhi asked her to go shopping for baby Nam before returning to the village with her mother, returning to school after January. In her yellow silk dress and newly done hair, Ms. Xuan was exactly like her name. She wanted Nhi to take a photo with mother and daughter to mark the happy Tet season that had just been found again. They walked towards the new bridge reflecting in the bright river water. The bridge did not only connect the two banks. In her and perhaps Ms. Xuan as well, some bridges supported them to walk to a shore of hope that was beckoning ahead...

DEPENDENT ORIGIN