Kim replied, feigning a tone of boredom, as if the question hardly merited an answer:

"Deliberately setting a fire and leaving behind evidence to frame someone else is a childish ploy. You know that perfectly well, Lieutenant. I think this arson investigation unit would be better off spending its time finding the real culprit rather than wasting resources on misguided inquiries like this one."

Wesley remained silent, deep in thought. Kim’s arguments were solid, and she was sharp—formidable, even. He had heard of the young Vietnamese lawyer from the firm of Holmes, Vickens & Berry; experience had taught him not to tangle with the heavy hitters from that outfit. In truth, he had only wanted to give Lữ a hard time because he detested the man’s yellow face—Asians coming here to get rich while he scraped by on a meager forty-thousand-dollar salary. He wanted to bully them, to make them afraid, to show them who really owned this country. Finally, Wesley spoke:

"Mr. Lữ is not a suspect. We’ll pursue other leads in the investigation. However, I require you to be available over the next month should we need to question you further."

Kim signaled for Lữ to stand up. She extended her hand to Wesley:

"Very well. Mr. Lữ will be in Los Angeles throughout the coming month, ready to answer any further questions. I hope your team works quickly to find the actual perpetrator."

Wesley walked the pair to the door. He stood there, pensive, after Lữ and Kim had stepped into the elevator. He had never backed down so quickly before—and to a person of color, no less! Wesley shook his head. Maybe he was past his prime.

But that yellow man’s lawyer was stunning. He breathed in the lingering trace of her perfume in the room. How could there be women in this world so fragrant and alluring!

° ° °

Lữ sat opposite Kim in a restaurant jutting out over the sea at Redondo Beach. He gazed at her through the golden wine glass he held. Seeing Kim’s eyes shimmering mystically in the candlelight, he felt a shiver run through him. It was as if an invisible thread—emanating from her eyes—had tightened around his heart, leaving him breathless. Lữ broke the silence that enveloped them:

"You were amazing. Wesley looked completely tongue-tied; he couldn't even react. I’m so lucky to have met you!"

Kim smiled.

"He’s not done yet, though. If he can't find any leads, he won't be able to track anyone down—and he’ll likely come back to harass you again."

Lữ shook his head.

"There’s nothing more he can do. With you by my side, I don't need to worry about the police anymore."

But his enemy was still lurking in the shadows! Vấn. He had to resolve this matter immediately; he couldn't let it drag on. A thorn in one's side only digs deeper with each passing day.

Yet, this was not the moment to let dark thoughts consume him. There is a time and place for everything. Now belonged to him and Kim—a time to celebrate their first success, to gaze at one another and let their emotions settle deep within. Lữ wished he possessed the sensitivity and artistic flair of his friend, Sơn. He wanted to articulate his feelings—the emotions stirring within him as he sat there looking out at the vast, deep-blue sea, enveloped by her presence and the sparkle in her eyes, and captivated by the scent of her skin.

No! He lacked Sơn’s eloquence; he could only gaze intently at her, conveying the surging, intense emotions within him so she might sense them. He could not put them into words. And perhaps, there was no need to.

° ° °

Kim felt the impact of Lữ’s gaze like an electric shock. She knew she had consumed some alcohol, yet not enough to lower her defenses to this extent. She had remained indifferent to the passionate desire of so many other men. What was it about Lữ that had changed her? She could not say. Was it his thick brows? His resolute, proud face? His fiery, intense eyes? Or simply the potent scent radiating from his body?

Kim possessed a keen sense of smell. She could not tolerate overpowering odors, yet she delighted in unique fragrances—blends that captivated and seduced her. She had noticed Lữ’s scent the moment they met; that potent aroma had begun to stir her, the sensation intensifying by the moment. She felt a flush of embarrassment at how often she thought of him—or rather, of that scent clinging to his body. It was as if an instinct had awakened within her, demanding she pursue the allure that had reached her through her senses, enveloping her and compelling her to claim him more completely.

Kim’s cheeks flushed crimson. Her breathing grew rapid. What was happening to her? She wondered, yet sought no answer. She found herself rising, moving toward Lữ, setting aside the glass he held, and wrapping her arms around his neck. She inhaled deeply. Lữ’s scent—already becoming familiar—rushed through every cell of her body, making her skin tingle and come alive. And she heard the sound of her own voice trembling, speaking as if choked with emotion close to Lữ's ear:
 
" Take me to your place tonight, Lữ."

 
Chapter 37
 
Lữ leaned back in his armchair, watching as Sơn and Uyên walked into the office. He had instructed his secretary to summon them both that morning for a meeting regarding company business. Uyên tossed her handbag onto the desk and, looking at him with irritation, spoke sarcastically:

"It’s been over two weeks, and only now do I get to see the Director's face. Where on earth did you disappear to, Lữ?"

Lữ spoke evasively to cover his tracks:

"It was that apartment complex fire, of course! I had to go sort out the legal side of things to get it settled."

Uyên gave him a searching look:

"That lawyer working for Holmes & Vickens—she’s Vietnamese, isn't she? I heard she’s very beautiful. Did they assign her to your case?"

Lữ glossed over the question:

"I didn't really pay attention. That firm has so many people. I only met her once or twice. The matter is settled now, anyway. The police aren't bothering us anymore. Sơn, do you know when the insurance company will process our claim?"

He turned to Sơn, cutting off any further questioning from Uyên about Kim:

"Make sure you find another professional appraisal team—one with no ties to the insurance company—to give us an estimate for rebuilding the units that burned down. The insurance company will inevitably try to keep the payout as low as possible. If we aren't careful, they’ll squeeze us, and we’ll take a huge loss."

Sơn replied:

"Don't worry! I’ve got experience dealing with these insurance companies. I’ve already obtained two separate appraisals. They won't be able to pull a fast one on us."

Sơn handed Lữ a stack of documents:

"Here are the two appraisals. One is from a firm in Fountain Valley—over $850,000—and the other is from a group in Los Angeles—$920,000. There isn't much of a discrepancy between them." "I’m pretty sure State Farm will pay out around $880,000 in compensation. That should be enough."

Lữ nodded:

"You should go ahead and find a construction contractor, too. As soon as State Farm signs off on the payment, we can start building immediately. I want everything finished within two months. The economic situation here in California is about to undergo a major shift. I’m planning for us to sell the place as soon as the renovations are done!"

Uyên exclaimed:

"What are you saying, Lữ? You want to sell that apartment complex? But market prices are skyrocketing!"

Lữ smiled:

"I told you before! Housing prices here have peaked; they can't possibly go any higher. Just look around you! Isn't everyone you know jumping into real estate? Everyone talks about buying a house just to flip it a few months later for a hundred-thousand-dollar profit! People earning thirty or forty thousand a year are buying homes worth five or six hundred thousand. Couples are working four jobs just to cover the mortgage! The housing market in California right now reminds me of the quail craze back in Vietnam. How could it possibly go any higher? I want to discuss a plan with you and Sơn to exit our partnership's real estate holdings within the next few months. If we don't get out early, we’re going to run into trouble, Uyên."

Uyên shook her head in disagreement:

"That doesn't make sense! I see California housing prices only going up—they can't possibly go down. So many people are flocking here. Then you have the Chinese coming over to invest and pouring money into real estate. The entire Asia-Pacific region trades with this state. With California's economy booming like this, how could it possibly collapse? Why worry about selling?"

Sơn answered on Lữ's behalf:

"I agree with Lữ! Uyên, being in the real estate business, you sometimes get swept up in the clients' enthusiasm, which makes you optimistic. But I see it the same way Lữ does—California's real estate market has reached its absolute peak." The excessive signs Lữ mentioned earlier are warning bells. Housing prices might rise another 5% at most, but I could easily see a crash of 50% or 60%—maybe even worse!

Uyên stubbornly held her ground:

"You two are worrying too much! I think prices could still go up another thirty or forty percent! If we sell everything now, people will laugh at us for being fools! You’ll regret it later, just watch!"

Sơn replied:

"Uyên, I once read a fascinating passage in a book about the 1927 U.S. stock market crash. A capitalist of that era had invested his entire fortune in the market. One day, he took a taxi and heard the driver talking about trading stocks, even advising him on which ones to buy. At the hotel, he heard the bellhops discussing stock investments with an air of expertise, recommending certain companies while warning against others. When he went to settle his bill, he saw another guest who didn't have enough cash pull a stock certificate out of his
pocket to pay for the room instead.
 
Seeing this, the capitalist hurriedly abandoned his plans and went home to sell off all his stock investments. He sold just in time; a month later, Wall Street crashed, triggering the Great Depression. When he sold his shares, prices were skyrocketing, and everyone laughed at him for being foolish. But a month later, the last laugh was his! I think the real estate situation here in California is exactly the same."
 
Uyên fell into thought, remaining silent. She looked up and saw Lữ gazing at her with a look that seemed like a smile. Suddenly, everything Lữ and Sơn had told her came to mind, and she recognized the wisdom in Lữ’s eyes. For a brief moment, she realized that she was the one who had been foolish. Lữ was the one who had brought her today’s wealth. He had driven the partnership’s extraordinary success through his foresight and his knack for knowing exactly when to buy and when to sell. Yet, she had actually doubted his abilities!

Uyên smiled:

"You’re probably right! Sometimes the whole housing situation here feels like a bit of a joke. But seeing everyone else caught up in the buying frenzy, I got swept up in it too! Still, if we sell off all the real estate, what else is there to invest in?"

Lữ turned to Sơn:

"How is that trip to San José coming along—the one where you were looking into venture capital for software companies?"

Sơn replied:

"It looks very promising! Uyên, you might not be fully aware of this yet. I’ve been discussing with Lữ the idea of ​​investing in computer companies up in San José. Small, promising firms often need capital to expand but can't get bank loans, so they turn to venture capital firms. We invest money in a company that looks likely to succeed in developing a product, in exchange for an equity stake—say, thirty or forty percent. Or, if they’re desperate for cash and on the verge of folding, we could drive a hard bargain and secure fifty or sixty percent of the company. If they fail and go bankrupt, we lose everything, of course. But if they succeed and go public on Wall Street, our investment could easily multiply a hundredfold or even a thousandfold!"

Uyên listened intently, her eyes lighting up. She asked:

"If the potential returns are that huge, how would we ever get a piece of the action?" "But wouldn't the major U.S. venture capital firms snap up all the opportunities?"

Sơn smiled:

"Of course, it’s not that simple or easy! Out of a hundred companies vying to produce something, maybe only one or two actually succeed. The real challenge in venture capital is picking that one or two winners from the eighty or ninety that are bound to fail. If you pick wrong, naturally, you go down with them. I went to San Jose to research computer software companies because that’s my area of ​​expertise. Plus, I know a group of Asian students who just graduated from Stanford and are planning to launch a company specializing in Internet software. Internet software companies are gold mines—or rather, diamond and platinum mines; invest a dollar now, and the return won't just be a thousand dollars, but tens of thousands."

Uyên listened, her eyes wide with interest. She asked:

"After doing that research, which companies do you think we could invest in?"

Sơn replied:

"I found three companies. One is already established, called Comnet; another is just starting up, called Delphi Software; and the third—the one I mentioned earlier that isn't fully formed yet—is being planned by a group of Vietnamese and Chinese Stanford graduates under the name Netsoft. I spoke with these guys, and I think they show great promise, largely due to a unique Internet software invention by a Vietnamese member of the group named Thanh. If Lữ and Uyên want to invest, you could choose one of these three, or—to play it safer—split your investment capital three ways and put a portion into each company."

Lữ asked:

"Roughly how much capital would go into these companies?"

Sơn answered:

"For the first two companies, you could put in about a million dollars each to fund their expansion; in return, you could demand around a twenty percent equity stake." As for that Netsoft outfit run by the Vietnamese and Chinese guys I mentioned earlier—if you put up just five hundred thousand, you could secure a full 50% stake in the company.

Uyên asked:

"Which option do you think is best?"

Sơn replied:

"I like Netsoft the best, though it’s obviously the riskiest. If those young guys don't make it—and there’s only about a thirty percent chance of success—the partnership would lose that entire five hundred thousand. But if they do succeed, that five hundred thousand could turn into a hundred million down the line. Comnet is already established and shows great promise, but the returns would be lower since the risk is lower. Delphi Software falls somewhere in the middle. I suggest going with two of the three: Comnet and Netsoft. We’d go with Comnet as a safe bet, and with the Netsoft guys to maximize profits if they hit it big."

Lữ asked Uyên:

"What do you think?"

Uyên replied:

"The partnership has two million in cash right now. I think investing one and a half million is fine. It’s just like gambling, really!"

Lữ laughed:

"Are you joking? Investing isn't like going to Las Vegas to gamble. I think Sơn makes a valid point. We need to get into venture capital if we want a chance to really strike it rich. That way, Sơn and I can focus on selling off the apartment complex once the redevelopment is finished. We’ll also sell the Santa Monica hotel and the Anaheim shopping center. Finally, there’s the shopping center right here on Bolsa Avenue. Vietnamese people do all their shopping when they travel back to Vietnam; hardly anyone comes to the Bolsa area to shop anymore! It’s time to cash out, Uyên."