阿梅興高采烈地回家後，發現父母在家裡等著她。
「母親，我有一件事要告訴您。」阿梅將菜籃放在地上後說。
「我們也有事要同你說。」阿梅的媽媽說。「聽好了，是很重要的事。」
「我們打算全家移民美國。」阿梅的爸爸接著說。「這裡的情況一天比一天糟糕，看來越共遲早會贏得戰爭並奪得政權。」
阿梅聽完後，震驚到不知道要說什麼。
「可⋯⋯可是為何如此突然呢？那我們這裡的房子，還有爺爺奶奶怎麼辦呢？」阿梅回覆道。
「我們的房子暫時空著沒關係。」阿梅的爸爸說。「我們三人先移民，等到拿到居留權後，再接妳爺爺奶奶過去。」
「可是，我們要怎麼拿到居留權呢？」阿梅問道。
「我們打算安排妳嫁給一個美國人，這樣我和你父親透過妳就可以拿到居留權。」阿梅的媽媽說。「我們剛剛跟仲介談過了。仲介是我娘家那邊的人，他人很好，很樂意幫助我們。」
After Mai finished with her shopping, she returned home with a cheerful spirit. Her parents were at home to wait for her return.
"Mother, I have something to tell you," said Mai as she placed her basket on the floor and took off her conical hat.
"Well, we also have something to tell you, my girl," replied Mai's mother. "Listen carefully, as it is very important."
"Mai, we will be immigrating to America soon as a family," said Mai's father. "The situation here is getting worse by the day and it seems like the Viet Cong will win the war sooner or later."
Mai was so shocked to hear the news that she didn't know what to respond.
"But...but why so sudden?" Only after a few minutes did everything begin to sink in and only then did Mai venture to speak. "How about our house here, and my grandparents?"
他們一行人從地下室上來後，赫然發現老太太就坐在客廳的維多利亞沙發上，用著嚴厲的眼神看著他們。
「外⋯⋯外婆！我⋯⋯我還以為您去睡覺了呢！」阿桃支支吾吾地說。
「看來，必須揭開這個我原本決定要帶進墳墓的秘密，才能幫助你們破案。」老太太嘆氣道。「好吧！你們坐好，聽我娓娓道來，就當作是床邊故事吧！這是一個富裕商人的女兒愛上貧窮的工地工人的愛情故事。」
大家趕緊去餐廳搬了幾張椅子近來，並圍著老太太，仔細聆聽。
After the group of friends ascended from the basement into the living room, they were extremely astonished to discover grandmother Mai sitting on the Victorian coach, with her arms crossed and a stern expression on her wrinkled face.
"Grandmother! I...I thought you've...gone to bed already!" exclaimed Thao, without concealing her fear of her grandmother.
"I have heard of your plan and have pretended to go to bed early," responded grandmother Mai. "Do not try to deceive me as I know everything that is going on in this house."
"I...I'm really sorry," apologized Thao. "I didn't want to deceive you, I just don't wanna make you angry."
"It seems like without revealing my secret, which I have hitherto been determined to take with me to my very grave, would make the continuation of your investigations quite impossible," said the elderly lady. "Okay, please take a seat if you would like to hear me out. I will tell you a bedtime story: The story of a wealthy merchant's daughter who fell in love with a poor construction worker."
The group of friends each grabbed a chair from the adjoining dining room and gathered around the old lady to listen to what she had to say regarding the mysterious pendant necklace and the cremation pot, which they discovered in the basement.
After reaching the end of the flight of stone steps, they arrived at a wooden door, engraved in a stone wall, with a rusty bolt lock.
