The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 311 Don't Make Any Trouble

Bette decided to adopt Mandy and John soon after their mother's death. From then on, Bette treated both of them as her own children.

In return, John and Mandy treated Bette as their mother as well.

"Mom," Mandy whined as if she was asking for Bette to defend her from Jina.

"Mom," Jina called furiously not long after.

"Did you just come here to argue?" Bette responded in dismay.

"Might as well go if you'll just be arguing the entire time. Both of you are not welcome here," she added.

Mandy reached for her hand, trying to calm her down. "Mom, I gave some clothes to my sister-in-law to show my kindness to her," she added, trying to change the topic. "She refused to accept them though."

Mandy had always complained that her sister-in-law refused to accept the things she was giving. "Mandy, you have so much money. But do you know what you're bringing to this family every time you come back? All of your trash!" Bette exclaimed, looking at her daughter.

"That's the reason why your sister-in-law refused to accept all of the things you give!

Are you looking down on us?"

"Of course not!"

Confused, Mandy stared at her in return.

She suddenly felt embarrassed to hear Bette's accusations. She never knew that she would actually express her dissatisfaction in receiving second-hand items. She had always believed that her family simply didn't have the right to use the same things that she did.

"Jina, why don't you go to the kitchen and help them prepare dinner for our guests? More people will come over tonight,

Bette said, shifting her attention to Jina.

"Okay, Mom," Jina responded, heading straight to the kitchen.

"You," Bette said, pointing at Mandy, "come with me."

"Is there something you want to tell me?" Mandy asked, following her to the room.

Bette's hand shot out even before Mandy could see it, slapping her right across the face.

"What was that for?!"

Mandy exclaimed, touching her cheek.

This made Mandy even more furious with Bette. Besides, she never really cared about her seeing as she's not her real mother. She just paid a visit to prevent their neighbors from speaking ill of her. "Why are you looking at me like that?

Do you want to hit me back?!"

Bette shouted at Mandy.

"Why did you do that?!" Mandy asked, trying to control her temper.

She desperately wanted to know what was going on between them.

"Aren't you aware of what you've done?!" Bette asked, furrowing her eyebrows.

Bette stood still, feeling heartbroken to see her daughter become so selfish. If she only knew that this would happen, she wouldn't have sent Mandy abroad for her education. "Did I do something wrong?"

She asked, covering the area of her face where she was slapped.

"Tell me. Why did you help Becky stole Isla's boyfriend?" Bette asked.

"Poor Isla. I've seen her distraught the entire time. She gave up her boyfriend so selflessly just to avoid trouble."

Surprised to know what she did, Bette wasn't able to contain her anger any longer when she finally saw Mandy.

"Have you ever thought of Isla? She took all of the blame for you. And yet, you never treated her fairly. How could you be so evil and selfish?!" she said, clearly exasperated. "Think about how your brother and his wife treated you when you were young. Is that how you're going to return their kindness? By treating their daughter badly?" she went on. "Did Jina tell you this?

I know she's been telling you how evil I am. But do you trust her this much?" she asked, looking at her straight in the eye.

"Aron's parents have promised me they will not require Isla to take responsibility, so what else can I do?"

Bette then wondered. Why would Isla take responsibility for the something she didn't do?

She suddenly felt regretful for spoiling Mandy so much that she turned into a selfish woman. This wouldn't have happened if she'd been really strict in raising Mandy. "What's done is done. There's nothing else I can do," Mandy said, growing impatient.

"You can't change things even if you hurt me."

"I did that so you'll remember what you did!" Bette exclaimed in defense.

Bette felt really bad for Isla after knowing what happened between her and Aron. At the same time, she's worried that Mandy would cause another trouble.

"You and Becky owe Isla a lot. From now on, you have no right to say no to Isla no matter what happens," she asserted, knowing that this was the only way to scare Mandy.

"Are you being like this to me because I'm a girl? Is that it?!" Mandy whined, her voice rising to a shrill.

"I don't care how you think of me. As soon as I replace out that you're bullying Isla again, I'll make sure you'll regret it," Bette said, her words filled with threat.

"Now go to the kitchen and help your sister-in-law. Marrying someone rich does not exempt you from doing household chores!" Bette said, pushing Mandy out of the room. "Unless you decide not to come back here anymore."

Mandy had always thought of leaving for so many times, but she was afraid of what others would say. This left her with no choice but to follow Bette's orders.

"Light the fires and cook the food!"

Bette yelled at Mandy.

"Let me do it, Mom," Jina said, frowning as she saw Mandy cooking with her expensive clothes on.

"No! Let her do it!" Bette replied aggressively.

"You might be living in the city now, but being a countryman is ingrained in you. This is your home. You were born and raised here. So why couldn't you do the same things you did when you were young?!" Bette exclaimed in frustration.

"Your sister-in-law has done this for so many years without any complaints. I think it's time for you to share some of the load. What do you think?" she added.

Mandy remained silent as she started to light the fire, left with no choice but to follow Bette's orders.

Jina let out a sigh. She chose not to help Mandy despite wanting to, knowing full well that this was all her fault.

Apart from their relatives, several neighbors were also invited to join the banquet including Kay. Bette even hired a chef to cook for the occasion. Ten tables with various dishes were set up outside along with two other tables on the hall. They even borrowed benches and chairs from their neighbors to accommodate more people. Indeed, their place hadn't been so busy for a long time. As their family conflict spread in the whole town, a lot of people came just to see what would happen at the wedding.