The Substitute Bride

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, tou

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.