The Apple of My Eye
Chapter 817 Stop Wasting Your Breath

After Sue had finished talking, the awkwardness on Peggy's face was obvious. She looked at Sue and asked, "Sue, do you really need to speak to your mother in a such a hurtful manner? I know I haven't been a good mother. I realize now that I've made so, so many mistakes. If I could turn back time, I would never do any of those terrible things to you. I have truly realized the error of my ways. Could you please forgive me? Give your mother a second chance, would you?"

"Forgive you?" Sue scoffed. "Do you really think it's that simple? If 'sorry' could fix anything, we wouldn't need any policemen or any sort of justice system in the world!"

Peggy looked uneasy. She had known from the start that this visit was not going to go smoothly and already prepared herself mentally for every single situation she could imagine. No, she could not give up so easily. If she had to face these words from her daughter, she was willing to do it.

Sue looked at Peggy and asked coolly, "So, what do you want this time? Just get straight to the point, before I ask you to leave."

A look of viciousness flashed across Peggy's face as her daughter's words triggered her anger and hatred. Somehow, she managed to regain control of her emotions just in time. She faked a caring, motherly tone as she asked, "Sue, you've been on your own for the past few years. How have you been?"

"I'm sure you can see for yourself," Sue shot back. She then continued with a scornful look, "I've been surviving on my own ever since I moved out as a teen, remember? Everything that I have today is a result of my own blood, sweat and tears. I never once mentioned my miseries, sorrow and pain to you. I never even wanted you to find out. To be honest, I actually think my life would have been much better without you and Allen."

"I know, honey. I know life hasn't been easy for you." Peggy faked an understanding smile. "Sue, I believe that you've been living quite comfortably these past few years, right? You must have had the opportunity to save up some money, am I right?"

"What do you mean by that?" Sue asked sharply, recognizing the look of greed on her mother's face. "What in the world do you want from me exactly? Why are you even here?"

"Oh, calm down. I don't mean anything," Peggy chuckled. She tried to rephrase herself, "I couldn't help noticing that your house is well-furnished and you have designer clothes in your wardrobe. All those don't come cheap. So I just made an educated guess, that you're doing quite well for yourself. Aren't you?"

"So you turned my house upside down yesterday just to check if I've been living a decent life. Good to know," Sue answered sarcastically. Actually Peggy made a mental note to check everything in her house, to check if all her valuables were still in their hiding places.

"I'm so proud and happy to see my daughter surviving so well on her own." Peggy forced herself to feign another smile as she looked at her daughter.

Sue kept quiet and Peggy took it as an invitation to continue talking. "Here you've been living such a good life, but your brother hasn't been so fortunate After you ran away, he got beaten up so severely that his leg was badly injured. It never fully recovered and until today, he still can't walk properly..."

"Are you saying that's my fault?" Sue laughed disbelievingly. "I sent back so much of my hard-earned money every month, because you said that Allen couldn't work properly because of his leg. You told me that as the elder sibling, it was my duty to make life easier for him. Fine, I heeded your words. If I had saved up all the money that I sent back home to you, I would be having a much better life than this. Instead, I suffered. I rented a room so small I could hardly move around without knocking everything over. I bought the cheapest meals. I basically survived on salted vegetables. I wanted him to have some money so he can do some much needed upgrades at home. At least his potential bride won't run away when she sees his living conditions."

Sue gave a bitter laugh and continued, "I worked so hard all these years and finally managed to save some money. And guess how your stupid son repaid me? He lost all the money by gambling!" "What the hell are you talking about?" Peggy shouted. She had finally reached her limit, triggered by Sue's criticism on her beloved son. Anger was etched in every line of her face.

"What's the matter? Can't accept the fact that your perfect son is not so perfect after all? Am I not allowed to point that out?" Sue jeered.

Fearing that Sue would refuse to help them, Peggy was forced to put aside her anger and softened her tone, "No, it's not that. I just feel that..."

Peggy took a deep breath and forced a smile onto her face. "Yes, I admit your brother was wrong. But why keep looking back at the past? Allen has realized the error of his ways and has turned over a new leaf. He doesn't gamble anymore. Isn't it a virtue to forgive and forget, especially when it comes to family? Why don't you give him a second chance?"

"Turned over a new leaf?" Sue couldn't help laughing ironically. She told her mother in a cold, sarcastic tone, "You're right, he has stopped gambling. But he just replaced that bad habit with another one. He became a womanizer and ended up falling in love with a filthy gold digger. But he thought it was true love, and was willing to anything to marry her."

She scoffed and continued, "I won't deny there's nothing wrong with marriage -- it's a beautiful thing in life. But this greedy woman asked for a huge dowry and he agreed even though he knew there was no way we could afford it! And what was his solution? To marry me off so he could get a huge sum of money from my future husband for him to marry that woman! Marriage is a big deal, and I will make my own choice on my own life partner. I have to be responsible for my own life. I will not let you arrange my marriage as you did last time!"

She gave Peggy a determined look. It was clear that she had firmly made up her mind on this issue.

"I have sacrificed so much for this family. And Allen? What has he done?" Sue paused to let her point sink in and continued, "I'm not going to give in, no matter what you say. I'm not going to sacrifice my life jus so he can enjoy his. Yes, he was beaten up and was crippled, but this was all his fault. He only had himself to blame. He had to face the consequences. That was the price he had to pay for putting my life on the line as well."

"Sue, you better watch your limits! Don't go overboard!" Peggy snapped. She couldn't bear to hear Sue speaking bad of her beloved son, her precious son whom she deemed perfect and flawless, that could do no wrong.

Glaring at Sue with hatred, she spat, "That's enough out of you! How can you be so inconsiderate? This is your own younger brother, who shares flesh and blood with you! How could you say such things?" "Oh I see. So you want me to stop bad-mouthing him, mother dearest?" Sue questioned sarcastically. "You were there yesterday when he hit me, right? Why didn't you stop him then?

What's the difference between these two situations?" Dissatisfied, Peggy argued, "You can't compare yourself with Allen! You are a woman. When you get married, you become a part of your husband's family. Allen is different. He is a man, the only man in our family. Since your father is gone, we need him to pass down the Wang bloodline. You have to understand that."

Red with anger, Sue scoffed incredulously, "So since he is a male, everything he does is right while everything I do is wrong, is that it? Is that the difference between male and female children?" "You are his older sister. How can you be so calculative?" Peggy was furious.

Realizing she still needed Sue's help, she tried to smoothen things. "I'm not here to argue with you."

"Mom, why are you still wasting your breath on her?" Allen's voice shouted suddenly. Even though he had gone into his room, he had glued his ear to the door the whole time, desperate to know what his mother and his sister were saying. He had heard every single insult Sue had said about him and could no longer tolerate it. He rushed out and reminded Peggy, "Mom, don't forget the reason why we are here. Hurry up and get it over with."

"Go back inside, honey." Peggy pushed Allen back into the room and told him, "Don't worry. Your mom has everything under control. Just stay in the room and wait for the good news."