The Sweet Rival (Mango Shen and Nathaniel Ye)

"Did you kidnap Rita? Where have you taken her?"

At this point, anxiety permeated Madam Hans's voice.

Mango had lost a child previously in the efforts to obtain the antidote, so Madam Hans didn't want her foolishness to cause Mango to lose another child. If that happened, she reckoned that Mango would most likely go insane, and Madam Hans would never forgive herself if that happened!

Andrea looked at how anxious Madam Hans was and she smiled wickedly, "What? Are you getting worried now? Are you finally acknowledging that she's your granddaughter? You're an interesting one, aren't you? You believed everything I said when you trusted me, and you were cruel to Mango. But now you're feeling sorry for her and you want to make it up to her? Do you think Mango will still forgive you?"

Madam Hans became embarrassed when she heard what Andrea said.

"Shut up!"

"Shut up? You used to love listening to me, Grandma."

On the other hand, Andrea just continued laughing and it was extremely ear-piercing to Madam Hans. Hence, it angered her so much that she nearly burst a blood vessel.

Then, Terrance immediately asked someone to silence her.

"Let me ask you again, did you kidnap Rita? Where did you take her?"

Then, Andrea tried to speak through her gagged mouth and Terrance had his men released her temporarily.

"How would I know where that kid went? If she was really with me, why would I pass up the opportunity to torture Mango? I'd drain off that little brat's blood, and get that all on video for Mango! I want her to die of heartbreak and guilt! I want her to helplessly watch her daughter die!"

"You f*cking beast!"

A slap landed on Andrea's face once again as Madam Hans couldn't resist herself.

She was unable to believe that this vile person in front of her was someone she'd doted on for a long time.

She must've been blinded to see through Andrea's deception, and Madam Hans had hurt her actual granddaughter for her!

Meanwhile, Andrea laughed with a maniacal look on her face despite being hit again.

"Just hit me, or kill me if you dare! I want to see what you'll do when your addiction rears its head. I want all of Ocean City to know that the matriarch of the Hans family is a drug addict! Hahahahaha!" Andrea laughed once more while Madam Hans failed to catch her breath. The old lady would have suffocated to death if not for Terrance, who was watching her intently. Then, he hurriedly patted her on the back while coaxing her to breathe.

"Mom, don't be mad. I'll handle this, don't worry."

It took a moment before Madam Hans was able to recover from her shock, and she glared at Andrea fiercely, "Lock her up and make sure to keep her alive! I want her to live a fate worse than death!"

"I got it, Mom, don't worry about any of this. Please come home with me, your body can't take this kind of stress."

To be frank, Terrance was rather concerned as well.

He was fearful that Madam Hans would fall ill suddenly.

In truth, Madam Hans had felt unwell all along, but she forced herself to keep going nonetheless.

"I'm not going anywhere but home. Get this vile and disgusting woman out of my sight. Looking at her makes me want to commit murder."

Indeed!

Violent tendencies were bubbling up in Madam Hans, and she really wanted to slaughter Andrea if that wasn't against the law.

Then, Terrance quickly had someone take Andrea away to the dungeon.

All the while, Andrea was yelling and laughing maniacally, and the sound echoed endlessly in Madam Hans' mind.

Then, Mango popped into her head.

"Didn't Andrea say that Mango was coming at two o'clock? It's almost time, and I want to see her. I need to clear things up with her. I've wronged her for way too long, and I owe her an apology." Right now, Madam Hans needed to see Mango as soon as possible.

She knew that she would be absolutely ashamed to face her, but Madam Hans knew that her fate was uncertain once she went to the rehabilitation center.

She was no longer young and her body was surely unable to take the rigors of going through the recovery process. However, regret flooded her chest whenever she recalled the fact that Mango had lost a child for her and yet Madam Hans had kept mistaking her for a villain.

Meanwhile, Terrance was very familiar with Mango's personality. She had been hurt for a very long time, so no amount of sweet and placating words would bring her back.

But if Andrea was telling the truth, then Mango may return for the sake of Rita.

After that, Terrance hurriedly replied, "I'll have the servants prepare for her arrival. Once she comes, you and she can have a good chat."

"That sounds like a good idea, I remember that she loves to eat those crispy biscuits and mangoes. Have someone get them for me."

All of a sudden, Madam Hans became unusually excited.

Terrance had no idea what to say to his mother when she was this excited. Furthermore, he couldn't bring himself to tell her that Mango wasn't going to be in a good mood when she arrived.

Alas, Madam Hans was his mother after all, and he didn't have the heart to deal another emotional blow to her when she had one foot in the grave.

After that, Terrance led the servants to prepare for Mango's arrival while excitement coursed through Madam Hans's veins. Honestly, it was comparable to the time that she'd first met Mango. She wanted Mango to come back and joined the family, and maybe they could be a true family once more.

If it wasn't for Andrea, then Madam Hans reckoned that they would be as thick as thieves.

Thus, she couldn't help but feel sad.

Despite how much she looked forward to seeing Mango, a slight fear still ran through her body.

The minutes ticked by and two o'clock passed quietly, with no sign of Mango.

Due to that, Madam Hans started to become antsy.

"Terrance, can you go and check if Mango has arrived? She might be embarrassed to enter, so please go and welcome her."

Perhaps Madam Hans had really gone senile.

If Mango had come to lay down the law, how would she ever be ashamed to step in the door?

However, Terrance stayed silently and he left the room to check. Not only was Mango not there, but the Ye family's car was also nowhere to be found.

"Mom, Mango probably running a little late, so let's keep waiting for her."

"Okay, I guess we'll wait for a while longer."

Madam Hans replied, but it was clear that the old lady was dejected.

The clock slowly crawled past two-thirty, then three o'clock. Alas, there was no sign of Mango, not even a single phone call.

Hence, Madam Hans could no longer wait patiently anymore.

"Terrance, call Mango to ask where she is."

On the other hand, that question put Terrance in quite a dilemma.

What was he going to ask over the phone call? What was he going to say?

Was he going to ask why Mango wasn't coming over despite her daughter being kidnapped?

The issue didn't have much to do with the Hans family in the first place.

"Go! Hurry up and call!"

Meanwhile, anxiety gripped Madam Hans's heart like a cold fist.

Hence, Terrance had no choice but to reluctantly dial Mango's number.

Over at Mango's side, her brows knitted together lightly as she glanced at the number on her phone.

She had been feeling uneasy ever since Nathaniel left, and she video called Zion as per his instructions. Once she found out that Zion was doing well over Ye's Mansion, her hammering heart eased. After that, she spoke to him for a moment before sleepiness dominated her senses. So, Mango was just about to fall asleep when she was awoken by Terrance's call.

She had no intention of answering the phone, but the incessant ringing irritated her to no end.

Ultimately, Mango ended the call.

On the other end, Terrance smiled bitterly when he heard the dial tone on the phone.

This was exactly how he expected Mango to react.

Ever since the Hans family hurt her deeply, she'd totally abandoned any notion of being part of their family. Furthermore, she reaffirmed her intentions to cut all ties with Madam Hans not long ago, so why would she ever pick up their call?

Meanwhile, Madam Hans questioned Terrance when she spotted his bitter expression, "Did no one pick up? Did Mango say anything to you?"

"No one answered my call, so maybe her phone isn't with her."

Alas, Terrance had no choice but to lie when he was faced with Madam Hans's anxious expression.

Yes, his mother had made a grave mistake, and Mango would carry that scar with her for a lifetime.

If it were him, he might not forgive Madam Hans and the Hans family either. However, she was still Terrance's mother, and this was karma for what she did to Mango.

Nevertheless, it was still painful for him to see his mother languishing in regret.

Meanwhile, the spark of hope immediately faded from Madam Hans's eyes.

"Is she refusing to pick up our calls? Even so, she should be here for Rita's sake, right? Could it be that Andrea's message failed to reach her?"

Terrance just shook his head at his mother's speculations.

"Mom, I think it's best if you just rest while I try to contact her again. If not, I'll get in touch with Nathan. He might be the only one left who can persuade Mango to come."

"That's right, you should call Nathaniel! Please tell him that as long as Mango is willing to come to the Hans family's mansion, I'd happily let her trash the entire house if that's what she wants." Desperation seized every fiber of Madam Hans's being.

Compared to their failing business, the only thing she cared about now was Mango.

On the other hand, Terrance sighed. If his mother had seen the truth sooner, would all of this had happened?

Alas, it was a shame that neither of them had the foresight.

After that, Terrance called Nathaniel only to find that the other man's phone was off.

Nathaniel rarely turned off his phone for anything, so it must have had something to do with Mango.

Although he knew that it was irritating to keep calling Mango, Terrance still hardened his head and placed another call to her phone.

On the other end, Mango took one look at her phone before shutting it off completely.

She no longer desired to have any contact with the Hans family.

Furthermore, Nathaniel had explicitly instructed her not to participate in any of their affairs.

In addition, Mango was unable to keep calm whenever Madam Hans crossed her mind.

On top of all that, she had her period.

She had it the day Nathaniel left.

Her period was a week late, and she had initially thought that it wouldn't arrive at all. Alas, she was wrong, and her period hit her with full force.

Hence, Mango lay sprawled on the bed, and she felt the blood gushing out of her rapidly.

Pain crept up her stomach in waves, and paired with the blood leaving her body, it felt like she was being hollowed out slowly.

Thus, Mango couldn't help but let her thoughts drifted back to Nathaniel as she missed him dearly.

If he was here, he would've definitely brewed her some nice tea and gave her a warm belly massage. He would tell her not to be afraid and that he was there for her.

Unfortunately, Nathaniel was gone.

A sense of deep loneliness washed over Mango.

All the disagreements and grudges she bore against him seemed to evaporate as pain overtook her body. Right now, she could think of nothing else except Nathaniel's kindness towards her.

Next, her hand unconsciously crept towards her phone despite knowing that he wouldn't be able to pick it up. Alas, she still dialed the familiar number. It gave her comfort to know that it was his number, even if a cold dial tone was the only thing that greeted her.