Love at the Wrong Table by Emmanuel Lowe

Chapter 10

Frederick was in utter shock at that diagnosis.

Just then, a doctor from the internal medicine

department approached him and said, “Your mom’s

cancer is already at the advanced stage. She needs to

be operated on immediately. Otherwise, her life will be

in danger!”

Frederick’s voice was shaking as he asked, “How… How

much does the surgery cost?”

“Three hundred thousand. Any additional procedures

will be charged separately.” The doctor left after saying

that.

Being a doctor at the hospital, Frederick knew the

hospital policies well. He was aware that the surgery

would only be arranged after payment was made.

“Emmanuel, what should I do now? I don’t have three

hundred thousand!”

Frederick was at a loss as to what to do.

He had only been working at the hospital for two years,

and most of his income had been spent on his

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younger sister’s college education. As such, he did not

have much savings left.

“Don’t worry, we will think of something!” Emmanuel

comforted his friend.

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After a pause, he shoved the bank card that

Alessandra had given to him into Frederick’s hand and

said, “Take this first. There’s sixty thousand in here.”

“T-This… Isn’t this your mom’s bank card? How can I use

this money?” Frederick’s body was trembling as his

eyes welled up with tears.

That was his best friend’s mother’s hard-earned

money, and it did not feel right for him to use it.

“Don’t worry about that. The current priority is to save

your mom!” Emmanuel insisted that Frederick keep the

bank card.

“But even with this, I still don’t have three hundred

thousand! A hundred thousand is the most I can

scrape together by today,” Frederick replied in a

quavering voice, sounding as if he was on the verge of

bursting into tears.

“Besides, I really can’t take your mom’s money. I don’t

know how long it will take for me to repay it…”

Emmanuel felt rather helpless as well upon seeing the

agonized look on Frederick’s face.

At that moment, Milani happened to walk past and

noticed the interaction between the two men.

“Ha! Don’t you guys find it embarrassing for two grown

men to be seen crying in the hospital?”

Milani had always looked down on Emmanuel and had

just fought with Frederick earlier. Obviously, she would

not miss the chance to mock them upon witnessing

the scene.

“Milani, just shut up!” Emmanuel chided the woman for

her sarcastic remarks.

6/21

As Frederick was already devastated by the news of

his mother’s cancer diagnosis, Emmanuel could not let

Milani rub salt into the man’s wound.

6/21

However, unexpectedly, when Frederick saw Milani, he

took the initiative to plead with her, “The most beautiful

Milani, judging by your glamorous appearance, you

must be very rich, right?”

Taken aback by the man’s unusual attitude, Milani took

a few steps back and asked cautiously, “W-What do

you want?”

“Please lend me two hundred thousand! My mom has

just been diagnosed with cancer and needs to be

operated on immediately. Please, I’m begging you! I

will return the money once I have it!” Frederick pleaded

with Milani desperately. He was that close to going on

his knees, but the woman still had no intention of

lending him any money.

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Besides the fact that she did not have that much

money, even if she had, there was no reason for her to

lend it to him.

“Hah! You’re out of your mind. I don’t have two hundred

thousand to lend you.”

Taking a pause, she continued, “That’s why poor

people are so pathetic. You can’t even afford your

mother’s surgery expenses. Is it any wonder no woman

wants to marry you?”

Not only did Milani not agree to help, but she also

added insult to injury before she walked off.

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Frederick was burning with anger after the woman left.

If Emmanuel had not stopped him, he would have

beaten her to a pulp!

“Frederick, calm down!” Emmanuel held Frederick in a

tight embrace, trying his best to comfort his friend,

who was on the verge of breaking down.

Frederick eventually managed to cool off. If he had

beaten Milani up, he would have been arrested, and

there would be no one to find the money to fund his

mother’s surgery.

Frederick proceeded to contact people in his phone

book, including those he was not close to. He made

more than ten calls consecutively, asking to borrow

money from them.

In order to help his friend, Emmanuel also reached out

to some people he knew.

Despite their efforts, the two men had only managed

to borrow seventy thousand in total, which was not

even a third of the three hundred thousand they

needed.

Chapter 10 Emmanuel Has a Wife

“What should we do? My mom might die if she delays

getting the surgery!” Frederick finally broke down and

started sobbing in front of Emmanuel.

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Emmanuel let out a sigh and said, “Please don’t cry. Let

me try asking my wife. I’m sure she will lend it to you!”

In reality, Emmanuel was not sure if Mackenzie would

agree to help.

However, both of them had run out of ideas.

With their social status, it wouldn’t be easy for them to

borrow three hundred thousand in such a short period

of time.

Chapter 10 Emmanuel Has a Wife

“Your wife?” Frederick was so shocked that his tears

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stopped at once. “Emmanuel, have you gone crazy as

well? Since when did you have a wife?”

Not knowing how to explain the situation, Emmanuel

merely smiled helplessly before calling Mackenzie.

After the previous day’s incident, Emmanuel had

memorized Mackenzie’s number in case she blocked

him on WhatsApp again.

“Hello. What’s up?”

Emmanuel was relieved that the woman had picked

up his call. Besides, from the clear tone and steady

pace of her voice, it did not seem like she was in a

meeting or in a rush.

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“Ms. Quillen, I would like to borrow some money from

you,” Emmanuel stated the purpose of his call directly

without beating around the bush.

Ms. Quillen? Frederick was stunned. Is she really his

wife? Why would he be addressing his wife that way?

“Borrow money?”

Mackenzie froze at Emmanuel’s words. After returning

to her senses a moment later, an amused smirk crept

across her face.

Before receiving Emmanuel’s call, she was having

doubts after what happened the night before, thinking

that the man might not have married her for her

money after all. Is he already showing his true colors?

Despite her skepticism, she asked, “How much do you

need?”

“One hundred and twenty-eight thousand!” Emmanuel

replied at once.

Frederick and he had managed to pool together one

hundred and seventy-two thousand thus far, so that

was the remaining balance they needed.

Mackenzie’s curiosity was aroused at once. “You

rejected it when I offered you a hundred thousand last

night. Now you’re asking to borrow one hundred and

twenty-eight thousand from me?”

“Yup. Will you lend it to me?” Emmanuel asked

casually.

He never liked explaining himself, and neither did he

want to act pitifully in front of his wife.

Beep… Beep…

Chapter 10 Emmanuel Has a Wife

Mackenzie hung up the phone without replying.

A crease appeared between Emmanuel’s brows when

he heard the disconnection tone.

What kind of a reply is that? Is it a rejection?

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Frederick had yet to fully process the situation, but

Emmanuel did not sound like he was talking to his wife.

It felt more like he was requesting a favor from his

superior!

“Emmanuel, maybe I should try borrowing from loan

sharks instead…”

Frederick did not want to put his best friend in a

difficult spot. It was too late for him to take out a loan

through proper channels, but Frederick was confident

that loan sharks would lend him a hundred thousand

straight away.

10/21

“You can’t do that!” Emmanuel objected. “You would be

in deep trouble if you failed to repay them on time.”

Ding!

While the two of them were feeling torn, Emmanuel

suddenly got a text on his phone: You have received

Has a Wite

two hundred thousand wired to your account from

Mackenzie.

What the heck?

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Frederick could hardly believe his eyes when he saw

the message. Fixing his gaze on Emmanuel, he said

with envy, “Oh my goodness! Is this woman really your

wife? She… Is she very rich?”

He was certain that she had no lack of money, seeing

that she had instantly transferred Emmanuel two

hundred thousand, almost twice the amount the latter

had asked for.

Emmanuel simply smiled without replying. He could

not help but feel embarrassed when he saw the look

on Frederick’s face. It was as though the latter was

envious of him living off a woman!

Moreover, apart from knowing that Mackenzie was a

senior executive at a company, he had no idea about

her true identity and how wealthy she was. Hence, he

was unable to answer Frederick’s question.

“Take it and ask the hospital to arrange for your mom’s

surgery immediately!” Emmanuel said while

transferring the money to Frederick.

“Thank you! Please help me thank your wife too. Tell

her I will return her money as soon as I can!” Tears of

gratitude flowed down Frederick’s cheeks.

He was immensely thankful to the couple for lending

him a helping hand in this time of crisis, thereby

solving all his problems.

“No rush. Don’t worry about this now!” Emmanuel

reassured with a smile.

From the looks of it, he was sure that Mackenzie was

not hard up for the money.

That being said, he would still try to pay her back as

soon as possible. After all, he did not want Mackenzie

to mistake him for a gold digger.

Milani had just finished settling her bill when Frederick

approached the counter to make payment.

Upon seeing him, she was stunned that Frederick had

managed to scrape together three hundred thousand

so quickly.

She could not believe that the pauper who was

begging her to lend him two hundred thousand just a

moment ago had gotten the money to pay for the

surgery in the blink of an eye.

“Ha! I bet you went to a loan shark, didn’t you? Be

careful of the compounding interest. You might end up

having to pay them with your life!” Milani mocked.

Frederick did not like the woman in the first place. After

hearing what she said, he retorted sharply,

“Emmanuel’s wife lent me the money. In fact, she

transferred two hundred thousand to Emmanuel’s

account right after he asked. Thank goodness

Emmanuel wasn’t interested in a woman like you.

Otherwise, his life would be so sad!”

What?

Milani was in utter disbelief when she heard that.

Emmanuel’s wife?

That pauper has gotten himself a wife?