Chapter 10: You’re Mute, Not Deaf Editor: Henyee Translations

It seemed Sophie Hughes was truly important to Tristan Lawson.

So important that Tristan Lawson couldn’t even stand the sight of their marriage registration photo, which wasn’t even a proper wedding picture.

For a cold man like Tristan Lawson to fill an entire sheet of paper with Sophie Hughes’s name, one could only imagine how passionately he must love her.

She really had overestimated herself. She thought staying by his side would eventually win his heart.

Mrs. Miller saw Noelle Sutton staring blankly at the wall and advised her in a low voice, "Mrs. Lawson, you are the lady of this house. If you’re always away, someone else will come and take your place."

If anyone’s taking over, it’s probably her.

"Mrs. Lawson, I’m glad you’re back. Please, don’t do anything foolish. Especially at a time like this, you need to be here at home."

There was little expression on Noelle Sutton’s serene face.

Even Mrs. Miller could see that the relationship between Tristan Lawson and Sophie Hughes was anything but ordinary.

It just went to show how absurd the whole "Sophie Hughes is Tristan’s aunt" story was.

Noelle Sutton typed a line of text on her phone: Mrs. Miller, thank you for telling me so much.

Mrs. Miller had seen all that Noelle Sutton had given for Tristan Lawson and Joshua Lawson over the years, and her heart ached for the young woman.

"Mrs. Lawson, don’t be too heartbroken. You and Mr. Lawson still have your son, the young master. Mr. Lawson might just be going through a moment of confusion."

A son...

A mirthless smile touched Noelle Sutton’s lips.

Mrs. Miller thought their son would be her anchor. Too bad that balloon deflated a long time ago.

DING—DONG—

The doorbell rang.

Mrs. Miller went to open the door.

Old Master Lawson came in, leaning on a cane.

Old Master Lawson was seventy-five. His hair was much whiter now, but he was well-preserved and still looked quite vigorous. He glanced coolly at Noelle Sutton, his expression grave. "Come to the study with me."

Noelle Sutton didn’t want to go.

But she was at Westhill Villa. She and Tristan Lawson weren’t divorced, so she was still, technically, Old Master Lawson’s granddaughter-in-law.

It wouldn’t be right to refuse him outright, so she followed Old Master Lawson into the study.

Old Master Lawson sat down, folding his hands over his cane. His aged, cloudy eyes held a chilling glint.

Tristan Lawson’s personality and appearance actually resembled Old Master Lawson’s more. His mother had died young, and his father had remarried. Tristan also had a half-brother, Ayan Lawson.

Of course, Old Master Lawson also had other sons. And other grandsons as well. Yet, Old Master Lawson was singularly focused on grooming Tristan Lawson to be the heir to Lawson.

One reason was that Tristan Lawson resembled him the most. The second was that his brilliance was simply extraordinary.

At thirteen, he was admitted to MIT, the best university in Aridia, and also pursued MBI studies.

He founded his own company while still in college.

At sixteen, he led the research and development of a solid-state battery that broke through a major energy bottleneck. He secured an international patent for the disruptive technology, which reconfigured the global new energy market, and his company was valued at nearly ten billion dollars.

He later ventured into numerous other fields, achieving considerable success in all of them.

By the time he graduated and returned home at seventeen, he was already a major figure in the top ten of the Forbes list.

After taking over Lawson Group, he elevated the company to new heights. A man like that was someone Noelle Sutton should never have been able to reach.

"I heard Tristan brought someone home to live?"

Westhill Villa covered thousands of square meters and employed numerous servants besides Mrs. Miller. It was no surprise that Old Master Lawson knew what was happening in his own home.

"Why don’t you seem to have any reaction at all?" Old Master Lawson was clearly displeased. "Are you just going to stand by and watch someone else take the title of Mrs. Lawson? Don’t you know how many women would kill to marry Tristan?"

When Tristan Lawson decided to marry her, everyone in the Lawson family disagreed.

In the end, it was Old Master Lawson who put his foot down, and only then did the others dare not object. However, Noelle Sutton knew full well that even if everyone had objected, Tristan Lawson wouldn’t have cared.

Seven years ago, she could still sense his resolve to marry her was firm. And so, she had been living in a seven-year-long daydream.

Noelle Sutton lowered her gaze.

What reaction could she possibly have? Who can stop Tristan Lawson from doing what he wants?

As Noelle Sutton remained silent, Old Master Lawson angrily thumped his cane on the floor. "You’re mute, not deaf!"

Noelle Sutton raised her eyes, the rims of which were tinged a faint pink. The one person in the Lawson family who was ever remotely civil to her isn’t being civil anymore.

She turned around.

She’s a dying woman. She has no reason to stay in the Lawson Family and take this abuse.

Seeing that she was about to leave, the Lawson Patriarch immediately stood up and called after her.

"Noelle Sutton!"

Noelle Sutton didn’t break her stride. She walked to the living room, grabbed her suitcase, and left Westhill Villa.

Old Master Lawson’s face went pale with rage. He had come here out of the goodness of his heart to warn her, and she dared to give him attitude.

This Mrs. Lawson... if she doesn’t want the title, then it’s time for a replacement!

Old Master Lawson stormed out.

Mrs. Miller was in turmoil. After wrestling with the decision, she finally decided to call Tristan Lawson.

At that moment, Tristan Lawson was attending a charity auction with Sophie Hughes and Joshua Lawson. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

When Tristan Lawson saw the call from Mrs. Miller, he rejected it immediately.

Mrs. Miller was probably calling at this hour to tell him how many hours his wife had been missing and ask if they should call the police.

He wasn’t going to call the police.

Noelle’s world revolved around him and Joshua. She would never leave Westhill Villa. Besides, she was an orphan who didn’t know how to do anything. Where could she possibly go if she left him?

Tonight’s charity gala was extremely important. He had done his research. There was one item up for auction that Sophie Hughes had wanted for a long time. He was determined to win it for her tonight, no matter the cost.

The charity auction proceeded in an orderly fashion.

Tristan Lawson idly scrolled through his phone. He hadn’t raised his paddle yet. The item he wanted was the final, big-ticket item of the night.

Sophie Hughes, on the other hand, had raised her paddle a few times, bidding on some small trinkets for charity.

"The next item up for auction is a diamond ring."

At the mention of a diamond ring, Tristan Lawson looked up. However, when he saw the close-up image on the large screen, he instantly lost interest and lowered his gaze.

It was an oval-shaped, pigeon’s-egg-sized diamond. It was large, but not particularly beautiful.

The auctioneer continued his introduction, "A diamond of this size is rare, but what’s even more amazing is that it has a sound-emitting device installed inside. It can connect to a phone, allowing it to speak for a person, and it has numerous other functions..."

Tristan Lawson raised his head again, listening intently to the auctioneer’s description.

As soon as the auctioneer announced the starting price, Tristan Lawson raised his paddle.

Sophie Hughes noticed this was the first time Tristan Lawson had raised his paddle all evening.

The auctioneer had just demonstrated with a phone that the ring contained an AI system capable of simulating a human voice.

Its previous owner was mute, and her husband had developed the ring especially for her.

So, Tristan is going to buy it... for Noelle?

Sophie Hughes turned on her phone’s recording function, slipped it into her pocket, and pretended not to have noticed Tristan Lawson raising his paddle.

"Tristan, I think this ring would be perfect for Noelle. It would help her communicate with people who don’t understand sign language. Why don’t you buy it for her?"

A dark look entered Tristan Lawson’s eyes.