Chapter 145: Chapter 145: Even a Scumbag Can Be Unconventional

The other children had all started.

Joshua Lawson, however, sat frozen.

’Who should I make a paper cutting of?’ he wondered.

Sophie Hughes or Noelle Sutton?

He only pretended Sophie Hughes was his mother when they were out, and his dad hadn’t said anything about it before.

But now his dad wouldn’t allow it.

If his mother hadn’t come today, he wouldn’t be in so much trouble. He could just make a paper cutting of Sophie Hughes.

But his mother was the head judge. If he submitted a paper cutting of Sophie as his mother, his real mother would surely give him a low score!

His paper-cutting skills were the best in his class, and all his classmates were counting on him to win an award in this competition.

If he didn’t win, he’d be humiliated again.

But if he made a paper cutting of his mother, the moment she had to speak, everyone would realize she was mute. They would definitely laugh at her, and even more, they would mock him for being the son of a mute.

He was so conflicted.

He didn’t know what he should cut.

His parents were both very good-looking. If he could capture their likeness perfectly, he was sure to win. But if his cutting wasn’t accurate, he might not win any prize at all.

’It’s all Mom’s fault. She never used to go out. If she had just stayed at home like she’s supposed to, none of this would be happening.’

’She’s ruining everything for me.’

Time ticked by, second by second, but Joshua was still lost in thought, his hands unmoving.

Sophie Hughes frowned slightly and leaned toward Tristan Lawson. They were very close as she whispered, "Why hasn’t Joshua started yet?"

Attorney Miller found the perfect angle. CLICK. He snapped a photo that made it look like they were practically kissing.

’Tristan Lawson has such a terrible track record,’ he thought. ’How does he have the nerve to be so stubborn about not getting a divorce?’

He was gathering irrefutable evidence without even breaking a sweat.

They were practically... practically just handing him the evidence on a silver platter.

’This lawsuit is going to be way too easy.’

’Still, Mrs. Lawson is quite pitiful.’

’If it weren’t for the valiant CEO Sterling, who had the guts to go up against Tristan Lawson, she probably wouldn’t be able to get this divorce, even with such blatant evidence.’

’Tristan Lawson’s scumminess was so fresh, so unique.’

’Truly the heir to the Lawson corporation. Even his brand of being a scumbag is in a league of its own, different from other men.’

"Don’t worry about him," Tristan Lawson said, his voice detached.

His gaze remained fixed on Noelle Sutton. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Meanwhile, Noelle’s attention was focused solely on the children on stage, her expression intent.

Today, she wore an elegant, handmade linen dress, layered with a contrasting shawl. Her long hair was braided and draped loosely over her left shoulder, giving her a gentle, artistic air that perfectly matched her current role.

It was a side of her he had rarely seen.

Sophie Hughes watched as Tristan Lawson’s eyes seemed practically glued to Noelle Sutton, and a tight, uncomfortable feeling constricted her chest.

’That mute, always so quiet and gentle-looking, she’s not at all what she seems on the surface.’

’She knew I was coming to the paper-cutting competition with Joshua today, so she deliberately showed up as the head judge.’

’It really proves the saying: it’s the quiet ones you have to watch out for.’

’Tristan Lawson is mine!’

’If it weren’t for the special circumstances back then, there’s no way Noelle Sutton would have gotten so lucky.’

’And she even had Tristan Lawson’s son.’

Just seeing Joshua was a constant reminder of the nights Noelle and Tristan had spent together in bed.

And yet, she had to pretend to be nice to Joshua.

The more she thought about it, the more aggrieved she felt.

After a good while, Joshua finally started to work.

Before cutting, one must first draw the design. Joshua had been personally taught by Noelle.

Noelle could tell what he was drawing with a single glance.

A sad smile touched the corners of her lips.

An hour later, the host walked onto the stage to announce that time was up. They began to display the children’s work in numerical order.

The first child’s paper cutting of himself and his parents was incredibly lifelike. In the audience, his parents beamed with happiness as the big screen showed a close-up of their faces.

The judges gave their objective critiques and then their scores.

When it was Noelle’s turn, she took out her phone, typed her evaluation, and used her sound-emitting necklace to speak the words for her.

However, she didn’t hide the fact that she couldn’t speak. Her very first sentence explained that she was unable to talk and was using a smart device to speak for her, asking for everyone’s understanding if the tone was somewhat lacking.

The host was quite surprised. "I had no idea that Teacher Noelle is unable to speak! To achieve such incredible success in paper-cutting, she must have put in more effort than the average person. Let’s give another warm round of applause for Teacher Noelle!"

At the host’s prompting, the audience looked at Noelle with expressions of admiration.

Joshua found it unbelievable.

’Why isn’t anyone laughing at her?’

Noelle’s evaluation for the first child was that his paper-cutting technique was excellent for his age and showed great potential. She added that a child’s mind is very open, and if he could cultivate objective thinking from a young age and not limit himself to themes like "My Mom and Dad," he could achieve even more dazzling success in the visual arts in the future.

All the children’s works were based on the theme "My Mom and Dad," and they all depicted images of themselves with their parents.

Some were realistic, while others were less so.

Even among the realistic ones, there were differences in technical skill.

The judges all gave very reasonable critiques, but Noelle was especially sharp, hitting the nail on the head by identifying the specific areas and directions where each child could improve.

Finally, it was Joshua Lawson’s turn.

When Joshua’s artwork was displayed, the venue fell silent for a moment.

Besides being well-cut, it had a unique quality. He hadn’t cut "My Mom and Dad" but instead, three small, cartoon-style sheep, designed in a style that mimicked the sheep from the animated show *Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf*.

Two big sheep and one little lamb.

The tall sheep wore a suit and tie, its arm around a gentle, beautiful ewe. The ewe was nursing, and the little lamb was kneeling to drink its milk...

It was clearly a depiction of a lamb kneeling to suckle!

He had utilized a popular cartoon and innovated on its design.

Because of this, the other four judges stood up in excitement.

For a child so young, not only was his paper-cutting technique superb, but he had also highlighted the warmth of a family. He even knew to use the image of a kneeling lamb to express a child’s understanding of parental grace. It perfectly fit the theme, was rich with meaning, and went far beyond how other children his age understood and approached the subject.

For a six-year-old child, it was a display of sheer genius that stunned everyone present.

Everyone except Noelle Sutton.

To Noelle, this paper cutting was a great irony.

Her son was not ignorant of a mother’s love.

The sad part was that he knew, yet he was using that knowledge to deliberately pierce her heart.

He was clever. He knew how to find another way to solve his problem.

But he didn’t know how much he was hurting his mother!

The four other judges all gave perfect scores.

When it was Noelle’s turn, it didn’t really matter whether she gave a high or low score. Her score would be dropped anyway. Joshua’s piece was guaranteed to take first place today.

The host invited Noelle to give her evaluation.

This time, Noelle didn’t use her sound-emitting necklace. Instead, she began signing to Joshua.