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Chapter 194: Chapter 194: Might as Well Grow Old Alone

Mr. Sterling is genuinely intimidating when he scowls.

Lynn Winslow looked up at Aiden Powell, who was coming in with Elder Winslow and Mr. Powell, and couldn’t help but feel a pang of pity for him.

’Poor kid. Having to do homework even when he’s out having fun. What kind of older brother does that?’

But Lynn Winslow had a mischievous side. Suppressing a laugh, she agreed, mentally assigning the task of supervising the homework to Ian Sterling.

Aiden Powell, still oblivious, bustled around Elder Winslow and Mr. Powell, chatting with one and then the other. The noise made Zane Lancaster’s brow furrow in annoyance; he looked so fed up he seemed ready to slip the boy a potion to make him mute.

Lynn Winslow walked over to the group just as the butler came in carrying a bookbag. He said with a smile, ”The elder Mr. Powell just had this sent over. He said it’s the younger Mr. Powell’s homework.”

Aiden Powell’s face fell instantly. Staring at the bag packed full of books, he said in a pained voice, ”Why won’t my brother give me a break?”

Lynn Winslow let out a snort of laughter. She reached out and ruffled Aiden Powell’s short hair, saying gently, ”Be good. Why don’t you start now? That way, you’ll have more time to play when we get to Griermount.”

”...” Aiden Powell didn’t understand. How could someone say such harsh, hurtful words in such a gentle voice?

Ian Sterling was still upstairs doing who-knows-what. Feeling too lazy to supervise Aiden Powell’s homework herself, Lynn Winslow passed the job to Zane Lancaster, who was sitting beside the two elders, looking a bit bored.

Zane Lancaster was reluctant, but he sat down next to Aiden Powell to watch over him anyway.

Zane Lancaster was also beginning to not understand. How could a child who could talk a mile a minute about topics like fishing and chess, knowing all the various techniques, treat his own homework like it was an indecipherable tome? Zane could make out the individual characters he wrote, but strung together, they were gibberish.

”How about I find him a tutor? I’ll pay, okay?” Zane Lancaster’s eyes were vacant. When Aiden Powell made a complete mess of a math problem, he couldn’t take it anymore and turned to Lynn Winslow.

”I can’t take it anymore. I’ll get him a tutor,” he repeated. ”I’ll pay. Just let me off the hook.”

Lynn Winslow couldn’t hold it in. She covered her face, laughing so hard her cheeks ached. ’It’s true, tutoring really can drive an adult crazier than anything else.’ She had never seen such an expression on Zane Lancaster’s face before.

Ian Sterling finally appeared. Zane Lancaster looked at him like he was his savior. He stood up, walked over to Ian, dragged the bewildered man over to Aiden Powell, and with a firm push, forced him down onto the stool.

He looked like he was about to burst into tears. ”I’ll never piss you off again,” he said gratefully. ”You tutor him.”

”...???” Ian Sterling was completely baffled. He glanced at an innocent-looking Aiden Powell and blinked. ”What’s going on?”

”Zane said you’re going to tutor me,” Aiden Powell said, blinking back.

Hearing this, Ian Sterling raised an eyebrow. ”Piece of cake.” He looked at Zane Lancaster. ”You’re sure you won’t piss me off again, right?”

Zane Lancaster collapsed onto the sofa. At Ian’s question, he nodded and said firmly, ”That’s right!”

’Who needs romance?! If things work out and you get married, what if you have a kid just like Aiden Powell? He’d rather be a bachelor for life and die alone! It would be better than getting sick from anger and being tormented to death.’

Satisfied, Ian Sterling looked away from Zane and patted Aiden Powell on the head, praising him in a low voice, ”Thanks to you, you’ve helped your big brother get rid of a love rival.”

”Huh...” ’Did I?’ Aiden Powell was confused, too.

Lynn Winslow hadn’t said a word throughout the exchange. When Ian Sterling began tutoring, she stood up and walked over, circling the two of them with her hands behind her back like she was watching a show.

Then, she saw Ian Sterling’s gaze grow colder and colder, his face darker and darker. His brow was knitted in a deep frown, looking as if he bore a great and terrible grudge.

”No, wait. What is this you’ve written? Can you please use your brain? I really want to pry open your skull and see if you don’t have a brain or if it’s just rusted over. If it is, I can go to the kitchen, find some peanut or corn oil, and lube it up for you, how about that?”

Aiden Powell blinked his big eyes. He was thick-skinned—or maybe just used to being scolded—and didn’t react to Ian Sterling’s sarcasm at all. His imperviousness was enough to drive the person tormenting him mad.

Ian Sterling’s lips parted. Lynn Winslow, standing behind him, wondered if it was her imagination, but she thought she could see smoke rising from the top of his head.

”It’s fine. Let’s continue.” Ian Sterling lowered his gaze and took a breath. When he looked up, his face was set with determination. ”I can even train wolves. You’re telling me I can’t teach one elementary schooler?”

Deeply moved, Aiden Powell dropped his pen and grasped Ian Sterling’s hand. The contrast between the large hand and the small one was stark.

He said gratefully, ”Thank you, Finn. You’re the best.”

”Don’t mention it.” ’If it weren’t for Zane Lancaster, you think I’d be giving you the time of day?’ Ian Sterling thought, forcing a smile as he lowered his head to continue teaching.

Lynn Winslow couldn’t take it anymore. She turned away, her body shaking uncontrollably with laughter that spilled out from between the hands covering her face. Worried she would disturb the two of them, she simply walked out of the villa and into the backyard to find the two elders, who had earlier been laughing at the sight of Zane Lancaster trying to teach the boy.

Seeing her approach, the two of them had a pretty good idea of what happened. Elder Winslow asked as he reeled in his fishing line, ”Couldn’t hold in your laughter?”

Lynn Winslow sat down between them. She had just gotten her breathing under control, but her grandfather’s question sent her over the edge again. Not having to worry about bothering anyone out here, she let out a loud, unrestrained laugh that scared a fish that was just about to take the bait, making it flick its tail and swim away.

”Lynn! My fish!”

Lynn Winslow’s laughter faltered for a moment, then she buried her face in Mr. Powell’s broad back, laughing until her cheekbones ached.

Meanwhile, back in the villa, Zane Lancaster had the butler escort him to his assigned room. He couldn’t even bear to listen anymore, afraid it would give him nightmares.

As for Ian Sterling, he mechanically guided Aiden Powell with a wooden expression, explaining each problem over and over. Even after a dozen explanations, Aiden would only understand half.

Sometimes, Ian Sterling hated how good his own memory was, for he remembered all the elementary school problems and their solutions with perfect clarity.

He leaned back in his chair, his eyes vacant. Noticing his pale face, the butler hurried over and asked with concern in a low voice, ”Young Master, what’s wrong?”

”It’s nothing. I was just thinking, if Lynn and I have a child in the future, and they’re just like Aiden Powell, what would I do? Would I even live long enough to stay by Lynn’s side?”

”Hmm... Young Master, why don’t we hire a tutor for the younger Mr. Powell? We could bring the tutor along to Griermount, and then you wouldn’t have to worry about his homework.”

”That makes sense! Go, go see if any tutor is willing to start right now. Offer more money! Double! No, five times, ten times the rate is fine! Just go!” Ian Sterling said excitedly, as if he’d just seen a ray of hope. ”Go, quickly! If this keeps up, I’m going to die of anger.”

The butler quickly agreed and turned to leave with large strides.

After he left, Ian Sterling was at his breaking point, but he still forced himself to ask Aiden Powell his next question in the gentlest tone he could manage.