Chapter 290: Chapter 290: He Made His Apprentice Suffer So Much, He Deserves to Be Punished

"No." Vincent Grant’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed before speaking. "They’re fine."

"I came to tell you that there’s nothing between Joanna Sherman and me. That day, she was drugged, which is why... I’ve already clarified things online."

"You came all this way just to tell me that?"

"Was that necessary?"

Her indifferent attitude was a painful sting to his heart, and his fingers curled into fists.

"I believe it was necessary."

His voice was stubborn and resolute.

But Sophia Shaw found it almost laughable.

She used to beg him for an explanation, dreaming that he would just say there was nothing between him and Joanna Sherman, but he never said a word.

’Why go to all this trouble now?’

"Vincent Grant, I really don’t care about you and Joanna Sherman. I think I’ve made my attitude perfectly clear. Congratulations to you both."

"You should go back."

Sophia Shaw started to walk past him.

But Vincent Grant stood his ground stubbornly, not moving an inch.

"What’s going on? Why hasn’t he left yet? What’s he doing just standing there? Did you put him in a time-out?"

When Old Master Sloan came out, Vincent Grant was still standing in the same spot.

He had already been standing there for several hours.

Sophia Shaw had been running tests with Old Master Sloan since she left Vincent, and she was also taken aback to see he hadn’t gone.

She shook her head. "I certainly didn’t punish him."

Old Master Sloan secretly sized up his apprentice’s expression.

Sophia Shaw’s face was impassive.

"He traveled so far and endured so much to get here. Don’t you feel bad seeing him just standing there like that?" he asked, his face stern.

Sophia Shaw was a bit speechless. "He’s the one who wants to stand there. What am I supposed to do?"

"Maybe you could get a few of my junior brothers to tie him up and put him on a plane?"

Seeing Sophia Shaw joke about it so nonchalantly, Old Master Sloan was certain she had truly let go.

He had disapproved when she had insisted on marrying Vincent Grant back then.

And what happened afterward proved that Vincent Grant was indeed not someone she could entrust her life to.

On the surface, Old Master Sloan never asked about Sophia Shaw’s life, but over the past few years, he had often asked Levin Sawyer for news about her.

He knew about all the grievances Sophia Shaw had suffered.

How could he be happy when the little apprentice he had cherished like a treasure was treated so poorly?

He huffed, "Tie him up? You think I have nothing better to do? If he likes standing there, he can stand there for the rest of his life!"

’He made my apprentice’s life so miserable, he deserves a little punishment!’

"Let’s go."

「In the Vorlan Wastes, the temperature plummeted as soon as night fell.」

While it had been over twenty degrees Celsius during the day, it had now dropped to near freezing.

Even their breath came out in cold puffs, and a drop of water would freeze instantly.

Sophia Shaw had been looking up research papers on her computer. Even wrapped in a thick down jacket, she still felt cold, repeatedly breathing on her hands to warm them.

She looked up and saw a long shadow stretching out under a hazy yellow streetlight in the distance.

Vincent Grant was still standing there.

He was wearing only a thin suit jacket, motionless.

’At this rate, he’ll freeze to death.’

Sophia Shaw could have ignored Vincent Grant, but he was Grandma Grant’s grandson. For the sake of Grandma Grant, who had always been so good to her, she couldn’t just turn a blind eye.

She picked up a military greatcoat and walked outside with it.

"Vincent Grant, what on earth are you trying to do?" When she asked this, Sophia Shaw’s tone was tinged with resignation.

Vincent Grant slowly turned to look at her.

His face was pale and ashen from the extreme cold, his usual noble air mingled with a hint of sickness that, paradoxically, made it even harder to look away.

Even though her heart had grown cold toward him, Sophia Shaw had to admit that this man was handsome no matter when she looked at him.

"I don’t mean anything else by this. I just feel that I didn’t handle the situation with Joanna properly, so I need to punish myself."

Sophia Shaw had always known Vincent Grant was a man who took responsibility.

However, he only extended that sense of responsibility to those he felt deserved it.

She gave a soft laugh.

"If you had done this sooner, I would have been moved to tears."

"Vincent Grant, do you remember what you said that time I went to the base for a photoshoot, when Jenna Judd asked you how you felt about Joanna Sherman’s daughter?"

"You said, ’Like she were my own.’"

It had happened so long ago, but bringing it up again still made Sophia Shaw’s chest clench with an uncontrollable, painful twitch.

"Back then, I wanted so badly for you to take back those words."

"Even if you didn’t know about Bun’s existence, you knew my name was still on our marriage certificate. You should have at least... given me a shred of dignity."

Vincent Grant pressed his lips together, unable to say a word.

"And another time, I ran into you and Joanna Sherman at a restaurant while I was holding Bun. Right in front of me, you were holding Joanna’s daughter, cooing at her, so afraid she might fall that you couldn’t even eat."

"You’ve always raised Cedric Grant yourself. You of all people should know that a baby who’s just over a month old can barely even lift its head, let alone fall and hurt itself."

"But you still chose to act that way."

"But Bun and I were right in front of you for so long, and you only spared us a single glance. You didn’t say a single word that you should have said to me, your wife. In that moment, I felt so worthless, as worthless as dirt."

"But what made me feel the most worthless was that moment I was pushed down, and Joanna Sherman stepped on a heavy, sharp steel pipe that was on my hand. Anyone could see I was hurt, and I thought you’d at least have a shred of pity for me. But you ignored me. Instead, you helped up Joanna Sherman—the one who had just stepped on the pipe and injured me—all because she swayed a little."

"Vincent Grant, in that moment, I felt lower than dirt. You made me feel like I was the most despicable, worthless thing in the entire world, bar none!"

"Faye..." A deep sense of shame washed over Vincent Grant’s face. His heart felt like it was caught in a vise, tight and aching.

Sophia Shaw gave a faint, cold smile.

"After doing so many heartless things, you suddenly make this huge fuss over some trivial squabble started by Joanna Sherman that couldn’t hurt me in the slightest. You’re reporting to me, clarifying with the media, running all the way out here to find me, admitting you were wrong, punishing yourself... what’s the point of it all?"

It wasn’t that she wanted to dredge up the past to fish for sympathy; it was just that what Vincent Grant was doing now was truly absurd.

She tossed the greatcoat to Vincent Grant. "Don’t freeze to death out here. You’ll just cause trouble for my master and me!"

’The best kind of ex is one who acts like they’re dead. No bothering each other.’

Sophia Shaw took a few steps, then stopped again.

She didn’t want to play this game of cat and mouse with Vincent Grant, so she decided to make things clear once and for all.

"Honestly, Vincent Grant, what you feel for me right now is just guilt, not real affection."

"I’m grateful for the care you showed me when we were young. As for all the wrong things you did, I’ll let them all go. There’s no need to feel guilty. From now on, let’s just be strangers when we see each other."

"Besides, we’re already divorced."

BOOM!

Sophia Shaw’s words, "we’re already divorced," were drowned out by a massive explosion. She whipped her head around and saw thick flames erupting from the building where Old Master Sloan lived.

The sound of explosions continued to ring out.

Each deafening blast was accompanied by even fiercer flames.

"Master!"

Sophia Shaw sprinted toward the fire as if she’d gone mad.

By the time she reached the building, the entire structure was already engulfed in a sea of flames.

People kept stumbling and staggering out from inside.

But Old Master Sloan was nowhere to be seen!

’Old Master Sloan is elderly, and he lives on the top floor...’

Her heart ached with such searing pain it felt like it was about to bleed. She ducked her head and charged inside.

The smoke inside was so thick she couldn’t breathe.

Sophia Shaw could only cover her mouth and nose with her clothes as she ran all the way to the third floor.

"Master!" She pushed open the door to Old Master Sloan’s third-floor bedroom and saw him collapsed on the floor.

Old Master Sloan had clearly passed out; he was completely still.

Sophia Shaw quickly helped him up and started carrying him on her back toward the exit.

Although the old man wasn’t particularly heavy, he still weighed over a hundred pounds. Even with all her strength, she struggled, and her progress was incredibly slow.

BANG!

There was another explosive sound.

The roof could no longer hold and began to collapse downward.

In a panic, Sophia Shaw spun around to shield Old Master Sloan with her body, instinctively shutting her eyes.