Chapter 87: Farewell

The others woke up to Evelyn serving dinner at the table. Ethan felt pleasantly surprised, and a little proud of his wife.

"Oh, you already prepared it. Thanks, dear," Maria said with a warm smile as she took her seat.

Jason also offered an appreciative nod before taking a seat beside his wife.

Ethan smiled at the sight.

As they began to eat, he finally opened his mouth and spoke.

"Mom, Dad, we’re leaving tomorrow."

Maria froze, her eyes wide. "You... oh, that’s right. You all have your businesses to attend to. Looks like I got too used to your presence."

She gave a reluctant smile which made Ethan feel a little sad.

Jason patted her shoulder and turned to his son.

"I thought you were going to stay here for a few years, hmph. At least you know how to be reserved. I would have chased you out and left Evelyn and Nora alone if you decided to leech off your parents."

Ethan laughed dryly, unamused. Still, he wasn’t offended. Instead, he shot back.

"Why would I want to leech off you? Tsk, tsk, tsk. Old men these days..."

Jason’s eyes sharpened, but he didn’t retort.

"Well, it’s not like we won’t be visiting again," Ethan said casually. "Besides, you guys can also come over to visit us. I’m sure you’ll like it."

Maria smiled gently and nodded. "Don’t worry, we’ll come visit you soon."

"Alright, let’s keep eating. We don’t want this special food growing cold," Jason joked, lightening the mood and making Evelyn blush.

Everyone continued eating, and before long, they had completely emptied the plates. Ethan and Evelyn headed to the kitchen to handle the dishes while Nora stayed behind to listen to another story from her grandmother.

As Ethan washed the plates and she rinsed them, Evelyn said, "Your parents are awesome, Ethan. Cherish them."

He paused and turned to her, catching a flicker of sadness in her eyes.

He playfully nudged her and said, "Your parents aren’t that bad too. If you ignore their love of money, they seem pretty nice."

Evelyn smiled faintly. "I guess so. I just want to make sure I have no regrets concerning them before they leave this world."

Ethan paused, then rinsed his hands. Drying them with a towel, he pulled Evelyn into a warm hug.

The woman didn’t resist, wrapping her own arms around him and resting her head on his chest. Ethan gently brushed her hair with his hand and whispered.

"Whatever you want to do for them, let me know. As long as it isn’t beyond my capabilities, I’ll help."

Evelyn smiled and nodded. "Don’t worry, I’ll handle it myself. But if I can’t, I’ll surely rely on you."

Her words brought a smile to his face, and he gently kissed her hair.

"Alright. Let’s keep washing before my dad comes to whack me."

Evelyn chuckled and pulled away from him, allowing them to resume their work.

After cleaning up in the kitchen, Ethan returned to the living room with a bright smile on his face.

"Time for maths, Nora~!"

The little girl flinched, and immediately ran towards the bedroom. Ethan shook his head, and with one stretch of his hand, he grabbed her by the waist and carried her in his arms.

"Ahh! No! I don’t want to do maths!"

She protested, struggling weakly and hitting his chest.

However, Ethan didn’t even budge. He took her to the dining and placed some of his old textbooks before her.

"Look at this—Advanced Mathematics. Your amazing dad studied this every night while he was your age. You should emulate that behavior."

Pouting, Nora grumbled. "But I’m a girl."

Poking her cheek as he sat beside her, Ethan grinned wickedly. "Maths doesn’t care about gender, princess. It only cares about who’s the smartest."

He paused, then added. "Well, if you do well over the next thirty minutes, I’ll allow you to use your iPad for an hour before going to sleep tonight."

Nora’s expression changed immediately. She looked at him and asked, "Really?"

Ethan nodded. "Trust me."

She smiled and opened the textbook by herself. "Let’s start!"

Evelyn watched them interact, surprised. She almost couldn’t believe that Nora was acting this unrestrained with Ethan.

Had her dislike for him finally melted away?

She wasn’t sure, but the possibility made her smile. Picking up the pink iPad, she examined it, amazed.

’No brand? This is strange. But it’s storage and other components are good.’

For the next thirty minutes, Ethan taught Nora another topic which she initially found difficult, but managed to learn.

However, by the end of the thirty minutes lesson, her head already felt hot from all the studying. Still, that didn’t stop her from getting excited at the idea of watching a cartoon on her iPad for the next one hour.

Ethan allowed her as he had promised, and immediately turned it off once the time was up.

They all went to their rooms at the same time, with Ethan lingering behind in the passage.

Maria stood opposite him with a smile, then pulled him into a hug. Ethan smiled, exhaling a tired breath as she patted his head.

"My boy, I’m proud of you," She said, her voice steady and firm. "Keep on being a good boy like I raised you, okay?"

Ethan nodded. "I will. Thanks, Mom."

Maria released him and patted his back. "Off you go, son. Goodnight."

Ethan watched her go to her room before entering his own room.

He immediately joined Evelyn and Nora under the cover, sandwiching the little girl between himself and his wife.

"Goodnight, everyone," Nora said quietly.

"Goodnight, sweetie."

"Goodnight, princess."

Evelyn and Ethan replied, then went silent. It didn’t take long for them to fall asleep.

The next morning, they woke up early, took their baths, and packed their luggage. Jason and Maria also got out of bed and prepared to see them off to the train station.

Coincidentally, Jason’s new car was delivered just as they stepped out of the house.

Seeing the brand new car, Maria, Evelyn, and Nora were shocked. Meanwhile, Ethan and his father had smug expressions on their faces.