Yang Qiuhua raised the phone in front of her. “Yaoyao, hang on. Let me find a seat.”
She raised her head and looked around as she walked.
Huo Yao acknowledged her gently. She looked behind her grandmother and asked her. “Are you at the park by the river?”
“Uh huh. I came out to get some stuff.” Wind gusted in the background and could be heard over the phone. The footage was a little shaky and she was clearly walking hurriedly.
Huo Yao pressed her forehead and said, “Calm down. Take your time.”
Although the old lady acknowledged her, she did not slow down. After some time, she finally found a long public bench and sat down and gasped deeply. “I’m getting old. I get tired just from walking a little.”
Huo Yao raised her brow. “You look pretty energetic to me.”
The old lady smiled from ear to ear. “That goes without saying. How could I not be energetic with my granddaughter’s medicine?”
“I see you have even learned to talk glibly while I am away.” Huo Yao pulled her bangs aside to reveal her forehead.
The old lady’s eyes misted a little as she looked at her granddaughter. Even though she had last seen her just a few months ago, it felt like forever.
Although they often video-called each other, it was not enough.
She looked at her granddaughter quietly for some time before she finally said, “My baby is all grown up now and so pretty.”
“Do you mean I wasn’t pretty in the past?” said Huo Yao somewhat narcissistically.
Her grandmother choked.
Huo Xiang rolled his eyes when he heard what Huo Yao said. Huo Yao had such thick skin that she would not even let an old lady off.
Huo Yao recalled the little princess next to her, so she switched to the rear camera mode and pointed it at Huo Xiang. “Grandma, this is my fourth older brother. Isn’t he pretty?”
Huo Xiang was stunned when he suddenly got cued.
It was this old lady who had raised his little sister, so Huo Xiang instantly straightened his back and greeted her politely. “Hi, Grandma. I am Huo Xiang. I’m Yaoyao’s fourth older brother.”
The old lady saw Huo Xiang’s face and noticed that Huo Yao and Huo Xiang looked like two peas in a pod, so she instinctively replied to Huo Yao. “Yes, he is very pretty.”
Huo Xiang could not bring himself to smile anymore the moment he heard this comment.
After Huo Xiang chatted with the old lady a little, Huo Yao switched back to the front-facing camera and talked to her.
Huo Yao opened the window slightly to let the cool wind in and pulled her jacket closer. After chatting briefly, she noticed that something was wrong with her grandmother’s expression. She narrowed her eyes thoughtfully before she asked. “Is there something you want to tell me?”
The old lady glanced away for a moment before she turned to look at the camera. “Nope. I only called because I missed you.”
Huo Yao raised her brow and exposed her right away. “Do you think I can’t tell that something is up with you?”
The old lady touched her nose. She recalled He Xiaoman calling her in the afternoon and shook her head. “There is really nothing.”
Huo Yao thought about the text message she received from Lu Ziming in the afternoon and said, “What did the Lu family tell you? Did they want you to pass a message to me?”
The old lady knew how clever her granddaughter was and it was impossible to hide this from her, so she decided to tell her the truth.
He Xiaoman had called her today. She did not say much except that she wanted to mend ties with her foster daughter and asked her to help.
If He Xiaoman simply wanted to mend ties, she would not have called Huo Yao to inform her.
She knew her daughter’s personality well, and could not help feeling worried about her true intentions.
