Chapter 113 - A Spark Of Hope

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"Teacher Qian, you have been staying with both Hazel and Neil for a month now, if I am not mistaken," Sophie said as she was watching Hazel helping her to slice the scallion with the kid-friendly knife she had bought just now.

"Hmm… That's right."

"It must be hard for you to look after my son and granddaughter," Sophie continued.

Hearing that she was mentioned in the conversation, Hazel put down the knife and frowned at her grandmother. "Grandma, I am very obedient." Then, she turned to her teacher and tilted her head. "Right, Teacher Qian?"

Edith laughed and pinched the little girl's adorable cheek. "That's right. Hazel is the most obedient one. You are my little helper."

Hazel's eyes sparkled with joy. Then, she turned to her grandmother with a slight gloating look. 

"Alright, I'm sorry." Sophie smiled helplessly. There was a tinge of joy on her face. 

It felt as if it was not long ago that this girl had chosen to sit alone with a dull look in her eyes. Now that Sophie had seen how this little girl had shown more expression on her face, Sophie was relieved.

"My Hazel is the most obedient one and easy to look after," Sophie continued. "It was your Uncle Neil that was hard to look after."

"Un. Un." Hazel nodded in agreement.

Edith watched this scene and did not know whether she should laugh. If President Mo knew what his niece think of him, wouldn't he be speechless?

"I hope that my son did not give you too much trouble," Sophie said as Hazel concentrated on her task. 

"Mrs. Mo, he didn't." Edith flashed her an assuring smile.

"Don't lie to me. I know my son well." Sophie laughed. "He has always been aloof from a young age. Trying to hold a conversation with him was hard." She paused, leaned closer to Edith, and whispered, "I heard that some people have been calling him an ice block."

Edith froze at Sophie's words.

"Don't you think it's true?" Sophie saw the surprised look on Edith's face and laughed.

"Mrs. Mo, where did you hear that?" Edith asked with a slightly shaky voice. For a second, Edith was scared that Sophie knew that she had called that name right on his face just a week ago.

Anyway, Hazel had heard them mentioning 'Iceblock Mo' last night and it was not strange if she had spoken to her grandmother about it.

Sophie waved her hand. "Aish, this nickname was known to the people in his company as well as in our social circle. I thought that this nickname describes my son well."

Edith watched as Sophie made fun of her son speechlessly.

"If my son made things hard for you, you have to tell me," Sophie said. "I will definitely help you to scold him."

"Mrs. Mo, you don't have to worry. President Mo did not make things hard for me," Edith said quickly. "He is not as cold as he looks. I don't think talking to him was hard. At least, he would listen to my words whenever I gave him advice on Hazel."

"Really?" A glint of light flashed in Sophie's eyes upon hearing Edith's words.

Edith nodded. "Mrs. Mo I would not lie to you."

"Then I'm glad," Sophie spoke.

Her heart leaped in joy at the thought that there was a spark of hope in setting the two together.

As long as Edith had a good opinion of his son, then everything was possible, right?

…

When Neil arrived, the smell of his favorite braised fish wafted to his nose. His father, Lucas was sitting in the living room with a business journal in his hand and there were sounds of chattering voices coming from the kitchen.

A slight frown appeared on his face when he heard the noise, but he found that he did not dislike this atmosphere.

Neil greeted his father and walked over to the kitchen to see what was going on.

His mother was in the kitchen, stirring something in the pot as she continued to chat with Edith and Hazel. At one glance, Neil could see that his mother was sharing her recipe with Edith. Once in a while, Edith would ask his mother questions and his mother would reply patiently.

Neil leaned half his body against the wall and thought that this was a good scene to watch. His gaze turned soft as something warm bloomed in his heart. Neil found that he could really get used to this noisy chatter in his house.

As if sensing that someone was watching them, Edith turned around and smiled. "President Mo, you're back."

Neil replied with a light hum and watched as Hazel hopped off the chair and walked over to him.

"Uncle, you're back." The little girl was stared at him with her pair of sparkling eyes. "Grandma is teaching us how to make your favorite braised fish. I helped to slice some vegetables. Later, you have to eat a lot."

Neil crouched to get on Hazel's level. He patted her hair and smiled. "You know how to use a knife now?" His hand moved subconsciously to check for any sign of injury in her hand.

Although he agreed with Edith that teaching Hazel to cook a few dishes while she was still young could be beneficial, Neil felt heartache at the thought that the little girl would cut herself while handling a knife or suffer any burns or other injury.

Hazel was the only child that his brother and sister-in-law had left. Neil could not bear to see something bad happen to her, even if it was just a tiny wound.

"En," Hazel nodded. She noticed the anxious look on her uncle's face and giggled. "Grandma bought a set of knives for me just now. It wasn't sharp, but it can cut vegetables. Uncle, I know how to cut vegetables now."

A breath of relief escaped him. "Well, you still have to be very careful, alright? Don't use them unless under a grownup's supervision, alright?"

"I know," Hazel nodded obediently.

Neil stood up and glanced at the set of kid-friendly knives on the kitchen counter. 

"Go and get changed," Sophie waved her hand at her son, urging him to leave the kitchen. "Dinner will be served soon. Don't let Hazel go hungry waiting for you." 

Hearing his mother's nagging, Neil finally left the kitchen with a helpless sigh.

Neil came down in his house clothes after a quick shower.

As they were having dinner, Neil could not help but noticed that his mother was acting strangely. She would keep on piling food on Edith's bowl until it resembled a small hill.

His eyes narrowed, wondering just what was his mother up to. It was not that he did not notice his mother's strange attitude this recently. The strange glint in his mother's eyes was telling him that his mother was brewing up something.

Noticing the helpless look on Edith's face, Neil decided to speak up. "Mom, stop piling up Teacher Qian's bowl with too much food. She won't be able to eat properly if you keep on doing that."

Sophie clicked her tongue at her son. "I'm merely expressing my gratitude. What do you know?" She turned to Edith and smiled. "Teacher Qian, you have to eat more."

Neil resumed eating as his mother has stopped piling up food for others and was glad that his mother was no longer acting strange.

Just as he thought that perhaps he was overthinking about his mother's attitude, he caught his mother saying something to the kindergarten teacher. 

He did not know what it was, but Edith had a hesitant look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Neil spoke as he approached the two.

Sophie's eyes brightened up when she saw her son. The smile on her face stretched up and her eyes turned crescent. "Perfect timing.. Neil, you go and accompany Teacher Qian."

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