“ I am not a reporter !” She protested but it fell on deaf ears . He waved her away and went inside .
She turned to the young woman who had walked in just then . “ Please , can you explain to him that I am not a reporter ?”
“ Who are you ? What do you want ?”
“ My name is Hazel . I am a writer . My grandparents were living here in 1940 . My grandfather was French . My grandmother was Chinese . They moved to France after my mother was born . My mother used to tell me the story of how they met and so many things about Shanghai . My dream was to write a book about their story . My mother knew only that my grandfather was a musician who used to record music in that ‘ Little Red House ’ ... and that my grandmother used to live here , in this building .”
“ That Little Red House is a restaurant now .” said the young woman .
“ Yes , I know ! I have been there ... no one knows anything . After a lot of research and questioning I came to know Mr . Chen is the only one who might know something . Are you his relative ?”
“ I am a volunteer from an organization which takes care of the elderly . My name is Lily . His children live in another city .”
“ Oh , I was hoping you would help me to convince him …”
“ He is very old you know , I am not sure he remembers anything ... most of the times he forgets where he is and wanders off . That ’ s why I come to check , to make sure he is fine .”
“ Please , if he would listen at all , I just want to ask a few questions . Maybe he might remember something . This book is my life ’ s work . I really need to complete it , and I don ’ t have much time . I don ’ t have much money left , either .” Hazel pleaded .
“ Alright , I will talk to him . But it ’ s late now , he should eat his dinner . Why don ’ t you come back tomorrow morning ? He is always in a better mood in the morning . I will explain your problem to him now .”
“ Thank you ! Will you be there tomorrow morning ? He might feel comfortable with you around .”
“ If you want , I can come over tomorrow . Here , take my number . Give me a call tomorrow morning . I will tell you whether he is willing to talk or not .”