The Secret Realm of Time, His and Her Life Through the Changes

For several days in a row, the training class was not held.

Besides dealing with repeated inquiries and inspections from various departments, the teachers and students in the training program spontaneously organized themselves into two groups. One group was responsible for raising medical expenses for Xue Jiang, who was still in the ICU, while the other group was responsible for helping Cheng Zhi's family with his funeral arrangements.

Wang Jie and Zhou Yanruo visited Cheng Zhi's home twice to see Uncle Cheng and Aunt Cheng, but each time the security guard at the door asked permission first and politely turned them away.

Today marks their third visit here in just a few days. This four-story detached villa, located in the suburbs of Xichuan, is adjacent to Cuihu Lake and situated in a prime location in the city. It boasts unparalleled lake views, exuding nobility and elegance. Its imposing name, "Cuihu Villa," further underscores its status as a high-end luxury residence.

At the villa's entrance, two uniformed security guards remained on high alert. However, unlike the previous two times, this time there were two additional security personnel in black suits and headsets. This sudden appearance made the already tense atmosphere even more strained.

Wang Jie parked his bicycle in a grove of trees not far away. The two walked to the front of the villa and were about to greet the security guard.

A black Mercedes-Benz happened to drive up and stop in front of the villa. A tall security guard stepped forward to check him, and a man in a black suit wearing a headset followed, whispering a report into his headset as he walked. Afterward, the man in the black suit said to the tall security guard, "Let him through."

The tall security guard nodded, took a step back, and gestured for the Mercedes to come in. The shorter guard pressed the access control button, and the wrought iron gate slowly opened automatically, allowing the Mercedes to drive in.

Seeing this, Wang Jie waited for a while, and after the security guard finished his work, he stepped forward and explained his purpose.

Unexpectedly, this time the security guards not only refused to let them in, but the tall security guard also jumped up and down and cursed loudly: "Who do you think you are? My young master thought highly of you and played with you. But you have done something wrong. You killed my young master, and you still dare to come here to mourn him."

The short security guard chimed in, "If we weren't too busy dealing with you right now, we would have already sent someone to take care of you. You wouldn't be able to keep yourselves so carefree."

Wang Jie was stunned by the insults, and Zhou Yanruo was also at a loss for what to do in the face of the sudden abuse.

After the tall security guard finished cursing, he said to the short security guard, "I saw these two people come here a couple of days ago. I even asked the supervisor on their behalf whether they could go in. If I had known that they were the ones who killed Young Master Cheng, I would have kicked them out right then and there."

The short security guard replied, "Our young master Cheng is such a good person. He even gave me money last month, urging me to take my son to see a doctor."

The tall security guard chimed in, "Sigh, good people don't live long. Bad guys live a thousand years."

The short security guard added, "That's right. All of us brothers, including Brother Hong from the kitchen, have received help from Cheng Su. He's so kind-hearted for his age."

The two security guards grew increasingly angry as they talked, and together they came over and shooed Wang Jie and Zhou Yanruo away: "What are you standing here for! Get out of here!"

Wang Jie finally came to her senses and stepped forward to argue, "How can you talk like that! We are Cheng Zhi's friends. It's unfortunate that this happened, and we didn't want it to happen either. We came to visit Uncle and Aunt, so why are you talking to us like that?"

Zhou Yanruo cried and pulled Wang Jie, "Forget it, don't talk to them anymore, let's go."

A middle-aged man in a black suit and tie walked out from the side door of the wrought iron gate. He looked like the villa's butler or the head of security. He looked Wang Jie and Zhou Yanruo up and down and said, "President Cheng can't take care of you right now. You'd better leave and don't come back again."

Zhou Yanruo thought the middle-aged man looked kind and plump, so she wiped away her tears, stepped forward, and said in a choked voice, "Uncle, I'm sorry to bother you. If it's inconvenient for you to see your parents, could you please let us pay our respects to Cheng Zhi?"

The middle-aged man chuckled and said irritably, "Forget it, I don't need it."

Zhou Yanruo is still trying to persuade him, saying, "We are Cheng Zhi's good friends. We are very sad and heartbroken that he is gone."

The middle-aged man glanced at Zhou Yanruo and said, "Get out of here before I lose my patience."

After saying that, he turned around and told the security guard, "Watch carefully. If there are any more mistakes, you're both fired."

The two security guards, one tall and one short, responded in unison, "Yes, yes, Uncle Luo."

Zhou Yanruo took two steps to catch up, just about to speak again.

Uncle Luo turned around, his tone filled with obvious reproach and sorrow, and continued, "President Cheng was almost fifty when he had Cheng Zhi, so naturally he doted on him. Our Cheng Zhi was also a promising child, such a good boy. It's just that he met you unreliable people, a bunch of good-for-nothings. Now he's in the situation of an old man burying his son. These days, Madam has fainted several times from grief and had to be sent to a sanatorium. We're afraid she might do something rash, so she needs someone to take care of her day and night. President Cheng has also fallen ill, but he's still holding on, insisting on personally handling the young master's funeral arrangements. How dare you people still show your faces in this house?"

Uncle Luo grew increasingly angry as he spoke, and finally blurted out, "A jinx!"

Zhou Yanruo was both ashamed and angry after being scolded. Her face turned red, and she sobbed so hard she couldn't speak.

Now that things have come to this, continuing this entanglement would truly be unreasonable and disrespectful to the deceased, as well as betraying the original intention of comforting Cheng Zhi's family.

Wang Jie stopped talking to the security guard, stepped forward, pulled Zhou Yanruo aside, nodded to the indifferent-looking middle-aged man, and said, "Excuse me! We'll be leaving now."

Wang Jie rode his bicycle with Zhou Yanruo as they headed towards the city center.

Wang Jie asked, "Shall we go to the hospital?"

Zhou Yanruo said, "Let's go back to Yangxi Road. I don't want to go anywhere else."

"Okay, let's go back to Yangxi Road."

Zhou Yanruo sat on the back of Wang Jie's bicycle, her arms tightly wrapped around his waist, as if she wanted to melt into his warm back. She turned her face slightly and gently pressed her cheek against his back.

The two rode in silence for the rest of the journey, the world around them seemingly quiet, save for the sound of their wheels rolling on the gravel road. Zhou Yanruo's heart was heavy, and tears streamed down her face like broken beads, silently soaking Wang Jie's back.

The September wind carried a slight chill, mingling with her tears. A cool sensation ran down Wang Jie's back, and he instinctively straightened his back, conveying a sense of strength to Zhou Yanruo.

At that moment, they seemed to become the closest of reliance, and their hearts found solace in the silent exchange.