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

After a long while, the sky outside the window gradually darkened, and the streetlights began to flicker, adding a touch of hazy beauty to the night. Shang Yibo gently took Zhou Yanruo's hand, and the two walked to the living room together and slowly sat down.

Zhou Yanruo, somewhat embarrassed, pulled her hand away to smooth her hair, coughed lightly, and steered the conversation back to the previous topic. "Yibo, do you think the person who sent me the private message might be Jian Zheng?" Her voice carried a hint of uncertainty and doubt.

Shang Yibo shook his head slightly, his eyes firm, and said, "It shouldn't be him. Jian Zheng is ruthless these days, but he's always been straightforward and wouldn't use anonymous private messages to test or provoke someone. Mainly, he has no reason to do so."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanruo frowned slightly, seemingly surprised by Shang Yibo's judgment. "Oh? You don't think it's Jian Zheng?"

Shang Yibo pondered for a moment, "It must be someone close to us, or someone who knows about what happened twenty years ago. That narrows it down. But I think of someone who could be very likely it."

"Who?" Zhou Yanruo asked impatiently.

Shang Yibo slowly uttered two words: "Zhang Qian".

Upon hearing this, Zhou Yanruo's face showed an expression of disbelief.

"Impossible, right? I don't know Zhang Qian. He has no grudge against me, there's no reason for him to target me like this." Her tone was full of confusion.

Shang Yibo gently patted Zhou Yanruo's shoulder to soothe her emotions, "Yanruo, don't panic. Although you don't know Zhang Qian, it doesn't mean he has no motive to target you. Maybe he's acting under someone's orders, or maybe he has some misunderstanding about you. I'll take you to see him in the next couple of days, and we'll ask him face to face."

"Okay, let's go tomorrow. I don't want to be bothered by these boring things anymore."

"There are no announcements tomorrow morning. Zhang Qian's company is in the suburbs, so we'll go there first thing in the morning."

"Is this the place where I picked you up last time?"

"By the way, do you know that place? You still have the location Jian Zheng sent you, right?"

"I didn't delete it."

The two were talking when the doorbell rang.

Zhou Yanruo quickly sat up straight. "Did you make plans with someone?"

Shang Yibo got up and walked towards the door. "I didn't make an appointment with anyone. I'll go open the door."

The visitors were Ding Jiajia and Xiao Guangzi, each carrying four large bags.

Xiao Guangzi stood at the door and said cautiously, "Teacher Yibo, we had a dinner party at a restaurant tonight. I was thinking that since there was some public opinion, it might be inconvenient for you to go to public places, so Jiajia and I went to the restaurant to get takeout."

Seeing this, Zhou Yanruo, who had walked to the door with Shang Yibo, said, "Well done, come in quickly."

Shang Yibo stepped aside to make way.

Xiao Guangzi's tone became cheerful after being praised, "Sister Yanruo, let's go and arrange the dishes. I guarantee they'll look as good as those in a high-end restaurant. Teacher Yibo specially booked this to welcome you."

Ding Jiajia lowered her head and silently followed Xiao Guangzi towards the restaurant.

Zhou Yanruo whispered to Shang Yibo, "Thank you."

Shang Yibo pursed his lips and raised his chin slightly, as if to say, "You're welcome."

"Should we invite Teacher Sai and the other staff over to make it a little fun? Everyone's been working so hard these past few days," Shang Yibo suggested to Zhou Yanruo.

Zhou Yanruo understood that Shang Yibo had made this arrangement to relieve her stress, so she nodded and agreed, "You decide, I'll listen to you."

"Xiao Guangzi, go and invite Teacher Sai. See who else is at the hotel. Invite them all over for a meal."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Guangzi put down the plates he was stacking, happily agreed, and ran outside.

Zhou Yanruo whispered to Shang Yibo, "Go sit in the living room for a while, I'll go help Jiajia set the table."

Shang Yibo glanced at Ding Jiajia, who was silently arranging the dishes with her head down, shook his head slightly, and walked towards the living room.

Seeing Ding Jiajia taking a fast food container out of a large bag, Zhou Yanruo handed her a plate and said softly, "Jiajia, have you thought about it with Jian Zheng?"

Ding Jiajia: "Sister Yanruo, I don't know what kind of friends you, Yibo, and Jianzheng are, or what kind of past you have that I don't know about. I like him."

“The matter between us can’t be explained in a short time, but it has nothing to do with your relationship. As long as you’ve thought it through, just follow your heart.” Zhou Yanruo paused, hesitated for a moment, and then spoke again, “However, I don’t know if I should say this. I should definitely think about it more.”

Ding Jiajia stopped what she was doing, looked at Zhou Yanruo and said, "Sister Yanruo, you can say whatever you want to say. I know you mean well."

Zhou Yanruo regretted her words as soon as they left her mouth. Her own feelings were a mess; what right did she have to interfere in other people's relationships? Seeing Ding Jiajia waiting expectantly for her to continue, Zhou Yanruo felt a pang of pity. She used to be such a cheerful and kind girl, but in just a few days, she had become melancholy. It was said that love brought joy, but that wasn't entirely true; it could also bring sorrow.

“I’ve known Jian Zheng for over twenty years, and he’s changed a lot. He’s probably gone through some things that have made him who he is today. I’ll let him tell you what those things were. What I want to say is, if possible, advise him to let go of what he should let go of, so he can live a more relaxed life. After all, who doesn’t have to look forward after experiencing pain?”

Ding Jiajia stared wide-eyed, clearly not understanding what Zhou Yanruo meant. She opened her mouth to speak, but was interrupted by Zhou Yanruo.

"My words may be a bit difficult to understand, and it's okay if you don't understand them, because you don't know what happened. You can persuade him when you have the chance."

Zhou Yanruo patted Ding Jiajia's hand, "Jian Zheng is still a kind person. It's not that easy for him to be a bad person."

Just then, the doorbell rang. Zhou Yanruo smiled at Ding Jiajia and then called out to Shang Yibo in the living room, "Yibo, come on in. Teacher Sai and the others have arrived."

Hearing the noise, Shang Yibo walked towards the restaurant and saw Sai Linli carrying two jars of wine as he entered. He greeted him, "Teacher Sai, you brought wine with you."

Serin readily agreed, "No feast is complete without wine, let's have some to liven things up."

As he spoke, Teacher Sai placed the wine jar on the dining table. "Xiao Guangzi, go and open the wine."

Xiao Guangzi: "Alright." With a 'click,' the cork was pulled out.

Instantly, a sweet, cloying aroma of wine wafted out.

Zhou Yanruo came out of the kitchen clutching a pair of chopsticks. When she smelled the familiar sweet aroma of wine, she noticed that there were two jars of wine on the table. Wasn't this the homemade sweet wine from the small supermarket downstairs? The sweet wine that she and Shang Yibo had drunk too much of before without thinking.

She looked up at Shang Yibo.

Shang Yibo was also looking at her with a playful expression.