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

When Shang Yibo woke up, it was already past 9 a.m., and the dreams he had had all night left him exhausted. He only managed to doze off again as dawn broke.

Even after getting up, I still felt dizzy.

After a quick wash, I changed into a white crew-neck t-shirt, layered with a white short-sleeved shirt with blue floral patterns, and black cargo pants. I looked at myself in the full-length mirror in the living room. Thankfully, apart from dark circles under my eyes, I didn't look too disheveled.

I have no scheduled announcements today, so I can freely manage my own time. It's a rare treat to have a day where I'm not controlled by anyone.

He put on his limited edition Rolex Yacht-Master watch, pushed open the door, and walked out of the room.

Shang Yibo debuted just two years ago and went from an ordinary person to a top star, making him a model of a successful comeback in the cutthroat entertainment industry.

Two years ago, he traveled alone to Hancheng, a place that creates stars, to find someone, for some fragments of his dreams.

On a boring afternoon, he was walking along a tree-lined path by the Han River when he was spotted by a talent scout who chased after him and handed him a business card.

With a skeptical and indifferent attitude, Shang Yibo found the address on the business card the next morning and pushed open the door of "Yihua Entertainment Agency".

At the time, Yihua Entertainment was collaborating with top variety shows in China and South Korea to jointly create the variety show "Susu C-Star".

This program aims to discover ordinary people who dream of becoming stars and record how they work hard step by step to transform from unknowns into dazzling stars.

At the urging of talent scouts and Shen Yihua, the boss of Yihua Entertainment, and also because Shang Yibo wanted to experience firsthand the feelings of the girl he remembered who once harbored dreams and longed to shine on stage and win the screams of countless fans, he signed up for the "Sculpting C-Star" program.

After becoming a pre-selection contestant, he and other amateurs from China and South Korea underwent grueling training and rigorous assessments to compete for the sole opportunity to debut as the center.

During those 100 days in what felt like a hellish abyss, under extremely harsh and difficult conditions, he almost gave up several times. Each time he was about to quit, he would think of Zhou Yanruo, a delicate girl, wondering if she had also gone through similar experiences, and whether she had persevered...

With the company's support and his own hard work, Shang Yibo finally passed all the tests in the training camp, won the support of many fans, and became the star that everyone was watching. He successfully debuted as the center of the group.

……

Shang Yibo returned home last night to attend a family gathering, and stayed at home afterward.

This is a three-story detached house, a blend of Chinese and Western architectural elements, clearly not a single, all-encompassing construction. Although it's quite old, it doesn't look dilapidated. It's evident that the owner paid close attention to daily maintenance and repairs. Nevertheless, the marks of time are still visible.

Shang Yibo's room is on the second floor of this house. The staircase is located near the middle, and it faces the common space on the second floor, which is arranged as a reception room. He and Chu Yiming, his younger brother, each occupy one side of the staircase. The layout of both sides is basically the same, with bedrooms, living rooms, dressing rooms, and bathrooms. Shang Yibo's side is a bit larger, with an additional practice room, which is a music room and dance practice room.

When Shang Yibo reached the top of the stairs, he noticed that Chu Yiming's room across the way had its door ajar. He glanced inside and saw a coat, a shirt, and slippers thrown to the side on the floor.

He frowned, then casually walked downstairs. The old-fashioned hand-woven carpet was thick and made no sound when stepped on.

Shang Yibo arrived at the living room on the first floor. To the left of the stairs was the dining room, where breakfast was already laid out, including Chinese, Western, and Japanese dishes, as well as fresh seasonal fruits.

Aunt Yan was carrying a plate of freshly fried bacon to the table full of food. When she saw Shang Yibo coming downstairs, she immediately called out, "Yibo, have some breakfast. I thought you'd be down soon. The bacon is freshly fried; it won't taste good if it gets cold."

Shang Yibo: "Oh."

Looking at the large breakfast spread on the table, Shang Yibo frowned again. Aunt Yan must have known that he had stayed at home last night, so she got up early to start preparing.

Perhaps because she didn't know what he wanted to eat today, she took it upon herself to prepare all of Shang Yibo's favorite foods, resulting in a huge table full of food. Even so, she was still afraid of forgetting anything, and just now, after estimating the time it would take for Shang Yibo to come downstairs, she went to fry a plate of bacon.

The only person in this family who still hopes for his return is Aunt Yan. Shang Yibo tried to calm himself down, lowered his eyelids, and reluctantly sat down.

According to the Chu family's custom, there is a family gathering once a month. The so-called "family gathering" is nothing more than family members attending dinner together.

Just to get everyone together for a meeting, to bring all the residents of this house to this dining table, to prove that there are family members living in this house—but to whom? The owner of the house? Weren't the previous owners all deceased? Does the current owner, Shang Yibo, need this recognition ceremony? Thinking of this, Shang Yibo couldn't help but let out a cold snort.

It was just a meal, a routine matter anyway. Since it was considered a family rule, Shang Yibo didn't care whether he participated or not. He mainly didn't want to be nagged or have to explain himself over a meal.

The atmosphere will be quiet during the meal, and it won't be that bad. Anyway, it won't last long, so just bear with it and it will pass.

At other times, family members are busy with their own things, and in such a large house, they hardly ever see each other.

Last night's family gathering was the same: dinner was plentiful, but the atmosphere was cold, and the scene had been almost unchanged for years.