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

Zhou Yanruo's self-description as "middle-aged" really provoked Shang Yibo.

What did Wang Jie experience during the twenty years she disappeared?

What kind of heartbreak would a little girl feel if her parents wouldn't let her attend an artist training class?

Thinking of this, Shang Yibo's heart clenched, as if his internal organs were being torn apart; he felt not only pain but also panic.

He dared not speculate, much less ask directly.

Shang Yibo wanted to prepare everything; he couldn't bear to let Zhou Yanruo fall into fear and pain any longer.

"Mr. Zhou, we will receive tomorrow's schedule a little later. The last-minute changes to the schedule require coordination with all parties, and usually, the announcements are issued quite late in such cases."

"It's alright. Just take care of President Shang's affairs. You don't need to worry about me anymore. I can keep up."

Shang Yibo held his phone up in front of him, listening to Zhou Yanruo and Ding Jiajia seriously discussing work. He suppressed the mixed feelings in his heart and forced himself to immerse himself in the work.

In any case, only by doing well in the present can Shang Yibo have the ability to sort out and resolve the issues of the past.

He wanted to help Zhou Yanruo regain her sense of security and confidence.

Shang Yibo put down his phone, mustered his courage, looked Zhou Yanruo in the eye, and said in as calm a tone as possible, "This is not the office of Rushang Group, and there is no President Shang here. In the future, there is no need to be too reserved when we work together."

Ding Jiajia immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes, it just feels a bit strange to address you like that. Mr. Zhou, when we're all family, let's not use 'Mr. Shang' anymore, okay?"

"Oh, of course, I'll call you Teacher Shang Yibo."

"Pfft, that's even more of a mouthful, Mr. Zhou."

"Mr. Zhou isn't here either, okay?"

“I’ve wanted to call Yan Ruo ‘sister’ for a long time, hehe…” Ding Jiajia was unusually talkative today. “How about we let Yibo decide?”

"Yibo, what would you like Yanruo to call you?" she asked Shang Yibo.

Shang Yibo replied simply, "Yibo."

"See, I told you, the simpler the better. Sister Yanruo, let's both just call each other Yibo." After Ding Jiajia finished speaking, she turned to Shang Yibo and said, "Then Yibo, you can call me Sister Yanruo like I do."

"..." Shang Yibo glared at Ding Jiajia but didn't say anything.

"Sister Yanruo, I've given you Yibo's WeChat. Add him so we can communicate more easily in the future." Ding Jiajia said to Zhou Yanruo, and then confirmed with Shang Yibo, "Right, Yibo?"

"That way we won't lose contact," Shang Yibo whispered.

Ding Jiajia was fiddling with her phone when her WeChat notification rang.

"Sister Qingnan."

"Jiajia, are you still with Yibo?"

"Yes, we're together, and Sister Yanruo is here too."

"Oh, Mr. Zhou from Rushang?"

"Yes, Mr. Zhou."

"That's perfect, let's have a meeting together."

Ding Jiajia told Shang Yibo and Zhou Yanruo, "It's Sister Qingnan, we need to have a video conference."

Shang Yibo frowned.

Zhou Yanruo: "Qingnan... Sister?"

“Qi Qingnan, the publicity director,” Ding Jiajia introduced to Zhou Yanruo in a low voice.

“Mm.” Zhou Yanruo nodded.

"Sister Qingnan, I've put the phone on speakerphone, we can start the meeting now."

Qi Qingnan: "Xichuan's announcement has been released. Before sending it to you, I think it's necessary to communicate with them first."

"Ok."

"Hello, Qingnan, I am Yanruo."

"Hello," Qi Qingnan replied.

“I think it would be easier to communicate if the announcement was sent over first. Is that alright?” Zhou Yanruo suggested.

"Of course you can," Qi Qingnan said to her assistant. "Xiaoqin, send it to Jiajia."

After receiving the notice, Ding Jiajia forwarded it to Zhou Yanruo.

Zhou Yanruo opened it on IPAID so that Shang Yibo, Ding Jiajia, and Zhou Yanruo could all see it while sitting on the sofa.

Qi Qingnan: "Didn't you guys see the trending topics? The emergency response that Lao Jie led you to do was effective. It's just a pity that Xu Nuo didn't let us off the hook when he came over there."

Ding Jiajia: "Heh, I knew it wouldn't be that simple."

Zhou Yanruo: "I checked Xiangyu Entertainment. It would be strange if they didn't join in this fun."

Qi Qingnan: "That's right, his manager Lei Lei is known for stirring up trouble. He always believes that social media is his strongest battleground, and he'll create topics even if there aren't any. With all this excitement we've been up to these past few days, how could he miss out on this opportunity?"

Ding Jiajia: "When we were in the group, I felt that Xu Nuolai didn't seem like the kind of person who would do this kind of thing."

Qi Qingnan: "Birds of a feather flock together."

Zhou Yanruo: "I also checked the publicity for the dramas Xu Nuolai has participated in in the past, as well as his performance. Qingnan's judgment is correct. He is secretly cooperating with his agent Lei Lei. Just like now, he is riding the wave of popularity, reaping a wave of popularity, and taking advantage of our misfortune."

Zhou Yanruo's ability to quickly integrate into her professional work, and her ability to cross boundaries and fields, impressed everyone present.

Shang Yibo remained silent, looking at the capable Zhou Yanruo, thinking to himself: That helpless, often confused Zhou Yanruo. Is she really the one he's been searching for?

Qi Qingnan: "Xiangyu Entertainment initially refused to participate in the promotion of Xichuan, insisting that Xu Nuo had no schedule and would fly directly to Shanghai in a couple of days."

"Now that they see Shang Yibo is trending, they immediately agreed to come to Xichuan to participate in the event," Zhou Yanruo said with a slight smile and a look of disdain.

"Yan Ruo's prediction is completely correct."

Ding Jiajia: "It's good that you agreed to come. We just suggested to Brother Can that we replace the Shanghai event with the Xichuan event, and Brother Can said that we can communicate with the production team."

Qi Qingnan: "Everyone had the same idea, and the production team and we hit it off immediately."

Shang Yibo: "That would be best. How many days is Xichuan's event?"

“Yibo, as soon as the schedule came out, I rushed to connect with you to remind you that it’s best to keep your distance from Xu Nuo during the event,” Qi Qingnan said. “We just released our announcement clarifying the rumors, and they immediately created a CP supertopic called ‘A Promise Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold.’ You might not know, but when we finalized the publicity plan, both the production team and Xiangyu Entertainment proposed creating a male-male CP to promote the two male leads, which we consistently disagreed with. This time, they took advantage of our rumor incident and the risk of breach of contract. They acted without communicating with us, catching us completely off guard.”

"We also have to thank them for helping to clarify the situation, which has left us speechless with frustration."

"Yes."

"Despicable," Shang Yibo said coldly.

"Isn't this the norm in the entertainment industry?" Zhou Yanruo comforted Shang Yibo, her tone suggesting she knew the rules of the industry better than even the top celebrities.

Shang Yibo's lips unconsciously curved into a smile: Zhou Yanruo is still Zhou Yanruo, always so serious and self-righteous, she can't change it.

Qi Qingnan: "Please check the announcement. We can discuss any issues you may have. By the way, regarding the event at Lifan Garden tomorrow afternoon, we are currently communicating with the brand about Yibo's outfit. It can be delivered tomorrow morning. We have already asked the brand to keep it confidential. You should also be careful not to reveal anything before the event tomorrow, not only the brand, but also the material, style, and color."

Ding Jiajia: "That's for sure, that's how we usually do it, but does it have to be this meticulous?"

Zhou Yanruo: "We understand that we will not give the other party any material to create a CP (couple pairing) effect."

Shang Yibo listened to the three women chatting animatedly, one after another.

My precious private space has been completely taken over by work again, and I'm already feeling annoyed.

He couldn't help but announce, "Can your meeting end now?"