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

Unable to find a suitable assistant for Shang Yibo, the agency had to seek help from Rushang Group. Before a suitable candidate could be found, Rushang Group would temporarily send Ding Jiajia to fill the vacancy.

When Ding Jiajia received the transfer order, she looked gloomy and distressed. She had already heard that this big star was very difficult to deal with.

Previous assistants often complained that they were caught in the middle, torn between company assignments and the inability to persuade Shang Yibo to carry them out. They couldn't afford to offend either side. When they couldn't have it both ways, they had no choice but to avoid it.

Ding Jiajia, thinking that it was just a temporary job and she could always return to the group if things went wrong, argued with Shang Yibo when she needed to express her opinion. This actually built trust with Shang Yibo, and their work cooperation became more and more tacit. They worked together like this for two years.

Shang Yibo is usually very quiet, and Ding Jiajia isn't a talkative girl either. Shang Yibo is a true rich kid; those who don't know him might think he's aloof and arrogant, but he's just slow to warm up and doesn't want to pay attention to people and things that don't concern him.

He didn't have any of the airs of a rich kid; he was just a simple and honest young man.

Ding Jiajia felt that this was the real Shang Yibo, and the rumors about him being fierce and difficult to please were utter nonsense.

Ding Jiajia first communicated with Rushang Group to find a suitable venue for the press conference, and then informed the investors and brokerage firm of the results. After coordination, all parties agreed to the arrangement. She then contacted the publicity team to finalize the preparation of all necessary promotional materials.

After working for most of the day, everything for the press conference was quickly arranged.

Next, she scheduled a tight schedule to finish the first stop of the promotional tour before July 19.

After everything was ready, she booked two plane tickets to Xichuan City for July 20th.

She knew that Shang Yibo would go to Xichuan City for a few days every year around this time, and she always accompanied him. She had to arrange his itinerary and do everything she could to help him avoid the media, fans, paparazzi, and stalkers.

However, Ding Jiajia had no idea why Shang Yibo had to go to Xichuan every year at this time. He would disappear as soon as he got off the plane. Ding Jiajia had no idea where he went, where he stayed, or what he did.

Ding Jiajia never inquired about it, nor did she bring it up herself. She heard that a former assistant had been driven away by Shang Yibo in a fit of anger because she was curious about this matter. She also heard that it might be related to Shang Yibo's biological mother. Of course, Ding Jiajia stopped these rumors as soon as she heard them, which is why this private trip has not been exposed to this day.

The press conference was ultimately held at the Yishang International Hotel, a subsidiary of the Rushang Group. Chu Fanqing also personally approved the post-press conference thank-you banquet for reporters. In addition to the high-standard catering, generous gifts were also prepared, all of which were sponsored by the Rushang Group.

When Zhou Yanruo informed the brokerage company of the above arrangements, the brokerage company naturally accepted them gladly and thanked Rushang Group for its strong support.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Zhou. Please convey our gratitude to Chairman Chu. Thank you for your support. This drama is sure to be a huge hit, and Shang Yibo will become even more popular." Producer Yang Ying expressed his gratitude exaggeratedly over the phone.

“Okay, you’re welcome. I’ll definitely pass on the message to Chairman Chu,” Zhou Yanruo said professionally.

"Are all people in the entertainment industry this exaggerated? It's just saving them some money, is it really necessary to be this grateful? Besides, Ru Shang was just supporting his own major shareholder," Zhou Yanru thought to herself.

Zhou Yanruo, as the head of the chairman's office of Rushang Group, has been working at the group for nearly half a year.

Prior to this, the original manager, Sister Lingling, responded to the "national call" and quickly became pregnant with her second child when the two-child policy was first implemented. From then on, Sister Lingling became the "giant panda" of her family, receiving special protection. She resigned without hesitation and went home to rest and prepare for her pregnancy.

The Chairman's Office occupies a crucial position in the group's operations. Historically, this position has been filled by internal promotions, typically selecting trusted confidants. Only after multiple considerations, including a comprehensive assessment of loyalty and competence, are these individuals assigned to work alongside the Chairman and subsequently enter the group's core roles.

Sister Lingling has worked diligently in this position for nearly ten years. Before that, she had accumulated rich work experience in almost all the important departments of the group. Through job rotation, she not only became familiar with the operation of each department, but also laid a solid foundation for her future work. It was precisely because of her outstanding performance and unremitting efforts that she was transferred to this crucial position.

With Sister Lingling leaving, the vacancy of such an important position has already affected the normal operation of the group.

Rushang Group found Zhou Yanruo through a headhunter. After providing her information to Rushang Group, she was confirmed as a suitable candidate.

At the time, Zhou Yanruo had only been back in China for two months and originally planned to rest for a while to adapt to the fast-paced life in China.

As a result of the headhunter's active persuasion, she accepted the job after only learning some basic information about Rushang Group through online resources.

Unexpectedly, less than a week passed between accepting the offer and officially starting work. Even more surprisingly, she didn't even have a chance to meet the chairman before officially starting. It's said that Chairman Chu approved the recruitment quickly based solely on her resume and photo. Just like that, Zhou Yanruo was urgently recruited to replace Sister Lingling.

For Zhou Yanruo, this job wasn't particularly complicated or difficult. For the past ten years or so, she had been holding senior management positions in sizable multinational corporations, a field she was very familiar with.

She just returned to China and needs time to adjust to the local environment. Staying in her comfort zone allows her to dedicate more time and energy to sorting out her personal matters and managing her emotions.

After about six months, Zhou Yanruo gradually adapted to the work environment, and her work was basically on track. Her outstanding performance was unanimously praised by everyone in the group.

Rushang Group's main business is still focused on traditional industries, while also engaging in diversified and cross-industry operations. This is still somewhat different from Zhou Yanruo's work experience in financial investment companies, where she excels.

At that time, there was another very important reason why Zhou Yanruo was able to agree to join Rushang Group so quickly. That was because she was interested in Rushang Group's future strategic plan, which was to expand into overseas investment markets and was in the process of organizing construction and overseas planning layout. Moreover, the overseas headquarters she had chosen was located in New York.

She left her previous company because the company moved its business from New York to Seattle, and she didn't want to leave New York.

There was someone she always cared about there, even though that person was no longer there. She still hoped to be under the same starry sky and enveloped in the same air as him. So, despite the chairman's regret, she insisted on resigning and returned to China to report for duty and hand over her work.

After returning to China, Zhou Yanruo plans to go back to Xichuan City. She hasn't been back for many years. Although her grandmother has long since passed away, many of her cherished memories of that place remain there.

She wanted to go back for a walk, perhaps the last time to dredge up old memories. Now that she was back in China, she might as well stay a little longer, sort out her affairs and emotions, and then consider where to go next. After all, it was all the same no matter where she was; she was always alone.

"Look ahead," she told herself.

Zhou Yanruo picked up her phone and was browsing flight information for Xichuan on July 20th. The phone rang unexpectedly. She glanced at the caller ID; it was Zhou Zihang. She answered, "Dr. Zhou, what can I do for you?"

"Ruo Ruo, I'm going back to China next week. Um, I didn't tell you in advance because I wanted to surprise you." Zhou Zihang's excited voice came through the phone as soon as it connected.

Zhou Yanruo: "What, the lab project is over? Didn't we just secure sponsorship for the research project at the end of last year?"

“Since you’ve gone back to China, I’ll go back too. I applied for an extension for my research project, and it was just approved yesterday. I’ll be able to get things sorted out soon, and I’ve already booked my flight for next month.”

"You really are something. This project has been in preparation for a long time, and you finally got funding. It would be such a waste to stop now."

Zhou Zihang was secretly delighted: "If Ruoruo says it's a pity, it means she cares about me, hehe."

So Zhou Zihang quickly replied, "Well, I lose motivation when you're not around."

"Is this something to joke about?" Zhou Yanruo said with slight dissatisfaction.

"Not really, the project isn't going very smoothly. The sponsor is a fund under a biotech company, and their requirements are almost demanding. Our research group has no say in the application of the research results."

Zhou Zihang didn't want to mention these unhappy things to Zhou Yanruo, but he was worried that she would think he was an irresponsible person, so he had no choice but to tell her the truth.

Zhou Yanruo: "Oh, then there is indeed a problem."

“I’ll stop here for now. I heard that my alma mater in China also has research projects in this area. I’ll go and find out more. If there’s room for collaboration, I’d certainly like to leave the research results at my alma mater.” Zhou Zihang paused, but couldn’t help but express Zhou Yanruo’s place in his heart. He added, “Of course, half of it is my own selfish reason. Hehe, I want to go back to China to see you. It’s been more than half a year since we last met. I miss you.”

He seemed a little embarrassed as soon as he said it, coughed twice to cover it up, and continued, "I'm mainly back in China this time to meet with some senior students and project leaders from the college, so I won't be too busy. You have a holiday too, right? We can travel around the beautiful landscapes of our motherland together then!"

"Okay, okay, send me your flight information and I'll come pick you up. I have something to do now, so I'll hang up." Zhou Yanruo hung up the phone.