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

"Come, sit down first, and tell me slowly." Wang Jie gently pulled Zhou Yanruo along, and the two walked into the octagonal pavilion together.

Zhou Yanruo slowly sat down, her legs together, her hands stiffly placed on her knees, looking as if she had been thinking for a long time before making a decision. She said in a low voice, "Cheng Zhi is gone, and Xue Jiang is in this state. How can I stay in the training class with a clear conscience? How can I prepare to go to Hancheng as if nothing has happened?"

Wang Jie said with empathy, "Such a big thing has happened. Not to mention you, even I, who am a few years older than you, can't bear it. However, we don't need to rush to make a decision now. We can wait and see."

Then, Wang Jie sat down next to Zhou Yanruo.

"Perhaps they don't want you to do this."

Zhou Yanruo understood who Wang Jie meant by "them." She sighed and said, "It's just that I can't get over this myself."

“It just happened recently, and everyone’s emotions are still unstable. Listen to me, let’s make a decision in a couple of days.”

Zhou Yanruo kept her eyes lowered and said in a hoarse voice, "Wang Jie, do you think everything would be fine if we didn't make the short film 'Gone, Yet to Come'?"

Wang Jie covered Zhou Yanruo's hand, which was resting on the bench, and comforted her, "It was an accident. Although the consequences were serious and we were all very sad, an accident is an accident. It's no one's fault. Don't feel guilty or blame yourself."

Zhou Yanruo leaned her head on Wang Jie's shoulder, her thin lips parted slightly, and she said weakly, "I'm very scared."

Wang Jie didn't know what to say to make Zhou Yanruo feel better, so he could only hold her hand tightly, trying to give her strength.

The two sat quietly for a long time.

Zhou Yanruo finally spoke again, saying, "My mother should have arrived in Xichuan by now. My grandmother called my mother last night and told her about everything that happened to me here."

Wang Jie turned his head to look at Zhou Yanruo and couldn't help but ask, "Did your mother come to Xichuan to take you back to the capital?"

Zhou Yanruo raised her head, squinting at the sky outside the octagonal pavilion. She said, "My mother is probably worried that I'll be upset, so she came to stay with me for a few days. However, we won't be going back to the capital so soon, because she has other things to take care of in Xichuan. She's here on official business and also to handle some personal matters. I'm just one of those people who're here on the side. Originally, she was also going to Xichuan on a business trip, but something happened to me, so she moved up her schedule."

Wang Jie began to feel sorry for Zhou Yanruo. He seemed to be able to empathize with Zhou Yanruo's mindset that she would rather give up her dreams than leave this place.

Watching her friend pass away so suddenly and cruelly is unbearable for anyone. Losing a friend was already enough to make her sad, but having to endure the criticism from others only added to her burden.

The carefree days have come to an end; the growth of youth is but a fleeting moment.

Wang Jie couldn't help but think of Shang Yibo. If time could be fast-forwarded, would Wang Jie, with her maturity, be able to face Shang Yibo's experiences with composure and maturity?

He shook his head violently, trying to banish unrealistic ideas from his mind.

Just then, Wang Jie's pager went off. As he took out the pager, he said, "It must be Jian Zheng. I had forgotten. He's waiting for me at my house."

Yes, the message came from Jian Zheng: "Grandpa isn't feeling well. He refuses to go to the hospital. I'll wait for you to come home before I leave."

After reading Jian Zheng's message, Wang Jie quickly stood up and said to Zhou Yanruo, "Grandpa isn't feeling well, I have to go home to see him. Why don't you go back first too?"

Zhou Yanruo also stood up. "I'll go home with you and see if there's anything I can do to help."

"Then let's hurry up and go."

Back at Wang Jie's house, as soon as he entered, Jian Zheng greeted him and whispered, "Why are you so late? Grandpa had a terrible headache earlier, so I gave him some painkillers, and he's asleep now."

Turning his head, Jian Zheng saw Zhou Yanruo following Wang Jie into the room. "You're here too."

"Yes, Grandpa is sick, I came to see him."

Wang Jie walked to the bedside with concern to check on his grandfather's condition. He saw that his grandfather was pale and sleeping with his brows furrowed.

He turned around and beckoned Zhou Yanruo and Jian Zheng to the inner cubicle.

Only then did Wang Jie notice Jian Zheng's large dark circles under his eyes; in just one night, his face had shrunk considerably. He looked completely different from his usual fair-skinned self, who always had a smile on his face before speaking.

Wang Jie and Jian Zheng were sitting on the edge of the bed, while Zhou Yanruo was sitting on a stool in front of the "desk". All three of them were silent. After about ten seconds, Wang Jie finally spoke: "Zhou Yanruo and I just came back from the hospital. Xue Jiang is still in the ICU and hasn't woken up yet."

Jian Zheng looked at Wang Jie without saying a word, waiting for him to continue.

Zhou Yanruo lowered her voice and murmured, "The attending physician said that Xue Jiang's condition is particularly bad."

“It’s not optimistic.” Wang Jie corrected Zhou Yanruo’s wording, as if expressing it this way would make Xue Jiang’s situation better and easier for them to accept.

"There's another crucial issue: Xue Jiang is in the ICU, and her daily medical expenses are quite high," Wang Jie stated bluntly, outlining the current difficulties. "Xue Jiang's family has also come over, and it seems their financial situation isn't very good. However, Teacher Zhang has already returned to the school to report the situation to the organizers, hoping for a positive outcome."

Zhou Yanruo said, "The training course can cover the medical expenses, right?"

Wang Jie made no attempt to hide his worry, replying, "It's hard to say. After all, it didn't happen at school, nor was it an accident during a school-organized activity. Asking the school to cover medical expenses would be......"

Jian Zheng, who had been sitting there silently since entering, looked up at Wang Jie and then interjected, "Shall we organize a fundraising event?"

“I agree with that,” Zhou Yanruo responded immediately.

Wang Jie pondered for a moment and said, "We can donate some money to express our condolences. But it's just a drop in the ocean. You know, the ICU costs tens of thousands of yuan every day. How long can this last? Even if we want to start a fundraising campaign, it's not that simple. Where can we raise funds? How do we define the target group? A small number of people won't solve the problem, and a large number of people might cause problems. It's all hard to say. It's difficult."

Zhou Yanruo was dissatisfied. Even though she knew Wang Jie was right, she couldn't help but feel angry at him. She said resentfully, "Then what are we going to do? Just watch and do nothing?"

Jian Zheng saw that Wang Jie's face had turned red from Zhou Yanruo's rebuttal and he couldn't say anything.

He quickly explained for Wang Jie, "Don't worry, Wang Jie didn't say she wouldn't watch over it. She's just analyzing the feasibility. Sigh..."

Jian Zheng sighed heavily and said, "If it were any other time, I would just tell my mom, and she would definitely have a way to solve it."

Zhou Yanruo immediately chimed in, "Yes, yes, go talk to your mom and see if you can resolve this. As long as you can put in a good word with the hospital to save the person first, we can pay back the expenses slowly. I promise I will definitely pay them back in the future."