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

Chapter 103: Eating melons early in the morning

When Shang Yibo woke up, it was already broad daylight. He took a moment to realize that he had slept on the sofa all night. He felt sore all over, and his neck felt like it had been broken. After struggling to get up, he shook his neck from side to side, slipped on his slippers, and went into the kitchen to make himself a cup of black coffee.

He stood in front of the bay window, holding a coffee cup, overlooking the already bustling Second Ring Road.

After drinking a cup of coffee, his energy began to be drawn back into his body, and his mind gradually began to work again.

Today is Saturday, I have no scheduled work, so I'm resting at home and preparing to join the crew next week.

The Celine over-season suit lying on the ground in front of the door reminded him of the charity gala last night.

Zhou Yanruo and Jian Zheng had arranged to meet. He overheard their conversation on the way back yesterday. They agreed to meet at the coffee shop of Yishang International Hotel this morning.

While he was thinking, his phone rang. He followed the sound and pulled the phone out from the gap in the sofa. The caller ID showed Ding Jiajia.

He answered the phone: "Hello."

Ding Jiajia's crisp voice rang out: "Yibo, are you awake? You were just attending a charity gala last night, why did you make such a fuss?"

"I was going to wake up anyway, but you did. What is it now?"

"Last night, there were three trending topics on the main Weibo page and six high-ranking trending topics on the entertainment page. It wasn't until this morning, just now, that the trending topics on the entertainment page dropped below the top ten."

"You underestimate Dongmao's influence. It's not unusual for a charity gala hosted by Dongmao to trend on social media."

"You underestimated your own ability to trend on social media. Who trends all the time, and not just any trending topic, but multiple ones at once, bombarded with all sorts of bizarre and outlandish keywords? We've been working all night again, do you even know that? Sigh, it's no use talking about it anyway, you wouldn't care." Ding Jiajia's tone changed, and she suddenly asked mysteriously, "What's the deal with the heiress of Hongliang Group? She's your childhood friend, your biggest fan, and the marriage prospect your two families approve of. What's the real story?"

Shang Yibo coldly replied, "Are you unemployed? You're 'eating me gossip' first thing in the morning."

"No, I was just asking," Ding Jiajia said awkwardly. "Oh right, we've been chatting idly and forgot to mention the important matter."

Shang Yibo asked, "What is it now?"

Ding Jiajia said, "The acting coach the company hired for you will report for duty tomorrow. You have a few days before joining the crew, so you can go through the script with the coach. Brother Can asked me to discuss with you whether the coach should come to your house or you should go to the company."

Shang Yibo coldly retorted, "What do you think?"

"Going to the company means you have to be at the company."

After a moment of silence, Shang Yibo asked, "Yesterday when you were handling public opinion, wasn't Zhou Yanruo working with you?"

Ding Jiajia's confident voice came through the phone: "No need to trouble Sister Yanruo, we have enough manpower. Besides, this time those keyboard warriors have offended 'BoBoTang's' number one fighting fan. Although the fighting is fierce, the situation is gratifying. No matter what kind of fans they are, as long as they have bad intentions, they will not get away and will all be wiped out."

Shang Yibo frowned and said impatiently, "Alright, alright, I'm not interested in this. What time are you going to the company tomorrow? Is there anything else?"

Ding Jiajia muttered under her breath, "Didn't I only tell you because you asked me? Why don't you want to hear it anymore?"

Shang Yibo: "What did you say?"

"Oh, it's nothing. Just be at the company at 10 a.m. tomorrow."

"okay, I get it."

Just as Shang Yibo was about to hang up, Ding Jiajia hurriedly said on the phone, "I'll come to your house in a bit to pick up the outfit I wore to last night's event. Sister Yanruo asked me to take it and deal with it."

When did she notify you?

"What? You mean when Sister Yan Ru notified me?" Ding Jiajia was surprised. When did Shang Yibo become so thoughtful, or rather, so fussy? "She told me last night. Sister Yan Ru is so thoughtful. She just sent me another message to remind me to make sure I communicate with the brand today because there was a problem with the clothes I borrowed yesterday."

"Since a problem arose, why didn't she handle it herself?"

"Huh? I can handle it, Yibo, don't you believe in my abilities?" Ding Jiajia said, feeling quite aggrieved.

"What nonsense! I'm hanging up now." Shang Yibo then hung up the phone.

It's just past 9 o'clock.

He thought to himself, "At this time, Zhou Yanruo and Jian Zheng should be meeting at the coffee shop of Yishang International Hotel. Should I go and check on them?"

As soon as the idea popped into his head, Shang Yibo couldn't sit still.

He quickly rushed into the bathroom, took a shower, changed into a T-shirt and work pants, and then changed into a pair of sneakers before heading out.

Standing in front of the elevator, he saw his bald head was quite noticeable in the mirror of the elevator door.

So he went back to the dressing room, grabbed a baseball cap, and put it on his head.

On the way, he sent Ding Jiajia a message: "I'm going out for a bit. You have my house password, so go get the clothes yourself."

Shang Yibo drove his G-Class at breakneck speed to the Yishang International Hotel, afraid that if he arrived too late, Zhou Yanruo and Jian Zheng would have already left.

When Shang Yibo arrived at the hotel entrance, two large 40-seater buses were parked there, completely blocking the temporary driveway. He had to park his car in a parking space near the office building and then walk back about 50 meters to reach the hotel lobby.

The café was bustling with activity, like a morning market, as groups of tour members were busy gathering and preparing to depart after finishing their breakfast.

Shang Yibo frowned. He remembered that Yishang Hotel had always positioned itself as a business hotel, so why was it now accepting tour groups?

The cafe staff bustled through the crowd. A male waiter who seemed to be the supervisor recognized Shang Yibo and hurriedly ran over to greet him: "Good morning, Mr. Shang! Do you have an appointment? There are two tour groups having breakfast here today, so it's quite crowded. However, they're leaving soon, and we'll be ready quickly. Would you like to sit in the lobby for a while?"

Shang Yibo slightly lowered the brim of his hat and asked, "I made an appointment with Zhou Yanruo, has she arrived yet?"

The male supervisor replied, "Ms. Zhou arrived a while ago. Because it's crowded and noisy here, we've arranged for her and her friend to go to the 'Cuiyunxuan' tea room."

Shang Yibo nodded upon hearing this and said, "Okay, you can go ahead and get busy."

He then turned and walked toward the 'Cuiyunxuan' tea room at the end of the first floor.

As I approached the entrance, a graceful waitress in a light blue cheongsam greeted me with a smile and said politely, "Hello, sir! May I ask how many people are in your party?"

Shang Yibo replied in a low voice, "I have an appointment with President Zhou."

Upon hearing this, the waiter's eyes flashed with understanding, and he immediately directed her, "Ms. Zhou is currently at 'Yunjian Yashe'. A friend of hers has already arrived. Please follow me."

Shang Yibo waved his hand and declined, saying, "No need, I can go in by myself."