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

Chapter 179 Balance

Shang Yibo sat opposite Zhou Yanruo, watching her busy herself.

During breakfast, Zhou Yanruo's phone rang incessantly, one call after another keeping her busy.

The moment Ding Jiajia hung up, before the screen even dimmed, Qi Qingnan's call came in impatiently. Zhou Yanruo quickly pressed the answer button, trying to calm the anxious voice on the other end while rapidly organizing the information at hand.

Just as she hung up on Qi Qingnan, her phone rang urgently again, the screen displaying a call from Fang Xichen. "Mr. Fang, oh, you're looking for Shang Yibo? I'm with him right now, his phone's dead. Please wait a moment." Zhou Yanruo gestured towards Shang Yibo with her phone, mouthing "Mr. Fang," then pressed the speakerphone button and pushed the phone towards him.

Shang Yibo nodded knowingly and answered the phone: "Mom, you wanted to see me?"

Fang Xichen's voice came through the receiver, filled with concern: "Yibo, come home today. You're injured, and you need someone to take care of you."

Shang Yibo answered decisively: "Mom, my work schedule is full these past two days. Zi Mo Yuan is far from the city center, so it's not very convenient."

Fang Xichen insisted, "No one will take care of you, and your family is worried. Your Aunt Yan said that if you don't come back, she will move into your apartment to take care of you."

Shang Yibo quickly said, "No, no, please don't. Mom, don't worry, I'm staying at a friend's house now. They can take care of me, and it's close to Zhou Yanruo, which makes it much more convenient for me to work."

Fang Xichen was clearly surprised: "You? You're staying at a friend's house? Which friend is it? I didn't know you had such a friend, and that you could live together." Her words were full of disbelief.

Shang Yibo said somewhat hastily, "Mom, I have to go to the recording studio later, so let's stop here."

Fang Xichen sighed, then turned to Zhou Yanruo and said, "Zhou Yanruo?"

"Mr. Fang, I'm listening. Please go ahead."

"Are you managing to handle both the group's affairs and Yibo's work? I know you've been quite busy on both lately, but have you considered that perhaps focusing on one would allow you to better utilize your talents and strengths?"

Zhou Yanruo's expression hardened. "President Fang, I will seriously consider it. However, the projects I'm currently handling are at a crucial stage of development, and handing them over might have some impact. Oh, I don't mean it's indispensable. What I mean is, I will definitely balance the work on both sides..."

Fang Xichen spoke gently, but her words were sharp: "You think you can take both sides into consideration, but that doesn't necessarily mean you can be thorough in everything."

Zhou Yanruo tried to explain, "President Fang, I..."

Fang Xichen interrupted him, "Alright, let's not talk about this today. You guys have to go to work soon, so I won't keep you any longer. I'll hang up now."

A hint of helplessness flashed in Zhou Yanruo's eyes, but she quickly switched to a professional reply: "Okay, Mr. Fang."

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Yanruo was a little stunned.

Shang Yibo: "I haven't eaten anything while I've been on the phone. Didn't you say you didn't have enough time? Hurry up and finish eating, I'm leaving."

Zhou Yanruo: "Tell me the truth, I really didn't dedicate enough time to your work recently, which caused some problems. Don't you also think I should focus on my other job?"

"I've never blamed you. Besides, those things won't have stopped happening just because you paid attention to them. Don't take the blame upon yourself."

Shang Yibo thought for a moment and then said, "However, my mother's suggestion is not without reason. Don't you like working in film and television media? Why don't you come and help me full-time?"

"I do enjoy working in the film and television industry. But I also have reasons why I don't want to leave the investment company."

"Why then?"

Zhou Yanruo didn't know where to begin, so she could only smile faintly and remain silent.

Seeing this, Shang Yibo stopped trying to persuade her and just silently ate his breakfast, occasionally glancing up at Zhou Yanruo.

Zhou Yanruo gulped down a glass of milk, then stood up and urged Shang Yibo, "Let's go. It's Sunday, so there are no car restrictions. The roads will definitely be congested."

The recording of the character theme song for "Lingbo Jing" went very smoothly. The music producer kept saying, "Teacher Yibo has a very good voice, with a natural purity."

Shang Yibo humbly replied, "I haven't had any systematic vocal training, so I still need more guidance from my teacher in terms of singing skills."

The production teacher disagreed, saying, "You can't say that. Perhaps not having undergone systematic vocal training will prevent one from being trained into a monotonous voice with nuances and variations. Without the artificiality of a craftsman, it is more ethereal, and this pure and untainted feeling is very captivating."

In addition, Shang Yibo liked the song and even more so the feelings expressed in the lyrics, so he did his homework in advance. When he entered the recording studio, the vocal coach hardly offered any suggestions on his interpretation, and he completed the recording smoothly in one go.

Even though everything went very smoothly, it was already past 2 p.m. when they finished all the work. As the two came out of the recording studio, Zhou Yanruo said, "Wait here for a moment, I'll bring the car over."

Shang Yibo pulled his hat brim down and put on his mask. "Go ahead."

The parking lot was in the backyard of the music studio. Zhou Yanruo drove the car to the front door of the studio and stopped almost touching the steps in front of the door.

She got out of the car and went up the steps to help Shang Yibo.

Shang Yibo handed the cane directly to Zhou Yanruo, saying, "You hold it for me, I can walk by myself." As soon as he finished speaking, he hopped down the steps, stood on one leg, opened the car door, and got into the passenger seat, moving swiftly and efficiently.

Zhou Yanruo shook her head. "Childish." She placed her cane on the back seat and then got into the driver's seat.

In the rush of leaving home that morning, Shang Yibo noticed that Zhou Yanruo had been so engrossed in answering phone calls that she had barely eaten breakfast. She'd been so busy that it was past noon, and he figured she must be starving. As soon as they got into the car, Shang Yibo asked, "Are you hungry? You should have eaten something while I was recording. Where are we going to eat now? What would you like to eat?"

While fastening her seatbelt, Zhou Yanruo said hesitantly, "How about we go to the Yishang Hotel for dinner?"

Shang Yibo turned to look at Zhou Yanruo, "Huh? Where are we going? Is there anything you really want to eat?"

Zhou Yanruo lowered her head slightly and unconsciously traced the logo in the middle of the steering wheel with her finger. "Well, you see, it's like this. Today is Sunday, and normally I don't need to go to the company."

Shang Yibo continued to stare at Zhou Yanruo's profile. "And then, you're going to the company now? That's why you said you were going to the Yishang Hotel for dinner? Why would you go to the company on a weekend?"

A honking horn sounded from behind the car. Zhou Yanruo glanced at her rearview mirror and saw that her car was blocking the way for the cars behind her. "I'll drive that way first, and I'll explain to you on the way."