Chapter 3: The Times We Know/Arc 1.2

It was now five years since Wang Tao started working at Zhou Industries. Weirdly, he'd only recently learnt of Zhou Jian's birthday but that was probably because the man never seemed to talk about it. Thinking of this, Wang Tao had decided to try out the human tradition of giving gifts.

[ I wonder if he'll like it? ]

He thought as he held a neatly wrapped gift in his hand. Once when visiting his CEO's home, he noticed that he had quite a few books from the series "The Beauty of Darkness" written by a famous author. So for his birthday, Wang Tao got the newest released book of that series.

Resting it on the desk, he quietly left the office only to come face to face with a colleague named Li Cheng.

Seeing the boss's personal assistant, Li Cheng's eyes lit up and he hastily pleaded.

"Hi, Wang Tao. Do you mind placing these gifts in the boss' office? The ladies from my department kept pestering me to find a way to get it here. I promise I won't tell."

He lifted his arms to show big bags full of gifts.

Wang Tao looked at the helpless Li Cheng for a second before nodding.

"Thanks so much."

Handing the bags over, Li Cheng showed a grateful expression before scurrying away. Holding the two bags, Wang Tao suddenly thought of something.

[ The senders...they probably want to get his attention with this. I think its their form of courting? ]

Suddenly, Wang Tao's mood became a bit sour. He frowned slightly as he pondered on it. However, he couldn't make out why no matter what so he tried to shake off the feeling. Walking into the office, he paused before placing the bags near their CEO's desk.

An unsettling emotion swirled in him but it felt too distant for him to catch. Perplexed, Wang Tao made his way to his office. A while later, he returned to see Zhou Jian standing by his desk, reading the book he gifted him. Joy slowly welled up inside as he approached him.

"Assistant Tao, was this your gift?"

Wang Tao nodded, his hands which were clasped behind his back fidgeted. Zhou Jian felt touched but an awkward expression rose on his face.

"That's very nice of you. I'll keep the gift but please keep in mind not do so in the future. I don't quite like presents...sorry."

Zhou Jian paused, his heart uncomfortable as he took note of the other's disappointment. Looking away, his eyes caught something. Pointing at the two bags, he said

"Um, could you take these away?"

Wang Tao felt slightly upset at the thought that Zhou Jian wouldn't accept any more gifts but was happy that he decided to keep the book.

[ I'm sure he means well. Besides, it seems like something traumatic happened. ]

Wang Tao had noticed that when the man mentioned that he didn't like gifts, it was if his eyes were recalling unpleasant memories. His hand even shook a bit. Wang Tao had almost missed it but his eyes caught the tremble at the last moment.

Thinking of this, guilt grew in him.

"Sorry, I had thought that all people wanted gifts."

"That's ok, they normally do but…I guess I'm a bit different."

"Oh."

Because he felt really bad, Zhou Jian apologized and offered to treat the other for dinner. Noticing that his assisstant had cheered up a bit he felt some relief. He suddenly thought of something and asked Wang Tao how he knew he was reading this.

"I saw that you had all the other books in the series on one of my visits."

"Mmm, makes sense. Do you like reading?"

"Kind of."

They two chatted a bit more, the awkward atmosphere quickly dispersing. Once the conversation ended, Wang Tao completed his task.

As he did so, he noted that when Zhou Jian wouldn't accept the other gifts, Wang Tao could feel the sourness vanish. He mulled over the strange feeling in his heart as he headed back to the office. There were many foreign emotions inside him currently and Wang Tao wondered how he'd figure them all out.

.

Months later, Wang Tao sat in a black car, furrowing his brows as he stared at the sweet before him. The two were coming from a meeting and the CEO decided to drop Wang Tao home. They were on their way when Wang Tao spotted something.

The assistant curiously looked at the weird item from the car window, trying to figure out what it was and Zhou Jian had noticed, quickly asking the driver to stop in front the stall and buy one.

At the moment, Wang Tao was twirling it in his hand as he sniffed it, a bit suspicious.

Zhou Jian's lip quivered slightly as he held back a smile and explained to his friend what it was.

"Cotton candy?"

"Yep."

"It does look like cotton...but is it really a candy?"

Wang Tao muttered to himself but the older man picked up on it. Nodding in affirmation he reached out and took a piece, enjoying his spoils while showing the boy it was really edible.

Wang Tao frowned a bit and unconsciously moved his treat away from Zhou Jian. The CEO was amused by the action but kept quiet.

Wang Tao slowly reached out and pulled off a piece before consuming it. After a few seconds, Wang Tao had devoured the entire cotton candy, returning to his expressionless face.

Disbelief flickered across Zhou Jian's face upon observing this. The younger man had done such a comical action unconsciously that it seemed unbelievable. The CEO had reason to doubt his own eyes but knew that he wasn't dreaming.

Shaking his head, a helplessness showed on his face. Looking at his assistant who was once again staring at the stall, Zhou Jian ordered his driver to go and get two more.

As they drove off, Zhou Jian watched Wang Tao gobble down the other two cotton candies. Just as the man reached the last bit he paused before glancing at his boss. With a slight frown, Wang Tao held the stick towards the older man.

Zhou Jian was astounded but accepted the offer the next second. Seeing him take it, the reluctance in the silver eyes melted away and was replaced with satisfaction.

[ That foodie was actually willing to share. ]

Zhou Jian couldn't help but feel his heart warm. Eating the sweet, he thought that he'd have a very interesting life with this bizarre man here.

________

On an early afternoon back in the present, Wang Tao stood in the CEO's office and gave his daily report.

"Anything else?"

"Chen Xiang is in hospital. The doctor needs you to come by."

"In hospital?"

"Injured during filming."

Zhou Jian's brows furrowed upon hearing the news. He knew that these kinds of things happen but wasn't expecting the youth to be caught up in it. Sighing inwardly, the CEO wandered what could have happened.

"Let's go. Call the doctor and tell him I'm on my way"

Standing up he grabbed his coat and put it on before leaving.

Wang Tao followed behind him as he made the call to Doctor Li, the doctor watching over Chen Xiang.

At the same time in ZK Hospital, a young boy lay on a hospital bed in a room on the 4th floor. The bangs of his short fluffy black hair covered his eyes. Slowly he opened them to reveal a light brown color and took in the blinding white of his surroundings. After a few seconds, he sat up and stretched, causing his long sleeves to slip down slightly and reveal his snow white skin.

[ System. Start the transfer. ]

[ Starting now host! ]

The young boy slightly scrunched up his face in pain as memories were transferred to him. After skimming through them, a sliver of surprise appeared on his face. The boy's name was Chen Xiang. He died in his previous world by being hit by a truck. Once he awoke, he was in a white room and met a system which gave him the chance to live again.

Accepting his agreement, he chose and trained the skill of acting before heading off to this world. He was a bit skeptical but now that he's here all doubts disappeared. Chen Xiang once again studied the information of this world.

The name of the original owner was also Chen Xiang. Currently, he is 19 years old. The original was an awful but dedicated actor. His parents were big investors of Grape Entertainment, the company he was contracted to, so the staff and other artists would flatter him and he was given many low-level roles to satisfy his parents.

All was well except he was still a terrible actor, so once his parents died when he was 17, the company began to ignore him and his colleagues berated and insulted him. When his parents died, Zhou Jian became his guardian as a favor to Chen Xiang's father who he was close to.

Despite becoming his guardian, the two didn't have much interaction and Chen Xiang tried to continue his career. Unfortunately, his skills were too bad and he was harshly scolded by netizens daily for being a horrible person and friend.

His best friend, Wu Jang, was behind this and he fanned the flames by adding a lot of fake news to dirty Chen Xiang's name further and as a result, the original fell into depression and committed suicide. In the original timeline, Wu Jang went on and became a traffic actor by gaining netizens sympathy and developed a relationship with the movie emperor, Wei Jia.

[ Host! Host! Your guardian is here! ]

The cheerful voice entered his head, snapping hum out of his recollection. The young boy quickly schooled his expression as he prepared himself for Zhou Jian's arrival.

Once they two arrived, Wang Tao spoke to the doctor about the medical fees while Zhou Jian entered the hospital room.

Opening the door, he saw Chen Xiang sitting up in the bed while staring out the window. The room was silent as he sat in a nearby chair and waited for the boy to notice him.

Peach blossom eyes glanced at him before eyeing downwards. The fair hands clutched the white sheets tightly as the round head was lowered meekly.

"Are you alright?"

"Mm."

The silence once again returned leaving the CEO unsure of what to say. Since the boy didn't want to speak, the older man didn't strike a conversation.

Zhou Jian glanced at the bandages on the boy's head. He knew that this happened when the wires suspending Chen Xiang snapped while filming. Luckily, Chen Xiang was close to the ground at that time so it wasn't a high fall.

"I have people investigating how the wires snapped so just focus on recovering."

The boy nodded curtly, still refusing to look at Zhou Jian. His fingers played with the sheets in an almost nervous manner, leaving the observing mind with some confusing thoughts.

The two only exchanged these few words before Wang Tao entered.

Silver eyes scanned the room in a flash and took note of a tuff of black hair. Nodding his head towards the boy, Wang Tao informed them that Chen Xiang could be discharged now.

"That's good, then let's be quick."

Rising to his feet, Zhou Jian gestured for the youth to follow. Slowly standing up, Chen Xiang put in his shoes before following them out. Walking through the hallway, Chen Xiang quietly followed the two men before him. As they neared Doctor Li's office, Chen Xiang spoke softly.

"I'm sorry."

Both of them paused in their step. Turning to face Chen Xiang, Zhou Jian revealed his confusion. For the first time, Chen Xiang raised his head to look at him. Twiddling his fingers, the brown eyes stopped shifting and focused on the handsome face.

"I'm sorry for causing you trouble."

Seeing the apologetic look and self blame on the fresh face, the CEO couldn't help but feel bad. Sighing, the cold in his eyes receded by a fraction.

"It's fine. Checking in your health isn't troublesome."

Despite the response, Chen Xiang didn't seem convinced but Zhou Jian didn't care for the matter any longer. Shifting his gaze, the CEO caught the blank look from Wang Tao and his lip tilted up slightly.

"Come, don't delay further."

Uttering those words, Zhou Jian continued along. Chen Xiang stood in place for a moment before hurrying to catch up to them.

After a short talk with Doctor Li and signing out, the three left the hospital.