Bringing My Rival Back to Life (Accidentally) - Chapter 2

The Hall of Yanluo.

Wu Jiu sat listlessly in front of his desk, slouching and doodling on a piece of paper with his pen. He seemed to be drawing a person, but it was quite abstract—truly a “ghostly scribble.”

Perhaps accustomed to competing with Zhu Xiao in the human world, his work efficiency was astonishingly high, and he had already finished all his official duties. Having been back in the underworld for a few days, he was already feeling a bit bored.

With the development of society, the underworld had also been keeping pace with the times. However, compared to the colorful human world, it still seemed a bit dull.

For instance, although the underworld had the internet, it was only 2G, and the signal was quite poor.

This was also the reason why Wu Jiu was idly doodling.

He stared at his ghostly scribbles and lost himself in thought, his mind wandering further and further until he couldn’t help but wonder what Zhu Xiao might be doing at the moment.

—Visiting his grave? He wouldn’t be crying on his tombstone, would he? He couldn’t bear that.

Wu Jiu hadn’t intended to disappear on purpose.

The underworld had its own set of operating rules; ghosts couldn’t just go to the human world at will.

As the King of Yanluo, Wu Jiu was naturally not bound by these rules and could work remotely in the human world. However, the human world was fundamentally incompatible with his nature, and staying there for too long would lead to backlash.

Originally, he just needed to come back periodically, but unfortunately, he had missed his return trips each time, delaying and delaying until it was almost too late, forcing him to be urgently repatriated to the underworld at the last moment.

Unfortunately, it was still a bit late, and he had already suffered some backlash. Now, he couldn’t go to the human world as a living person anymore.

While he was thinking this, the butler walked in.

“Master!”

Wu Jiu guiltily put away his ghostly scribbles and coughed lightly. “What is it?”

If Zhu Xiao were here, he would recognize this butler—the same one from Wu Jiu’s funeral.

The butler, surnamed Bai and named Yu, was primarily a constable with his secondary role being a butler.

Bai Yu had previously worked for the old King of Yanluo, which was why he addressed Wu Jiu as “Master.”

“I’ve completed the tasks you assigned and am here to report,” he said.

“After extending the public holiday and canceling the flexible working hours, the work enthusiasm of the ghost officials has significantly increased! This morning, we even received two banners of praise,” the butler said, producing two banners as if by magic. One read “Diligent and Responsible, Solving Ghosts’ Worries,” and the other read “Caring for the People, a Good King of Yanluo.”

“I’ve hung them on the wall,” the butler continued.

Wu Jiu nodded and waited for the butler to finish hanging the banners before asking, “Is there any other news?”

The butler thought for a moment and recalled something. “The Communication Office is breaking through technical limitations and urgently developing the Yin-Yang Communication APP! It already has a preliminary form and is expected to enter the testing phase soon.”

Wu Jiu praised, “Very good.”

“Master Butler, is there any other important news?” Wu Jiu asked, emphasizing the word “important.”

The butler thought again and said, “That’s all.”

He flattered, “The underworld is now thriving!”

Wu Jiu: “…”

Maintaining his dignified posture, Wu Jiu clarified, “I mean, Zhu Xiao.”

The butler slapped his forehead. “Oh, that matter!”

“Sorry, you said it ‘wasn’t particularly important’ before, so I forgot about it just now.”

Wu Jiu didn’t mind and immediately asked the questions he had been holding back for three days and nights.

“Did he attend my funeral?”

“Did he visit my grave?”

“What did he say?”

The butler replied one by one: “He went. He did. He said…”

“Mr. Zhu said,” the butler imitated Zhu Xiao’s tone, “—Fake, right?”

Wu Jiu stroked his chin and chuckled, “He doesn’t believe I’m dead and can’t face reality?”

“I told you, without me, he’d be bored to death. He’s always either working on papers or projects, waking up earlier than tomb robbers, and never stopping all year round. Who else could keep up with him?”

“After all, losing such a rare excellent competitor is quite normal to be sad about.”

“Master, there’s another thing…” The butler hesitated, unsure whether to say it.

Wu Jiu seemed to have thought of something, changing his leisurely posture and leaning forward with wide eyes, “He wouldn’t be so heartbroken that he wants to come down here to keep me company, would he?”

Please don’t. They say troublemakers live for a thousand years; it’s better for Zhu Xiao, the ultimate overachiever, to live a long life in the human world.

“…”

“No, Master, Mr. Zhu said…”

The butler reluctantly closed his eyes and continued in Zhu Xiao’s tone.

“—Is he really 1.88 meters tall? Quite humorous.”

At the same moment, Zhu Xiao had just come out of the Industry-Academia-Research building and was heading towards the administration building.

He planned to visit the dean to ask about Wu Jiu.

The dean was their common mentor during their school days. He had inquired around these past two days and found out that Wu Jiu had no relatives or close ones; only the dean could be considered an elder to him.

Just as he reached the administration building, Zhu Xiao saw a familiar face.

This person stood solemnly under a tree, muttering to himself as if rehearsing a dialogue that was about to take place.

Spotting Zhu Xiao, he quickly stopped his muttering and greeted him politely.

Zhu Xiao stopped and asked, “Are you Wu Jiu’s student?”

Unexpectedly, Zhu Xiao remembered him, and Zhang YueXiu was flattered: “Yes, yes.”

Wu Jiu had only taken on one student this year, who inherited Wu Jiu’s quirky personality. It was hard for Zhu Xiao to forget him.

Zhu Xiao didn’t like to meddle in other people’s affairs, but perhaps because the student’s Wu Jiu-like aura was too strong, he took back his step.

“What are you doing here?”

Zhang YueXiu scratched his head, “It’s about changing supervisors… Since Teacher Wu had to leave.”

The mess Wu Jiu left behind. Zhu Xiao frowned and asked, “Who are you assigned to?”

“I don’t know.”

Mentioning this, Zhang YueXiu looked worried. He didn’t know which supervisor he would be assigned to. Being someone who had to switch supervisors halfway, he felt like an unwanted child, almost as if the words “unwanted” were written on his face.

“But Teacher Wu told me before he left to go to the dean. He said he had already spoken to the dean in advance,” he said, preparing to ask the dean.

Died of sudden illness, yet still able to arrange things so meticulously in advance? Zhu Xiao thought with a poker face.

“What’s your name?”

“Zhang YueXiu. Zhang as in ‘bow and arrow,’ Yue as in ‘Yueyang,’ and Xiu as in ‘excellent.'”

Zhu Xiao nodded and said, “Do you want to come with me?”

“Ah, ah?”

Zhang YueXiu felt a wave of dizziness. Was this for real?

Zhu Xiao was well-known; although he was strict, he was truly considerate towards his students. His spots were highly sought after, and it was difficult to get in.

Zhu Xiao didn’t understand what Zhang YueXiu’s two “ah”s meant and continued, “If you don’t want to, I can help you contact Teacher Huang in the same field. He’s very responsible towards his students and has decent academic achievements.”

“I’ll come!” Zhang YueXiu was afraid that if he didn’t respond quickly enough, Zhu Xiao would change his mind. “I’ll come!”

Zhu Xiao took out his phone and opened WeChat.

“Scan.”

Zhang YueXiu took out his phone and scanned the code respectfully.

Zhu Xiao quickly set up the note and added him to the group chat of his students.

“Read the literature mentioned in the group chat these days. If you have any questions, ask your senior students or me. The group meeting will be at 2 p.m. on Wednesday. Don’t be late; I don’t like waiting for people.”

“You can go back first. I’ll handle the rest.”

Zhang YueXiu had been worried about how to talk to the dean, and now he was so touched that he almost cried.

“Okay, thank you, teacher!”

Zhu Xiao walked to the dean’s office and knocked on the door. “Teacher.”

The dean put on his glasses and looked at the visitor. “Little Zhu, you’re here.”

Zhu Xiao got straight to the point. “I’ll take over Wu Jiu’s student.”

“Right on time. I was just about to mention it,” the dean said with a smile. “Since you brought it up, that saves me the trouble.”

“Oh, you two, always at each other’s throats, yet so in sync,” the dean teased. “Wu Jiu told me before he left that if you were willing, it would be best for you to take over his work. He said he didn’t trust anyone else.”

“You see, you didn’t even wait for me to say it, and you’ve already taken it on yourself.”

“…”

Based on Zhu Xiao’s understanding of Wu Jiu, the original words were probably not so nice, and the dean had likely embellished them.

Zhu Xiao raised his eyelids and asked, “What else did Wu Jiu tell you?”

“He said he had urgent matters and had to go to a faraway place.”

“Where to?”

“He didn’t say.”

“When will he be back?”

“He didn’t mention that either.”

The dean was clueless about everything, and Zhu Xiao fell silent.

“Did you come specifically to ask about Wu Jiu? Is it because you haven’t seen him these past few days and feel out of sorts?” The dean said cheerfully, “In my opinion, it’s good for Wu Jiu to be away for a while. You should take this opportunity to rest. Look at you, you have dark circles under your eyes.”

“Young man, it’s good to be ambitious, but your health is the foundation of your work,” the dean said. “Don’t overwork yourself…”

The dean’s subsequent words were no longer listened to attentively by Zhu Xiao.

—Wu Jiu told others that he had “urgent matters and had to go far away,” but to the dean, it was “dead”?

The second time Zhu Xiao went to visit Wu Jiu’s grave, he brought a shovel.

Zhu Xiao was handsome, but his personality was cold. When he wasn’t speaking, he looked like a hitman, and now, holding a heavy weapon, he looked even more like a professional killer.

Such people are usually also called: living King Yanluo.

The butler nervously swallowed his saliva. “Mr. Zhu, what are you…?”

Zhu Xiao raised the shovel and stabbed it into the ground, his tone quite calm: “Let Wu Jiu come out.”

“Otherwise, I’ll dig up his grave.”

Zhu Xiao, the archaeologist: “He should know that I’m a professional.”

Bringing My Rival Back to Life (Accidentally) - Chapter 2

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Hate that cliffhanger, don’t you?

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