Bringing My Rival Back to Life (Accidentally) - Chapter 20

Zhu Xiao and Wu Xingdong chatted for fifteen minutes before heading home, and he hadn’t left the house since then.

He kept an eye on the time, waiting like a farmer hoping to catch a rabbit by the tree stump. He had a hunch that the calico cat would show up today. Or perhaps it wouldn’t be a cat; it might be some other creature…

Zhu Xiao waited quietly.

A little after nine in the evening, Zhu Xiao heard a faint knock on the door. The sound was so soft, as if the knocker was afraid of disturbing the people inside.

The knocking lasted for a few seconds, growing quieter, and someone outside muttered, “Asleep already?”

Zhu Xiao quickly walked to the door and opened it.

However, crouching outside was neither the calico cat nor any other creature, but the species he knew best—Wu Jiu.

But the Wu Jiu before him was a bit off from the one he knew, because this person had smoke rising from his head and his lower body was somewhat transparent.

“……Wu Jiu?”

Wu Jiu looked up, with smoke curling from his head, and gazed at him with a face full of grievances: “It’s me.”

Just as Zhao Zirui had predicted, Zhu Xiao had the intuition that he was truly encountering a ghost this time.

The scene was indeed quite startling. Zhu Xiao’s hand on the door trembled slightly, and he inconspicuously moved it behind his back, forcing himself to calm down.

“Why… are you smoking?”

“Because I’m a ghost. Ghosts coming to the human world will be like this.”

The smoke from his head and his semi-transparent body now had an explanation; it was because Wu Jiu was still a ghost.

Wu Jiu had finally appeared, but Zhu Xiao wasn’t as happy as he had imagined.

Wu Jiu keenly sensed Zhu Xiao’s emotions and immediately took three big steps back, raising his hands like he was surrendering to prove he was harmless, “I’m a good ghost. I don’t eat people.”

There was a wall behind him, and Wu Jiu had nowhere else to retreat.

He also remembered what Butler Bai had said—that living people were very fragile.

He couldn’t help but regret that coming here might have been too impulsive.

Wu Jiu tried his best to show his most innocent side, even softening his voice as if coaxing a child: “Don’t be afraid. I’m far away from you now. I can’t touch you at all.”

Zhu Xiao stood still, silently watching Wu Jiu’s smoking head.

After a while, he asked in a low voice, “Does it hurt?”

Wu Jiu didn’t catch on, “What?”

“Your head is smoking,” Zhu Xiao asked softly, “Does it hurt?”

Wu Jiu didn’t expect that question.

To be honest, it did hurt. After all, he didn’t belong to the human world, and the laws of yin and yang wouldn’t change for him. This was the punishment of backlash, something he had to endure.

However, Wu Jiu had come to the human world several times after the backlash, and his hair had evolved into a fireproof type. He was used to this kind of pain now.

“Ha, of course it doesn’t hurt at all! Zhu Xiao, don’t you dare cry, or I’ll laugh at you,” Wu Jiu said, but inside, he was really worried—knowing now that he shouldn’t have come. Zhu Xiao looked like he was about to cry again.

Wu Jiu didn’t want to see Zhu Xiao shed tears, especially at this moment when they were face to face and both fully conscious. He didn’t dare to touch Zhu Xiao or wipe away his tears.

Zhu Xiao felt a bit choked up inside, but his voice betrayed no emotion: “I’m not crying.”

“Do you really not hurt?” he asked again.

“Of course not! Can I lie to you? I’ve been a ghost longer than you. I said it doesn’t hurt, and it doesn’t.”

To prove he really didn’t hurt, Wu Jiu shook his head vigorously, “This smoke just looks scary, but it’s actually useless—you can think of it as a special effect for fireworks, to distinguish ghosts from humans.”

Worried that Zhu Xiao still didn’t believe him, Wu Jiu added, “If… if you’re not afraid, I can come closer, and you’ll see.”

Zhu Xiao nodded, “Then come over.”

Wu Jiu carefully floated in front of Zhu Xiao, still maintaining a one-meter distance and not getting too close. He bent down slightly to ensure Zhu Xiao could see his entire head: “See, it’s just smoke. My hair is fine.”

Zhu Xiao thought he was too far away and took the initiative to close the one-meter gap, pulling him closer and pressing his head so he stood in front of himself.

Zhu Xiao touched Wu Jiu’s head, which felt no different from a normal person’s.

Although it was smoking, it wasn’t hot at all.

It indeed looked the same as usual, just with a few extra wisps of smoke.

Or perhaps, as a ghost, Wu Jiu had already lost his sense of pain.

Thinking this, Zhu Xiao stealthily pinched one of Wu Jiu’s hairs, applying a bit of force with his hand.

“Ts——Zhu Xiao, you did that on purpose?” Wu Jiu winced and shouted, “Don’t pull my hair.”

So he did have a sense of pain.

Zhu Xiao finally believed that Wu Jiu’s smoking head really didn’t hurt.

After believing it, Zhu Xiao returned to his usual self, with no sign of any emotional fluctuation on the surface.

He patted Wu Jiu’s head and told him to stand up, “I’m done looking.”

Wu Jiu straightened up again, and then began to feel indignant—why had he let Zhu Xiao touch his head like a dog without resisting?

Was the King of Hell’s head something to be casually touched?

Zhu Xiao, completely unaware that he had just plucked a hair from the tiger’s head, asked nonchalantly, “What did you come for?”

This question finally reminded Wu Jiu of the purpose of his visit, and he immediately began to berate Zhu Xiao: “Zhu Xiao, why did you go on another blind date with that old man?”

Remembering it again, Wu Jiu still gritted his teeth, “And you even took him to my grave!”

Zhu Xiao thought for a moment, and slowly said, “The agreement didn’t specify that I couldn’t do that.”

Wu Jiu was speechless with anger, and then said, “Zhu Xiao, your taste is really bad. What’s so good about that old man?”

He began to list the old man’s flaws, spewing derogatory terms as if they were free: “This man is a liar, smooth-talking, old-fashioned, dull, and at his age, he might even have a wandering mind…”

The more Wu Jiu spoke, the more animated he became, sounding like he was chanting scriptures. Anyone who didn’t know better would think he was trying to brainwash Zhu Xiao.

Zhu Xiao ignored him, turned around, and walked into the house, closing the door behind him.

Just as the door was about to close, a hand quickly slipped in, holding the door edge and pushing it open a bit more.

Wu Jiu slipped in through the gap, following Zhu Xiao and continuing, “What’s the matter, you can’t stand criticism for having poor taste…”

Zhu Xiao glanced at him without a word.

Wu Jiu: “……”

Before Zhu Xiao could throw him out, Wu Jiu quickly closed the door and locked it, then curled his finger and knocked on the door twice, “There, I knocked.”

……A very familiar move. Zhu Xiao didn’t even bother to argue with him.

Zhu Xiao didn’t say “Get out,” so Wu Jiu took it as permission and floated into Zhu Xiao’s living room.

Zhu Xiao pointed to the sofa, indicating he could find a place to sit, and asked, “Do you want some water?”

“No,” Wu Jiu, still a ghost, of course didn’t need water. But after refusing, he immediately regretted it and changed his mind, “Cold water, please.”

Zhu Xiao was used to Wu Jiu’s fickleness. He had already taken a glass and poured cold water before Wu Jiu said “cold water.”

He placed the cold water on the coffee table in front of Wu Jiu.

By chance, as Zhu Xiao bent down to put the glass on the table, Wu Jiu saw two glaring red marks on the side of Zhu Xiao’s neck.

The light at the door had been dim, and Wu Jiu hadn’t seen them. But now, with the bright living room lights, he could see the red marks on Zhu Xiao’s neck clearly.

Almost instantaneously, Wu Jiu’s mood plummeted.

Wu Jiu asked in a low voice, “Who bit your neck?”

Of course, it was a mosquito bite, to be precise, a mosquito as annoying as Wu Jiu. But the reason for the bite was a bit silly, and Zhu Xiao didn’t want to mention it.

Zhu Xiao pushed his hand away, “What does it have to do with you?”

Wu Jiu was probably truly angry this time. His eyebrows lowered, and his face darkened like a storm was coming, looking quite menacing.

He suppressed his anger and pressed on, “Who bit you?”

Zhu Xiao, annoyed, blurted out, “You did.”

“I said this old man is not decent——” Wu Jiu’s boiling anger was unexpectedly extinguished, and he stood there, stunned, “Who did you say?”

Zhu Xiao seemed to find his expression amusing and repeated clearly, “You did.”

“That’s impossible. I wouldn’t do such a thing,” Wu Jiu said, but he didn’t sound very confident. Could it be that he had forgotten something from that night? He had no recollection at all.

But Zhu Xiao’s tone was so certain that he began to doubt himself. He leaned in a bit, suspiciously saying, “Let me see if it really was me.”

Wu Jiu leaned in too close, almost like a large dog, his head almost touching the side of Zhu Xiao’s neck. Zhu Xiao felt a bit ticklish from his hair and subconsciously moved his warming ears, thinking it was because his cold hadn’t fully recovered.

He pushed Wu Jiu’s head away, “I’m just teasing you. It was a mosquito bite.”

Wu Jiu’s face darkened: “Zhu Xiao, you’re calling me a mosquito?”

Zhu Xiao replied, “Pretty much.”

“……Not even close!”

Zhu Xiao didn’t intend to engage in this childish banter and just hummed noncommittally.

Wu Jiu took this as Zhu Xiao’s surrender, humphed, and reluctantly accepted it.

“Alright,” Zhu Xiao pulled up a chair and sat right in front of Wu Jiu, “Now answer my question.”

“What question?”

Wu Jiu was sitting right under the chandelier, the brightest spot, where all his micro-expressions were laid bare. And Zhu Xiao, sitting opposite him under the light, was also sitting upright with a serious expression.

For a moment, Wu Jiu thought he was in an interrogation room—Zhu Xiao had even taken out paper and pen to take notes!

Zhu Xiao asked, “Did you wipe the table in my house?”

Wu Jiu quickly denied it: “No.”

Zhu Xiao nodded and wrote a few words on the paper.

Zhu Xiao asked, “Did you organize the medicine box?”

Wu Jiu firmly refuted: “No.”

Zhu Xiao nodded again and wrote a few more words.

Zhu Xiao asked, “Did you sweep the floor?”

Wu Jiu snorted, “No.”

“None of them?” Zhu Xiao said, “Think carefully before you answer.”

Wu Jiu stubbornly said, “Of course not. Do you think I have nothing better to do than to be your fairy tale character? You wish.”

Zhu Xiao didn’t press, “Alright.”

Then he wrote a few more words on the paper.

Curious about what was on the paper, Wu Jiu leaned in to see what Zhu Xiao was writing.

But Zhu Xiao leaned back, pulled his hand away, and flipped the clipboard he was writing on upside down, not letting him see.

……

“The last question,” Zhu Xiao said, “Did you come to my house when I was sick?”

Wu Jiu still insisted, “No.”

Zhu Xiao nodded, summarized on the paper, and drew a circle.

Curiosity peaked, Wu Jiu couldn’t care less and leaned in to see what Zhu Xiao had written.

This time, Zhu Xiao didn’t hide it anymore and openly let him see.

The paper had two names written on it, one was “Wu Jiu,” and the other was “Wu Jiahe.”

Wu Jiu knew the latter name; it was the name of the old man who had gone on a blind date with Zhu Xiao.

He looked down and saw the words written under “Wu Jiahe”——

Wiping the table, plus ten points.

Organizing the medicine box, plus ten points.

Sweeping and mopping the floor, plus ten points.

……

All in all, “Wu Jiahe” had accumulated more than a hundred points.

In comparison, under “Wu Jiu,” there was nothing at all.

Not only that, but a circle was also drawn around “Wu Jiahe’s” name, indicating an overwhelming victory.

The more he looked, the wider Wu Jiu’s eyes widened, until finally, he was glaring in anger—He had done all those things, so why did the old man get the points for free!!

Before Wu Jiu could tear up the paper, Zhu Xiao took it away.

“So it seems Mr. Wu is a very good person.”

Wu Jiu lunged for the paper in vain and indignantly protested, “What does he have to do with it?”

He couldn’t hold back any longer and rapidly said, “On the day you were sick, I wiped the table, I organized the medicine box, I swept the floor… I took care of you!”

“I’m convinced,” Wu Jiu said, getting more and more angry, “That old man didn’t even make a single phone call. Only you would believe his lies—Why are you laughing?”

“Hmm,” Zhu Xiao couldn’t help but chuckle, “I know.”

Because the “lies” were made up by him; Wu Jiahe hadn’t said them. He and Wu Jiahe had only met twice briefly and hadn’t really chatted, so it was likely that the other party didn’t even know he had been sick.

“What do you know?” Wu Jiu asked sarcastically.

“That you wiped the table, organized the medicine box, swept the floor, and took care of me,” Zhu Xiao repeated slowly, paused, and then added, “And you made the ginger soup.”

Putting a lethal amount of red dates in the ginger soup was something only Wu Jiu would do.

“Knowing that, you still went on a blind date with that old man…” Wu Jiu complained, “What does he have that I don’t?”

Taking advantage of Zhu Xiao’s inattention, Wu Jiu quickly snatched the evaluation sheet from his hand.

With a flick of his finger, he also grabbed the black pen.

Then he uncapped the pen and swiftly wrote on the paper.

Lying through his teeth, minus ten points.

Aged and unattractive, minus ten points.

Lazy and incompetent, minus ten points.

……

Wu Jiu wrote a bunch of derogatory terms, deducting Wu Jiahe’s points to negative one hundred, and added at the end: Suspected of having a wandering mind, minus ten points.

Still not satisfied, he simply blacked out and crossed out “Wu Jiahe’s” name along with the circle around it.

Zhu Xiao watched Wu Jiu’s actions but didn’t stop him.

After Wu Jiu finished writing and slapped the paper and pen on the table, Zhu Xiao raised an eyebrow and asked, “He’s my blind date. Why compare him with you?”

“Can’t even beat me,” Wu Jiu said incredulously, “Dating someone like him is no different from wasting your life.”

Zhu Xiao was silent.

The atmosphere grew quiet, so still that a pin drop could be heard. Wu Jiu couldn’t help but feel anxious. Had he been too blunt, and Zhu Xiao was upset?

Zhu Xiao’s gaze fell on the evaluation sheet that Wu Jiu had scribbled on.

After a long while, he suddenly spoke: “Then should you be the one to date me?”

Without waiting for Wu Jiu to respond, Zhu Xiao pressed his shoulder, pushing him back to his original spot.

Then Zhu Xiao sat upright again, scrutinizing Wu Jiu like an interrogator, closely watching every subtle expression and movement.

“Now for the bonus question,” Zhu Xiao said, “Remember, every word you say will be recorded.”

The evaluation sheet and black pen were back in Zhu Xiao’s hands, and he held the pen with the tip poised over the box under “Wu Jiu.”

“Wu Jiu, do you like me?”

Bringing My Rival Back to Life (Accidentally) - Chapter 20

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Hate that cliffhanger, don’t you?

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