No one knew how long that damned dream lasted before Mary Carter finally began to wake up, returning to the reality of the underworld. She hadn’t won the lottery yet! She was still just a minor, unofficial administrator. No, she had to buy that lottery ticket first. Twenty million in the world of the living was two hundred million in the underworld—this was a once-in-a-lifetime chance to strike it rich, and she absolutely couldn’t let it slip by. Without hesitation, she quickly opened the lottery machine and started entering the numbers one by one. ‘Wait!’ She suddenly realized that the winning numbers seemed to be missing two digits. Counting carefully, she confirmed that two numbers were indeed missing. Mary Carter blinked her eyes; this usually happened when Edward Thompson’s family hadn’t burned the lottery ticket completely.

　　“Hey!” Mary Carter suddenly looked up and shouted angrily, “How do you people burn joss paper? You can’t even burn something this important properly! Don’t you know you’ll harm your own deceased family member like this?”

　　But this was the grand prize—two hundred million underworld coins! Mary Carter’s heart was burning with anxiety. She paced back and forth in front of the lottery machine, hands behind her back. What to do? What should she do? Suddenly, she slapped herself hard. That Edward Thompson must still remember the numbers—why hadn’t she thought of him?

　　But he was drinking the Meng Po soup! Mary Carter was so anxious her face turned green. She rushed like the wind into the Naihe Bridge cafeteria. Amitabha! She prayed to Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva that she wasn’t too late. She was terrified that Edward Thompson would drink the soup and forget everything.

　　……

　　2. The Scheming Mr. Clark

　　Luckily, her luck was very good. She immediately spotted the tall, skinny Edward Thompson standing in line for food, and it was almost his turn. Just as he was about to take his tray, Mary Carter’s ghostly figure flashed in front of him. She slapped his tray down and grabbed his arm, saying, “Come with me, I have something to ask you!”

　　“Anna Carter, what are you doing?” George Thompson hurried over to intervene. Mary Carter glared at him with almond-shaped eyes and snapped, “What do you mean, what am I doing? Can’t I just talk to him?”

　　Although Mary Carter was just a minor, unofficial staff member, her husband was a judge in the underworld—a high-ranking official. Someone like George Thompson wouldn’t dare cross her. He could only watch helplessly as Mary Carter dragged Edward Thompson away, swallowing his frustration. He glanced at Edward Thompson’s bowl of Meng Po soup—each bowl was numbered, and not a single one could be missing.

　　“You!” He gave a hard kick to an old lecher who was staring at a female ghost’s backside, then pointed at the extra bowl of Meng Po soup. “Lucky you, drink this one too.”

　　As for what would happen if someone drank two bowls of Meng Po soup, he had no idea. But that didn’t matter. What mattered was that someone had to drink the extra bowl in front of him.

　　Meanwhile, Mary Carter dragged Edward Thompson to her lottery machine, pointed at the numbers, and asked, “Do you still remember the winning numbers? Tell me, and we’ll split the underworld jackpot fifty-fifty.”

　　Edward Thompson was nearsighted. He leaned in and stared for a long time, then froze. Weren’t these his winning numbers? How did she know? But it seemed two digits were missing. He was about to say them, but suddenly bit his tongue. Wait, he absolutely must not say them now. Edward Thompson glanced at Mary Carter—she was a plump, middle-aged female ghost, her waist thicker than a rhino’s, and she seemed to be just a minor staffer. She wasn’t attractive, so why was Bullhead so afraid of her? Could they have been first loves back in the day? Edward Thompson quickly shook his head to dismiss the ridiculous thought. He suddenly remembered when he first joined the securities company, there was a chubby cashier auntie everyone seemed to curry favor with. He’d thought it was because people wanted her to reimburse their expenses, but later learned she was actually the boss’s wife. So, with women, it’s not about what they do, but who their husband is. And this auntie in front of him? She was both an official and selling lottery tickets, treated the ghost officers rudely, and no leaders ever intervened. Could her husband also be…? Though it was just a guess, Edward Thompson decided to take a gamble. He immediately smiled and said, “Of course I remember the numbers, but I have two small wishes. If you can fulfill them, the jackpot is all yours.”

　　Mary Carter suddenly found herself starting to like this young man—he really knew how to talk! He was clearly negotiating, but instead of calling them conditions, he called them wishes, so she wouldn’t lose face. And he even called her ‘big sister’!

　　Mary Carter chuckled, “Go ahead! Big sister does have some connections—maybe I can help you.”

　　“First, I don’t want to drink that Meng Po soup.”

　　Before he finished, Mary Carter interrupted, “Don’t worry, George Thompson will give me that much face. You don’t have to drink it.”

　　She didn’t say the subtext: if he drank the Meng Po soup, would he still remember the numbers? Mary Carter impatiently urged, “Then quickly tell me your second wish.”

　　“My second little wish! I want to return to the world of the living.”

　　……

　　Mary Carter placed Edward Thompson in the temporary shelter by Naihe Bridge, then, weighed down with worry, went to find her old man. Returning to life was not the same as reincarnation—it had strict quotas and required special approval from King Yama. More importantly, one’s allotted lifespan couldn’t be up yet. She was just a minor administrator and didn’t have that kind of power, so she could only go discuss it with her husband. Mary Carter’s husband was Mr. Clark, a judge in the underworld who managed the Book of Life and Death. Maybe he would have a way to let Edward Thompson return to life.