21st Century Necromancer

After completing the interview with Asahi Shimbun, Chen Yu received a call from his third aunt.

Normally, receiving a call from a relative in his homeland should have been a very happy event for Chen Yu, especially since his third aunt had come to Japan and wanted to visit him.

But when his third aunt told Chen Yu the purpose of her visit to Japan, he felt a headache coming on.

Asking him to return home to teach? This wasn't impossible for Chen Yu, he wasn't someone who craved luxury, and returning home was within the range of possibilities he could accept.

He had no complaints about returning home to teach. In Japan, aside from his inability to let go of his girlfriend Jounouchi Hiromi, nothing else really mattered to him. Though being an associate professor at the Eastern University Affiliated Hospital certainly came with a distinguished status, it was just that.

And Chen Yu's research... although it was significant enough to win the Nobel Prize in Medicine, for Chen Yu, the Necromancer, there was an abundance of work on the same level. If he were to reveal all of it, others would not even dream of winning any awards for the next ten years.

So, even though it seemed like Chen Yu had too many irreplaceable things in Japan, in reality, aside from his girlfriend, there was nothing he could not let go of.

As for his subordinates and the power he was developing, remotely controlling his subordinates from another country wasn't difficult, especially when the souls of Tsuchimikado Yoshiharu and others were already utterly loyal to him, Chen Yu wasn't worried about betrayal.

However...

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"Third aunt!" With a hint of nervousness and embarrassment, Jounouchi Hiromi, who had just gotten off work and rushed over, greeted Chen Yu's third aunt.

Seeing Chen Yu's arrival, his third aunt also stood up happily. She was delighted to see her nephew whom she had not seen for many years, "Ah-Yu, your third aunt hasn't seen you for years! Come here and let me take a good look at you!"

"You've become more handsome over the years!" she said as she pulled Chen Yu to her side, examining him from left to right before allowing him to sit next to her.

At the same time, she also took a glance at Jounouchi Hiromi, who sat down with Chen Yu, and deliberately asked in a whisper to Chen Yu, "Ah-Yu, who is this girl? Won't you introduce her to your third aunt?"

"This is my girlfriend, Jounouchi Hiromi," Chen Yu introduced Jounouchi Hiromi to his third aunt in Chinese. Simultaneously, he said to Jounouchi Hiromi in Japanese, "Hiromi, this is my third aunt."

Because Chen Yu and his third aunt had always been speaking in Chinese, Hiromi had no idea what they were saying until Chen Yu suddenly switched to Japanese. She realized he was introducing her, her face flushed red, and she shyly greeted Chen Yu's third aunt with a bow, "Hello, nice to meet you for the first time. I'm Jounouchi Hiromi, Mr. Chen Yu's girlfriend. Please look after me."

"Hello, I'm Chen Yu's third aunt. Just like him, you can call me Third Aunt," Chen Yu's third aunt said to Jounouchi Hiromi. After sharing a sly smile with Chen Yu, she switched to Japanese to greet Jounouchi Hiromi. As an administrative staff member who could be sent to Japan for business, she spoke Japanese.

Since Jounouchi Hiromi was present, continuing the conversation in Chinese would obviously seem disrespectful to her. Therefore, the dialogue among the three naturally shifted to Japanese, allowing Jounouchi Hiromi to understand what Chen Yu and his third aunt were talking about.

"Third Aunt, who sent you this time? To persuade me to return home and teach, it couldn't be..." Chen Yu recalled the school leaders from his university days in China and speculated, "Is it Official Zhao or the old principal? It shouldn't be the old principal; if he wanted me to return to teach, he wouldn't use this method. So, it's Official Zhao?"

"What 'Official Zhao'? The person is Vice Principal Zhao!" Chen Yu's third aunt instantly retorted with a dose of irritation, but the way she mentioned the vice principal had no hint of respect.

This Vice Principal Zhao was the vice principal of the medical school where Chen Yu had studied in China and also the direct superior of Chen Yu's third aunt. Find your next read on empire

However, Vice Principal Zhao mainly managed administrative matters, was not a member of the teaching staff, and had never taught a class. She had risen to the rank of vice principal purely through administrative channels, which often led to opposing views with the old principal who was focused on academic pursuits.

Interestingly, Vice Principal Zhao also came from a family with a long lineage of officials, dating back to the Donglin Party of the Ming Dynasty, serving as court scholars and enduring court beatings.

Later, when the Manchu and the Qing Dynasty entered through the Shanhaiguan Pass, just like the notoriously opportunistic Qian Qianyi, they surrendered to the Manchu, becoming not only their retainers but reportedly also joining their banners.

It was due to this background that the students facetiously referred to Vice Principal Zhao as 'Official Zhao'. This time, it was Vice Principal Zhao who had sent Chen Yu's third aunt to Japan to "persuade" Chen Yu to return home and teach.

"So, what kind of conditions did Vice Principal Zhao offer? He wouldn't expect me to return without any benefits, would he?" Chen Yu asked his third aunt, inquiring about the most critical issue.

In truth, if the old principal—whom the students treated with great respect—had come to persuade Chen Yu to return home and teach, he would have had no objections and wouldn't have cared about the terms of the offer. But if it was Vice Principal Zhao... a cold, mocking laugh echoed in Chen Yu's mind.

"The position of associate professor, housing suitable for a full professor, twenty million in project funds, and an annual research budget of five million," Chen Yu's third aunt directly listed all the offers that she could make to Chen Yu without any intention to keep a hidden reserve, "In addition, Vice Principal Zhao has promised that if you bring your research back with you, the school will build a state-of-the-art laboratory in China for your use."

Hearing this offer, a wry smile appeared on Chen Yu's face, and he felt a sense of absurdity in his heart, "After all, 'Official Zhao' is the vice principal of a provincial medical school, enjoying the treatment of a department-level official, right? And these are the conditions he offers? Didn't the old principal have anything to say?"

"He is now the Acting Principal of Department Grade. The old principal was hospitalized two months ago due to liver cancer, so now Vice Principal Zhao calls the shots at the school," Chen Yu's third aunt was well aware that such terms would never tempt Chen Yu, but still laid them out before him.

"Twenty million in project funds, five million in research funding... that's three hundred million yen and seventy-five million yen," Chen Yu said with a bemused shake of his head, turning to Jounouchi Hiromi who sat beside him, and asked, "Hiromi, you're in charge of procuring experimental animals for my lab; do you remember how much we spent last month on buying mice?"

"4.9 million yen; that was the cost for last month's animal purchases, which included not just mice but also three chimpanzees," Jounouchi Hiromi knew why Chen Yu was asking this, and after giving Chen Yu's third aunt an apologetic look, she still stated the fact.