“Aunt Bai, I don't want to work hard anymore.”
“Come to me, baby. Auntie is waiting for you.”
The moment Lu Ming opened his eyes, his passionate confession was still echoing in his mind.
He squinted at the light shining down from the roof, a trace of confusion in his heart. He remembered he hadn't even started working yet—how was he already exhausted?
The moment he raised his hand to block the light, Lu Ming cried out instinctively, “Holy crap! What's going on?”
He realized that the skinny, weak hand in front of him was definitely not his own. At the same time, he noticed that the weak, raspy voice wasn't his either.
Memories flooded back in an instant. Lu Ming remembered that he had just successfully confessed over the phone and was about to reach the pinnacle of his life. But in his ambitious excitement, while riding his bicycle to Aunt Bai's villa, he crossed paths with a hundred-ton heavy-duty truck with failing brakes.
“So what if I took a shortcut, rode against traffic, and ran a red light? Did they really have to bring out a hundred-ton behemoth? Was that necessary?” Lu Ming couldn't help but mutter.
What was his current situation? Had he transmigrated?
Lu Ming immediately felt a surge of joy. As a veteran web novel enthusiast, he knew all about transmigration! He just didn't know if he had transmigrated into a domineering CEO or a prince.
Thinking about a future of being pampered with food and clothes handed to him, life seemed almost too beautiful. Lu Ming quickly turned his head to look around. He saw an ancient-style room, drafty on all sides.
The bright light in the room wasn't from any fancy lighting, but rather sunlight filtering through a massive crack in the adobe wall. The light above him wasn't an ambient lamp either; it was the sun shining directly down through a gaping hole in the roof.
In an instant, Lu Ming felt as if he had chugged an ice-cold beer with extra ice in the dead of winter, chilling him from head to toe... Looking at this environment, there was no way he was a prince or a domineering CEO!
Just as Lu Ming was feeling that his life was bleak and starting over was pointless, a beam of light suddenly appeared.
He froze. Could it be a cheat? After all, every novel he read in his past life had one.
Then, lying on the bed, Lu Ming saw a golden halo emitting a brilliant light appear above him. It looked a bit like the halo behind the Buddha. But that wasn't the important part. The important part was that in the middle of the halo, two words were written: “Protagonist”!
Seeing these words, Lu Ming's breath caught, and his eyes widened to the size of saucers. “It's the Protagonist Halo!”
Swept up in his excitement, Lu Ming—whether due to pure ecstasy or just the lighting and angle—failed to notice three other words written on the back of the halo: “Stepping Stone.”
Just as Lu Ming was about to get a closer look at the halo, it suddenly flew toward him with a whoosh. With a blinding flash, it sank into his head and disappeared.
Lu Ming happily patted the top of his head. “Haha... With the Protagonist Halo on my head, I'm going to reach the pinnacle of life! Mwahaha...”
He instantly went from feeling half-dead and hopeless to feeling like the future was full of promise and the world would soon be his.
“Grumble...”
Just then, an untimely sound rumbled from Lu Ming's stomach.
Only then did he pay attention to the state of his current body. He was completely weak, and his stomach was practically sticking to his spine from hunger. Could his predecessor have starved to death? What a legend!
Lu Ming immediately prepared to get out of bed and find some food. He couldn't let his beautiful new life end in starvation before it even began... He pressed his palms against the edge of the bed to push himself up, but with a thud, he fell right back down. Only then did he realize that his limbs were completely drained of strength from hunger; he couldn't even manage to get out of bed.
“Is anyone there? Just a bite of food...” he called out weakly, but there was no response. Then, Lu Ming realized that there probably wasn't anyone around. Otherwise, his predecessor wouldn't have met such a miserable end, dying without anyone even noticing.
Was he really going to starve to death in this strange, foreign world too?
But Lu Ming quickly dismissed the thought. No way, no way. He was the protagonist with the Protagonist Halo. There was no way he would starve to death.
According to the classic tropes, a cute, lovely childhood sweetheart or a secret admirer would definitely show up soon to bring him some food. Thinking of this, Lu Ming felt a bit more at ease and continued to lie there, though he was so hungry he wanted to take a bite out of himself.
Time passed. Just as Lu Ming was seeing stars from hunger and felt like he was about to meet his great-grandmother, the door opened with a loud creak.
Lu Ming was overjoyed. She's here... She's here! Haha, my little childhood sweetheart is here! He really was the protagonist. He wouldn't starve to death after all.
But when he turned his head, he froze instantly.
A large, yellow-and-brown dog walked in.
Is this his cute, lovely childhood sweetheart?!
Lu Ming even began to wonder if he was hallucinating from hunger.
Meanwhile, Big Yellow's shiny black eyes were filled with pure disdain, as if saying: You're living worse than a dog. What a waste...
Lu Ming was utterly speechless. Was he really being looked down on by a dog?
Just then, Big Yellow trotted over to the bedside. Only then did Lu Ming notice that the dog was carrying a greaseproof paper package in its mouth. A rich, savory aroma wafted over, and he instinctively swallowed his saliva. He stared intently at the paper package in Big Yellow's mouth. Was that food?
Big Yellow didn't waste any time. It tossed its head and placed the package right next to Lu Ming's pillow. The paper fell open, revealing a large, snow-white meat bun. The moment he saw the bun, Lu Ming forgot everything else and lunged forward like a hungry dog. Unfortunately, he missed.
A wave of intense dizziness washed over him, and he nearly blacked out. He quickly bit the tip of his tongue, fearing that if he passed out now, he might never wake up again. Summoning every ounce of strength he had left, he dragged his head closer to the bun.
“Chomp!”
Lu Ming felt the soft, fragrant dough and the savory meat filling burst between his teeth. He swore he had never eaten anything this delicious in either of his two lifetimes. It tasted absolutely incredible!
After devouring a few bites of the bun, Lu Ming's stomach felt much better, and some strength returned to his body. After resting for a moment, he slowly sat up and finished the rest of the bun.
Once he finished eating, Lu Ming carefully examined the dog that had brought him the food. Its brownish-yellow fur was smooth and shiny, and the area from its face down to its neck was pure white. This was the legendary "yellow dog with a white face, worth more than gold"—it was Big Yellow!
Lu Ming composed himself and looked at Big Yellow with a solemn expression. “Thank you, Big Yellow. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be working as a secretary for Yama right now. From now on, you are my, Lu Ming's, cross-species blood brother! If I become emperor, you'll be my founding Dog General. If I become a wealthy merchant, you'll be my original founding partner...”
As for whether Big Yellow could understand him, Lu Ming wasn't worried at all. A dog that could bring him food—and more importantly, knew to keep it wrapped in paper—was incredibly intelligent. How could such a spiritual dog not understand simple human speech?
“Woof...”
Big Yellow wagged its tail, its eyes filled with disdain, as if to say: You're relying on me just to feed yourself, yet you're dreaming of becoming an emperor? You must have starved yourself stupid.
Seeing Big Yellow's expression, Lu Ming gasped, realizing that he actually understood the dog's meaning. “Big Yellow, are you doubting my abilities? I am the protagonist of this world now! Do you know what a protagonist is?”
You're a pig's trotter?
Big Yellow looked at Lu Ming, its eyes full of pity. Yep, he was definitely starved stupid. Oh well. When this guy eventually died, it would let the local stray dogs know so they wouldn't eat him. That could be its way of repaying his father's life-saving favor from back then.
Seeing the vivid expressions on the dog's face, Lu Ming instantly grew anxious. “Not a pig's trotter, a protagonist! Pro-ta-go-nist! My pronunciation was just a bit off. Anyway, your Brother Lu is super powerful!”
Rate on N.U.
