The Path Of a Cannon Fodder

A sheet of paper with 4 lines written on it appeared in Bai AnLing's hands and looking at the information they contained he stupidly blinked his eyes.

Name: Xu Yuan.

Age: 25.

Sex: male.

Work: Art critic.

"Why did I just get a piece of paper with information I already knew?"

He was trying to figure out whether Vine was making fun of him or it was just stupid, failing to understand what Bai AnLing meant when he used the word information.

[This is the information I currently have on Xu Yuan since he is only an NPC like character, meant to bring Shui Hong, the protagonist, the fame he needs to conquer He Ju, the female lead.]

"So you are saying I have nothing but luck to go on?"

Bai AnLing tiredly rubbed the bridge of his nose as he if was having a huge headache, this day was not going well so far. The emotional roller-coaster Bai AnLing has been through in just these past few hours was taking its toll on his mentality, tiring him to no end. Seeing the desperation and fatigue in its host's eyes, Vine felt shame for not being more useful to him as his system.

[Host, it is possible for me to go survey Xu Yuan for a few days, to collect information. Will that be helpful?]

Bai AnLing lifted his head and his phoenix brown eyes suddenly returned to their lively state, as if nothing was burdening them a second ago. The quick change alarmed Vine, as it was unable to understand that its host had tricked it.

"That will be very helpful!"

Bai AnLing revealed a happy smile full of white teeth, his mood turning for the better. The handsome man smiling happily at him looked very warm, making Vine forget about his suspicions towards him.

"By the way-"

Bai AnLing suddenly looked like he remembered something and wore a face full of contemplation.

"-whatever had happened to the small villa next to the sea, the one that belonged to the Lin couple? It wasn't owned by the Shun family after all, so it probably wasn't included in Shun RongTian's will, right?"

[The Lin's villa? I don't think it was in the Shun RongTian's will....]

Finally catching up with Bai AnLing's line of thought, Vine realized in amazement how smart its host was.

[Now that I think about it, the villa is probably still owned by Lin Li!]

Since the villa wasn't owned by Shun RongTian to be given to Lin Li in his will, the Shui family probably didn't even knew it existed so they couldn't have taken it away from him.

"Just as I thought! This is perfect!"

Bai AnLing was very satisfied with this development, if he can go live in the sea-side villa a lot of problems will be solved for him. He'll no longer have to pay rent since the house was owned by Lin Li's deceased parents, making his life much easier.

"Vine, can you go check the state of the house for me?"

He decided to have Vine check that information immediately, in order to give himself a possibly more comfortable life.

'If I can even move there today....'

Bai AnLing thought to himself as he sent another aggrieved look at the dirty bed in the room, one that even a bug won't agree to sleep in. Seeing its host's expression, Vine immediately felt guilt and complied.

[Of course host! I'll be back in 10 minutes.]

A sound resembling a computer's power off was heard as Vine left to do his research, leaving its host alone in the room.

'I might need to renovate it now that I think about it but hopefully it's in a good shape though, just in need of a good cleanse...'

Bai AnLing knew he shouldn't expect anything from the villa, after all, it's been around 12 years since anyone probably been there and it must be in a bad shape. However, in comparison to the storage room he was currently residing in and paying rent for, a free villa next to the sea seemed much better.

[Host I'm back and with some good news.]

After 10 minutes had passed, a buzzing sound was heard and then Vine's voice as well.

"Good news? Well what are they?"

Good news were exactly what Bai AnLing needed to hear after such a long day and he couldn't help getting excited. Seeing its host showing enthusiasm cheered Vine and made him excited as well to share his news.

[The villa is not only in your ownership, but it is in a very good shape. Apparently Shun RongTian couldn't let go of this house that used to belong to your parents, so he had assigned people to take care of it after their deaths. The maintenance is still being paid for by the accountant of the deceased Shun RongTian, using your parents money that you never inherited and is being hidden from the Shui family since it's not relevant for them to know about it.]

Bai AnLing jumped to his feet in joy and clapped his hands, smiling in satisfaction at the news.

"Well done Vine! These are wonderful news!"

[Thank you host! I'm glad to hear you're happy.]

Bai AnLing began running around the room, stuffing things to the empty garbage bags he found on a shelf. In less than an hour, the room was empty except for a small pile of black garbage bags laying in the middle of the room and the packed boxes that were already there when he woke up. He also carefully warped in the bed sheets the artworks Lin Li created before Bai AnLing transferred to his body, since he wanted to keep them safe during the trip.

"Vine, was the rent of this place paid for this month already?"

He didn't want to get in unnecessary trouble if we didn't have to, so after Vine confirmed that the rent was paid, Bai AnLing left a letter to the landowner saying he is leaving the apartment.

[Host, may I ask how you are planning to move all of those things to the villa? You don't own a car.]

Thanks to Vine, Bai AnLing finally stopped in his tracks and remembered his biggest issue at the moment, having absolutely no money whatsoever. Realizing his mistake, Bai AnLing's face was covered in black lines as he wanted to drop to his knees and curse this wretched world to hell.

'I forgot I'm in the poor and penniless body of Lin Li.....'

During his lifetime Bai AnLing stopped worrying about money once he turned 15 and could earn enough of it as a kickboxer, and before that as well since he had his late grandmother's savings. Getting his job at the FBI was also a given for him since he wasn't only a genius but was also very a hardworking person, excelling at his studies. This is why being penniless all of a sudden was a hard thing for Bai AnLing to process and eventually, getting to the decision that it couldn't stay this way was the obvious outcome.

'I will fix this situation no matter what!'

Bai AnLing strengthened his determination for the days to come.