1 – Isekaied

“Gurgle…”

Early in the morning, Lu Qing woke up to the sound of his stomach growling.

Feeling the hunger in his belly, he sighed and patted his stomach.

“It’s no use calling… Where can I get food now?”

Looking at the dilapidated house he was in, which could be described as bare bones, Lu Qing forced a bitter smile.

Others traverse worlds and so did he, but he can’t even fill his stomach. What kind of situation is this?

He had been lying in bed for two days.

Two days ago, Lu Qing opened his eyes and found himself in this inexplicable world.

With tattered clothes and a skinny frame, he even found his body changed, becoming that of a boy around ten years old.

After spending some time, Lu Qing figured out his situation.

He had crossed over.

Reborn into the body of a boy who had just lost both his parents, and after selling off their property to bury them, couldn’t survive a cold night due to weakness and grief.

Perhaps, for the original owner, this was a form of relief…

After receiving the memories in his mind, this was Lu Qing’s first thought.

A teenager trying to survive in this world… It was too difficult.

Death might not be such a bad thing…

But…

“Brother, you’re awake!”

Lu Qing’s thoughts were suddenly interrupted by an excited shout.

He turned his head to see a little girl around five or six years old, holding something gray in her hand, looking at him with a face full of joy.

The little girl quickly ran up to Lu Qing, “Brother, are you better?”

“Yes, I’m better now. Xiao Yan, you don’t need to worry anymore,” Lu Qing smiled.

“That’s great, Brother, you’re finally better.” Hearing Lu Qing say he was fine, the little girl’s eyes turned red, and tears streamed down. “These past two days, your face was always red and hot, and you kept saying you were cold. I didn’t know what to do. No matter how I called you, you didn’t respond. I was afraid you would be like Daddy and Mommy, and leave Xiao Yan alone!”

Seeing the little girl cry, Lu Qing felt a pang of heartache.

These past two days, he had been integrating the memories in his mind, appearing to be in a comatose state. Although he could vaguely sense the outside world, his consciousness couldn’t remain clear.

While he briefly woke up a few times, he quickly fell back into a coma.

Vaguely, he did hear the little girl’s cries, but he couldn’t respond.

Lu Qing reached out and patted the little girl’s dry, yellow hair. “Brother was wrong. Brother promises you he won’t get sick again and make Xiao Yan worry, okay?”

“Okay.” Xiao Yan smiled through her tears and reached out her small hand. “Then let’s pinky swear.”

Lu Qing extended his little finger and hooked it with Xiao Yan’s.

“Pinky swear, pinky swear, never change for a hundred years. If you do, you’re a puppy!”

After making the pinky promise, Xiao Yan instantly cheered up.

In her little mind, since they made a pinky promise, everything wouldn’t change, and her brother would never get sick again.

“Xiao Yan, what are you holding in your hands?”

At this moment, Lu Qing noticed the item in the little girl’s hands.

“It’s a steamed bun. Doesn’t Brother recognize it?” Xiao Yan held the gray object in her hands and handed it to Lu Qing, saying happily, “This was given to me by Grandpa Zhang next door. Xiao Yan couldn’t bear to eat it alone and wanted to bring it back to share with Brother. I didn’t expect to see Brother healed when I got back.”

Mantou?

Lu Qing looked at that grayish thing; it really was quite different from the mantou he remembered.

However, he thought about how he was in another world now and felt at ease.

The whole world is different now, so it’s not strange if mantou has changed too.

Thinking this way, Lu Qing’s gaze lingered on the gray mantou for a few seconds. Suddenly, a line of text appeared.

【Miscellaneous Grain Mantou: Made from rice bran, wheat flour, and wild vegetables, limited in nutrition.】

At the same time, the mantou also emitted a layer of gray light.

What is this?

Lu Qing was stunned. He blinked his eyes and found that the line of text was still displayed on the gray mantou and had not disappeared.

It doesn’t seem to be an illusion…

Before Lu Qing could continue to explore, at this moment, Xiao Yan cupped the gray mantou and brought it to his mouth.

“Brother, eat this. You just recovered. Grandpa Chen said that after recovering from an illness, you need to eat to nourish your body.”

Lu Qing smelled the grain scent emanating from the gray mantou. Already ravenous, the hunger swept over him again.

He didn’t hesitate, took it, tore off half, and handed it back to Xiao Yan.

“Hmm, Xiao Yan, eat some too.”

He didn’t forget that the little one had said earlier that this mantou was given by someone else, and she wanted to share it with him.

Unexpectedly, the little one shook her head and stuffed the half mantou back into Lu Qing’s hand: “Brother eat it. Xiao Yan is not hungry. Brother just recovered. If you eat more, you’ll recover faster.”

But even though she said it like this, Lu Qing clearly saw her unconsciously gulp when handing the mantou back.

He glanced at the little one’s head covered in dull yellow hair, feeling a pang of pity and once again returned the half mantou to her hand.

“Brother just recovered. He can’t eat too much at once, or his stomach won’t handle it. So, this half is for Xiao Yan.”

“Is that so?” The little one held the half mantou, tilted her head, and asked, “But that seems different from what Grandpa Chen said.”

“Those who have just recovered from a serious illness shouldn’t eat too much too quickly. Next time, you can ask Grandpa Chen if that’s true.” Lu Qing said.

“Okay.” The little one nodded, seemingly understanding.

But she didn’t realize that such a small mantou had nothing to do with overeating.

Lu Qing took the chance to continue coaxing: “Since Brother can’t finish it, Xiao Yan should eat with Brother, or the mantou will get cold and won’t taste good.”

“Mm!” Xiao Yan nodded heavily, “Since Brother can’t finish it, Xiao Yan will help Brother eat it.”

The two siblings, each holding half a mantou, happily gnawed on it.

Soon, Lu Qing finished his half. His empty stomach finally had something in it, and a warm sensation rose from his belly, making him feel much more spirited.

To be honest, the mantou didn’t taste that great, but it was solid and quite sizable.

Even with just half, Lu Qing’s hunger lessened a bit, no longer making him feel dizzy and weak.

Seeing Xiao Yan still diligently gnawing on the mantou, Lu Qing didn’t disturb her and turned his attention to something else.

He remembered the line of text that had appeared on the mantou earlier.

Thinking about it, Lu Qing stood up, walked to the table, and picked up a chipped bowl.

He held it in front of him and quietly stared at it.

Then, after a few seconds, he saw the bowl emit a layer of gray light, and a line of text appeared.

【Damaged Pottery Bowl: A damaged pottery bowl, seemingly not very clean.】

Just as expected, a smile appeared on Lu Qing’s face.