The Heroine’s Cannon-Fodder First Wife Chapter 1

Beside the stream outside Westflood Village, a child of six or seven stared fixedly at her reflection in the water.
She frowned at the filthy little face looking back at her, then tugged at her tangled hair. Her expression grew even more severe.
“This is what you called a perfect service experience? No matter how I look at it, I’m a little beggar now.”
She glanced down at her clothes, which were so dirty that their original color was impossible to tell. One poke of her finger left a neat little hole in the hem.
The child narrowed her eyes at the small green orb floating beside her.
“I think you owe me a reasonable explanation. Or a different identity.”
Her voice was flat, and her face showed no emotion, yet the newly bound system was certain its host was angry.
The green light dimmed, and the little orb quivered. Before speaking, it changed its voice to that of a child, hoping to win a little sympathy and affection.
“Well, that’s a long story. It all begins with a novel called If You Won’t Become an Immortal. As you know, Host, your friend wrote it to vent her anger, so she—”
Mu Yunran crouched beside the stream and washed her dirty hands, cutting off the system’s rambling explanation.
“Get to the point. I already know how and why I ended up inside this book. You don’t need to start from the beginning. And that woman Xie Tian is a terrible friend at best.”
A person who got disgusted by another author’s decision to change a pairing, then started a new story just to disgust her own innocent readers, could only be called a terrible friend. That terrible friend had also gotten Mu Yunran killed.
Mu Yunran recalled the wild-eyed stranger and the knife that had plunged into her body. More than anything, she felt puzzled. Just before dying, she had grasped one simple truth: authors should not deliberately torment their readers with outrageous stunts. They should finish their stories properly instead.
Otherwise, there was always a chance an enraged reader might kill them.
The little orb gave a wounded “Oh,” then drifted in front of Mu Yunran and continued.
“The story pretended to be a female-led romance, but it was really an overpowered male-lead harem novel. Halfway through, the author kept writing about the male lead collecting all the female supporting characters. The heroine was reduced to a background prop and a punching bag, and eventually her whole personality fell apart… Anyway, the readers were disgusted. Their anger shot through the roof, and they demanded a new male lead and a complete rewrite.”
Mu Yunran washed her face, then wet her hands and gave her hair a quick wipe. She sat beside the stream, enjoying the warm breeze against her skin.
“As far as I know, Xie Tian has no intention of rewriting it. Worse, she plans to give the heroine a new love interest in the final chapter, just to disgust the readers completely.”
The little orb bobbed excitedly. “Exactly! All her outrageous choices have pushed the world inside the book toward collapse. The readers’ dissatisfaction keeps rising. Once it reaches one hundred percent, the entire world will fall apart!”
Its glow brightened as it spoke. Mu Yunran raised a hand to shield her eyes from the glare.
“So our job is to save the world inside the book?”
“Huh? No, no. Our job is to save a certain nameless cannon-fodder character. Ideally, we’ll also kick the original male lead off his throne. Without his protagonist’s halo, he won’t be able to kill that cannon fodder so easily! As long as the cannon fodder survives to the ending, you can return to your original world!”
A bad feeling rose in Mu Yunran’s heart. “And this cannon fodder is…?”
“You, Host! Since the cannon fodder didn’t have a name, you can use your old one or choose any new name you like. Isn’t that wonderful?”
Using its unusual projection ability, the system conjured a white-gloved hand beside itself and gave her a thumbs-up.
“Wow. So thoughtful. What a perfect service experience. Wonderful.”
Mu Yunran watched its shameless self-praise without changing her expression.
“So you’re a system created to save cannon-fodder characters?”
The little orb settled on her shoulder. “That’s right. My mission is to save cannon fodder in different book worlds and develop plans to help them save themselves.”
Its childish voice brimmed with confidence. Perhaps Mu Yunran could trust its professional ability—a little.
“May I ask what I should call you? And what is your past mission success rate?”
The system froze. After some thought, it decided to ignore the second question.
“Host can simply call me System. Or you can call me your adorable Sweetie System!”
Mu Yunran nodded. “I see. So, System, what is your mission success rate? Did the people you bound before me all return to their original worlds? And where is your cannon-fodder rescue plan? May I see it?”
With every question she asked, the little orb drifted a little farther away. Its green light flickered guiltily.
“I’d be happier if Host called me her adorable Sweetie System!”
Mu Yunran reached out and caught the orb.
“Adorable Sweetie System, please answer my questions.”
The system struggled in her palm but could not break free. It whimpered indignantly. This little girl is surprisingly strong for a down-and-out beggar. And this coldhearted host is like a block of ice! She doesn’t know how to cherish a delicate flower like me. All she does is question me with that blank face!
“I-I’m a newly employed system, so this is my first solo mission. But don’t worry, Host. With our combined abilities, we’ll definitely succeed. As for the plan, I finished it ages ago. Here!”
The system produced a thread-bound booklet from thin air. Its cover was blue, and four large brush-written characters declared it to be a cannon-fodder self-rescue plan. Looking at it, Mu Yunran had the strange feeling she was about to open a secret martial-arts manual.
Under the system’s eager gaze, she opened the first page. Only two short lines had been written on the artificially aged paper:
To save yourself, you must first cultivate. Defeat the male lead and seize his halo. Save the heroine, and only then can you go home.
Mu Yunran read it once, then closed the useless booklet. She reached two conclusions. First, the adorable Sweetie System was pretty but useless. Second, it was a devoted fan of the heroine and had stuffed its personal agenda into the plan.
Mu Yunran did not care about the private agenda. All that mattered was completing the mission successfully.
She casually tossed the booklet aside, rose, and surveyed her surroundings.
Westflood Village lay just beyond the stream. As far as she could see, its homes were crude huts built from earth, stone, and straw. A fence surrounded the entrance, where an old tree stood beside a weather-beaten wooden sign. Time and rain had worn away most of the sign, but three characters had been carved into it: Westflood Village.
Mu Yunran took a few steps closer. The grooves were still fresh. Someone must have recarved the name recently.
She looked up at the sky. Evening had already arrived. The blue of day was turning orange, and cooking smoke curled above the village.
“System, tell me about Westflood Village. I also want information about the original owner of this body and what we should do next.”
Her level voice reached the system as it stared mournfully at the booklet on the ground. The little orb was deeply aggrieved. It had stayed up all night working on that plan, only for its host to cast it aside with contempt. Its hard work had been trampled!
Lost in its sorrow, the system did not respond at first. Mu Yunran waited more than ten seconds before turning around in mild confusion.
The little orb had conjured two white gloves and was shakily picking up its booklet. It gently dusted the dirt from the cover. Anyone with the slightest compassion would have felt guilty at the sight.
Mu Yunran plainly had no compassion.
She walked over, tapped the top of the orb, and coldly repeated her request.
The system wobbled. It did not like being touched by this heartless host. It put away the booklet and floated out of reach.
Mu Yunran did not care what it thought. She merely gave it a flat look that urged it to hurry.
The system huffed and began its explanation.
Westflood Village was poor and backward, with fewer than fifty residents. Apart from the village chief, every one of them was an ordinary person without spiritual roots. The chief was an honest man in his fifties who treated the villagers well.
As for the body’s original owner, she was exactly what Mu Yunran had called her: a nameless little beggar. No one knew where she had come from, who her parents were, or how she had ended up in such misery. The people of Westflood Village simply regarded her as one of the countless unfortunate souls in the world. From time to time, they gave her enough food to keep her from starving.
“It’s getting late, Host. We should find somewhere to rest. I’ll issue future missions according to the proper time and plot. As long as you complete the missions I give you, you won’t have to worry about anything else.”
The system even yawned as it spoke. At that moment, it looked more human than Mu Yunran did.
Mu Yunran acknowledged it and looked around. Aside from Westflood Village, there was nowhere in sight that could shelter her from the wind and rain.
The system floated above her head and gave her a remarkably humanlike introduction to its functions.
In addition to a system shop and access to the plot, it could briefly scan an area within roughly thirty miles and draw a map based on its host’s needs. It could also enhance her basic physical abilities.
“Once Host earns lots and lots of mission points, this system will unlock even more functions and make your life much easier! If you find rare medicinal plants or treasures, you can exchange those for mission points too!”
Without hesitation, Mu Yunran had the system create a map. Following its recommendation, she headed for an abandoned temple that would protect her from the weather. There was no rush to earn mission points or unlock more functions just yet.
The abandoned temple was fairly clean. Apart from a pile of dry grass, it held a golden statue.
The statue stood on a gray stone platform, with the stubs of burned-out candles arranged before it. There was not a single offering.
The temple was difficult to find. Mu Yunran would never have reached it without the system’s guidance. Thanks to its physical enhancement, the walk had not tired her.
The temple stood on a small, wooded hill, quiet and secluded.
Mu Yunran gazed up at the statue. It was so tall that she could not make out its face, much less identify the immortal it depicted.
After a while, she looked away. The immortal’s identity did not matter. She was only borrowing this place for one night. At dawn, she would leave and head toward the place where the novel’s story began.
For safety, Mu Yunran ordered the system to scan the temple. Once it confirmed there were no snakes, insects, or rats, she gathered dry grass and spread it on the floor behind the statue.
The system was puzzled. A wide open patch of floor lay nearby, so why did its host insist on sleeping in the cramped space behind the statue? It asked her exactly that.
Mu Yunran continued arranging the grass as she answered.
“If I sleep here, anyone who comes inside won’t spot me at once. This temple doesn’t look as if anyone visits, but caution won’t hurt. System, keep watch while I sleep. If any living thing approaches, wake me immediately.”
Without waiting for an answer, Mu Yunran covered herself with dry grass, lay down, and fell asleep.
The little orb agreed miserably. It settled beside her and activated its alarm.
When the first ray of morning light entered the temple, the system’s warning rang through Mu Yunran’s mind.
Host, wake up! People are coming—and there’s more than one!