dognovel Chapter 1 West Coast and Donuts
Chapter 1 West Coast and Donuts
The afternoons on Rose Street are always shrouded in a strange smell.
The sweet aroma wafting from the dessert shop mingled with the rancid smell emanating from the garbage cans at the alley entrance, making one feel nauseous.
But Simon Lin was queuing in front of a dessert shop. As a homeless man who had just arrived in Los Angeles, he couldn't refuse a free dinner.
"You're so skinny, here's a double portion for you," a chubby white woman in a pink tracksuit said enthusiastically, stuffing two large donuts into Simon Lin's paper bag.
"Being plump is beautiful, be brave and be yourself!"
The other person had a crooked badge pinned to their chest that read "Fat Freedom." Lin Simon had just inquired and learned that this welfare meal was organized by a famous dessert company.
This dessert company recently experienced a decline in its product market share, which it attributed to the low obesity rate among the homeless population. Therefore, it organized a large-scale welfare meal distribution in Los Angeles.
"Only America could come up with such an unreliable marketing plan."
Lin Ximeng looked down and saw the shiny, oily donuts in the bag.
If it were yesterday, he would have frowned and avoided such a heat bomb.
But now, in the dozen or so hours he's been transported to the West Coast and become a homeless man, he hasn't eaten a single grain of rice and is starving to the point of blacking out.
"Since things have come to this, let's eat first."
Lin Simon accepted the donut, and then chose the mineral water from the orange soda and mineral water offered by the chubby girl.
He found a less dirty step to sit on, tore open the plastic bag, and took a bite of the donut.
"It's cloyingly sweet."
The frosting melted instantly in his mouth, so sweet it made his temples throb, and his throat tightened when he swallowed it.
Lin Simon chewed slowly while looking up into the distance:
Three blocks away, the Michelin-starred restaurant was already open. A black, extended Lincoln glided past the brightly lit restaurant entrance, and men and women dressed in luxurious clothes walked on the clean, mirror-like marble floor.
But the road beside him was covered in grease, brown gum stains were embedded in the cracks, and a few greenbottle flies were circling around a half-moldy pizza.
A muffled thud could still be faintly heard from the street behind them, like a gunshot or a drunkard smashing a bottle. The homeless people queuing around them didn't even lift their eyelids.
Having transmigrated to what seemed like a parallel world, Lin Simon was a typical homeless person—unemployed, without identity, and without even a place to live.
Now, besides the clothes I'm wearing, all I have left is an empty iPhone box in my pocket.
That was the new phone he rewarded himself with yesterday for his birthday. He went home from working overtime last night and fell asleep as soon as he opened his eyes. When he opened his eyes, everything was gone, except for this box, which kept him company as he squatted on the unfamiliar street.
"But I just received a free dinner, which means the system is at least real."
The next second, a pale blue, semi-transparent panel unfolded before my eyes:
Daily Intelligence System
[Daily Update: The "Fat Freedom" organization in Rose Street will be distributing welfare meals from 14:00 to 16:00 today (triggered)]
【日常情报：相邻梧桐街将出现小偷（今日 16:20-16:30），可以在小偷的帮助下获得25.5美元收入（合法收入），有效期：今日】
[Daily News: A shooting incident involving homeless people is expected to occur in the 13th to 15th blocks of Poor Street in Los Angeles after 21:30 PM tonight. Please stay away.]
[Current intelligence system level: E. Three pieces of intelligence related to daily life will be updated daily. The content and quantity of intelligence will change as the system level increases.]
Scrolling down the panel reveals his current skill list:
[Skill: Street Fighting lv.1 (Beginner) - Basic blocking and punching techniques, more than enough to deal with ordinary homeless people]
[Skill: Scavenger lv.0 (Beginner) - Has not yet mastered the skill of effectively identifying recyclables, resulting in extremely low scavenging efficiency]
[Skill: Car Driving lv.1 (Beginner) - Master the basic operation of manual and automatic transmissions, and be able to drive ordinary family cars]
【...】
After finishing a donut, feeling some of his strength restored, Lin Ximeng began to rethink his thoughts:
Fortunately, my English is good enough that I can communicate in daily life without any problems. Otherwise, even if the system provides me with information, I would be completely blind when dealing with people.
Next, there's the $25.5.
"Here comes my first pot of gold."
With a donut in his mouth, Lin Ximeng deliberately wandered around the street without any precautions as he turned into Wutong Street.
As the time drew closer to 16:30 PM, the passersby were either homeless people with their necks hunched over or hurried pedestrians; no one even paid him any attention.
"Should I lure the thief out? But I don't have anything valuable on me anymore," Lin Ximeng thought for a moment. "Are Americans so tough they'll just strip me naked?"
Thinking this, he reached into his pocket and touched the hard edge of the phone box with his fingertips. Suddenly, an idea struck him: although the box was empty, it looked no different from the outside as if it contained a phone!
He quickly pulled the box out of his pocket, revealing a small portion of the side with the phone printed on it, and deliberately slowed his pace, while secretly keeping an eye on his surroundings.
A moment later, I caught a glimpse of a black man in a black hoodie following behind me.
The other person was short, with his trousers rolled up to his ankles, and he was clutching a tattered canvas bag. His eyes kept glancing at the pocket where the box was sticking out.
Lin Ximeng's heart tightened: They're here?
The moment he saw the skin color, he almost knew who his target was.
He deliberately shifted the shoulder on the side where the box was placed outwards, paused, and pretended to straighten his collar, but actually kept an eye on the movements of the black man behind him.
Just then, Lin Simon was lightly bumped on the shoulder. The force was not strong, but it made him turn his head subconsciously.
The girl who bumped into him was wearing a black baseball cap. Her light blonde hair peeked out from under the brim of the cap, and she had delicate skin and long eyelashes.
Her looks are comparable to those of the internet goddesses of the past.
"Ah, sorry—"
The girl in the baseball cap spoke in a low voice, nodded slightly after speaking, and turned to walk into the alley.
"Your chest is a bit flat," Lin Simon said, his attention focused on the black man behind him. He simply waved his hand casually and said, "It's nothing."
He turned to continue staring at the black man, but after taking only two steps, he immediately realized something was wrong—
He reached into his pocket, but it was empty!
The girl in the baseball cap was the thief.
Lin Ximeng immediately turned around and gave chase.
Fortunately, Lin Simon reacted quickly, and the girl in the baseball cap was still in sight.
Just as the girl in the baseball cap was about to cross the street corner, she glanced back and clearly spotted Lin Simon following closely behind. Upon seeing this, the girl immediately turned into another alley.
Lin Ximeng immediately followed. After entering the alley, a strong stench hit them. Broken cardboard boxes and moldy mattresses were piled up against the walls on both sides, and graffiti paint had stained the ground in various colors.
The alley was bustling with people, but there was no sign of the girl in the baseball cap.
"She definitely hasn't gone far." Lin Ximeng immediately calmed down and began to observe and analyze:
He and the girl in the baseball cap entered the alley almost one after the other. It was impossible for her to disappear from his sight so quickly; the girl must still be hiding in the alley.
The alley is less than fifty meters long and runs straight through without any side paths. As long as Lin Ximeng guards the entrance, the other party will definitely leave a trace.
Just as Simon Lin was analyzing the situation, a young white man with a low bun was about to walk past him.
After just one glance, Lin Ximeng immediately stepped forward and grabbed the other person's wrist.
"You were the one who stole my things just now, weren't you?"
[Activate Skill: Disguise Detection Lv.0 (Beginner) - You saw through the thief's disguise, even though the other party had a woman's appearance]
In America, do not assume anyone's gender.