Anya said nothing, but her little fists clenched tightly. She gripped Zhang Liu’s black T-shirt so hard that it made a faint tearing sound.
I have already said this much, okay? You don’t even need to say anything fancy—just call me pretty…
Then we could consider starting a relationship.
But instead, you asked if I ate something strange?!
A tsundere girl had finally worked through her own feelings, shedding all but her coquettishness, only to be dealt a heavy blow by his obliviousness.
At this moment, she just felt extremely depressed.
“Uh…” Seeing that Anya didn’t respond, Zhang Liu looked even more concerned. Could it be the snake actually was venomous?
“I didn’t eat anything weird. Let’s just go back,” Anya knew that Zhang Liu might not be in the mood to discuss who looked prettier.
But now, she just felt uncomfortable.
As she spoke, her tone grew increasingly subdued. Resting her head on Zhang Liu’s shoulder, she gazed once more at the fiery clouds on the horizon.
Moments ago, the scene had felt grand and awe-inspiring. Now, it seemed utterly lackluster.
“Hmm.” Zhang Liu was secretly a little worried, but considering the current situation, his worry would be in vain. He took a deep breath to steady himself and resumed walking toward the cave.
…
Inside the cave, Qin Ruoshuang had been resting with her eyes closed. After Zhang Liu and Anya left, she busied herself with tidying and cleaning the area.
By the end of the day, her efforts had paid off.
The foam boards previously scattered near the rocks had been neatly laid out on the cave floor. She also gathered coconuts, but Qin Ruoshuang didn’t have the ability to climb with coconuts, so she could only pile them near the cave entrance.
The cave was spacious, at least 20 square meters in size. Rather than tossing out all the stones, Qin Ruoshuang used some of the flatter ones to build a small windbreak wall about a meter from the entrance.
She knew that Zhang Liu had been woken up multiple times the previous night by the freezing sea breeze. But at the time, she couldn’t bring herself to invite him to share her spot.
So she had pretended not to notice, but deep down, Qin Ruoshuang felt a deep sense of guilt.
After all, the foam boards and other supplies had been scavenged by Zhang Liu, so she didn’t feel entitled to monopolize them.
However, the reason she was lying down now wasn’t exhaustion—it was fear and worry.
Part of her worry was for Zhang Liu and Anya’s safety, but another concern weighed heavily on her mind: the water she had consumed.
Since Zhang Liu was their main source of labor, Qin Ruoshuang had made a bold decision: she would test the water first.
She had drunk several times from the puddle in the cave.
The water was clear but slightly bitter, though it was much better than the sticky, cloying feeling left by coconut juice.
Still, she only drank the water after finishing her cleaning. Even if she were to show signs of poisoning, she wanted to make sure she had contributed something first!
That was her resolve. Yet, much time had passed, and Qin Ruoshuang still felt no unusual symptoms in her body.
Instead, she found herself feeling pleasantly relaxed from lying down after a long while.
Soon, faint footsteps and a pair of voices reached her ears.
“Zhang Liu, let me drink that water later. You still need to test the fruit.”
“But…”
“No buts! Can you test two things at once?”
“Then maybe we can test it tomorrow?”
“No way! I have to do something too!”
“You’re not drinking it! You’re a girl—I can’t let you be in danger!”
Hearing Zhang Liu’s firm refusal, Qin Ruoshuang couldn’t help but smile faintly. Slowly, she got up and walked to the cave entrance, poking her head out.
Under the reddish glow of the setting sun, Zhang Liu walked along the beach, shirtless, with Anya following behind him, carrying a bundle.
“You’re back?” Qin Ruoshuang called out, her hair dancing in the evening breeze.
“We’re back!” Zhang Liu waved energetically, while Anya pulled a handful of fruit out of her makeshift T-shirt bag and called out, “Ruoshuang! We found some new food!”
“Welcome home!” Qin Ruoshuang waved back, her last shred of worry fading away.
After helping Anya climb into the cave, Zhang Liu handed the bundle to Qin Ruoshuang.
“Don’t eat the fruit yet,” he said. “I’ll try some tonight. If I’m fine by morning, we’ll all eat it tomorrow.”
“Got it.” Qin Ruoshuang nodded and carefully poured the jaboticabas onto a small corner of the foam boards. She returned the T-shirt to Zhang Liu, who was waiting below.
“I’m going to check the beach again to see if there are any other useful things. Later, use this bottle to collect some water, clean up Anya’s wound first, then store a little more inside. Tomorrow, I’ll test if this water is drinkable.” Zhang Liu handed over a bottle of Nongfu Spring from his pants pocket to Qin Ruoshuang, then turned and left immediately, still holding the T-shirt.
However, before Zhang Liu got too far, he heard a surprised exclamation from inside the cave.
It was likely due to hearing about Anya’s injury.
Taking a deep breath, Zhang Liu suppressed his worries and continued walking towards the beach.
For now, Anya had Qin Ruoshuang taking care of her, and he was preparing to search for other resources.
Especially fire-starting materials.
Whether it was on the way there or on the way back, Zhang Liu maintained an appearance of extreme confidence.
But considering the time, it had already been at least thirty-six hours.
No rescue had come.
This gave him an ominous feeling in his heart.
Perhaps, just as he’d planned for, they would have to survive on this deserted island on their own.
According to wilderness survival knowledge:
Fire, water, food, shelter, survival resources, medical resources.
Currently, as long as tomorrow’s test shows that the water in the puddle is drinkable, water would be solved.
Food was already taken care of with coconuts, jaboticabas, and other unfamiliar fruits seen earlier.
Shelter was the cave.
The most concerning issue for Zhang Liu right now was fire.
It ranked at the top of the six essentials but was also the one he was most helpless with.
It was also the most urgently needed.
Just like the snake from earlier. If there was fire, Zhang Liu wouldn’t have casually thrown it away. After all, once cooked, it would be just like chicken-flavored protein.
Arriving at the beach, he bent down to repeatedly wash his T-shirt.
Though it would become stiff and form salt crystals after drying, wearing it would be far more comfortable than having fruit juice decay and attract flies and insects.
He wrung the shirt out carefully, not daring to use too much force. He couldn’t be sure how long he’d be on this island, so this shirt might be his only covering.
However, Zhang Liu’s goal wasn’t just washing clothes. He was also planning to explore the nearby rocky shore.
There were strange rocks and small puddles left by the receding tide.
According to videos of tide-chasing, there should be a lot of good catches.
He didn’t dare eat unfamiliar fish raw—parasites could be deadly.
But when it came to oysters, his confidence soared.
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