Stranded on a Deserted Island—They All Started Plotting Against Me - Chapter 15 - Chapter 15

Zhang Liu blinked, thoroughly baffled by her outburst. “What are you even talking about?”

Why hold hands?

And… what exactly did Anya mean she wouldn’t do?

Anya stared at Zhang Liu’s innocent expression, her mind racing. She had braced herself for the worst—but suddenly, a realization dawned on her.

Had she misunderstood?

“Why did you say you’d take off your shirt? What were you planning to do?” Although she felt extremely embarrassed, Anya took the initiative to ask.

“On the way here, I noticed some fruit trees,” Zhang Liu explained, gesturing toward the nearby forest. “I thought we could pick some and use my shirt to carry more back. Then, I could carry you, and you’d help hold the fruit. If I’m not mistaken, those trees look like jabuticaba.”

“Jabuticaba?” Anya repeated the unfamiliar word hesitantly.

She had never heard of this fruit before. “What is it? Have you eaten it before?”

“I haven’t, but it’s a type of fruit that grows on tree trunks. It looks a lot like grapes,” Zhang Liu explained, recalling details from books he’d read. He added, “I remember watching some reviews online that said it tastes really good.”

Grapes…

Anya involuntarily swallowed. After a long, exhausting afternoon, she was both hungry and thirsty, her body yearning for sustenance. She hadn’t complained, knowing how tough their situation was, but the thought of something as sweet and refreshing as grapes made her mouth water.

Noticing her subtle gulp, Zhang Liu chuckled. “We can’t eat them right away. I’ll taste them first to check if they’re safe, and if nothing happens, we’ll pick more to eat later.”

Caution was a principle Zhang Liu lived by, especially on this desolate island. Even with familiar-looking fruit, he wouldn’t let everyone eat it at once, just in case.

“Hmph, I don’t need to eat now anyway!” Anya huffed, hearing the fatherly tone in his voice. “It’s just fruit. I’ve had everything before!”

Despite her words, she obediently leaned onto Zhang Liu’s back again, and the two made their way toward the jabuticaba trees.

“Why do these trees look like this?” Anya exclaimed softly from behind him, her curiosity piqued.

The trees had twisted, octopus-like branches, with shiny black fruits embedded directly into the trunk and branches. Leaves sprouted only from the uppermost parts.

She had imagined a tall tree with grape-like clusters hanging beneath its canopy. As a result, the appearance of this thing was really beyond her expectations.

“Yeah, it’s my first time seeing such unusual trees too,” Zhang Liu agreed. He had only noticed the jabuticaba because of its peculiar shape and the way its glossy black fruit reflected sunlight.

Surveying the ground, he saw several fallen fruits, their skins showing marks of insect bites. This sight brought him some relief—and excitement.

This small patch of jabuticaba trees could be a game-changer. If the fruit proved edible, it would diversify their diet, which had thus far relied heavily on the cold, bland coconut meat that left their jaws aching.

Anya leaned forward slightly on Zhang Liu’s back, one hand gripping his shoulder for balance while the other reached for a fruit. She sniffed it experimentally, her nose wrinkling in disappointment.

She had hoped for a sweet aroma, but all she could detect was the earthy smell of rotting leaves and wood.

Meanwhile, Zhang Liu tensed under her movements. Not because of any danger, but because Anya’s small chest was pressing and shifting against his face. The soft, warm sensation was impossible to ignore, even through their clothes.

Anya had actually noticed that her chest was rubbing against Zhang Liu’s cheek. However, she didn’t react and instead continued to maintain a subtle posture. Because she suddenly remembered that Zhang Liu was staring at Qin Ruoshuang’s chest in a daze.

Before being bitten by the snake, that scene had never appeared in her mind, but now she felt a little uncomfortable recalling it.

I am also a girl, but it seems that I have never enjoyed the treatment of having Zhang Liu stare at me in a daze?

Thinking of this, she bit her lip lightly, her eyes showing a resolute attitude, and directly put the dark and shiny fruit in her hand to Zhang Liu’s mouth: “Didn’t you say you’d test for poison? Go ahead.”

“Yeah, but the videos I’ve seen say to peel the skin first,” Zhang Liu replied, dodging her offering. “I’ll handle it myself.”

Squatting down, Zhang Liu gently set the warm, soft body of the girl he had been carrying on his back onto the ground. As the sweat on his back evaporated, he felt a cool relief and a sense of relaxation.

His quick reaction to dodge just now had been perfect timing.

But he swiftly turned his back to Anya, reaching into his pocket to subtly adjust a sensitive part of his body that had reacted to the physical contact.

“What are you doing?” Leaning against a jaboticaba tree, Anya could technically walk fine now. But she wanted Zhang Liu to carry her back to the cave, so she pretended to still be unable to stand properly.

Zhang Liu cleared his throat. “Nothing.”

He picked up a fallen jabuticaba fruit and peeled off its black skin to reveal the translucent, slightly milky flesh inside. He popped it into his mouth, chewing slowly.

In Anya’s expectant gaze, he spat out two orange seeds from his mouth, which were only slightly smaller than the fruit’s flesh, and caught them in his hand.

“Uh… The taste is pretty good—kind of like lychee—but there’s very little pulp.” Zhang Liu looked at the seeds in his hand, smiled wryly, and said, “After all, there’s no artificial breeding for fruits in the wilderness, so the bigger the seeds, the more they will spread and reproduce.”

“Mm…” Anya nodded softly and handed him the fruit she had been holding for a while. “Try this one. I think it has more flesh.”

She even leaned closer, pressing the fruit against Zhang Liu’s lips, her eyes filled with hope that he would take a bite.