The two of them carried their packages and walked for over 20 minutes before arriving at Shen Bing and Tang Xiaoguo's camp.
When Tang Xiaoguo saw Lu Zhe return, she shouted and threw herself at him happily, as if she had just won 5 million yuan.
Jiang Yao, who was standing to the side, murmured: "She's completely ignoring me!"
Shen Bing said: "Xiaoguo, don't ride Lu Zhe too hard!"
After her excitement had passed, Tang Xiaoguo said: "I was so anxious these past few days!"
Shen Bing sighed, "It really was distressing. We jumped into the sea three times but got washed back by the currents every time. We crashed into a cliff once, but it hurt too much, so we went and crashed into a tree instead. I had to tie Xiaoguo up after that."
Jiang Yao said, "Xiaoguo, you can't be so reckless next time! Even though you have the smallest chest, Lu Zhe would still be heartbroken if something happened to you."
Tang Xiaoguo was taken aback for a moment before asking, "Yao Yao, you didn't give Zhe Ge any trouble along the way, did you?"
"You've only just remembered me now!"
"I missed you so much too! Thinking about how my best male friend and closest female friend were missing together, the despair was indescribable."
Jiang Yao heaved a sigh, "I've had it rough. My first kiss tasted like fish eyes, and Lu Zhe took my first time too..."
Tang Xiaoguo's mouth fell open in shock.
Shen Bing pulled Lu Zhe aside, "What exactly happened?!"
Lu Zhe helplessly recounted the events at the time.
"So what Yao Yao said wasn't wrong after all! You really did take her first time, so when are you planning to make it up to her?"
"Aren't you jealous?"
"Of course I am! But there's no helping it since you're the only guy on this island. Just be careful not to get her pregnant."
"Got it."
Seeing that Jiang Yao and Tang Xiaoguo were provoking each other's competitive streaks again, Lu Zhe said, "My beloved concubines, stop arguing. We haven't eaten much this morning, so let's replenish our energy first and hurry to regroup with the others."
Jiang Yao asked, "What is this meat from?"
Tang Xiaoguo replied, "A very annoying lizard."
"We didn't eat much of it either, but the meat's not bad. Have a taste."
Lu Zhe tore off a thigh piece and took a bite. "Not bad at all, Sister Bing's culinary skills are brilliant!"
"Let me try some too, is there any water?"
After the two of them had eaten and drank their fill, next was figuring out how to reunite with their companions.
Firstly, they couldn't let the others worry.
Lu Zhe went to the waterside and utilized his innate talent for shouting organization slogans at the top of his lungs, yelling out three times: "We're back!"
There was a responding whistle from the other side.
"Wait for us!"
Three more whistles sounded.
Shen Bing asked, "Do we need to take the water route again?"
Lu Zhe shook his head: "Although I've figured out the patterns of the whirlpools, we can't guarantee other situations won't occur. It'd be best to take the detour around if possible."
Shen Bing said, "That's right, I found a path earlier that should get us through the rock forest, but the problem is that the remaining stuff will be a bit difficult to bring!"
Jiang Yao nodded, "The supplies are fine, but this bicycle will be a hassle to carry."
Tang Xiaoguo suggested, "Why don't we just leave it here?"
Lu Zhe looked at the bike and shook his head, "It may not look like much, but it can actually be useful in many ways. We'll need it once we settle down."
"Is that path easy to traverse?"
Shen Bing nodded, "Not too difficult, just a bit roundabout."
"Alright, I'll carry the bike and suitcase. You guys work hard to share the load of the other supplies."
"Lu Zhe, that's way too heavy! Those two things must weigh at least 60-70 jin (30-35 kg) together! Can you handle it?"
"If you ignore the size factors, the weight itself is no issue at all."
Lu Zhe used some rope to tie the bicycle and suitcase together onto his back.
Jiang Yao sighed, "He looks like a young hunk on the outside but has the attributes of a macho man on the inside. Sisters, it won't be easy to feed and satisfy this one!"
Tang Xiaoguo nodded in deep agreement.
Shen Bing, Tang Xiaoguo, and Jiang Yao also gathered the packages together and put them on their backs before entering the forest.
The path Shen Bing had found did lead far out of the way, as if entering a canyon.
Countless vines dangled from the cliffs, with unknown monkeys and birds fluttering amongst them.
Lu Zhe wondered if this place might lead straight into the heart of the island!
But that wasn't actually the case.
The path was quite winding but didn't end up being as far as he'd imagined.
Also, because they were carrying so much stuff, they walked slowly with frequent stops. After over 4 hours, they finally made it out the other end of the valley and reunited with Ning Shu's group.