“Do as you wish. Anyone who wants to enter the forest, follow me!” Luo Jun declared.
After saying this, he dropped a steel helmet for them and returned to the campfire.
Luo Na had returned Jenny's shoes and put on another pair of smelly green military boots.
Li Shi hesitated for a moment, bid farewell to Jenny, and followed Luo Jun.
Jenny and Jack did not follow them; instead, they started a fire by the beach to keep warm.
With limited energy, Luo Jun didn't lead the two women randomly. Instead, he went through the woods and circled back from another direction, reaching the rocky beach on the east side.
The dark and towering rocks here could effectively conceal them and provided good wind protection.
The crucial point was, they had limited stamina, and Luo Jun didn't want the two women to follow him blindly. Instead, he crossed the woods and circled to the east to avoid pursuers. However, he still needed to go back and gather intelligence, but it wasn't the right time. They had more pressing survival needs.
Additionally, Luo Jun needed to catch two fish for everyone to eat.
Of course, raw fish was not an option. Now equipped with tools, he could easily build a smokeless stove on the spot to roast the catch.
"Uncle, are we really abandoning Jenny?" Li Shi's innocent face was filled with concern as Luo Jun shook his head.
"Our own survival is challenging enough, and we can't afford to consider too much. Besides, they would surely expose our presence. I intentionally entered the woods and circled to the east just now to avoid pursuit. Still, I need to go back for reconnaissance. It's just not the right time; we have more urgent survival conditions to meet."
Luo Jun finished speaking and patted Li Shi's head. Her ignorance and kindness were not faults.
"You two, go find some soft-bodied animals. I'll need them as bait later."
Luo Jun instructed the two women.
"But we don't have fish hooks!" Li Shi said puzzled, while Lorna smiled.
"That won't be a problem for him. Let's go find something to use as bait!"
Lorna and Li Shi's figures started weaving through the rocks, looking for soft-bodied animals attached to them.
With an axe and a dagger, Luo Jun cut a sturdy, slender branch in the woods to use as a fishing rod. He then used the dagger to carve several sharp wooden spikes, intending to tie them into fish hooks.
In the first aid kit, there was gut thread that could temporarily serve as a fishing line. Still, if they wanted to catch bigger fish, it would undoubtedly get bitten off.
But it was a makeshift solution; recovering strength was the priority for future survival.
Luo Jun also made a fist-sized float from wood and returned to the beach, tying the float to the gut thread.
Lorna and Li Shi came back.
Lorna killed some sea cockroaches with her shoes, but Li Shi didn't dare. Sea cockroaches moved in groups, running fast like some man-eating monsters from movies, giving Li Shi goosebumps.
So, she picked up some sea snails by the beach.
They arranged these baits on the ground.
"Mr. Luo, is this enough?" Lorna asked.
Luo Jun nodded. To increase the harvest and save costs, he made six linked fish hooks at once, all tied to a piece of gut thread.
After crafting the fishing hooks, Luo Jun made his way to a large rock and cast the bait into the water.
"Lorna, you fish here. Li Shi, find a spot to dig a hole, surround it with some stones, and use it to keep the caught fish. I'll go do something else."
Lorna and Li Shi obediently acknowledged his instructions.
However, sitting on the rock enjoying the breeze, Lorna felt a bit chilly despite the high sun. Luo Jun took off his jacket and handed it to Lorna.
"Thank you."
Grateful for Luo Jun's gentlemanly gesture, Lorna gave him a warm smile.
Luo Jun didn't explain much, just walked away. Li Shi, though, looked at Lorna on the rock with a hint of envy. She, too, was dressed lightly and felt the chill, causing goosebumps.
Luo Jun noticed this but needed to ensure Lorna wouldn't get sick. On one hand, Lorna knew about Xiao Ya's whereabouts, and on the other, Luo Jun hoped to "move" her through his actions, prompting her to voluntarily reveal some secrets in the future.
"Uncle, I'm cold too," Li Shi complained, trotting after Luo Jun with a slightly aggrieved expression.
Luo Jun glanced back at her. "If you feel cold, move around more. We don't have spare clothes now. If we hunt some wild animals later, we can make clothes from their fur. Endure it for now!"
Li Shi pouted but had to relent.
Watching Luo Jun disappear into the woods with an axe, she lowered her head and examined her frail body.
"Men always like women with good figures!"
Li Shi wondered inwardly and started looking for a place to dig a hole with her bare hands.
In the woods, Luo Jun used the axe to cut many branches. He could have cut down some thicker trees, but for a temporary shelter, he didn't want to expend too much energy on it.
Survive the first few days, then find a suitable place for long-term residence with a water source.
He repaired the branches he brought back and used two rocks less than a meter apart as walls, covering them with branches as the roof. The back of the shelter would be sealed, leaving only one entrance.
During windy nights, he'd cover the entrance as well.
Of course, it wasn't enough, especially during the cold nights. Even if the three of them huddled together, it wouldn't be warm enough. So, he needed to dig a geothermal trench for this temporary shelter.
The geothermal trench would connect to a smokeless stove, an efficient multitasking effort that saved time and energy.
To dig efficiently, Luo Jun cut a tree with a thick branch, turning it into a 70-centimeter-long tool, flattened on one end for convenient shoveling.
The geothermal trench involved digging three channels, 40 centimeters deep under the shelter. After digging, dozens of wooden strips would be laid over the channels, covered with coconut leaves, and then sand.
To make it more comfortable to lie on, soft plants would be added on top of the sand.
At the front end of the geothermal trench, Luo Jun needed to dig a pit nearly 70 centimeters deep for the stove, slanting it into the shelter.
This pit connects to the entrance of the geothermal trench. Since the front ends of the three geothermal trenches converge to form a larger "exit," burning firewood in the front pit allows the heat to flow through the three geothermal trenches, effectively creating three chimneys at the front of the stove.
However, due to excellent air circulation, the combustion of firewood is thorough, and no smoke is produced.
That's not all – the stove pit needs to be constructed in two layers. The firewood burns on the upper layer, while air enters from the lower layer and then exits through the geothermal trenches.
Without the necessary tools, creating this geothermal shelter is no small undertaking for Luo Jun. Despite the cold weather on the island, he sweats profusely. Li Shi, who understands the situation, rushes over to Luo Jun and asks for a chopping axe. She intends to cut down a coconut-laden coconut tree to satisfy everyone's hunger and thirst.
"Be careful not to be crushed by the coconut tree. Also, there's a technique to cutting trees. Make the first cut from the top, then make a second cut from the bottom to the top, creating a V-shaped notch. Don't just cut on one side; use the tree's own gravity, so you save some effort."
Luo Jun knows this girl hasn't done much manual labor, so he gives her a special reminder.
He fears that when she cuts down a coconut tree, her delicate hands might lose a layer of skin.
"I got it; I'm not a fragile vase!"
Li Shi says, glancing at Lorna sitting on the rocks.