Desert Island Survival: A Hundredfold Improvement After Having a Baby?

Zhang Tao's mind went blank.

Heading into the mountains? In search of wild fruit?

That monster, which was tens of meters long, chewed Old Li up in one gulp!

That lush mangrove forest, in Zhang Tao's eyes now, is ten thousand times more terrifying than the eighteenth level of hell!

Let alone going into the mountains, he feels his legs cramp up just looking at the edge of the forest!

"No, no, no! Brother Fan! I was just kidding! I was just talking nonsense!"

Zhang Tao scrambled towards Lin Fan, grabbing Lin Fan's boots tightly with both hands.

"I'm not going anywhere! I'm not going anywhere! I'll stay in the cave and work! I'll be your dog!"

"That won't do."

Lin Fan kicked him away, a mocking sneer on his face.

"We're all colleagues, how could I take advantage of you? You have a big appetite, half a cookie really won't be enough for you."

"I've thought about it carefully, and your suggestion is excellent—a win-win situation, absolutely brilliant."

"I accept it."

Upon hearing these four words, Zhang Tao felt as if he had been struck by lightning, and he collapsed to the ground.

"Brother Fan... Lin Fan! Don't mess with me!"

Zhang Tao broke down, tears and snot streaming down his face. He kowtowed desperately, his forehead slamming against the gravel with a loud thud.

"People will die! People really will die! I was just out of my mind, I had to be so rude! Hit me, yell at me, please don't kick me out!"

"I eat very little! A quarter of a cookie is enough for me! I just need a sip of water!"

Seeing Zhang Tao's grief-stricken appearance, Xiao Zhou, Lili, and the others nearby all fell silent, not daring to even breathe loudly.

The deathly silence on the cave platform lasted for a full minute.

Zhang Tao collapsed to the ground, his face covered in snot and tears, his hands gripping the rubble tightly, not daring to lift his head.

The mutated snake he just saw completely terrified him.

Lin Fan ignored him and turned to walk to the unconscious Zhao Na.

He raised his right foot and kicked Zhao Na in the hip.

"Bang!"

The force was considerable; Zhao Na cried out in pain, her body jerked, and her eyes snapped open.

"Snake! Don't eat me! Don't eat me!"

As soon as she woke up, she flailed her arms wildly in the air and shrank back like a madwoman, her back slamming heavily against the stone wall.

She only stopped screaming when she saw Lin Fan standing in front of her.

"Shut up if you're awake." Lin Fan looked down at her, his voice devoid of any warmth.

Zhao Na was panting heavily, her chest heaving violently. Her torn underwear offered little protection, but she didn't care about being exposed at all.

She glanced at the mangrove forest below, which had returned to calm, and then at Lin Fan, her fear barely concealed.

"I've already made my conditions very clear."

"Half a compressed biscuit and half a bottle of water a day. Work to save your life. Hand over any supplies you find. There will be collective punishment, and rewards for reporting."

"Agreed, stay."

"I disagree. Go down there now and keep Su Qingxue company, or go into the woods and feed that worm some more."

Lin Fan gripped his tactical fixed knife, the tip of which casually pointed to the slope below. "Choose."

"Agreed! I agree!" Zhang Tao was the first to shout. "Brother Fan, I'll do whatever you tell me to do! I'll absolutely obey!"

"I agree too!" Xiao Zhou quickly followed up, his voice hoarse.

Lily and several other women nodded vigorously.

As long as they aren't kicked out, they'll accept anything, even just half a biscuit a day or a little water.

Zhao Na leaned against the stone wall, swallowed hard, and said in a trembling voice, "Brother Fan... I'll listen to you, I'll listen to everything you say."

Lin Fan sheathed his knife.

He turned and walked deeper into the cave, where he picked out six unopened bottles of Nongfu Spring water from the neatly stacked supplies.

The moment they saw the water, the eyes of all dozen or so people turned green.

The sound of Adam's apples bobbing echoed across the platform.

They hadn't eaten or drunk anything for a day and a night; their lips were cracked and bleeding, and their throats were so dry they felt like they were on fire.

Lin Fan walked up to them and threw the six bottles of water directly onto the gravel ground.

The plastic bottle hit the stone with a dull thud.

"One bottle for two people. Divide it among yourselves."

No sooner had he finished speaking than Zhang Tao lunged forward. He didn't care about camaraderie at all, grabbed a bottle of water and held it tightly to his chest, then unscrewed the cap and started chugging it down his throat.

"Zhang Tao, you son of a bitch! Leave some for me!" A male colleague next to him got red-eyed, pounced on Zhang Tao, and reached out to grab the water bottle.

Xiao Zhou reacted quickly, grabbing a bottle. Just as he twisted it open, Lily screamed and lunged at him, gripping his wrists tightly with both hands: "Give me a sip! Please, just give me a sip!"

Zhao Na disregarded her image and rolled around on the ground with another female colleague over a bottle of water, their fingernails digging into each other's flesh.

"Glug! Glug!"

The sound of swallowing water, accompanied by curses and shouts of snatching, created chaos on the platform.

A few people, for the sake of six bottles of water, completely tore off their pretense of civilized behavior.

Lin Fan watched this scene with a cold eye.

This is human nature: as long as survival is threatened, even the most arrogant white-collar worker will turn into the most obedient beast.

In less than a minute, all six bottles of water were drunk clean, and even the last drop at the bottom of the bottles was licked off.

Zhang Tao's eyes finally regained some clarity, and the others slumped to the ground. Although they had only drunk half a bottle, the long-lost sweetness revitalized their bodies.

"I've finished my water."

Lin Fan clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention back.

"Now, let's get to work."

He pointed to the steep slope below and the pile of rocks at the end of the slope.

"Men, all of you go down and bring up all those scattered stones and planks, anything you can move."

Zhang Tao paused for a moment, then glanced at the steep slope below.

Moving stones uphill is pure physical labor.

But he didn't dare to object, and just nodded repeatedly: "Okay! Brother Fan, we'll go right now!"

As long as we don't go into the forest, what's a little hard labor?

Lin Fan turned his head and looked at the five women, including Zhao Na and Lili.

"Woman, go gather firewood."

Zhao Na had just breathed a sigh of relief when she heard this, and immediately stood up straight: "Okay! Brother Fan, let's go to the beach to pick them up..."

"No."

Lin Fan interrupted her, raising his hand and pointing precisely to the edge of the lush mangrove forest diagonally below.

"Go there, there are many dry branches at the edge of the forest, collect them and bring them back to the cave."

Once those words were spoken, there was another complete silence.

Zhao Na's face turned deathly pale, completely devoid of color. Lily's legs went weak, and she collapsed to her knees with a thud.

"The...the edge of the forest?" Zhao Na's voice trembled uncontrollably, and tears welled up instantly. "Brother Fan...you're kidding, right?"

"A giant snake, over twenty meters long, just appeared over there! Old Li's bones are still warm in there!"

"Going there to collect firewood... isn't that just sending yourself to your death!"

Lily rushed over, grabbed Lin Fan's military boots, and wailed, "Brother Fan! Please, let's go somewhere else! Can't we go to the beach? Can't we go behind the rocks? I don't want to get eaten by snakes!"

The other three female colleagues were also so frightened that they huddled together, trembling with fear.

Lin Fan ignored their cries and turned around to look at Song Ya, who had been sitting by the fire, silently watching everything.

"Song Ya, come here."

Song Ya stood up and walked to Lin Fan. "Lin Fan, what's wrong?"