Many of our male colleagues had already cleaned their wounds, applied the herbs we brought with us, and were leaning against the sand at the beach, but none of them dared to sleep.

Because we didn't know if there were any dangers in the woods when we arrived.

Secondly, it's unknown whether those indigenous people have really left.

Thirdly, Xiao He and his group were in our team...

It could be a good thing if things go well, but it could also be a lot of stressful if things go wrong.

“We still need to take turns keeping watch tonight. I think you should get some rest and we can keep watch for you tonight. After all, you saved our lives and are our benefactors. We shouldn’t let you work so hard.”

Wang Ping must have some merit to have climbed up to the position of manager in the company.

Furthermore, if Wang Ping hadn't suffered such severe injuries before, and Bai Wei and the others hadn't abandoned him, Wang Ping would never have given up on Bai Wei and the others so easily.

Therefore, Wang Ping is a very tactful person who can handle interpersonal relationships well and is also able to let go of things easily.

Seeing that Xiao He and his group were staring at each other, seemingly wanting to discuss something, Wang Ping immediately came over to me and told them what we wanted to say.

When Xiao He and the others heard what Wang Ping said, they immediately showed a slightly embarrassed expression.

“How can we do that? You fought with those savages and were injured by those wild beasts. You’re covered in wounds, so you really should rest properly now. We’re fine, though, since we’re still in pretty good shape. Why don’t we take the night watch tonight?”

“That would be too much trouble. How could we let our saviors work so hard? Here’s what we’ll do: you all rest now, and I’ll go and build a few more fires. Then we can all lie down. I’m used to keeping watch at night, so I’ll stay alert.”

As Wang Ping spoke, he didn't give Xiao He and the others a chance to refute him. He grabbed me, called two male colleagues, and went into the woods.

After reaching the woods, several male colleagues quickly began collecting tree branches.

Because we didn't dare to go too deep, we just stayed at the edge of the woods.

Wang Ping then pulled me aside and hid under a big tree, his brows furrowed as he watched the group of people on the beach below.

I glanced at Wang Ping and then at the people not far from us, and whispered, "Now the three of us can be considered three forces. The foreigners are just using each other. If they have no more use for us, they definitely won't get too close to us. Also, Xiao He and his group are now a force. If these foreigners really want to form cliques, they definitely won't choose us first. After all, we have nothing. Things have become a bit complicated, so we must be vigilant."

Wang Ping nodded solemnly after hearing my words.

"I've already thought about all of this. Things are indeed very unfavorable for us, but how can we possibly control the thoughts of these foreigners?"

"I just saw Xiao He and two other foreigners chatting with some of our foreigners who have ended up here. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but I know it wasn't anything good. If they want to form an alliance with foreigners, they should make plans for this soon."

I sighed, leaned against a tree, and handed the cigarette that Xiao He had given me to Wang Ping.

Wang Ping showed a hint of surprise on his face, but quickly beamed with joy as he took out a tinderbox, lit it, took a deep drag, and looked on with pure enjoyment.

Then, however, he carefully placed the cigarette in my mouth.

I shook my head: "I already smoked one. This one is specially for you because I remember you smoke too."

Wang Ping looked at me with gratitude in his eyes.

I whispered, "Xiao He, they definitely didn't tell us the truth, and Yang Rui, whom we rescued earlier, isn't among their group. So now I'm not even sure if anyone else has come to this deserted island besides Xiao He and his group. Now we only have two choices: one, we can stay with them and follow them wherever they go. Anyway, there's food everywhere on this deserted island. As long as we keep our pots and pans, we can get distilled water and catch things to eat, so we won't starve. The other is that we can sneak back to our camp and find time to search the beach to see if we can find their boat. If we can find the boat, we might be able to negotiate with them."

Wang Ping listened to me cautiously, smoking a cigarette, his brow furrowed, but he shook his head.

“If we continue to travel with them, I’m very worried about Chen Jian and his group. Think about it, the place where we rescued Yang Rui isn’t far from our camp. If other forces come to this island, then the camp will only have Chen Jian and a few women. Do you think Chen Jian can protect them on his own?”

To be honest, I had considered Wang Ping's words a long time ago.

He's right. If we continue to travel with Xiao He and the others, then we have to abandon the camp.

But Liu Jiaojiao is pregnant, and this is the most dangerous time. Xiao Qiang and the others are just a few women.

Even if there were little kids who could find food for them, the things in the camp weren't enough to feed and clothe them.

I hesitated for a moment, about to speak, when suddenly several shouts came from the camp.

I peeked out and realized it was our group. My heart skipped a beat. Had something happened?

When we pretended to run back with firewood, we found that Bai Wei had woken up.

As I sat on the beach, looking completely bewildered and shaking my head, one of my male colleagues leaned over and whispered something to me.

"It was that group of people who gave President Bai an injection of the medicine just now, and then President Bai woke up. They said that President Bai had been poisoned and that they had the antidote."

I looked at Xiao He and the others, and saw that Xiao He was looking at me with a very kind expression.

However, I knew that his kindness was entirely feigned.

But he did save Bai Wei's life, so he should still thank him.

I walked over to Xiao He and was about to thank him when Xiao He looked at me seriously and then glanced at the group of people sitting or standing behind me.

"Young man, after hearing your story, I realize that you're no ordinary person to have led so many people to survive on this dangerous desert island. Seeing how well you take care of all your colleagues, and how meticulous you are in doing so, I truly admire you. We're both stranded on this island and can't return to the city anytime soon, so why don't we form an alliance? We can search for food together and work together to find solutions. That way, many hands make light work, we won't have to spread our efforts, and it'll benefit everyone. What do you think?"

I never expected that Xiao He would speak to me so bluntly.

Alliance!

What does an alliance mean? If we really form an alliance with them, will they lead us away from this place after achieving their goals?

Or is his alliance simply a way to take advantage of our long survival on this deserted island and our understanding of it, hoping to reap the benefits?