The four returned to the vicinity of the campsite, consciously making their footsteps as quiet as possible. They wanted to see if any seabirds were stealing food drying on the beach. If so, they wouldn't mind taking some for an extra meal that evening.

When the four arrived at the campsite, unfortunately, there were no seabirds on the beach, but a flock of seabirds were circling overhead. Wang Lun found it strange that the seabirds were circling overhead but not coming down to eat the food drying in the sun. With this question in mind, Wang Lun continued walking towards the campsite.

As they drew closer, they heard the goat bleating. The bleating was loud. Wang Lun and his companions were immediately worried, fearing the goat might be attacked by wild animals.

Wang Lun put down his basket and told Li Ling and Liu Ruoxi to stay behind. Wang Lun then took Liu Ruoling forward to investigate.

The two men moved stealthily, gripping their spears tightly, poised for attack, and slowly approached the camp. When they were about ten meters away, Wang Lun told Liu Ruoling to stay behind while he went forward alone. Liu Ruoling knew this was the best option and couldn't say anything more, simply nocking her bow and arrow. She was ready to fire immediately should anything happen.

Wang Lun quietly stepped forward. Meanwhile, the goat continued to bleat every now and then, Liu Ruoling kept her hand on the arrow, ready at any moment, and Li Ling and Liu Ruoxi were also watching this scene nervously in the distance.

Wang Lun walked around the windbreak wall and saw the goat. The goat was still tied up there, only bleating occasionally. Wang Lun observed it for a minute or two and, seeing no danger, gestured to Liu Ruoling that everything was alright and asked her to come over.

Liu Ruoling put away her bow and jogged over. Wang Lun told Liu Ruoling to stay and watch over the place while he went to inspect the shelter himself.

Wang Lun went forward and checked the shelter inside and out, finding no other creatures or traces. Strangely enough, the goats stopped bleating when they saw Wang Lun return.

Wang Lun couldn't figure it out, but he wasn't the type to keep thinking about things he couldn't understand. So he just assumed the goat had manifested itself and knew how to protect its food. He then called Liu Ruoling over and asked her to call Li Ling and the others back as well.

A short while later, the four returned to the camp and sat around the campfire. Wang Lun recounted that nothing had happened at the camp, and also shared his conjecture. Wang Lun didn't believe this conjecture at all. But the other three found it somewhat far-fetched; Liu Ruoling even went up and touched the goat, asking it if it was true.

It was Liu Ruoxi who called Liu Ruoling back. How could such a thing be possible? Of course, it wasn't impossible. So Li Ling suggested, "Why don't we keep raising the goats? After all, they can help us with some things." Seeing the three girls looking at him hopefully, Wang Lun said, "Why are you looking at me? If you want to raise them, go ahead. We don't lack food now. Just don't develop feelings for them when food becomes scarce." Li Ling said, "That definitely won't happen." Liu Ruoxi and the other woman nodded in agreement. Liu Ruoling said, "Definitely not, goat meat is so delicious." The three of them were speechless for a moment.

After resting for a while, Wang Lun took Liu Ruoling to collect seafood, while Liu Ruoxi and Li Ling cooked dinner at the campsite. There were quite a few dishes to eat that night, so they needed to work together. Of course, it was also for safety reasons; having another person wouldn't allow them to collect much seafood, so it was better to just process the ingredients, which would allow them to eat dinner earlier.

As darkness fell, the four sat around the campfire, enjoying their dinner. Tonight's dinner was exceptionally lavish; Liu Ruoxi had steamed two coconut crabs, cooked half a pot of wild vegetable stew with fish, and also prepared some banana tree cores—a very balanced meal.

The four of them were exceptionally enthusiastic about this dinner, barely speaking, just eating non-stop. Of course, they were eating coconut crab non-stop. After all, they'd been eating wild vegetable stewed fish for months, every day. Banana cores had also been a staple at every meal for the past few days, nothing special. But coconut crab was truly rare. This was only the second time they'd eaten it since arriving on the island. Although there were still three left, Liu Ruoxi wanted to keep them alive for a few more days, ideally until they returned to camp. Eating them then would surely be exceptionally delicious. The other three supported this idea, but all four knew that while they could wait, these three coconut crabs might not live to see them again.

After the meal, a mess was left behind. Only then did Wang Lun begin to explain his plans for tomorrow. Tomorrow, Wang Lun planned to first transport all the banana tree bark to the beach, and then transport the food, tools, and people to the seaside camp. Next, they would split into two teams, with Li Ling and Liu Ruoxi staying at the camp to be responsible for camp affairs, including starting fires, collecting wood, and restoring fishing traps.

Wang Lun, along with Liu Ruoling, first transported the banana bark to the middle of the stream. They went back and forth until the transport was complete. That concludes tomorrow's tasks for now. In terms of workload, Li Ling and her group had a slightly larger workload, but the intensity wasn't too high. However, Wang Lun and his companion had to carry banana bark up and down the stream, paddle the raft, and work under the sun, making their task more strenuous.

After all three understood the arrangements for tomorrow, Wang Lun continued, explaining that he planned to stay by the sea for a few more days. Li Ling and Liu Ruoling would take turns transporting banana bark back to camp twice a day, and of course, they would bring the goat along, as it couldn't just eat without working. The remaining two would continue fishing with baskets and, as usual, boil salt. Their goal was to boil enough salt for the rest of the trip.

After the bark was transported, Wang Lun continued fishing at sea with Li Ling and Liu Ruoling. Their goal was to stockpile enough food for the winter. After all, it was late autumn, and there was still plenty of food to be found in the mountains.

The three women halted Wang Lun's plans, feeling he seemed a bit too hasty. After all, it wasn't winter yet, but they didn't say anything, knowing Wang Lun wouldn't harm them. They just felt they'd be spending a long time by the sea. Wang Lun couldn't do anything about it. He wanted to stay in a comfortable mud house, but he needed to stock up on food and other supplies, so he could only be patient for now.

However, there are some advantages, since we no longer have to eat dried fish every day, but can eat live fish every day instead, which is a benefit.

The other three knew about Wang Lun's current plans, so with nothing else important to discuss, they started chatting, talking about the past and the future. They fantasized about catching lobsters and giant crabs in the sea, and finding plenty of starchy foods like cassava in the mountains. Occasionally, they'd talk about how to cook fish to make it taste better, and so on.