Getting Fresh Water from Cotton Socks

But complaints aside, when he thought it through, this was their only choice!

So Lu Zhe said, "We don't have a proper filtration device, but we can still filter water with what we've got!"

"What are we going to filter it with?"

"Socks!"

"Huh? Socks again?!" Ning Shu's eyes widened. "Whose?"

"I was soaking in seawater earlier, so my shoes and socks picked up too much salt. If you want to use my socks to filter water, that's probably not possible!"

Ning Shu snapped, "Who... who said I wanted to use yours?!"

Lu Zhe nodded. "But you landed in the jungle and haven't waded through seawater, so your socks shouldn't have much salt on them. We can use them to filter water!"

"Lu Zhe, why do you always come up with such gross ideas? Putting socks on my forehead was bad enough. Can we even drink water filtered through them?"

"Of course!"

Lu Zhe explained, "Pure cotton socks can hold the mud in while water seeps through the tiny holes in the fabric! It might be hard to stomach mentally, but it really can save lives!"

"Where did you learn such weird survival knowledge?"

"Survival experts Bear Grylls and Ed Stafford have both done this before!"

"Are you sure... you're not deliberately messing with me?"

"Of course not. I'm very serious! If possible, I'd like to borrow one of yours, too!"

Ning Shu blushed. "No way! Giving a boy my sock to drink water from sounds weird just thinking about it!"

Lu Zhe nodded and lay down on the grass. "Then drink it yourself. Just remember to bury me if I die of thirst in a bit. That'll also spare me from crawling back up to find you all on the seventh day after my death..."

"How can you be like this...?"

Ning Shu really didn't know what to do with him!

But complaints aside, she understood that Lu Zhe had done so much for their classmates and had exhausted a lot of his energy.

It was only right that she contributed a little herself.

Besides, she liked watching survival shows too. Thinking back, Master Bear did seem to have used this method.

She hesitated, then sighed. "I feel like I must be crazy to do something like this!"

As she spoke, she took off her shoes and socks, then hesitated before handing one of her little white cotton socks to Lu Zhe!

"Here! Don't turn your nose up at it!"

Lu Zhe took it and examined it. Even after she had walked through the jungle for so long, the sole was still snow-white. He sniffed it. It didn't stink; there was just a faint smell of sweat.

"No sniffing!" Ning Shu thumped him in annoyance.

"I just wanted to see whether I could handle it. Looks like you've got a goddess's constitution too, Class Monitor. I can handle this!"

"Of course I do..."

Next, Lu Zhe picked up a piece of bark and scooped some damp soil into the little white sock.

Then he gathered the opening shut and slowly squeezed. Sure enough, clear droplets of water formed underneath!

Ning Shu looked puzzled at first, then surprised. "Water really is coming out!"

Lu Zhe raised it above his head, then tilted his head back and caught the dripping clear water in his mouth.

It really did feel quite thirst-quenching.

Ning Shu hesitated, then followed his example and managed to drink some water too!

"How is it?"

"Mm, pretty good! Really thirst-quenching. But didn't you say it was fresh water? Why is it still a little salty...?"

"That's the sweat residue on your sock!"

Ning Shu dry-heaved!

Lu Zhe teased, "Haha, even you're disgusted with yourself?"

"It has nothing to do with whether it's mine! I'd be disgusted no matter whose it was!"

"Imagine you're a little fairy!"

"I already am!"

The two sat back-to-back on the grass, bickering as they drank water filtered through socks!

The afternoon sunlight shone down, and the scene actually held a touch of sweetness and romance!

After three changes of damp soil, they couldn't squeeze out another drop, but their extreme thirst had eased.

"Ding! New fresh water source obtained. Potential Points +1!"

Lu Zhe nodded. "Let's go. Keep looking!"

They shook the soil out of the socks and tucked them away.

Lu Zhe pulled her to her feet, and the two searched through the grass once more. They found neither fresh water nor

any tuber-bearing plants!

Just then, Lu Zhe spotted a clump of shrubs bearing little greenish-yellow fruits about the size of jujubes!

He didn't know whether they were edible!

He picked one and held it in his hand, and information about it flowed into his mind!

Ning Shu leaned over too. "What's this? Little jujubes?"

Lu Zhe shook his head. "These are wild persimmons, scientifically known as date-plums. They're a kind of wild fruit! You can eat them when they're ripe, but these aren't ripe yet. They're too sour and astringent, and they can easily cause diarrhea! We might as well remember this spot and wait a few days for them to ripen..."

He turned around to find that Ning Shu had already snapped off a branch with a dozen or so wild persimmons hanging from it.

It turned out that the moment she heard they were edible when ripe, she had picked them with quick eyes and quicker hands!

Lu Zhe smiled wryly. "Please, Class Monitor Ning, could you hear me out next time?!"

Ning Shu sheepishly stuck out her tongue. "I was just in a hurry!"

Just then, a scream rang out in the distance, followed by urgent whistle blasts. Lu Zhe and Ning Shu both started. "Oh no! Something's happened at camp!"