Set up a temporary camp so everyone can cool off

Lin Qianqian asked, "Do you need my help?"

Lu Zhe shook his head. "No, you're too weak. Resting a little longer is the biggest help you can give!"

Tang Xiaoguo asked, "What about me?"

Lu Zhe nodded. "Guo'er, you and the class monitor will have to put in some work. Help me lay out leaves!"

Ning Shu asked, "Where do we start?"

"This spot looks good!"

Lu Zhe walked beneath a tree and looked around. "The trees block the light, but sitting directly on the sand definitely won't be comfortable. Let's pick some broad leaves and spread them on the ground first! Then we'll go to the beach and fill the bottles with seawater!"

Tang Xiaoguo furrowed her little brows. "What do we need seawater for? We can't drink it, can we?"

"Who said it was for drinking?"

Lu Zhe explained the science seriously. "There are three main uses for seawater! First, seawater has a high specific heat capacity and is a little cooler than the air. Holding the water bottles against our bodies can cool us down directly! Second, we can sprinkle seawater around the camp. As the water evaporates, it'll absorb some heat, which can also help cool things down!

"Third, we can fit two bottles together to make a still. The sun is blazing right now, so we might be able to get some fresh water by evening!"

His thinking was clear, his goals definite.

Tang Xiaoguo nodded, only half understanding.

Ning Shu said approvingly, "Looks like I have a pretty good eye after all. I picked the right person to lead us!"

They got straight to work!

The three of them cleared a space and began breaking off broad leaves. Lu Zhe handled breaking them off, while Ning Shu and Tang Xiaoguo neatly spread them over the ground!

With broad leaves from all kinds of trees everywhere, the task was easy. In less than twenty minutes, the three of them had laid out a four-square-meter leaf mat in the shade.

Lin Qianqian sat on the cool leaves and gently wiped Jiang Yao's face. "It's so much cooler. Yaoyao should be able to feel it, right?"

"We're not done yet!"

Then the three of them went to the shore to fetch water, first sprinkling a ring of it around the camp!

They filled the dirtier bottles with water and placed them by their feet and beside them, purely for cooling!

Of the clean bottles, they filled the ones with narrower mouths halfway with seawater and buried them halfway in the scorching sand. They bent the wider-mouthed ones into U shapes, fitted them at an angle over the smaller bottle mouths, and propped them up with twigs!

With the heat of the beach itself and the direct sunlight, the water would evaporate. The water vapor would then condense into droplets and collect at the low points!

That would be fresh water they could drink directly!

Unfortunately, only three bottles could fit over the top, and Lu Zhe had no blade to cut the bottles with. Otherwise, he could have made eight or ten stills.

But at least their efforts were starting to look like survival now, and they were no longer in such a sorry state.

Meanwhile, Lin Qianqian had not been idle either. With her clever hands, she had woven three head wreaths from twigs and leaves!

Though simple, and not exactly a friendly color, they really could shield their heads from the blazing sunlight!

They worked pretty well!

Once all this was done, the temperature in the camp had dropped noticeably!

Sitting beneath the green shade on the mat of grass and leaves, the girls actually began to feel a sense of comfort and happiness.

If the rescue team could arrive within twenty-four hours, they might really be able to hold out.

But what if it didn't?

Lu Zhe understood that they had to plan for the worst in everything!

If the rescue team failed to arrive, they would have to find more essential survival supplies to stay alive!

Fresh water would always be the top priority!

Lu Zhe decided to venture into the woods and search the area. Only by finding an ongoing source of water and food could they truly escape the threat of death!