Under Joseph’s furious rebuke, those who had been shouting accusations lowered their heads one after another.However resentful they might have felt, none of them could offer a convincing rebuttal.Joseph was thoroughly satisfied by their reaction.Then his tone abruptly changed, revealing a row of gleaming white teeth. “To tell you the truth, when I stopped my people from eating that fruit, I didn’t actually know whether it was poisonous.”“But judging from your condition, it doesn’t seem to contain any lethal poison. It merely causes a rather spectacular case of diarrhea.”“So I suppose I should thank all of you for testing it on my behalf!”“You...”Charles clenched his fists.Joseph had played them for fools. From the very beginning, he had planned all of this!Yet even though they now knew they had been duped, they had no choice but to accept it. After all, they had made the decision themselves.The more furious Charles became, the more delighted Joseph appeared.“Since no one ha

A profiteer!An utterly shameless profiteer!Kyle could no longer remain seated. He had never encountered anyone who conducted business quite like Joseph.Worse still, Joseph carried on without the slightest trace of embarrassment.“Rich people truly are the easiest to make money from.”Joseph patted his two bulging pockets, looking thoroughly satisfied.He was especially fond of Charles’s watch. After fastening it around his wrist, he could hardly stop admiring it.Expensive things really were superior. The watch was far better than the cheap one he had bought from a street vendor.Kyle grimaced at Joseph’s remark.It was fortunate that Charles had not heard Joseph comparing his Patek Philippe to some bargain-bin watch. If he had, he might have vomited blood from sheer rage.“That’s enough business for today!”Joseph returned to camp laden with spoils.Still, these people were clearly concealing their most valuable possessions. The finest treasures were always saved for last, and no

“What do you want this time?”After the way Joseph had fleeced them earlier, everyone immediately went on guard.Whenever Joseph approached of his own accord, trouble was sure to follow.For the first time, the people in Charles’s camp found themselves united against a common enemy.“Relax.”Joseph could not help laughing at the sight.He had clearly come to stir up trouble, yet somehow he had managed to bring them together.That would not do at all.“I’m not like you, Charles. I would never exploit people in their hour of need or use their suffering to threaten them.”Anyone with half a brain could hear the mockery in Joseph’s words.Several people could not stop the corners of their mouths from twitching.They genuinely wondered how Joseph could say such a thing with a straight face.Exploit people in their hour of need?He had only just extorted a fortune from them. Had he already forgotten?There could not be many people in the world as shameless as Joseph.“You haven’t eaten for

“Just you wait, Joseph!”As the figures on the beach dwindled into tiny specks in the distance, Charles’s cold smile grew increasingly savage.“When I come back, I’ll make you wish you were dead!”He had already planned everything.Once he escaped this godforsaken place and returned with his men, he would force Joseph to kneel and beg for mercy.He would show that worthless bastard just how easy it was for Charles Martin to crush him—no harder than stepping on an ant.And not one of those who had chosen Joseph’s side would be allowed to leave the island.As for Alice, Charles would humiliate her in front of Joseph—and everyone else. He would make her understand the price of defying him.He would force Joseph to watch as Alice writhed beneath him, to experience an agony worse than death.“What are you standing around for?”“Keep rowing!”When Charles noticed his two subordinates slowing down, he kicked each of them without hesitation.“Do I pay you to sit around and be lazy?”The two m

Joseph did not dare relax for even a second.Every movement flowed seamlessly into the next.At last, Charles coughed violently and expelled the seawater he had swallowed. His eyelids fluttered before slowly opening.“Mr. Martin!”The bodyguards immediately crowded around him.“Mr. Martin, you’re finally awake!”“Why are you here?”The first person Charles saw upon opening his eyes was Joseph.Terror flashed across his face.He tried to move, only to discover that he could not shift his body in the slightest.“What happened to me?”Joseph appeared entirely unconcerned. “Don’t worry. You’ve only broken a few ribs.”“It’s nothing serious. A few days of rest should set you right.”What else could Joseph say?He could hardly admit that he had done it deliberately.“You did this to me...”Charles’s eyes widened. He looked ready to tear Joseph limb from limb.“Now, that isn’t fair.”Joseph rolled his eyes. “If I hadn’t saved you, you’d already be dead.”“You don’t have to thank me, but accu