Yang Lin might not have expected that a mere advertisement would be elevated to such heights by people in the film industry.
The key was that it wasn't just one or two people praising it, but a whole circle singing its praises.
One might think he had hired a professional PR team.
But was he that kind of person? Could he afford to spend that kind of money?
Following the immense popularity of the advertisement, the biggest beneficiaries were undoubtedly the brand that sponsored it.
Almost on the same day, the stock price of this domestic automobile brand soared, and car sales continued to increase.
They even renamed the model that was repeatedly rubbed and tossed around like a toy by King Kong in the advertisement to "King Kong."
The second biggest beneficiary was naturally Xihong Zoo. As the protagonist of the short film "King Kong," King Kong, who was already highly popular, instantly became the most popular animal at Xihong Zoo.
Every day, countless tourists flocked to the entrance of the ape enclosure for a photo opportunity.
This led to King Kong, who was initially somewhat socially anxious, becoming bolder and bolder due to the constant attention from these visitors.
He was even showing signs of developing into a social butterfly.
Yang Lin was deeply gratified by this. King Kong's psychological well-being had always been a major concern, and it was a happy occasion that he was slowly recovering. "I just hope he doesn't become *too* much of a social butterfly."
Just as Yang Lin was looking at King Kong, who was posing for photos with tourists not far away, Chen Kexin ran over excitedly.
"The Forestry Bureau just called me back. They have indeed taken in quite a few animals recently, and they asked if you wanted to go over now."
Upon hearing Chen Kexin's words, a look of surprise flashed across Yang Lin's face.
He had only asked Chen Kexin to make a casual call, never expecting that there would actually be animals.
"Let's go! Let's go check it out. The new car for the zoo just arrived, Cousin will take you for a spin!"
With that, Yang Lin pulled a brand-new car key out of his pocket.
The old, second-hand van could finally retire.
"Okay!"
As he spoke, Yang Lin led Chen Kexin to the zoo's parking lot. As soon as they entered, a large black pickup truck appeared before them.
This pickup truck was one of the vehicles sponsored by the automobile brand.
Originally, they had sponsored SUVs, but Yang Lin had insisted on changing it to this pickup truck.
Furthermore, after "King Kong" went viral, this pickup truck was given a new name – "Black King Kong."
It was considered the first co-branded product of Xihong Zoo.
Looking at the front of the vehicle alone, it really did resemble King Kong.
As soon as he got into the car, Yang Lin couldn't wait to start the engine.
The journey, which originally took nearly an hour, was completed in half an hour with the new car.
The car had barely stopped when a courtyard at the foot of a mountain, with a sign that read "Qinghe Town Forestry Station," appeared before Yang Lin.
This forestry station was one of the many forestry outposts under the Ningnan City Forestry Bureau. Its primary job was to protect forestry resources, and rescuing and protecting animals was also a significant part of their duties.
As soon as Yang Lin entered the courtyard, a middle-aged man in a forestry station work uniform came forward to greet him.
"Director Yang, you're here so quickly. We received the notification from above just before you arrived. Please, come in."
"Station Master Wang, you are too kind."
After some pleasantries, Station Master Wang, the head of the forestry station, led Yang Lin into a room at the station.
Several cages inside immediately caught Yang Lin's attention.
In the cage on the left, if he wasn't mistaken, there was an adult pangolin.
These creatures were originally one of the most safely evolved species in nature.
They disliked activity, hid in their burrows during the day, and occasionally came out to forage at night. Their bodies were covered in hard scales, and coupled with their excellent burrowing skills, they theoretically had very few natural predators.
But who knows what kind of idiot spread the rumor about its medicinal value, causing it to go from abundant a few hundred years ago to an endangered species.
In reality, its medicinal value was limited to a tiny bit of its scales for promoting blood circulation and relieving pain, with an effect no better than a few yuan worth of anti-inflammatory drugs.
As Yang Lin observed the pangolin before him, Station Master Wang quickly explained,
"This pangolin was found at a farmer's house. It was almost cooked. It hasn't fully recovered from its injuries yet. I feel relieved leaving it in the hands of a professional like you, Director Yang."
After introducing the pangolin, he quickly moved on to introduce another animal beside it.
"This one is a masked palm civet. I found it on the mountain. It seems to have been bitten by some other carnivorous animal. Its injuries are currently stable."
Hearing "masked palm civet," Yang Lin couldn't help but take a closer look at the little creature with the distinctive masked face.
This guy was a real scapegoat. It had been universally condemned back then, and it's only now that its name has been cleared.
After looking at the masked palm civet, Yang Lin's gaze quickly shifted to another animal next to it.
The moment he saw this animal, he almost burst out laughing.
An exceptionally obese monkey was squatting in the cage with an innocent expression. If not for its appearance, Yang Lin would have found it hard to believe that a monkey could get so fat.
Chen Kexin, standing beside him, clearly felt the same.
"Hahaha, why is this monkey so fat? Is it really wild?"
"Did it escape from some zoo?"
"Don't laugh. It's not fat, it just has thick fur. If I'm not mistaken, this should be a bear macaque."
As soon as Yang Lin finished speaking, Station Master Wang gave him a thumbs up.
"As expected of someone who runs a zoo, this is indeed a bear macaque. I found it while patrolling the mountains."
"When I found it, it was caught in a trap, and its front paw had already been bitten off by itself."
Upon hearing Station Master Wang's words, Yang Lin finally noticed that the docile bear macaque in the cage was indeed missing a front paw.
The atmosphere immediately became somber. Chen Kexin, who had just been laughing at the monkey, wished she could slap herself on the spot.
"With its front paw missing, even if its injuries heal, it won't be able to return to the wild. So, it would be best if it could stay at your zoo."
"Indeed," Yang Lin nodded gently.
After describing the situation of the bear macaque, Yang Lin's attention quickly turned to the last two cages.
He was somewhat familiar with the creature in one of the cages.
"Was this injured weasel also found in the wild?"
"No, it was caught stealing chickens by a farmer, who broke its leg, and then it was brought to me."
"Oh..."
Looking at the clever-looking weasel in the cage, Yang Lin felt a bit speechless.
This left only the last animal. Upon seeing this animal, a look of hesitation appeared on Yang Lin's face.
Despite being able to identify creatures at a glance usually, he was now somewhat unsure of this animal's identity.