As he watched the two actors he had arranged appear, Yang Lin quickly put on a show of panic.
After barely managing to perform with the crowd, he immediately pretended to be lost in thought again.
It was only when the tourists started reaching for their phones to call the police that he spoke again:
"I get it now, I finally know how those two porpoises ended up in the artificial lake."
Upon hearing Yang Lin's words, everyone's attention was immediately drawn to him.
"Director, what do you understand?"
"Yeah, don't drag it out, just tell us."
......
"My guess is that this artificial lake is connected to the Yong River through the same underground water system."
"Those two porpoises must have swum into the artificial lake through the underground waterways."
As soon as Yang Lin finished speaking, everyone's brows furrowed.
Upon closer consideration, it seemed to make some sense.
At this moment, Yang Lin's voice rang out again.
"These two big fellows, if I'm not mistaken, are likely the 'water monsters' that appeared in the Yong River before."
"Everyone is well aware of the incident last time. I suspect they, like these two porpoises, swam into Xihong Zoo through underground waterways. This is why we couldn't find them no matter how hard we tried."
After Yang Lin's string of explanations, everyone felt a sense of sudden enlightenment.
"I think it's exactly as the director said, otherwise, he wouldn't have had a reason to abduct two water monsters."
"I seem to have seen it on some program before. The underground water systems in Ningnan and even the entire Gui Xi region are very developed, which is why Ningnan doesn't experience significant production reductions even during drought years."
"So, there must be an underground river connecting this artificial lake to the Yong River, and then those two porpoises entered the artificial lake through it."
"Is it that amazing? Do they know the director is here, so they followed him?"
"It's not impossible. Animals have a peculiar sense of connection."
"I recall reading that dolphins can sense someone falling into the water from several nautical miles away. Porpoises should be able to do the same."
......
As the truth unraveled, the crowd, with a sense of awe, shifted their attention to the two unknown creatures.
After a period of time, the crowd was no longer as fearful of these two strangely shaped creatures, and instead, felt a touch of curiosity.
With this thought, they all turned their gaze towards Yang Lin.
If there was anyone present who was most likely to recognize these two unidentified creatures, it seemed to be Yang Lin.
In response to their hopeful gazes, Yang Lin quickly pretended to rest his chin on his hand.
After half a minute of contemplation, he slowly spoke:
"I think I recognize these two big fellows."
"If I'm not mistaken, the one with six legs beside them should be a mutated giant salamander. Look closely at its physical characteristics, doesn't it look exactly like a giant salamander?"
"Its coloration and six legs are likely the product of genetic mutation."
"As for the one next to it."
Yang Lin paused here, as he couldn't reveal the correct answer too easily.
During his pause, the crowd involuntarily held their breath.
After nearly half a minute, Yang Lin's voice rang out again.
"If I'm not mistaken, it should be a mutated lamprey."
"If you don't believe me, you can search for images of lampreys and see if it doesn't look exactly like it."
As soon as Yang Lin finished speaking, the tourists present immediately started searching for images of lampreys.
Before long, gasps of surprise echoed through the scene.
Clearly, they were frightened by the terrifying appearance of the lamprey.
"It really does look very similar, just this one is a bit excessively large."
"That's quite normal. The Yong River was so severely polluted before; it's likely that it mutated due to the pollution."
"So they're not water monsters, just some small animals affected by pollution?"
"Yes, they are. They're quite pitiful."
Instantly, everyone cast looks of sympathy towards the two large creatures in the lake.
Thus, the mystery of the Yong River water monsters was finally solved, along with the reason for the two porpoises appearing at Xihong Zoo.
Yang Lin had also finally cleared his name of the suspicion of abducting protected animals.
Seeing this outcome, the tourists quickly began to interact with the porpoises, the mutated giant salamander, and the lamprey in the artificial lake.
Upon discovering that all four animals were very intelligent, the tourists became even more excited.
The once deserted artificial lake instantly became lively. The arrival of the porpoises and the two large creatures had filled the void of aquatic animals at Xihong Zoo.
However, in Yang Lin's view, this was far from enough.
After all, the artificial lake occupied half of the entire park. With such a large body of water, having only four animals seemed like a waste of resources.
"It would be great if there were more aquatic animals."
Just as this thought crossed Yang Lin's mind, his phone suddenly rang.
Looking at the caller ID, he immediately answered.
"Hello, Director Nie, is there something?"
"The city has decided to donate supplies to our zoo? That's good news."
"Donate what, an aquarium! You're not kidding me, are you?"
"It's not a model, is it?"
"Construction will begin next week, that's wonderful. And there will be some small animals transported along with it."
......
At this moment, Yang Lin felt that Director Nie's voice was incredibly pleasant and kind for the first time.
"Director Nie, I must treat you to a meal this time!"
"What! You were going to donate money, and you suggested they donate an aquarium to me?"
"Alright, alright, you wait for me. I'll prepare some delicacies for you tomorrow night."
......
After hanging up the phone, Yang Lin felt a surge of anger.
After stewing in his anger for a while, he shifted his attention to the matter of the aquarium.
Logically speaking, their zoo was indeed lacking an aquarium. Before, it was because they had no animals, and now, it was because they had no money.
If they were to build one, according to his plan, it should be built right next to the artificial lake.
The most perfect plan would be to build it underwater, creating an underwater world with high-strength glass.
Of course, whether this could be done would depend on the city's decision.
As Yang Lin began to plan the construction of the aquarium, a commotion, accompanied by sad cries, arose from the zoo entrance.