Inside the Leopard Garden, two small Pallas's cats, resembling fluffy balls, were sprawled out, fast asleep in the afternoon sun.
Nearby, the leopard Li Bao was also lazily sprawled on a giant cat tree.
Despite this, the number of tourists outside the enclosure showed no sign of diminishing.
Clearly, this combination of one adult and two youngsters had successfully taken the place of the previous generation's star, the chimpanzee Shidifu.
As the tourists enthusiastically took photos and checked in, Yang Lin's voice suddenly came from the side.
"Friends, friends, please look over here! To show our appreciation for your support, the park is holding a painting event."
"Those interested can come to me to collect brushes, paints, and paper."
Hearing Yang Lin's announcement, the tourists' interest was immediately piqued.
"Isn't this a zoo? Why are you holding a painting competition?"
"What's the theme of the painting?"
"Are there any prizes, Director?"
Seeing that everyone's attention was fully captured, Yang Lin continued,
"Prizes? How about my autographed photos?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a chorus of boos erupted from the crowd.
"Tch, just your autographed photos? Who wants those?"
"Exactly, I wouldn't want them even if you paid me to take them."
"Are there any other, better rewards?"
"It's no fun without prizes."
...
"Alright, alright, how about this: for the top five winners, I'll let you hold the two little ones for five minutes."
"For the top ten, you can enter the enclosure and take photos with the little ones."
As soon as Yang Lin said this, the crowd became restless.
"Now that's more like it, that's great!"
"Can we really get close and pet the two little ones?"
"Oh my god, I've been wanting this for so long, finally there's a chance!"
"I want to sign up!"
"I want to take a picture with the two little ones!"
"I'm winning first place, no one can stop me."
As they spoke, the excitement of the crowd grew even more intense.
"Since that's the case, I'll lead you to the competition venue."
Seeing Yang Lin walk towards the back of the tiger enclosure, the eager contestants and onlookers quickly followed.
Before long, they were led to the pigpen.
When the crowd saw the big black pig in the pen, looks of confusion immediately appeared on their faces.
"Director, is the theme of today's painting competition to paint this pig?"
"Painting a pig isn't hard, just a body, a mouth, four legs, and a curly tail."
"It can't be that simple. This pig is actually the reward for the ultimate winner."
"What? The winner gets this pig?"
"What? The Director wants us to kill the pig?"
...
Seeing everyone guessing wildly, Yang Lin decided not to keep them in suspense any longer and announced loudly,
"Of course, we're not asking you to paint the pig, nor are we asking you to kill it."
"In fact, this pig is also a contestant in this competition."
As soon as Yang Lin said this, there was an uproar among the tourists.
"What! Director, are you sure? You want us to compete with this big fat pig?"
"You're looking down on us, putting us in the same category as a pig."
"Exactly, how can a pig paint?"
"If a pig can paint, I can climb a tree."
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"If I lose to a pig, it'll be just like my dad said, I'm not even as good as a pig."
"No, considering the Director's border collie has already surpassed us, if this pig also surpasses us, we'll be worse than pigs and dogs."
"Although it's a bit insulting, I still find it quite interesting."
"I want to see how this pig actually paints."
...
Seeing that everyone expressed disbelief that a pig could paint, Yang Lin didn't waste any more time. He directly took out brushes and paints and handed them to the big black pig in the pen.
"Come on, Fugui, paint a picture for our audience to see."
Hearing Yang Lin's words, the black pig, temporarily named Li Fugui, immediately picked up the brush with its mouth and walked to the wall.
The next second, under the astonished gaze of the tourists, it dipped the brush into the paint palette.
After dipping the brush, it began to paint stroke by stroke on the wall.
At first, everyone thought it would just make random marks, but as it painted, their expressions began to change.
From their perspective, Li Fugui was indeed painting a large lotus flower.
Both the colors and the form were impeccable. It might not have reached the level of a master, but it was definitely superior to many beginners.
Upon seeing this, the tourists who had expressed disbelief looked at each other in bewilderment.
When Li Fugui finished the painting, they all fell silent.
The louder they had been before, the more embarrassed they were now.
"What do you think? It painted quite well, doesn't it? Does anyone still think pigs can't paint?"
Seeing their crestfallen faces, Yang Lin wore a smug expression.
After a full five seconds of silence, a tourist holding a brush suddenly stepped forward with a wry smile.
"Director, is it still too late to withdraw from the competition?"
"Yeah, I'd rather not participate. If I really lose to a pig, where will I hide my old face?"
"It's not 'if', I think I genuinely can't paint as well as this pig."
Following this tourist's lead, other previously registered contestants soon began to withdraw one after another.
They all claimed they couldn't bear the shame.
Yang Lin, of course, was indifferent to their actions.
"Is anyone else withdrawing? If not, the competition will begin."
"As for the content, you'll be painting the lake and scenery over there."
Hearing Yang Lin's words, the tourists who were still determined to compete prepared themselves.
At the same time, Yang Lin took the opportunity to open the official live stream of the Xihong Zoo.
The moment his live stream started, a large number of his followers flooded into the broadcast.
"Hello, Director! Why did you decide to broadcast today? Does the zoo have any new programs?"
"Director, little brother, can you feature some zoo merchandise? I want the two little Pallas's cat dolls."
"Are there any Siberian tiger king dolls that are 1:1 replicas?"
"Where's the shopping cart? Are there still live streams without one?"
As netizens wondered about the purpose of Yang Lin's broadcast, the camera suddenly shifted to the tourists preparing to paint.
Just as they were about to complain about it being boring, the camera unexpectedly turned again, and a big black pig holding a paintbrush appeared in their view.
Seeing this black pig, the surprise on the netizens' faces was no less than that of the tourists present.