Translator: Dj22031
Editor: Dj22031
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After carefully analyzing the visitor flow in each exhibit area of the zoo, it was determined that the newly opened aquarium had the lowest number of visitors among all exhibit areas in the zoo.
Qinglong was furious. It originally thought that the only thing pressing down on it was the clever and cunning panda, but who knew that after the panda pavilion there were also Longhu Mountain and Monkey Mountain, and further down there were giraffe exhibits and koala parks, all of which attracted more visitors than the aquarium.
When analyzing the situation, Tuan Tuanyi also mentioned an even worse reality: “These animals are not only popular, but they are all foreign nationals! Nowadays, it’s not easy for our own nationals to survive. There’s nothing we can do about it; foreign monks can chant sutras better.”
The Azure Dragon was furious. The inheritance it received when it was born did teach it that as a believer of this land, it should have a sense of intimacy with the creatures of this land. However, it had no concept of this before, otherwise it would not have been so reckless as to sacrifice millions of lives to make its way into the sea.
But at this moment, it finally truly understood what this intimacy represented, and the pride that had been shattered by Wei Xi after Ruhai City was finally rekindled.
The Azure Dragon roared at the Taoist priests, “Outrageous! How can our great nation, with its millennia-long heritage, be outdone by these foreign beasts?! As the totem of our people, I will not allow it!”
Taoist priests: “…”
The Taoist priests felt they should be happy, since the Azure Dragon, which had previously seemed to have no concept of its responsibilities, had finally realized its identity and seemed to want to take on the responsibilities it should have borne for this land.
But they really couldn’t be happy— wake up! Who told you that this was your responsibility!
Qinglong didn’t care about any of that. With red eyes and a fierce aura, he darted into the aquarium exhibition area.
….
The forest zoo had invested a considerable amount in this aquarium. The huge aquatic area already housed many marine animals. Although these marine animals were not yet sentient, their deep-seated instincts were indelible. They all instinctively knew that the new resident was their boss, and they were all trembling with fear.
The Azure Dragon circled the sea and found that the water here was indeed clearer and cleaner than the sea in its own Dragon Palace area. The ecological environment in the water was also better, and the living environment was satisfactory. It couldn’t help but snort and gave orders to the newly recruited sailors: “All of you, come here!”
The zoo director outside the exhibition hall watched as the aquatic animals, who usually ignored each other and kept to themselves, all swam towards the arrogant water snake on the reef. He chuckled in surprise, “I didn’t expect it to actually adapt to saltwater. But I wonder if it will be bullied? Although these newly introduced marine animals are all quite good-natured and willing to get close to people, they might just treat it as food.”
Little did he know that inside the thick glass tank, the marine animals he described as “good-tempered” and “friendly” had already begun enthusiastically offering advice to their seemingly formidable leader. Animals’ desires are always straightforward, and they always boil down to just a few things—
“Escape! Escape!”
“Steal all the zookeeper’s fish!”
“Overthrow the human regime!”
“Get out! Get out! Get out! Get out!” The Azure Dragon flicked its tail and smacked each of them, giving the loudest sea turtle a few extra whacks on the head. “That lousy marine environment, whoever wants to go back can go back. And you, overthrowing the human regime, you’ve got quite the nerve, huh? What trouble are you causing? Don’t you think the aquarium is deserted enough already?”
As Qinglong spoke, he glanced guiltily at Wei Xi outside the exhibition area. Overthrow the human regime… what a load of rubbish! Putting aside that elder who tried to kill him with the Dragon Spear at the slightest disagreement, he was still terrified about how he lost his horn.
The giant sea turtle, which had lived for decades, was a bit bewildered by the beating— this incredibly powerful leader didn’t seem to be here to lead it in a rebellion, did he?
Azure Dragon sneered: “In this new era of socialism, rebellion has no future. I am the Dragon King of the Water Clan, and I have come to lead you to restore the glory of my Water Clan!”
This exciting speech immediately caused the fish and shrimp present to shout excitedly, “Long live the King! Long live the King! Long live the King!”
Azure Dragon’s sharp gaze swept over the enormous sea turtle, realizing that this junior seemed to be the most senior, and decided to uphold the fine tradition of the dragon race: “From this day forward, you are my Turtle Prime Minister!”
The giant sea turtle trembled with excitement: “So it’s His Majesty the Dragon King! Your Majesty may not know, but the prime minister of the previous Dragon King was an elder of my clan!”
Qinglong was surprised by this connection between the two sides and said with satisfaction, “Not bad.”
The first Turtle Prime Minister of the socialist era, newly appointed, was somewhat unable to contain his excitement and was eager to try the goal of revitalizing the aquatic tribes mentioned by the Dragon King: “Then Your Majesty, where should we begin? Please give us your instructions!”
….
Mr. Gu reported the news of the Azure Dragon’s appearance to his superiors in the capital as soon as he entered Hai City.
The importance attached to the video footage he sent back from Ruhai City went without saying. Countless middle-aged leaders were so excited that they couldn’t sleep well. If Ruhai City Airport hadn’t been paralyzed by torrential rain, they probably would have set off the day before.
Everyone wanted to hold a grand welcoming ceremony, but for the sake of social stability, they had to keep it as low-key as possible.
Several dark-colored minivans sped along the road. Inside, the seasoned leaders, usually so composed, showed a rare hint of nervousness. Upon exiting the vehicles and gazing at the zoo ahead, they felt a growing apprehension, a fear of approaching.
“…It’s unbelievable. If I hadn’t repeatedly confirmed that Xiao Gu’s video was not fake, I would never have believed such an incredible thing.”
“Qinglong… If the news gets out, who knows how much social unrest it will cause.”
Someone glanced around at the dense crowd outside the forest zoo and a worried expression appeared on their face: “Yes, putting Qinglong in a place like this, Xiao Gu’s decision was too rash.”
“More people not only make it easier for problems to arise, but more importantly, it will also have a great impact on Qinglong’s living environment.”
“After all, it’s a dragon. It’s disrespectful for it to live here.”
As soon as everyone finished speaking, they realized something was wrong. They turned around and saw that Mr. Gu was already standing silently to the side to greet them.
Leaders felt a little embarrassed when they spoke ill of their subordinates to their faces, so they went up to him and exchanged pleasantries: “Xiao Gu, you’ve worked hard this time. The process of stopping the Azure Dragon from entering the sea must have been very dangerous and difficult, right?”
Mr. Gu suddenly thought of the mineral water bottle: “…It’s alright.”
The leaders thought to themselves that this subordinate was quite modest, and as they followed him toward their destination, their tension rose again: “How is Qinglong adapting to the zoo environment?”
Mr. Gu fell silent again, and after a long while, he replied with a peculiar expression, “I guess it’s pretty good.”
The leaders looked around at the beautiful environment of the forest zoo and nodded with satisfaction. With such a large-scale zoo, the aquarium must be of good quality as well. But when their eyes swept over the crowd in front of the aquarium, they couldn’t help but be taken aback: “Why are there so many people? Didn’t we hear that the aquarium at the forest zoo had only recently opened and the number of visitors was not high?”
Mr. Gu hesitated even more, then said, “…There’s a reason for that…”
Before the leader could finish his explanation, he suggested with some unease, “I didn’t expect it to be so lively. I think we should build the secret ocean center as soon as possible. We can’t let the Azure Dragon live in such a worldly place forever.”
This statement was immediately echoed with agreement: “That’s right. Legend has it that dragons are all very proud and eccentric. Moreover, according to Xiao Gu’s report, this dragon is not close to human society and has a bad temper. I’m afraid it won’t like being visited by people every day.”
Upon hearing this, Mr. Gu couldn’t help but interrupt them: “…Leaders, I think you’re probably overthinking it.”
The leaders were taken aback and were about to ask him what he meant when they heard the tourists laughing and joking nearby.
“Hurry up, hurry up! Look, Weibo is updating in real time. Let’s check off our spots before we leave!”
“The aquarium at this zoo is so much fun! I heard that the new water snake that came in today can ride a sea turtle and pose for photos with visitors!”
The couple chatted happily as they squeezed into the crowd, leaving behind a host of well-dressed leaders in suits standing outside: “…”
Some leaders began to sense something was wrong: “…The water snake that was just brought in today?”
Mr. Gu looked up at the distant sky amidst their silence and felt extremely tired.
After a long pause, he managed an awkward smile: “…Qinglong is rehearsing for the show. Would the leaders like to take a look?”
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