In a single week, nearly a hundred thousand tourists participated in the tree-planting event initiated by Xihong Zoo.
And the number of Ningnan citizens who also joined was even greater.
It was through the joint efforts of both parties that the previously unused empty lots and wasteland surrounding Xihong Zoo were now all planted with various saplings and flowers.
As far as the eye could see, Xihong Zoo was now as if enveloped in a sea of green.
Of course, because they were all freshly planted, the visual effect was currently somewhat lacking.
It would likely take many years to achieve the ultimate effect that Yang Lin desired.
Yang Lin himself was well aware of this.
"I wonder if the aura effect of Nature's Will can increase the survival rate by a few percent."
"I hope more of them survive."
As he spoke, Yang Lin's gaze fell upon a camphor sapling beside him.
A metal tag still hung from the sapling, and upon closer inspection, there was a line of text on it.
"Chen Liangliang and Zhang Meng will be together forever. January 25, 2023."
"Hah, it's a wish made by a couple. But you just made a wish, and didn't even bother to plant the tree properly."
Shaking his head, he gently pulled up the person-tall camphor sapling.
Following his gaze, one could see that the soil pit beneath the sapling was clearly less than 30 centimeters deep.
With such a shallow pit, let alone planting a tree, even planting a potato might not survive.
"It seems your love cannot withstand the test. Let me help you."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Yang Lin picked up a nearby shovel and dug the pit a little deeper, then replanted the poorly planted camphor sapling.
However, as soon as the sapling was replanted, his brows furrowed slightly.
The next second, he slapped his forehead and said:
"Damn, I forgot about watering."
After speaking, he opened the weather forecast on his phone and checked the weather.
At a glance, the next 15 days were all marked with a sun.
Under normal circumstances, Yang Lin would have been delighted by such weather, as the weather and the number of tourists were directly proportional.
But now, with hundreds of thousands of saplings just planted, if it didn't rain for a period of time, watering these saplings would become a major undertaking.
Unless he was willing to spend more money to cover the entire surrounding area with sprinkler systems.
Thinking of this, Yang Lin's brows furrowed even more deeply.
"Should I contact Director Nie and ask him to use his connections to approach the Meteorological Bureau and ask them for artificial rain?"
As soon as this thought emerged, he looked up at the sky.
The sky above Ningnan was a clear blue, with not a single dark cloud in sight, not even a wisp of white cloud.
"Forget it, forget it. Unless you bomb the Dragon King's palace, it won't rain anytime soon with this weather."
As soon as the words left his mouth, a flash of inspiration struck him.
"Dragon King! That's right. Artificial rain won't work, but isn't there a little dragon in the zoo?"
For some reason, Yang Lin thought of the cloud-seeding and rain-making talent that he had awakened for Jiaobao.
He had brought Jiaobao back for so long but had never had the chance to test this talent, and didn't know if it could truly summon wind and rain as he imagined.
"Whether it works or not, let's go and try it first. What if it does?"
Having made up his mind, Yang Lin immediately walked into the park.
The first lunar month was already past its midpoint, and the bustling park during the New Year had gradually returned to a state of peace, with the animals resuming their normal lives.
Coupled with the continuous rise in temperature in Ningnan during this period, it felt as if spring had arrived early. Most of the animals appeared drowsy during the day.
Even the little white tiger, which usually ran around frantically, was now lazily lying on a large willow tree by the artificial lake.
When Yang Lin passed by beneath it, the little guy, who had already half-closed its eyes, suddenly perked up.
"Zoo director, zoo director, I'm so bored. Can you take me to play?"
Hearing the voice abruptly, Yang Lin looked up and only then realized that a big cat was perched above his head.
Compared to a month ago, Dami's size had increased again, officially entering the awkward stage of feline development, and it was now capable of taking down most land animals.
"Bored? How can you be bored? Aren't there enough animals in the park for you to cause trouble with?"
Yang Lin said with a playful tone.
"Of course I'm bored. The temperature has risen recently, and everyone is sleeping. The little bear has been sleeping for over a month. He just finished hibernating and started sleeping again."
"Then why don't you go play with Xiao Yueyue and Xiao Long? Aren't you fighting with them anymore?"
To Yang Lin's surprise, the little white tiger, Dami, showed a look of distress upon hearing his words.
"Xiao Yueyue is always running off and I don't see her for a week. Xiao Long has been acting mysterious for the past few days, and I can't find him."
"They all seem to have their own things to do, but I don't."
His words were filled with dejection.
Hearing this, Yang Lin immediately understood that the little white tiger was entering puberty early.
This was also a problem encountered by most animals raised in zoos.
Having never lived in the wild, they inevitably began to question their identity as tigers.
Realizing the seriousness of the problem, Yang Lin beckoned to the little white tiger the next second.
"Come here, you get down first. We'll go find Xiao Long, and then I'll arrange something for you."
The little white tiger, which had been looking dejected, instantly became energetic upon hearing Yang Lin's words.
Then, with a dexterity beyond that of a normal feline, it leaped down from the large willow tree in a few bounds.
Its descent startled the nearby tourists.
"Wait for me for a moment. Let me see where Xiao Long is now."
As he spoke, Yang Lin activated his shared vision with Xiao Long, which was Jiaobao.
Instantly, an environment filled with moss and shrubs appeared before his eyes.
At a glance, Yang Lin recognized the place as Bear Ridge, next to the zoo.
"Huh? What is Xiao Long doing in Bear Ridge?"
With a hint of doubt, Yang Lin casually gestured for the little white tiger to accompany him to Bear Ridge to see what was happening.
As a restricted area in Xihong Zoo, Bear Ridge was currently only open to animals, and tourists were not allowed to enter.
Therefore, the interior still resembled a forest.
When Yang Lin and the little white tiger arrived at the area where Jiaobao was, the scene before them caught Yang Lin off guard.
About ten meters away from him, Jiaobao, who was now about five meters long, was rolling on the ground in apparent pain.
From time to time, it would rub against the nearby rocks.
Its seemingly flexible scales were grinding the rocks, causing rock dust to fly and occasionally sparks to erupt.
After watching for a while, Yang Lin finally understood what was happening to it.
"It's shedding its skin?"