Outside the Xihong Zoo entrance, more than an hour had passed since Yang Lin was taken away in the car.
No one knew the reason for his abduction, leading to much speculation among the zoo's visitors.
And each guess was more outrageous than the last.
Just then, several police cars suddenly sped towards the zoo's entrance.
Before anyone could figure out why the police cars were returning, the lead car had already stopped at the zoo's main gate.
The next second, a familiar figure appeared before everyone's eyes.
It was none other than Yang Lin, who had just been taken away.
"Whoa! They let him out so quickly!"
"Probably paid bail."
"Let's hope Director Yang repents and turns over a new leaf."
"Maybe the police gave him a good talking-to."
...
As the crowd buzzed with discussion, several other police officers also alighted from the cars.
Soon, they stood in a line with Yang Lin. A middle-aged police officer with the highest rank suddenly announced loudly:
"Fellow citizens and visitors, just moments ago, our Director Yang of Xihong Zoo discovered a foreign reconnaissance device inside a sea turtle."
"This device had collected a large amount of acoustic signature information of our military submarines."
"Upon discovering the device, Director Yang immediately reported it and handed it over, preventing the leak of our nation's classified information."
"For this, the National Security Department has authorized our bureau to commend Director Yang. Please applaud!"
As the words fell, a wave of uproar swept through the crowd.
The next moment, a thunderous applause erupted, like a tsunami.
It lasted for more than half a minute before gradually subsiding.
"No way, is this real? You can actually find something like this?"
"Uh... does anyone know what submarine acoustic signatures are? Are they that important?"
"It's complicated to explain, but think of it as a submarine's ID number. Each submarine's acoustic signature is unique. If it's collected, you can deduce a lot of information from it."
"Director Yang is quite something. Just two days ago, he caught some spies, and now he's found another foreign surveillance device."
"He found it inside a sea turtle, so it's not surprising. It was probably swallowed by the turtle as food."
"So, if Director Yang hadn't rescued that turtle, he wouldn't have found this device. It really is cause and effect."
"I heard they rewarded 2.5 million for catching those five spies last time. I wonder how much he'll get this time."
...
Listening to the crowd's chatter, a slight smile touched Yang Lin's lips.
At first, he had just reported the device found inside the hawksbill turtle on a whim.
He never expected it to actually be a big deal.
Not only was it planted by foreign criminals, but it was also specifically designed to record data on military ships and submarines.
If he were a soldier, this would at least be a second-class merit award.
As he stood there, filled with pride, the middle-aged police officer who had spoken earlier addressed the crowd again.
"In recognition of Comrade Yang Lin's repeated assistance to official agencies in cracking down on foreign espionage activities, we will be providing Comrade Yang Lin with a reward."
As soon as the words were spoken, two police officers presented Yang Lin with a large check.
When the crowd saw the number on the check, their eyes widened.
"5 million!"
"Whoa, the reward is that high?"
"That's enough to buy two apartments in the city center of Ningnan."
"Stop talking. I'm going to start a business at sea. What's the point of working? There must be more surveillance equipment in the ocean. One more find and I'll be rich."
"The age of great exploration begins now!"
"And these national rewards are usually tax-free, so this 5 million will go straight into Director Yang's hands."
"If I could somehow recover a US nuclear submarine, would I also get 5 million?"
"What makes you dream so conservatively? If you could actually recover a US nuclear submarine, let me put it this way, even if you beat me to death right here, you wouldn't spend a day in jail. The authorities would send you a plaque for a meritorious family the next day."
"Damn it, seeing Director Yang make money makes me feel worse than losing my own money. No, I'm going to the group buying website later and grab their 49.9 for 50 coupons. I'll milk him dry."
"I noticed the lady next door goes out at midnight every night and comes back early in the morning, changing outfits every day. Could she be a spy?"
...
In an instant, everyone's emotions were ignited by the substantial reward.
Only Yang Lin himself knew that this reward, while seemingly 5 million, was actually another 2.5.
It was 5 million combined with the reward for catching the five foreign criminals last time.
Although he consistently felt that the number 250 was not ideal, who was he to complain when there was a "million" appended to it?
Just as Yang Lin thought it was over, another police officer emerged, holding a brocade banner.
"In addition to the reward, our Ningnan authorities have specially commissioned a brocade banner for Comrade Yang Lin."
As the middle-aged police officer spoke, a nearby officer unfurled the banner.
The next second, four glittering golden characters appeared before everyone's eyes.
Peace Elite
Seeing the gleaming brocade banner, Yang Lin's expression turned peculiar.
"Did the post-00s enter the workforce? Why are there even titles as rewards?"
Despite feeling a mix of amusement and exasperation at the four characters, Yang Lin eventually accepted the banner amidst the crowd's cheers.
At the same time, the scene unfolding on-site was quickly transmitted to the internet through the mobile phone cameras of some attendees.
Before long, the news of Director Yang discovering a surveillance device at the bottom of the sea, receiving a massive reward, and earning the title of "Peace Elite" rapidly climbed to the trending topics.
This, in turn, sparked a craze for going to sea in China.
From time to time, fishermen would pull up special catches – torpedoes, underwater gliders, missiles, unmanned underwater vehicles.
It even escalated to the point where foreign ships would dump things into the sea, only for Chinese fishermen to retrieve them shortly after.
Yang Lin, of course, was completely unaware of these subsequent impacts.
After receiving his reward, he also ushered in a major event for Xihong Zoo:
The trial operation of the aquarium.
After nearly a month of construction, the interior and exterior of the Xihong Zoo's aquarium were finally completed.
Xihong Zoo's official website released a recruitment announcement for the aquarium's trial operation.
Considering it was a trial run, only 1,000 tickets were released this time.
As soon as these 1,000 tickets were made available, they were instantly snapped up by eager visitors.
And time had now unknowingly advanced to the first day of the trial operation.