Chapter 49: 49: Show Off and Then Run, Such a Thrill!
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In the midst of our casual chat, we had already entered the park area.
It used to be a plaza right at the entrance, with a statue of a boy that would spray water. However, because it was quite old, the statue's pipes had rusted, causing the "urination" to be intermittent. Since Fang Ye felt that the statue did not fit with the zoo theme at all, being too flashy, he simply had it removed.
The plaza now featured an unaltered central circular area, but the surrounding lawns had been expanded considerably, complete with low wooden fences.
On the wide lawn, scattered patches of unknown red, purple, and white flowers grew, interspersed with red tip photinias and coral bushes. Several robust banyan trees stood along the path, like wide-open large umbrellas, with sparrows perched on their branches, chirping away.
At first glance, it was very refreshing and comfortable.
"This place is nice, I could bring Mom here for a walk," a girl in a red dress muttered softly.
"It feels like I've finally relaxed, have I discovered the right way to enjoy my holiday?"
Zoo Director Fang, I've also visited Linhai Zoo a few times before," Old Wang said, looking at the lawn in surprise, "When did it change so much? It definitely wasn't this beautiful before."
Fang Ye smiled, "Just recently. We made some minor changes to the plaza. Actually, there have been bigger changes inside the park; many exhibits are under construction, which are far more impressive than this. You should come by more often in the future."
"I was thinking Linhai didn't have any fun places, but your zoo, once completed, is going to be something else. On weekends, everyone will surely flock here," Old Wang praised thoughtfully.
Suddenly, a young man in a black shirt opened his eyes wide, disbelieving, and exclaimed, "Holy shit, look over there!"
"What happened?"
"My God!"
Cries of surprise rose one after another.
On the lush green lawn, several peafowls were leisurely strolling around!
With long tails dragging behind them like the trains of gowns, they walked gracefully and composedly, as if nobility preparing to attend an evening banquet.
The girl in the red dress exclaimed, "Wow, how beautiful!"
"Are you dumb? It's not about whether they're beautiful or not, the peafowls have escaped from their cages!"
"Huh? Oh yeah, why are the peafowls on the lawn outside?"
The young man in the white shirt tentatively said, "Could it be that they're supposed to be out here?"
He had previously watched videos of Linhai Zoo and hadn't seen any peafowls in them. However, judging by Fang Ye's attitude towards animals, it seemed plausible for him to let the peafowls roam freely on the lawn.
"How could that be? Zoo Director Fang, Zoo Director Fang!" someone started shouting, "Your peafowls have escaped!"
The first young man who had spotted the peafowls volunteered, "Director, I'll help you catch them!"
Fang Ye could only respond with an embarassed chuckle, "That's not necessary, thank you for your enthusiasm. We actually placed the peafowls on the lawn."
The young man in black flushed with embarrassment, "Ah, sorry about that."
Everyone was astonished in their hearts – the peafowls really were allowed outside!
They had always thought that in zoos, animals were kept in cages, and had never heard of animals being allowed to roam freely for visitors to see.
However, seeing the peafowls walking leisurely on the lawn truly seemed very natural and harmonious.
"Director, aren't you worried they might fly away?" the girl in red asked curiously.
"Yeah, what if they fly off?"
"Uh, can peafowls even fly?"
"Your language arts teacher would smack you if they heard that, you must have learned 'Peafowl Flying Southeast' in school," someone quipped.
Fang Ye laughed lightly, "Peafowls are better at running, of course they can fly, but they generally don't like to. Look at their big tails; dragging such heavy tails makes flying very strenuous. So we put these peafowls on the lawn enclosed by a fence, and they stay in this area without going out, which also creates a good viewing experience."
"Oh~" The crowd suddenly understood.
"Hey, is that one about to fly?"
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Just as he finished speaking, a peafowl flew towards them from the lawn.
The peafowl's flight was exceedingly graceful and beautiful, its wings flapping slowly, and its long, soft tail feathers fluttering behind, conjuring images of the celestial dancers in Dunhuang's murals, wearing rainbow-colored robes and sashes around their waists.
Arriving three meters in front of the crowd, it raised its broad wings, using air resistance to briefly hover, then leveled out its body and lowered its talons, tucked in front of its chest like landing gear, softly stepping onto the ground before proudly raising its head.
"Zoo Director Fang, what's up with this one?"
Fang Ye was also puzzled and took a glance at the peafowl's condition using the Eye of Observation, and was at a loss for words.
Mood: Excited/Showing off!
It seemed that being cooped up in a cage all this time had really frustrated it, and now that it could stay on the big lawn outside, free and unbridled, it wanted to strut its stuff in front of humans.
It was also used to being watched every day, showing no fear of people.
Fang Ye shook his head and said, "Eh, this peafowl probably got excited seeing the beauties in the group. It always gets excited when it sees beautiful women."
This peafowl was really not giving itself any dignity, slandering it a bit since it wouldn't understand anyway.
The two girls in the group laughed so hard they were shaking, "Zoo Director Fang is joking, right?"
"Damn, this peafowl is a real lsp." muttered the young man in the black shirt.
The young man in the white shirt silently wondered, "Can peafowls really distinguish beautiful women?"
Fang Ye snapped his fingers, "Xiaoliang, do a performance for everyone!"
The peafowl, looking at the humans in front of it, pressed its neck down and stuck out its butt, and its huge tail feathers rose up.
The body began to shake rapidly, "rustle rustle," and its gorgeous tail feathers unfolded like a fan, revealing dazzling blue eyes one by one.
This time Fang Ye didn't use any skills. The peafowl had genuinely opened its fan because it was in a good mood.
"Wow!"
"So beautiful!"
"Amazing!"
Exclamations came one after another, and everyone took out their phones to take pictures.
The peafowl, holding its large tail fan, strutted around with its neck outstretched, taking tiny, proud steps, twisting thirty degrees to the left, then thirty degrees to the right, showing off for quite a while.
After enough showing off, it retracted its tail feathers and strutted away with its head held high, like a proud knight returning victorious, walking up to the wooden fence.
Bending down, it slipped through a gap and headed towards its companions.
Its originally steady and graceful walk grew faster and faster until it broke into a run! Its two claws moved as quickly as spinning wheels, and with a "swoosh," it ran far away, flapping its wings as it went, and one could faintly hear its laughter of "ah ah."
Putting on a show and then running away, truly thrilling!
Everyone watched in astonishment.
The young man in the white shirt scratched his head, "Doesn't it feel like a student who got a high score and was praised by the teacher, eager to rush home and tell their mom?"
"Damn, that's so accurate!"
"Such a showy peafowl!"
"Zoo Director Fang, is it called Xiaoliang?" the girl in red asked with sparkling eyes, seeming to really like the peafowl!
Fang Ye shrugged, "No, I was just making it up."
Everyone collapsed!
It's not called Xiaoliang, but you called it by that name so naturally, we all believed you!