Chapter 2610: Magical Animals in the Zoo 17

In the early morning, the little lion woke up unusually early, its fluffy head rubbing against Xiao Bai Rendong beside it, and a soft, muffled hum came from its throat.

Xiao Bai Rendong has always been unable to resist the little lion's requests.

He turned sideways, his fingertips combing the soft fur behind the white lion's ear, "Alright, today I'll take Bao Bao up the mountain to play."

"It's not just playing."

Jin Chen could feel that the time he could revert to human form each day was limited, and it wasn't being spent on sleep like last time.

He changed back under the covers, then naturally pulled Xiao Bai Rendong into an embrace, resting his chin on Xiao Bai Rendong's shoulder, leisurely watching his wife's ears turn redder, and pretending not to notice as he rubbed up close—just a hair's breadth from a kiss.

When he lifted his head again, he looked quite serious, yet he wrapped his tail around Xiao Bai Rendong's wrist.

"I'm going to find out why I can't change form."

Xiao Bai Rendong lay on his back beneath him, seeing the youth's unreserved and unguarded demeanor, he could only ignore the strange feeling of skin-on-skin contact, reaching up to touch the lion ears in his hair, "Alright, you can do whatever you want, I'll go with you."

Jin Chen embraced Xiao Bai Rendong's slender back, clearly much taller yet insisting on squeezing into his arms, "You're so good to me; once my monster power recovers, I'll……"

Xiao Bai Rendong had never been this close to a person before, and he had to divert attention to adjust to the little lion's appearance; hearing the unfinished half-sentence, he raised his brows and hummed in doubt.

"What then?"

"Just staying together with Xiao Bai Xiao Bai every day." Jin Chen said, his golden pupils fixed on him, as he nuzzled Xiao Bai Rendong's nose tip, his affectionate breath brushing over Xiao Bai Rendong's ear, "Okay?"

Xiao Bai Rendong's eyes held a smile, his tone indulgent, his fingertips rubbing the lion's ear, "Okay."

Nothing made him happier than this.

Xiao Bai Rendong gradually grew accustomed to this embrace, yet he knew deep down that this was his little lion, not another human.

【Villain Heartthrob Value +10, total 36!】

——

Xiao Bai Rendong quickly made a decision, organizing an inspection of the deep parts of Zhenyang Mountain.

First, to satisfy the little lion's request, letting it go up the mountain to blow off some steam.

Second, Xiao Bai Rendong also harbored hope that perhaps in the deep mountains they could find a suitable new member for the zoo, enriching the park's ecology and preparing for future reopening.

This news spread among the keepers, and everyone looked very excited.

Prolonged closure and rectification inevitably left people feeling stifled; being able to go into the mountains for a walk, breathe fresh air, and contribute to the zoo's future was undoubtedly something to look forward to.

Da Niu was even more enthusiastic, volunteering to dig out his cherished outdoor livestream equipment.

"Zoo Director, let's do a livestream!"

Da Niu's honest face was full of eager excitement: "Our zoo has been closed for some time now; this is the perfect chance to take everyone to see the scenery deep in Zhenyang Mountain and check how the animals are doing."

Xiao Bai Rendong looked out the window at the lush Shan Lin, pondered for a moment, and nodded: "Alright, then I'll trouble you."

The team gathered at the mountain base's park entrance, and the livestream started on schedule.

At first, the livestream room had few viewers, the comments were sparse, and only a few occasional messages floated by.

：Zhenyang Zoo……Damn, this zoo hasn't gone bankrupt yet?

：I went once before, felt the animals had pretty big tempers, nothing worth seeing.

：Don't really remember, must be a small zoo, hardly anyone in the city knows about it.

Da Niu adjusted the camera angle and lighting, cheerfully began the introduction, and ignored those few comments.

"Good morning! The weather's nice today; I'll take everyone with Zoo Director Xiao Bai for a hike in the mountains to see the scenery of Zhenyang Mountain!"

The camera turned to Xiao Bai Rendong at the center of the team.

Xiao Bai Rendong today wore a lightweight gray hiking outfit and trekking shoes, shouldering a backpack containing first-aid supplies, some food and water.

And the most eye-catching was the snow-white, spirited white lion snugly held in his arms.

The white lion's golden pupils darted about, taking in the surroundings; its fluffy little head turned this way and that, its round lion ears perked up, keenly catching the sounds of the Shan Lin, yet it had no intention of going down to walk, its claws gripping Xiao Bai Rendong's collar, curling itself into a warm white fur ball, enjoying the moment contentedly.

：Hold on……the little guy holding the little lion is kinda handsome, turns out to be the zoo director?

：Wow, a white lion! That fur color, those eye colors!

：Such a rare breed of white lion?! Too cute! Can we watch this for free?!

The white lion poked half its body out of Xiao Bai Rendong's arms, leaned toward the camera to stare at the screen, and even lightly tapped it with its paw.

Jin Chen was seriously reading the comments.

But his earnest yet puzzled look was too adorable; the comments swept away the earlier pessimism, filling the screen with "so cute."

：awsl! Is it looking at the comments?

：Paws! Pink paw pads! Want to squeeze!

：Melting! How can it be this cute!

Jin Chen lost interest after a while, then lazily flopped back into Xiao Bai Rendong's arms, yawned, stretched, and continued to live by the lion creed of never exerting his legs if he could be held by his wife.

Xiao Bai Rendong lowered his head to look at the little creature in his arms, the corners of his mouth unconsciously turning up.

He also saw the comments praising Jin Chen's cuteness; his heart felt both proud and happy, yet a hint of jealousy rose—something he himself might not even notice.

It was as if his private treasure had been discovered by more people.

But upon second thought, though the little lion could be liked and praised as cute by many, it ultimately belonged only to him.

This uniqueness made Xiao Bai Rendong's heart swell with joy; he couldn't help but lower his head, gently rubbing his cheek against the little lion's warm head.

The white lion let out a contented grunt, the tip of its tail twitching.

At the front of the team was the red fox Hu Cai Cai.

The fox had recovered quite well, was very familiar with this route, always able to find the easiest path, and occasionally glanced back.

Originally, according to safety regulations, Hu Gu was not allowed to join this mountain excursion.

But this huge Northeast tiger, employing shameless tactics, had blocked the entrance since early morning, rubbing its massive head against the doorframe, letting out a pitiful whine from its throat, its amber eyes pleadingly gazing at Xiao Bai Rendong and Jin Chen.

In the end, Xiao Bai Rendong, soft-hearted, agreed.

Thus, Hu Gu got his wish and followed behind Hu Cai Cai.

Its huge body walked lightly, its footpads landing silently; its tiger eyes vigilantly scanned the surroundings, as it felt it had taken on the duty of guarding.

Hu Cai Cai would occasionally deliberately slow her steps, waiting for Hu Gu to catch up, then she would lightly sweep the tiger's head with her fluffy, beautiful big tail, neither too hard nor too soft.

Hu Gu wasn't annoyed; instead, he seemed to have received a reward, happily laughing foolishly.

How could a tiger possibly not be able to outrun a fox?

This kind of lagging behind is, of course, also a little trick privately taught by some white lion boss, to enhance feelings.

Da Niu aimed the camera, cheerfully explaining: "Look at our vanguard officer! Beautiful fox and mighty tiger!"

: Fox! It's a red fox! How beautiful!

: Such a big tiger! Just follows along like that? No cage? Not... you zoo folks have big hearts.

: Strange, was Tranquil Sun Zoo always like this before? I recall it being somewhat desolate.