The field station of Kunnan Botanical Garden is located at the edge of the primitive rainforest. Although it is the edge, there are towering ancient trees that block out the sun, and entangled vines and lush flowers and plants everywhere. The ground is slippery and soft mud and rotten wood. Wang Chaoliang's car could not enter at all, so they had to park in a nearby village and walk in by themselves.
Lu Lingxi had slept all the way and was now completely awake. He jumped out of the car with his bag on his back and looked curiously at China's largest, best-preserved, and most biodiverse original tropical rainforest.
Wang Chaoliang stood beside him and said with a little emotion: "Xiaoxi, do you know? More than half of the plants and animals on the earth live in tropical rainforests. It can be said that rainforests are the base camp of most creatures on the earth. Unfortunately, there is deforestation everywhere now, and the area of rainforests on the earth is getting smaller and smaller. If this continues, it will really be..."
At the end, Wang Chaoliang sighed. Not to mention other places, the area of the rainforest in front of him was getting smaller and smaller. Although China has been calling for environmental protection, compared with economic interests, the so-called protection is just empty talk.
"Let's go." Without saying anything else, he called Yan Yue and Lu Lingxi to follow him into the rainforest.
Because the plants are too lush, the sun is rarely seen in the rain forest. After the initial discomfort, Lu Lingxi quickly got used to the environment. In addition to the towering trees and intertwined vines, there are more epiphytic algae, mosses and various ferns. These usually inconspicuous plants are all over the surrounding trunks and branches, as if covered with a thick green carpet. In addition, there are also colorful flowers, and occasionally unknown animals crawling by. The whole rain forest shows a mysterious and unpredictable beauty.
Yan Yue was not very interested in these things, and was just looking around like a tourist. Wang Chaoliang and Lu Lingxi were different. They walked and looked around with great interest, and stopped from time to time to take a few photos and chat with each other. Wang Chaoliang was a senior plant researcher, and Lu Lingxi had a mysterious white panel on his body. No matter what plant they encountered, they could chat together, which made Yan Yue feel a little jealous.
After waiting for the two to separate, Lu Lingxi went to take pictures of the two giant trees growing together, while Wang Chaoliang squatted on the ground and carefully observed a white bacterial strain. Yan Yue handed a bottle of water to Lu Lingxi, "Are you tired?"
Lu Lingxi took the water and shook his head subconsciously.
Yan Yue's lips curled up, and he looked at Lu Lingxi with a smile in his eyes. He whispered, "Are you feeling unwell?"
Lu Lingxi was a little confused when he heard this, and when he reacted, the tip of his ears immediately turned red. However, apart from being a little sleepy in the morning, Lu Lingxi's body did not have any abnormalities. Even Yan Yue did not sleep much the previous night, but he was still energetic now. Both of them knew that this was the effect of evolution. Evolution not only brought about communication with animals, but also the improvement of physical fitness.
Seeing what the two of them seemed to be talking about, Wang Chaoliang simply suggested taking a break here for a while.
Yan Yue glanced at the time and asked, "Is it still far from the workstation?"
"Not far away, just ahead."
There are too many dangers in the rainforest. There are countless poisonous snakes, frogs, and spiders, and there are many other dangerous animals lurking. Although the staff built the workstation in the rainforest for convenience, they did not dare to go too deep.
Wang Chaoliang repeatedly warned Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue to be careful of various poisonous creatures and not to get bitten. Although this is a remote place and there are no particularly poisonous animals, and there are medicines in general workstations, it is still necessary to avoid suffering if possible. "Besides that, be careful not to walk around alone and be careful not to get lost." He warned as a person who has experienced it: "This is a huge maze, and the trees around are all similar. It will be troublesome if you get lost."
The three of them rested for a few minutes, and Wang Chaoliang led them to continue walking forward. After walking a few steps, Xiao Hei, who had been wrapped around Yan Yue's wrist, suddenly got out of his sleeve, raised his upper body and hissed towards the bushes on the left. The next moment, Xiao Hei shot out like lightning and plunged into the bushes. There was only a rustling sound inside, as if something was struggling.
"What's wrong?" Wang Chaoliang turned around and asked when he heard the noise.
Yan Yue pulled out a dagger from his body and stood in front of Lu Lingxi. He looked vigilantly in the direction where Xiao Hei disappeared, frowned and said, "It might be a poisonous snake."
"Poisonous snake?" Wang Chaoliang immediately stopped and whispered, "Don't move yet. As long as we don't provoke them, snakes generally won't provoke us." But even though he said this, he still took out the snake medicine he had prepared in advance from his bag. It's best not to be bitten by a poisonous snake, but if you are bitten, you'll be prepared.
As the two talked, the noise in the bushes quieted down. After a while, Xiao Hei poked his head out and excitedly spitted out his tongue at Yan Yue. A small red snake several centimeters thick rolled up his tail and came out of the bushes. The body of the small red snake drooped limply, and it looked dead. Wang Chaoliang was shocked and stared at Xiao Hei in amazement for a long time without being able to speak. He had seen Xiao Hei before in Micro Gardening, and of course he knew that Xiao Hei was Yan Yue's pet. But this... He couldn't find words to describe the scene in front of him.
Xiao Hei swam in front of Yan Yue proudly, tilting his head back and shaking it left and right.
Yan Yue frowned, put away the dagger, picked up Xiao Hei, and poured a bottle of mineral water on it for a long time. Xiao Hei opened his mouth dissatisfiedly and bit Yan Yue's finger. Yan Yue did not react at all. Xiao Hei let go of his mouth aggrievedly, swung his tail and struggled to get into Lu Lingxi's arms.
Wang Chaoliang's expression became strange. He always felt that the little black snake seemed to be acting like a spoiled child, as if it had been wronged by Yan Yue and was going to Lu Lingxi to complain. He shook his head as the thought flashed through his mind, feeling that he was really confused.
Yan Yue finished flushing and poked Xiao Hei's head. He didn't think there was anything wrong with Xiao Hei strangling the venomous snake, he just thought that Xiao Hei had to wash himself because he was dirty. After all, Xiao Hei's favorite place to stay was either his wrist or Xiao Xi's arms, and rolling around outside was really dirty.
"Hiss." Xiao Hei protested with his head raised.
In front of Wang Chaoliang, Yan Yue couldn't say anything, so he could only follow Xiao Hei's wishes and throw him to Lu Lingxi. Xiao Hei wrapped himself around Lu Lingxi's wrist in a flattering manner, and swung his tail at Yan Yue in a bluffing manner.
Lu Lingxi couldn't help laughing.
Ten minutes later, they arrived at the field station of the botanical garden. It was called a workstation, but it was actually three simple houses built in the middle of an open space in the jungle. Around the rooms, there were some instruments that Lu Lingxi didn't recognize placed on the ground. There were two staff members stationed at the workstation who were about the same age as Wang Chaoliang.
They already knew that Wang Chaoliang was going to bring people here, and they were very enthusiastic about Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue, especially Lu Lingxi. The two staff members had read several reports published by Wang Chaoliang before, and knew that Lu Lingxi was their colleague to some extent, and was very good at developing new plant varieties.
"Old Wang, take Xiaoxi around the area. A rare Rafflesia was discovered over there a few days ago." One of the staff members pointed out.
"Rafflesia?" Wang Chaoliang was initially surprised at how there could be Rafflesia here, but he soon became excited and said to Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue, "Let's go and take a look."
Rafflesia, also known as the corpse flower, is a fleshy parasitic herb and the largest flower in the world. The largest Rafflesia found so far has a corolla diameter of 1.4 meters and weighs 10 kilograms, earning it the reputation of the world's flower king. However, Rafflesia is mostly produced in the tropical rain forests of Southeast Asia, and is relatively rare in southern Kunming.
Following the staff's instructions, Wang Chaoliang led Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue all the way to the depths of the rainforest. "It's okay, this is a place the workstation often comes to, there are no dangerous animals." Wang Chaoliang said as he walked, "Besides..." He jokingly glanced at Xiao Hei who was wrapped around Lu Lingxi's wrist, "With Xiao Hei as a bodyguard, there's nothing to be afraid of."
Xiao Hei seemed to understand what Wang Chaoliang was talking about, and he kept wagging his tail and hissing excitedly. Yan Yue understood what Xiao Hei was saying and raised the corners of his mouth slightly.
They walked for about half an hour, and Wang Chaoliang said, "Although it seems like we have walked far, we are still at the edge of the rainforest. If we keep walking like this, there will be no end."
Lu Lingxi looked in the direction Wang Chaoliang pointed and asked curiously, "Has anyone been to the center of the rainforest?"
This time it was Yan Yue who answered. He said in a deep voice: "This rainforest borders other countries. There must be some illegal immigrants who will risk passing through here."
"That's right." Wang Chaoliang nodded. "In addition to illegal immigrants, there are also drug dealers. Anyway, this border area is not very safe. But we don't have to worry. The workstation has been built for more than ten years and has never encountered illegal immigrants or drug dealers... We are here."
Wang Chaoliang had not finished speaking when he excitedly walked forward. Yan Yue glanced around, reached out and held Lu Lingxi's hand, and followed him behind. The Rafflesia that the staff had mentioned soon appeared in front of the two of them.
It is called a Rafflesia, but in fact it is just a giant black bud with a mark left by the staff. Wang Chaoliang walked around the bud and said with some regret, "It is not time for it to bloom yet. We probably won't be able to see it bloom."
The Rafflesia flower blooms only once in its lifetime, and the flowering period is only four days. The buds have a fragrance at the beginning of blooming, and then they will emit a pungent and foul smell. On the fourth day of the flowering period, the petals of the Rafflesia flower will gradually turn black and wither, and then turn into a sticky black substance within a few weeks. Although Wang Chaoliang could not judge the specific flowering time of the Rafflesia flower, he and Lu Lingxi could not stay here every day, so there was no hope of seeing it bloom.
He felt regretful and simply squatted on the ground to look at the flower bud. Although Lu Lingxi was interested in the Rafflesia, he really didn't know what was so good about the flower bud. He pulled Yan Yue around to look around and took a few photos from time to time.
"Bang." Something came crashing down from a distance and landed at Lu Lingxi's feet.
Before Lu Lingxi could react, Yan Yue had already pulled him back a step. The two looked up and saw a little yellow monkey squatting on a tree not far away, holding a fruit of some unknown flower in its hand, eager to try in the direction of Lu Lingxi.
"Squeak." The little monkey shouted loudly.
Unfortunately, neither Lu Lingxi nor Yan Yue could understand what it was saying. Instead, Xiao Hei was angry that the little monkey bullied Lu Lingxi, so he crawled out from Lu Lingxi's wrist and hissed at the little monkey angrily. The little monkey stared at Xiao Hei curiously, and then seemed to remember something and squeaked anxiously, pointing forward and jumping while squeaking.
"What is it saying?" Lu Lingxi pulled Yan Yue and asked curiously.
Yan Yue stared at the little monkey's movements thoughtfully, "It seems to be reminding you of something."
"What?" Lu Lingxi took out a telescope from his bag and looked in the direction the little monkey pointed. He saw nothing except tall trees blocking out the sun. He handed the telescope to Yan Yue, who looked around but still found nothing.
"Let's go back first." Yan Yue frowned and said suddenly.
"Ah?" Lu Lingxi looked puzzled.
Yan Yue pulled Lu Lingxi and explained: "This little monkey has no ill intentions, Xiaoxi, you should be able to sense it. Since it reminds us of what is ahead, for safety reasons we should leave here first."
After he finished speaking, Lu Lingxi nodded obediently and followed Yan Yue along the original path to find Wang Chaoliang. After walking a few steps, Lu Lingxi looked back at the little monkey on the tree. The little monkey was hanging on the tree trunk with one arm and waving at them with the other arm like a human.
Lu Lingxi curled his eyes and smiled, then waved at the little monkey.
They were not far from Wang Chaoliang, and soon they met up. Yan Yue told Wang Chaoliang that he suspected there was danger ahead, so they should leave first. Wang Chaoliang felt strange, but Yan Yue's tone did not sound like a joke. He looked cautiously in the direction Yan Yue was coming from, and simply took the two back to the workstation. The three figures quickly disappeared in the dense forest.
Not long after they walked away, several sturdy men wearing local ethnic minority costumes came out from behind a tree several meters thick and stared viciously in the direction where the three people disappeared.
The leading man looked to be in his forties, with a thumb-sized scar on the corner of his eye. He had a sinister expression and asked in a cold voice, "Did you see what they looked like?"
A tall and strong man next to him who looked to be in his thirties quickly said, "The younger one looked back at the end and saw clearly, but the other two didn't."
The leading man lowered his eyes, made a beheading gesture, and said in a cold voice: "Follow them, see who they are from, and find a chance to kill them."
A young-looking man on the right hesitated and said, "Brother, they are just tourists and don't know anything. They probably didn't see us. Why don't we not make trouble..."
Before he could finish his words, the leading man snorted and interrupted, "Didn't see anything? Didn't they see why they were in such a hurry to leave? Xiaoliu, don't forget that Laowu is dead. He probably said everything he should and shouldn't have said to save his life. We have worked hard here for many years to have this little foundation. Now other routes are not safe. The only one left is this drug trafficking route... just in case, even if that guy didn't see anything, it's their bad luck."
The leading man had the highest prestige among the group, and after he said that, the others had no objections. The tall and strong man followed in the direction of Yan Yue and the others, and the rest of them turned back to the depths of the rain forest. Before leaving, the leading man raised his head and glared at the little monkey on the tree. The little monkey squeaked and grabbed the fruit in its hand and smashed it on the man's head.
The man's face was full of anger, and his hand immediately reached for the gun at his waist, but considering that shooting would make too much noise, he had to hold back.
Seeing that he didn't move, the little monkey became even more proud. He kept looking for shriveled fruits and threw them at them, and even made faces like a human.
"You little bastard." The man was furious.
The young man beside him quickly stopped him and said, "Brother, why bother with a beast?"
The little monkey seemed to understand that they were scolding it, and smashed the fruit even harder.
Young man: “…”
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