Super Zoo-Chapter 640 - 631: Vanished into Thin Air!
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The plane landed at Xiangjiang Airport, and when the animal hold containing the pandas was opened, it was completely empty!
The two cages that had held the giant pandas were 'wide open,' and there was no sign of the pandas!
It wasn't just the pandas that had disappeared; other animals also 'vanished into thin air'!
This cargo hold was specifically used for transporting animals. Apart from the two pandas, there were various pets stored by other passengers, as well as a batch of animals that Xiangjiang Ocean Park had purchased from abroad—including brown bears, reindeers, vultures, among others—a total of more than twenty animals.
But once the cargo hold was opened, all the animals were gone. The cages that held the animals were either opened or had collapsed significantly, with severe damage, having been violently broken.
The airport immediately erupted into chaos. Passengers had paid good money and entrusted their pets to the airline for transportation, in accordance with aviation regulations. However, after disembarking, the animals had simply disappeared. No matter how the airline staff explained, the passengers were relentless and unforgiving.
It wasn't that they didn't understand, but that they couldn't believe it! How could the animals run away while the plane was flying properly high in the sky? Where could they possibly have gone?
To suggest that someone hijacked the plane was even more absurd. They didn't rob money, kill people, or crash into buildings. They went to such length, sneaking away with a whole bunch of animals?
Were they a group of superhumans with a twisted fancy for eating rare animals?
The only slightly plausible explanation was that the airline had violated regulations, and something major had gone amiss in the cargo hold, resulting in the death of all the animals.
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The technical staff from Ocean Park who were responsible for escorting the flight were also dumbfounded. They were in charge of escorting the whole process which meant from the moment the animals boarded the plane at Yangchuan City Zoo until the plane landed in Xiangjiang and then transported back to Ocean Park.
However, during the flight, according to the airline's safety rules, it was forbidden for people to enter the transport hold. Therefore, these technical staff and other passengers had to sit in the cabin and had no idea what had actually happened in the cargo hold.
Nobody expected that tens of thousands of feet in the air, almost fifty animals would just evaporate into thin air.
Damn it, did a black hole appear inside the plane and suck all these creatures into another dimension?
The technical staff from Ocean Park couldn't manage other passengers' animals, but they couldn't ignore the two pandas and the various other animals they had purchased.
Ocean Park makes purchases of rare animals from abroad every two or three years to replenish the park. Those dozens of animals were all expensive acquisitions from Europe and North America. They had spent Ocean Park's entire three-year budget for purchasing animals in one go, representing a very high economic value.
As for the two giant pandas, in Huaxia, they were truly priceless treasures.
Moreover, they were gifts from the mainland to Xiangjiang, carrying significant meaning.
This blame was too substantial for the few technicians to bear, nor did they dare to bear it. They notified the leadership of Ocean Park immediately.
Initially, the leadership at Ocean Park didn't grasp what was meant by 'disappeared.' How could dozens of animals, which weren't small creatures like mice or fleas—the smallest otter was over half a meter long—disappear into thin air tens of thousands of feet up in the air?
Once the situation was understood, the leadership at Ocean Park was under immense pressure!
Aside from the two pandas, the disappearance of the other animals alone was definitely a major liability incident. If those animals couldn't be found, Ocean Park's reputation would be ruined. No country around the world would cooperate with such an unreliable company again. The company's stock price would plummet, and Xiangjiang's public outrage would overwhelm them. Internally, at least a third of the employees would face major discipline, and several high-ranking individuals would have to resign over this incident.
Even if the animals were found, it would highlight significant management flaws within Ocean Park, triggering a major scandal.
In fact, Ocean Park Entertainment Company should be blamed for being overly confident in its management.
Logically, the two pandas should have been wholly the responsibility of Yangchuan City Zoo before leaving the mainland. Once they arrived in Xiangjiang, the responsibility should have shifted to Xiangjiang Ocean Park.
One thing is for certain; the animals couldn't have vanished into thin air tens of thousands of feet up in the sky. It would have either occurred while boarding the plane or after deplaning.
In other words, the responsibility for the pandas lay with Yangchuan City Zoo before boarding the flight in Yangchuan City, and it was Ocean Park's responsibility after disembarking.
Like many large enterprises in Xiangjiang, Ocean Park Entertainment Company is entirely Westernized and somewhat dismissive of Yangchuan City Zoo's relatively backward and rustic approach. Therefore, whether it was initially transporting the pandas to Yangchuan or taking them away a few days ago, Ocean Park insisted on handling everything from start to finish.
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The veteran animal keepers at Yangchuan City Zoo were initially somewhat reluctant, feeling disrespected. Suming had a talk with several of them at the time, saying that as long as the animals were safe and sound, and the other party was willing to take responsibility, it would actually save them some trouble.
Who would have known that his words would turn out to be prophetic with such a bizarre incident occurring! Now Yangchuan City Zoo wasn't held responsible at all, with all the pressure falling on Ocean Park.
Moreover, according to the original lease contract, the two pandas were supposed to return to Xiangjiang at the end of next month. It was Xiangjiang Zoo that proposed to return them earlier...
This issue was delicate, to put it lightly, if Ocean Park had acted according to the contract, perhaps the accident wouldn't have happened. To speak gravely, it seemed devious! It was clearly written in black and white that they should be returned next month, so why suddenly insist on retrieving them early? And to have the two giant pandas, that were being returned to Xiangjiang, disappear en route? Wasn't that too coincidental?
Dare not think!
So even if Suming hadn't called Ocean Park, they would certainly have contacted him immediately.
"What's the situation?" Suming put down the phone, equally puzzled. This time, it wasn't him meddling behind the scenes. He had been very cooperative throughout the process of retrieving the giant pandas.
Shortly after, Mr. He of the Tourism Bureau made a call.
Just as the technical staff at Ocean Park was acutely aware of the heavy responsibility, they didn't dare to hide anything from the higher-ups. The management understood the stakes involved and reported the situation to the supervisory authorities without delay.
Both sides of the strait were stirred up by these sudden animal disappearances, with investigations starting simultaneously in Xiangjiang and Yangchuan City. Yangchuan City established a special task force led by a city leader, a deputy director of the city police, and Mr. He as the deputy team leader, with a clear focus on this case. An emergency meeting was called the following afternoon.
Since the two pandas had lived in Yangchuan City Zoo for a while and had been directly transferred from there, Suming attended the meeting as a representative of the zoo to assist with the investigation.
"Before we start the meeting, I want to emphasize two points,"
the team leader from the city government stated plainly: "First, the missing animals involved in this incident are of great economic value and have a huge social impact. We must treat the matter seriously and attentively from every aspect. Second, even though the full details are not clear yet, based on the evidence available, it appears that the responsibility for the incident lies with Xiangjiang Ocean Park. We have invited our colleagues from Yangchuan City Zoo as industry experts to help us with the work, and we hope everyone understands this point. We must be careful in our actions. We also hope that our colleagues from the zoo will not feel unduly burdened."
After speaking, he looked towards Suming and nodded slightly. Suming smiled back, indicating his understanding. 'Assisting the investigation' sounded a bit intimidating, as if he were being treated as a suspect, but Mr. He had made it clear over the phone that he was really just hoping for the zoo's 'assistance'.
"Okay, Sun, please introduce the specific details we've got so far," said the city leader to a middle-aged police officer with a sharp and distinct face.
Old Sun, the deputy director of the city police, was a direct superior to several of Nangong Yan's uncles. He had worked his way up from grassroots detective work, rich in experience, and specialized in handling major and difficult cases with significant impact.
Just sitting in the meeting room, without uttering a word, he exuded a subtle aura of authority that was quite imposing.
The lights in the conference room dimmed, and the projector displayed the evidence currently held by the police on the big screen.
"After the incident, both sides immediately gathered surveillance footage from the airport, the road from Yangchuan City Zoo to Yangchuan Airport, as well as various procedural documents. The confirmed details so far are as follows:
First, after leaving the zoo, the vehicle transporting the animals did not stop halfway, but took Highway 201 straight to the airport expressway, directly reaching the airport. The airport passageway cameras clearly show all animals accounted for, ruling out the possibility of theft on the road from the zoo to the airport. Of course..."
He glanced at Suming and added, "It also rules out the possibility that the two pandas were switched out while still at Yangchuan City Zoo."
The leaders of the investigative team repeatedly cleared the zoo's name, both to reassure Suming and all employees of Yangchuan City Zoo and to hope that Suming would use his expertise to fully cooperate and assist in solving the case. Suming wasn't ungrateful; he smiled and nodded at Mr. Sun in thanks.
Mr. Su continued, "Second, according to the video provided by Xiangjiang Airport, oh, I should mention, Xiangjiang Airport's videos cover all angles, starting to record from the moment the aircraft opens. Indeed, as the other party reported, the animals had already disappeared when they opened the cargo door, so we can also assume that the animals disappeared before the plane landed and the cargo was opened."
The more the situation unfolded, the more bizarre it became. With no solid evidence, although there were many speculations passed around—black holes, supernatural forces—anyone with a shred of common sense didn't take these 'legends' too seriously; they were just trifles to talk about.
To those in the know, this had to be an organized, premeditated, high-IQ, high-tech theft.
But now with indisputable evidence, it wasn't before the plane took off, nor after it landed, leaving only one possibility: the animals indeed disappeared during the flight, or more specifically, were stolen.
How could this be possible? How was it done?
