"No... you can't do this to me, I really did ask my supervisor for leave!"
The girl being carried on poles by the weasels let out a wail, her face full of "life is meaningless now."
But the weasels didn't listen to a word. They were just carrying out the supervisor's orders, coming to the dorm to arrest this senior and haul her back to the lab for handover.
She had indeed taken leave, that part wasn't fake, but she hadn't finished the experiment log entries or the handover of managed items.
The lab runs on a duty-responsibility system. Those log entries can't be written by the teacher covering the shift.
Amid wave after wave of tragic howls, the girl was carried off toward the Agricultural Research Institute's research group base.
"Among the three universities and six institutes, the Agricultural Research Institute is the richest. In every sense of the word."
Second Uncle said to Ah Qing and the others, "And it's also the favorite institute of Spirit Beasts. Basically, every day you can see Spirit Beasts coming over to bum food..."
From freshman to senior year they still pretend a bit, complaining all day they have no funding, but in fifth year they drop the act completely.
We're the ones mass‑producing Spirit Particle Potion here; thousands of vertical farming plants nationwide run at high speed around the clock.
Spirit Beasts, hurry over, our Agricultural Research Institute is handing out potions.
"Uh..."
Ah Qing looked at the little fox, face full of confusion. Even though Second Uncle had talked about how rich the Agricultural Research Institute was, she still had no concept of how rich.
"Remember our school track field?" Ansheng looked at Ah Qing and said, "That field cost thirty million."
"How much?!"
Ah Qing froze, utterly shocked, almost not believing her own ears.
That orange‑red rubber running track at school actually cost thirty million to build?
"If you use recycled plastic and don't care about flatness, you can build a track for a few hundred thousand. But if you have any requirements about environmental protection or health, then it gets expensive." Zhang Lin said to Ah Qing and the others:
"The Agricultural Research Institute may seem stingy, but when it comes to land environment and student health, they've always been the most generous—tenders only ever choose the best."
Momo curiously poked her head out, leaned closer to the little fox, and asked:
"How... do you know how much the track cost?"
Sure, the school rules do say that doing drifting in a car on the track gets you a two‑million fine.
But that wasn't the construction cost of the track; it was because some cool‑loving senior once drifted on campus to pick up girls and set a legendary record in the Agricultural Research Institute's history.
The actual construction cost of the track had always been a mystery, basically turning into an institute urban legend.
"I once peeled up the track surface."
Ansheng beamed, letting out a "ying‑ying‑ying" giggle as he admitted to his record.
"But Old Yang and Old Li are real bros. They shouldered it all, had the whole bill written off as routine maintenance."
Ah Qing: "......"
Xiaolan, never thought you were the home‑wrecking type.
Second Uncle parked by the roadside, then led everyone toward a perfectly square building.
This largest building on campus was called the "Comprehensive Living Area." Things like faculty and student dorms, the library, cafeterias, large lecture halls, plus the campus supermarket and clinic were all in here.
The fifth‑year dorms were no longer four‑person rooms, but upgraded to doubles that other students didn't even dare to dream of.
There were even apartments not far off campus, built with school funds and rented out to teachers with families, as well as newlywed couples.
In the future, as long as a student chose to stay on after graduation, after working twenty years they'd be directly given a home.
A 120‑square‑meter apartment worth over three million, just handed over like that.
If you know it's a years‑of‑service reward, fine. If you don't, you'd think this upstart institute is secretly training dead‑men troops.
"So annoying..."
Seeing how luxurious the dorms were, Lingren's face showed a hint of displeasure, and she cursed in her heart.
Who are they guarding against here?
They've completely forgotten the traditional virtues of hardening muscles and starving the body. Four‑person dorms are insanely comfy, okay.
"Next, we're going to the back..."
Zhang Lin finished introducing the dorms with a big smile and was about to lead everyone to the activity area specially prepared for Spirit Beasts behind the living area.
It was also the most outrageous and spectacular "attraction" in the entire institute.
But the ringtone in her pocket went off, cutting her off mid‑sentence.
"Hm? You found Master Fuli's parents?"
As soon as Zhang Lin picked up, the excited voice of the logistics support squad leader came through.
One night, they mobilized over four thousand people to do door‑to‑door visits, plus interviews and CCTV checks.
The surveillance cameras were basically hopeless; it'd been over half a year, how could there still be footage.
But by pulling highway records around the ring road, then screening by month and candidate vehicles one by one, they managed to finish the investigation before noon the next day.
They found Master Fuli's parents—but not in the Imperial Capital. They were in the neighboring Wing Province, living very comfortably in an Ancient Temple on Zulu Mountain.
"What?"
"You found Little Fox's parents? Where are they?" Ah Qing's eyes lit up and she immediately asked, "How are they living now? Are they unwell at all..."
"Shh..."
Zhang Lin raised her hand and pressed down, signaling Ah Qing not to get too excited yet; she herself was still listening to the report.
Only...
The more Zhang Lin listened, the stranger her expression became. By the end, her cheeks even showed an expression like she could barely hold it in.
"...Master Fuli's parents are currently in an Ancient Temple on Zulu Mountain, being worshipped as Immortals under the titles of Third Grandmaster Fox and Third Great‑Grandma Fox."
After thinking a long while, Zhang Lin sorted out the logic in her head and put it into concise words for everyone:
"They're living very well now. They ride around in a Mercedes S680, and all their food is healthy dishes specially prepared by a private chef..."
"They've got their own doctor and nutritionist. Apparently they're now twice the size of Master Fuli—basically a pair of bright‑red foxes shaped like giant black‑stockinged loaves of bread."
By the end, Zhang Lin almost lost it.
As for why the Security Bureau hadn't found Master Fuli's parents before, the reason was actually very simple.
The Zulu high mountains where Master Fuli's parents lived lie on the border between the Imperial Capital and the neighboring province. And that mountain had been closed to the public since 2020 due to scenic area reconstruction and renovations, and remained closed till now.
Forget surveillance cameras; aside from the priests living in the Ancient Temple, no one ever went in or out.
The only reason the Security Bureau even narrowed it down to Zulu Mountain was because there was one car matching the profile that traveled year‑round between the Imperial Capital and Zulu Mountain, always passing through Mentougou.
Holding to the principle that they'd rather waste a trip than miss a clue, the logistics squad literally climbed up to the Ancient Temple and saw two huge fat foxes sunbathing there.
And every feature on those two fat foxes perfectly matched what Master Fuli had described, so they immediately reported back to Zhang Lin.
"Huh?"
Ah Qing's face filled with bewilderment, while Tang You's pupils shrank to cat‑slit size. She stared blankly, then turned to Master Fuli, pressed her palms together, and bowed:
"Third Little Grandmaster Fox, please don't hold it against me. I'm just a kid who didn't know how dark the world is..."
"I swear, from now on if I swear again to trade lifespan for a shot at getting SSRs, I will absolutely never use Third Little Grandmaster Fox's lifespan as the punchline."
"Huh?"
Ansheng was stunned, staring at Tang You in utter disbelief.