Super Zoo

About Wang Hao, Suming had long made arrangements.

Mr. Song mentioned that day too, after the New Year at most two months, they would officially begin the restructuring, and by then the zoo would establish a "company". Wang Hao wasn't very involved in the matters concerning animals, but he was quite familiar with the entertainment projects in the park.

For example, boat rides, fish riding, and several other chargeable attractions, selling souvenirs, selling feed, and such matters could all be managed in a unified manner.

Besides the existing projects, now that the zoo had gained some fame and the scenery was also nice, sometimes there would be film companies coming here to rent the venue for shooting, and Suming felt it was necessary to subdivide the industry a bit, to engage in refined and specialized management.

Since dealing with the government and various circles of people was sometimes necessary, Wang Hao was more than suitable. As for the original staff of the zoo, most of them were just ordinary people, not as adept as Wang Hao in this respect.

After being busy for several days, Suming even went to visit Dong's family. Suming had too much to buy when he went home for the New Year, so much so that the Wrangler couldn't fit it all, thus he borrowed the zoo's big Buick business van from Dong.

He actually forgot to give Nangong Yan a heads-up!

It wasn't until Nangong Yan personally made a grand appearance and scolded Suming that he remembered.

"It's not that I forgot you," Suming said, covering his wallet and speaking tenderly, "but because you are always in my heart, I've grown accustomed to your presence."

"Me too! So it's time for you to pay the bill," retorted Nangong Yan, swinging an Hermès bag.

If a woman's anger could be resolved through shopping, Suming followed behind and quipped, "Didn't you see what they said on the internet? Hermès is so out. Anyone still buying Hermès is just showing off."

"You're right!" Nangong Yan snapped her fingers, "Then let's go to Hermès."

Suming: "..."

Nangong Yan may have shouted loudly, but in the end, she didn't buy too many things. She just dragged Suming around all day, until Suming's legs almost became thinner.

...

Having taken care of the people, Suming also had to arrange for the animals' life during the New Year's holidays.

Tigers, bears, and such originally from the zoo weren't much of a concern; the feeders would arrange shifts during the New Year to look after those guys. The main concern was the batch he had brought in later.

"You three don't need to worry for now," Suming said, sitting on the edge of the pool, rolling up his trouser legs and dipping them in the temperature-regulated water, where a family of three Baiji dolphins was swimming.

The Baiji probably also thought of living in the wider wilderness, but the current conditions didn't allow it. Releasing such endangered animals directly into the wild was definitely not an option—too dangerous; but to set aside a large protected area for just three Baiji also wasn't feasible.

Even the reservoir wasn't safe; although large in area, besides the leased sector, its waters were frequently visited by people who came for outings, and it was connected with the Yangtze River, with floodgates opening yearly. For endangered animals like the Baiji, which had been discovered, they had to be under strict protection.

In fact, Suming thought they were mainly too lonely. If there were more Baiji to keep them company, it would be much better.

The two young Baiji stood upright on the water surface, waving at Suming with their fins and circling in place; the big Baiji was calm, and as Suming patted its head, he said, "It would be great if we could find a male. Being able to breed the next generation would make it much more likely to establish a protected area. Hey, if we can't find a Baiji, would a Baiji Dolphin do?"

Baiji Dolphins, although also very rare, at least had artificial breeding and protection bases. Finding a way to get a few to keep the Baiji company shouldn't be too difficult.

The big Baiji didn't seem to understand, but it genially shook its head regardless.

Suming hadn't spoken much when the axolotls and the Yangtze alligators in the back began causing a commotion again, and the aquarium echoed with the loud banging of fierce collisions.

The Yangtze alligator had been severely beaten by Su Meng one day and was not lightly injured; fortunately, it was not a critical hit, and Suming used his spiritual power to heal it, and it quickly returned to health. Since it was also a nationally protected animal, a national treasure of the first grade, and its status was no less than that of the big axolotl, the zoo had arranged it next door in the aquarium, separated by reinforced glass.

The Yangtze alligator was a rare animal too, and in the few days since it arrived at the zoo, many tourists had bought tickets to see it.

Though both reptiles looked somewhat similar, the Yangtze alligator looked fiercer, and being new, it drew all the attention of the visitors in the aquarium. The zoo even placed a large photo of the Yangtze alligator out front, to attract tourists.

The big axolotl suddenly felt neglected, not only having its territory taken over by this creature but also its limelight. That wouldn't do!n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

Full of resentment, it often screeched at the Yangtze alligator through the glass.

In comparison to other alligators, the Yangtze alligator was relatively mild-mannered, but that was relative to other alligators. Now provoked by such a fleshy giant, it could not bear it, violently slapping its tail against the reinforced glass as a show of dominance, causing the aquarium to resonate with loud bangs frequently.

The big axolotl seemed a bit smarter; seeing that the Yangtze alligator couldn't smash the glass, it was emboldened, and its daring grew even more.

Both were old and stubborn old men with quite bad tempers, becoming neighbors and taking turns annoying each other daily. When Suming arrived, he saw the big axolotl spraying water through the glass at the old alligator, a sign of contempt.

"Come on, you two are up there in years; is this really fun for you?" Suming pointed at the axolotl first, saying, "You're just relying on having a sheet of reinforced glass in between. If I put you together, do you think you could beat the old alligator?"

The paddlefish were about the same size as the Yangtze alligators, but in terms of both offensive and defensive capabilities, they were outclassed by the alligators by a long shot. In a real fight, a Yangtze alligator could finish the battle in one bite.

It was a twist of fate that paddlefish, though possessing a fighter's spirit, were not a warrior breed by nature. And while the Yangtze alligators were relatively more amiable at heart, preferring a low-key life, the heavens had endowed them with sharp teeth and a thick armor-like hide.

Raising animals was like raising children. Sometimes Suming had to play the role of a family elder, protecting them when necessary and meting out criticism and punishment when required. After admonishing the paddlefish, he turned his attention to the Yangtze alligator and said,

"And you, don't get smug! Just because the paddlefish can't beat you, doesn't mean you can beat me! As long as you don't bully it, I won't bully you. It's the New Year; the two of you should keep the peace for a few days. If I come back and find the glass broken... Paddlefish, you'd better be ready to be eaten by the alligator, and alligator, be ready to be eaten by me!"

There wasn't much he could do about the old guys who didn't see eye to eye. Their combined ages were even greater than that of his great-grandfather, so he could only pretend to be fierce as he lectured them.

As for Huiya, Suming brought him back to the Wolf Pen.

Huiya had grown almost as large as the Wolf King after a few months apart. The two generations of Wolf Kings did not exhibit much affection towards each other. After Huiya entered the cage, he and the Wolf King couple exchanged glances and then each lay down in their own nests to rest, behaving like strangers to one another.

But looking at it from another perspective, for Huiya, a nearly adult male wolf, being allowed to enter the cage and even lie down in the nest by the Wolf King couple was a rare gesture of affection. In the wild, even parent wolves would not allow their grown progeny to come near their territory, let alone enter their nests.

"It's the New Year. Spend some good time with your parents, and after the New Year, you can go play in the back mountain," Suming waved to Huiya from outside the cage.

Huiya disdainfully turned his head away from Suming, while the Wolf King bared his teeth at Suming in a gesture of gratitude that looked rather menacing, as if he was about to devour Suming.

Hundred Flowers Valley was too far away, so he didn't visit. Instead, he sent Er Gouzi to make the round trip and convey his greetings to the two Queen Bees.

When Er Gouzi returned, he brought back a gift from the Queen Bees: a large barrel of top-quality royal jelly.

It wasn't a small bucket; it was the kind used for oil, a large iron barrel. Just transporting this huge barrel of royal jelly took tens of thousands of bees and wasps, who had to take turns along the way, giving the tiny insects quite a strenuous workout.

These bees encountered the Monkey King and Xiao Kong, who were surveying the back mountain for suitable winemaking spots. The swarm of buzzing bees startled the monkey father and son duo, nearly causing a mishap.

After their visit to the zoo, the monkeys performed an animated dance and chittered away at Suming to express their immense shock. Suming laughed and gave them over a hundred pounds of bananas from the zoo's storage to 'calm their nerves,' and only then did the father and son cheerfully leave, holding their tails high like flagpoles.

The crocodile gars swam through the underwater passage to spend the New Year at Shuixie Lake, where the concentration of auspicious water was the highest, benefiting their growth as well as the future little crocodile gars. After half a year of hard work, they too deserved to enjoy some special treatment.

Datou and the snapping turtle were too large to squeeze through the underwater passage, so Suming carried Datou in his arms while sitting astride the wide, flat back of the snapping turtle as it crawled back into Shuixie Lake.

The scene was filled with rustic charm, resembling a fusion of a 'yearly abundance' chubby kid and a turtle sage. As they passed, many visitors crowded around to take photos. Unfortunately, because of the snapping turtle's spiky ridged back, Suming could only sit for a moment before he felt pain in his buttocks.

"Are you about to give birth?"

In Shuixie, Suming rubbed the head of a little white cat. Its belly was round, and it had become too lazy to move, spending the whole day lying in its nest.

By his reckoning, it was only about half a month until the little white cat would have her kittens.

The other cats circled around curiously, staring at the white cat's belly and gently touching it with their furry little paws. They seemed inexperienced, so expecting any help from them when the white cat gave birth seemed unrealistic.

Hei, who was sitting quietly on one side, awaited Suming's decision.

"Here's the thing, Xiaobai will come home with me. If she gives birth, I can look after her. Hei, you take charge of them. Just stay here at Shuixie Lake during the New Year, and don't bite the wires or play with the sockets," Suming instructed.

Hei meowed in understanding, swinging his tail to show he got the message, though he still seemed a bit concerned, sneaking occasional glances at Xiaobai's belly.

"As a fellow male, if you want to look, just do it openly. No one is going to hold you responsible," Suming laughed heartily.

Finally, on the 28th of the last month of the year, Suming went on a massive shopping spree. The eight-seater business van was nearly filled with various New Year's gifts in the back two rows. Suming also brought along a recent lump sum he had received and, accompanied by Su Meng, released Haidong Qing from the avian yard.

"You fly ahead," Suming said as he unbuckled the small iron chain from Haidong Qing's leg. With a slight lift of his arm, Haidong Qing pushed off and soared away, vanishing into the sky, where only a small black dot could be seen from the ground.

"Take me with you! Take me with you!"

"I want to go too! I want to go too!"

The parrot sisters had had enough and began clamoring at Suming from the neighboring cage.

"You two can't come with me, but don't worry, I've already prepared some nice treats for you," Suming said as he pulled out several large bags of various nuts from his backpack, including plenty of pistachios and walnuts, and placed them inside the parrot cage.

In an instant, the floor of the aviary was covered with nuts, and the two parrots fluttered down to dive headfirst into the feast—a veritable paradise of food.

Having taken care of everything and greeted Mrs. Tong, Suming, along with Su Meng, drove out of the zoo and set off toward his hometown.