《Super Zoo》


 Chapter 1: 1 Looking for a Job

    Every year around May and June, graduating university students face the most pressing issue, finding a job.


    Suming majored in biopharmaceuticals, which wasn''t an easy field for job hunting. However, he had worked hard during college, had excellent grades, and even received several schrships.


    Logically speaking,nding a job as a technician in a pharmaceuticalpany shouldn''t have been too difficult. Many of his ssmates with poorer grades and abilities had found jobs.


    But for some reason, despite sending out N number of resumes and interviewing with a few local pharmaceuticalpanies, he hadn''t been epted.


    When he asked for a reason, they just fobbed him off by saying he wasn''t suitable.


    "Is this some kind of bad luck jinx, or is it just an unlucky year?" Suming loosened his cor and gulped down a big ss of cold water, hoping to dispel the frustration in his heart.


    The heat at the end of June was unbearable, and the cicadas outside the dormitory cried from morning till night as if they had lost their father, driving people to irritation and distraction.


    The school had a rule that all graduates must leave the campus and move out of the dorms by early July.


    Seeing as the final deadline was only about ten days away and most of his ssmates had already secured jobs, how could Suming not be worried about still having nomitment?


    If he couldn''t find a job by then, there would only be two options: return to his hometown or rent a ce on his own.


    The former was out of the question for Suming. His hometown was a small town surrounded by mountains with a poption of less than thirty thousand. Going back meant an even slimmer chance of finding a suitable job.


    Moreover, his family wasn''t well-off; they had significant financial burdens. When Suming got admitted to Yangchuan University, it was big news for the small town. Everyone, not just his family, had high hopes for him. They scraped together money to support his studies, but upon graduation, if he were unable to find a job, not only would he not be able to give back to his family, but also returning home to rely on his parents was something he found utterly uneptable.


    After all, everyone cares about face, and sometimes one would rather struggle on their own than let their family know they were not doing well.


    If pushes to shove, he''d just have to rent a ce while continuing the job search.


    "The rent''s not cheap these days, a regr single room costs several hundred a month, and they usually require three months'' deposit upfront. If it reallyes down to it, can I lend you some money first?"


    The speaker was a big fat guy, Suming''s roommate, Wang Hao. Wang Hao wasn''t as good as Suming in many aspects, but his father had connections and had long arranged a cushy government job for him.


    Although he was ''an official''s second generation,'' Wang Hao didn''t have many bad qualities. He was loyal, sociable, and after sharing a room with Suming for four years, they had developed a very good rtionship, bing close buddies.


    Hearing Wang Hao''s offer, Suming mentally calcted before smiling and saying, "I don''t need it for now, I saved some money from work-studyst semester, it should be enough for a while."


    "I know how much you have; what is that enough for?" Wang Hao muttered.


    Sumingughed, "I''ll make do for now; if it really doesn''t work, I''lle to you."


    Wang Hao and Suming''s rtionship didn''t require false politeness, and Wang Hao knew Suming well enough to understand that once Suming had spoken, he usually wouldn''t change his mind. He nodded and said, "Up to you then. But if you really can''t make it, just give me a shout, and I''ll send you the money immediately. My old man keeps a tight leash on me, but I could stille up with a few thousand if needed."


    Wang Hao, already prone to sweating due to his size, was sweltering; the electricity in the dorm had been cut off, and the fan had stopped working long ago. By the time he finished speaking to Suming, Mr. Wang was drenched in sweat.


    He slung his packed luggage over his shoulder and said, "I''m heading home first, this dorm is like an oven."


    "Have a smooth journey!"


    "How about a hug?" Wang Haoughed and spread his arms wide toward Suming.


    "Cut it out, look at all the sweat on you; don''t get it all over me," Suming teased with augh, then gave Wang Hao a robust bear hug.


    "Take care!"


    "Take care! Buddy!"


    After Wang Hao left, Suming was the only one left in the dormitory, staring at three empty beds¡ªit suddenly felt so deste.


    It wasn''t just the dormitory, there were hardly any people left in the entire dormitory building. Graduates usually started job hunting from March or April. Over the months, those with connections, like Wang Hao, had alreadynded jobs, and most of the rest had secured internships; it was just a matter of the quality of the cement. There weren''t many left in limbo like Suming.


    The weather was too hot, and Suming was feeling restless again. He stripped to his tank top and underwear, perched on the wooden bed, took out his phone, and continued to submit resumes online through the school''s localwork.


    "Hey, you''re still here? Aren''t you afraid of suffering a heatstroke?"


    Suddenly, the door to the dorm was pushed open, and a girl barged in nonchntly.


    The girl sported a neat, short fringe, her features were delicate, and she was d in a pair of hot shorts that could be described as sizzling, revealing her two pale, slender legs without reservation. Paired with a tight-fitting crop top, her figure cut an S shape that made mouths water.


    This girl had a rarepound surname: Nangong, her full name being Nangong Yan, a junior at Yangchuan University and Suming''s underssman, considered among the most attractive in her department.


    Suming and Nangong Yan were quite familiar with each other, but they hadn''t developed into boyfriend and girlfriend. When it came to matters of love, Suming could be quite dense at times.


    "I''m dizzy, how did you get in here? This is the boys'' dorm!" Suming got a shock, only wearing a pair of briefs¡ªhow could he expect Nangong Yan to pop up suddenly? In a rush, he grabbed a pair of boxers and pulled them on haphazardly.


    "Pfft, what''s so special about a boys'' dormitory, it''s not like I haven''t been here before."


    Nangong Yan wrinkled her nose and cockily tilted her chin at Suming.


    However, seeing Suming nearly naked, Nangong Yan''s pretty face blushed slightly and she turned her body to the side, letting Suming get dressed while exining, "The dormitory is empty, the gatekeeper is sleeping, so I sneaked in."


    After Suming pulled on his boxers and threw on a t-shirt, he asked somewhat nkly, "Why did youe here?"


    "What do you think?" Nangong Yan was frustrated seeing Suming''s clueless expression and said snappily, "Miss here is sleepwalking and just happened to sleepwalk into your dorm, okay?!"


    Suming, who was always a bit crude in understanding romance, knew he had said something wrong after speaking. Seeing Nangong Yan''s expression, he scratched his head embarrassedly, "Oh, oh, oh, you came to find me, right."


    "Duh!" Nangong Yan red at Suming cutely, "It''s infuriating how there can be such dense people like you in the world!"


    "Hehe..." Suming grinned and scratched his head.


    It wasn''t that he was really that dense; sometimes when facing Nangong Yan, who excelled him by far in both looks and family background, let alone other aspects, Suming felt something indescribable inside.


    "Laughing? Humph, I specifically came to ask how your job search is going, and you''re asking me what I''m doing here."


    "Still no luck," Suming shook his head.


    Nangong Yan''s eyebrows lifted slightly, puzzled, "That''s strange, you have such good grades, how can you not find anything?"


    "Just taking it slow," Suming felt helpless about it too.


    "With the dormitory about to kick you out, how can you take it slow? Are you nning to live on the streets when the timees?"


    Nangong Yan rolled her eyes yfully, then thought for a moment and asked hesitantly, "Should I ask my dad to see if he can help?"


    "No need, there''s still half a month left. If it really doesn''t work out, I''ll ask Uncle for help." Suming smiled. If he was willing to ask for help, he might as well go straight to Wang Hao''s grandfather.


    There''s always a debt of gratitude to repay when you owe someone a favor, and Suming didn''t want to owe anyone unless absolutely necessary.


    "Hey, are you really that unwilling to let me help you? Pfft, pure male chauvinism! Stubborn pride over practical needs!" Nangong Yan huffed and red at Suming.


    "Alright, princess, if there''s nothing else, I''m going to continue applying for jobs online. Take care, no need to escort you out." Suming grinned at Nangong Yan, then waved his hand, making a gesture as if to see her off.


    "Hmph! You... Never mind, I''m leaving!" Nangong Yan huffed and left the dorm.


    As she walked away, she fumed, thinking to herself, after knowing each other for so long, I''ve hinted more than once, it''s practically an invitation for you to chase me. And yet you remain as unmoved as a rock, what does it take!


    "Looks like it''s time to change tactics!" Nangong Yan''s eyes swirled about as she muttered to herself, "Should I find a guy to pretend to be my boyfriend, to provoke him?"


    "Yes! Just like that. As long as he is a man, he''s sure to get mad. Once we start fighting, won''t he meekly reveal his true feelings for me? Hehehe, hahaha..."


    After Nangong Yan left, Suming also revealed a wry smile.


    He wasn''t oblivious to Nangong Yan''s intentions.


    But in his view, if you truly liked someone, you should bring them happiness, not make them suffer with you, not to mention taking advantage of them. That''s why for so long Suming seemed to y dumb.


    "I need to find a job quickly!" Suming''s top priority now was job hunting; only with financial stability could he consider other things.


    This time, however, he broadened his horizons a bit, not necessarily looking for a pharmaceuticalpany that exactly matched his major. Any organization even slightly rted to his field was worth trying.


    With this in mind, there were more options for him, and Suming applied to several positions in session.

 Chapter 2: 2 Get Lost Flies and Mosquitoes

    People say that too many body lice and they''ll stop breeding, but Suming felt like he was going to scratch himself to death.


    It was summer now, and there were deadly amounts of mosquitoes in the dorm room at night, buzzing around his ears, utterly immune to mosquito coils.


    Unable to bear the bites any longer, Suming climbed groggily out of bed, intending to light a couple more coils.


    However, due to the darkness caused by a power outage, he didn''t notice the stool underfoot, stumbled over it with a loud tter, and fell forward.


    Luckily, he reacted quickly and managed to grab the washstand shelf, but due to inertia, the piece of jade-green at his chest swung in mid-air and smacked against the iron shelf, shattering.


    Suming was stunned, and instantly snapped back to rity.


    This piece of jade wasn''t particrly valuable, but it held great significance for Suming. His father, who researched animals, had been killed years earlier in a fight with poachers to protect endangered species. This was the only heirloom his father had left behind, and it was said to have been in the Su Family for several generations.


    Now, his father''s only relic had shattered just like that!


    Before Suming could even grieve, a bright light suddenly burst forth from the broken jade.


    "What the hell!" Suming eximed, startled, and instinctively stepped back. But no one was faster than light, and in an instant, the bright light surged into Suming''s forehead.


    In the blink of an eye, darkness prevailed again, and the two pieces of broken jadey quietly on the ground, as if nothing had happened.


    "Could I be seeing things?"


    Suming touched his head, his face, and gave himself a full-body pat-down, even checking his privates a few times. After about fifteen minutes, he confirmed he was unharmed.


    "How strange! Could I really have been seeing things?"


    Suming''s heart was in turmoil, but there had definitely been a sh of light just now.


    Just then, a mosquito buzzed past his ear, and Suming pped at it, smack after smack. Despite mosquitoes not being very fast flyers, they weren''t so easily hit either ¨C instead of the mosquito, he ended up reddening his own neck and face.


    Suming had been feeling frustrated these past few days, and with the added sleep deprivation and the breaking of his father''s relic, he was already at the end of his patience. Irritated by the mosquito''s buzzing, he suddenly yelled in the direction of the buzz, "Scram!"


    Buzz, buzz, buzz... buzz, buzz... buzz...


    The mosquito, as if it understood him, actually started to fly away.


    "Huh? What''s going on?"


    As a biology student, Suming knew about mosquito behavior ¨C such primitive creatures didn''t understand ''fear'' and wouldn''t be scared off by humans; they''d keep circling as long as they were hungry.


    If it were just that one mosquito flying away, it could have been a coincidence.


    Compulsively, Suming pretended the mosquitoes were suitable conversationalists and yelled at the ''mosquitoes'' buzzing around the room, "All of you, get out!"


    Through the moonlight filtering in through the window, he saw that the mosquitoes in the dorm room seemed to receive some kind of order, flying out the window in small groups.


    asionally, a few would fly past him, buzzing around as if trying to bite Suming.


    But as soon as Suming growled at them angrily, those mosquitoes staggered off away.


    "Holy crap, can Imunicate with mosquitoes?!" Suming was astounded.


    ...


    Suming didn''t sleep at all that whole night!


    At first, he was ''fighting'' the mosquitoes, but soon there were none left in the room; they had all flown away.


    After a while, he began to miss them and whispered out the window, calling them back ¨C probably too softly or too far away, it had no effect.


    Not giving up, Suming sneaked out of the dorm building and into the woods to find mosquitoes.


    On the way, he encountered several stray cats and dogs and had a sudden inspiration to trymunicating with them...


    ...


    Suming was pleasantly surprised to confirm that he indeed seemed to have a special ability.


    It wasn''t just mosquitoes ¨C he couldmunicate with all kinds of animals!


    Of course, animals were not intelligent enough to chat with him like humans, nor did they havenguage.


    However, when he focused, he could make animals understand his intentions, and likewise, he could sense the animals'' feelings and even control them to some extent.


    The lower the intelligence of the animal, the easier they were to control.


    For instance, he had ''scared away'' a few mosquitoes simply by shouting loudly the day before.


    When wandering around the campus at night, he encountered several stray cats that hissed at him. Suming could feel evident hostility, but once he emitted his goodwill, the strays calmed down.


    Late, he tried his ability on other animals, like birds and house cats, and it worked just the same!


    In conclusion, Suming had already confirmed a few things.


    First, he couldmunicate simply with animals;


    Second, after emitting goodwill, most animals were rtively friendly;


    Third, he could control some animals, but the higher the level of the animal, the more difficult it was to control. Generally, he still had to rely on munication" to resolve issues.


    Currently, the ones he could fully control were only little creatures like mosquitoes and flies. There was also a limit to their number¡ªfor instance, with mosquitoes, he could control about a dozen at a time, and with flies, only four or five, and it had to be within a certain distance.


    And because animals themselves were not highly intelligent, he couldn''t make them perform overlyplex actions.


    "It must have been that beam of light that gave me this power!" Suming was now certain of it.


    Although this ability hadn''t brought him any concrete benefits just yet, Suming was nheless excited; it was like having a superpower!


    Despite not having slept all night, he felt surprisingly refreshed and even came up with a name for his ability: ''Animal Friend''.


    Since he couldmunicate with animals and sense their emotions, Suming found he had be morepassionate than before, turning into someone who loved animals.


    People always feel spirited when they''re happy, and with this turn of events, the anxiety Suming felt about work had somewhat dissipated. He went to the cafeteria for lunch at noon and, after eating, felt leisurely enough to pack a few boxed lunches to feed some stray cats by the roadside.


    A significantly more robust ck cat swayed its head and pushed aside several kittens, vying to monopolize the boxed lunch.


    "Don''t snatch, get in line, let the little cats and mother cats eat first!" Suming gave the big ck cat a push.


    "Meow!" The big ck cat arched its back and raised its tail high, eyes fixed on Suming.


    "What are you looking at? Ever heard of respecting the elderly and being courteous todies?" Suming red and raised his hand, pretending he was going to strike.


    Hei was no fool; it probably knew that Suming was the boss here and that they would all go hungry if they offended him. After locking eyes with Suming for a second or two, Hei''s tail drooped listlessly, and it moved aside, looking defeated.


    Seven or eight stray cats, under Suming''smand, neatly lined up in three rows, with the little cats and mother cats in the front, and the boastful male cats at the back, each taking their turn to eat.


    Groups of students passing by the cafeteria curiously pointed and talked as they witnessed this scene. Several girls, their faces brimming with tenderness, even boldly approached to pet the kittens.


    "Wow, such cute kittens!"


    "Don''t disturb the animals while they''re eating," Suming said with a smile.


    "They''re so well-behaved today; they usually run away immediately when they see us. Sometimes they even hiss at us! Why do they listen to you so well?" a girl asked curiously.


    Why, because I''m a superhero with the power of ''Animal Friend''!


    Of course, he couldn''t say that. Smiling faintly, Suming replied, "Actually, these stray cats are very timid. They act fierce because they''re afraid that humans will hurt them. The key is to make them feel your goodwill."


    Suming was right; even without ''Animal Friend'', animals like cats and dogs could get along very well with humans if they felt close enough to a person.


    "Can I hold it?" a girl asked nervously, pointing at a little cat that had just finished eating.


    "Of course, you can. Just be gentle, especially avoid rubbing its belly since it has just eaten."


    As Suming spoke, he sent a friendly signal to the kitten, letting it know that the girl meant no harm.


    After the girl picked up the kitten, it obedientlyy in her arms, and, acting spoiled, it burrowed yfully into the plentiful curves of her chest, making the girlugh uncontrobly.


    "You lecherous little tomcat!" Suming was consumed with jealousy.


    In the distance, Nangong Yan also emerged from the cafeteria, followed by a rather handsome male student from the Chinese department.


    "Nangong, it''s my treat today. Just say what you feel like eating, don''t be shy¡­" The male student followed eagerly behind her, his expression full of joy and his tone somewhat sycophantic. He couldn''t believe that the esteemed beauty of their department had actually asked him out for a meal; his heart was about to burst with happiness.


    Nangong Yan hummed nomittally and looked up, suddenly catching sight of Suming and a group of girls feeding the cats.


    Her eyes widened with astonishment.


    "You''ve got some nerve, Suming. And here I was wondering why you couldn''t find a job¡ªyou''ve been spending all your effort on picking up girls! You''ve got thisdy all worked up!"


    "Nangong, there''s a new Japanese restaurant on the pedestrian street. It''s very authentic. Or, we could try the French foie gras next door¡­" The male student behind her hadn''t noticed the change in Nangong Yan''s expression and kept on prattling.


    "Buzz off!" Nangong Yan snapped back irritably, ring fiercely at the male student and spoke through clenched teeth, "Traitor!"


    With that, she stormed off without looking back, leaving the guy standing there,pletely bewildered.


    "How does eating foie gras make me a traitor? Is it because of the Japanese food?" The poor fellow was utterly confused and had no idea what he did wrong.


    Suming, however, was unaware of the incident that had unfolded with Nangong Yan; he was checking text messages on his phone.


    Good fortunees in waves and cannot be stopped. He opened his messages to find that he had received two interview invitations at the same time.


    One was from a pharmaceuticalpany of considerable scale, perfectly aligned with Suming''s field of expertise.


    The other was from a local zoo. After broadening his horizons the previous day, Suming had sent out resumes to even vaguely rted positions, including the zoo.


    He had only applied out of desperation, a shot in the dark, never expecting the zoo to actually respond.

 Chapter 3: 3 Trouble Brewing!

    After receiving two text messages, Suming hesitated for a moment.


    Had it been before, he wouldn''t even need to think about it; he definitely would have chosen the medicalpany.


    On one hand, it matched his major, and even starting as the lowest level technician, as long as nothing unexpected happened, he could gradually climb thedder over time.


    On the other hand, working in medical technology offered much better conditions than a zoo, and being a "technical worker" carried more prestige.


    Although the zoo was a public institution, the nation had been transforming in recent years, with public institutions gradually aligning themselves with enterprises, and new employees even had to pay their own insurance, so public institutions were no longer as attractive as they used to be.


    As a charitable organization, the zoo might be in somewhat better shape, but official staffing quotas were definitely tight.


    In fact, the zoo''s recruitment information had clearly stated that they were hiring contract workers, without formal employment quotas.


    One option offered good treatment, a promising future, perfectly matched his major, and had a respectable title of "scientific and technological worker"; the other was a temporary job doing odd jobs at a zoo, not at all on the same level. As long as his brain wasn''t damaged, the choice would be easy to make.


    But now Suming felt an instinctual aversion to the medicalpany, especially to working in its technology department.


    For research on new drugs, testing drug effects, and other reasons, medicalpanies generally used small animals for experiments, and most were live experiments.


    Suming had conducted experiments using small animals like mice and rabbits back in the universityb. He initially had some psychological barriers, but he got used to it over time.


    There was no helping it; they couldn''t use living people for experiments, after all.


    But having acquired the "Animal Friend" ability, allowing him tomunicate with animals, Suming instinctively felt a sense of closeness to them.


    Animals are animals, and certainly not as important as humans. But if Suming had to personally dissect a group of creatures that could municate" with him, he just couldn''t bring himself to do it.


    After hesitating, he finally decided to apply for the job at the zoo, putting the medicalpany on hold for the moment, to revisit it if necessary.


    ...


    "Yangchuan City Zoo, located on the outskirts of Yangchuan City, is fifteen kilometers from the city center. Backed by mountains and facing the water, it nestles at the edge of a Qinling Mountains branch and overlooks the Huating Reservoir, with a beautiful and pleasant geographical environment...


    The zoo was initially established in ''76, and after more than forty years of continuous development, it covers 120 hectares. Within the park, there''s an artificialke, a garden area, a botanical garden, and a free-range animal area, with undting terrain, lush vegetation, and fresh air. Currently, the zoo exhibits over 100 species and more than 3,000 animals, including...


    ..."


    On the bus to the zoo for the interview, Suming looked through the official website of Yangchuan Wildlife Park on his phone, ncing over the zoo''s introduction.


    It was possible that during the application process he would be asked questions rted to the zoo, so cramming somest-minute information was better than going inpletely unprepared.


    Suming, who had studied in Yangchuan City for several years, had visited the wildlife park a few times and knew a little about it.


    The wildlife park had been in Yangchuan for decades. Initially a modest little zoo, it gradually expanded and became an essential childhood memory for the local people of Yangchuan.


    The zoo''s location was indeed excellent, just like the official website described: backed by mountains, facing water, and with fresh air. In today''s cities where half the year is smoggy, the zoo was absolutely a great leisure destination. Not only were there animals, but also woonds, artificial mountains, andkes in the park. One could climb mountains and tourkes nearby, and transportation was convenient¡ªa half-hour bus ride from the city center, almost a part of the city itself.


    However, on Suming''s previous visits, the operational condition of the wildlife park seemed fairly average, not as thriving as described on the official site. It might have been due to management and state funding issues, as there was a lot of empty space in the park, and many animals appeared listless. On hisst visit, the tigers were so emaciated that it was heart-wrenching to see their ribs protruding.


    This also fit the characteristics of a non-profit public institution: mediocre performance, neither rising nor falling,fortably stable, getting by one day at a time.


    Suming soon arrived at the zoo and, after exining his purpose to the security guard, was directed to a three-story building in the northeast part of the zoo.


    The ground floor of the building housed a small store selling drinks and grilled sausages for visitors to rest their feet. However, the items were outrageously expensive; a bottle of mineral water that usually cost one yuan and fifty cents was priced at three yuan here.


    Even so, the business was surprisingly good. The small store, only a few square meters in size, had attracted a crowd of over twenty people.


    A middle-aged woman in her forties came out of the building holding a megaphone:


    "Attention, those here for the job interview, please hand in your resumes to me and then proceed to Conference Room 103 for the first round of written tests. After the test, Mr. Song will personally conduct the interviews, and candidates will be selected based on thebined results of the tests and interviews."


    Suming was taken aback. So these people weren''t tourists but here to apply for jobs?!


    Suming instantly felt immense pressure, a temporary position had actually attracted over twentypetitors, and with an unrted major and no work experience, the fact that a written exam about the zoo was required only added to his cluelessness.


    "Since I''m here, I might as well ept it." That was all he could think at the moment. Suming handed in his resume and joined arge group ofpetitors in conference room 103.


    The conference room was nicely decorated, but Suming had no interest in looking at the surroundings; he focused on his phone, quickly Googled ''zoo written exam questions''.


    "Guangzhou Zoo keeper interview questions"


    "Are there any test questions for Suzhou Zoo recruitment exams? Is the test difficult?"


    ...


    A long list of information came up, and just as Suming was about to click on one, the middle-aged woman from before walked in, carrying a stack of test papers in her arms.


    "Comrades, we will now start distributing the test papers, please turn off your phones. During the written exam, no whispering, passing notes, or any form of cheating is allowed. Anyone caught will be disqualified immediately."


    Suming could only turn off his phone and look around.


    The conference room had a faint scent of naphthalene balls; with those around, snakes, bugs, rats, and other small creatures would all keep their distance¡ªeven thest glimmer of hope for cheating disappeared.


    After receiving the test paper, Suming quickly nced over it and nearly sprayed out a mouthful of blood in shock!


    "The average lifespan of a giant panda, A 20 years B 25 years C 30 years D 40 years."


    "Among the following animals, which are ssified as national second-ss protected species (multiple choice) A White stork B Japanese seabass C Golden snub-nosed monkey D Clouded leopard E Wild yak."


    "Please describe, from the aspects of food preparation and environment, the caretaking points of attention during the rut of the sika deer."


    ...


    This has got to be too specialized! Isn''t Japanese seabass a dish? I don''t even have a girlfriend, what do I care about sika deer in heat for? What''s there to pay attention to, just do it...


    Almost simultaneously, the conference room filled with a chorus of gasps as it seemed everyone was stumped.


    Fortunately, Suming had plenty of experience with exams. For questions he didn''t know, he had his own ways of coping; for multiple choice questions, he''d y eeny, meeny, miny, moe, and fill in the essays whether he knew the answer or not...


    By blindly guessing and babbling nonsense, he finally managed to finish writing the entire paper.


    Then came the interview.


    Mr. Song, the zoo director, was in his fifties, but already had a head full of white hair, a severe and solemn expression, yet he spoke in a rather friendly tone.


    Beforeing, Suming had read about Mr. Song online; he had graduated from a renowned institution and was an authoritative figure in the field of animal research and conservation in China.


    Mr. Song carefully reviewed Suming''s resume and the written test, then talked with Suming for about ten minutes, askingmon recruitment questions such as why he wanted to work at the zoo.


    "Su, this position mainly involves the feeding and management of animals, and just havingpassion might not be enough. Your major and experience still fall short of our requirements. As the zoo director, I must be responsible for the animals here, and I hope you can understand."


    "I understand, I understand, thank you for your time."


    Suming stood up with a bitter smile, the message was clear, he wasn''t hired.


    "However, you''re still wee to visit the zoo anytime. Nowadays, fewer young people like animals."


    Mr. Song also stood up and nodded at Suming, "Please call the next candidate for me."


    As Suming turned and opened the office door, before he could step out, the middle-aged woman from before rushed in, flustered, and bumped right into Suming.


    The middle-aged woman didn''t have time to apologize to Suming, her expression was extremely anxious, and her voice changed with emphasis, "There''s big trouble, Mr. Song! A child has fallen into Monkey Mountain!"

 Chapter 4: 4 The Great Macaque Rampage

    "What''s going on!"


    Mr. Song hastily stood up with his thick eyebrows tightly knitted, and asked in a deep voice, "There are railings around Monkey Mountain, how could a child fall in?"


    A middle-aged woman with a sorrowful face said, "There''s a section of the railing that somehow, although it looked intact, copsed when the child leaned on it."


    "To the scene!"


    Mr. Song strode briskly out of the office, walking and asking, "Has a rescue been arranged yet?"


    The middle-aged woman followed behind him, sweating profusely as she said, "Three or fourrades have gone down, but those monkeys, for some reason, are acting like they''re insane. As soon as anyone gets close, they rush over and attack fiercely. Tworades were almost badly scratched..."


    "How is the child?"


    "The child looks to be about five or six years old, got caught in a tree when they fell, but then was taken away by the Monkey King, though they seem to be unharmed..."


    Mr. Song immediately took out his phone and dialed a number, "Hello, Mr. Dong, you''re at the scene, right? Get ready to use tranquilizer guns, keep the rtives calm, and ensure the child''s safety at all costs. I''m on my way!... What, not enough tranquilizer guns?..."


    Mr. Song hesitated for a moment and then said through gritted teeth, "Call the police, request their assistance, and if necessary, the Monkey King may be shot!"


    "But Director, that''s a national second-ss protected animal, and you almost lost your life saving that old Monkey King from the back mountain years ago!" the middle-aged woman said.


    "Human life is more important than anything else!"


    Mr. Song''s face also looked somber, but he did not hesitate to wave his hand to signal to the middle-aged woman to stop talking.


    Rushing down the stairs, there was a tour vehicle parked below. As Mr. Song was about to board the vehicle, he noticed that Suming had also followed.


    "What are you doing here?" Mr. Song asked with a frown.


    "My father, when he was alive, also worked on animal conservation research and had an understanding of some special animal behaviors. I might be able to help," Suming said.


    Indeed, his father had worked in animal research. Field workers like them umted a lot of experience with animals over the years, which couldn''t be learned from textbooks and theoretical knowledge.


    Suming had a sudden inspiration; with this reason, he could cover up many questions brought about by ''Animal Friends''.


    "Fine,e along, but don''t cause any trouble," Mr. Song said, giving him a long look without saying much else and gestured for him to get on the vehicle.


    "Beep beep beep beep beep... let theirrades through, let theirrades through..."


    The tour vehicle sped up, racing along the zoo''s forest path, and in a few minutes, they arrived at the perimeter of Monkey Mountain.


    By this time, Monkey Mountain was already surrounded by people. From a distance, one could see a section of the high railing that had copsed, with many people pointing toward the interior of Monkey Mountain and some taking photos with their phones.


    "Make way, make way, the Director is here!" the middle-aged woman cleared the path, as Mr. Song and his entourage quickly passed through the crowd to the edge of Monkey Mountain.


    A fashionable young woman had already cried herself into a tearful mess, disheveled and nearly copsing on the ground, wailing to the people around her, "Please, save my daughter... I beg you all..."


    A middle-aged man was embracing the young woman, his face as somber as water.


    "We are the child''s parents. What''s going on with your zoo? Give me a set of protective gear, and I''ll go save my daughter myself!" the man said to Mr. Song with an ashen face.


    "Rest assured, ourrades have already gone down, and we will do our utmost!"


    As Mr. Song spoke, his gaze swept across the interior of Monkey Mountain.


    After getting a clear view of the situation below Monkey Mountain, Mr. Song''s thick eyebrows trembled slightly, and his expression became more serious as he muttered to himself, "What''s happening, something''s not right!"


    Suming looked through the fence and saw that the main body of Monkey Mountain was a huge artificial hill, with a diameter of about seventy to eighty meters, set about ten or so meters below the horizon. Monkey Mountain''s rocks were rugged and uneven, with the highest point reaching almost level with the horizon.


    On one side of Monkey Mountain, there was a two to three-acre man-madeke, surrounded by tall fences.


    When visitors watched the monkeys, they would stand behind these fences. With the protection of the fencing and the sunken height of Monkey Mountain, the monkeys could not possibly attack people.


    At this moment, thirty to forty macaques had taken over the ''strategic points'' of Monkey Mountain, watching their surroundings with menacing eyes, clutching ''weapons'' like stones in their hands, baring their teeth and grimacing at the surrounding humans, making squeaking noises.


    Atop Monkey Mountain, in a stone cave big enough to amodate several adults, there sat an old white-furred monkey that was clearlyrger than the others.


    While there was chaos everywhere outside, the old white-furred monkey appearedpletely unconcerned and cid, surprisingly holding a trembling little girl in its arms.


    It was clear that under the leadership of the Monkey King, the entire troop had turned into a gang of "organized" "thugs," and the old Monkey King had taken the little girl as its own "offspring."


    However, a little girl is just a little girl, certainly not any monkey offspring. The old Monkey King mighte to realize this at any moment, and a random grab or scratch could disfigure the little girl, perhaps even threaten her life.


    Monkeys, despite their small sizepared to killers like tigers and bears that can easily dispose of a human, can be no joke when they go berserk and attack. A fewrge monkeys can even dare to fight with wolves.


    As for primates closely rted to monkeys, baboons and apes, their level of danger is no less than that of tigers and leopards!


    At the foot of Monkey Mountain, three zoo workers, dressed in thick cotton-padded jackets with their heads and faces tightly wrapped in cloth, one holding an electric shock stick and the other a tranquilizer gun, slowly approached Monkey Mountain.


    Seeing people drawing near, the monkeys perched on the hill began to shriek even more fiercely and, as if by some agreement, started to hurl stones down.


    Stones flew like rain, forcing the staff to dodge haphazardly.


    One unlucky fellow, not looking where he was going, stepped into thin air and¡ªthud!¡ªfell into a small pond.


    Luckily the pond wasn''t deep, just a ce for the monkeys to y in the water and cool off, and the man quickly scrambled to his feet, the watering only up to his waist.


    The other two, braving a rain of stones, finally made it to the base of Monkey Mountain.


    But before they could ascend, seven or eightrge monkeys leaped out from the caves around and pounced on the two men, scratching and tearing at them.


    Despite being protected by thick coats, their swift monkey movements were too much for an ordinary person to handle. With several monkeys attacking one person, biting and scratching, the workers were quickly ''decorated'' with monkeys in a bizarre fashion.


    In no time, the men were driven back by the monkeys, with one losing his footing and tumbling down from the artificial hill.


    Meanwhile, the Monkey King on the mountain top, seeming to be agitated by the scene, stood upright and lifted the little girl he was cradling above his head, as if ready to throw her down at any moment.


    The height of Monkey Mountain was at least ten meters, all solid rock. Even without the added force of the Monkey King, a fall would be catastrophic.


    "Wah... Mommy..." The little girl, held high in midair, burst into loud crying, her tender voice echoing through the air.


    Suming was taken aback and quickly tried tomunicate with the Monkey King using his spiritual power.


    But with at least thirty to forty meters between them, Suming could only vaguely connect with the Monkey King and was unable tomunicate effectively; it was clear that this Monkey King was more formidable than the other monkeys, and Suming waspletely unable to control its behavior.


    On the mountain peak, the old Monkey King, holding the little girl, lifted his head and nced in Suming''s direction.


    "Nan Nan, don''t be afraid, Mommy ising to save you..."


    Seeing this, the little girl''s mother became frantic, scrambling to her feet, intent on jumping into the midst of Monkey Mountain.


    A middle-ageddy from the zoo, along with a few female colleagues, was quick to restrain her.


    "You mustn''t go! I''ll save my daughter!" The girl''s father, with a darkened face, pushed past the zoo workers and strode toward the damaged railing to intervene.


    "No family members are to go! I''ll go myself!"


    Mr. Song, the zoo director, immediately blocked the girl''s parents, donned a cotton jacket for himself, and waved his hand, "Men under fifty, step forward; follow me down!"


    Seven or eight male staff members stood out, and it seemed Mr. Song was prepared to push through by sheer numbers. No matter how fierce the monkeys were, they couldn''t possibly stand against arge group of organized humans.


    "Wait a moment!" Suming suddenly stood up, his expression serious, "We cannot send more people down now!"


    "Who are you? Stop causing trouble!"


    "What do you mean?"


    Mr. Song and several zoo staff members almost simultaneously shouted at Suming, with the girl''s father frowning deeply and shoving Suming, "Move aside!"


    Suming stepped back to avoid the girl''s father, not dealing with the enraged parent, but seriously telling Mr. Song, "Right now, the Monkey King clearly sees the girl as its own offspring and won''t harm her. But if we send more people, and we provoke the Monkey King, then it''s hard to say what will happen!"


    Without waiting for Mr. Song or the others to speak, Suming continued, "Even with real animal offspring, there are instances where, in a crisis, parents will kill their own young rather than let them fall into enemy hands. Mr. Song, please calm down. You are an expert; I''m not wrong, am I!"


    Suming''s words seemed quite rational. Though he couldn''t answer those technical written questions, he did graduate with a degree in biology, and because of his father''s family knowledge, he had a basic understanding of animal behavior.


    Immediately, the surroundings fell silent, and dozens of eyes turned to Suming, then to Mr. Song.


    Mr. Song pondered for a brief moment, "Then what do you suggest?"

 Chapter 5: 5 The Little Monk Goes Up the Mountain

    Suming nced at Mr. Song and then over at the little girl''s father, saying, "If the family agrees, I can try to go into Monkey Mountain and see if I can save the little girl."


    As soon as he had spoken, a wave of gazes turned toward him, and the onlookers unanimously stared at Suming. Several zoo staff members clearly showed disbelief, and one middle-aged woman even said, "Young man, don''t be reckless. If our professionals can''t do it, what makes you think you can?"


    The little girl''s mother, however, grasped at Suming like a lifeline, nearly kneeling before him, crying incoherently, "Thank you, thank you..."


    Mr. Song waved his hand to cut off the middle-aged woman and others, his expression stern as he looked at Suming: "Macacas can be extremely dangerous when enraged. A few of them can even fend off wild wolves..."


    Just then, the crowd of onlookers suddenly let out exmations of shock.


    Apanied by the cries of the little girl, the Monkey King seemed to regain consciousness and realized that what was in his arms was not a ''little monkey'' but a human. He pushed the little girl onto the ground and started howling at her, baring his teeth and swinging his arms violently.


    "There''s no time!"


    Without waiting for Mr. Song to finish, Suming flipped over the fence through an opening and quickly climbed down thedder into the enclosure.


    Seeing someone approaching, the monkey troop seemed provoked, and a chorus of screeches erupted from Monkey Mountain. A few monkeys close by evenunched themselves straight at Suming.


    Far from dodging them, Suming instead rushed toward Monkey Mountain, taking long strides in the direction of the monkeys.


    At the same time, he utilized his ability as a friend of animals, releasing spiritual power toward the monkey troop.


    An atmosphere of restlessness permeated the monkey troop, so Suming quickly conveyed that he meant no harm, trying his best to soothe them.


    Several monkeys had already leaped from the mountain. The closest one let out a strange cry, catching a tree branch and swung toward Suming, its long arm reaching for his face.


    "Be careful!" burst a cry from the crowd of onlookers, as Mr. Song and the little girl''s father shouted simultaneously.


    At that moment, something astonishing happened: the monkey suddenly retracted its hand in mid-air, staring at Suming with wide, round eyes, curiously, and then let out a ''squeak... squeak... squeak...'' sound.


    As primates, macaques possess intelligence that surpasses recognized ''smart'' animals like pigs and dogs, and can sometimes use simple tools, undoubtedly standing out in the animal world.


    The monkeys in the zoo, often in close contact with humans, had seen more people than all the people present had seen monkeys; hence, they were not unfamiliar with the species ''humans.''


    However, in the moment it was about to seize Suming, the monkey suddenly felt a sensation from Suming that it would normally only feel amongst its own kind. Instinctively, it sensed that this young human before it would not harm it, and might even be friendly.


    More than that, the spiritual power emanating from Suming even made it feel a faint trace of fear. It was the natural intimidation that higher animals hold over those lower in the hierarchy.


    "Squeak squeak squeak¡­" The monkey, in its ownnguage, wanted to ask Suming what he was.


    Suming was about to exin to the monkey brother using spiritual power, but before he could, several other monkeys following closely crashed into the air, colliding with the lead monkey.


    The monkeys tumbled over one another, rolling down Monkey Mountain in a heap, their bodies thudding to the ground. The leader got the worst of it, being knocked straight into the pool.


    ```


    This little "ident" was nothing to the monkeys, who tumbled and frolicked in the mountains and forests all year round; several monkeys quickly got up, and the leading one climbed out of the pool, shaking off its damp fur.


    However, this time, the monkeys did not attack Suming but maintained a certain distance from him, and did not even show any intention of attacking; instead, they followed curiously behind him.


    Suming seemed like a monkey charmer, walking towards the top of Monkey Mountain with a few monkeys trailing behind him.


    As he passed by, the surrounding monkeys at first chattered and seemed ready to attack, but as he got closer, they calmed down, stopped showing their fierce faces, and began scratching their ears and cheeks, curiously sizing up Suming.


    Some of the bolder monkeys even joined the ''procession'' following Suming.


    The number of ''tails'' behind Suming grew, and the monkeys followed him, hopping about on the artificial rocks; some even pointed at Suming, making chattering noises to each other as if discussing something.


    The people around Monkey Mountain were astonished by this bizarre scene, their mouths agape,pletely dumbfounded.


    The little girl''s mother was so excited that she covered her mouth; through the safety barrier, she watched Suming with hope, while the girl''s father was incredibly nervous with every step Suming took, gripping the barrier tightly with sweaty hands.


    Mr. Song was also an expert with animals and knew some methods for interacting with and pacifying them but had never seen anyone who could get along with animals so harmoniously, blending into a troop of monkeys like a real animal.


    It was understandable, though, as many reports around the world showed humans and wild animals coexisting peacefully under specific conditions, and research had also proven that animals are very sensitive; if humans can truly be without malice, then it is possible to approach them.


    But understanding is one thing, and witnessing is another; Mr. Song was deeply shocked.


    As Suming walked along, he suddenly realized it was very quiet around him, devoid of ''human'' noise, leaving only the incessant chatter of the monkeys. He looked outside Monkey Mountain instinctively and saw that everyone was staring in awe.


    "Isn''t this a bit too exaggerated? Raising suspicion like this is not good." Suming''s eyes darted around, he pressed his hands together, bowed his head like a monk and walked towards the top of Monkey Mountain, making strange gestures as he went.


    The monkeys kept chattering, emitting an air of confusion, as if they were asking Suming, what are you doing?


    Suming''s gestures were for the people above to see and naturally had nothing to do with the monkeys.


    However, there''s a saying that in the deep forest temples often have monkeys, and when devout men and women see the monkeys while paying their respects at the temples, they tend to feed them, so the monkeys have always lived peacefully with the monks and even considered them their "bread and butter."


    It is said that one year when Mr. Jiang visited Mount Emei, on a sunny day, while Mr. Jiang and his guards were walking up the mountain, a troop of macaques suddenly appeared. Mr. Jiang, who was leading, broke out in a cold sweat out of fear; in his panic, he took out a handkerchief to wipe the sweat from his brow, and that''s when the monkeys scattered. Apparently, when Mr. Jiang took off his hat and revealed his bald head, the monkeys thought he was a monk and naturally dispersed.


    So, with Suming''s palms pressed together, in Mr. Song''s eyes, this was linked to the anecdote of impersonating a monk. Of course, it was just an amusing tale and not at all unusual, whether it worked or not.


    Monkey Mountain was really just a slightlyrger artificial hill, and Suming, like a devout little monk with hands pressed together, head bowed, quickly ascended to the peak as if praying.


    The Monkey King, seeing his territory invaded, immediately forgot about the little girl and turned around; it ced its forearms on the ground in front of it, raised its red bottom, bared its teeth at Suming, and menaced him fiercely.


    "Chatter... chatter chatter chatter..." The Monkey King howled loudly, its saliva nearly spraying onto Suming''s face.


    ```

 Chapter 6: 6 Saving the Little Monkey

    From the Monkey King''s roars, Suming sensed a mix ofplex emotions: anger, fear, and a profound sorrow.


    Suming quickly crouched down and made a few gestures with his hands, pretending they meant something even he wasn''t sure of, then surreptitiously used his "Friend of Animals" tomunicate with the Monkey King using his spiritual power.


    The Monkey King was now blocking between him and the little girl; he couldn''t take the girl away without handling the Monkey King first.


    Unlike the other monkeys, the Monkey King''s emotional fluctuations were very intense. When Sumingmunicated with it using his spiritual power, he felt continuously bombarded. It didn''t take long for fatigue to wash over him.


    "Hand over the little girl, and I''ll spare your life!" Suming red and issued a directmand to the Monkey King, hoping to control it.


    But Suming''s spiritual power was pitifully weak. Controlling little creatures like flies or mosquitoes was one thing, but to control primates closely rted to humans, like monkeys, waspletely out of the question.


    The Monkey King countered with a strike and broke free from Suming''s spiritual power.


    Although he couldn''tpletely control the Monkey King''s actions, the surge of spiritual power did have some effect. The Monkey King seemed to be influenced and slightly shifted its body to the side.


    Suming seized the opportunity, darting past the Monkey King in an instant, scooping the little girl into his arms and shielding her with his body from the Monkey King.


    All he needed was that moment to grab the girl and go.


    Seeing Suming seed in rescuing the girl, the crowd that had gathered around finally erupted into cheers.


    "Big brother, you''re so awesome! Even the bad monkey listens to you!" the little girl in Suming''s arms said with wide eyes, admiringly, her small face still streaked with tear tracks.


    "Heh heh," Suming chuckled dryly. What was this little girl saying? If the bad monkeys all listened to me, wouldn''t that make me the baddest of them all?


    "Su,e back quickly!"


    Mr. Song had already crossed from outside the fence into the territory of Monkey Mountain, bringing along several zoo staff to ''support'' Suming. He shouted from the foot of the mountain while hurrying up to help.


    However, they didn''t receive the same ''treatment'' as Suming; as soon as they approached Monkey Mountain, they were immediately subjected to a ferocious attack.


    Just as Suming was about to turn around and leave, the Monkey King zipped over from the side. Instead of attacking Suming, it wrapped its forelimbs tightly around Suming''s legs, shaking them continuously and emitting a series of pitiful squeaks.


    The round monkey eyes looked up at Suming, doleful and pleading.


    "Buddy, she''s not your kid; I can''t give her back to you!" Suming hugged the little girl tighter in his arms and shook his head at the Monkey King.


    The Monkey King, too, shook its head and then freed one arm to point toward the depths of a cave, all the while tugging forcefully on Suming in the direction of the cave.


    "You want me to go into the cave with you?" Suming asked, puzzled.


    The Monkey King seemed to nod very human-like with determination.


    After contemting, Suming thought, it was just a Monkey King''s cave, not some frightful dragon''sir or tiger''s den. With his "Friend of Animals" ability, what was there to be afraid of?


    "Are you scared if big brother and the monkey go into the cave together?" Suming asked the little girl.


    The little girl had just escaped from the Monkey King''s clutches, and upon hearing they might return to itsir, she was clearly fearful, pouting her tender little lips.


    "Then, will big brother protect Chengcheng?" she asked tentatively.


    "Of course, with big brother here, the monkeys won''t hurt you. En, your name is Chengcheng, right?"


    "En, like sweet orange!" Chengcheng nodded vigorously, her little round face flushed and looking indeed like a ripe sweet orange.


    Impatient, the Monkey King took the lead and rushed toward the cave. Upon reaching the cave entrance and seeing Suming had not followed, it turned back and waved at Suming urgently, its demeanor one of pressing anxiety.


    Seeing the Monkey King like this, Chengcheng couldn''t help but burst into a giggle.


    Suming waved to the people outside Monkey Mountain, signaling that it was safe and there was no need to worry. Then he carried Chengcheng into the cave, following the Monkey King.


    There were many caves on Monkey Mountain, not exactly the ''homes'' of the monkeys, but rather ces for them to y and shelter from the wind and rain.


    This cave at the top of the mountain belonged exclusively to the Monkey King and served as a symbol of its status and position.


    Inside the cave, there was a stale smell of rotting hay. The cave was probably seven or eight meters deep and pitch-dark.


    The Monkey King''s red butt served as the best guide light, leading them all the way to the end of the cave.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak..." The Monkey King pointed anxiously at the wall at the far end of the cave and started calling out.


    By the dim light, Suming noticed a crack over a foot long on the floor of the cave.


    A newborn baby monkey, with most of its body trapped in the crack, hung its fluffy little head down, one arm lying limp against the wall outside the fissure, its condition unknown.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, squeak, chirp, chirp..." The Monkey King frantically tried to pull out the baby monkey, but it was stuck too tightly and he couldn''t move it, so he turned to tug at Suming''s pant leg.


    However, with this tug, the baby monkey quivered slightly, seeming to still be alive!


    Suming suddenly realized that this was the Monkey King''s offspring, somehow fallen into this crack, and it seemed to have been a long time. The Monkey King probably despaired and found sce in Chengcheng, treating her like its own child.


    Now that it had found that Suming could understand its intentions, it wanted him to help rescue the baby monkey!


    "Big brother, please help the Monkey King, look how worried it is. The baby monkey looks so pitiful too..." The little girl had a kind heart. Seeing the baby monkey barely clinging to life, Chengcheng bravely said to Suming.


    "Squeak, chirp, chirp..." The Monkey King seemed to understand and nodded vigorously, then surprisingly put its hands together and bowed earnestly to Suming.


    Suming was taken aback for a moment but then remembered the gesture of joining his palms together he had made on the hillside earlier. The Monkey King was indeed clever and had picked it up instantly.


    "The baby monkey is seriously injured; it might not survive!"


    Suming wasn''t sure, as young animals are very fragile. Who knows how many days the baby monkey had been trapped here, injured, and it must have been forcefully pulled by the Monkey King. It might have internal injuries, and even if rescued, it probably wouldn''t survive.


    He sent a trace of spiritual power toward the baby monkey and indeed, its life force was very weak. If the Monkey King''s life force was like a me, the baby''s was like a tiny spark from a soybean, ready to extinguish at any moment even without a breeze.


    Just then, Suming unexpectedly discovered the baby monkey seemed to be ''absorbing'' his spiritual power!


    As the spiritual power was absorbed, the baby monkey''s vitality seemed to surge!


    "Eh, the Animal Friend has such ability to heal?" Suming was surprised and quickly released more spiritual power, actively letting the baby monkey absorb it to aid in its healing.


    As the baby''s vitality progressively surged, Suming felt increasingly exhausted, his eyelids growing heavy.


    But he bit his lip and continued releasing spiritual power. With the Animal Friend, spiritual power could regenerate, and rest would replenish it.


    After about half a minute, the baby monkey''s finger twitched suddenly!


    Following that, the feeble baby monkey managed to lift its head with effort and let out a soft "squeak" at Suming.


    "That''s wonderful, the baby monkey hase back to life!" Chengcheng cried out joyfully, hugging Suming''s neck and giving him a big kiss on the cheek with her little lips.


    The Monkey King was dancing with joy as well.


    From the entrance of the cave, Mr. Song''s anxious voice came in, "Su, Su, are you all right?"

 Chapter 7: 7 Onboarding

    Mr. Song still wasn''t at ease about Suming and Chengcheng, so he personally brought a few people, dressed like a beggar version of the Iron Warrior, wrapped in severalyers of thick military coats, with whitewashed iron buckets that had two eyeholes on their heads, and charged up to Monkey Mountain.


    Without the protection of Animal Friends, they faced countless dangers on their way, battling demons and spirits, their HP nearly depleted, until they finally struggled to climb to the top of Monkey Mountain and reached the cave entrance.


    The Monkey King was clearly very wary of these outsiders, shielding the young monkey that had just woken up, staring at them with widened eyes, and issuing threatening sounds.


    Fortunately, Suming was here, and the Monkey King seemed to understand that these people were here to "help rescue the monkey." Although he was agitated, he didn''t attack.


    "Oh, Xiao Kong! I was wondering why I hadn''t seen Xiao Kong these past few days. I thought he was hiding in some cave to y, but he was stuck here!" The zookeeper responsible for Monkey Mountain eximed upon seeing the young monkey.


    Xiao Kong was the name the zoo had given to this newborn monkey. The vast Monkey Mountain had seen no sign of a little monkey for several days, and the zookeepers hadn''t taken notice.


    "Is it still alive?" Mr. Song asked.


    "Alive, but it''s wedged in tight. We''ll need to chisel the crack open to rescue it!" Suming said.


    Mr. Song nodded, "We''ll handle it here. Su, you go ahead and take this little girl out first; her family must be frantic!"


    Suming hadn''t yet spoken when Chengcheng pouted, shaking her small head like a rattle-drum, "I want to wait until the little monkey is rescued before I leave; big brother will protect me."


    Suming also felt that he couldn''t leave now; without him there, who knew if the Monkey King would attack Mr. Song and the others.


    Thankfully, the cave was spacious enough for several people to fit inside without feeling cramped. Mr. Song first sent someone out to convey they were safe, while also bringing in some tools.


    After bustling around, they finally managed to expand the crack with a small drill machine and tools such as chisels and hammers, and rescued the young monkey.


    "Hurry, send it to the medical room for a check-up!" Mr. Song said. The young monkey, although alive, was very weak since it had been starved for several days. It needed to be examined and nourished before it could gradually recover.


    Unexpectedly, the Monkey King and his son were reunited, clutching the young monkey tightly, tears welling up, and he wouldn''t let go, nearlying to blows with the zookeepers.


    It was only after Suming intervened that the Monkey King understood they weren''t there to take his child away.


    Suming held Chengcheng in his arms, and Chengcheng held the young monkey, as they followed Mr. Song out of the cave and down the mountain.


    On the way down, the Monkey King followed closely behind Suming, not missing a step, all the way to the edge of Monkey Mountain. When it came to climbing down thedder and leaving Monkey Mountain, the Monkey King was still reluctant to leave.


    "Don''t follow us; we''ll bring him back once he''s healed!"


    Suming didn''t know if the Monkey King could understand, but he waved his hand at the old Monkey King and sent out a mental fluctuation at the same time.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak..."


    The Monkey King seemed to understand Suming''s intentions, or perhaps he simply trusted him a great deal. He put his hands together in a gesture of prayer and then reluctantly left, repeatedly turning back as he returned to the depths of Monkey Mountain.


    ...


    "Daddy... Mommy..."


    After they had climbed up, they immediately sent the young monkey Xiao Kong off for treatment, and Chengcheng ran towards the young woman, whose eyes were red from crying, opening her arms wide.


    "My baby... you scared Mommy to death; this is all my fault, all my fault..."


    The woman took Chengcheng from Suming''s arms, hugged her tightly, her eyes brimming with tears, and kissed her indiscriminately for a spell.


    "Baby, quick, thank this big brother!" The woman said, and she actually began to kneel before Suming.


    From her attire, she appeared to be an intellectual, and her financial status definitely wasn''t poor. Under normal circumstances, such people, even in gratitude, wouldn''t kneel to someone like an auntie at the drop of a hat.


    But at that moment, she was simply a mother overjoyed at having her child back in her arms.


    In some ways, she wasn''t much different from the Monkey King. Natural instinct, a bond of blood!


    The only difference was that the Monkey King was male. Typically, female animals are more caring towards their offspring, but the Monkey King, possibly due to having a child at an old age or being rtively intelligent, had also shown a love for his offspring not less than that of a mother monkey.


    "Hey, no, no, no..." Suming quickly helped the woman up, and after some persuasion, he managed to get her to stand.


    In such a situation, anyone would have been moved to help, especially since he definitely had the ability to do so.


    ```


    "This littlerade, we owe you so much for today."


    Chengcheng''s father also came over and extended his hand to Suming.


    Suming shook his hand slightly; the other''s palm was sweaty and damp. Although he appearedposed, his anxiety was by no means less than that of Chengcheng''s mother.


    Had the zoo staff not been holding them back, the couple would have jumped into Monkey Mountain to save Chengcheng themselves long ago.


    Chengcheng''s father briefly asked Suming for his name and also took down his mobile number, then handed out a business card, "Comrade Su, we cannot thank you enough! Thanks to you stepping in to save Chengcheng today, my wife and I will never forget you in our lifetime. The mother and daughter were frightened today, so I will take them home first. We wille another day especially to express our thanks! This is my business card, and if you have time, you are very wee to visit our home!"


    "Don''t mention it, you''d better take them home to rest," Suming said, epting the business card.


    "Regarding today''s incident, we truly apologize, and on behalf of the zoo, I extend our apology to your entire family. Rest assured if there are any subsequent treatment or nutrition costs, the zoo will certainly cover them," Mr. Song said with sincere tone, as the zoo indeed bore inescapable responsibility for such an event.


    "I am not short of that little bit of money, nor would I exchange my daughter''s life for money. Fortunately, no harm was done. Comrade Song, you should rather give your thanks to Su," said Chengcheng''s father, showing a trace of dissatisfaction towards the zoo. He then greeted Suming and left with one arm around his daughter and the other holding his wife.


    "Big brother, remember toe and find me to y, okay!" Chengcheng, perched on Zhao Yun''s shoulder, waved at Suming from afar, smiling sweetly, utterly unlike someone who had just narrowly escaped from Ghost Gate Pass.


    ...


    The crowd gradually dispersed, and the middle-ageddy from the zoo exined the situation to the police who had just rushed over.


    Mr. Song, however, sought out Suming.


    "Young man, I can see that you have a way with monkeys. I have been studying animals my whole life and wouldn''t be confident in calming an enraged Monkey King."


    Implicit in Mr. Song''s words was a curiosity about how Suming managed to keep the troop of monkeys from attacking him and even got the Monkey King to behave.


    Suming had already considered this question while he was in Monkey Mountain and hade up with an answer.


    "My father taught me some methods to deal with animals. At that moment, I simply took a risk and fortunately it seeded. You are certainly aware that animals only attack humans when they feel threatened. Of course, if it''s due to hunger and hunting, that''s a different story."


    Calming animals to provide a sense of safety is one of the principles of being an animal''s friend, but under normal circumstances, it is very hard for humans to achieve this.


    After all, we''re different species, and it''s not as though animals will feel safe just because you have kind eyes and gentle movements.


    But with Suming, an animal friend, it was easy to aplish what is nearly impossible for the average person.


    Mr. Song nodded his head, "It seems you''re indeed not an amateur."


    "I just took a chance and got lucky; I was quite scared too," chuckled Suming.


    Mr. Song sighed and said, "Well, that''s the truth, but how many people can truly stay calm in a crisis? Young man, you''ve done well."


    "Done well? Are you not going to hire me?" Suming rolled his eyes internally but maintained a chuckle, "Just average, saving liveses first."


    Mr. Song asked some more questions, and Suming attributed everything to his already deceased father, leaving Mr. Song without any suspicion.


    Those who constantly deal with animals in the wild all have their own methods.


    Not to mention these monkeys who had lived in the zoo for many years and lost their wild instincts, even with wild beasts like tigers and lions in the wild, real experts could manage to peacefully coexist under special circumstances.


    Of course, this is very risky.


    "I didn''t expect your father and I were almost colleagues, though I am more inclined towards theoretical research," Mr. Song said with a somewhat nostalgic look.


    "If there''s nothing else, then I''ll take my leave," Suming smiled, "I''ve still got to look for a job!"


    "You little rascal, you''ve even learned to mimic this old man!" Mr. Song red.


    "Ah? What do you mean?"


    Mr. Song said grumpily, "You might not excel in theory, but you''re quite impressive in practice; why don''t you stay in the zoo and be a keeper?"


    "Thank you, leader!" eximed Suming, standing up straight and giving a rather awkward salute.


    ```

 Chapter 8: 8 Whisperwind Pavilion

    The next morning, Suming arrived at the zoo again.


    Mr. Song had arranged for the middle-ageddy responsible for the written test to help Suming with the onboarding process while he himself convened a meeting to investigate the responsibility for the recent ident.


    The fences around Monkey Mountain were all made of rubber-coated steel bars, extremely sturdy, and regrly inspected, supposedly guaranteed to be safe. However, this time, inexplicably, such arge hole had appeared, causing the little girl Chengcheng to fall down and nearly causing a major incident, which infuriated Mr. Song, who demanded a thorough investigation.


    The middle-ageddy, Mrs. Tong, was the director of the director''s office at the zoo and assisted the director with the daily operations of the zoo.


    Mrs. Tong was very enthusiastic, ceaselessly chatting with Suming and introducing him to the zoo''s situation and his work arrangements.


    Suming was considered an ''apprentice,'' responsible for assisting another veteran animal keeper with feeding the animals.


    Since the animals ate at different times, Suming had to spend most of his time in the zoo. Additionally, the senior director noted his youth and strength as well as his knack for dealing with animals, so he promptly arranged a set of dormitory quarters for him in the park. If any emergencies arose again, he could quickly respond and handle the situation.


    This was precisely what Suming wanted. Being a bachelor with no attachments, he had nned to rent a ce close to the zoo, and now he could even save on rent.


    Like Suming, quite a few zoo employees, for convenience''s sake, also lived within the park.


    In terms of ie, basic sry plus subsidies, duty pay, meal allowance, and various other bits and pieces, amounted to about three thousand in hand after deducting social insurances and housing fund, and it would gradually increase over the years.


    The sry wasn''t much, but Suming felt that if he could make good use of his ''Animal Friend'' ability, the benefits it could bring would far exceed any sry, so there was no need to quibble over such small immediate gains and losses. With its unique conditions, the zoo provided ess to arge variety of animals. For that alone, even if the zoo offered no sry and just covered meals, he would be willing to work there.


    "Su, don''t overthink it, temporary or permanent staff, it''s all the same. Now the pay is equal for equal work. Besides, I''m telling you, with the state''s reforms in the past two years, public institutions, especially ones like our zoo, are no longer offering new official positions..."


    Although there was nobody else around, Mrs. Tong still spoke in a hushed, secretive tone, "I''ve heard our zoo will soon be going through restructuring, and will have to be self-sufficient. Maybe then there won''t be any official positions avable, so you don''t need to worry too much about that."


    "Oh, okay." Suming nodded, but he wasn''t really considering the issue of employment positions at all.


    Just like his sry, the ''employment position,'' which was extremely important in the eyes of others, had now be like a floating cloud to him.


    Following Mrs. Tong past the central area of Wolf Mountain and Tiger Hill, through a small forest, and along a woond path for about fifteen minutes, they finally arrived at the dormitory.


    Suming''s eyes lit up!


    In front of him, a man-madeke of about ten or so acres, surrounded by a forest, glistened under the sunlight with rippling waves.


    Seven or eight hovercrafts were parked at the artificial beach beside the smallke. At the end of the beach, a winding water corridor led to the center of theke, to a two-story antique-like building.


    Although the building was somewhat old, with carved beams and painted rafters, it had a quaint charm like that of a water pavilion.


    Even from a distance, one could see the que hanging above the gate, inscribed with the words ''Whisperwind Pavilion'' in traditional characters.


    "Wow, a paradise on earth!"


    Suming almost shouted out. No wonder so many people wanted to work at the zoo. Although the pay wasn''t much and there were no official positions, the environment was simply too good to share with friends!


    This wasn''t just a dormitory but clearly a small waterside vi!


    If it weren''t for his job there, even with lots of money, he couldn''t have bought such a house to live in within the zoo.


    "As we serve the tourism sector, naturally, the environment is top-notch. This ce used to be a souvenir shop and tourist attraction, but when it couldn''t be sustained any longer, it was simply turned into staff amodations," Mrs. Tong exined.


    "How many people are living here?" Su Ming asked.


    With such a nice environment, if a bunch of people were living here, it would really spoil the scenery.


    "Just you by yourself. Our zoo is quiterge, and staff usually live alone or with their families. But staying here for a long time can be very dull and lonely. You young people like lively ces, so if you want to go out and have fun, just let me know and ask for leave," Mrs. Tong said.


    "No problem, I quite like it here."


    "That''s good. Whisperwind Pavilion has a total of six rooms, up and down, andes furnished, although the furniture is a bit old and worn. No one has lived here for a long time, so you might want to tidy up. There''s water, electricity, inte, and telephone. asionally, there might be touristsing here to have fun. If you want to earn some extra money, you can take on the operation of those boats. If it loses money, it''s on you, but if it makes money, the ie is shared fifty-fifty with the zoo."


    Mrs. Tong then told Su Ming about the pavilion and left the keys with him before going back to work.


    Su Ming walked along the corridor. The over-water corridor was about two meters wide. On both sides were stone chairs for people to rest and linger. Walking through the corridor with the breeze blowing across the water, carrying a hint of moisture, was refreshing and delightful.


    The corridor wasn''t long. After taking a couple of small turns, he arrived at ''Whisperwind Pavilion''.


    The tworge mahogany doors were studded with nine rows of rivets, resembling the main gates of an ancient official''s residence, and hung with a copper lock thick as Su Ming''s arm.


    Su Ming weighed it; the lock must have been about twenty pounds, which, paired with the doors, was more effective than any security door.


    Unlocking and pushing open the door, it creaked, and he was greeted with a musty smell.


    The name ''Whisperwind Pavilion'' was quite elegant, and it looked impressive from the outside, but the inside left much to be desired. Dust covered everything, and a single step left footprints on the dusty ground, with an unpleasant odor in the air.


    "Cough, cough, cough... It smells awful..." Su Ming covered his nose and went from room to room, opening all the windows.


    The pavilion had six rooms in total. Put together, they were less than two hundred square meters, divided into a bedroom, living room, storage room, and an electrical room. Cables for electricity and inte wereid through hidden conduitsing up from beneath the outside corridor.


    Tables, chairs, benches, and cooking utensils were all avable, and in the living room, there was a set of synthetic leather sofas. The storage room held somemon tools; a clean-up would make it fit for living.


    After familiarizing himself with the surroundings a bit, Su Ming hastily opened the back door and left, nning to clean up once the inside smelled better.


    Outside the back door was a forty or fifty square meter water tform, surrounded by a fence. Standing on the tform, he had a wide field of view, with the smallke and surrounding scenery all visible.


    The tform was originally intended for a tea house, but poor management meant that not many people came for tea.


    It was a bit hot, so Su Ming simply sat on the edge of the tform, took off his shoes, and dipped his feet in theke water.


    Theke water was cool and refreshing, and it felt incredibly good!


    "This really is a nice ce. But it''s no wonder the zoo doesn''t make money, with such a good spot left unused."


    Actually, it wasn''t exactly ''unused''. Yangchuan City Zoo was divided into three sections: the animal area, the garden area, and the scenic area, with this being part of the scenic area, essentially a small park.


    "So, am I now the park manager?"


    Su Mingughed softly, imagining an image of an old gatekeeper in a blue Sun Yat-sen suit with a red armband.


    Just then, while his feet were in theke, he suddenly felt something ticklish.


    There seemed to be something in the water!

 Chapter 9: 9: Bighead Catfish

    Suming looked down and saw several small green fish, about one to two inches long, swimming circles around his feet.


    The little fish seemed hungry, each one nipping at his feet with their round little mouths.


    "Right, with such a bigke, there must be fish. I wonder if my ''Animal Friend'' ability works on fish as well."


    Suming tentatively projected a thread of spiritual power into the water, and the fish circling his feet became more lively upon contact with it, waggling their tails and swimming around joyfully.


    Two slightly bigger fish, about the length of a middle finger, even jumped out of the water, leaping over Suming''s foot as if they were attempting to pass through a dragon''s gate.


    It seemed that the ''Animal Friend'' ability worked underwater too, but the intelligence of the fish was very low, allowing them to express only the simplest of emotions, such as fear or affection. It seemed unlikely that he couldmunicate with the little fish.


    Suming thought for a moment, then slightly moved his foot and lifted it out of the water to squat on the steps.


    Fish were easily scared, and any ripple on the water''s surface would certainly frighten these little ones away. Yet instead of leaving, the fish turned towards the surface and raised their heads, opening their small mouths, which were the size of small dots, and opening and closing them on the surface of the water.


    "Are you looking for something to eat from me? Ha-ha, a bunch of little gluttons. Just wait!"


    Ever since gaining the ''Animal Friend'' ability, Suming had truly be closer to animals on instinct, treating them almost like friends. He checked his pockets and found nothing edible, so he dashed to the convenience store and came back with tworge loaves of bread.


    This type ofrge loaf wasmon, about the size of a small watermelon, wrapped in stic and mostly generic with no special taste. Even at the scenic area''s convenience store, they were cheap and unwanted items, which is why there was a surplus; at two yuan each, they were very affordable.


    Not suitable for human consumption, they were perfect for feeding to fish.


    "Time to eat!"


    Suming stood by theke again, crumbled the bread into pieces, and sprinkled a handful into the water.


    A few fish scrambled for the bread, causing a small wave on the surface, and the floating crumbs were quickly eaten up. The little fish then opened their mouths wide, smacking their lips as they looked to Suming for more food.


    Fish were pure gluttons, eating as much as was avable. Some especially foolish ornamental fish would even eat until they literally burst.


    "Go on, get out of here, there''s nothing for you anymore." Suming grabbed a few more handfuls of crumbs and threw them forcefully towards the far reaches of theke.


    Large kes of bread floated on theke''s surface, but there was no bustling scene of a feeding frenzy as he had imagined.


    After several seconds, only a few sshes appeared as medium-sized fish surfaced. Most of the bread crumbs slowly sank beneath the water.


    "Howe there are so few fish?" Suming was surprised.


    The body of water in front of him wasn''t small¡ªabout ten acres with a depth of over two meters in the center and just over a meter in the shallow areas. Otherwise, the zoo wouldn''t have originally ced boats there.


    Normally, such arge body of water should have more fish, even without anyone stocking or managing it.


    Having seen many supernatural movies and TV shows from his childhood, like "Jaws" or "Anaconda," Suming''s mind couldn''t help but wonder if there was some sort ofke creature here that had eaten all the fish.


    But that was just a yful thought. It was broad daylight under a clear sky, and strange creatures weren''t permitted after the founding of the nation; with a distinguished state enterprise involved, there wouldn''t be any mythical beasts, right?


    Even if there were a water monster, it couldn''t have grown in such a smallke.


    Still, it didn''t hurt to be cautious, so Suming decided to project his spiritual power into theke once more, aiming to explore it further.


    Water was a good medium. After entering, the spiritual power spread out like a fan, extending in all directions. The distance and area it could cover were far greater than in the air.


    Suming''s spiritual power had covered nearly half of theke before he began to feel somewhat exhausted.


    The fish under the water were indeed pitifully scarce. Not only could they notpare with fish farms, but they were also far inferior to those abandoned wild ponds. After scanning a good part of the water area, Suming hardly found any fish, and most of them were the same kind of small fry he saw at the beginning.


    Just then, a dark shadow with tentacles drifted by in the water not far away!


    Huh? A tentacle monster? Suming quickly followed this shadow with his spiritual power!


    When his spiritual power covered it, Suming realized it was actually a catfish about half a foot long, and the so-called ''tentacles'' were the fleshy whiskers on either side of its mouth.


    Twenty or so centimeters below the surface of the water, the catfish was leisurely swimming and shaking its head with ease.


    A catfish ''half a foot long'' could only be considered small, but in thiske where fish were rare, it was definitely a ''tyrant''-level existence. No creature could threaten it, and its daily routine consisted of loafing around and asionally bullying other smaller fish.


    However, its easy days were over. While the catfish was rxing, its body suddenly shook slightly, and the whiskers fluttering on either side of its mouth suddenly spread out as if it had been ''electrified.''


    "Hehe, it really works!"


    Suming concentrated all of his spiritual power. Unlike before, when he dispersed it over a wide area, he now focused solely on the catfish, and instantly took control of it.


    After a moment''s ''daze,'' the catfish quickly became agile again and, under Suming''s control, dived into the water, bing his ''scout,'' swimming back and forth in theke and scouting the situation at the bottom.


    After swimming several rounds in the water, aside from asionally encountering a few other fish, and seeing some aquatic nts,ke bottom mud, and stones, the catfish discovered nothing like water monsters.


    Once it was under the control of spiritual power, its ''brain'' seemed to function much better. After swimming for a while, it actually returned to the shore, opened its mouth wide towards Suming, and smacked its lips, clearly begging for food.


    "Heh, you''re quite smart," Suming chuckled and threw thest small lump of bread crumbs into the water.


    The catfish sucked in the water and bread crumbs into its mouth all at once, joyfully spun around on the spot, and with a flick of its tail, its long whiskers fluttered in the water. Then it opened its mouth wide towards Suming, asking for more food.


    "No more, no more, go y," Suming said, pping his empty hands together, and he withdrew his spiritual power.


    Once it lost the control of spiritual power, the catfish flicked its tail and swam back into the deep water of theke.


    Suning was left alone, standing at the edge of the water on the tform, looking over theke. A gentle breeze blew and created soft ripples on the water¡ªpleasant, yet it felt as though something lively and vivid was missing.


    "Next time, I''ll stock some fry in here so I can fish whenever I have nothing to do," Suming thought to himself.


    This dy meant that half an hour had gone by, and the Fengshui Pavilion was now well-ventted. Suming found a broom and a mop inside the storage room along with a bottle of cleaner, its expiration date unknown, and he began cleaning the pavilion.


    Suming was quite skilled at housework from doing chores at home, and despite his efficiency, it was still a great deal of work. After three to four hours, he finally got the entire Whisperwind Pavilion cleaned.


    "Looks like I need to make a trip to the supermarket to buy some necessities. Cooking oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, tea, rice, meat, vegetables, water bottles, a thermal sk... ah, and I can bring over the bedding from my dormitory..."


    Suming listed a long shopping list, all of which he needed to buy. Mentally calcting the total, he realized he would barely have any money left after the purchases.


    Fortunately, he would receive his sry in a month, and he had already secured a ce to live, so he wasn''t in immediate need of money.


    He took a long sigh, feeling a sense of relief. After all theplications, he had finally settled his work issues and could get settled.


    Just as he was about to leave, his phone suddenly rang. When Suming looked, it was Nangong Yan.

 Chapter 10: 10 Are You Trying to Become Immortal!

    "Hey Su, the love god, where are you?" came Nangong Yan''s voice over the phone.


    "Love god? Since when did I be a love god, calling me a beast would be more like it," Suming chuckled, knowing full well that with his ability tomunicate with animals, he indeed had the potential to be quite the animal himself one day.


    "Right, couldn''t agree more! You big beast, alluring cats and teasing dogs!" Nangong Yan said with a serious tone.


    "Huh?" Suming waspletely baffled, what cats was he alluring and what dogs was he teasing?


    "Never mind, I saw some job postings online that might be suitable for you, I''ve sent them to your email, take a look for yourself."


    "Oh, thanks. But I''ve found a job," Suming smiled. This girl Nangong was not one to mince words, seeming quite brash at times, but she was genuinely nice to him.


    Nangong Yan was taken aback, "What, you found a job? You were still worrying about it yesterday and today you''ve got one? You''re not joking, are you?"


    "For real, they''ve even sorted out my staff amodation, I''m just about to head back to the school to pick up my luggage," Suming nced at the sky, and said, "It''s a bit much to exin over the phone, I''ll treat you to a meal some day and give you the details."


    "Okay, then I''ll really have to take advantage of you then," Nangong Yan said with augh.


    "Absolutely!"


    Having ended the call and with the sun almost set, Suming grabbed his shopping list and bank card, then left the zoo.


    The zoo, although located in a remote area, was still quite essible due to being a tourist site, with a bus heading downtown right from the main gate,ing every fifteen minutes or so.


    More than half an hourter, Suming had already returned to school, first stopping at the supermarket at the school gate to buy the life essentials listed, then heading back to the dorm to get his quilt, clothes,puter, and other stuff. After busying himself until after 8 o''clock, he had packed three huge bags almost as tall as a person, and then went to the security guard to process his dormitory checkout.


    After expending a great deal of effort, he finally managed to drag and haul the packages to the school gate, where Suming realized a critical problem: How would he take all this back to the zoo?


    Taking the bus was clearly out of the question, as any one of the three bags was nearly half a person tall, and he could at most manage two at the same time, which would be very inconvenient. As for taking a taxi, the drivers shook their heads repeatedly upon seeing the amount of stuff he had; it wasn''t that they were afraid of the trouble, it simply wouldn''t fit.


    After some thought, he dialed Wang Hao''s number.


    "Fatty, I need a favor. Bring your SUV to the school to help me move my luggage," Suming didn''t beat around the bush with Wang Hao. They had both gotten their driving licenses in university. The only difference was that Wang Hao had a car at home, whereas Suming hadn''t even touched a steering wheel for more than a year after getting his license.


    "Eh, you found a job? Alright, alright, I''m free anyway, I''ll be right there," Wang Hao agreed efficiently.


    In less than half an hour, a ck Ford Kuga SUV pulled up at the school gate, with Wang Hao hopping out of the driver''s seat and opening the back door of the vehicle.


    These urban SUVs, though not associated with any real off-road capability, do offer ample space; the back seats could be folded down t¡ªenough room for a car quake.


    The two of them together loaded the three huge bags into the trunk.


    "Where to?" Wang Hao, having buckled his seatbelt, snapped his fingers and asked.


    "The zoo."


    "Holy smoke, you''re working at the zoo? Su, you''re really something!" Wang Hao''s eyes widened with surprise as he gave Suming a thumbs-up.


    "Just a temporary job, no official position," Suming said with a smile.


    "That''s not bad either. After all, it''s about beingfortable, right? It''s stable and rxed, and the environment is nice. My old man also wanted to ''arrange'' for me to get in there initially, but guess what, the head of the zoo is such a schr, insisting on open recruitment, not doing favors for anyone. I didn''t see iting, Su, but you seem to have the knack!"


    "It was just a lucky break for me, really. Mr. Song didn''t want me at first," Suming simply recounted the incident of rescuing someone at Monkey Mountain, but he omitted the Animal Friends part and just mentioned that he was solely focused on saving the person and got lucky.


    "So Mr. Song is quite something, huh? Not even your old man''s clout worked?" Suming was indeed interested in Mr. Song. Wang Hao''s old man is no small-fry officer, an actual bureau-level cadre, and seems to be in charge of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries, essentially the zoo''s boss''s boss. And you''re telling me Mr. Song didn''t give in even when he asked?"


    "Heh heh, forget about my old man. Even if the provincial leaders spoke up, that old director might not listen. Old experts like him may not hold high positions, but their experience speaks for itself. Who knows which old friend might be connected all the way to the top. Plus, they have students and disciples in high ces, not a few either. Given his good reputation, even top leaders don''t want to offend such an old expert."


    The two chatted about this and that along the way, and the Ford Maverick weaved through traffic, quickly returning to the animal park.


    Two of the animal park''s security guards stopped the car. Suming rolled down the window, presented his staff card, and exined to the guards. The Ford Maverick started up again and followed the small roads within the park, heading towards Whisperwind Pavilion.


    The Ford Maverick''s headlights brightly illuminated the park''s narrow roads, attracting the attention of various animals that wonderingly ambled up to the fences, looking over curiously. It wasn''t clear whether humans were watching them, or they were watching the humans.


    A few ostriches, still looking rather confused, tried to follow the car, only to thump into the fence unexpectedly.


    "A flock of dumb birds!" Wang Haoughed heartily.


    Soon enough, they reached the end of the road. Suming''s ce was surrounded by woods, and the car couldn''t go any further, so they had to walk.


    Wang Hao parked the car, turned off the engine, and they both got out to take their luggage from the trunk.


    "Having a car is convenient." Suming closed the trunk of the Ford Maverick and thought about asking Mrs. Tong next time if the animal park had any cargo vehicles. Otherwise, borrowing Wang Hao''s car every time for bulk purchases was too much of a hassle.


    "Speaking of cars, it''s frustrating. With my family''s resources, I could afford a Land Rover, but my old man insisted on buying a Ford Maverick for just 200,000. Every time I go out clubbing and picking up chicks, it depresses me. Think about it, who gets more attention: the guy driving a Land Rover or the one in a Ford Maverick? Driving this Ford Maverick, I''m almost too embarrassed to say hi to girls. Once I do, they might even mistake me for a rideshare driver. If I had a Land Rover, leggy girls would be climbing into my car like crazy..." Wang Hao, carrying a big bag, griped as they walked.


    "Oh, give it a rest. I can''t even afford a second-hand QQ, so be content!" Suming rolled his eyes. Dissatisfied with a 200,000 joint-venture car, many professors at the school drove only domestic cars worth around 100,000.


    After about fifteen minutes of walking, they finally made it out of the forest. Wang Hao, drenched in sweat, dropped his heavy luggage onto the ground, and immediately plopped down beside it, gasping for air.


    "Yeesh, Su, the ce you live is so remote, it''s practically the middle of nowhere! You''re killing me..."


    "You need some exercise, kid. You don''t want to end up with the three highs at such a young age," Suming said, also slightly sweaty but not as exaggerated as Wang Hao.


    "Enough, let''s keep moving. Rest up once we get to my quarters..." Suming urged, but Wang Hao didn''t respond.


    Not only did he not respond, but the gasping sounds also stopped altogether.


    Had the guy passed out from exhaustion?


    Looking down, Suming saw Wang Hao sitting on the ground with his fat legs crossed, mouth agape like a giant toad, staring nkly at the smallke and Fengshui Pavilion in front of him,pletely petrified.


    "Wang... Fatty... you okay? What''s gotten into you..."


    "You live... here?" Wang Hao asked with wide eyes, stuttering.


    "Yeah, the ce is a bit remote, and the house is somewhat old, but the environment''s not bad, right?" Suming scratched his head.


    "Damn! ''Not bad''?!"


    Wang Hao suddenly jumped to his feet with agility that belied his size, grabbed Suming with one hand and pointed emphatically towards the pavilion with the other, rambling incoherently: "You''re not kidding me, right? Just ''not bad''? I''ll be damned, man, you''re practically living like a celestial being here!"

 Chapter 11: 11 Theres something in the water!

    "What kind of immortal, can''t you wish me some good luck?" Suming rolled his eyes, what kind of way to talk was that, I''m not about to die, so how could I be an immortal.


    "I didn''t mean it that way, I just mean living here, goodness, it''s practically a heavenly abode! Living here is like being a hermit from a martial arts novel. I''ve got to see this ce!"


    Wang Hao, as if shot up with chicken blood, suddenly got excited; he picked up tworge bags, one in each hand, and like a fat penguin, waddled quickly up the overwater corridor towards Fengshui Pavilion.


    "Fatty, slow down, don''t fall into the water!" Suming, carrying a bag, chased after him.


    When he first arrived, he was just like Wang Hao, too excited to find his bearings, so he let Wang Hao run wild inside Fengshui Pavilion while he began to unpack and organize his luggage one by one.


    "Holy smokes, two levels, this is practically a vi. Old Su, this ce is so big, and it''s out in the wild, aren''t you scared to live alone? Want me toe and keep youpany?" Wang Hao walked down the wooden staircase after touring the second floor, giving Suming a knowing look.


    Suming moved the tower case of his desktopputer onto the table and nced at Wang Hao: "What wild outskirts, there are quite a few people living in the zoo."


    If it were someone else living in Whisperwind Pavilion, they might genuinely feel a bit scared at night, after all, there were no people within a few hundred meters, and beyond the zoo''s back wall nearby were the mountains.


    But Suming grew up in the mountains, so this wasn''t a problem for him at all.


    Every year during the holidays, especially the winter holiday and Chinese New Year, to prevent wild boars from ravaging the grain, the police station in Suming''s hometown issued hunting rifles to the mountain people and allowed hunting. Suming had apanied his family on hunts more than once, sometimes staying overnight in the mountains, so he was quite ustomed to it.


    "No need to move in, I''m a straight male through and through. But you''re wee to visit when you''re free; I won''t charge you an entrance fee!" Suming said with augh.


    Wang Hao, jumping up and down with his phone, took a look around and even took pictures to post in the university group chat.


    Wang Hao and Suming were ssmates and were in the same group chat. As soon as Wang Hao posted, Suming''s phone also began to vibrate incessantly with a string of messages.


    At the top of the group was Wang Hao''s photo of Whisperwind Pavilion. Although it was nighttime, there were lights around the pavilion, and the winding overwater corridor and the two-story, retro-style Whisperwind Pavilion were clearly visible with a smallke around.


    "Old Wang, where have you gone on vacation this time?" someone asked.


    "Looks like a movie shooting location, Boss Wang, you didn''t go break the unspoken rules with a female star, did you?" someone joked.


    "Unspoken rules my ass, this is our talented Su''s dormitory!" Wang Hao said.


    That set off a barrage ofments below.


    "Damn, it''s a purekeside vi!"


    "Whichpany, such good benefits to provide staff with akeside vi?"


    "Old Su,e out,e out, man, you''ve struck it rich!"


    Suming chuckled and typed a line: "Vi my foot, I''m watching over the zoo, living right inside it."


    Immediately, a string of astonished emojis followed.


    "Damn, does this mean I won''t need to buy a ticket to the zoo in the future?"


    "Nice ce, beautiful mountains and rivers, very pleasant environment!"


    "Old Su, you''ve got some wild connections, getting into the zoo like this! You weren''t so honest before, were you?"


    "No honesty my foot, temporary worker, get it? The kind that just fills a gap!" Suming typed with a smile.


    "This is what you call a temporary position? All that''s missing is the confirmation as the boss'' son!"


    "Envy, jealousy, hate, I also want to go to the zoo to feed the bears!"


    "More like feed you to the bears, haha!"


    "This makes those of us who went to bigpanies feel so inadequate!"


    "No, no, no, we''ve got to take Su for a ride!"


    Suming wrote, "It''s just for show, less than three thousand a month, you guys try it."


    "Such a nice ce, living there could extend someone''s life by years, I''d do it even if I had to pay three thousand!" said a rich kid in the ss, whose family ran a listedpany.


    "Alright, enough from you guys,e and visit when you''re free, I''ll host you!"


    After chatting for a bit in the group, Suming put away his phone and called Wang Hao up to the tform, sat by the water, and said, "I''ve got something serious to tell you."


    "What''s up?" Wang Hao took off his shoes, just like Suming had during the day, dipped his feet into theke water, and asked Suming.


    "See those boats over there?" Suming pointed to the pleasure boats not far from the shore.


    "Are you asking me to find some girls and rock the boat? Man, I''ve never tried boat rocking before!" Wang Hao''s eyes lit up.


    Suming pped his forehead, annoyed, "Rock what! I''ve got a small business opportunity. If you''re willing to invest, we can take over those boats and start a boating business, how about that?"


    During his cleaning stint that afternoon, Suming had encountered two groups of people asking if they could go boating, it seemed like there was business to be had. He was somewhat interested too.


    But these boats were quite old. To kick start the pleasure boating business, they''d definitely need to spend money on boat inspections, fuel purchases, and such, with initial investments costing at least several thousand, and that''s several big thousands.


    Suming didn''t have that much money, and even if he did, he wanted to pull Mr. Wang into the venture as well.


    "Sure thing, this business is doable. Twenty per boat per hour, thirty for bumper boats like yours, figuring on eighty bucks a day, more on holidays. You''ve got one, two, three...seven, eight boats, could make seventeen or eighteen thousand a month, pleasure boating has high profits, you could clear about thirteen or fourteen thousand." Wang Hao''s family managedndscaping, so he was clear on this kind of thing.


    "Let''s agree on that then, you invest, I manage, we split the profits."


    Calcting it, aside from the half going to the zoo, he and Wang Hao could probably take home about three or four thousand each per month.


    Three or four thousand isn''t much, but it''s what I get in hand from my sry. The key point is that this is almost a no-capital business, I''m required to be in the zoo 24/7 anyway, most of the time hanging around Fengshui Pavilion, so it''s like making extra cash in my idle time.


    Add that to my sry, and I could make close to seven thousand a month. In Yangchuan City''s working ss, that''s definitely not low, even the technical staff at those big pharmaceuticalpanies I failed tond a job at originally don''t make that much at the start.


    Moreover, Suming had another cunning n in mind.


    In friendships, feelings are the foundation, but if those feelings can be augmented with mutual benefits, the rtionship bes even more stable.


    Now that we''ve graduated, we don''t live together like before, spending all day in the same dorm. If my rtionship with Wang Hao consisted of nothing but eating, drinking, ying, and messing around, it''s certain to fade with time and as we both mature.


    Wang Hao''s family ran thendscaping, so if I could foster a closer rtionship with him through this little venture, it would be like creating a safety for myself. If I ever ran into any trouble, I could ask Wang Hao''s family for help.


    For Wang Hao''s family, a few thousand in extra ie isn''t significant, but it''s like giving Wang Hao a proper job to do, preventing him from running after leggy girls all the time and loafing around, which would eventually create problems and be a headache for his dad.


    Although the boating business isn''t huge, it benefits both sides indeed.


    Wang isn''t usually reliable, but he''s pretty serious when ites to proper business. The two sat by the water and quickly hammered out the details of the boating business, with Wang even contacting a boat repair professional.


    Just as they were discussing, Wang Hao suddenly changed color, shrieked, and leaped up as if shocked.


    "What happened?" Su asked in surprise.


    Wang Hao pointed at the water with a terrified expression, "Holy moly, there''s something in the water!"


    "What thing?" Suming looked at the water curiously, wondering if it could be a bighead catfish?


    After interacting with animal buddies, animals seemed to be smarter. Perhaps the bighead catfish, seeing the light, knew he was back and came looking for food, bumping into Wang Hao''s feet?

 Chapter 12: 12 The Alligator Turtle

    Sumingy on the railing of the tform, stretching his head to look into the water.


    In the light of the Fengshui Pavilion, he saw that on the surface of theke where Wang Hao had just stepped down, ripples formed, and arge head emerged¡ªit was the big-headed catfish from the day.


    After the big-headed catfish came to the surface, it floated there listlessly, half of its body resting on the stone steps, with its tail twitching feebly from time to time, and it bore a startling wound, as if bitten viciously by some ferocious animal!


    This fellow wasn''t here for food, but for help!


    Suming quickly and quietly released a stream of spiritual power, feeling its life force had weakened much since the day, possibly dying at any moment.


    He hurriedly channeled the spiritual power toward it, and stimted by the spiritual power, the big-headed catfish''s life force immediately showed signs of recovery.


    However, it had sustained a very serious injury; even a chunk of its tail had been bitten off. Almost a fatal wound for it, for the time being, it could only cling to life and was unable to move much.


    Suming had no choice but to fish the big-head out and keep it in arge water tank until it healed before returning it to theke.


    "Something''s not right!" Wang Hao shook his head repeatedly at the side.


    "What''s not right? Look at how timid you are, it''s just a catfish."


    Suming said this, but he also found it strange in his heart. There were hardly any fish in theke, and this nearly half-a-meter-long catfish was practically the king of theke. Moreover, with itsrge mouth eating all around, it was one of the more ferocious fresh-water fish. Even if there were small crayfish and crabs, they were the ones bullied by the catfish. What could have injured it like this?


    But Wang Hao was very certain, "It''s not this fish; the thing that bumped into my foot just now was sharp and hard!"


    As if to confirm Wang Hao''s words, not far away, more ripples surged on the water surface, but the ssh was several timesrger than when the catfish had appeared.


    A pointed head emerged from the ripples, with a beak shaped like a hawk''s hook, and its round eyes on both sides gleamed with a fierce light.


    A section of its back also rose above the water, with spine-like bony protrusions that appeared as ferocious as armor.


    "Crocodile?" Suming jumped in fright, for the creature looked incredibly like a crocodile.


    But he quickly realized that was ridiculous. If there were crocodiles here, there would have been a disaster long ago!


    Wang Hao eximed, "Damn, it''s a crocodile turtle!"


    A crocodile turtle, as the name suggests, is a turtle that looks like a crocodile. Crocodile turtles have a strange and fearsome appearance, one of the oldest reptiles, witnesses of the dinosaur era.


    Crocodile turtles have strong survival abilities, tolerate pollution well, reproduce effectively, and have arge appetite. Additionally, they''re extremely aggressive with few natural enemies, often causing cataclysmic consequences to the local aquatic biodiversity, particrly devastating to the freshwater ecology of Huaxia Country.


    Just one crocodile turtle can lead to aplete wipeout of a fish pond, and an established group of crocodile turtles can even severely damage the entire fish ecology of a freshwaterke! The authorities had repeatedly dered the release of crocodile turtles to be illegal.


    Suming suddenly realized why there were hardly any fish in theke. With this creature around, there weren''t enough fish to satisfy its hunger! It had be theke bully.


    This creature wasn''t native to Huaxia Country, but originated from the Americas. This crocodile turtle must have been released by some ''kind-hearted tourists''. As a result, theke''s fish had been mostly eaten up, and the crocodile turtle rose to be the unchallenged ruler of theke.


    "Bloody tourists!" Suming rolled his eyes in frustration. If it weren''t for this crocodile turtle, why would there be so few fish in the smallke? He had even considered stocking some young fish, but luckily, he hadn''t. With this menace here, any number would''ve been in vain.


    Moreover, crocodile turtles aren''t worth much, sold by weight, a few dozen bucks per kilo. Although this crocodile turtle was big, at best, it might only be worth a few thousand bucks.


    Suming guessed the creature had hidden in a cave or in thekebed silt during the day, which was why he hadn''t detected it with his spiritual power.


    That crocodile turtle surfaced, and seeing the big-headed catfish rescued, its food source gone, it didn''t linger. It cast a vicious nce at Suming and then burbled a couple of bubbles before slowly sinking back into the water.


    No matter how fierce the crocodile turtle was, it was no match for humans. Its ability to bully and dominate in thiske relied on its policy of preying on the weak and fearing the strong, adjusting its behavior ording to the situation!


    "Damn it, trying to run!" The crocodile turtle hadn''t expected to meet someone fiercer that day. Wang Hao, carrying a long bamboo pole, ran out from the Fengshui Pavilion without a word and swung it down.


    Crack! A crisp sound on the water''s surface, sshing water everywhere!


    Following that, a crisp snap echoed, as the bamboo pole, thick as a child''s arm, was unexpectedly bitten in half by the alligator turtle, which then slowly sank into the water.


    Wang Hao, refusing to give up, prodded the water with the remaining half of the bamboo pole, but theke surface was so vast¡ªhow could he possibly prod the fleeing alligator turtle?


    Summoning his thoughts, Suming quickly directed a stream of spiritual power into the water.


    As soon as the spiritual power touched the water, it immediately located the alligator turtle. The creature, having submerged itself, probably felt safe and hadn''t gone far, just lying motionless at the bottom of the river.


    The spiritual power firmly locked onto the alligator turtle, which immediately shuddered as if electrocuted. Its crocodile-like tail thrashed powerfully, trying to break free from Suming''s control.


    Suming also felt the connection to his spiritual power violently shaking. The alligator turtle, being a cold-blooded animal, was nothing like monkeys and cats that were easier tomunicate with; it was naturally deceitful and fierce, resistant to discipline.


    Furthermore, at this moment Suming held no ''good intentions;'' his intentions were full of ''malice,'' so the alligator turtle would definitely resist desperately!


    The friend of animals had be the enemy of the alligator turtle. The spiritual power connection shook violently, and in just a few seconds, stars danced before Suming''s eyes, signaling he could lose control at any moment.


    On the bank, Wang Hao kept poking around with a bamboo pole, several times nearly prodding the alligator turtle, which sensing danger, struggled and tried to escape into the distance.


    Suming''s scalp tingled, and in his mind, he heard a slight ''crack'' as the spiritual power connection waspletely broken by the alligator turtle.


    He hurriedly spread his spiritual power like a in the water, hoping to regain control of the alligator turtle.


    But the alligator turtle was far more formidable than a catfish, breaking free from the control of spiritual power after several struggles.


    After breaking free from the spiritual power control several times in a row, the alligator turtle apparently felt that the person ashore couldn''t harm it, and instead of fleeing, it brazenlyid at the bottom of theke, even provocatively shaking its tail in the direction of Suming.


    On the bank, Wang Hao was still irritatingly prodding with the bamboo pole. Suming waved his hand, "Wang, stop poking. We''lle back to deal with it in a couple of days!"


    "This creature can bite people; it''s a menace in theke," Wang Hao said.


    "Give me a few days to prepare, find some fishings or something, then we''lle back to handle it!"


    Suming knew all too well that if they let this alligator turtle roam theke, it would be very dangerous. Eating fish was one thing, but biting a person would be a major problem.


    From the glimpse of its shell when it surfaced, the creature appeared to be close to a meter long!


    Alligator turtles are naturally ferocious; such a big one could bite off a person''s wrist. With this creature in theke, what was the point in running a boating business? If a tourist got bitten while boating, he couldn''t afford thepensation even if he went bankrupt!


    But now that the alligator turtle was on guard, and with the vastke surface, capturing it would not be an easy task.


    "Bask in your arrogance for a few more days. Once my spiritual power is stronger, I''lle back to capture you!" Suming fiercely gestured a middle finger at the alligator turtle in the water,


    Suming had now realized that generally, therger and smarter the animal, the harder it was to control.


    Some animals, like macaques, although smart and yful, aren''t particrly vicious and can be managed more easily. But others, naturally more aggressive and cunning, like alligator turtles, are troublemakers.


    His current level of spiritual power wasn''t enough to handle this one.


    Fortunately, as long as he kept using the Friend of Animals ability, his spiritual power would gradually increase. Working at the zoo, he had plenty of opportunities to use it. As long as the creature didn''t escape, he would inevitably catch it one day.


    "Alright, we''ll deal with it next time!" Wang Hao said fiercely.


    ¡­


    The next morning, the phone at the Whisperwind Pavilion rang.


    "Su there? This is Peng Qing. I''m going to feed the animals at ten in the morning, I''ll wait for you at the warehouse."


    "Oh, I know, Mr. Peng. I''ll be right there."

 Chapter 13: 13: The Wolf and the Fox

    Peng Qing was an experienced zookeeper who had worked in the zoo since graduating from technical school, and had dedicated half his life to his job. He was hardworking and neverined, earning him a good reputation among the staff. Mr. Song, the zoo director, had assigned him to mentor Suming and be responsible for feeding the animals.


    "Mr. Peng, good morning." Suming arrived at the warehouse and greeted a simple and honest-looking middle-aged man.


    Mr. Peng, already dressed in his work uniform, was pushing a cart out of the warehouse. Seeing Suming, he smiled and said, "Morning. Go get changed, and then we can load the cart together and head out."


    "Right away," Suming scratched his head. Though Mr. Peng hadn''t said anything, Suming felt slightly embarrassed. It wasn''t great having the master wait for his apprentice on the first day of work.


    Suming entered the staff room next to the warehouse, took a blue coat off the wall, put it on, changed into a pair of rubber boots, and pocketed a pair of leather gloves. With an air of professionalism, he pushed out a small cart, fully equipped.


    Then, under the guidance of Mr. Peng, the two selected food for the animals from the warehouse, mainly meat but supplemented with some fruit and coarse grains. The two small carts were loaded with tenrge baskets.


    "This is going to cost quite a bit."


    Just this meal alone was probably a few thousand, and the zoo fed the animals more than once a day, with more keepers than just Mr. Peng and Suming.


    This also showed why zoos were difficult to manage; the expenses for feeding animals were staggeringly high. Yangchuan City had severalrge parks, but only one zoo. Other cities were simr, and just the daily feeding of the animals was a massive burden. The modest ticket revenue was far from enough to cover expenses, making it a significant financial strain for the government. Moreover, the zoo housed many nationally protected animals, and any death would result in ountability.


    Like other public venues, ordinary parks had it much better; they only required a one-time investment and had far fewer ongoing costs.


    "This food is barely enough to keep the animals from starving; the budget is just not enough," Mr. Peng said with a wry smile, shaking his head. He led the way with his cart, saying, "Let''s go to the Wolf Pen first."


    The Wolf Pen was a semi-enclosedrge cage. Twoyers of wire mesh enclosed a space of over fifty square meters, divided into two parts. The front section was the wolves'' activity area, where visitors could view the wolves through wire mesh over a railing about chest high. The rear half was the wolves'' "sleeping and resting" area, enclosed by walls.


    Arge metal sign hung outside the Wolf Pen with an introduction.


    "Mongolian Wolf, also known as the Steppe Wolf, belongs to the canine family. It is a subspecies of the Grey Wolf and is a national secondary protected species. Vignt and suspicious by nature, its form is simr to dogs, highly intelligent, and able tomunicate with its kin through scent and calls."


    In the evolutionary process of ancient animals, the three most perfectly evolved carnivorous animals were the Titan Birds, Saber-toothed Tigers, and wolves. Today, the Titan Birds and Saber-toothed Tigers are extinct, leaving only the wolves.


    In the Wolf Pen, arger wolf was drinking from a trough. Although it had its head down, its legs were straight, and its ears were pointed high and forward, giving it an impressive stance.


    Two other wolves stood not far from the trough, but theycked the ferocity of the drinking wolf. Their fluffy tails curled slightly upward and swayed from time to time, suggesting a desire to please.


    If he weren''t in the zoo, Suming might have thought he was looking at two Huskies.


    Several other wolvesy in the grass nests at the back of the pen.


    "The one drinking water is the alpha," Mr. Peng exined with a smile, and then took out a key to open a small iron window beside the feeding trough on the cage.Alerted by the scent of a stranger, the alpha raised its head. Its long ears instantlyid back on its head, and its back fur bristled. It bared its sharp fangs by curling up its lips and arched its back to roar at Suming.


    Even though Mr. Peng was closer to the alpha, the wolf roared at Suming and ignored Mr. Peng entirely.Mr. Peng exined, "Wolves are as smart as dogs, they know we''re here to feed them. But since you''re new, they don''t recognize you. They''ll get used to you after some time..."


    Before he could finish, the alpha suddenly stopped roaring and calmlyy down where it was, splitting its lips, rxing its ears to the side, sticking out its tongue, and yawning.


    The other wolves also stopped showing hostility towards Suming, and one even rolled over on the spot, exposing its belly.


    "What''s going on?" Mr. Peng was taken aback and stopped feeding, looking at the wolves and then back at Suming with a puzzled expression."


    The position of a wolf''s ears indicates its attitude; ears pressed back indicate a threat and preparation to attack, whereas ears rxed to the sides show a state of ease.


    As for exposing the belly, it signifies extreme trust and even a hint of coaxing affection. For most animals, the belly is the most vulnerable part that needs to be protected.


    At this moment, the alpha clearly had softened its aggression towards Suming, and the lean wolf rolling on the ground was showing a rare kindness to Suming.


    This behavior wouldn''t be surprising in dogs, but wolves were different. In theory, they only expose their belly while ying with their own kind.


    Having fed the wolves for so many years, at most, they would just be indifferent to Mr. Peng''s presence, far from being affectionate. As for exposing their bellies, that was something he had never even considered.


    Suming chuckled and waved a piece of beef in his hand, "I''m here to feed them, so of course, they want to please me."


    "The director said you had a way with animals. It seems he was right," Mr. Pengughed, tossing beef into the wolf enclosure.


    Of course, this was due to the "animal friend" attribute.


    Because of the "animal friend''s" spiritual power, the most simple and direct way, and also the most effective in gaining an animal''s trust, the effect it had even surpassed the rtionship Mr. Peng had established with the wolves through long-term feeding.


    After all, wolves only made guesses based on their habits about Mr. Peng''s behavior. For the naturally suspicious wolves, this kind of guesswork couldn''tpletely dispel their doubts and concerns, whereas Suming''s use of psychic abilities could achieve and even surpass the effect of munication among their own kind."


    The wolves weren''t stupid, especially those in the zoo, which had picked up some of the "merchant-like cunning" of humans. Given that they understood Suming was there to feed them, it was understandable for them to demonstrate some appeasing behaviors that were quite uncharacteristic of "wolfish nature."


    The lead wolf still cared about its pride, and its attitude toward Suming shifted from hostile to somewhat indifferent, maintaining its dignity as a leader; the rest of the wolves, particrly the weakest one, outright flipped over to show their bellies in a fawning manner,pletely abandoning their integrity.


    However, for Suming to control these wolves, especially that one, was nearly impossible.


    Suming helped Mr. Peng feed them, and in the blink of an eye, more than ten pounds of meat had disappeared into the wolves'' stomachs.


    The wolves still seemed unsatisfied, forming a circle around Suming under the lead wolf''s direction, all giving him a cold and threatening stare, as if to say, "If you don''t feed us, believe me, I''ll bite you to death."


    "Really ungrateful wolves..." Suming rolled his eyes.


    Interacting with animals is sometimes simr to interacting with people. Everyone has a different personality. With warm-hearted people, you can quickly be friends, but with those who are naturally solitary and indifferent, it takes much longer to build a friendship.


    In human terms, some animals are easy to get along with, like monkeys, while others, like wolves and those damned alligator snapping turtles, are more challenging!


    With the gift of being an animal friend, Suming could in theory be ''friends'' with any animal, or even their master, as long as his psychic power was strong enough.


    "Just take it slow. As the saying goes, the journey tests a horse''s strength and time reveals a wolf''s heart..."


    Just as Suming was about to throw some more meat down, Mr. Peng stopped him and scooped up a small basin of mushy strawberries to sprinkle into the Wolf Pen.


    "Wolves eat strawberries?" Suming asked in surprise.


    "Wolves mostly eat meat, but they also need to eat fruits. It helps bnce their diet and provides additional nutrients."


    Suming got an eye opener, watching the wolves sniff the strawberries and then devour them eagerly, sttering juice as they bit into each berry. After finishing, they even licked the strawberry juice around their mouths with their tongues.


    From outside the cage, they looked just like a bunch of perfectly sane Huskies.


    After feeding the wolves, Suming followed Mr. Peng to the adjacent Red Fox area.


    The Red Fox,monly referred to as ''fox'', had big, round eyes and bushy tails for bnce. Its fiery red fur had be somewhat messy and dull due to the zoo''scking nutrition.


    Red foxes are also ss two nationally protected animals, but unlike wolves, these adorable-looking creatures are typical loners, rarely gathering with their kind.


    Through psychicmunication, Suming discovered that red foxes were even more difficult than wolves to deal with.


    Wolves are like cold and proud swordsmen. They are hard to approach, but once you earn their trust, you can share a bond of life and death.


    The red fox, however, was like a cunning and fickle maiden, afflicted with generalized anxiety disorder, suspicious and uncertain about everything around her.


    The expression ''sly as a fox''es from this behavior.


    This littledy''s disposition could also be rather vicious. Mr. Peng told Suming that red foxes enjoyed ''overkilling''. Regardless of whether they could eat all their prey, they would kill any living creature they encountered.


    Like all littledies, the red foxes particrly liked fruits and snacks such as ''little birds''. Suming threw an apple into the enclosure, and the red fox quickly held the apple with its little paws, scurried to a dark corner, and started munching on it, asionally lifting its head to watch Suming warily from a distance.


    ...


    Having walked almost all morning and fed more than a dozen animals, such as leopards, wild boars, and others, Suming also visited the aviary and fed a Haidong Qing several pieces of meat.


    Suming tried tomunicate with every animal using his psychic power, intending to ''make friends and get acquainted,'' and he noted that each animal''s personality was quite unique, even among those of the same species.


    After feeding the animals, Suming and Mr. Peng returned the cart to the storeroom. After changing clothes, Mr. Peng patted Suming on the shoulder, smiling and said, "I live near Mingqing Residence. I have a big space there and grow some cabbage and cucumbers. If you don''t have time to buy groceries,e over and pick some for a fresh bite."


    "Thank you, Mr. Peng," Suming said, nodding with a smile.


    After a busy morning, his psychic power had also slightly increased. Suming hurried back to Whisperwind Pavilion, curious about the condition of his neighbor, the giant catfish, and whether it was recovering well.


    If possible, Suming of course wished for the creature to survive and thrive.


    Returning to Whisperwind Pavilion, Suming hadn''t even entered when he heard some rustling inside the room!


    "Could it be a thief, or could it be Mr. Wang?"

 Chapter 14: 14 Got Extorted

    "Director, the railing at Monkey Mountain was sawed through and then restored to its original state with ayer of rubber. It looks fine from the outside, but as soon as someone leans on it, the railing will break."


    In the zoo director''s office, Mr. Dong of the Security Department was reporting the results of the ident investigation to Mr. Song, the zoo director.


    Mr. Song frowned, "Check the surveince, see who did it!"


    Mr. Dong gave a bitter smile, "Director, as you know, our zoo has always had tight funds. It''s good enough to cover the animal expenses and staff sries. Those surveince cameras are mostly for show, many are old and out of order, and the resolution is so low that you can''t see anything clearly. There is one camera around Monkey Mountain, but it broke some time ago and it looks like it was deliberate."


    Mr. Song fell silent, his frown growing tighter and tighter until his thick eyebrows almost met.


    He had heard rumors that some developers were eyeing the vacantnd near the zoo to build vis.


    Normally, the government wouldn''t allocatend meant for public welfare to property developers. But if a serious ident urred at the zoo, that could change, at least it would provide an opportunity for others to exploit.


    "What do you think we should do about this?" asked Mr. Dong.


    "Pass on our information to the police for investigation," replied Mr. Song.


    They had no other choice. Since there was no incident and no evidence, they had little hope for a substantial discovery.


    "Director, why don''t you talk to the city officials, see if we can get more funds. We could strengthen the zoo''s security, install cameras on all the walls, and rece the existing cameras with high-definition ones," Mr. Dong suggested.


    "I''ll try my best," the aged director sighed, though he was well aware that maintaining the current level of funding would be good enough.


    The nation''s focus was on GDP as an assessment index. The principle for allocating funds was clear: prioritize units that could stimte the economy.


    Educational and research institutions, such as universities, were a given.


    But for public welfare organizations like zoos, heh, as long as they existed, that was enough; they were not ces for key investment.


    ¡­


    Outside Whisperwind Pavilion, Suming clutched a stick in his hand, crouched low, and tiptoed toward the pavilion''s main door.


    Since there were security guards patrolling the zoo, and there wasn''t much of value inside the pavilion, he didn''t lock the door when he left. Besides, who woulde to the zoo to steal? It''s not like they could kidnap tigers or bears.


    But to his surprise, someone had indeed broken into Whisperwind Pavilion!


    "Is it a thief, or is it Mr. Wang?"


    Mr. Wang was always carefree. If it were him, he wouldn''t be sneaking around.


    Suming slowly pushed open the door and was startled by the sight in the room.


    Around the big tub where the catfish were raised, five cats were squatting in a circle, each one craning their necks to watch the catfish inside the tub.


    The cats, big and small, sat encircling the tub, peering intently at the catfish.


    Arge ck cat even stretched out its chubby paw now and then, lying down and sweeping its paw across the tub, teasing the catfish. The catfish swam back and forth in the water, dodging the cat''s harassment and asionally sshing a few drops.


    The sound Suming had heard was the noise of cat paws stirring the water and the movement of the catfish.


    "Hey? Hei, and you gang, how did you get here?"


    The cats, all dirty, were the same strays Suming had fed at the schoolst time, the big ck cat Hei having been scolded for fighting over food.


    Seeing Suming arrive, the cats jumped down from the tub and snuggled at his feet, affectionately rubbing their heads against his trousers.


    The ck cat Hei stood on its hind legs, its front paws resting on Suming''s shins, its sharp ws catching on his trousers, as if wanting to climb onto him.


    Sumingughed, amused at how smart these cats had be, managing to track him down from the school by following his scent!


    It seemed that after using their spiritual power tomunicate with them and feeding themst time, these cats hade to regard themselves as the owners.


    Hei, feeling rather smug, shook his head and squinted his eyes, meowing once as if to say, "Go on, praise me."


    "Praise you? You''re extorting me!" Suming red at the cats with annoyance.


    If wolves and red foxes are among the more difficult animals to get along with, then cats are very easy to get along with.


    Aftermunicating with them again using spiritual power, the cats showed even more affection towards Suming than before, each one acting coy and charming, leaving Suming helpless and unable to drive them away.


    "Fine, if you want to stay, stay. I''m a bit lonely by myself, and a few extra mouths to feed won''t make a difference. From now on, you''ll live here."


    Before Suming could finish speaking, Hei jumped off his leg and turned around, tail erect and hips twisting as he headed towards the storage room.


    "What do you mean, that''s enough talk? Have you all turned into spirits?" Suming was startled. What kind of world was this where even the cats could snub you?


    Soon, Hei returned, with a dead rat in his mouth, looking very proud and self-satisfied as he gazed at Suming.


    Suming then understood, "Haha, so you''re nning to fend for yourselves, huh?"


    "Meow meow meow..." With a few cries, the other cats also brought several rats and bragged by dropping them in front of Suming.


    "That''s enough, that''s enough. In the future, just scare off the mice, okay? It''s quite disgusting!"


    It was only natural for cats to catch mice, but the thought of his pets messily gnawing on a pile of mouse carcasses in front of him was a sight Suming couldn''t bear to look at.


    The five cats sat in a row obediently in front of Suming, who began calling out names: "Let''s give you all names. Hei, you''ll still be Hei, as the leader, and you, white cat, will be Miao Yi..."


    From Miao Yi to Miao Si, they were named in order down the line, Hei included.


    "Everyone has a name now!" Suming said.


    All five cats immediately sat up straight.


    "Hei, you lead the way. Everyone to the bathroom, I''m giving you baths. Look how dirty you are, you look like... oh no, more like muddy monkeys..."


    "Meow meow meow..." All the cats unanimously expressed their opposition, transmitting a very unwilling emotion through the spiritual power. Dogs are natural swimmers, but cats are afraid of water, and for the feline folk, baths are akin to torture.


    However, as the head of the household, Suming couldn''t be soft-hearted at this moment. The cats were all strays originally, filthy and possibly harboring fleas or lice. He didn''t want to end up with a house full of pets and himself sick as a result. His animal friend abilities might make him immune to animal diseases, but it''s still better to not test that unnecessarily.


    Under Suming''s control... Actually, there was no need to use spiritual power. Just by grabbing the loose skin at the back of the cats'' necks, one in each hand, he tossed them all into the tub. He held them down,thered them up with soap, and rinsed them off, giving them a thorough scrub.


    "Meow..." With poor little faces covered in white foam, the cats looked pitifully at Suming, not daring to move.


    "Don''t expect me to go easy on you. If you want to stick with me, you''ll have to follow my rules. From now on, baths are mandatory! And yes, not just baths. As a cat, learning to swim is also essential!" Suming said with a wicked smile.


    "Meow meow meow..."


    ...


    After bathing all five cats and drying their fur, Suming set up a small cat bed on the first floor of the Fengshui Pavilion, fed them some bread, and then let them go off to y by themselves.


    Cats are a very contradictory creature; on one hand, they are afraid of water, but on the other, they are extremely curious and enjoy ying with water. After eating, the cats ran off to theke and frolicked around the smallke.


    The big-headed catfish swam back and forth in the tank, appearing to have healed quite a bit from its injury, but Suming didn''t dare let it back into theke just yet, since that alligator turtle was still there!


    "Meow meow meow..." Suddenly, a burst of cat meowing came from outside the window.


    "What now?" Suming opened the window and immediately burst outughing.

 Chapter 15: 15 The Demon and the Sentinel

    Every creature has its own story, and the alligator turtle is no exception.


    Having lived in theke for several years, the alligator turtle grew from a little thing into an enormous beast, bing the undisputed overlord of theke. The fish and shrimp in theke were its food, taken at its leisure, with no natural predators. Its living space was innumerable timesrger than the ss box it had at its previous owner''s home, and life wasfortable and leisurely.


    The only regret was theck of a female alligator turtle to enjoy.


    However, when it came to choosing between freedom and pleasure, the alligator turtle clearly preferred the former.


    But recently, it realized that its good days might being to an end.


    A young man had arrived at theke.


    The alligator turtle was not unfamiliar with humans; on the contrary, it had seen many people, including its original owner, and was quite worldly for an alligator turtle.


    Over the past few years, there had been asional incidents of tourists spotting it and trying to catch it.


    But each time, the alligator turtle easily escaped capture, the vast artificialke and deep waters making it difficult to find once it hid.


    As long as it was careful not to eat those apparently dangerous ''baits,'' there wouldn''t be any danger.


    So, as long as the zoo staff didn''t discover it, and there was norge-scale roundup or theke wasn''t drained, the alligator turtle''s good days could continue.


    But now things had changed, after having a face-off with Suming, it had managed to escape the control of spiritual power, but that power had instilled an instinctive fear in the alligator turtle.


    Animals have the survival instinct to approach what is beneficial and avoid what is harmful, and the alligator turtle was no different. It may not think like humans, but its survival instinct told it that this littleke was now filled with danger and no longer suitable for living.


    So, it decided to move.


    As a bachelor, moving was a simple matter; it could just carry its shell and leave, waving its tail elegantly without a cloud in tow.


    And so, on this sunny and pleasant midday, the alligator turtle set off.


    It crawled out of the water, chose a secluded direction, and headed toward the nearby woods.


    The zoo had more than one artificialke. The alligator turtle could sense that not far away was arger body of water. If it could just reach there, not only would there be more food, but it would also be safer¡ªno one would be able to catch it then.


    Just as it climbed ashore, the alligator turtle noticed that a small, fuzzy creature was blocking its path.


    The little creature had a pair of upright pupils and made strange "meow meow meow" noises, curiously stretching out its chubby little paws to scratch at its head.


    The alligator turtle was not one to hide in its shell when faced with trouble!


    In fact, its head couldn''t retract into the shell, and coupled with the strong biting force granted by nature, it possessed a brave heart!


    Apart from humans, the alligator turtle wouldn''t hesitate to fight against any animal!


    Especially not this fuzzy, frail little creature!


    So the alligator turtle didn''t hesitate to bite, as the small creature''s slender arms and legs couldn''t withstand its strength, and even its delicate waist would surely be bitten in two by the alligator turtle!


    With a crisp snap, the bite missed. The fuzzy little creature, nimble as lightning, swiftly retracted its paws, leaving the alligator turtle stunned by its own powerful biting force, causing its jaw to hurt and its head to spin.


    And as if that weren''t enough, the little creature then pped the alligator turtle''s head with the back of its hand, forcing the turtle to bow down.


    The p itself didn''t hurt; the little creature''s palm was soft, actually quiteforting against the head.


    But this was a tant provocation, not about pain but about the dignity of an alligator turtle!


    ```


    The alligator snapping turtle got angry and charged to fight with a life-and-death resolve!


    In a blur, the little guy had already jumped onto its back, and its small ws relentlessly scratched at the alligator snapping turtle''s big head that couldn''t retreat into its shell!


    This truly hurt!


    The alligator snapping turtle desperately twisted its body, its thick legs pattering, until it finally managed to throw off the creature on its back. But before it could rx for a few seconds, the little guy had jumped onto its back again.


    The alligator snapping turtle realized helplessly that this furry little thing was, although small and not particrly strong, so agile that it just couldn''t defend against it! It wanted to bite the intruder, but every attempt was easily dodged, while its opponent could use its sharp little ws to fiercely scratch it.


    It was like a demon!


    So, without any hesitation, the alligator snapping turtle turned tail and ran!


    As it fled, it looked back nervously!


    Fortunately, that little demon seemed scared of water, standing by theke, not daring to follow, and caterwauling at the water!


    The alligator snapping turtle went back into the water, not daring to linger, and sneaked along the bottom to the other side of theke, hoping to find a new direction to move its home.


    But as soon as it emerged from the water, it discovered in horror that not far away, another furry little ck demon was curiously staring at it¡­


    A sense of desperation washed over it.


    ...


    Suming leaned against the window and witnessed the spectacle. Each time the alligator snapping turtle came ashore, it was driven back into the water by the cat. At first, the turtle still dared to ''break through'' but each attempt was met with the cat brutally scratching its head.


    Soon enough, the alligator snapping turtle didn''t even dare to approach the shore and stayed in the water with half of its head poking out, vigntly watching the shore.


    A few of the cats had never seen a creature like the alligator snapping turtle, and their natural curiosity immediately exploded into action, running all around thekeside.


    "Hei! You lead the team, surround the smallke for me. We must not let this guy escape!"


    Sumingughed and used his spiritual power to issue instructions to the cats.


    It''s not the fear of theft, it''s the worry of the thief''s attentiveness. If the alligator snapping turtle really escaped, with the zoo being so vast and a reservoir not far outside, he truly wouldn''t be able to find it. And if the creature bore a grudge, it coulde for revenge at any time.


    Moreover, he couldn''t be sure whether the alligator snapping turtle had escaped or was still in theke. Therefore, as long as he didn''t catch the alligator snapping turtle, the boating business couldn''t get started.


    But as long as it was blocked by the cats in theke and couldn''t escape, then with his spiritual power gradually increasing, he would be able to catch it one day!


    Under Suming''smand, and driven by their own curiosity, Hei led several cats patrolling thekeside, like dutiful sentinels!


    ...


    Over the next two days, Suming went to work as usual, visiting all the animal areas in the zoo and making quite a few ''new friends''.


    In the zoo, the animals'' cries in both frequency and volume were different from usual these past few days. Many of the animals with higher intelligencemunicated with their own kind in their unique ways, expressing their confusion and curiosity about the strange ''creature'' that had arrived.


    That day, Suming switched to the afternoon shift with another colleague. As evening approached and it was getting dark, he passed by Monkey Mountain and saw the Monkey King squatting on top of it, vigorously waving at Suming, with the rescued baby monkey sitting on the Monkey King''s back, swaying back and forth.


    "Squeak squeak...gagaga..."


    "Are you calling me over?"


    Suming was familiar with the Monkey King, knowing the monkeys were quite intelligent and pleasant to get along with. Once acquainted, they posed no danger, so he simply entered Monkey Mountain through the keepers'' entrance.


    ```

 Chapter 16: 16: Hundred-Fruit Wine

    "Xiao Kong, you''ve recovered quite well."


    Suming patted the little monkey''s head. Just a few days ago, this guy was at death''s door, barely clinging to life, but was saved by spiritual power and after a few days of treatment in the infirmary, he was now jumping around energetically, a far cry from the same pitiful creature that had been stuck in the crevice of a rock.


    The little monkey bared its teeth at Suming and started to call out with a series of chirps, clearly very pleased with itself.


    This guy''s face was full of wrinkles; when it smiled, all the wrinkles would squeeze together, making it look like an olddy over a hundred and eighty years old, giving Suming a shiver of disgust.


    "Chirp... chitter... chirp..." The white-haired Monkey King somehow produced a section of bamboo tube and handed it to Suming.


    A refreshing and rich fragrance immediately wafted out from the bamboo tube.


    Suming took a look and saw that the bamboo tube contained arge half-barrel of emerald green liquid, which looked like liquor. The scent was even more fragrant than the Maotai that Suming had once drunk at Wang Hao''s ce.


    "Are you thanking me for saving Xiao Kong? Is this for me?" Suming tentatively asked the Monkey King.


    "Chitter... chirp..." The Monkey King nodded, then tilted its head back, ced its hands by its mouth, and mimed a ''drink'' gesture.


    "You mean, this stuff is drinkable?" Suming felt a bit amused.


    Seeing the Monkey King''s actions, coupled with the fragrant smell from the bamboo tube, it reminded him of a ''Hundred-Fruit Wine''.


    Not everyone may know what Hundred-Fruit Wine is, but this Hundred-Fruit Wine has another widely known name: Monkey Wine.


    Legend has it that wild monkeys in the mountains would gather various wild fruits and store them in tree hollows as a winter food reserve. If during that winter, there was no shortage of food or the monkeys happened to forget about their stored fruits, or the monkeys who stored the fruit met with an ident, such as dying or moving away, then the stored fruits in the tree hollow would ferment and turn into a whole hollow of Hundred-Fruit Wine.


    This is not just a legend; Hundred-Fruit Wine really does exist. In fact, "loving good liquor and color" is a trait shared by all primates.


    "Huainanzi" records a story where the King of Huainan, who loved to drink, would ce arge amount of melons and grains at the foot of the mountains every winter. When he returned to the mountains the following spring, he would often find many drunken monkeys, reeking of alcohol, lying all over the ground, easy to capture.


    The King of Huainan sent soldiers deep into the mountains where wild monkeys gathered. They encountered a giant tree, which could only be embraced by several men, with a hollow core. The fragrance of the wine could be smelled from a hundred yards away. Upon closer inspection, the tree was filled with ''extraordinary exotic liquor,'' which was the Hundred-Fruit Wine.


    Liu An, a polymath of the time, couldn''t stop praising the Hundred-Fruit Wine after drinking it and even presented some to the Han Emperor, earning a generous reward.


    Later, during the Rebellion of the Seven States, Liu Anmitted suicide after his revolt failed, and Huainan Kingdom was divided into three parts. The Han Emperor even had the hollow old tree transnted from Huainan Kingdom to Chang''an.


    However, thereafter the old tree never again bore a single drop of Hundred-Fruit Wine.


    Of course, it wasn''t the old tree itself that produced the wine; it was brewed by the monkeys, with the old tree merely serving as a container. The Han Emperor didn''t understand, thinking it was divine tree wine; by nting the tree but not raising monkeys, he naturally never tasted Monkey Wine again.


    In martial arts novels, starting from early authors toter ones like Jin Yong, Gu Long, and Liang Yusheng, Monkey Wine has appeared in their books with characters like Linghu Chong and Xiao Yuer having tasted it.


    However, such wild brews are the result of chance and were extremely rare even in ancient times, let alone in modern society where the natural environment has been severely damaged.


    These days, there are hardly any monkeys left, let alone Monkey Wine.


    Suming had seen ''Hundred-Fruit Wine'' for sale in the market, which was just a few types of fruits crushed and then artificially fermented to make fruit wine, not the same as the real Monkey Wine at all.


    The half-barrel of green liquid in front of him, could it possibly be Monkey Wine? Suming wasn''t quite sure and subconsciously looked around.


    Scattered around Monkey Mountain were plenty of half-eaten fruits, which seemed to be a plentiful source of ingredients for wine-making.


    "Chitter... chirp..." The Monkey King mimed the drinking motion again, urging Suming to drink the Monkey Wine.


    The fragrance from the bamboo tube kept teasing his nose, and Suming also found it incredibly tempting, unable to resist wanting to take a sip.


    But he was a bit unsure, this stuff certainly smelled good, but who knew if it was hygienic? Might there be germs or something, and if he drank it and it gave him diarrhea or an upset stomach, that would be one thing, but what if it caused partial paralysis or a stroke? How then?


    "Chirp..."


    ```


    Xiao Kong just couldn''t resist the temptation of the wine''s fragrance and leaped from the Old Monkey King''s back onto Suming, scurrying up to his shoulder with a swoosh while gripping his clothes. Extending a finger, Xiao Kong dipped it quickly into the bamboo tube for two drops of Monkey Wine, then eagerly sucked on that finger.


    The wrinkly little face instantly blossomed like a flower, as Xiao Kong joyously squealed, looking blissfully happy, and even stretched his head forward to get closer to the bamboo tube, wanting more Monkey Wine.


    Suming fed him a small sip.


    After finishing his drink, Xiao Kong smacked his lips, not only unaffected but even more energetic than before, his eyes round and wide, as red as his bottom.


    Xiao Kong continued to crane his neck for more drink, but the Old Monkey King swiftly reached out, grabbed Xiao Kong by the neck, and pulled him down, then pointed at the bamboo tube, signaling Suming to drink as well.


    "Should I give it a try?" Suming, too, was lured by the fragrance of the wine, and considering that Xiao Kong was fine after drinking it, perhaps it wouldn''t be a problem for him either.


    Still, it''s best to be cautious, drink less to start with¡ªafter all, even if it''s not hygienic, a little bit of wine shouldn''t be an issue.


    Suming dipped his finger into the wine and tentatively licked it.


    "Holy cow!"


    An odd sensation immediately bloomed on his tongue. The Monkey Wine was so fragrant and rich it was almost tangible, filling his mouth and giving him a sense of rity throughout his body.


    He took another small sip.


    This time it was even better, exactly like the descriptions in books¡ªafter just one sip of wine, it was as if he had consumed a Ginseng fruit, feeling refreshed through all 48,000 pores.


    Not only that, Suming was astonished to find that his spiritual power seemed to have increased slightly as well.


    Besides that, there were no other feelings of difort.


    "It can actually enhance spiritual power?!" Suming was surprised. The delicious taste was one thing but for him, the increase in spiritual power was far more important.


    The stronger the spiritual power, the more control one has in terms of range and quantity of animals that can be influenced. Suming could previously only increase his spiritual power little by little with continuous practice over time, never expecting such a shortcut.


    The slight amount of Monkey Wine he had just tasted brought an improvement to his spiritual power that exceeded the effect of an entire day of practice.


    If Monkey Wine helped to enhance spiritual power, it naturally couldn''t contain any viruses. Otherwise, having used spiritual power daily, he surely would have been done for by now.


    Suming forcefully restrained his urge to drink another sip, waited more than half an hour, and felt no difort. On the contrary, he was full of energy!


    So without further hesitation, he drained all of the Monkey Wine from the small bamboo tube in one go!


    "Ahhh, that''s the stuff!"


    Suming burped contentedly, the rich and fragrant Monkey Wine not only tasted sublime but also provided a significant boost to his spiritual power, a dual pleasure for both body and spirit!


    This wine must have had around thirty-odd degrees of alcohol because after finishing the little bamboo tube, Suming''s cheeks flushed a gentle red. He casually handed the bamboo tube back to the Old Monkey King and asked, beaming, "Is there any more?"


    As soon as he asked the question, Suming suddenly realized a problem: where did the winee from?


    Although Monkey Mountain was abundant in food, there wasn''t a ce for monkeys to make wine. With the scent of Monkey Wine so strong it could be smelled from meters away, had it been brewed on Monkey Mountain, the zookeepers who came and went daily would have surely discovered it long ago. How could it be his turn then?


    "Chatter chatter chatter..." the Old Monkey King gestured excitedly with his hands and feet.


    "Burp... I''m not a trash yer..." Suming, feeling a bit tipsy,ughed foolishly.


    "Chatter chatter chatter... squeak..."


    Standing on his two feet, the Old Monkey King positioned himself atop Monkey Mountain and let out a long howl, one that bore amanding air reminiscent of a fierce ape howling at the moon.


    From the various caves of Monkey Mountain, suddenly about twenty or thirty monkeys emerged.


    ```

 Chapter 17: 17 I will be very gentle

    After the monkeys appeared, they ran and jumped to the wall at the edge of Monkey Mountain and then, one by one, they stacked up like Arhats.


    These were the hardier adult monkeys from within Monkey Mountain, possessing considerable strength and with particrly agile movements. It didn''t take long before they managed, by following the perimeter wall, to construct a ''monkeydder'' several meters in height. The top of this monkeydder was less than half a meter from the top of the wall.


    By this time, the sky had turned dark, and the zoo had long since closed. There was no one around Monkey Mountain. Otherwise, if someone were to see this scene, it would certainly cause quite themotion.


    "Chitter chitter..."


    The Monkey King tugged at Suming, then leaped up to grab a branch, swinging on it like Tarzan. In just a few swings, he reached the side of the monkeydder, scurried up nimbly to the top, and with an effortless jump, clung onto the protective railing above the wall and flipped out from Monkey Mountain.


    "Jailbreak!"


    Suming was startled. If the Monkey King ran away, he wouldn''t be able to exin himself.


    Moreover, having lived for many years in the zoo where everything was provided for, the Monkey King had long lost the wild instincts of a wild animal. Out in the wild, although seemingly free, he would absolutely be unable to adapt.


    Whether for the public interest, private reasons, or for the Monkey King himself, loafing around in the zoo seemed like the best choice.


    Suming was about to catch up and use his spiritual power to control the Monkey King, bringing him back. Unexpectedly, after flipping over the wall, the Monkey King did not immediately flee but instead gestured Suming by waving his hand through the fence.


    "You want me to follow you?" Suming was slightly stunned, then he went through the zookeeper''s passage and squeezed out of Monkey Mountain.


    In no time at all, the Monkey King had run ahead several dozen meters. With one hand grabbing a branch and his other hand waiving at Suming, Suming quickly locked the exit door and hurried after him with big strides.


    So, with the Monkey King leading the way and Suming following behind, they traversed the wooded pathways of the zoo, heading towards the mountains at the back.


    Along the way, the Monkey King seemed to be extremely familiar with the zoo''s environment, taking familiar shortcuts through streets and alleys. When he asionally encountered a few zoo staff membersing towards them, he could hide in the shadows of the trees. Once Suming cheerfully greeted them and they were well past, the Monkey King leaped out again and continued running forward.


    After leaving the animal areas and entering the forest zone, they encountered no obstacles, and it wasn''t long before they reached the rear mountain wall of the zoo.


    The Monkey King scaled a tree and in a sh flipped over the perimeter wall.


    Suming hurriedly scrambled clumsily up the tree and reached the top of the wall.


    About to jump down, he suddenly felt a wave of dizziness.


    The rear mountain wall of the zoo was originally a mere two-meter-high earthen fence which tourists often scaled to sneak in without paying. Later, the zoo spent money to rebuild the wall, and now it towered over three meters high.


    Crouching on top of the wall, Suming gritted his teeth, aimed for a patch of grass on the ground outside the wall, and took a leap, jumping straight down.


    With a slight bend in his legs, Suming was prepared to take a tumble, but to his surprise, hended steadily. He swayed slightly and then stood up straight again.


    Suming was astonished, "Huh, my agility seems to have greatly improved!"


    Lots of unexinable things had happened recently, seemingly connected to his ''Animal Companion'' abilities.


    But at this moment he couldn''t be worried about those, as Suming caught up to the Monkey King once again.


    The Monkey King wasn''t in a hurry to escape, running a distance then pausing as if waiting for Suming to keep up. Soon, the two of them entered the back mountains swiftly.


    The zoo''s back mountain was an undeveloped tail end of the Qinling Mountain range, seldom visited by people, with no proper paths and covered in craggy stones and wild forests.


    Previously, Suming couldn''t have chased a monkey in the mountains, or even walked far at a leisurely pace by himself.


    But now, Suming was able to just about keep up with the Monkey King, indeed his agility had greatly increased over before, and his stamina seemed to be enhanced as well.


    Two figures, one man and one monkey, had been running through the mountains for nearly an hour. Just as Suming felt that his energy was reaching its limit, the Monkey King finally stopped, mbering up an old tree and sitting on it, swinging its tail back and forth.


    This ce was a small valley with a mountain stream babbling down, forming a small waterfall at a slope about two to three meters high, and below the waterfall was a tiny pond spanning several meters.


    Suming, however, had no time to admire the scenery, plopping down on the ground, he gasped for air, "I''m exhausted, huff huff huff..."


    "Chatter chatter chatter..." the Monkey King hopped around in the tree, pointing at therge tree below it.


    Only then did Suming notice that from the interior of therge tree wafted a rich fragrance, identical to that of the Hundred-Fruit Wine they had just sampled.


    Approaching the old tree, he saw its trunk, which would take two people to encircle with their arms, featured a hollowed-out section filled with lots of rotting, fermenting fruit.


    Drip-drop, a drop of emerald liquid fell from the hollow, the very Monkey Wine he had just tasted!


    Suming suddenly realized that this was where the old Monkey King made his wine!


    It seemed this fellow had long since found a way to escape the zoo, but clever as it was, it knew life in the zoo was carefree with food, drink, and no danger, like living in paradise. So, it continued to reside in the zoo and sneaked out to brew wine when bored.


    Underneath the tree sat an iron drum, apparently stolen from who knows where, collecting the drips of Hundred-Fruit Wine, and it was already nearly half full of the liquid.


    "Worthy of a creature that could evolve into a human, impressive!" Suming gave a thumbs up.


    The old Monkey King scratched its head, then pointed at the drum and then at Suming.


    "All for me?" Suming asked.


    "Squeak squeak..." the Monkey King nodded.


    "Generous! Your business is now my business from now on!" Sumingughed heartily;pared to humans, these animals were truly honorable.


    The iron drum was already filled with more than half a drum of Hundred-Fruit Wine, weighing probably around ten kilograms or so.


    The fermenting fruit would take half a day to produce a single drop of Hundred-Fruit Wine, and it was unclear how long it had taken to umte this much.


    "I''ll bring bottles tomorrow and take more wine back," Suming thought.


    "Squeak squeak squeak squeak squeak..." But the old Monkey King hastily scrambled to remove the rotten fruits from the tree hole, flinging them far into the forest.


    "Oh, you mean these fruits can''t produce any more wine?"


    "Squeak..." the Monkey King nodded, appearing to not only be adept at brewing wine but also quite experienced and skilled at it.


    With that in mind, there was no need to wait until tomorrow. Suming simply picked up the iron drum and, along with the Monkey King, returned to the zoo.


    The Monkey King didn''t need Suming to lead it and stealthily snuck back into Monkey Mountain to continue itszy, carefree days.


    Suming carried the drum of wine back to Whisperwind Pavilion and went to the convenience store to buy a case of c, emptied the c, and filled the bottles with Monkey Wine.


    He filled fourrge bottles and one small one.


    Outside the Fengshui Pavilion by thekeside, from Miao Yi to Miao Si, under Hei''s guidance, they patrolled responsibly, pairs of pupils glowing faintly in the darkness, watching the movements on theke''s surface.


    Swinging half a bottle of Hundred-Fruit Wine, Suming walked unsteadily onto thekeside tform andughed loudly at the water.


    "Hehehe, alligator turtles, oh alligator turtles, don''t be afraid, I''ll be very gentle!"

 Chapter 18: 18 The Big Prison

    Spiritual power entered the water and instantly spread out like an invisible, quickly expanding in all directions.


    At the bottom of the water, the alligator turtle, bullied by several cats all day, was sulking in the mud.


    It was a reptile, not an amphibian; though it wouldn''t die from holding its breath in the water, being able to stick its head out for air, it was still ufortable to stay in water all the time. With those cats around, it couldn''t even think of relocating to escape, let alone daring toe ashore to bask in the sun.


    If it were an ordinary timid turtle, it could always retreat into its shell when danger approached, and those demonic ws, sharp as they were, wouldn''t be able to do anything to its tough shell.


    But it just had to be a ''brave'' alligator turtle, with its head and limbs that couldn''t retract, leaving it no choice but to passively endure the cats'' attacks.


    The alligator turtle felt extremely aggrieved; it had finally found a small crawfish creeping over, stretched its neck and bit it, crunching the crawfish in two with a snap, chewing furiously as if to vent all its pent-up frustrations on the unlucky crustacean.


    As it was relishing its meal, a force loomed overhead and enveloped it, the familiar sense of terror instantly pervading the alligator turtle''s body!


    "Again?" The alligator turtle was somewhat contemptuous, thinking that damned human was really tiresome, attempting the same futile effort time after time. With this level of force, how could he possibly control me?


    It hurriedly struggled and thrashed, trying to break free of the spiritual power like it had before. But when it came to crunch time, the alligator turtle discovered with horror that this force was much more formidable than a few days ago; there was no escaping it!


    Once Suming had controlled the alligator turtle from the shore, he immediately felt the fierce bacsh from the turtle, the link to his spiritual power swaying and shaking.


    Suming was not only unfazed, but his eyes lit up with excitement.


    Although the alligator turtle struggled violently, the amplitude of the spiritual power''s vibrations was still within a controble range!


    This time he could definitely subdue the creature!


    A few secondster, the alligator turtle finally ceased resisting; arge ssh surfaced, and a shell asrge as a tabletop slowly emerged from the water.


    "Come on up!"


    Suming didn''t bother being polite and controlled the alligator turtle with his spiritual power, making it obediently crawl ashore.


    Seeing that it was about to fall into enemy hands and lose its freedom, bing a ve, the alligator turtle, in utter despair, wanted to make onest desperate struggle!


    An alligator turtle onnd is no less terrifying than one in the water! If that guy dared toe close, I''d bite him to death!


    But it had only thought this; before it could act, it found itself surrounded by precisely five furry little demons, terrorizing it!


    "Teach it a lesson!" Suming snapped his fingers.


    "Meow, meow, meow..."


    After a series of cat calls, the five cats, already curious about this big fellow and with Suming''smand, immediately swarmed it, scratching at the alligator turtle relentlessly and without direction.


    The alligator turtle tried in vain to bite, snap, snap, snap... a session of crisp sounds resonated as it kept chomping on air. It didn''t hurt even a single cat hair; instead, the force of its bite left it dizzy and disoriented.


    Ten minutester, the alligator turtle, whether from exhaustion or despair,y on the ground listlessly, letting the cats scratch and w,cking even the will to dodge,pletely submissive.


    Not counting the head and its crocodilian tail, the creature''s back shell alone was sixty to seventy centimeters in diameter. With its long crocodile-like tail, fierce head, and spiky shell, it looked quite intimidating.


    "Don''t y dead!"


    Suming boldly nudged the alligator turtle with his foot and, seeing that it didn''t move, he cautiously used spiritual power to bind it with rope.


    Animals like cats and dogs have a natural affinity for humans, and after a brief exchange through ''animal friendship,'' they''re usually obedient and well-behaved, even without the need for spiritual power. The alligator turtle, however, was stubborn and untamed, quite dangerous without the control of spiritual power.


    Suming nned to imprison it first and break it in, until it was thoroughly tamed.


    As for the alligator turtle''s ''future,'' Suming had ns.


    This guy was caught not because he was weak, but because he encountered his own nemesis. Without the ability of the animal''s friend, such a big alligator turtle would be almost invincible in the water and could easily take on three to five grown men.


    Even onnd, the alligator turtle''s lethality is extremely terrifying. Without being prepared, an average person would definitely not be a match for it.


    If it could be tamed, it could serve as a security guard, residing in theke and protecting the safety around Whisperwind Pavilion. If any unaware thief were to visit, the alligator turtle could surely give them a ''surprise''.


    The area around Fengshui Pavilion is surrounded by water, so if a thief foolishly decided to take the watery path... it''s only fair to deem that person as not having umted virtue in their past life.


    As fate would have it, the bighead catfish returned to theke to be the dominator there, while the former dominator¡ªthe alligator turtle¡ªwas tied up like a rice dumpling and thrown into arge jar to serve time.


    Two cats were squatting at the edge of therge jar, acting as jailers; whenever the alligator turtle misbehaved, they pped its head.


    Sumunicated with the alligator turtle using spiritual power for a while. The ability of the animal''s friend could reach straight to the heart and nature of an animal, and with the connection of spiritual power, it was impossible for the animal to deceive Su. This guy didn''t seem to resist, probably resigning to fate since it had always been raised by humans.


    But it didn''t show much affection to Su either, seemingly bearing some resentment.


    Having a nice time eating fish, swimming around, being boss¡ªthen suddenly getting kidnapped, its life went from heaven to hell in an instant. Any creature would feel resentful in that situation.


    Su threw a strip of beef into the jar as the alligator turtle''s dinner for the day, then went online to order a bag of cat food; the cats had worked hard earning their keep, not only catching mice but also helping him with the alligator turtle. They deserved a good reward.


    He took a photo of the alligator turtle with his phone and sent it to Wang Hao.


    "Woah, how did you catch it? I was nning to buy a fishing and have a go at it," Wang Hao eximed in astonishment.


    "I used meat to lure it up. Let''s talk business, we can start preparing to open the boating business," Su texted back.


    "Oh, I discussed it with my old man. He''s quite supportive. Send me your card number, and I''ll transfer you eight thousand yuan tomorrow as the start-up capital," Wang Hao said.


    "6222..."


    Su sent his Industrial and Commercial Bank card number to Wang Hao, then returned to his bedroom, turned on theputer, and opened a Word document to start working on a file.


    ...


    That morning, Mr. Song was processing work when someone knocked on the door.


    "Come in," Mr. Song said without lifting his head.


    Su walked in, holding a stack of documents, and said with a smile, "Good morning, Director."


    "Ah, Su," Mr. Song put down his pen and nodded to Su, "Take a seat. Has work been going smoothly these past few days?"


    "Mrs. Tong, Mr. Peng, and my colleagues have all been very supportive, everything is great, and I really like it here," Su said.


    "That''s good to hear. Our zoo has rtively simple interpersonal rtionships. Keep up the good work. What brings you here?"


    "Oh, Mrs. Tong mentionedst time about leasing the boats, so I did some preparatory work and thought about contracting the few boats by the littleke," Su exined.


    To lease the boats, there had to be a process, and Mr. Song''s approval and signature were needed. Su was here today to discuss this matter.


    "That''s true, leasing is possible. Previously, the boats were contracted by the employees who used to live there, but after they left their jobs, the boats fell into disuse," Mr. Song nodded.


    "Here is a proposal I''ve made, including the financial viability of the lease and management ns, for your review," Su said while handing over the documents he''d brought with him to Mr. Song.


    Mrs. Tong hadn''t mentioned needing a proposal, but Su felt that, as a new temp worker and a young person, just asking to contract the boats without anything to show¡ªsimply relying on words¡ªmight not be convincing enough for Mr. Song.


    Since he was dealing with this matter seriously, he had to show the right attitude first. To convince others to give him an opportunity, he needed to present something or at least an attitude that could be trusted.


    "You made a proposal? Hm, not bad, not bad, let me take a look," Mr. Song said, somewhat surprised as he nced at Su. He took the proposal, pulled out a pair of reading sses from a drawer, and began to read intently.

 Chapter 19: 19 Ways to Generate Revenue

    Suming was also not certain about the quality of the business n. Apart from the capabilities of his animal-loving friends, he was just an average college graduate, after all. It was impossible toe up with an extremely mature business n overnight.


    But there was still that saying, attitude is key. The proposal was quite meticulous and organized, Suming had written various essays and papers in university after all.


    The business n wasn''t long, just three pages. After Mr. Song read it through once, he went over it a second time before putting down the n, nodding at Suming with some approval, "I hadn''t realized, young man, that you are quite dedicated."


    "Actually, to be honest with you, I''ve never done business before. But my father told me that everything goes from not knowing to knowing¡ªthe key is whether you''re willing to put in the effort and whether you can endure hardships," Suming said.


    "That''s true."


    Mr. Song took off his sses, pondered for a moment, then lifted his head to look at Suming, "Young man, you are very fortunate. If you were a permanent employee of the zoo, it wouldn''t be convenient to take on a contract. Your status as a temporary worker has actually helped you."


    "So, are you saying that you agree?" Suming brightened slightly, while contracting the boat rental wouldn''t make too much money, it was at least expected to exceed his sry, and it was a risk-free deal.


    "Agreed. However, there is one thing about your n that needs to be changed..."


    Mr. Song tapped the desktop and smiled, "You are just starting out, so for boat maintenance, fuel, and the like, which all require investment, you won''t need to pay the park. After three months, then you can pay the park 30% of the ie."


    Suming was stunned¡ªthere was such a good deal? Mrs. Tong had told him about splitting the profits fifty-fifty with the park.


    "But there is something I need to remind you of, now that you''ve taken on the contract, you must make money. If, after three months, the boats don''t have any decent ie, or even if they just sit unused, that won''t do," Mr. Song said with a more serious tone.


    That was something Suming hadn''t expected Mr. Song to bring up.


    ording to Wang Hao''s estimation, the total ie from the eight boats could be around seventeen or eighteen thousand a month, which would be profitable.


    But that was merely a theoretical projection, and moreover one based on the boat rentals in downtown parks. The zoo was rtively remote, and most visitors came mainly to see the animals¡ªthey might not necessarilye to row boats. So whether the boat business could actually make money was still an open question.


    Suming initially thought that even if no one came to row the boats, at worst, he wouldn''t lose money, he simply wouldn''t earn any.


    But ording to Mr. Song''s words, it wasn''t enough just to make money, he also needed to ensure that a certain number of visitors utilized the boats.


    "You must set a standard, right? What usage rate do I need to achieve?" Suming asked after some thought.


    Mr. Song pushed up his sses and said, "As for the specific standard, it''s hard to say right now. However, I can tell you that the employee who lived in your ce before, when he took on the boat renting, most of the time, most of the boats were empty, and his ie for three or four months didn''t even reach ten thousand yuan. If you end up like him, that definitely won''t work."


    Three or four months and not even ten thousand yuan? Put another way, the director''s expectations weren''t too high; as long as there was an ie of three or four thousand per month, it should suffice.


    The problem was, the previous employee hadn''t made ten thousand in several months, which only indicated that very few people were interested in rowing. Why would Suming believe he could attract visitors?


    The zoo was still the same zoo, and the boats were still the same boats. To increase revenue, he needed toe up with a strategy,e up with some gimmicks!


    "How about it?" Mr. Song asked.


    "Okay," Suming nodded. There is a fifty percent chance if I try; without trying, there''s no chance at all. It''s not a difficult calction.


    "Haha, young man, you have ambition. Good, go call Mr. Tong over. I''ll instruct her to handle the contracting procedures for you. Once they''repleted, they''ll be given directly to you," Mr. Song said.


    After leaving the director''s office, it wasn''t long before Mrs. Tong arrived.


    "Director, I heard about the contracting from Su. You agreed?" Mrs. Tong came in and closed the door of the office.


    "Yes, the young fellow has ideas and the energy to follow through, so let him have a try," Mr. Song answered.


    "But, haven''t contracts always been split fifty-fifty in the past?"


    Mrs. Tong was somewhat puzzled. As the director of the director''s office, Mrs. Tong was essentially Mr. Song''s assistant and confidante. She had followed Mr. Song for nearly a decade and spoke her mind without much reservation in front of him.


    Mr. Song did not directly answer Mrs. Tong''s question but stood up and pointed to a map of the zoo on the wall behind him.


    "Our zoo covers a vast area, but the real animal zones ount for only a third. The rest are forest areas, scenic spots, arge artificialke, several substantial unusednds, and even mountains connected behind. The government has invested a lot in our zoo and has built a lot of infrastructure. But in reality, most ces are hardly utilized effectively."


    "Do you mean to use the zoo''s unique conditions to turn thoserge idle ces into sources of revenue?" Mrs. Tong asked tentatively.


    "Yes, I''ve only nowe to understand this principle, and it''s somewhatte," he admitted.


    Mr. Song chuckled bitterly, "You see, my background is in academia; I''m okay with conducting research, but managing a zoo is quite a stretch for me. When ites to the economy, I''mpletely out of my depth; my thinking can''t keep up with the market economy anymore. I never thought about this before, but now I see, failing to keep up with the trends means eventually getting eliminated. Look at our animals; they can barely get enough to eat. If a thief got in, we wouldn''t even have the money to rece a set of surveince cameras."


    "This is no small matter. Funds, policies, manpower... we are entangled in myriadplexities, and no one in our zoo knows how to handle these. Besides, we are a public welfare entity, and it''s not easy to generate revenue. We can''t just build a factory, can we?"


    "That''s why I''m thinking of letting the younger generation have a go, starting with Su''s boating service, and gradually begin to experiment. The boating business is not significant; at most, the zoo wouldn''t earn much from it, so it might be better to give up some benefits and support Su. If he does well and finds a way to generate revenue that suits the zoo, we can expand the scale. If it doesn''t work out, we can retract with minimal loss," Mr. Song exined.


    "Director, you''re not thinking of letting Su contract other parts of the park, are you? He doesn''t have that much money and, being so young, hecks experience," Mrs. Tong remarked. It wasn''t that she had any objections to Suming; she was simply speaking the in truth.


    "Of course, he''s not ready now, which is why I''m also evaluating him, including his abilities and character. If he''s capable and trustworthy, then I can gradually let him contract more areas besides the animal zones. As long as it''s generally for public welfare, I, as the director, still have that authority," Mr. Song said.


    Mrs. Tong sighed and mumbled, "Ah, state-owned units, good in some ways and not so good in others. It''s troublesome to get anything practical done; there''s pressure from all sides. We''ve outsourced some areas before, but it always ended in a stalemate, unresolved."


    "Hey, I''vee to terms with it. This old face of mine still has some clout, and I have a few old friends whose words carry weight. If we can truly find a way to improve the zoo this time, I''ll pull some strings. I''ll shoulder any pressure we face. Once we show results, the higher-ups will have nothing to say. They might even use us as a positive example for publicity," he mused.


    Mr. Song imed he didn''t understand politics, yet these words revealed a good grasp of the essence of bureaucracy.


    "Old director, you''ve devoted your life to our zoo," Mrs. Tong remarked sentimentally.


    "To tell you the truth, the restructuring of our zoo and self-sufficiency are already finalized; the official document with the red header wille out within a year. I''m close to retirement, but you all have a long way to go. You''ve followed me faithfully for over a decade, and I hope you all can live well. Even if not for you, I can''t disregard the welfare of these animals in the park; nearly half of them were brought here by me. In the end, one must start well and finish well," Mr. Song said.

 Chapter 20: 20 Business Is Hard

    After Suming finalized the contracting procedures, he made a call to request "Mr. Yang," rmended by Wang Hao, to inspect the pleasure boats.


    Mr. Yang used to work at the Parks Bureau in his early years butter resigned to contract the boating business in the city parks. Wang Hao''s father was in charge of the city''sndscaping work, and in his eyes, Wang Hao was like a crown prince. Having been notified in advance by Wang Hao, Mr. Yang didn''t hesitate and immediately brought his tools and hurried over.


    Eight boats in total, two rowboats, and the rest were those round bumper boats with water guns installed at the bow.


    After inspection by Mr. Yang, these boats were still mostly usable. The rowboats needed some minor repairs and reinforcement, and then buying some life jackets and fuel would be enough to start operating.


    "So, after I go back, I''ll send someone to buy the materials. By tomorrow at thetest, I''ll have someonee over and fix these boats for you. As for life jackets, I have plenty of them and will bring them over together. For the fuel, I''ll give you a supplier''s number. I''m a regr customer so you can mention my referral and get a 20% discount, and there won''t be any counterfeit goods."


    It''s simple when you have connections. Mr. Yang had a lot of experience in running boating businesses, and he had considered things Suming hadn''t even thought of.


    "Thank you for the trouble, Mr. Yang. Here''s a small token of appreciation." Suming handed Mr. Yang a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes.


    Although Mr. Yang came on ount of Wang Hao''s regard, he was after all working for him, and he might need his help in the future, so it was necessary to maintain a good rtionship. Mr. Yang probably wouldn''t ept money, so giving him a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes was not too shabby and conveyed the intended meaning.


    "You''re too polite; we''re all friends here. If there''s any issue with the boats in the future, just call me directly." Mr. Yang happily put the Zhonghua cigarettes into his bag.


    Early the next day, Mr. Yang sent a handyman who repaired the rowboats, brought a few barrels of fuel, and tested all eight boats on theke. He also left behind twenty sets of life jackets to ensure everything was safe.


    Suming even went on the boats himself to y for a while. The operation of the bumper boats was very simple, with a steering wheel to control direction and one button to start and another to stop; even a fool could operate them.


    Just as he finished up, he received a phone call.


    "Hello, is this Comrade Su?" A maic middle-aged male voice came from the other end.


    "Yes, I''m Suming. Who is this?" Suming recognized the voice as somewhat familiar.


    The middle-aged man chuckled, "I''m Zhao Yun, you know, from that day on Monkey Mountain..."


    "Oh yes, hello, hello, how''s Chengcheng doing?" Suming remembered now; this man was Chengcheng''s father. That day, the man had given him a business card filled with titles, a sessful middle-aged uncle in his career.


    His name was quite memorable, as it sounded like Zhao Zilong - the White Horse and Silver Spear''s Zhao Yun.


    "I took both mother and daughter to the hospital for a check-up. Nothing serious, just a fright. They''ll be fine after a couple days of rest. These past few days, Chengcheng has been mentioning you repeatedly. Her mother and I discussed it, and we''d like to invite you over for a meal to express our gratitude. When would you be avable?" Zhao Yun said.


    Such gratitude was difficult to decline, and after thinking for a moment, Suming replied, "Well... how about next month? I''m sorry, I''ve contracted some small projects at the zoo recently, and it''s just too busy for me to take time off."


    "Of course, that''s no problem," Zhao Yun paused, then asked, "Do you need any help with the project?"


    "Not at the moment, if I can''t manage, I''ll ask for your help," Suming said.


    "Alright then, we''ll see you then."


    "Okay, let''s settle on that for now, please say hello to Chengcheng and your wife for me."


    After hanging up the phone, Suming went to municate'' with the alligator snapping turtle again. The creature had softened its stance but was still far frompletely tamed.


    Suming was not in a hurry, as his spiritual power progressed rapidly after having the Hundred-Fruit Wine. Once his spiritual power was strong enough, he could use it to overpower andpletely subdue this fellow.


    It was somewhat simr to warfare; if strength wasparable, strategy was required, but when the gap in strength was toorge, all strategies were nonsense, and overpowering the enemy directly was all that was needed.


    Hundred-Fruit Wine could not endlessly enhance spiritual power; drinking just a small cup a day was the limit for boosting spiritual power. After that, a period was needed to digest and merge this enhanced spiritual power, and drinking more would be futile.


    Even so, the effect was far beyond the normal speed of improvement.


    Early the next morning, Suming tore off all the canvas from the boat, and the boat rental business was officially open for business.


    ...


    "Director Song, Su''s boat rental business officially began yesterday."


    Mr. Song was writing a report, and upon hearing Mrs. Tong''s words, he smiled, looked up, and asked, "How is business?"


    "Not so good."


    Mrs. Tong shook her head and said, "You know that our zoo doesn''t attract many visitors to begin with, and these days without any holidays, there are even fewer. His spot is out of the way, and visitors usually don''t go in that direction. ording to him, he saw not a single visitor all day yesterday."


    "Finding ways to generate revenue isn''t easy, you know. We''ve outsourced it before, and it still always went bust in the end. I reckon that in the end, Su likely won''t make any money either," Mrs. Tong said.


    But Mr. Song was much calmer: "Don''t worry, let''s wait and see, it''s only been a day after all."


    ...


    In Mingqing Residence, Mr. Peng and Suming were sitting opposite each other, with several dishesid out on the table in front of them.


    Mr. Peng poured Suming a cup of wine, smiled, and asked, "I heard your boat rental isn''t attracting many people?"


    "Mingqing Residence" is a charged attraction in the zoo,prised of over a dozen buildings fashioned in the Ming and Qing dynasties'' styles, nestled in a secluded woond. Inside, there are exhibits of imitation antiques as well as introductions to famous figures from the Ming and Qing eras in Yangchuan City.


    Mr. Peng lived in one of the rooms there, usually collecting admission fees. However, to connoisseurs, the so-called Mingqing Residence was but a joke for entertaining children, far from authentic. Coupled with the rtively expensive tickets, it saw pitifully few visitors, sometimes going days without anyone paying to visit.


    His sry wasn''t high, his spouse had died of cancer years ago, and he had a daughter in college, so he was always looking to save money. He even grew his own vegetables, cultivating arge vegetable garden behind Mingqing Residence. The vegetables they were eating were nted by Mr. Peng himself.


    It was only aftering to Mr. Peng''s ce did Suming realize that the zoo staff''s amodations were quite decent. While his own ce was adorned with pavilions and water terraces, Mr. Peng''s could barely be considered quaint and charming in the ancient style.


    Suming clinked sses with Mr. Peng, downed his in one gulp, and pursed his lips as he said, "It''s probably because it''s just opened, not many people know that they can go boating. I can''t exactly advertise in the newspapers for such a small business."


    "Advertising is so expensive, definitely unnecessary. You can make some signposts, put them around the park, and visitors will know there''s a ce they can go boating," Mr. Peng nodded.


    "Master, to tell you the truth, that''s exactly why I came here. I don''t know carpentry, so I wanted to ask for your help," Suming scratched his head.


    "Hey, you should have said so earlier, it''s simple. After we eat, I''ll help you make them," Mr. Peng said.

 Chapter 21: 21: Give the Money to the Cat!

    A family of three emerged from the Peacock Garden, the young wife clinging to her husband with one hand and pulling their chubby son with the other, a picture of happiness.


    "Hey, hubby, let''s go boating!" The wife swayed her husband''s arm.


    The husband nced at her and said, "Where can you go boating in a zoo?"


    "Look, look, it''s written on the sign, ''Boating Spot''."


    The wife pointed to a wooden sign by the road, its paint bright and clearly new.


    "What''s so fun about boating? You''re an adult, why are you acting like a child?" The husband shook his head, unimpressed.


    "Come on, please, I really want to go boating!" The wife cooed and gently shook her husband''s arm.


    The chubby son joined in, pouting, "Daddy daddy, I want to go boating too, I want to go boating!"


    "Ah, I can''t with you two, fine, fine, let''s go boating... "


    ...


    Outside Tiger Hill, several young students followed the signs to the boating area, heading towards Whisperwind Pavilion.


    "I really don''t get it, what''s so good about boating? Just floating on the water..."


    "Well, we''re just bored, killing time."


    "Then you might as well go boating in the city park, they even have motorboats there, how thrilling! Coming to the zoo just for boating, are you guys sick or something..."


    ...


    At thekeside of Shuixie Lake at Whisperwind Pavilion, eight boats were lined up, tethered to the small dock by ropes.


    There was also arge sign by the dock.


    "Self-serve boating, forty per hour, no more than one hour at a time, be safe, no roughhousing allowed!"


    The family from outside the Peacock Garden emerged from the woods and the husband, upon seeing the sign, frowned slightly, "What''s this ''self-serve boating,'' and why is it so expensive? The bumper boats in the city park are only thirty, and they''re charging forty here? Forget it, let''s not do this!"


    "Mom, look, cats!"


    The chubby son''s attention, however, had been captured by several cats roaming by theke.


    Some of the cats were lounging by the water soaking up the sun, some stood at the water''s edge, gingerly reaching a paw into theke to test the water. And onerge ck cat sat motionless on a big metal box, eyes wide, vigntly surveying its surroundings.


    Pouting, the wife said, "Ohe on, it''s only ten bucks more, we''re already here, you''re no fun. Look how nice this ce is, with hills and water, and cats too!"


    "Cats are everywhere, just a few stray cats..."


    The husband was somewhat helpless, but couldn''t argue with his wife and son, so he relented, "Alright, alright, ten bucks then. Hello, is anyone there? We want to go boating!"


    There wasn''t a soul around; he called out a few times before a young man in blue work clothes finally ran out from the Fengshui Pavilion.


    "Hey, we want to go boating," the husband waved at Suming.


    Suming hurried over, "Sorry, I need to run to the Wolf Pen. If you want to boat, just give the money to those cats."


    "What? Give money to cats? Did I hear that right?"


    The man was stunned and when he came back to his senses, Suming had already gone off in the distance.


    He looked at the cats, then at the retreating Suming, and finally turned to his wife in a daze, saying, "That guy''s got screws loose, right?"


    "Yeah, what does ''give the money to the cats'' even mean?" The wife was also puzzled.


    But the chubby son innocently put his hand on his hip and pointed at the yful cats not far away, saying in a babyish voice, "You two big dummies, hurry up and give the boating money to those cats over there!"


    "Silly son, how can cats take money?" The wife touched her son''s head,ughing lovingly.


    "This is ridiculous. Let''s not bother, since no one''s here, we might as well enjoy a free ride."


    The husband didn''t think too much, saw that indeed there was no one around, and went to untie one of the bumper boats.


    As he approached the rental boat, two cats that were ying with water nearby suddenly ran over, blocking his way to the vessel, arching their backs and holding their tails straight up, meowing at him continuously.


    "Huh? What''s this about? Do they actually want money or something?" The husband was taken aback,


    "Meow meow meow meow!"


    Miao San and Miao Si also gathered around, standing guard by the mooring rope, and even waved their little paws at him, looking fierce as if they were saying, "This mountain is mine, I nted this tree, no money, no entry!"


    "Dad, just give them the money!"


    The husband actually took out a fifty and, as if joking, shook it at Miao Yi, thenughed and said to his wife, "I don''t believe this cat can actually understand money?"


    "You are so bad, deliberately giving a fifty, do you think the cat will give you change for ten?" His wife cooed, gently pping him on the arm, but her eyes were filled with curiosity as she continued to watch Miao Yi.


    Unexpectedly, Miao Yi actually opened his mouth, grabbed the fifty from her husband, and turned to run.


    "No way, it took my money and ran?" The husband chuckled in disbelief.


    But Miao Yi didn''t run far, instead, he stuffed the money into a box beneath therge ck cat, Hei, then took another bill from the box and ran back, handing it to her husband.


    "Hey! It actually can make change!" The husband stared at the ten-dor bill in his hand, his eyes nearly falling out of their sockets.


    The young wife wasughing so hard she was shaking like a leaf, "Oh, this is too funny, give it another note, let''s try again!"


    While speaking, she took out a hundred-dor bill and gave it to Miao Er.


    Miao Er did exactly the same and brought back sixty in change.


    The family was thrilled, finding this even more entertaining than a circus.


    The couple, both young and driven by curiosity, gave money several times, and each time the cats managed to bring back the exact change. Then they began to intentionally take out bills of various denominations to tease the cats.


    "Heh, if you give it eight five-dor notes, it won''t recognize them..."


    "Let''s try again, two ten-dor notes and a twenty, hahaha, that should confuse them..."


    "Wonder if it knows how to handle coins..."


    The family was having a st, and eventually discovered that the cats weren''t all-powerful; they could only recognize the same denomination up to three notes, and they would only take forty dors at a time.


    They couldn''t figure out different denominations or addition and subtraction; they could only be given a hundred or fifty.


    "That''s quite reasonable; it shows they are well trained. Otherwise, they''d be supernatural cats!"


    No sooner had the husband finished speaking than he pped his forehead as if remembering something, his expression turning to puzzled doubt, "Hang on, that''s not right. We haven''t even boarded the boat yet, and these little guys have conned over five hundred from us!"


    "Hahaha, we''re really a pair of fools!" His wife didn''t seem too upset about the money, continuing to record the cats taking the money with her phone, stillughing uncontrobly.


    After spending over five hundred, the family''s curiosity was finally satisfied, and they stopped teasing the cats, boarding a bumper boat.


    The plump son still wanted to y with the cats, but after taking the money, the felineszily refused to move.


    "Greedy little devils!" grumbled the plump son, stretching out his hand to his mother, "Mom, give me fifty bucks!"


    The husband red at him: "Stop it, we''ve already spent over five hundred, that''s enough to buy a cat..."


    ...


    Not long after, the group of students arrived.


    "Wow, forty bucks an hour? That''s so expensive!"


    "We''re here now, might as well enjoy it," a girl coaxed.


    "Where''s the manager, anyone here? We want to row a boat!" the students called out loudly, yet there was no sign of any manager.


    On theke, the chubby son curled his hands into a megaphone shape, leaned over the side of the bumper boat excitedly, and shouted to the students, "Give the money to the cats, give the money to the cats!"


    "Huh?" The students looked utterly confused.


    "Meow..."

 Chapter 22: 22 Kickoff to a Good Start!

    In Whisperwind Pavilion, Suming opened a bag of cat food and poured it into a row of small bowls in front of him.


    Hei, along with Miao Yi to Miao Si, each cat had its own bowl and buried their heads in a fierce bout of eating.


    "Good job, everyone has worked hard."


    Sitting cross-legged on the bed like some old-schoolndlord, Suming opened the cashbox and counted it, totaling eight hundred and eighty dors.


    Suming didn''t go far today. It was the first day the boat service started, and he wasn''tfortable being hands-off as the boss. After a brief visit to the Wolf Pen, he immediately returned and hid in a nearby forest to secretly observe the situation on theke.


    Today, only six groups of tourists came, and although the total ie wasn''t much, every visitor paid to row the boat. Among them, many people, like that young couple, spent extra money for the sake of ying with the cats.


    These people would be free advertisers. As more and more people came in the future, ie would steadily increase.


    Rowing itself was nothing special. To attract people, one needed some gimmicks. Suming had been training these cats to collect money for thest few days. Not only was it novel, but it also fit well with the zoo''s own characteristics.


    Theoretically, pets like cats and dogs could indeed be trained to recognize money simply, and even give change.


    Of course, this required long-term professional training and was often only possible for professional circuses.


    At first, Suming couldn''t do it either; his spiritual power was insufficient. However, after obtaining Monkey Wine, his spiritual power surged each day, and eventually, he managed to teach these cats to recognizemon denominations and do simple arithmetic.


    With Suming''s current level of spiritual power, if he wished, he could even teach the cats to recognize all denominations of money and give change proficiently, but that would be too shocking for the world.


    "And you, although you didn''t contribute much, you did put in some hard work. Go and get some air, but don''t you dare bite that big catfish," Suming snapped his fingers at the alligator turtle peeking in from outside the door.


    As Suming grew stronger each day, the alligator turtle also became more and more obedient, even showing a pleasing attitude today.


    As a reward, Suming allowed it one hour a day to roam free in theke. If it behaved, the roaming time would increase in the future; if not, Suming certainly had ways to deal with it.


    The grateful alligator turtle nodded vigorously and took off. Suming discreetly assigned a sliver of his spiritual power to it, keeping an eye on its movements at all times.


    "Hey, Su! OMG, how did you do it? Those cats are incredible!" Wang Hao was excited on the other end of the phone.


    "How did you know?" Suming was taken aback, he hadn''t mentioned the cats'' feat to this kid.


    "Go and have a look. It''s all over the Yangchuan forum!" Wang Hao said.


    The Yangchuan forum was a semi-official forum in Yangchuan City with several hundred thousand registered users, most of whom lived and worked in Yangchuan. It was quite well-known.


    Suming essed the forum and immediately saw a pinned post at the very top.


    "Zoo Spotted With Money-collecting Cats!"


    The poster seemed to be the couple from earlier that day.


    "So, Her Majesty I took my husband and daughter to the zoo today..."


    With pictures to prove the story, there were more than a dozen photos of the cats collecting and giving change, as well as a serious Hei guarding the cash box. Apanied by the photos, the post recounted their family''s experience of the day.


    The post was made at 7:30 PM, and now, just three and a half hourster at 10:30 PM, the followingments had already exceeded one thousand, and the view count was nearing the whopping one hundred thousand mark.


    "Is this for real, or did a circus cat escape?"


    "Surely they must be trained, right? Cats are just pets after all, so what''s so surprising?"


    "You moron above, try training one and let''s see!"


    "The person above clearly never had a pet. It''s difficult, yes, but they can indeed be trained! Go search on Baidu, ''American Golden Retriever shops at the supermarket'' and you''ll understand. Besides, these are zoo cats after all."


    "The kitties are so cute and adorable... I''m melting..."


    "The sister above is soaked, guys below, remember to bring an umbre!"


    ```


    "Scram!"


    "Can we not derail the topic, please? We''re talking about cats, what do chicks have to do with this?"


    "The person above is a hooligan..."


    "A ssmate of mine also went today, they can testify, those cats were awesome!"


    "I''m going to the zoo tomorrow to row a boat and see these money-collecting cats for myself, anyone want to join?"


    "Count me in, count me in..."


    Suming was very satisfied. The publicity had the desired effect of drawing attention, serving as free advertising, while also keeping the sensation within the realm of what people would find believable.


    Apart from curiosity, there were also some voices of skepticism in the forum.


    "If there''s no staff around, who will save someone if they fall into the water?"


    "Is there a risk of someone stealing the money box?"


    "Cats can''t possibly tell real money from fake money, right? What if someone uses counterfeit bills?"


    Suming wasn''t bothered by the skepticism. In this day and age, the more people questioned and argued about something, the more popr it would be. It was only if no one cared that there would be a real problem. As for the issues raised in the posts, he had of course considered them all.


    ...


    Training the cats with spiritual power had been exhausting these past two days. Suming had switched to the afternoon shift today, nning to catch up on some serious sleep.


    He was woken up before ten in the morning by the noise from outside the pavilion.


    "I really want to stay in bed a bit longer!" Suming yawned. Living in the park had its drawbacks¡ªvisitors constantlying and going meant it could get noisy, and he couldn''t just send them away.


    Since he couldn''t sleep anymore anyway, he got up, washed up haphazardly, threw on a coat, and stepped outside the pavilion.


    He saw that all eight boats were already out on theke. Not too far from the shore, a group of visitors was lining up, furiously snapping pictures with their cell phones of the cats collecting money. The people at the front of the line weren''t in a hurry to board the boats; instead, they waved colorful bills at the cats, teasing them.


    Not far away, groups of two or three visitors were approaching from the forest path, evidently also drawn by the fame of the spectacle.


    It wasn''t until five in the afternoon, when Suming returned from feeding the animals and the zoo was about to close, that he reluctantly made an appearance outside the pavilion and persuaded the crowd to disperse.


    He counted the money in the boxes and it was close to three thousand!


    Which meant that the eight boats had been busy for the whole eight-hour day without a single break, and there was also a significant amount of ''tip money'' for the cats.


    That evening, the forum blew up with posts about the ''money-collecting cats'', practically taking over the board.


    The situation forced the moderator to intervene with a harsh announcement: anyone who started a new thread about the ''money-collecting cats'' would be muted for three days.


    "Damn, the mods are so heartless!"


    ...


    "Mr. Song, I never imagined Su had such a talent. You should have seen those cats he trained; they''re as smart as little humans, so empathetic. I want to ask him for one to take home. I''m just too shy to ask."


    With a cheerful expression, Mrs. Tong sat in the director''s office chattering, "You see, not only is his area crowded, but it''s also brought the whole zoo to life."


    "These are just the hot moments; if it stabilizes and we retain even half of our current numbers, that would be excellent," Mr. Song replied with a smile.


    Even so, the once-abandoned little boat business had turned a profit after just a few days of operation and had also helped to increase zoo ticket sales, which was a pleasant surprise for Mr. Song.


    He handed Mrs. Tong a business card: "Yangchuan Television Station''s ''Life of the People'' program wants to interview Su. This is the reporter''s card. Please look after them."


    ```

 Chapter 23: 23 Television Interview

    As the saying goes, "If you call a person a thousand times and they don''t respond, but if you have what they want they''lle knocking on your door." If Suming had to pay for advertisements for the cruise, he wouldn''t even be able to afford the fees if he sold his pants, and there was no guarantee that people would take the bait; yet, after the reputation of the money-collecting cat spread, the television station actually took the initiative toe for an interview.


    "Since when did you be a reporter? Aren''t you going to school anymore?"


    By the edge of the smallke, Suming, with a surprised expression, looked at the tall, fair-faced ''reporter'' in front of him.


    Not far away, a staff member wearing a Yangchuan Television Station vest was carrying a camera, and Mrs. Tong, the director of the zoo''s office, was luring several cats together with a bag of snacks,


    "Pssh, just because you''re working doesn''t mean I can''t do an internship," she retorted.


    Nangong Yan was dressed in a pink suit today, with light makeup, a bit less lively and spicy than Suming remembered her, but she appeared more dignified and steady.


    However, this girl''s actions were anything but dignified; she yanked Suming to one side, pretended to check the script, while secretly pinching his arm hard.


    "Humph, wasn''t it someone who said that once they found a job, they would treat me to dinner?"


    Suming''s mouth twitched in pain as he quickly tried to offer an apologetic smile, "I''ve been really busytely, totally slipped my mind. You see, with so much on my te, I barely have time to eat myself. Hey, how did you end up being a reporter, by the way?"


    "Don''t change the subject," Nangong Yan said, lifting her chin and ''tsking'' before she continued: "As a top student in the Chinesenguage department, what''s wrong with me interning at a television station, huh?"


    "It''s not about being a Chinese or foreignnguage major, the key is being pretty!" Suming said quickly.


    "You''re quite sweet-talking today, different from before," Nangong Yan''s mischievous eyes, sparkling with teasing, "But, you know, Mommy told me, when a man suddenly bes sweet-talking, it''s usually because he''s feeling guilty. Isn''t that right, Mr. Su?"


    "I''m no boss, heh heh, yeah, I forgot about it. How about this, you pick any restaurant you like, order anything, my treat!" Suming said.


    "Okay, at least you''re somewhat sincere. I''ll think about it," she said.


    "Nangong, are you ready? We can start now!" came the director''s call from the other side.


    "OK!"


    ¡­


    "Hello, everyone. I''m Nangong Yan, an intern reporter from the ''People''s Life'' column. I am at Yangchuan Zoo right now, bringing you a live report. Recently, a few cats have appeared in our city''s zoo, sparking heated discussions among citizens.


    These cats are no ordinary felines; they''re adorable and possess a very special skill: they can collect money!


    This is their owner, a zookeeper at the zoo, Suming."


    The camera panned to Suming, and he greeted with a beaming smile, "Hello, everyone."


    "Mr. Su, I''ve heard that your father was a field worker who dealt with various animals all year round. It seems you have inherited his insight into animal training, and these cats have been trained by you, right?"


    "Yes, my father passed away early, and training animals was the most valuable legacy he left me. I''m so grateful to him, and I miss him dearly."


    The sincerity in Suming''s voice was heartfelt, and as he spoke, Nangong Yan at his side was also visibly moved, nodding slightly.


    Suming paused briefly, then continued, "These cats were strays in my university campus. I''m someone who likes interacting with animals, so I started training them during my college years. They''ve been trained for three or four years now and can recognize the denominations of money. After I started working at the zoo, I thought that the zoo should have its unique attraction, so I specially trained them to find money. Hence, they became known as the ''money-collecting cats.''


    "I personally think ''Fortune Cats'' would be more appropriate," Nangong Yan said with a smile. "Now, let''s see how these cats collect and find money."


    The camera focused on the cats ''charging'' the visitors.


    Miao Yi was taking a fifty from a middle-aged woman, then wagging his tail as he handed the money to Hei and took a ten-dor note back from the cash box.


    "Ma''am, is this your first time here?" Nangong Yan directed the microphone toward the woman.


    "Yes, I heard these cats were very clever, so I especially brought my daughter to see them. And they are indeed incredibly smart. Look, it gave me ten dors back," the woman said, showing the ten-dor note Miao Yi returned to her to the camera.


    Nangong Yanughed as well, then handed the microphone to the woman''s daughter and crouched down to ask, "Little girl, do you find these cats cute?"


    "Uh-huh!" The little girl seemed a bit camera-shy, her face turning red, she murmured a response, but her eyes were fixed on Miao Yi.


    The middle-aged woman patted her daughter''s head, smiling, "I usually am busy with work and don''t have much time to apany my child. This is a great opportunity to spend time with her and to cultivate herpassion from a young age¡ªa win-win."


    A fat man suddenly jumped out and loudly interjected, "This sister is absolutely right! There are many species on Earth that are on the brink of extinction, and it''s possible that by our grandchildren''s generation, there won''t be any animals left! That would be a tragedy. We share the same Earth and the same sky; we can''t just live for our own pleasure and ruin the, leaving a mess for future generations. That''s why we need to protect animals, and bringing children here is about instilling a sense of animal conservation from a young age. I call on the people of Yangchuan to bring their kids to the zoo!"


    This fat man spouted off all sorts of grand principles with a serious expression, but Nangong Yan''s lips twitched twice, barely holding back herughter.


    "You''re so sneaky!" While the camera was on the cats, Nangong Yan gave Suming a yfully reproachful nce.


    The fat man was naturally Wang Hao, invited by Suming to act as a ''nt.''


    When the camera turned back, Nangong Yan asked Suming, "So, I''ve also seen some concerns fromizens, such as the issue of counterfeit money and safety. How do you address these concerns?"


    "I believe that the majority of our citizens have basic decency. Even if we asionally encounter some counterfeit money, we justugh it off, because, as our friend pointed out earlier, our hope is to bring people closer to nature and protect animals, rather than merely making money. As for the safety issue, we have life jackets, and without wearing a life jacket, the cats won''t let anyone onto the boat... Besides that, we have another safety measure!"


    Suming smiled and looked back at the crowd, "Who would volunteer to help out? I can give a live demonstration of our safety measures."


    Mr. Wang quickly stepped forward, puffing out his chest: "I will!"


    "Thank you. Would you be willing to jump into theke?" Suming said with a smile.


    There was a murmur of discussion among the onlookers. Although theke wasn''t deep, at nearly two meters, it could easily drown a fat person.


    Mr. Wang already knew Suming''s n, so while he feigned hesitation for the camera, he finally agreed as though ''out of face.''


    "It really won''t be a problem? I can''t swim!" Mr. Wang, not wearing a life jacket and seated on the boat, asked with a nervous face.


    Nangong Yan, struggling to suppress herughter, whispered to Suming, "This guy would be wasted if he weren''t an actor."


    "Am I not the honest one?"


    "You? You''re the director!"

 Chapter 24: 24 Its all up to you!

    With a ssh, Mr. Wang''s hefty body flipped head over heels from the hovercraft and tumbled into theke, creating arge spray of water.


    It was like watching a reality show, where, despite knowing that the zoo and film crew must have made arrangements to avoid any real idents, the sight of the fat man falling into the water still made everyone instinctively nervous. The crowd surged to the shore, watching Mr. Wang floundering in the water.


    In fact, the zoo had made no such arrangements and had no idea that Suming would pull such a stunt.


    Mrs. Tong was so scared that she turned pale and squeezed through the crowd to Suming, tugging at his sleeve and asking in a low voice, "Su, nothing will go wrong, right? Don''t mess around, I think this fatty is in big trouble!"


    And Mrs. Tong was right. Mr. Wang iled his arms around in the water for a few moments, then gurgled as he sank beneath the surface.


    The people on the shore were shocked. This man really couldn''t swim.


    Indeed.


    People who can''t swim are usually quite afraid of water. Initially, Mr. Wang was adamantly against it, but Suming had rehearsed with him more than once to ensure nothing would go wrong, and after much cajoling and persuading ''in the name of greater good,'' Mr. Wang begrudgingly agreed to make the sacrifice and y the nt.


    Mrs. Tong''s face turned deathly white in an instant, she grabbed Suming''s hand tightly and screamed, "Save him, quick, save him!"


    If someone drowned in the zoo and it made it on TV, it would be a huge liability¡ªeveryone, from the director to her as the office manager, would be in trouble.


    Before her words had even faded, where Mr. Wang had fallen into the water, a burst of spray rose up, and Mr. Wang slowly resurfaced, lying t on the water''s surface like a gigantic frog.


    "A turtle! Look at the size of that turtle!"


    A child pointed at theke and shouted loudly, and only then did everyone realize that Mr. Wang wasn''t floating up by himself; he was lying on the back of a huge alligator snapping turtle.


    The ferocious-looking turtle, however, was extremely tame at the moment, carrying Mr. Wang slowly towards the shore''s shallow water and depositing him there.


    Amidst a chorus of camera clicks and exmations, the turtle stylishly flicked its tail and then, with a sense of camera presence, slowly crawled back into theke, leaving behind a profound silhouette.


    Having done the deed, it departed without fanfare, concealing its merit and fame!


    "This...is this also a pet you''ve trained? How...how did you do it..." Nangong Yan''s expression became very strange, and she even forgot she was in front of the camera, her mouth forming an ''O'' shape, staring at Suming in disbelief.


    "The secret is..." Suming, looking just as mboyant as the turtle, drew out his voice and said seriously to the camera, "you have to have love!"


    ...


    "Today''s interview has truly been an eye-opener. A few adorable fortune cats and that hard-working rescue turtle have shown us a fact, that as long as humans are willing to treat animals well, they can be friends with animals."


    "I never really noticed before, but this girl is actually quite beautiful," Suming thought as he smiled at the television.


    ...


    In the following days, the crowd of visitors at Fengshui Pavilion reached a peak, with the line for boating extending back into the woods.


    Mobile phone cameras seemed to no longer satisfy the visitors; some crazed photography enthusiasts even set up long lenses on thekeshore without getting on a boat, just standing there, shooting all day long.


    If it was a cloudy day, Suming even felt he should wear sunsses to avoid being blinded by the shes.


    But these photography enthusiasts were rather decent; after their shoots, they would often slip a fifty or a hundred to the cats.


    What made Suming furious, however, was that the cats were actually dumb enough to go looking for change!


    By the end of the week, the ie had reached a terrifying twenty-eight thousand!


    Suming had some extra cash on hand, and the first thing he did was to make up for the meal he owed Nangong Yan.


    He felt a bit sorry for her. While he was worried about finding a job, Nangong Yan hadforted and cared for him a lot. He promised to treat her to a meal when he got a job but ended uppletely forgetting about it.


    He expected to be charged a hefty sum, but to his surprise, the girl chose to eat in the small cafeteria at the school. A meal and a piece, and didn''t even spend a hundred.


    Nowadays, both Suming and Nangong Yan were considered minor celebrities within the school. During the meal, they ran into a few ssmates from Nangong Yan''s ss, which inevitably led to some joking and teasing.


    ...


    Suming''s agreement with the zoo didn''t require him to pay for the next three months, so out of this time''s earnings of twenty-eight thousand, after deducting over three thousand in fuel costs, he was left with twenty-five thousand.


    He gave Wang Hao thirteen thousand, a little more than 50%. But Wang Hao was not having an easy time either. He fell into the water for the revolutionary cause, and such spirit definitely deserved encouragement.


    Wang Hao couldn''t stop smiling, not because he was short on money. Given his family background, over ten thousand yuan wasn''t a lot.


    But this was the first sum of money he earned with his own efforts, and the source of the money was very "just and honorable," which made him quite proud in front of his old man. It was said that Old Master Wang, the senior government official, was also very gratified and even dered on the spot that once Wang Hao made his own first hundred thousand, the family would add another two hundred thousand for him to buy a small Audi to drive.


    "Old Su, I''m thinking about quitting my job anding to help you."


    "No! Stop right there! I think we should contribute to the revolutionary cause at different positions. This way we can make more like-mindedrades, which would be beneficial to the development of our future revolutionary work. Don''t you think?"


    "I get it, it''s about making more connections, right! Old Su, you''re really sharp; no wonder you''re able to make money!"


    "Can''t you have a bit of a second-generation official''s sense of responsibility? Don''t be so blunt," Suming said with disdain over the phone.


    "That''s just with you. I''m shrewd with others. Alright, let''s drop it. You work hard, bro. Driving an Audi and picking up girls are all riding on you!"


    Suming shook his head andughed, he was speechless at how excessive his close friend could be.


    After hanging up the phone, he went to the bank and wired ten thousand yuan home. A couple dayster, he made another call to his mother.


    "Ming''er, why did you send so much money!" On the other end of the phone, his mother was clearly nervous. She knew how much Suming''s sry was; it was less than a month into his job, how could he possibly have ten thousand yuan.


    Parents would rather their children earn less money and be safe than doing anything illegal for money.


    "Mom, you know me, how honest I am. Rx; I took over the boating business at the zoo and made some money."


    Suming simply exined the boating business to his mother and she finally felt relieved.


    "Ming''er, you''ve grown up, and Mom feels assured now. There''s still some money here with me, and we have enough for the household. You should save the money you earn for getting married in the future, buy yourself some food and clothes, and don''t always wire it to us."


    Every time they spoke on the phone, his mother couldn''t help repeating the same words, but Suming never found it tedious.


    "Ah, if we weren''t family, we would not have entered the same door. Your dad spent his lifetime working in animal protection, and now you''re following in this line of work," his mother said with some emotion.


    "Mom, don''t overthink it. I just work at the zoo, I don''t go into the wild," Suming quickly reassured his mother, knowing what she was worried about.


    His father had died at the hands of an international poaching group while protecting endangered animals, and that group still existed to this day. Knowing that his work also involved animals, his mother couldn''t help but worry that he might repeat his father''s tragic fate.


    Suming verballyforted his mother to put the olddy''s mind at ease.


    However, in his heart, he told himself clearly that the debt for his father''s murder could not coexist under heaven, and no matter the consequences, he must see it settled!

 Chapter 25: 25 Our Little Secret

    The booming cruise business brought a significant boost in additional ie to the zoo. Mrs. Tong gathered statistics on the visitor flow over the past two weeks and discovered that it had actually increased by nearly twenty percentpared to the usual!


    "To put it inly, people areing for those few cats on his cruise. It''s a novelty right now, but once the novelty wears off, having half of the current visitor flow would be quite good."


    While that was true, Mr. Song still felt very satisfied and couldn''t help but show a smile. The main ie of the zoo was ticket sales, and the little cruise business had suddenly increased the zoo''s ie by twenty percent, without hardly any investment from the zoo''s end.


    Even if it was only half in the future, the zoo had made a big profit from this deal.


    Besides the tangible money, the TV station''s interview also served as free advertising for the zoo, which was an intangible ie.


    "Director, shouldn''t we strengthen our security? Look, our normal visitor flow is about four hundred people a day, but now, there are over a hundred peopleing just for Su''s cruise every day. The actual increase in visitors did not reach twenty percent, so definitely a lot of them must be climbing over the wall without buying tickets," Mrs. Tong said.


    "There''s no rush for that matter. You go and renegotiate an agreement with Su. From now on, for the cruise ie, the zoo will just symbolically charge a management fee, say, 10%," Mr. Song said.


    "Just 10%?" Mrs. Tong was surprised. "You mean?"


    "If the young man has had a sessful start, we should support him more. If he can save up a sum of money quickly, I might consider offering him more ces to lease."


    "The other ces that can be leased would take at least several hundred thousand in capital. He won''t be able to raise that much money anytime soon," Mrs. Tong said.


    "I have a feeling that the young man might bring us some surprises."


    Mr. Song said with a smile, "The biggest benefit the zoo gets from the cruise business is not the cut, but the boost in ticket sales and social impact. After thest TV interview, the city government specially praised our zoo, saying our civil service work was vibrant and effective. They even approved funding for us to renovate the park."


    "They approved funding? That''s an extremely rare and happy event!" Mrs. Tong said joyfully.


    Mr. Song nodded and said, "That''s why the better Su''s cruise business does, the greater the benefits it brings to the zoo. We shouldn''t charge him more management fees. The kid is capable, I''ve seen it, and he values rtionships. We can''t let a little bit of money chill the heart of the youth."


    ...


    After finishing work that afternoon, Suming specifically went to the Zoo Snack Bar to buy a bottle of red wine, then poured out all the red wine and filled it with half a bottle of Hundred-Fruit Wine.


    Days flew by and it was almost time for the visit Suming had arranged with Zhao Yun.


    Even though he was Chengcheng''s life-saving benefactor, in Huaxia culture, it''s customary not to visit someone empty-handed.


    After thinking it over, he didn''t have anything impressive to give as a gift. Zhao Yun''s business card had a long list of titles, a standard sessful person, so he probably wouldn''t care much for ordinary tobo and alcohol. Gifting Monkey Wine was the perfect solution, as it wouldn''t cost much and was quite distinctive.


    There was still more than half of the Monkey Wine left from thest batch he obtained from the back mountain, enough tost him several months. Suming had also specifically made arrangements with the Monkey King, who could brew arge barrel every winter. Selling it wouldn''t be enough, but for personal consumption and asional gift-giving, there was more than enough.


    Carrying half a bottle of Monkey Wine, Suming went to the office to ask Mrs. Tong for some time off, then took a taxi from the zoo entrance straight to the city.


    Binshui Elegant Garden was a well-known affluent area in Yangchuan City, located on the edge of the second ring road¡ªquiet amidst the hustle, with its ssical park-style architecture, it was also one of Yangchuan City''s earliest all-vimunities.


    The neighborhood was quiet and tranquil but notcking in liveliness, like the zoo. Luxuriant greenery and flowing water nked several row vis.


    Passing through the main part of the neighborhood, Suming arrived at the artificialke at the back, where Zhao Yun''s home was a standalone two-story vi. Suming rang the doorbell, and half a minuteter, a refined-looking woman appeared behind the security door.


    "Su''s here, pleasee in quickly!" The one who opened the door was Chengcheng''s mother, Zhaoqian.


    The woman who was crying and disheveled back then now radiated beauty, exuding the aura of an intellectual. Zhaoqian weed Suming through the gate and called into the vi, "Chengcheng,e see who''s here!"


    "Who is it!"


    Dressed in a little bear pajama set and wearing oversized slippers, Chengcheng walked out, and her eyes lit up at the sight of Suming. Her eyes immediately curved into crescent moons, and she ran towards him with her arms open.


    "Big brother!" she beamed, wanting a hug from Suming.


    "This child has been talking about you ever since herst visit," Zhaoqian said with affectionateughter as she watched Chengcheng.


    Suming changed into slippers and chuckled, lifting Chengcheng into his arms and followed Zhaoqian into the vi.


    The vi was decorated with an antique charm, furnished with numerous antiquities, but it was obviously far more upscale than the Mingqing Residence, which was specifically designed to swindle tourists'' money.


    "Big brother, is the little monkey better yet?"


    "He''s all better," Suming said.


    Chengcheng leaned close to Suming''s ear, blinked, and whispered, "Last time you told the Monkey King not to bully Chengcheng, and he listened to you. Can you teach me how to talk to monkeys, please?"


    To an adult like Zhaoqian, Chengcheng''s words were nothing but childlike innocence. She didn''t take it seriously and just smiled at Suming, who pretended to be very secretive and whispered to Chengcheng, "Sure, I''ll teach you next time, but this is our little secret, you can''t tell anyone else, okay?"


    "Yes!" Chengcheng nodded vigorously and held up her little finger, "Pinky promise! Chengcheng will keep it a secret!"


    "Su,e sit down. We don''t have guests today, and Zhaoqian made a few home-cooked dishes. Let''s have dinner here," Zhao Yun eximed cheerfully, hurrying down from the second-floor bedroom.


    "You two chat. I''m going to bring out the dishes," said Zhaoqian as she turned and headed to the kitchen.


    "Hello, Mr. Zhao," Suming greeted Zhao Yun with a nod.


    "Ha, you could call me ''big brother'' too, but since Chengcheng calls you brother, I might be pushing it," heughed.


    Inside the kitchen, Zhaoqian busied herself with cooking while Chengcheng ran back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, restless as a little monkey.


    While chatting and drinking tea, Suming learned that Zhao Yun had dealt with antiques in his early years andter opened a private museum called ''Gugu Zhai''.


    Suming was quite surprised; Gugu Zhai was well-known nationwide as it was one of the few and the first private museums in the country. In other words, all the collections in the museum were Zhao Yun''s private possessions.


    Although national regtions dictate that antiques with a certain age can only be collected and not sold, owning an entire museum was proof enough of Zhao Yun''s extraordinary wealth and connections.


    "It''s time for dinner, Zhao, help me move the table..." Zhaoqian called out from the kitchen.


    Suming took out half a bottle of Monkey Wine from his bag and ced it on the table, "Mr. Zhao, I didn''t bring much, but this wine was brewed by monkeys. It tastes good to me; you should try some."


    "Brewed by monkeys, Hundred-Fruit Wine?" Zhao Yun''s expression changed slightly, asking with a hint of confusion, "Su, did you buy this at the market?"


    "No, it''s really brewed by the monkeys," Suming exined.

 Chapter 26: 26: The Prodigal Son!

    "Did you actually see monkeys brewing wine?" Zhao Yun''s tone rose slightly, clearly conveying some disbelief.


    "I didn''t, actually."


    Suming thought for a moment, then described the events that took ce in the small valley behind the hill, but he left out a significant part of the truth. He didn''t mention that the wine was brewed by the Monkey King from the zoo. Instead, he said he went out to the hills behind for a stroll and encountered several monkeys staggering around. Those monkeys, upon seeing someoneing, screeched and ran away. Out of curiosity, he followed them and discovered Monkey Wine in a valley.


    Zhao Yun nodded. That made sense, as monkeys are not winemakers. How could they possibly brew wine in front of humans?


    His interest piqued, he asked, "Is that wine-brewing tree still there?"


    "Yes, it is," Suming nodded.


    "In that case, follow me!"


    After giving it some thought, Zhao Yun couldn''t even wait to eat. He stood up and headed upstairs.


    "Dinner''s ready..." Zhaoqian, wearing an apron, ran out of the kitchen, only to see Zhao Yun leading Suming up to the second floor. Wiping her hands on her apron, she hurried a few steps and stood at the bottom of the stairs, calling out to the backs of Suming and Zhao Yun, "Old Zhao, what are you doing now, bring Su down to eat!"


    "We''ll be right there." Zhao Yun didn''t turn his head as he waved his hand and led Suming into the second-floor study.


    The study was notrge, with a few paintings and calligraphy hanging on the walls. Suming didn''t understand much about such art, but he could tell at a nce that these were definitely not the kind of junk that hung on the walls of Mingqing Residence.


    An entire wall of the study had been converted into arge cab, filled with porcin and simr objects, all securely locked behind tempered ss.


    Squatting in front of a safe, Zhao Yun quickly twisted thebination and opened the door, taking out a wine cup and gently cing it on the table.


    The wine cup was about the same size as the small cups people use for drinking nowadays, but it had a light blue hue. It was unclear what material it was made of, but fine, intricate patterns surrounded the body of the cup, dark red like blood.


    The study was shaded from the light, dimly lit, and Zhao Yun hadn''t turned on the light either. Yet in the dimness, the wine cup seemed to glow faintly, as if it were enveloped in a mist.


    "This cup is a night-glowing cup. The ancients said, ''With grape wine and a night-glowing cup, drink the grape wine from a night-glowing cup.''"


    Leaning back in a Taishi Chair, Zhao Yun yed with the night-glowing cup, speaking unhurriedly, "Actually, that''s not entirely urate. Grape wine is a type of fruit wine, and for tasting any fruit wine, the night-glowing cup is the best vessel. Hundred-Fruit Wine is the king of fruit wines and, naturally, should be drunk from a night-glowing cup."


    Having said this, Zhao Yun took the Monkey Wine gifted by Suming and carefully poured a full cup into the night-glowing cup.


    A rich aroma of wine immediately filled the study.


    Zhao Yun''s eyes lit up as he lifted the cup to his nose for a deep sniff, then raised the cup to drink it all in one go. Closing his eyes, he fiddled with the night-glowing cup in his hand, seemingly savoring the rich vor of the Monkey Wine. After a long while, he took a deep breath and reopened his eyes.


    "Excellent wine! Indeed, it''s not the fake Monkey Wine sold in the market," Zhao Yun gave Suming a thumbs up.


    "I thought the wine had a unique taste, too, which is why I offered it to you," Suming said with a smile.


    "The wine is excellent, no question about it! However, Su, I can''t ept this bottle of wine," Zhao Yun said.


    Suming was puzzled: "Why, is there something wrong with the wine, not sanitary?"


    "That''s not it. Since it has already fermented into wine, there won''t be any bacteria. Even if it is somewhat unsanitary, it''s no big deal. We''re not doctors, after all; there''s no need to be that picky."


    Zhao Yunughed and exined, waving his hand, "Alcohol is the best germ-killer. Some old wines, after being cered in ancient tombs for hundreds of years, can still be drunk by people. At most, they get drunk, but there are no infections or anything like that. My point is, your bottle of Monkey Wine is quite valuable. I invited you over today to thank you for saving Chengcheng''s life. If I were to ept your Monkey Wine too, it would be taking too much of an advantage. So I can''t ept this gift."


    "This can be sold for money?" Suming hadn''t really thought about this. Although Monkey Wine was rumored to be miraculous, it was neither mass-produced nor known on the market for fetching high prices.


    With no reputation and no backing, carrying a bizarre bottle of wine iming it was brewed by monkeys and asking for a high price was bound to invite disbelief!


    "Let me exin at length, I deal in antiques, and the value of this Monkey Wine bears some simrity to antiques. Take this, for example, why is it valuable? First, because it is rare. The rarer something is, the more valuable it bes. Han Dynasty jade is valuable, right? I''ll tell you, if within a month, a dozen pieces suddenly appeared on the market in Yangchuan City, no, just three or four in quick session, the price would immediately drop;


    Second, you have to find the right buyer. Say someone likes porcin, if you insist on selling them calligraphy, they might buy it, but only to sell it on for a profit, so they are not willing to pay a high price. But if you find them a Tang Dynasty tri-colored zed pottery, it''s like cing a beauty before a lecher ¨C they would borrow money to buy it, because it''s a once in a lifetime chance ¨C miss this vige, and you''ll miss the store."


    Third, of course, it''s the quality of the item itself. Although this is Monkey Wine, I can''t be presumptuous about its condition. I''m a collector, but not a wine connoisseur."


    "Monkey Wine has different levels of quality? Then tell me about them." Suming was also somewhat intrigued.


    Zhao Yun tapped the table lightly with his slender fingers, saying in an unhurried tone, "Monkey Wine is a general term that epasses several categories.


    First, there''s what''s called ''Hundred-Fruit Liquid''. Monkeys collect a variety of fruits in one ce, which ferment, and the initial drips are ''Hundred-Fruit Liquid.'' Arge colltion of this Hundred-Fruit Liquid then undergoes a second fermentation to be ''Hundred-Fruit Brew.'' The value of the twice-fermented Hundred-Fruit Brew is naturally higher than the once-fermented Hundred-Fruit Liquid because monkeys are gluttonous and often, lured by the fragrance, they drink all the Hundred-Fruit Liquid before it can umte and ferment."


    The second fermentation is not the end; there''s a third fermentation. After all the fruit juice has dripped down and no more juice is produced, the collected Hundred-Fruit Brew is sealed in a ce for a third fermentation, producing a strong liquor aroma, and only then can it be called true Monkey Wine."


    Recalling what he had seen, Suming thought about how the Monkey King had discarded all the fruits that were no longer dripping liquid. So it seems that this would be considered three-time fermented Monkey Wine.


    Zhao Yun was unaware of Suming''s internal judgment and continued, "Second, it''s known as ''Monkey Grade''. There is a hierarchy within monkey troops. Monkey King, female monkeys, male monkeys, strong ones, weak ones, the old and the young¡ªthe status of monkeys varies. The higher the status of the monkey, the better the raw material they can obtain for brewing, while lower-status monkeys struggle even to eat well, let alone brew wine. Also, the older the monkey, the better the ''skill'' in brewing!


    Hence, the value of Hundred-Fruit Brew also depends on the age of the monkey that brewed it and its status within the troop.


    Third, it''s about ''Regional Grade.'' As the saying goes, a tangerine is a tangerine in the south of the Huai River but turns into a bitter orange in the north. Monkeys from different regions produce different wines, and some of the more famous ones include the Emei Macaque, the Huashan Monkey, the Mount Huang Monkey, and the Huang Monkey, among others."


    "I''ve learned something new!" Suming said with heartfelt admiration.


    "This is what friends told me."


    Zhao Yun waved his hand and chuckled, "These are categorizations from ancient texts. But even in ancient times, Monkey Wine was extremely rare, and nowadays, with hardly any monkeys left, where can we find Monkey Wine? Perhaps, in some remote old forests, a fortuitous discovery might still be possible. Therefore, whether it''s liquid, brew, or wine, or how the Monkey Grade or Regional Grade stacks up, anything brewed by monkeys is extremely precious.


    A real bottle of Monkey Wine is priceless, and even high-quality imitations are quite valuable. During the Republican era, a family would ce all kinds of fruits in arge vat, let them rot and ferment, add a little starter, filter it through asphalt, then distill, sun-dry, and bury it to artificially brew ''Monkey Wine.'' After consuming it, one would not have palpitations or feverish brains, sleep soundly, and wake up extremelyfortable with a clear mind and refreshed body-mind; such benefits were extremely good for the health. One bottle could sell for over a hundred silver dors, in high demand yet scarce, as it was expensive and troublesome to make, rarely done. As for today''s Monkey Wine on the market, using your young people''s words, that''s just ''haha''."


    "So how much do you estimate this wine to be worth?" Suming asked.


    "I can''t say for certain on that. While wine shares simrities with antiques, its quality is one aspect, and that requires appraisal by a professional; moreover, the price varies depending on the ce. For instance, a piece of antique, if I collect it in the countryside, it might be a few hundred, but go to the Liuli Factory in the capital, and it might fetch tens of thousands. If it goes up for auction, with some interested experts and a few bidders to drive the price, selling it for several hundred thousand wouldn''t be difficult. Monkey Wine, a hard-toe-by item, could fetch a sky-high price with some luck."


    After hearing Zhao Yun''s systematic exnation, Suming''s understanding of the value of Monkey Wine immediately broadened.


    He pondered for a moment and said, "Mr. Zhao, I still have some Monkey Wine. This bottle is a gift for you, as it''s utterly rude to take back a present once it has been brought into someone''s home. Besides, if it weren''t for you telling me this information today, I wouldn''t have known the preciousness of Monkey Wine. Consider this bottle my thanks; you must ept it!"


    Seeing Suming''s sincerity, Zhao Yun hesitated slightly before relenting and burst intoughter, "If that''s the case, I won''t be coy. Honestly, although I''m not fond of alcohol, collecting is my hobby, and seeing this Monkey Wine, I was indeed quite envious."


    Having said that, he carefully locked the remaining half bottle of Monkey Wine and the fluorescent cup in the safe, then turned to Suming, "You mentioned earlier that there is more Monkey Wine? If you trust me, I have connections with an auction house in Xiangjiang that could put it up for auction."


    "That would be much appreciated." Suming nodded; Zhao Yun''s offer was exactly what he needed.


    Just as Zhao Yun had said, the same item in different hands and at different asions can fetch an entirely different price.


    Even if a young fellow without a penny to his name like himself were holding a treasure, he couldn''t sell it at a high price, and might even be the target of envy.


    "Let''s go eat, Mrs. Zhao must be anxiously waiting!"


    Zhao Yun pulled Suming to leave. As they passed the safe, he pped his forehead with some annoyance and gave a wry smile, "Had I known this was genuine Monkey Wine, I wouldn''t have drunk so much in one gulp, such waste!"


    "Eh..." Suming was speechless, thinking to himself that if drinking this stuff daily made him the number one prodigal son, then what did that make him?

 Chapter 27: 27: Liquor Auction

    Before the meal, Suming and Luo Ben agreed on the details of sending the wine for auction.


    Luo Ben suggested it would be best to send the wine-making tree along with it to be auctioned together, which would make the Monkey Wine appear more authentic and enhance its legendary aura.


    For Luo Ben, using his social influence, chopping down a tree in the mountains was not a significant issue; all Suming had to do was show the way.


    After finalizing their ns, they finally sat down for dinner, gathering around the table without any hierarchy.


    Zhaoqian and Luo Ben were college ssmates. While Luo Ben''s business was booming, Zhaoqian worked as a teacher in a school in Yangchuan City. Since Luo Ben''s business was culturally oriented and already on track, he didn''t need to run around daily. The family lived harmoniously, and the couple was loving.


    Zhaoqian was quite skilled in cooking, and the table was filled with delicious dishes, including a bottle of Maotai.


    However, both Luo Ben and Suming found their meal somewhat nd. It was not too bad for Suming, as he had grown used to drinking Monkey Wine every day, but this was Luo Ben''s first time tasting it. Afterward, other drinks seemedckluster inparison.


    "You''ve really done me in, kid. How am I supposed to enjoy other drinks from now on!" Luo Ben chuckled and yfully tapped Suming with his chopsticks.


    Zhaoqian widened her eyes curiously from the side and said, "I remember in the novel ''The Smiling, Proud Wanderer'', Linghu Chong tricked an old beggar out of a bottle of Monkey Wine. I had no idea such wine actually existed in the world!"


    "There are endless wonders in this vast world. What we humans know is just a small patch of sky above our heads. The saying ''a frog in a well knows nothing of the ocean'' refers to our limited human perspective," Luo Ben said with a smile.


    Chengcheng, on the other hand, wasn''t concerned about the wine at all, and kept begging Suming to take her to see the monkeys. Suming said he would take her on her vacation.


    This response was somewhat perfunctory since Chengcheng was currently on summer vacation. The truth was that Zhaoqian had been quite frightenedst time and likely wouldn''t dare to let her daughter go to a ''dangerous'' ce like the zoo again so soon.


    Chengcheng pouted, her chubby cheeks puffed up as she said indignantly, "All you adults are in it together!"


    ...


    A few dayster, at Sotheby''sArt Center in Xiangjiang Golden Bell Road Pacific ce.


    Sotheby''s is the world''s oldest auction house with over two hundred years of history, growing from a small-town book market into one of the top three auction houses globally. It is renowned for its highmissions, quality service, and high reputation.


    In Asia, Sotheby''s established its Xiangjiang Branch. Its main business consists of porcin, calligraphy and painting, and wine, with regr categorized auctions held annually.


    "Ladies and gentlemen, wee to Sotheby''s annual wine auction in Xiangjiang."


    On the auction stage, a middle-aged Englishman, impably dressed and sporting a neatly-trimmed mustache, opened the proceedings with his wless aristocratic manners.


    The auction hall was quite spacious, split into an upper and lower section simr to an opera house. Yet the guests, numbering fewer than fifty, were sparsely seated throughout therge hall.


    But those in the auction industry knew that the fewer the guests at an auction, the higher the caliber and the more specialized it usually was.


    After all, the wealthy are few, and those affluent enough to collect in a specific field are even fewer.


    Only the kind of mass-market auctions gather arge crowd, where ordinary office workers can spend a few dozen dors on a ticket to enjoy the hustle and bustle.


    In a semi-open private room on the second floor, sat a young man who didn''t even qualify as an ''ordinary office worker''.


    "Don''t be nervous, you''re the seller, just think of today''s crowd as peopleing to give you money," Zhao Yun said to Suming with a smile, in a low voice.


    Suming wasn''t nervous but very curious; he had only seen this kind of ''high-end'' affair on TV and in movies before.


    After dinner that day, Zhao Yun immediately contacted the auction house, even fronted the seller''s deposit, and arranged the auction details. Suming took two days off and followed Zhao Yun to the auction in Xiangjiang.


    Upon arriving at the auction house, Suming discovered that Zhao Yun indeed had significant influence; the deputy head of Sotheby''s Asian Division personally received them and even arranged a private room at the venue.


    "Then you''re mistaken, the private room isn''t for my sake, but yours," Zhao Yun shook his head and said with a smile.


    "For me?" Suming asked, puzzled.


    Zhao Yun grinned and said, "Think about it, if there are good items, would there be ack of buyers? There are too many wealthy people in the world, but good items are numbered. So, what auction houses truly value are the sellers, especially sellers with potential. Though my museum has quite a few cultural relics and treasures, national regtions stipte that precious cultural relics of a certain level can be collected but are not allowed to be traded internationally. So in Sotheby''s eyes, my value is mainly my professional level, not the collectibles I own."


    "Is Monkey Wine that precious?"


    Suming thought Monkey Wine might sell for tens or even hundreds of thousands, considering the magnitude of the event.


    But even if it was hundreds of thousands, while it was a substantial sum for the average person, to Sotheby''s, items worth a few hundred thousand were probably too numerous to count, hardly enough to warrant special treatment.


    "The auction has started," Zhao Yun didn''t answer but pointed below.


    The first auction item was a bottle of 1787 Chateau Rieussec sweet white wine from France.


    Chateau Rieussec, also known as the Golden Drops Chateau, was the only First Great ssified Growth for sweet white wine in the Bordeaux 1855 ssifications, a supreme honor which at the time elevated Chateau Rieussec above the present-day five great chateaux including Lafite, Latour, and Margaux.


    Just the origin and vintage alone made this bottle of wine very valuable.


    The auctioneer, a small-mustached man named Luo Ben, revealed a yful smile and addressed the audience, "However, I need to rify one thing to everyone, this bottle may be a fake! Of course, I said ''may''!"


    The crowd below instantly buzzed with surprise, and Suming was also taken aback, asking Zhao Yun, "Is it really okay to publicly sell fake wine?"


    Zhao Yun was unperturbed, smiling as he said, "Just keep watching."


    "Ladies and gentlemen, in 2006, American collector Corrillo bought this rare wine for $100,000, setting a record for the world''s most expensive white wine at the time. However, shortly after, Mr. Corrillo imed the wine was a counterfeit, providing an authoritative authentication document. Yet the wine''s previous owner also produced an equally authoritative certificate of authenticity, so..."


    Luo Ben shrugged his shoulders and said, "So, the authenticity of this bottle of wine has be a mystery. Earlier this year, Mr. Corrillo entrusted us to auction off this mysterious bottle of red wine, with a starting bid, well, the same as the price it fetched in ''06, $100,000! Now, please raise your paddles!"

 Chapter 28: 28: Heavenly King Superstar

    After Luo Ben called out the starting bid of one hundred thousand US dors, there was a brief lull in the audience.


    Many of the attendees at the auction began to whisper among themselves, probably negotiating something.


    "One hundred thousand!" Finally, the first person raised a sign.


    "One hundred and twenty thousand!"


    "One hundred and fifty thousand!"


    "One hundred and eighty thousand!"


    After several rounds of bidding, the final price settled at two hundred and twenty thousand US dors.


    "Thank you, Earl Downton, this mysterious bottle of red wine now belongs to you!" Luo Ben gave a slight bow to thest bidder, a middle-aged English gentleman.


    Earl Downton stood up and, with very traditional British ssical noble etiquette, returned the gesture to Luo Ben.


    "Is that really okay? What if it turns out to be fake wine?" Suming was speechless; perhaps this is what real rich people are like.


    Zhao Yun exined to Suming, "Mystery and the unknown are also a huge attraction. Sometimes what they are paying for is the thrill, especially for these old nobles who have been ousted from the power struggle; they particrly like to show their presence in this manner."


    He sipped his red wine and said lightly, "Actually, there are many factors that influence the final price. Some are simply spection or ndestine bribes. But there are also true miracles. After all, there are many people in this world who don''t take money seriously."


    The second auction item was a bottle of champagne called Snow Champagne.


    This bottle''s history was not especially ancient; at leastpared to the previous Aceto Balsamico from 1787, the 1907 vintage seemed like a little brother. The vineyard it came from wasn''t particrly famous¡ªjust a purveyor to Tsar Nichs II.


    Royal vineyards may seem mysterious and noble in the eyes of ordinary people, but to real connoisseurs, they are only slightly better than mass-produced products. To the traditional aristocracy of Europe, the Tsar''s official vineyard was entirely seen as a second-rate establishment forcibly pretending to be elegant from a world of ice and snow.


    Then again, this bottle had a legendary backstory; in 1916, a German submarine sank a Russian vessel which held a case of 2000 bottles of Snow Champagne.


    The case of Snow Champagne and the sunken ship remained buried at the bottom of the sea for 82 years until they were salvaged in 1998 and brought back to light.


    Since the Tsarist regime was reced by the Soviet Union in 1922, and the royal vineyard was transformed into Comrade Stalin''s private holiday vi, Snow Champagne thus became swan song and was also known as ''thest royal banquet''.


    "Whether this bottle is still drinkable, I can''t be sure, but even if it is, with my modest ie, I definitely could not afford to drink such history!"


    Luo Ben made a little joke, and after a few light chuckles from below, he continued, "Any one of these two thousand bottles has the same starting price, one hundred and fifty thousand US dors."


    This time, the number of people bidding was much greater than for the mysterious red wine; the signs went up in rapid session, and the price soared quickly.


    "Third call, three hundred and fifty thousand US dors! Sold!" Luo Ben''s hammer came down hard. "Congrattions, Jacky!"


    The winning Jacky seemed to have a good private rtionship with Luo Ben, lifting his ss in front of him and giving a slight smile and nod to Luo Ben.


    "Is it really him?" Suming finally noticed that this ''Jacky'' from Xiangjiang was actually a very famous king of the entertainment industry. Suming had practically grown up listening to his songs.


    Zhao Yun said softly on the side, "This is Xiangjiang, after all; you often see celebrities of all sorts here. If you have something like watches or other collectibles, you might even run into Doctor Ho."


    Doctor Ho, also known as Stanley Ho, was a casino tycoon who adored collecting watches. Though he rose to fame through gambling, the elderly gentleman preferred to be addressed as ''Doctor''.


    The next few auction items varied; one was unsold, and the rest fetched prices between three hundred thousand and six hundred thousand, in US dors¡ªnot the Huaxia currency Suming had assumed.


    The atmosphere at the auction was not as tense and confrontational as Suming had imagined, with face-pping and people being stepped on. Instead, those who came to the auction were all individuals of a certain status. For them, collecting was merely a hobby. It wasn''t worth making enemies over a few hundred thousand US dors¡ªthat''s kid stuff.


    "The next item up for auction is a first for Sotheby''s, and indeed, any auction house in the world,"


    Luo Ben''s words immediately sparked a stir of quiet gossip. Sotheby''s had been established for over two hundred years¡ªwhat hadn''t they sold? Not to mention, it being a world first!


    It was said that during a certain period of war, a famous auction house even sold the sovereignty of a small country!


    "Most of you live in Xiangjiang and must have a certain understanding of Chinese culture. Some friends present are even close friends with Mr. Jin of Xiangjiang Ming Pao..."


    The crowd found it strange. Why bring up Mr. Jin, the venerable swordsman from the novels where snow nkets the earth and arrows fly toward a white deer?


    However, out of trust in Luo Ben''s professional level, everyone still listened patiently, with quite a few bing more curious.


    Hearing this, Suming knew his Monkey Wine was about to take the stage!


    Luo Ben''s Mandarin was exceptionally fluent. If Suming closed his eyes and disregarded Luo Ben''s appearance, he would almost believe he was listening to a true native Huaxia person.


    "In Mr. Jin''s books, there is a hero named Mr. Linghu, a character who loves wine as much as life itself and is never happy without it. He has tasted countless wines in his life. Speaking of wines that are naturally made, that embody the essence of heaven and earth and the spirit of nature, none surpasses a kind of wine brewed from a variety of fruits by monkeys. Ladies and gentlemen, the next lot is indeed a bottle of Monkey Wine, identally discovered in the Qinling Mountains on the maind!"


    The auction hall erupted into an uproar; many Huaxia people even stood up, with a superstar of heavenly king stature directly asking, "Robben, don''t joke around, does Monkey Wine really exist in this world?"


    "Oh, Jacky raises a very critical question. Indeed, I cannot provide an exact answer,"


    Luo Ben shrugged and said with a smile, "Because up until now, Monkey Wine has never appeared before. So, there isn''t a real sample topare with, and, of course, it''s impossible to capture the wine-making monkeys for interrogation to have them confess whether or not it was made by their hands."


    Luo Ben''s humor elicited a round of good-naturedughter before he continued, "However, we invited several experts to appraise it. They unanimously agreed that the winemaking process and ingredients of this bottle are indeed different from any known method of making wine. Moreover, it has a unique vor and extremely high nutritional value. Quality-wise, the wine should have undergone at least three fermentation processes. Additionally, although we have not captured that clever monkey, we did find the tree used for brewing, and afterparison, it appears that this wine was indeed brewed inside the tree."


    As he spoke, the projection of a hollowed-outrge tree appeared on the big screen behind him.


    "So, unless a monkey brews wine in person for everyone to see, we can never be absolutely sure whether it is Monkey Wine! I think, apart from Tarzan, there won''t be a second person in the world who would have the chance to witness a monkey brewing wine.


    If this is, in fact, a genuine bottle of Monkey Wine, then it may well be the only bottle ever found by humankind, and its value goes without saying! Of course, there''s always another possibility¡ªmaybe this is just a strange and mysteriously made fruit wine with a heartbreakingly good taste,"


    Luo Ben pressed down with his hands: "All right,dies and gentlemen, this equally mysterious bottle of Monkey Wine, will start the auction at the price of one hundred and eighty thousand US dors!"


    Jacky, without hesitation, raised his sign: "Two hundred thousand!"


    "Two hundred and twenty thousand dors!" Earl Downton, who had won the bid on wine earlier, raised his sign.


    Before Jacky could raise his sign again, another Huaxia businessman called out a bid of two hundred and fifty thousand.


    A businessman from Taiwan directly raised his sign: three hundred thousand.


    Jacky spread his hands in a smile towards the Taiwanese businessman, signaling his inability topete, then turned his head, whispering with a smile to his assistant, "Knew it¡ªshouldn''t have bought that Snow Champagne."


    The assistant shrugged helplessly.


    The Monkey Wine made its first appearance before the world as a once-in-a-lifetime find, not like other wines that, no matter how rare, are always avable in a few bottles. But this Monkey Wine might be, as Luo Ben put it, never seen again, so the bidding quickly reached the significant threshold of four hundred thousand US dors.


    As for the possibility of it being fake, these tycoons weren''t too concerned. A few hundred thousand US dors for a glimmer of hope was still within their reach.


    Not to mention, even Sotheby tended to believe it was genuine Monkey Wine. Then who could say it wasn''t?


    After the four hundred thousand dor mark, the number of bidders finally began to dwindle. After all, it was only a bottle of wine.


    At this point, the three still raising their signs were all Asians.

 Chapter 29: 29 Vinyl Records

    The three still raising their paddles were a Japanese man with a small mustache in a crisp suit, the Taiwanese man who had earlier bid $300,000 directly, and an elderly Korean gentleman.


    It was rather sad to say, this Monkey Wine was originally a specialty of the maind, a part of Huaxia culture, and yet, the finalpetitors were not a single maind Chinese.


    It seemed Easterners cared more about ''face''; the bidding between these three grew heated, and after the Monkey Wine reached $400,000, the price soared once more.


    In the end, the Taiwanese bidder hammered it down at $580,000!


    Sitting on stage, Suming was dizzy from this sudden stroke of fortune.


    My goodness, $580,000, do you know what that means¡ªalmost four million Huaxia currency!


    The hell, am I rich just like that?


    "Mr. Zhao, I actually... actually have a few more bottles. Should I bring them all out to sell?" Suming stammered as he asked Zhao Yun.


    "Foolish boy, haven''t you heard that scarcity makes something more valuable? Today, a unique bottle of Monkey Wine appeared, which is why it sold for this price. What do you think would happen if another bottle shows up tomorrow?" Zhao Yun retorted.


    "That''s true, heh heh, heh heh..." Suming chuckled awkwardly, indeed a bit too greedy for his own good.


    After the Monkey Wine was sold for the high price of $580,000, Suming was somewhat distracted during the rest of the auction, his head in the clouds.


    It was no wonder, even for a white-cor worker earning a sry of $100,000 a year, it would take a lifetime to make a few million. And here he was, having made what seemed like a lifetime''s earning in one day; it''d be strange not to be excited!


    Even though he was a bit out of it, Suming was still shocked by the final bottle of the auction.


    A bottle of 1992 Han Emperor Moutai.


    This liquor had only ten bottles produced that year, and as of now, only three are ounted for worldwide.


    This bottle eventually fetched a sky-high price of $1.89 million US dors!


    With enough money, a person often bes more generous and open-minded. Suming might have felt some envy, jealousy, or resentment before, but now he was merely astonished.


    Whether it was spection, or an underground deal, or the bottle was truly worth that much, Suming didn''t care anymore; what concerned him was his own $580,000.


    After the auction concluded, Suming followed Zhao Yun to the VIP customer area of the auction house.


    "Mr. Zhao, every time you visit, you bring us a surprise! Of course, congrattions to you too, dear Suming, you are truly a lucky young man!"


    By this time, Luo Ben had changed into a different outfit, no longer the formal suit he wore on stage, but rather a tight suit with gold trims that made him look mboyant. As he sashayed in, he greeted Zhao Yun with great enthusiasm, then extended his hand to Suming.


    "Your splendid introduction also yed a part in bringing that high price for the wine," said Suming, shaking hands with him, finding Luo Ben''s skin surprisingly smooth.


    "That''s my job after all, and to serve such a handsome young man as yourself is an honor," Luo Ben said, with a flirtatious twitch of his eyebrows.


    Zhao Yun burst outughing, "Luo Ben, let''s get down to the business at hand."


    Then, leaning close to Suming''s ear, he chuckled, "This guy is gay."


    Suming quickly withdrew his hand: "..."


    "Even if I am gay, I''m a gay with professional integrity," Luo Ben said nonchntly, pulling out a contract and adding for Suming, "ording to the agreement, for a final bid under $200,000, the auction house takes a 25% fee, and for $200,000 to $3 million, a 20% fee. The final bid for this auction was $580,000 US dors, so you need to pay $116,000 US dors inmission. Since it''s your first visit to the auction house, we can offer a 20% discount, plus with Mr. Zhao''s consultant status, that discount can be further reduced to 80% of the original rate, bringing your totalmission to... $74,240 US dors. I will take the liberty of rounding down, making it $74,000 US dors. The remaining $506,000 US dors, converted into Huaxia currency as per your request, will be transferred into your designated bank ount within a week."


    "That''s about 3.3 million Huaxia currency," Zhao Yun said.


    "Lucky young man, by maind standards, you are now among the young and wealthy. Have you thought about how you might enjoy life with this money? If needed, Sotheby can offer top-notch services," Luo Ben said.


    "Top-notch services, but they also require top-notchmissions. Su, don''t mind this English bloodsucker, just watch your purse," Zhao Yunughed heartily.


    Suming also smiled slightly and turned down Luo Ben''s ''kind'' offer.


    To an ordinary person, over three million might be considerable, but it''s still far from being truly wealthy. It''s not enough to splurge and enjoy life to the fullest.


    Suming originally didn''t care much about money. As long as he had enough for himself and could improve his family''s life, that was sufficient. After acquiring his animal abilities, he felt even more that making money wasn''t the most important thing. Or rather, one shouldn''t aim to earn money as the primary goal. As long as he kept strengthening his Animal Friend abilities, wealth would surely follow.


    So, when he came to Xiangjiang this time, he only took two days off and didn''t even n to sightsee. His thought was to hurry back to the zoo after the auction was over; that was where he truly belonged.


    "There is another matter. A client who attended the auction wishes to meet the seller of the Monkey Wine. Of course, this is not mandatory. We have a client confidentiality agreement, so if you prefer not to meet them, you can certainly decline," Luo Ben said.


    "Mr. Zhao, what do you think?" Suming asked Zhao Yun, who had more experience with auction houses, and he thought it wise to weigh his opinion for there could be benefits and no harm.


    "It won''t hurt to meet them. They could be part of yourwork in the future," Zhao Yun said with a smile.


    Before long, the door to the VIP room opened, and a middle-aged man with an assistant walked in.


    Suming was taken aback; he didn''t expect the one who wanted to meet him to be that superstar.


    "Haha, looking at Su''s expression, I think you don''t need to introduce yourself, Jacky," Zhao Yun obviously knew this Zhang Tianwang.


    "Idol, hello!" Suming, after a moment of surprise, caught on and put away his astonished expression, greeted Jacky with a smile. Now, he was the seller, not appearing as a fan, so there''s no need to be overly shocked.


    At that moment, Zhang Xueyou didn''t have the dazzling aura of the stage but instead appeared quite casual and rxed. He first nodded and greeted Zhao Yun, then with his slightly ented Mandarin, he said to Suming, "Just call me Jacky. I hope you won''t find it presumptuous of me to want to meet you."


    "Idol, you''re too courteous. I saw you upstairs earlier, if not for the ongoing auction, I would''ve rushed down to get your autograph," Suming said with augh.


    "It''s not toote for that."


    Zhang Xueyou''s assistant, very observant, interjected and took out an old-fashioned vinyl record from a bag. Holding the record with both hands, they offered it to Suming: "A small gift for our first meeting, please ept it with mypliments."


    "This is¡­" Suming took it and saw that the record was quite old but well preserved. The outer paper sleeve was wax-sealed, bearing Zhang Xueyou''s autograph, dated ''97.


    "A bit of augh, this is a vinyl record I made the year of the handover. It wasn''t released in the market, so it does have some collector''s value," Zhang Xueyou said, shrugging his shoulders with a smile: "I spend my days singing, acting, and earning money, I don''t have other hobbies. Just fond of collecting various wines. If Mr. Su has Monkey Wine again in the future, I wonder if you could inform me first?"


    Heughed somewhat sheepishly and exined, "The managementpanies are vampires; I work hard for my money. Spending high amounts at auctions, and frequenting them for wine purchases costs a lot, and the wife would fuss."


    "I understand, no problem. If I happen to have more, you''ll be the first to know, idol."


    Suming quite liked Zhang Xueyou''s candid attitude. He did have some more Monkey Wine left, aside from what he intended to drink, putting together another bottle wouldn''t be too difficult. Selling it directly to Zhang Xueyou wouldn''t work for 580,000 US Dors, but surely thirty thousand could be expected.


    However, as Zhao Yun mentioned earlier, such wine is rare and not easily found. If he sold it repeatedly, its value would diminish, making it less extraordinary. Therefore, he wasn''t nning to offer it just yet.


    "Thank you!" Zhang Xueyou then turned to his assistant, "Tony, leave my private number with Mr. Su."


    "Yeah, if I''m fortunate enough to find it again, I''ll call you," Suming said to Zhang Xueyou, waving the piece of paper with the phone number on it.

 Chapter 30: 30 Bear

    After chatting with Zhang Xueyou a bit longer in the VIP lounge, Suming and Zhao Yun said their goodbyes and left to catch their return flight.


    It was Suming''s first meeting with Zhang Xueyou, and he had a pretty good impression of the superstar. In private, the superstar didn''t put on airs and had a childlike innocence about him, yet he didn''tck the maturity of a middle-aged man.


    Suming and Zhao Yun hailed a taxi to the airport, Suming in the back seat. The driver didn''t start the car immediately but looked back from the front rearview mirror and said something in Cantonese.


    "Fasten your seatbelt, traffic regtions in Xiangjiang are strict; you have to wear seatbelts in both front and back seats. If you don''t, and you get caught by the traffic police, you could be fined up to five thousand or detained for a month." Zhao Yun buckled his own seatbelt while tranting for Suming.


    Suming hurriedly fastened his seatbelt, and seeing this, the driver started the car.


    The car ride was quiet, but upon arriving at the airport, the driver broke the rules.


    There were too many taxis at the airport, and seeking convenience, the driver stopped at a no-parking zone.


    "Hurry up and get out!" said the driver in a rush, which this time Suming understood.


    Before they got out, a motorcycle screeched to a halt next to their taxi. A female officer with long, impressive legs got off the motorcycle with style, showed her badge to the taxi driver, and then gestured for Suming and Zhao Yun to wait at the side.


    During the process, the driver was visibly disgruntled, swearing at the policewoman with a ''damn your mother'' that startled Suming.


    "It''s okay. As long as he doesn''t assault the officer, it''s not considered a big deal. The driver just wants the policewoman to hurry up so he can get back to business," Zhao Yun whispered to Suming.


    The policewoman not only didn''t retort but kept exining something. In the end, although the driver was dissatisfied, he still took the fine and drove away.


    "You can go now, sorry for the dy," the beautiful policewoman said politely, giving a salute to Suming and Zhao Yun in not-so-perfect Mandarin.


    Due to this dy, they were nearing boarding time, and several long lines had already formed at the gate. Zhao Yun had booked first-ss seats, and under the guidance of a Cathay Pacific Airways flight attendant, they boarded through the VIP entrance.


    At thirty thousand feet, Suming recalled the scene between the driver and the policewoman, shook his head, and muttered to himself, "What a strange ce."


    Zhao Yun thought he was referring to the convenience of the first-ss service and casually remarked, "Here, as long as you have money, you can buy any service. The real wealthy ss can even manipte the government."


    Suming shrugged his shoulders; he had no such ambitions. Managing a country is so tiring; how could itpare to the leisure of roaming in an animal park?


    Otherwise, why not establish a kingdom of animals and be the boss himself? That would truly live up to the name of a grand beast!


    Thinking this, he couldn''t help but find it amusing and his mouth curled into a smirk.


    "What are youughing at like a fool? Happy about making money?" Zhao Yun asked, puzzled.


    ...


    The trip to Xiangjiang was actually just a day trip. After getting off the ne, they went straight to the auction house, and then immediately headed back. Travel-weary from years of luxury, Zhao Yun bade Suming farewell after disembarking, telling him to visit when he had time, then hailed a car and left.


    With more than three hundred thousand in hand, Suming was in quite a good mood and took a car straight back to the zoo.


    On the way, he pondered that now, with money in his possession, perhaps it was time to expand the pleasure boat business a bit and move it to thergest man-madeke in the zoo.


    Making money was not his main objective, but he wouldn''tin about having more. The smallke next to Whisperwind Pavilion was too tiny, and at most, it could amodate only ten pleasure boats.


    Now the pleasure boat business was booming, and from morning to evening, tourists swarmed around Whisperwind Pavilion. At first, he found it lively, but as time went on, Suming felt like he was going to be driven mad by the noise, unable even to sleep in.


    The few feline stars were also exhausted, day after ''clocking out'', they''d drag their little heads in single file, staggering back to Whisperwind Pavilion and copsing into a deep sleep with waves of continued snoring, forgetting all about their yful nature.


    The alligator snapping turtle, on the other hand, had a rtively carefree life, apart from that day when Wang Hao did the demonstration, nobody else had fallen into the water.


    But ever since the TV station broadcast the footage of the turtle saving someone, everyone knew about the fierce-looking but humanely-intelligent alligator snapping turtle in the littleke, who not only didn''t hurt people but would also rescue them.


    Human curiosity was no less than that of the feline stars, so every day, many tourists would throw things like sausages into the water to feed the turtle.


    And there were quite a few unruly kids, using small branches and the like to poke incessantly into the water; the bolder ones even used fishing lines in attempts to lure the turtle out.


    The alligator snapping turtle then had to spend each day avoiding human disturbances, resisting the temptation to eat those artificial foods that might upset its stomach, living a life on edge.


    Suming thought that, while changing venues, he should let the feline stars take a break for a few days. In the future, he wouldn''t mandate all of them to ''work'' at the same time, ideally setting up a duty roster. Rarity breeds value, and if the feline stars collected money every day, their appeal would diminish over time.


    He would also have to establish a rule that prohibited visitors from throwing random food into the water or trying to catch the alligator snapping turtle, which was his personal property!


    Just as he returned to the zoo and before he had the chance to speak with Mr. Song, he saw Mr. Peng leading a group of workers hurrying from the front.


    "Su, Su, quick, quick, quick, change your clothes ande with us!" Mr. Peng also saw Suming and waved a long-handled he was holding.


    "What''s going on, dressing up like this?"


    Suming was startled to see the group in front of him d in thick military coats on such a hot day, with high rubber boots, gloves, and their heads and faces wrapped in thick cloth, wearing goggles simr to those of pilots, looking from a distance like anti-chemical troops from a ''Resident Evil'' movie.


    "Somehow a swarm of bees showed up in Xiongshan and made a few hives; we need to get rid of them quickly!" Mr. Peng said.


    Having been recruited forbor right after his return, Suming took a set of military coat he was handed and followed the crowd toward the direction of Xiongshan.


    Xiongshan was home to three Asian ck bears, also known as moon bears, dog bears, or Himyan ck bears.


    The ck bear was strong and powerful, an undeniable overlord in the wild!


    Yet this creature had a fatal weakness: its insatiable appetite for sweets, especially honey. In the wild, once it spotted a beehive, it would surely try to steal the honey inside, regardless of being stung with multiple welts by a swarm of bees, not caring and never learning. If it was robbed once, it would still go after the hive the next time it saw one.


    Had it been truly in the wild, that would have been okay, as the bear could always run, but in the zoo, Xiongshan''s range was limited. If the bear beat them to it and stirred up a ho''s nest, there would be nowhere to run.


    The thick-skinned bear could handle a few stings, but there were many visitors in the zoo. If bees started stinging people, it would be a real problem.

 Chapter 31: 31: Basketball Hive

    By the time Suming and Mr. Peng arrived at Xiongshan, the tourists nearby had already been evacuated, and the animal keeper Li was so anxious that he was sweating profusely. Through the cage bars, he pointed at several trees on Xiongshan and stammered, "There, right there..."


    The area of Xiongshan was only a little more than one-third the size of Monkey Mountain. Inside, there were some rockeries, but there was also a small patch of woods with over a dozen trees.


    Several beehives, each almost the size of a basketball, hung on the treetops. From a distance, they looked like heavy fruits, with many bees flying in and out of the hives.


    Underneath those trees, tworger bears sat on the ground with their legs crossed, their eyes wide open and round, staring intently at the beehives several meters above their heads. A smaller ck bear, almost one meter high, was standing upright with its front paws resting on the trunk, making ''woo woo woo'' sounds at the hives above, its face full of longing and shiny drool dripping down from the corners of its mouth.


    After seeing the beehives clearly, Mr. Peng was quite surprised and asked Li, "Suchrge beehives? Li, are you sure whether they are honeybees or wasps?"


    Wasps aremonly referred to as "yellow jackets," and they are much more poisonous and aggressive than honeybees. A sting from a yellow jacket, if not treated in time, can easily lead to poisoning, and about a dozen yellow jackets could sting a person to death.


    Honeybees don''t easily sting people because their stingers are connected to their intestines, and the bee dies after stinging. Yellow jackets, on the other hand, can use their stingers repeatedly.


    If there were several basketball-sized wasp nests, then it would be a big problem. The zoo probably wouldn''t dare to handle it; they would have to call in a professional fire brigade to deal with it.


    "It''s not wasps, it''s honeybees!"


    Zookeeper Li''s face looked mournful as he said, "I just discovered them the day before yesterday; there was only one beehive about the size of a fist. Since we do have honeybees in the zoo, I didn''t pay much attention. But then yesterday, it was unbelievable, several more beehives had appeared out of nowhere, and that''s when I realized something was wrong. I prepared toolsst night nning to remove them today, but I didn''t expect that there would be even more of them this afternoon, and they''ve grown sorge!"


    As the administrator of Xiongshan, if the bears were badly stung by the honeybees, or if a person got stung, Li would be held responsible. At the very least, a month''s performance bonus would be docked, and if something really serious happened, he might even lose his job.


    Like Suming, Li was also a temporary worker. He came from a rural family too, with a younger sister in school, depending on his ie to support the family. No wonder he was so anxious.


    Mr. Peng and the other animal keepers looked at each other in dismay. It was normal to have some nts and asionally some honeybees or small beehives in the zoo, but for so many to appear overnight was abnormal.


    Xiongshan was not far from the back mountain, which was lush with blooming flowers and a wild environment, rarely trodden by humans. If the honeybees were to settle down, they should have done so in the back mountain. Why would theye running to Xiongshan out of nowhere?


    "Su, what do you think?" Mr. Peng asked Suming instinctively.


    Suming was also at a loss as to why this was happening. Could these honeybees havee for him?


    But then he thought it was unlikely. Although ''Friend of the Animals'' could bond with animals, it required him to actively use his spiritual power; it wasn''t like honey that could be smelled from far away.


    "Never mind the reason for now. Li, you and the others lead those bears away first. Su,e with me to knock down the beehives!"


    Mr. Peng put on a headcover, took a long bamboo pole in one hand, which had cotton soaked in gasoline wrapped around one end, and gestured to Suming to carry arge bucket.


    Suming felt a wave of frustration thinking, ''Mr. Peng, you''re too kind. It was clearly Li''s neglect that allowed the beehives to multiply and grow into a menace, and yet you''re taking on the most dangerous task of stirring up a ho''s nest and bringing me along with you.''


    There was no choice, since he was Mr. Peng''s apprentice. If his master was going, he had no choice but to stiffen his resolve, carry the bucket, and follow.


    "An animal friend should be effective against bees, right? I just don''t know how many bees it can control at once!"


    Suming looked at the severalrge beehives and didn''t feel very confident. Inside thoserge hives, there could be thousands of bees. If something went wrong and they all swarmed out to attack him...


    Just thinking about that scenario made his scalp tingle, his skin breaking out in goosebumps. He instinctively wrapped his head and face tightly, leaving only his eyes exposed, with swimming goggles hanging around his neck, ready to protect his eyes whenever necessary.


    Under Xiongshan, there was a keeper''s entrance. After opening the iron gate and walking down the pitch-dark corridor for seven or eight meters, he arrived in a dim room.


    The room was divided into two sections, one side was where the ck bears rested, and the other was where the keepers dispensed food. There was a device on the wall to control the iron gates. When it was time to clean Xiongshan, they would lure the ck bears back to their resting ce with food. Then, an operator on the other side would close the door to the ck bears'' rest area with a switch, allowing entry into Xiongshan.


    Currently, all three members of the ck bear family were lingering under the trees, and the resting area was empty. Various half-eaten fruits and meats were carelessly scattered around, emitting an unpleasant odor.


    "Ding ding ding... ding ding ding..." Keeper Li, holding a big b of raw pork in one hand and a small iron rod in the other, struck the iron cage to make noise, trying to attract the nearby ck bear family.


    Usually, as soon as they heard this sound, the ck bear family would know there was food and immediately run over.


    But at this moment, the three bears only nced over listlessly and then turned back, greedily salivating at the beehives in the trees, not even moving their buttocks.


    The small ck bear, Hei, didn''t even nce over here, a bright shiny line of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth, nearly reaching the ground.


    Clearly, the allure of honey was far greater for them than the fatty and greasy, not very fresh pork.


    Li was so anxious that he began to sweat, hitting the iron bars harder with the small rod, creating a noise so loud it hurt people''s ears.


    But to no avail, not only did the ck bear family note over, one of therger ck bears even bared its teeth towards them with a ''huff huff huff'' growl.


    A ck bear''s ''huff huff huff'' is not a sign of sleepiness but an expression of anger. Clearly, Hei was very dissatisfied with those who were disturbing their dreams of delicious honey.


    "Su, have you got any ideas?" Mr. Peng suddenly asked Suming. Suming fed the animals every day with him, and Mr. Peng had clearly felt that all the animals were very close to him. Combined with Suming''s previous heroic act of saving the little girl, Mr. Peng had an inexplicable trust in Suming.


    Not far away, due to Hei''s constant shaking of the tree, one of the beehives finally wobbled slightly.


    A drop of honey slipped out from the beehive andnded right into Hei''s gaping mouth.


    "Wu wu wu..."


    Hei let out a series of contented cries, and Suming felt a wave of happiness through his spiritual power.


    "Damn, this is bad!"


    But Suming didn''t feel any pleasure, instead, he yelled out loud, quickly shrinking his neck and putting on the swimming goggles, enveloping his entire body in a military coat, wrapping himself up tight!

 Chapter 32: 32: Run!

    ```


    One hallmark of a foodie is that life can be dispensable, but food is not!


    The bear family was a clear overlord among foodies. After the little bear tasted the dripping honey, its entire being... oh, the entire bear acted as if it had hysteria, making whimpering noises with its mouth and wiggling its plump buttocks, desperately shaking the tree trunk.


    The trunk wasn''t very thick to begin with, and it began to tremble as it was vigorously shaken.


    A bear child having a fit is one thing, after all, it''s still young and its strength is not great, but once Papa Bear and Mama Bear joined in, the situation immediately changed!


    The three ck bears seemed to have coordinated, encircling the trunk and fiercely shaking it together. The trunk emitted a creaking sound as if it couldn''t bear the weight anymore, and leaves and twigs flew everywhere.


    ck Bear Dad took two steps back and actually struck a charging pose, and then, bang, he rammed his shoulder into the tree!


    The trunk shook violently, and all the beehives hanging on it fell down!


    Buzz!


    Even at a great distance, a buzz could be heard. The beehives hadn''t hit the ground yet when a ''ck cloud'' emerged¡ª arge group of bees buzzed out of the hives, swarming around the falling beehives!


    Below, the gluttonous family looked up foolishly, stretching out their chubby bear paws to catch the descending hives. Don''t be fooled by their pudgy appearance, reminiscent of meat mountains; their movements were surprisingly agile and urate.


    Three bears, the two adults catching one each, and little Hei cradling with both arms, caught all five hives without missing a single one.


    Having secured the food, the bear family was ecstatic, opening their mouths to bite into the hives they were holding. Mid-air, the buzzing swarm of bees went into a frenzy, and in formation dove towards the bear family!


    "Aoaoaoao..."


    "Aoao..."


    "Aoaoao..."


    Ghostly bear shrieks suddenly filled Xiongshan, as the bears managed to knock down the hives but before they could even taste a drop of honey, they were chaotically stung by countless bees.


    The bears initially tried to swat away the bees with their big paws, but there were just too many. Instead, they caused quite a few friendly fires. Papa Hei, trying to save his cub, identally sent little Hei tumbling away like a rolling meatball.


    Soon, the three bears gave up their futile resistance and ran amok in Xiongshan.


    Only creatures with thick skins like bears could endure such an attack. Any other animal would likely have been half-dead after such a stinging spree.


    Li was extremely worried as if these three bears really got into trouble, his job would definitely be at stake!


    He frantically banged on the iron bars, trying to get the bears to take refuge in the resting room, but at this moment, the bears were somewhat crazed and did not notice him at all.


    "Quick, jump into theke!" Suming urgentlymunicated with his spiritual power to the bears. There was a shallowke in Xiongshan for the bears to y in usually.


    Although the youngest, little Hei was the smartest. It immediately understood Suming''s intention and without hesitation dived into theke with a ssh, sending water flying in all directions!


    The water covered little Hei, and the pursuing bees buzzed around for a few circles. Seeing nowhere to sting, they reluctantly changed targets and went to attack Papa Bear and Mama Bear.


    Seeing the bad situation, Papa Bear and Mama Bear let out a few roars and fought their way through the bee swarm¡ª of course, shedding their own blood. With a leap like a fish, they followed and jumped into theke.


    Now they were in deep trouble. Theke was neitherrge nor deep, frankly, it was just a small pool. Little Hei was small in size, and most of its body could hide underwater. But Papa Bear and Mama Bear were too big; the water in the pool barely reached their bellies, offering no defense against the bee attack!


    Little Hei had managed to hide in the pool, but as soon as Papa Bear and Mama Bear jumped in, the water level significantly dropped as they disced most of it. Even little Hei couldn''t hide anymore!


    Suming grabbed the iron rod from Li''s hand and banged hard on the cage, shouting with all his spiritual power, "Come back here!"


    Li had been banging on the bars for a while, but the bears, as if they were deaf, paid him no attention. Suming only struck once, and the bears obediently scrambled out of the pool and rushed into the resting room''s cage, not even bothering to shake the water droplets off their fur.


    "Eh? How did you do that..." Before Li could express his amazement, he suddenly screamed, "Oh my gosh!"


    ```


    Behind them, arge swarm of bees chased after them.


    Whether it was on the zookeeper''s side or near the bear''s rest enclosure, there were only iron cages which couldn''t block the bees at all. Once the bears ran over, they brought the bees with them!


    Now it was trouble, not only for the bears but humans were about to suffer too!


    Suming had no time to exin, he hastily took out a lighter to ignite it, while Mr. Peng immediately understood Suming''s intention, quickly handing over the bamboo pole soaked in gasoline.


    With a whoosh, mes shot up, turning the bamboo pole into a small torch. Mr. Peng extended the torch towards the swarm of bees, waving it chaotically while shouting, "Light the fire, quickly light the fire, bees are afraid of fire and smoke!"


    The rest of the zookeepers, as if waking from a dream, fumbled for lighters to ignite their torches.


    A few torches were lit, and they finally managed to keep the swarm of bees outside the iron cages. Even so, a few fast-flying bees prated the cage, and Li''s hands were immediately bitten, swelling into severalrge bumps.


    Most animals are afraid of fire, and bears are no exception. The bear couple was locked in the rest enclosure, the torches dangerously close to them. This carefree food-loving pair, whether scared by the mes or stung by the bees, started wailing, huddling in a corner of the cage, their ck eyes filled with terror as they looked out.


    The swarm of bees gathered outside the cage, blocked by the torches, not daring to enter, but they showed no signs of dispersing as the torches began to burn out.


    "What''s going on?" Mr. Peng asked in confusion. Normally, when disturbed, a swarm of bees would attack en masse as an instinctive response, without holding grudges, especially when encountering fire and water, they would usually disperse.


    But this group of bees acted as though they had an irreconcble vendetta against the bears, preferring to be smoked to death rather than retreat!


    Suming instinctively turned to look at the bear family in the adjacent cage and suddenly realized the truth! These three gluttons still clutched the beehive, unwilling to part with their food even in their escape!


    One of the beehives had been bitten in half, revealing a Queen Bee with a big belly!


    No wonder the bees refused to leave; the Queen Bee was ''held hostage'' by the bears. They weren''t out for revenge or anything, they were trying to rescue the Queen Bee!


    Suming was Furious with these two; how greedy could they be?


    "Throw the beehive out!" Suming red fiercely, unleashing all his spiritual power towards the bear couple.


    "Wuu wuu..."


    Suming had been drinking Monkey Wine for a while, and his spiritual power had increased rapidly. Now, at full force, it was not to be underestimated. The two bears, cowed by the force of the power, obediently and forcefully threw the beehive away!


    But the problem was, they had been too obedient. Instead of throwing the beehive outside the cage, they hurled it in Suming''s direction, over the fence!


    Suming''s eyes widened instantly, as a million alpacas galloped through his mind!


    "Damn it! I said throw it out, not throw it to me!" Suming roared inwardly.


    A bear''s strength is no joke, and the beehive, never strong to begin with, split into several pieces when they threw it, falling to the ground with a st.


    Because of inertia, the unfortunate Queen Bee shot out of the beehive, tracing a splendid parab, and smashed against the wall on Suming''s side, ''bia'' turning into mush!


    All around instantly grew quiet, everyone stood stunned, staring at the wall where the Queen Bee was now just a smear of flesh.


    Crackle, crackle... the sound of the mes whispered, as thest torch¡­ finally went out¡­


    "Run!"


    Nobody knew who screamed first, their voice almost breaking into a sob.


    A few people, tumbling and crawling, ran for their lives towards the exit of Xiongshan.


    Arge swarm of furious bees squeezed through the cages, following them closely.

 Chapter 33: 33: The Homeless Bees

    The bees'' brains really weren''t that great, it was clearly Hei the bear who had crushed their Queen Bee to death, yet they were buzzing after these humans, fighting them to the death, and swarming in with a buzz, chasing furiously behind Suming and his group.


    How could people on two legs outrun flying bees? In no time, several individuals were surrounded by a great swarm, and although they were wearing thick protective suits, the sheer number of bees and their small size allowed them to relentlessly burrow through the gaps in the suits. Before the group could even run out from Xiongshan, Li and Mr. Peng started screaming, having been viciously stung several times.


    The passageway in the cage was low and narrow, with artificial rock on both sides. As Li frantically fled for his life, he carelessly mmed headfirst into a rock, screaming in agony as he tumbled to the ground.


    "Stop yelling and keep running!" Suming turned and helped Li up with one hand while frantically waving the other to drive the bees away.


    "Thank you, thank you¡­" Li stumbled to his feet and followed, running in a stumbling manner. He had been stung several times, and even his voice sounded out of tune.


    Having finally run out from Xiongshan, the bees were still closely following behind. Mr. Peng shouted, "Spread out and run towards less crowded areas!"


    Immediately, the people scattered in different directions, and the swarm of bees behind them also split into several groups, each pursuing their targets.


    The swarm chasing Suming was thergest,prising well over half of all the bees.


    "Su, be careful!" Mr. Peng sensed something wrong and bellowed at Suming, turning around with the extinguished bamboo pole in hand, ready toe to Suming''s ''rescue''.


    "I''m young and can run fast, I''ll be fine!" Suming didn''t look back and kept running forward, shaking the half piece of the beehive he held in his hand as he went.


    In the blink of an eye, therge swarm seemed truly attracted by the beehive in Suming''s hand, all changing course to chase after him. Suming sprinted ahead for his life and soon vanished from sight, while Mr. Peng and the other keepers finally escaped danger.


    Li swung his hands, driving away thest few bees around him, and took off his headgear. His eyes were red and swollen ¨C it was unclear if it was from being moved or from the stings ¨C but tears flowed copiously.


    "Mr. Su is such a good person!"


    ¡­


    Suming had no intention of sacrificing himself for others. His spiritual power worked very well on these mindless creatures, like casting a, controlling a vast group at once. Under his control, the bees couldn''t sting him, so he simply decided to do a good deed effortlessly, helping the others out.


    "Make way, make way, the bees areing, I won''t be responsible if they sting you!"


    Suming was surrounded by bees, as if enveloped in a cloud of ck mist, which was quite eerie. While running, he waved his hands and shouted, as bystanders at the roadside, witnessing the scene, scattered like they were avoiding the gue, and took out their phones to capture this rare sight.


    "Hey, isn''t that the guy who raises the fortune cats?" Someone recognized Suming. It seemed that his fame had risen since appearing on TV; he could still be recognized even dressed like a biochemical warrior.


    "Could it be that the zoo has added a new performance? A bee stinging act?" someone curiously remarked.


    "Are you crazy, ying with death¡­" said the previous person, disbelieving.


    Suming ignored thesements, leading the bees towards less popted areas, while pondering to himself that returning to the waterside pavilion was not an option now. Although the bees wouldn''t sting him, he couldn''t possibly stay in the pavilion all day controlling the bees, lest they end up stinging visitors or the cats and dogs, which wouldn''t be good.


    The same logic applied to the rest of the zoo; it was off-limits as well.


    Bees were not pests, and since he had them under control, there was no need to kill them. Suming simply ran toward the back mountain, guiding the bees back there to make their homes¡ªperhaps they might even produce some honey for him to enjoy.


    He soon arrived at the zoo''s enclosure wall, where the Monkey King had escapedst time. The wall was over three meters high, but Suming didn''t seem to struggle at all. With a sprint, he deftly grabbed a tree branch and scurried up to the top of the wall. With a leap, he vanished over the other side.


    The back mountain was sparsely popted, so Suming didn''t need to maintain the appearance of ''fleeing for his life'' anymore. He slowed his pace and strolled leisurely toward the deep forest, allowing the swarm of bees to flit around him.


    At first, the bees followed behind Suming, but after more than half an hour, the swarm suddenly elerated, flying ahead and burrowing into the deep forest with familiarity¡ªalmost as if they were guiding Suming.


    Through the connection of spiritual power, Suming could sense that the bees were very familiar with this ce, and even felt a sense of attachment.


    "Is the ce up ahead your original home?" Suming became curious.


    Bees were of low intelligence and could not uratelymunicate any information to Suming; they just kept flying determinedly in a certain direction.


    Suming found a sugarcane-thick tree branch, kicked it until it broke, and held it as a weapon, maintaining a small distance from the bees as he followed them at a steady pace.


    After walking for almost another hour, the bees finally stopped, buzzing outside a small grove, yet not daring to fly into the woods. They also conveyed a sense of fear, as though there was something frightening within those trees.


    "Come on, you were brave enough to sting me, weren''t you? You weren''t afraid of people, what are you afraid of now?"


    That''s what Suming said aloud, but he heightened his vignce internally. Nature is magical, and many animals have natural predators; even the mightiest elephants can be killed by small mice. The bees might not be afraid of people, but that didn''t mean they weren''t afraid of other animals.


    He clenched the tree branch tightly and crawled onto a rock, looking down into the woods from a vantage point.


    The back mountain was filled with trees and rocks, and the forest in front of him was no different, except for lusher vegetation. Beyond the trees, the ground was covered with wild grass and flowers about half a foot tall. At a nce, he saw no dangerous creatures.


    "I hereby appoint you the role of scouts..."


    Suming attempted to control a few bees, wanting them to scout inside the woods, but the normally obedient bees showed signs of resistance, clearly reluctant to enter the forest.


    Suming''s spiritual power was not something a few small bees could resist; though they were unwilling, they obediently flew into the forest under Suming''s firmmand, scattering in all directions.


    Not even a minute passed before one spiritual connection suddenly snapped!


    Two flying creatures that closely resembled bees, but were noticeablyrger and covered in gray-brown, appeared in the forest, stabbing one of the scout bees with the stingers on their tails.


    The scout bee instantly lost its ability to resist, and the two creatures immediately opened theirrge mouths, their mandibles slicing like scythes, and bit the scout bee in half. They then began to devour it with relish.


    "So, it''s wasps! No wonder the bees had been chased away!" Realization dawned on Suming as he witnessed the scene.

 Chapter 34: 34: The Battle With The Hornets!

    A few bees acting as little whirlwinds had just flown into the forest when two hos appeared, one of them biting a bee in half and feasting on the bee''s corpse with relish.


    Hos, scientifically known as Hufeng, also known as tiger head hos, arerger than bees and have strong aggression and toxicity. A slight sting can cause allergic shock and even be life-threatening.


    The hos at hand were all grey-ck, with deep ck chests, looking downright sinister¡ªthey must be the type known as ''Asian Giant Hos.''


    What beekeepers fear most are these kinds of hos. Asian Giant Hos do not make honey themselves but are fond of it, as well as of eating bees, so they can be considered the natural enemy of bees. Although they are rare in numbers, with groups only consisting of a few dozen or even fewer, theirrge size and ferocious temperament mean that bees are no match for the Asian Giant Hos. A small group of these hos can cause a bee field to fail entirely and, over time, they may even consume all the bees.


    If you were to take the perspective of ying a video game, bees would be a group of miners, while Asian Giant Hos would be an elite fighting force!


    Moreover, Asian Giant Hos are highly retaliatory; if you can''t exterminate thempletely, the escaped hos oftene back for revenge.


    Therefore, once beekeepers discover a swarm of Asian Giant Hos near their apiaries, they typically choose to abandon their original beekeeping spot. If it''s truly impossible to leave, they sometimes might keep a small group of bees not far from the ho''s nest, as a form of ''tribute'' to the Asian Giant Hos.


    Suming suddenly understood why the swarm of bees had moved, fleeing haphazardly to the zoo¡ªit turns out their home had been invaded by a gang of robbers!


    As soon as the Asian Giant Hos appeared, the bees wandering outside the forest immediately became restless, buzzing chaotically, as if they wanted to escape!


    "Stop panicking! There are only two of them, and you''re over a thousand..."


    Before Suming finished speaking, a burst of buzzing came from the forest, and arge swarm of Asian Giant Hos emerged, dense as a dark cloud, likely numbering over a hundred!


    With individualbat power far surpassing bees and being their natural predators, bees inherently fear them. A group of over a hundred Asian Giant Hos¡ªlet alone a thousand bees, even tens of thousands of bees might not dare to do battle with them!


    Upon discovering arge group of ''delicacies,'' the swarm of Asian Giant Hos immediately buzzed towards the bees, who were already in a frantic state of disarray. The bees were unable to fly as fast as the Asian Giant Hos and were quickly scattered.


    The group of Hufengs plunged into the swarm of bees, causing great ughter!


    After whirling around in the air for a while, an Asian Giant Hos squad actually flew towards where Suming was hiding!


    "You daree at me? You''re asking for death!" Suming''s spiritual power surged, enshrouding the Asian Giant Hos.


    The moment they came into contact with the spiritual power, this group of Asian Giant Hos abruptly halted in the air, fluttering their wings aimlessly, like travelers who had lost their way.


    The hos live up to their reputation as fierce creatures known as ''killer bees.'' Although they are notrge and not considered intelligent, they are extremely ruthless. Suming could hardly manage to control just a dozen or so Hufengs before he felt his spiritual power being stretched thin.


    Suming quietly estimated that with his current level of spiritual power, he could control no more than thirty Hufengs at most.


    Meanwhile, not far away, over a hundred Asian Giant Hos were rampaging, ughtering the bee swarm en masse, with countless bee corpses falling like raindrops every second!


    This won''t do! Suming was still counting on these honeybees to make honey for drinking in the future, and since these honeybees hade into contact with spiritual power, they could indirectly be considered Suming''s subordinates. As the ''boss,'' Suming certainly couldn''t just watch his little brothers get ughtered!


    "Go, fight them with everything you''ve got!" Suming''s spiritual power shook as he manipted about a dozen Asian Giant Hos as the vanguard, turning their spears to charge into the midst of the ho swarm.


    Then, with the remaining spiritual power, he controlled the leftover honeybee troops, following behind the dozen or so Asian Giant Hos,unching a counterattack against the main ho forces!


    This caught the ho swarmpletely off guard!


    The main force of the Asian Giant Hos had never imagined that theirrades, who had been fighting alongside them just one second ago, would betray them and be quisling underlings in the next, unprepared, a small portion was immediately wiped out!


    Honeybees are no match for Asian Giant Hos; in addition to being smaller in size and less venomous, the main reason lies in their rtively gentle nature, making it difficult to formrge-scale offensives!


    Just like a flock of sheep meeting wolves, even with a numerical advantage, they can only be ughtered or run away!


    But now the situation was different. Under Suming''s control, the honeybees were divided into teams, each team led by a fierce quisling Asian Giant Ho, effectively organizing a group of irregr soldiers into an army!


    One honeybee had just plunged its stinger into the abdomen of an Asian Giant Ho when the ho turned its head and bit off the slim waist of the honeybee!


    But immediately afterward, more honeybees swarmed it, sacrificing their lives fearlessly to plunge their stingers into its body!


    In the blink of an eye, the ho was surrounded and beaten by a group of little honeybees, its body filled with stingers!


    An Asian Giant Ho quisling captain flew past it and with a snap of its jaws, bit off its head!


    If the little honeybees are considered ordinary warriors like cannon fodder, then these treacherous quisling Asian Giant Hos are the generals leading the troops, the vanguards of the charge, the powerful warriors who can decide the oue on the battlefield!


    Wherever there was tough resistance, the quisling Asian Giant Hos would strike, and wherever the situation on the battlefield was dire, there would appear the shadows of Asian Giant Hos!


    Under Suming''smand, the one-sided battle quickly turned around; the honeybees went from being the ughtered to the besiegers, continuously taking down one Asian Giant Ho after another!


    Of course, the Asian Giant Hos would not just wait to be killed. Merely in terms of ''temperament,'' they were even more ferocious than crocodiles and tigers, showing no intention of running away despite being at a disadvantage, instead, they counterattacked the honeybees even more fiercely!


    Among them, severalrger ''powerful warriors'' inflicted heavy casualties on the honeybee troops, continuously taking down the charging honeybees, presenting the very image of a ''one man army''!


    Seeing this scene, Suming''s eyes darted around, manipting several quisling Asian Giant Hos to sneak up covertly!


    Though the Ho champions were fierce, they were not highly intelligent and could not distinguish which of their own kind wererades and which were traitors. Often, seeing an Asian Giant Ho fly by, they thought it was aradeing to join the battle...


    Thus, the quisling Asian Giant Hos quietly yed the ''assassin'', taking advantage of the unguarded battle-engaged Hos, and secretly struck, precisely taking down one Ho champion after another.

 Chapter 35: 35: Quisling Er Gouzi

    Under themand of the great marshal Suming, the battle soon drew to its conclusion. With the cooperation of the decoy hos, the Bee Legion achieved a sweeping victory, leaving the ground littered with the carcasses of bees and Asian Giant Hos.


    Out of the horde of more than a hundred Asian Giant Hos, only a scattered twenty or thirty remained, the vast majority being decoy Hos. The few survivors could not mount any effective counterattack and werepletely surrounded by the decoy force and the Bee Legion, with no opportunity to escape.


    Nearly a thousand bees had also suffered heavy losses, but due to theirrge initial numbers, around five or six hundred survived the battle.


    Commander Suming sat on the ground, somewhat weary. Even the simplest bee and ho were still lives, and controlling so many of them in battle was a considerable drain on him.


    But there were benefits. Spiritual power was like a ''skill''¡ªthe more it was used, the more proficient it became, and it would gradually increase. Throughmanding this great battle, Suming''s use of spiritual power had clearly advanced to a new level. His control over numbers, precision, and range had all improved since before.


    Thus, the remaining few Asian Giant Hos, without any surprise, fell under Suming''s control and joined the ranks of the decoy army.


    Only the Bee Legion and the decoys were left; with no enemies remaining, the battle naturally came to an end. The remaining hos and bees, like a troop standing for inspection, flew in front of Suming.


    After fighting side by side in a ''bloody battle'', it seemed that a kind of radeship'' had formed between the decoy Asian Giant Hos and bees. Although not intimate, they clearly divided into two groups, yet they refrained from attacking each other.


    "Go and see if there are any remaining enemy forces in the woods!" Suming issued themand, and the hos, leading a group of bees,zily flew into the forest to scatter and search.


    Animals don''t have as many cunning thoughts as humans. In battles, they either swarm together or scatter in disarray; they don''t engage in behavior like watching fires from across the river or sabotaging their teammates. After searching the woods for a while, no remnants of the enemy were found.


    Suming gestured grandly, "That''s settled, then. From now on, the bees will live in this forest!"


    Located in the wilderness, the area was less likely to be disturbed by humans. Meanwhile, the surrounding flora was lush, an ideal ce for the bees to settle. The bees had originally lived here, and now, reiming their lost territory and returning to their homnd, they were visibly overjoyed and buzzed around Suming excitedly.


    Attracting bees and butterflies was precisely what this meant. Although there were no frivolous butterflies, there were indeed several hundred frenzied bees.


    "I am not Xiaolongnu, stop buzzing around me all the time; go settle down!" Suming clicked his fingers at the bees.


    The bees flew away, leaving the twenty to thirty remaining decoy hos with nowhere to go. They buzzed around Suming pitifully, as if to say ''considering our service to the Party-State, give your brothers a hand'', ''we may not have the merits but we did the hard work''.


    "I need to find a way out for you too..."


    Suming thought for a moment, "This is what we''ll do: you will live here too. The bees will share some of their honey with you; after all, there''s so much they can''t eat it all. You, on the other hand, will protect the bees, but you are forbidden from harming them again!"


    Humming contentedly, the hos dashed into the forest. Now in sheer numbers, the hos were at an absolute disadvantage. Moreover, after a battle under spiritual power control, the bees had gained experience inbating the hos and were somewhat stronger than ordinary bees. Should these hos cause trouble while he was away, the bee swarm would be capable of suppressing them.


    The Asian Giant Hos buzzed away happily, content with the idea of living peacefully without having to fight to the death. In the past, though the bees were weak, they would rather die than provide honey to the hos, even if it meant moving or fighting to the end rather than submitting. The hos had no choice but to take risks and plunder, which was both troublesome and risky.


    Now that Suming had given hismand, it was foreseeable that this group of hos would soon be living the easy life of having everything handed to them.


    One ho,rger than the others by a size, lingered behind. Just as it was about to fly into the woods, its body shook and it stopped midair.


    "Er Gouzi, follow me from now on and serve as my liaison!" Suming snapped his fingers.


    The ho turned its head and flew back to Suming, perching on his shoulder as they walked down the mountain together.


    Thisrger ho was one of the first ''defectors'' to side with Suming during the battle, fighting its kin most eagerly, thus earning the honor of being named by Suming.


    As soon as Suming and Er Gouzi returned to Whisperwind Pavilion, they found arge crowd waiting, including Mr. Song, Mrs. Tong, Mr. Peng, the animal keeper Li from Xiongshan, and Mr. Dong from the zoo''s security department.


    "Huh, what brings all the leaders here?" Suming was caught off guard and subtly instructed Er Gouzi to hide under the pavilion''s eaves without making a sound, allowing it free movement but forbidding it from hurting anyone.


    Seeing Suming appear, everyone in the room breathed a sigh of relief, looking as if a great weight had been lifted. Mrs. Tong, with her quick tongue, spoke first: "Gosh, we heard you lured the bees away with honeb to protect the otherrades. The director immediately sent people to back you up, but when we couldn''t find you after a long search, we were all frantic, fearing something had happened to you!"


    Mr. Peng gave Suming a solid punch on the shoulder. "You rascal, not answering your phone had me really scared." He circled Suming, looking him over and asking, "You''re not injured, are you?"


    "No, I led the bees to the back mountain and then tossed away the honeb, making a detour before running back here," Suming shook his head as he said.


    "That''s good to hear. Just as I thought, Su has his ways. What could a bunch of bees do to him?"


    Mr. Song stood up with a chuckle, nodded at Suming, and then his expression turned serious as he looked at Mr. Dong and Li, "Dong, with bees causing a ruckus in the zoo, as the head of security, you''re the one responsible if anyone gets stung. And Li, if Su hadn''t risked his own safety to divert those bees, you''d be the one failing at your job. Both of you owe Su the most thanks."


    "Master Su, I can''t thank you enough. Ah, it''s all my fault for being careless at work." Li stood and gave Suming a deep bow, his head wrapped in bandages that were still seeping blood, indicating he had taken a hard tumble during his escape.


    He was genuinely grateful to Suming. Escaping from Xiongshan, he had crashed into a rock and copsed, stars exploding before his eyes, unable to even tell directions. If Suming hadn''t turned back to pull him up, he might have indeed been stung badly by the bees.


    Though bee stings weren''t as poisonous as wasps'', being surrounded and stung by hundreds of bees was no joke; even three lives wouldn''t be enough.


    His bow was exceptionally deep. Suming chuckled and quickly steadied him, "Mr. Li, you''re too kind."

 Chapter 36: 36 A Den of Beasts

    "He should thank you, you''ve made a contribution to the zoo," Mr. Song said with a chuckle.


    Mr. Dong had been following Mr. Song for a long time; hearing the hint in Mr. Song''s words, he added, "What the director means is, Su not only dealt with the beehive promptly, preventing a bigger incident, but also showed bravery and determination during the process, putting others before himself to protect his colleagues. We should not only thank Su, but also put forward amendation for him."


    Suming was taken aback. What did this mean? As a member of the leadership team, Mr. Dong using the word mendation'' represented, to some extent, the zoo leadership''s intent.


    Looking somewhat perplexed at Mr. Song, Mr. Song, however, appeared nonchnt and unfathomable. He stood up, nodded slightly at Suming with a smile, and said, "Alright, alright, as long as you''re fine, we''re relieved. You rest up; we''ll be going back now."


    With that, he led the group away from the pavilion.


    Mr. Peng, walking at the end, whispered some advice to Suming, "You young man, don''t be so impulsive in the future. Always think of safety first!"


    "Don''t worry, I''m fine," Suming reassured him, tugging at Mr. Peng''s sleeve and quietly asking, "What did Mr. Dong mean by mendation'' just now?"


    "Commendation is just that,mendation. The leaders value you! Keep up the good work!" Mr. Peng said with a smile.


    Suming could only shrug in an overdone way to express his bewilderment. The leaders had valued him for not just a day or two; was there any need to be so secretive about it?


    After seeing off Mr. Song and the others, Suming closed the doors to the pavilion and called Er Gouzi out. He then used his spiritual power to summon a few cats and the alligator turtle, one by one, inside.


    Hei opened his big eyes, curiously staring at Er Gouzi, seemingly considering Er Gouzi an intriguing toy. He even swiped at him twice, trying to catch Er Gouzi.


    Er Gouzi buzzed around to avoid him; he didn''t want to y with this ''big fellow''. One careless move could pulverize him into ground meat.


    Undeterred, Hei leaped with astounding agility, jumping over half a meter high, in a you-can''t-escape-until-I-catch-you attitude.


    Er Gouzi obviously wouldn''tply!


    Even though he had be a turncoat, that was only because Mr. Su, his boss, was too fierce, not because he himself was a coward. As an Asian Giant Ho, Er Gouzi was the very definition of ferocity. Sticking his butt out, he exposed his sting, ready to fiercely strike back at Hei.


    Before he could sting Hei''s paw, Suming harshly jolted him with spiritual power, and Er Gouzi had no choice but to obediently fly behind Suming, buzzing around, to express his discontent with Hei.


    "Can you stop buzzing?" Suming felt a chill. This creature flying around him was one thing, but the buzzing, it always gave him an unpleasant sensation, like flies swarming around, you know.


    The alligator turtle, however, didn''t show much surprise at Er Gouzi''s arrival, barely deigning to give Er Gouzi an extra nce, with an air of seeing-no-ho.


    In the alligator turtle''s proud heart, he was the fiercest one there, besides Mr. Su, of course.


    In fact, nature has its own wondrous rules of creation. Even though the alligator turtle had the size, strength, and lethal potential, it still wasn''t a match for the cats, nor for Er Gouzi.


    "Alright, alright, get to know each other. From now on, you''re all family. No friendly fire!"


    Suming like an elder, had the animals acquaint themselves with one another.


    However, as soon as he said that, it felt somewhat off.


    In front of me was a crocodile turtle holding its neck high and looking at the sky, a few cats hopping around, and an Asian Giant Ho that could kill a person with its sting¡ªin no way did they look like ''one family.''


    They were clearly just a bunch of animals!


    "Great, I''ve really be a big animal!" Suming pped his forehead.


    ...


    The next morning, after feeding the animals, Suming went to Xiongshan.


    As soon as Suming got to Xiongshan, he saw the ck bear family twisting and turning on their stroll inside Xiongshan, with the bear parents leading the way and the little ck bear following behind, nosing half a watermelon as he walked, eating it with juice sshing everywhere.


    Indeed, they were a heartless bunch of foodies¡ªjust yesterday they were chased all over by bees, nearly causing the death of a keeper, and today they acted as though nothing had happened, leisurely enjoying their little life.


    Under the innocent appearance of these foodies usuallyy a smart heart.


    Aftermunicating with spiritual power yesterday, the ck bear family had recognized Suming. With their keen sense of smell, as soon as Suming approached Xiongshan, they sensed his scent, immediately raised their heads, and stood up outside of Xiongshan, vigorously waving their big bear paws at Suming; the white V on their chests was especially striking.


    The little ck bear even held half a watermelon in its arms, showing it off to Suming as if asking him if he wanted to eat together.


    However, before Suming could do anything, the little ck bear seemed a bit reluctant to share, quickly withdrew its paws, took a big bite out of the watermelon, eating seven or eight tenths of it, and then once again held up the remaining bit in its paws, showing it off to Suming.


    "Look how stingy you are¡ªno one''speting with you for a busted watermelon!" Suming rolled his eyes in irritation.


    "Mr. Su, you''re here! Look, great stuff!" Li came over from behind, carrying a wooden bucket and shaking it at Suming.


    In the bucket were the beehives that had fallen yesterday. These hives were originally the size of basketballs, but they had fallen from the trees and been smashed by the ck bear, breaking into fragments, which neatly filled a bucket.


    Li''s eyes were still swollen as he said squinting, "Thanks to your help yesterday, this is for you. I heard from Mr. Peng and the others that beehives can be sold for money; it would be a waste to throw them away."


    Beehives could indeed be sold for money, not just the hives but also the honey and bees within them, including the royal jelly.


    However, they weren''t worth much; a hive of this size, along with royal jelly and such, would fetch at most around one or two thousand yuan, and these hives had already been shattered, with the royal jelly and honey mostly licked clean by the ck bear.


    "Still, that''s not bad, it can sell for a few hundred yuan, which is like a month''s bonus."


    Li, upon hearing Suming''s exnation, wasn''t disappointed, but ratherughed happily.


    He also came from the countryside, and his family wasn''t wealthy. With just that fixed monthly sry, a few hundred yuan seemed like quite a windfall to him.


    But Suming didn''t want to sell them for money. For one thing, a few hundred yuan didn''t mean much to him at this point¡ªto put it arrogantly, it couldn''t even be counted as money, and it would be a hassle to find a buyer, making it not worth the effort.


    Secondly, seeing these hive fragments actually reminded Suming that they had other uses, which were much more important than a few hundred yuan.

 Chapter 37: 37 The Surplus Value of the Honeycomb

    "Thanks, then consider it a purchase from me for five hundred bucks," Suming took the bucket containing the fragments of the beehive, then pulled out five hundred yuan and stuffed it into Li''s hands.


    "I can''t take this, how can I ept the money!" Li was initially stunned, then hurriedly refused, insisting on not taking the money no matter what.


    Even though the guy was somewhat clumsy at work and not the sharpest tool in the shed, he was incredibly honest. Suming had helped him and even saved him; these broken beehive pieces were meant as a thank you to Suming, so how could he take money for them?


    But Suming insisted, forcefully stuffing the money into his hand before picking up the bucket and running off without a trace.


    "What a good person!" Clutching the money, Li was moved to tears once again.


    ...


    Suming carried arge load of broken beehive back to Fengshui Pavilion, took out a few pieces, and sniffed them under his nose, smelling a faint fragranceing from within the hive.


    Breaking off a small piece, he found the hive still contained quite a bit of honey and royal jelly.


    He broke apart almost the entire half bucket of beehive, then found a knife and scraped off the remaining royal jelly from the pieces of the broken beehive, like spreading butter, smearing it all onto a separate, slightlyrger piece of beehive.


    "Er Gouzi, go, call a few wasps over, big ones!" Suming snapped his fingers and directed Er Gouzi, who was resting on a beam in the room.


    Er Gouzi sure knew how to enjoy life. In less than a day, it had built a small nest on a horizontal beam on the ceiling of the first floor of the pavilion, a ce to rest that also served as a hideout for catching mosquitoes, flies, spiders, and other small insects.


    It flew out of the pavilion leisurely, heading towards the mountain behind, and before long, it returned with more than a dozen brawny Asian Giant Hos.


    "Take this to the bees, and don''t you dare snack on it on your way!"


    Suming handed over the piece of beehive smeared with royal jelly to the hos, who swarmed over it, grabbed the hive, and buzzed back towards the mountain again.


    The bee colony had suffered a terrible loss this time, with the Queen Bee gone, and they would need some time to recover. ording to the rules of the colony, they would certainly produce a new Queen Bee, and the growth of a Queen Bee required the consumption of royal jelly. The royal jelly he had scraped off was specially prepared by Suming for the new Queen Bee.


    With this ready supply of royal jelly, both the Queen Bee''s growth and the colony''s recovery rate would be significantly elerated.


    About a quarter of the broken beehive was left in the bucket, and Suming smashed it all up, then poured the crumbs into a stic bucket filled with purified water, and went to buy two bottles of vinegar from a small store.


    "Are you having dumplings for dinner?" the store owner asked.


    "No, I''m getting some vinegar in case someone''s having dumplings, so I can ask for some," Suming said with a shake of the vinegar bottle and a smile.


    Store Owner: "..."


    After returning, he poured both bottles of vinegar into the stic bucket, screwed on the lid, and ced it in a ventted, cool spot on the second floor to ferment.


    Thest time Nangong Yan came for an interview, she mentioned a minor issue, and he hadn''t had any solution to offer at the time, but now these beehives came in handy.


    The bee episode was finally over, and Suming shifted his focus back to the contracted pedal boats on the artificialke.


    He had nned to discuss this with Mr. Song when he returned yesterday, but the unexpected bee incident had dyed him.


    "Su, your timing is perfect!" Mr. Song saw Suming and, even before Suming could speak, took out a bright red certificate from his desk.


    There was also several hundred yuan included with the certificate.


    "What''s this?" Suming opened the red certificate to find an award, which read ''Yangchuan City Zoo First Half-Year Outstanding Worker, Comrade Su Ming.''


    Suming was startled. Without rhyme or reason, how did I be an "outstanding employee"?


    It dawned on him then. No wonder Mr. Dong was talking aboutmendation yesterday, it turns out it was foreshadowing for this matter.


    In privatepanies, the honor of being an outstanding worker doesn''t mean much, not even as practical as a bonus.


    But in public institutions, it''spletely different.


    Behind the honor implies that leadership might be considering promoting you, which means it''s a capital for promotion.


    At the very least, it signifies that the qualifications of the honoree are important, and in state-owned units, qualifications are very important.


    That''s why Suming was surprised. How could a temporary worker like himself receive the title of an outstanding employee for the first half of the year? This honor was essentially the highest a regr zoo employee could obtain.


    Mr. Song, the zoo director, seemed to have noticed Suming''s confusion and exined with a smile, "Although you haven''t been here long, your work performance is there for all to see. In just one month, you not only did your job well, but also made the boat business thrive. Moreover, you handled two emergency incidents in a row, saving a tourist the first time and risking yourself to prevent colleagues from getting hurt the second time. Thus, the zoo''s leadership team has collectively decided to bestow this honor upon you!"


    Zoo leadership team? Suming thought to himself, all the old staff at the zoo have been at Mr. Song''s beck and call for decades. Isn''t everything in the zoo ultimately decided by your words alone? What ''leadership team''?


    The money tucked inside the certificate of honor was quite a sum, a neat stack of a thousand, which for the cash-strapped zoo, a thousand yuan award could be considered ''a hefty sum''.


    "Su, have you ever considered taking on some greater responsibilities?" The old director asked leisurely.


    "Ah? Greater responsibilities?" Suming''s eyes widened.


    "Honor is always apanied by responsibility," the old director said with seemingly good intentions, guiding Suming, "Look, your boat business is doing well, and the zoo, well, we just take a basic management fee. Your ie for the month has been quite substantial."


    "What do you mean?" Suming asked tentatively.


    Hearing the director''s tone, it seemed like he was thinking along the same lines as himself.


    However, since the director brought it up first, he wasn''t in a hurry to speak.


    "I think Whisperwind Pavilion has too few boats to meet visitor demand. Shuijun Lake has arge surface area, perfectly suitable for investing in a few more boats to expand your business. If you''re willing to take on the lease, the zoo can contract Shuijun Lake out to you as well," the director said.


    ''Shuijun Lake'' is thergest man-madeke in the zoo, the very one Suming had his eyes on, also the paradise from the alligator turtle''s dream.


    Legend has it that before Cao Cao attacked Chi Bi, he had trained his navy at Yangchuan, hence theke was named ''Shuijun''.


    But it was just a legend after all. Yangchuan City was quite a distance from Chi Bi, and unless Cao Cao had his head caught in a door, he wouldn''t likely train his troops here.


    Yet you never know. With things a thousand years ago, it''s hard to be certain, and Cao Cao, usually as clever as a ghost, asionally did things as if his head had been pinched by a door. It wouldn''t be a surprise.


    "What do you think? There''s also a Whisperwind Pavilion near Shuijun Lake, which the government spent several million to build. It''s a famous site. If managed well, it has great potential," Mr. Song spoke calmly, yet in Suming''s eyes, it seemed like Mr. Song was enticing him to lease that area.


    Suming felt amused. The old director always appeared rather staid, but when it came to the zoo''s development and future, he instantly transformed, bing shrewd and calcting.


    "Director, I''ve thought it over, and I''m willing to take on the lease of Shuijun Lake."


    Suming nodded his head, "However, I have a condition!"

 Chapter 38: 38 Contracting Fees and Management Fees

    Mr. Song''s eyes lit up, "What conditions, are they about the management fees?"


    Suming was not originally going to talk about management fees, but since Mr. Song mentioned it, he naturally took the opportunity to say, "Of course, I hope the management fees can be as low as possible."


    Mr. Song chuckled and said, "You can rest assured on that matter, as long as the business is run well, the zoo won''t charge you extra management fees. The 10% from the pavilion side definitely won''t work, after all, Shuijun Lake is a major attraction, and the zoo needs to justify it, but within my authority, I can give you the lowest rate."


    In the zoo, Mr. Song''s authority was of course beyond doubt. His words, to some extent, were like a deration to Suming that he would not profit off the management fees.


    Just like before at the pavilion, a good boat business would drive the zoo''s ticket revenue, which is the main profit growth point for the zoo.


    Seeing Suming nod, Mr. Song quickly followed up with, "However, there''s one thing I need to rify with you."


    "Go ahead."


    Mr. Song said, "I hope that if you need to hire help in the future, you''ll consider our zoorades first, after all, it''s best not to let the ''water flow into someone else''s field'', and it can also be a small benefit the zoo offers them."


    The zoo staff had fixed ies, not much work, and most of them were idle for a big part of their working day. If they could earn some legitimate extra money, that would be an indirect benefit from the zoo to its employees.


    Suming nodded, "Of course, I wouldn''t feel reassured hiring someone from outside. But what I wanted to discuss wasn''t about the management fee."


    Mr. Song red at him, "Then what have you been going on about?!"


    "Heh." Suming chuckled. After all, you were the one who brought it up.


    Then he spoke seriously, "I hope to contract the entire Shuijun Lake, not just the boat business on theke. In other words, everything in Shuijun Lake, including the water, fish, and even the mud and rocks on the bottom, I want management and ownership rights during the contract period. Also, the surrounding anciry buildings, like the Whisperwind Pavilion you just mentioned, while I don''t contract them now, I want the priority to do so under the same conditions in the future."


    When Suming finished speaking, Mr. Song was startled and asked curiously, "What do you want all that for?"


    Without waiting for Suming to reply, Mr. Song suddenly realized and said, "You''re not thinking of fish farming, are you? Su, you''re new and might not be aware, but Shuijun Lake is an artificialke, quiterge but with very poor water quality, not suitable for aquaculture."


    Mr. Song even thought Suming had watched too many films or read too many novels and wanted to search for treasures on the bottom of Shuijun Lake. He continued, "Although our ce is a ''scenic and historic interest site'', we all know that the so-called historic site is just a gimmick; we are far from the Chibi Ancient Battlefield. Even if you were to unearth an historic relic, that would belong to the nation."


    Suming hadn''t thought that far. Theke only had a twenty-year history; it was impossible there would be anything valuable in it. Forget about salvaging, at most one could find a few mobile phones that tourists identally dropped into theke.


    He simply felt that since he was contracting, he should haveplete control over theke. He did not want to be in the middle of business and have others interrupt him for some strange reasons.


    As for the ecological problems in Shuijun Lake, Suming wasn''t worried; with the ability of ''Animal''s Friend'', was there not a ce for him to use his skills in such arge body of water?


    Beyond that, there was a main reason Suming hadn''t mentioned.


    The geographical location of Shuijun Lake is excellent, right next to the back mountain, and there isn''t even a fence between theke and the mountain, with the end of theke leading directly to the mountain.


    The mountain is a branch of the Qinlin Mountain Range, filled with countless animals, it can be said to be a natural treasure.


    Geographically speaking, to upy Shuijun Lake is to control the passage to the back mountain. Whatever you do in the back mountain, traveling through Shuijun Lake is very surreptitious and not easily discovered.


    "If I can''t lease the entire Shuijun Lake, then I won''t lease it at all," Su Ming stated bluntly and yed the rogue.


    Mr. Songughed, pointed at Su Ming, and said, "I didn''t see iting, you''re young, but your ambitions are big. If you really want to lease the entire Shuijun Lake, it''s not impossible. However, there are two major principles you have to adhere to, and if you can meet them, I''ll represent the zoo and sign a contract with you."


    "Please, tell me," Su Ming said


    "First, you can''t change the public welfare nature of Shuijun Lake. You must allow visitors to recreate on theke and ensure their safety. If an ident happens, you will be held responsible. As long as you can do this, I don''t care what you do in Shuijun Lake; you could even raise sharks if you have the means."


    "Okay," Su nodded.


    "Secondly," Mr. Song shook his head, looked at Su Ming with a somewhat helpless gaze, and said slowly, "It''s about the fee. If you simply lease the boating business of Shuijun Lake and are willing to invest in a few more boats, then as for the management fee, like I said earlier, I have the authority, at most it''s 30% of your total revenue, and it''s negotiable.


    But now you''re proposing to lease the entire Shuijun Lake, including the ie from theke, that''s a different matter. You won''t be paying a ''management fee'' but a ''lease fee,'' and these two are entirely different concepts. Although it''s clear to everyone that theke can''t sustain fish, thus not profitable, after all, it is a significant national asset, we must have an exnation for the higher-ups.


    inly speaking, whether you earn or lose, you''ll have to pay a hefty lease fee in full, and in advance."


    "How much exactly?" Su Ming asked.


    "Three hundred thousand per year. If you lease Whisperwind Pavilion together, the minimum lease term is three years," Mr. Song added, "That''s the lowest limit I can decide on my own."


    That is, regardless of whether you make or lose money in the future, you must first pay 900,000 to the zoo.


    Seeing that Su Ming remained silent, Mr. Song thought the amount had frightened him. Recently, the boating business had been lucrative, but it wasn''t to the point where one could easilye up with nearly a million.


    Moreover, this 900,000 is just the lease fee paid to the zoo. To develop Shuijun Lake, whether for aquaculture or anything else, substantial additional investment would be required. Without several million in funds, it''s impossible to secure the lease.


    "Su, I know you''re bold, but one has to eat one bite at a time. I still suggest that you stick with the boating business for a few years, then slowly expand after you have a certain amount of savings. To be honest with you, there have been businessmen in the past who wanted to lease Shuijun Lake and even came for on-site inspections, but they all came to the conclusion it isn''t suitable for aquaculture. Other projects can''t be set up in just a day or two either."


    Save up for a few years? That''s the normal route. If, with the help of Animal Friends, he still scrimped and saved, afraid to take any risks, Su Ming felt he might as well bash his head in. Even with the biggest golden finger, he would at best be a hangman with a golden finger, living a menial life.


    "Ny thousand is ny thousand, Mr. Song, I''m willing to lease it. Get the contract ready, and we''ll sign it as soon as the money is handed over!"

 Chapter 39: 39 Holding the Country Back

    Mr. Song was earnestly trying to persuade Suming, after all,ing up with nine hundred thousand all of a sudden was too much. It was a lot of money not only for a young man who had just graduated and came from a not-so-well-off family background, but even for a middle-ss family, nine hundred thousand was not a small sum.


    When Mr. Song heard Suming agree without hesitation, he was taken aback and stared at Suming for a long time before asking uncertainly, "Do you have nine hundred thousand?"


    "Look at what you''re saying, if I didn''t have the money, why would I even talk to you about this?" Suming said with a smile.


    Mr. Song paced back and forth in his office twice before frowning and saying, "That''s not right, yourke pavilion''s boating business is doing well, but it''s been less than a month, at most you would have made seventy or eighty thousand, where did you suddenly get so much money? Su, you didn''t borrow it, did you? Borrowing money for business isn''t wise!"


    "Heh heh, Mr. Song, what if I told you I had some damn good luck and a big pile of money fell from the sky, would you believe me?"


    "You''re not going to say you won the lottery, are you?"


    "It''s simr to winning the lottery."


    Suming chuckled and didn''t try to hide anything, he straightforwardly told the story of auctioning the Monkey Wine.


    Just like with Zhao Yun, Suming also omitted a detail at this time, not mentioning that the Monkey Wine was made by the  Monkey King in the zoo. Instead, he said that he had gone hiking in the back mountains during his free time, stumbled into a small valley by chance, and discovered the Monkey Wine. Then with Zhao Yun''s help, he auctioned it off at the Xiangjiang auction house to some capital-rich fool.


    Although this exnation sounded a bit exaggerated, even legendary, upon scrutiny, there were no ws.


    Furthermore, with Zhao Yun''s help, Mr. Song, who had been a leader for decades, was well aware of Zhao Yun''s background. With a major yer like Zhao Yun aiding him, making a few million was not difficult.


    Even without the Monkey Wine incident, given Zhao Yun''s background and connections, helping a young man up thedder would be easy, especially since Suming was his daughter''s lifesaver.


    Suming never intended to hide the fact that he made money from the auction. With more than three million at his disposal, why would he still pretend to be poor and live a hard life? That''s no different from being broke. At least when he was broke, living a hard life felt justified. But having money and not daring to spend it, constantly hiding it and being overly cautious, that would be utterly depressing.


    So, he might as well admit it boldly, "I''m just lucky, what you gonna do about it?"


    The ''honesty'' of Suming actually dispelled any doubts Mr. Song had. There aren''t many people who are lucky, but they do exist. Newspapers and TV reports every other day about someone who found a treasure and made a fortune overnight. Just a few days ago, there was a report about a farmer who found a meteorite Luminous Pearl worth over sixty million. Compared to that, Suming''s three million seemed rather modest.


    After listening to Suming''s exnation, Mr. Song was stunned for a moment, and then marveled at how incredibly fortunate Suming''s luck was, almost equivalent to winning the lottery.


    "Heh heh, when people win the lottery, it''s like five million or a few billion. I only made just over three million, still a long way to go," Sumingughed.


    "Don''t act like you''re being coy after snagging a bargain, young man. Now that you have money, as a member of the zoo, it wouldn''t be too much to ask for a donation to the zoo, would it?"


    "Ah?" Suming''s face turned dark all at once¡ªit was instant karma!


    Mr. Song was quite straightforward and said, "It''s not easy being in charge here. We can''t even afford to install cameras in the zoo, so don''t make a face like it''s hurting your wallet. I won''t ask for much, just donate thirty to fifty thousand to beef up the security around the areas where we keep the top-tier protected animals. It can be counted as your contribution. That way, when I submit the contract to my superiors, it will go through the approval process much smoother."


    "Sure thing, since you''ve asked, let''s not do thirty or fifty thousand¡ªjust add thirty to fifty, making eighty thousand. Let''s round it up, I''ll throw in another twenty thousand, for a total donation of one hundred thousand!" Suming said with the air of a nouveau riche squandering his fortune.


    The feeling of tossing money around was a mix of pain and pleasure¡ªthe poor resent the rich not because the rich spend foolishly, but because they envy them for being able to spendvishly. Some say that spending money hand over fist, just like makingrge sums, is one of life''s greatest pleasures.


    The rest of the affair went smoothly. By noon that same day, Mr. Song had made contact with their overseeing agency and garnered their approval.


    Unexpectedly, Mr. Song also secured an extra perk for Suming: since Shuijun Lake was sitting idle, and it wasn''t being rented out to outsiders anyway, if Suming paid the lease in full for three years upfront, the first year would be at two hundred thousand, the second year at two hundred and fifty thousand, and only the third year would at three hundred thousand.


    Suming hadn''t nned on paying in installments anyway. With this calction, minus the hundred thousand donated to the zoo, Suming saved an additional fifty thousand.


    Everyone was pleased¡ªthe government reduced the financial burden on the zoo, the zoo got money to improve security and a one-time ie of seven hundred and fifty thousand, and Suming acquired three years of ownership and management rights over argeke.


    Just the cost of renting excavators to dig ake the size of a hundred acres would have taken a huge sum out of Suming''s pocket, not to mention that Shuijun Lake had all kinds of facilities already in ce. Taking it over as-is saved Suming a great deal of effort and money.


    "You better do a good job. Once you''ve made some achievements, I''ll find a way to get you nominated for Yangchuan City''s Outstanding Entrepreneur," the zoo director said, patting Suming''s shoulder heavily.


    Suming grinned, "Please don''t, you''ve already cost me seven to eighty thousand just for being an ''Outstanding Worker of the Zoo.'' I don''t dare to take on any city-level distinctions¡ªthat might cost me even more, and I certainly don''t have enough money for that."


    "By the time you''re recognized as a city-level Outstanding Entrepreneur, you won''t even blink at tens or hundreds of thousands," Mr. Song said.


    He made sense¡ªanyone qualifying for a city badge typically boasts assets worth hundreds of millions.


    Suming didn''t even have to wait to umte a fortune of a hundred million. After news spread through the zoo that he had be a millionaire of three million simply by stumbling upon ''Monkey Wine,'' it caused quite a stir.


    Upon hearing that Suming made a few million from finding something like ''Monkey Wine,'' Mrs. Tong''s eyes widened as if they were about to pop out. When she was overseeing Suming''s contract signing, she kept asking if he had a girlfriend and what type of girls he liked, acting every bit the eager matchmaker, which actually made Suming quite embarrassed.


    "Sister Tong, I''m still young. The state advocates forte marriage andte childbirth, so isn''t it too soon to be thinking about getting married?" Suming scratched his head andughed.


    Mrs. Tong, however, was vehement, ring at him and retorting, "Too soon? Haven''t you seen that the state has even allowed for a second child now? It''s all because you young folk keep wanting a few more years to yourselves, refusing to marry and have kids, and that''s leaving the country short on human resources!"


    Suming was left speechless. So it''s my fault the economy''s struggling? Is it because I''m not chasing girls that I''m dragging the country down?

 Chapter 40: 40 Buying a Car

    Mrs. Tong was known for her big mouth, and Suming always felt as if she had some kind of broadcasting aura about her. Any piece of information in her possession wouldn''t take half a day before every employee in the zoo, from top to bottom, knew about it.


    After signing the contract, the colleagues Suming ran into on his way all came up to congratte him, moring for Suming to treat them to a meal.


    Suming wasn''t stingy at all. He promised everyone, nning to invite all the employees of the zoo on some weekend, for a big feast.


    "Good people get rewarded!" Li, the keeper in Xiongshan, muttered while feeding the bears.


    "You should be careful with money. Put it in the bank to earn some interest. Save it for setting up a family and establishing yourself in the future. Don''t spend this money."


    Mr. Peng earnestly put away the two bottles of Wuliangye that Suming had given him and then spoke to Suming, both pleased and a bit reproachful.


    "It''s only right for an apprentice to honor his master. These two bottles of liquor didn''t cost much," Suming replied nonchntly.


    Mr. Peng was a good man. Many old masters had the habit of demanding bribes and would even keep secrets. If you ran into one with an odd character, they might deliberately make things difficult for the apprentice. But Mr. Peng always took good care of Suming and often invited him out for a drink. The master-apprentice rtionship was quite strong.


    Moreover, Huaxia people ce great importance on the inheritance of the master-apprentice lineage and respecting the teacher and valuing the doctrine. Now that Suming had some money, if he didn''t honor Mr. Peng, he would feel uneasy, and besides, people might gossip about him behind his back.


    "Being of little use when needed but causing trouble otherwise" is a typical characteristic of a petty person. Suming didn''t want to be doing well in his business while having someone trying to sabotage him behind his back.


    Everyone knew Suming had made money, but he didn''t dare to tell his family.


    Since he wasn''t living with his mother and they were hundreds of miles apart, suddenly telling her that he had struck it rich might clear things up, but she was elderly and might worry needlessly.


    After thinking it over, Suming decided to spend five hundred thousand at the insurancepany to buy a financial-stylemercial insurance policy, with his mother as the beneficiary.


    From then on, his mother would receive over a thousand yuan each month until her death. In their small mountain hole, a thousand yuan was already more than enough to livefortably, not to mention his mother had other sources of ie. No matter what happened in the future, his mother''sst years would at least be free of financial worries.


    Over the phone, Suming merely mentioned that each month he would send back a little over a thousand yuan, without telling his mother that if something happened to him, the insurancepany would pay out the entire five hundred thousand to the beneficiary¡ªwhich was his mother.


    With that done, after ounting for the contracted services and the insurance money, Suming had about two million left for himself.


    Cash, house, car, wife, son... He had the cash, and Whisperwind Pavilion was morefortable than a big vi; he wasn''t in a rush for a wife and children, so that left the car.


    "It''s time to buy a car."


    Suming didn''t know much about cars, so he simply called Wang Hao, an expert in this field¡ªat least among his college friends; Wang Hao knew the most about cars.


    Actually, besides Zhao Yun, Wang Hao was the first person to know about the windfall Suming hade into.


    Over three million was a sum that Wang Hao''s family could barely afford, but all of the money was managed by Wang Hao''s parents, and he himself couldn''t evene up with three hundred thousand.


    "You lucky bastard, your luck is off the charts!"


    Driving the little Wing Tiger, Wang Hao joked, "Just a trip to the mountains and you stumble upon a few million. Then there''s the boat business, right? Same boats, others can''t even attract a crow, but look at you¡ªearning easy money, appearing on the little TV, sipping on wine, hardly ever checking the site, and cash just pours into your wallet. Next time, take me to see your family''s graveyard; I bet it''s billowing out blue smoke."


    "It''s not like that; training cats and alligator turtles is really hard work," Su Ming said.


    Wang Hao rolled his eyes, "Hard work? Brother, I feel like you''re just ying around. Old Su, you must have done some great deeds in your past life. It''s like divine help. From now on, I''m following you. Don''t forget to include me in any good fortune thates your way!"


    Wang Hao was actually in a very good mood; getting involved with Su Ming in the boat business, he initially invested eight thousand yuan. Later on, without doing much of anything, he earned just over forty thousand yuan in nearly a month.


    With this rate of making money, plus his old man''s subsidy, the dream of getting a new car wasn''t far off.


    "Speaking of buying cars, do you have any rmendations?" Su Ming asked.


    "Depends on the price range you''re considering, and what type you''re looking for," Wang Hao said.


    Patting the steering wheel of the Wing Tiger, Wang Haomented, "Generally speaking, there are sedans, SUVs, andmercial MPVs, which you definitely wouldn''t consider¡ªthe kind that seats a lot of people. Sedans have less space, lower ground clearance, but in the same price range, their configuration andfort are better than off-road vehicles."


    "Cross out sedans, definitely an off-road vehicle. As for the budget, anything between two hundred thousand to six hundred thousand works," Su Ming mused. Due to the needs of ''Friends of the Animals'', he''d undoubtedly need to drive into the wild, so off-road capabilities were a top priority in his vehicle.


    As forfort, that was less important¡ªhe grew up riding on tractors, after all. Even if the off-roadfort is less than optimal in a vehicle worth several hundred thousand, it would still bepared to simr ss sedans, not likely worse than a tractor.


    "Then there are a lot to consider¡ªover twenty thousand, there''s a bunch like the Wing Tigers, Touareg, Subaru, and also many nice cars for thirty or forty thousand, like the Handa and Pajero. If you want practicality at around fifty or sixty thousand, you can buy a Toyota Land Cruiser. Middle Eastern tycoons drive those; add a machine gun and it can be an armored vehicle. If you want something prestigious, you could also get a BMW or Mercedes; I think the cheapest Range Rover nowadays is also around fifty or sixty thousand.


    However, since you''re asking for real off-road capability, I have two pieces of advice. First, don''t buy domestic cars¡ªat least get a joint venture one. Not that I''m unpatriotic, brother, but domestic cars have developed rapidly in recent years yet stillg significantly behind world-ss levels in core technologies like engines. Second, don''t buy city SUVs."


    "Isn''t that a city SUV?" asked Su Ming, puzzled.


    Wang Hao nodded and said, "This car is mainly for my old man; he mostly drives around the city. City SUVs just have the look of an off-road vehicle. Their off-roading ability is slightly better than sedans, but it''s impossible to take them to truly harsh terrains. Their main appeal is therger space. There''s a joking term for them, called ''grocery getter''."


    After listening to Wang Hao''s introduction, Su Ming had a rough idea, but when ites to buying a car, he still needed to see them in person. Vehicle performance was one thing, but the appearance was also important¡ªno one wants to spend money on a car they''d hate to look at.


    Luxury Car za, thergest new car marketce in Yangchuan City, hosts many brand-name 4S shops.


    Wang Hao found a parking spot and parked the car. The two got out, and Wang Hao pointed to two storefronts with silver bull logos, "Let''s start with Toyota. Hate to admit it, but the little Japanese cars are definitely world-ss."


    One GAC Toyota, one FAW Toyota.

 Chapter 41: 41 Wrangler

    In the spacious showroom of the 4S shop, seven or eight different types of demo cars were on disy, with a few scattered customers looking at vehicles alongside salespeople. Suming and Wang Hao had just entered when a lightly made-up female sales associate approached them proactively.


    "Good day, sir. May I ask what kind of vehicle you''re interested in?"


    Although she asked, she didn''t wait for Suming and his friend to respond and instead started to introduce the closestpact sedan, "You''vee at just the right time. This Vios 1.3 manual edition is currently on a special promotion, exempt from purchase tax, and the on-the-road price is just over 70,000. It has a fuel consumption under 6 liters per 100 kilometers, making it a very cost-effective choice in many aspects."


    As a salesperson, ''reading people'' is an important skill, and the sales associate, with her wealth of experience, had rmended the car she felt was most suitable for Suming and Wang Hao the instant sheid eyes on them.


    Youthful buyers generally don''t have strong purchasing power, and they don''t know too much about cars, focusing mainly on fuel efficiency and looks. They want something fuel-efficient and stylish, and this Vios meets both of these criteria, enjoying consistently good sales.


    "We are interested in looking at SUVs," Suming said.


    "Oh, right this way, please!" Although the sales associate was somewhat surprised, her smile remained unchanged, and she turned to lead Suming and Wang Hao in a different direction.


    "The Rav4 is a well-established SUV, this is the new model for 2015, the price range is from 180,000 to 270,000. Among its peers, it has ample space and a very fashionable appearance," the sales associate exined.


    "This car is in the same category as my Escape. I''ve test-driven it, and indeed, it has plenty of space but average power," Wang Hao added from the side.


    Suming thought the Rav4 looked quite attractive; its front gave off an imposing yet somewhat adorable impression.


    Most Toyota models have appealing designs, with smooth flowing lines and beautiful shapes, but as Wang Hao mentioned, like the Escape, the Rav4 is more of an urban SUV, a "grocery getter," not worth considering.


    "Shall we take a look at the others?" Suming asked.


    The sales associate smiled but didn''t immediately take them to see other models. Instead, she hinted, "Well, anything above that will be quite expensive and not in the same range as the Rav4."


    "Let''s take a look and then decide," Suming suggested.


    "Then you might consider the Prado and the Land Cruiser," she said.


    This time, the sales associate didn''t provide much of an introduction, simply leading Suming and his friend to the demo vehicles and standing nearby with a smile, saying nothing.


    Suming took a close look at the specifications and even climbed inside to experience it for himself.


    The imported Land Cruiser was indeed a fine vehicle, a full-time four-wheel drive made for off-roading, with a 4.6L engine producing over 300 horsepower, and weighing two and a half tons. It was like a small mountain parked there, intimidating in size with a surprisingly spacious interior and, notably, quitefortable.


    To be honest, Suming was somewhat tempted, but there was a problem: the price was too high. The base model alone was going for eight hundred thousand, and that was without any add-ons or booking and waiting for delivery.


    "What about the Prado? What do you think? This series ranges from 370,000 to 700,000 for the base vehicle. If you include purchase tax, insurance, and the like, the drive-away price is roughly 10% more than the list price. Compared to the Land Cruiser, the Prado looks a bit smaller, but it''s also much more spacious than most other SUVs and almost matches the Land Cruiser in performance. I would say the value for money is quite good, and it has quite a presence on the road."


    Seeing Suming seriously considering the Land Cruiser led to a subtle change in the sales associate''s demeanor. When she introduced the Prado, she was noticeably more detailed and enthusiastic than when she introduced the Land Cruiser earlier.


    The Prado''s English name is ''PRADO'', but people in Huaxiamonly refer to it as ''Domineering'', and the vehicle lives up to its name with a very assertive appearance. It''s the kind of tough vehicle that Wang Hao mentioned earlier¡ªoften seen in Huaxia''s police and military fleets and even modified with machine guns by the Middle Eastern tycoons.


    "How''s the fuel consumption?" Suming asked.


    "I can tell you are quite interested, so I''ll be frank. In the city, take the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology''s official data and multiply it by 1.3. However, it has a low consumption on the highway. With good driving habits, it''s about eleven liters per hundred kilometers," she replied.


    "What do you think?" Suming asked Wang Hao, who gave a thumbs-up and said, "The car is beyond reproach; it''s indeed a good one with decent off-road capabilities."


    The female salesperson was very experienced and could tell from their expressions that they liked the car and also had the financial capability. Seizing the moment, she said, "If you can make a decision today, by paying a fifty thousand yuan car collection procedure fee, you can sign the car contract."


    Suming was startled and looked towards Wang Hao. Isn''t it usually a deposit? What on earth is a car collection procedure fee?


    "Hey, some cars sell so well that not only do they not get discounted, but they also require an additional car collection procedure fee to get the car. You can choose not to pay extra, but then you''ll have to wait. You might not get the car for several months. It''s the same with Volkswagen''s Tiguan. For a car costing over two hundred thousand, you have to pay an additional ten to twenty thousand in collection fees," Wang Hao exined with apparent expertise.


    Suming frowned slightly, somewhat displeased. What was this? Buyer''s extortion?


    Seeing Suming hesitate, the female salesperson advised, "I think since you''ve taken a liking to it and you have a connection with this car, spending forty or fifty thousand more after already considering spending hundreds of thousands doesn''t make much of a difference. What do you say?"


    "Do I have to pay extra?" Suming asked.


    The saleswoman nodded apologetically and then said, "Let me go and ask the manager if it''s possible to pay less. However, the collection fee is definitely required; it''s an industry rule..."


    Upon hearing this, Suming waved his hand dismissively, "Forget it, let''s look some more."


    It wasn''t like this was the only good car dealership around. Although his money came easy, almost as if blown in by a strong wind, he had no intention of being fleeced. Since he was a child, he hated being coerced. Just because he liked this car, they demanded a higher price for collection; was there any difference from extortion?


    "Wait, let me discuss with the manager and try to minimize the collection fee..." The saleswoman, seeing a big sale about to slip away, hurriedly chased after them in her high heels.


    By the time she reached the doorway, Suming and Wang Hao had already entered another 4S shop.


    "There goes the deal." The saleswoman sighed dejectedly, feeling quite down.


    ...


    Suming and Wang Hao continued to browse through several 4S shops.


    At GAC Toyota, they checked out the Hignder ¡ª a good family car, but wanting in off-road capabilities and requiring an additional collection fee; the Buick Enve was powerful, but Suming didn''t like its design, and the cheaper Land Rovers seemed to be more for show than practicality; as for Mercedes and BMW, they were definitely top-notch cars. One could get one for four or five hundred thousand, but Suming felt he wasn''t quite at that level yet.


    Wang Hao, tired from following around, said, "Man, having money is its own trouble, not knowing how to spend it!"


    "That''s because it''s still not enough money. If I had a few hundred million, I''d just buy whatever I liked, and that''d be simple!" Suming joked.


    "I don''t even dream of a few hundred million; if I can make ten million in my lifetime, I''d consider it a life well-lived," Wang Hao said.


    Legitimately earning ten million is no small feat for anyone, but for Suming who had never taken ten million all that seriously, if he didn''t earn it in his lifetime with his animal friends'' abilities, he might as well be dead.


    As they talked, they arrived at the east end of the luxury car za, in front of a modest-looking 4S shop.


    The shop was quiet, without a single customer. There was only a young male salesperson sitting to one side with his leg casually propped up, smoking away,pletely nonchnt. Seeing customersing in, he didn''t bother to get up to greet them and simply shouted from afar, "Feel free to look around..."


    Suming was here to buy a car, not to make friends with salespeople, so their enthusiasm, orck of it, didn''t matter. He headed straight for the disy area.


    His eyes lit up when he saw the Jeep Wrangler on disy.


    "Damn, how did I forget? When ites to off-roading, of course, it''s got to be Jeep!"

 Chapter 42: 42: The Tough Guy and the Chuunibyou

    Jeep can be said to be one of the first off-road vehicles that Huaxia people came in contact with, to the extent that for a while, ''Jeep'' was synonymous with off-road vehicles.


    This four-wheel drive vehicle made by the American Chrysler Jeep, because of its stable performance, powerful engine, adaptability, and especially its tough and durable nature, was not only quite famous in the civilian field but was also widely used in the military. During World War II, Jeeps nearly became the exclusive vehicle of choice for generals.


    Suming''s generation grew up watching many World War II, Anti-Japanese War, and Liberation War movies, in which no matter which side''s officers appeared on the battlefield, they were definitely riding in a Jeep.


    Next to a troop marching through a sandstorm, a military green Jeep would speed by with two soldiers in the back carrying carbines, and the general sitting in the passenger seat wearing sunsses, nting a cigar in his mouth¡ªthis was simply the most iconic image.


    The Jeep Wrangler before his eyes featured straight and strong lines, exuding a powerful, masculine aura.


    The original model of the Wrangler was precisely that kind of Jeep often used by American soldiers in World War II. After decades of constant model changes and upgrades, it had significantlyrger space, improved maneuverability and adaptability, and its off-road capability only improved. Featuring adder-frame construction with solid front and rear axles and non-independent suspension, and locks for the front, center, and rear differentials, it was the unequivocal choice for a hardcore off-roader. Paired with a reliable engine, no matter how harsh the surrounding environment, it could instill confidence in anyone.


    "How could I have forgotten about it!" Wang Hao pped his forehead and said, "Speaking of off-roading, those cars we saw earlier are just toyspared to this fe!"


    "The Grand Cherokee is also not bad," the male salesperson finally finished his cigarette and meandered back, butting in to add his rmendation.


    Not far from the Wrangler was a Grand Cherokee, which inparison, wasrger and carried a somewhat stronger business-like ambiance.


    If the Wrangler was a lone swordsman wandering the world, then the Grand Cherokee was like the head of arge sect. Although both were strong, the Wrangler was more about showcasing individuality, while the Cherokee was moreposed and restrained.


    In a Xiangjiang movie called ''Blind Detective'', the female police officer yed by Sammi Cheng drove a Grand Cherokee, which was quite domineering.


    "If your requirement forfort and business suitability is higher than off-roading capability, I personally rmend the Grand Cherokee. Its interior and features are much stronger than the Wrangler''s. On the other hand, when ites to off-road performance, it''s the opposite. Hey, you could directly take it mountain climbing with no problem, and the Wrangler is fully mechanical, while the Grand Cherokee is equipped with a lot of electronic gadgets. To put it in off-roaders'' terms: mechanical means a guarantee of safety," the male salesperson continued.


    "Is electronic really safer than mechanical?" Suming asked Wang Hao.


    Wang Hao nodded, "Of course, electronics rely on circuits, which can easily malfunction if they get wet. Mechanical systems are different¡ªunless they rust through. For example, if a car falls into a river, the electronic controls for the door and windows would fail, and the passengers could easily get trapped and suffocate inside. That wouldn''t happen with mechanical controls."


    "I see," Suming was encountering this information for the first time. Before, he had thought those who drowned were silly, wondering why they didn''t just open the doors and windows to escape.


    "How about it, want to take it for a test drive?" the male salesperson didn''t ask if Suming could afford it but asked directly instead.


    "Let''s try it!" Suming didn''t hesitate and followed the salesperson out of the hall, hopping into a test drive vehicle.


    He had learned to drive with a manual transmission, and although it had been a while since he had driven, he still knew how. The Wrangler before him had an automatic transmission, which was even simpler to operate, pretty much like driving a bumper boat or bumper car.


    Suming rested his right foot on the elerator, gently giving it gas. As he started off, he immediately felt a strong sense of pushback.


    Only someone with a death wish would floor the elerator in the city. Moreover, the power of this 3.6L hardcore off-road vehicle was not to be underestimated; most of the time, there was simply no need to press the pedal to the floor.


    This vehicle, born purely for off-roading, was indeed a rare sight in the city. The Wrangler took to the test drive route around the 4S dealership, and along the way, it attracted plenty of attention. Continually, drivers passing by would roll down their windows to get a look at the Wrangler.


    Whirr¡­ A vigorous engine noise heralded the approach, as an Audi A6 arrogantly sped past the Wrangler.


    "Damn it, Su, chase after that mother****er!" Wang Hao was livid.


    Suming just chuckled, knowing full well that anger was a driver''s worst enemy, especially for a novice. Besides, different cars served different purposes, and the Wrangler wasn''t made for drag racing.


    "Idiot, just ignore him." The male salesperson flipped the bird through the open roof of the Wrangler, whistled, and said, "If this were off-road, he wouldn''t stand a chance at catching even our exhaust!"


    Suming looked at the salesperson with unexpected admiration; he had been car shopping all day and all the salespeople he met were well-trained and very polite. This carefree attitude was rare indeed.


    The salesperson just grinned: "I''m just a temp here to pass the time."


    Suming: "..."


    Wang Hao: ...


    After a test drive, Suming also gave the Grand Cherokee a try. Thefort of the Grand Cherokee was indeed far superior to the Wrangler. The suspension on the Wrangler was rather stiff, making for a bumpy ride.


    "So, what do you think? Are you sure?" Wang Hao pulled Suming aside to discuss.


    "The Wrangler!" Suming replied without hesitation. It was like choosing a partner¡ªif the eyes agreed, nothing else mattered.


    In the end, they chose a 3.6L four-door version of the Wrangler. There were no discounts or additional fees for the car pick-up procedure; it was all quite standard. Including purchase tax, insurance, and registration fees, the drive-away price was just shy of 600,000 RMB.


    The salesman conjured a CD and slipped it into the Wrangler''s console like magic.


    "This CD, I''m giving it to you personally, it''s a perfect match for this car."


    Other features of the Wrangler were quite ordinary, but the sound system was exceptional. As the salesman pressed y, a song filled with the raspy texture of bygone eras began to y.


    "Old soldiers never die, they just fade away¡­"


    Old soldiers never die; they merely fade away.


    "This song is called ''Old Soldiers Never Die,'' and it was widely popr among the Allied forces during World War II. Apanying the Allied warriors through battlefield sweeps was the ''ancestor'' of this Wrangler. A war correspondent at the time described Jeeps this way: Without it, I don''t think we could''ve won the war. It could do anything, including carrying twice its designated load, go anywhere¡ªas in chase through the deserts of Africa for tens of thousands of kilometers. It''s as loyal as a dog, as strong as a mule, and as agile as a goat."


    The salesman''s eyes carried depth: "Honestly, I''m quite envious that you can own such a car¡ªa true man''s ride."


    Before Suming could respond, Wang Hao tugged at Suming''s sleeve, leaned in, and whispered in his ear.


    "Let''s get out of here quick, this guy''s got a serious case of chuunibyou."

 Chapter 43: 43 Shuijun Lake

    The male salesperson might have had "second year middle school syndrome," he might not have¡ªit didn''t really matter. What mattered was that Suming indeed liked the Wrangler a lot and paid for it the same day. He went to the DMV to pick a license te and received a temporary te.


    "Damn, how are we going to handle two cars?" Wang Hao looked at his Wolfsburg Edition Tiguan and then at Suming''s Wrangler.


    With the two cars parked side by side, the Tiguan, which could usually hold its own in terms of appearance, paled inparison to the very individualistic Wrangler and waspletely turned into just another car.


    "Each drive our own car, each return to our own home, each find our own mother," Suming said, as if it were obvious.


    "No way! Today I have to properly take your car for a spin. Otherwise, I definitely won''t be able to sleep tonight, feeling all unbnced. I''ll leave my Tiguan here ande get it tomorrow."


    Without further ado, Wang Hao hopped into the driver''s seat of the Wrangler. Suming just smiled and said nothing, sitting down in the passenger seat.


    As soon as the seatbelt was clicked on and the seat pushed back, the Wrangler surged forward like a wild horse that had broken free of its reins.


    Before long, Suming began to regret letting Mr. Wang drive; whenever they passed a pretty girl, the guy would deliberately slow down, drive past her, and then very sassily blow a kiss.


    "I think you should seriously find a girlfriend," Suming said.


    Wang Hao solemnly replied, "I think, man, I should seriously buy a nice car!"


    ¡­


    Wang Hao first drove home, and then Suming moved to the driver''s seat and leisurely drove back to the animal zoo.


    Arriving at the zoo in a Jeep caused a stir, neither huge nor small.


    The younger staff thought that since Suming was so rich, why didn''t he buy a Mercedes-Benz or BMW. The older folks though, were all thumbs up about it.


    After getting back to the park, he purposely drove around Shuijun Lake.


    Shuijun Lake had willows shading its banks and a pebble-covered track running alongside it. Every few dozen meters there was a long bench, creating a rather nice environment.


    However, circling theke, he found hardly any tourists; therge man-madeke seemed deserted and chilly.


    Whisperwind Pavilion stood by theke. Its architectural style leaned towards that of the Han and Tang dynasties, and it was six stories tall, about thirty meters high. The ground level had a hundred square meters or so of space selling souvenirs and such, while the top level was off-limits to visitors for safety reasons. The remaining four floors disyed wood carvings for which people could buy tickets to see.


    When Suming arrived, it was three o''clock in the afternoon, but not a single tourist was in Whisperwind Pavilion. Zhou, responsible for selling souvenirs, was dozing off on the counter, and only raised his head when he heard the sound of a car outside.


    "Yo, Su! My goodness, that''s a ssy ride. Back in the day, only big bosses and generals could ride in something like that. Did you buy it?" Zhou came out with a cheerful grin.


    "At most, I''m just a little security guard, haha." Suming chuckled and then handed over a cigarette, asking, "Mr. Zhou, is this ce usually so empty?"


    Mr. Zhou looked at the ''Zhonghua'' brand on the cigarette, didn''t smoke it, but clipped it to his ear, and said with a wry smile, "Whoes here? These souvenirs are all fakes and they''re sold at killer prices. They''re charging fifteen yuan for a ticket just to see a few pieces of junk wood upstairs, as if people are fools. As for Shuijun Lake, it used to be that people woulde here to row boats. Later, a boss took over to breed fish and stopped renting boats. As a result, the fish farming failed because the water quality was said to be too poor."


    After chatting with Mr. Zhou and getting an idea of the situation with Shuijun Lake, Suming gave him half a pack of ''Zhonghua'' and then went to the edge of Shuijun Lake to do some on-site inspection.


    As the saying goes, "To raise fish, first raise water; good water raises good fish." In fact, not just for fish farming, water quality is extremely important for most aquatic life. When the water is good, fish and shrimp grow quickly and have excellent meat quality, whereas otherwise, even surviving can be difficult.


    The more valuable the aquaculture product, the higher the water quality it requires, and freshwater fish are no exception. Since Suming had taken on the contract for Shuijun Lake, of course, he also wanted to try his hand at aquaculture.


    As he walked around theke, he found most of the water was a pale green with poor transparency; some corners of theke were even slightly reddish, apanied by a faint stench.


    Shuijun Lake is a man-madeke with no flowing water. Over the decades, without effective management measures, it gradually became a stagnant pool. Such water quality supports only creatures like crayfish and loaches, or catfish¡ªthey aren''t picky about cleanliness and love to consume waste and carrion.


    Not long ago, a newspaper published a news story: a famous grilled fish restaurant had been using bighead carp that were raised on leftover restaurant food, the feeding scene was disgusting, and the entire pond stank.


    This report caused quite a stir, and even the grilled fish restaurant was forced to close down.


    Actually, it''s precisely because they eat this stuff that bighead carp grow well and fast.


    However, Suming had no ns to farm bigheads or catfish on arge scale; not to mention how profitable it would be, if he turned a perfectly good man-madeke into a stinking dump, Mr. Song would be the first to have issues with him.


    Though he wasn''t going to farm catfish, they could still be put to good use. He drove out to get some and along with alligator snapping turtles, putting them in theke to carefully search the waters.


    The two hard workers roamed the man-madeke all night without uncovering anything unusual.


    Theke was teeming with fish but only a smattering of ornamental ones; in contrast, there was an abundance of loaches, eels, small crabs, and crayfish, providing a feast for the snapping turtle and catfish.


    "Bighead, you stay here. Snapping turtle, you go back to your guard duty at the pavilion!"


    The bighead catfish was overjoyed, diving into the water and pping its tail contentedly, while the snapping turtle gaped halfway, staring nkly at Suming, looking almost sullen.


    Water quality didn''t matter to these two; Shuijun Lake had far more space than the pavilion, and theke was full of tasty treats, so naturally, it was much more enjoyable than the smaller one.


    "Oh,e on, if what you say goes, then what do we need me as the boss for!" Suming couldn''t be bothered with it.


    After returning, Suming took out the honeb he had brewed a few days before. It had fermented nicely by now and when mixed with vinegar, it had a sour-sweet taste.


    "Hey, Nangong the great reporter, what are you up to?" he texted Nangong Yan.


    Soon after, Nangong Yan promptly called back, "Are you free tomorrow? If you''re not busy, let''s hang out."


    "Wow, your TV station is so busy, why do you have time off tomorrow with no holidays or anything?"


    "Didn''t I tell youst time I''ve been getting lots of aely? It''s been getting worse over the days, and make-up can''t cover it anymore. The director told me to take some time off and stay off camera for now," Nangong Yan shared, sounding downcast.


    "Well, that''s perfect. Tomorrow I n to visit Huating Reservoir to check out aquaculture possibilities;e and have some fun," Suming said.


    "Farm what? Do you even know how to do aquaculture?" Nangong Yan asked, curious.


    "That''s just it; I don''t know what to farm, nor do I know how. That''s why I need to do a reconnaissance of the reservoir. Also, to rx a bit, I''m nning a barbecue; after the survey, we can go grill some meat by the reservoir!" Suming exined.


    "Great! Just the two of us," Nangong Yan said.

 Chapter 44: 44 I Suspect You Are Gay

    ```


    Huating Reservoir was more than a dozen kilometers away from Yangchuan City District, right beside the city zoo. A twenty-minute walk from the zoo was all it took to reach the reservoir, surrounded by mountains and clear waters, making it a popr destination for citizens to visit with their families during weekends.


    After Suming acquired Shuijun Lake, he indeed had ns to raise fish there. Such argeke couldn''t be left unused, and other than aquaculture, there weren''t any other viable projects.


    Every profession has its own expertise, and Suming was an amateur in fish farming. He didn''t understand anything about fry, feed, feeding, disease prevention, sales, etc.


    Besides engaging in biological research, Suming was a novice in all other matters. Many college graduates find themselves in a simr plight after graduation; their field of study doesn''t align with their actual job.


    But there''s still that old saying, ignorance isn''t scary,ck of dedication is. Paths in life must be carved by oneself; providence won''t arrange everything for you to simply grasp. Life is a process of continuous learning and progress.


    A portion of the eastern side of Huating Reservoir was contracted out to a fishingpany, dedicated to fish farming. Rumor had it that their business was extremely profitable, bringing in tens of millions in revenue each year. Suming contemted seeking advice and learning from their experience.


    The fish farming business in the reservoir was quite extensive, almost monopolizing the freshwater fish market in half of Yangchuan. It was not on the same scale as the modest Shuijun Lake, and there were no fundamental conflicts between the two.


    Early in the morning, he bought two Chinese sturgeons and two bottles of Wuliangye. He also prepared some barbecue equipment to put in his car and headed towards the Nangong Family.


    ...


    At the entrance of Guanghua Residential Area, Nangong Yan was dressed in a loose tracksuit, her hair tied into a short ponytail, making her look neat and tidy.


    However, at that moment, she was furiously yelling into her phone.


    "Don''t you have any sense of time? Even driving, you''re an hourte; I''m done with you!"


    Suming was wronged. He had never driven before and was unfamiliar with the road conditions; who knew that the city would be congested early in the morning.


    "Hurry up, you''re driving me crazy!"


    "Okay, I see you now. I''ll just make a U-turn and be right there," he said.


    Nangong Yan had just hung up the phone when a brand-new BMW 320 zipped from the roadside, its body swaying slightly as it stopped in front of her.


    Nangong Yan was startled; hadn''t he said he wasing in a Jeep Wrangler?


    The BMW''s window slowly rolled down, revealing a handsome face. It was then that Nangong Yan realized it wasn''t Suming inside, but Huang Fei, the host of another program at the television station.


    Huang Fei had joined the TV station a few years before Nangong Yan. With a good family background and an attractive appearance, he had made a name for himself on TV as one of the more famous hosts in Yangchuan City.


    As Huang Fei was her senior in the industry, Nangong Yan was taken aback by the sudden appearance of the BMW. Still, she managed a polite smile and asked, "Hello, Brother Huang, what brings you here?"


    Huang Fei shrugged his shoulders, rested his arm on the car window, and trying to look suave, flicked his hair, "I happen to be free today, care to join me for lunch?"


    Entering the workforce inevitably involves necessary social interactions. The key is to hold on to one''s sense of judgment. Nangong Yan also came from a decent family, and although she didn''t fear Huang Fei, there wasn''t any need to offend him without cause. However, she had already agreed to meet with Suming and could only apologize with a smile, saying, "I''m really sorry, I have made ns with a friend."


    "Oh... is that so..."


    Although Huang Fei''s face still wore a smile, he then casually broached a seemingly unrted topic, "We''ve had some neers in your program recently. You''ve been off-screen for a while now; should I mention something to your director? Just to be sure these neers don''t take your ce."


    ```


    Nangong Yan listened to his words, and the smile on her face disappeared in an instant, herplexion turning somber as she spoke with a stern face, "Huang Fei, whether or not I can be on camera has nothing to do with you, and you can''t decide my future. If there''s nothing else, you can leave."


    After she finished speaking, she no longer looked at Huang Fei, turning her gaze elsewhere.


    Huang Fei felt a bit awkward, his face changing slightly as he forced a chuckle, just about to say something to lighten the mood.


    Suddenly, an outrageously styled off-road vehicle barreled from a distance, sticking close as it zoomed past the BMW, and with a swoosh, it stopped with precision in front of the BMW.


    The petite 320 behind the Wrangler was like a dainty littledy next to a brawny, muscr man ¨C not a hint of presence to speak of. Even in terms of lineage, the BMW waspletely dominated by the imported Jeep.


    Huang Fei was so frightened he nearly wet himself, his face turning ashen. When the Wrangler had zoomed past the BMW so closely, the slightest miscalction could have ended with the off-road beast rolling right over the top of the BMW.


    Staring at the off-road vehicle ahead for a good while, he finally roared, "Damn it, how the hell do you drive..."


    The door of the Wrangler opened, and Suming poked half his body out from the driver''s seat, looked back at Huang Fei, and asked, "What''s up?"


    Huang Fei, who was quite scared, stammered a bit. Suming shook his head, puzzled, and muttered, "Crazy." Then, turning to the stunned Nangong Yan at the side, he snapped his fingers, "Get in the car!"


    "Oh... oh, okay..." Still in a daze, Nangong Yan climbed into the backseat of the Wrangler.


    Suming stepped on the gas, and the Wrangler belched a puff of smoke, roaring off, leaving Huang Fei dazed in his car.


    After Nangong Yan got in the car, she looked at Suming, who was focused on driving, and suddenlyughed, saying, "You''re pretty fired up today, driving this off-road vehicle, even you''ve be fierce. What did they do to you?"


    Suming turned slightly, casually pulled out the seatbelt from the passenger side for Nangong Yan, then sat back upright and said, "I just wanted to teach him not to park randomly, otherwise he might end up getting crushed by an off-road vehicle."


    "Oh? I thought you were jealous," Nangong Yan said, twirling a lock of her hair.


    "What''s there to be jealous of without dumplings?"


    Sumingughed as well, "Seriously though, that guy didn''t really have any dishonorable intentions toward you, did he?"


    Nangong Yan snorted with a pout, muttering, "Cut it out, is that so strange? I''m so pretty that aside from you, it seems a lot of men have dishonorable intentions towards me."


    "If I''m getting in the way of something good for you, should I take you back?" Suming teased, pretending to test the waters.


    Suddenly, Nangong Yan leaned in, squinted her phoenix eyes, and scrutinized Suming for a good while before saying out of the blue, "I''ve always been curious if you''re gay?"


    "I do actually know a gay person," Suming suddenly thought of Luo Ben from the auction house.


    "Cut it out, I suspect you''re the gay one!"


    Nangong Yan sat back in her seat, "As for that guy, I don''t think much of him at all, just a yboy."


    Suming didn''t need to worry about Nangong Yan; her dad was the leader of the criminal police brigade of the city''s Public Security Bureau. It was all right for men to pursue Nangong Yan normally, but if anyone dared to harbour ulterior motives, her dad would surely swallow them whole.


    He reached behind the seat to pull out arge stic bucket, deliberately changing the subject, "I brought this for you, remember to take it home after we get back."

 Chapter 45: 45 Its none of my business

    Nangong Yan looked back at the stic bucket and asked, "What''s that?"


    "A beehive soaked in vinegar. Didn''t you sayst time that your e was too severe to appear on camera? If you drink a small cup of this every morning and evening, I guarantee that within a week, your e will bepletely gone."


    She widened her eyes, "Really? I''ve tried several medicines and none worked. Can this beehive thing be so powerful, working within a week?"


    Suming confirmed firmly, "It''s normal for a 21 or 22-year-old to have e, it''s just puberty. Taking medicine could actually disrupt your body''s functions. From now on, don''t take medicine, just drink this. It''spletely natural, and I assure you that in a week you''ll get back a face that''s loved by everyone and makes flowers bloom."


    Soaking a beehive in vinegar to clear heat and detoxify was actually a remedy my dad taught my mom. Back in our hometown when the young women had e problems, they would seek my mom''s help, and there would be noticeable effects within two or three days.


    Gazing into the rearview mirror, Nangong Yan squeezed a small emerging pimple on her chin and said, "Alright, I''ll listen to you and stop taking medicine for now. But I have to be on camera next week, and if the e isn''t gone by then, you''re dead meat!"


    "Big sister, we''ve known each other for several years now and you scare me like this every time. If I were supposed to die, I would''ve died hundreds of times by now. Can''t you change up your lines next time?" Suming said with augh.


    "I''ll do as I please, none of your business."


    After driving out of the city, the road became increasingly narrow, and Suming simply turned the steering wheel, taking the car off the main road and plunging into the wilderness.


    The Wrangler''s off-road capabilities are not for show. Slopes less than thirty degrees were crossed effortlessly, and it easily sshed through small streams, about half a meter deep with pebbles underneath, to the envy of sedan owners watching from the distance.


    In the end, she decided to follow the road along the reservoir''s edge. The bumpy ride whitened Nangong Yan''s little face, as she clutched the frame tightly.


    Speaking strictly from afort perspective, off-road vehicles are certainly not asfortable as sedans of the same ss, especially the Wrangler, which has a ssic rugged style and is far fromfortable.


    But then again, if you switched to a sedan, even a million-dor one, it wouldn''t be able to drive straight to the reservoir''s edge; you''d have to park on the side of the road a few kilometers away and walk over.


    Fortunately, the road became much smoother once they reached the side of the reservoir, mostly grassy and t.


    Nangong Yan''s attention was soon captured by the distant view: the boundless reservoir surface shimmered, with water birds asionally flying out from the reed beds, gliding over the water, thennding on a shallow bank not far away to groom their feathers or search for food among the aquatic nts at their feet.


    "So beautiful!" Nangong Yan leaned back in her seat, somewhat mesmerized by the scenery before her.


    Yet Suming, inappropriately, thought to himself whether those water birds would taste good if grilled.


    While he was friends with animals, he wasn''t a vegetarian, after all. The food chain is a basic naturalw, and he only made it a point not to eat animals he knew personally.


    Before long, a narrow concrete road appeared in front of them. They followed it for a few hundred meters and arrived in front of a three-story vi.


    The vi was the kind built on residentialnd in the countryside, surrounded by red walls over three meters high, with two stone lions crouching on either side of the big iron gates.


    A sign hung on the gate: Huating Fisheries Company.


    Before Suming could get out of the car, a burst of barking came from the yard behind the gate.


    "Anybody home?" Suming knocked on the iron gate.


    The gate cracked open, and a bald man with a ''Nin'' character tattooed on his arm and no shirt on, holding two wolf dogs, asked impatiently, "What do you want?"


    "Oh, I''m from Yangchuan City Zoo, we''re looking to start fish farming and wanted to seek some advice from your boss¡­" Suming exined his purpose to the young man.


    The bald man frowned and was about to shut the door, but after Suming showed his zoo employee ID, he resisted his impatience and let Suming finish.


    "You wait here, I''ll go ask the boss."


    The bald man mmed the big iron door shut, turned and went upstairs, then came back down in just a couple of minutes.


    "Mr. Zhou, it''s them!" Apanying him was a dark-skinned and lean man, the owner of Huating Fisheries Company, Mr. Zhou.


    Mr. Zhou looked at Suming expressionlessly, then at the gift he was holding, and said coldly, "I have nothing to do with your zoo. If you want to farm fish, that''s your business, not mine. But I warn you, if I find out you''ve got designs on my reservoir, you''ll be in trouble."


    After speaking, he turned and left.


    "Let''s go!" The bald man waved his hand as if shooing away flies and mmed the door shut.


    Given Mr. Zhou''s attitude, it was impossible to get any fish farming advice from him.


    However, Suming wasn''t in a hurry; without the butcher, would he have to eat hairy pigs? There were plenty of people who knew how to farm fish, not just him. Relying on his "animal friends," Suming didn''t believe he couldn''t raise good fish.


    Aftering into contact with spiritual power several times, the bighead catfish became more active and started to eat and swim more robustly. In just a month, they had noticeably increased in size.


    "What an attitude, as if hiring a few paroled ex-convicts to watch the fish pond makes him the mob!" Nangong Yan''s dad was a detective, and she was the least afraid of these types of people.


    "Forget it, if they don''t want to help, then let''s just have a barbecue!"


    Suming started the Wrangler again and found a spot of grass near the water by the reservoir. Heid out a stic sheet on the ground and moved the barbecue grill from the car.


    The barbecue grill was bought online: an adjustable iron frame with a set of iron skewers, tes, and other tools, along with two kilograms of charcoal, all for two hundred and twenty yuan.


    He piled the charcoal like a pyramid and then used solid alcohol to light it. Suming ced the meatden iron skewers on the grill and rapidly flipped them back and forth.


    Before long, the meat skewers started to sizzle lightly, with asional droplets of oil falling onto the charcoal below, turning the red meat into a uniform light golden color.


    "You''re pretty skilled at this, do you barbecue often?" Nangong Yan looked at Suming''s deft handling and asked curiously.


    "This is nothing, just wait and see," Suming said, focused on the changing colors of the meat. He picked up a seasoning bottle from the grill and evenly sprinkled the seasoning on the skewers.


    Nangong Yan took a sniff from the sidelines and her eyes lit up, "This smells amazing! What seasoning are you using?"


    Suming shook the little tin bottle that held the seasoning and replied, "It''s a recipe from my dad, mainly cumin and pepper salt, along with some aromatic Chinese herbs."


    Back when his dad was alive, he mainly worked in the field, and he''d spend half the year cooking outdoors. Over time, he developed a good cooking skill, especially in barbecuing and other campfire cooking techniques¡ªhe was simply first-rate!


    Soon the first batch of skewers was ready, and Suming handed one to Nangong Yan with a flourish, "Dig in!"

 Chapter 46: 46 Really Brave!

    Nangong Yan was about to take a bite of her skewer when she heard Suming say "start munching," and the skewer halted at her lips. She red at Suming, "******, all you think about is munching, munch your head..."


    Suming continued to ce raw meat on the fire as he nonchntlyughed without raising his head, "Munch what head?"


    Nangong Yan was stunned for a moment before she caught on, and her face flushed red all at once.


    "...I can''t be bothered with you... I''ll eat first, and if it''s not delicious, you''re dead meat!"


    She delicately took a small bite of the skewer, chewing a few times.


    "How is it?" Suming asked.


    "Wow, it really tastes amazing, quite different from the street-stall vor! You truly are husband material, capable in both the hall and the kitchen!"


    While talking, Nangong Yan pouted and blew on the still-steaming skewer, fanning it with her hand. Without waiting for it to cool, she stuffed the remaining half skewer into her mouth, which instantly puffed up filled to the brim.


    "Barbecue res up e, you have a face full of pimples, eat less!"


    "Never mind that, don''t I have your honey vinegar? Anyway, if the pimples don''t go away, you''re dead meat!"


    Suming: "..."


    Nangong Yan kept talking nonstop, yet her eating pace astonishingly didn''t slow down. The second batch of skewers was still cooking, and the first batch of a dozen had already disappeared from her hand; Suming''s barbecuing couldn''t keep up with her eating.


    "Slow down, sis, I haven''t even had a bite yet!"


    Suming looked up and nced over at an old man fishing in the distance, and then turned to Nangong Yan, "I''m going to ask that old man if he''s caught any fish, buy a couple to grill and eat."


    It''smon to find people fishing by the reservoir, but due to the reservoir''s vastness, if luck wasn''t on their side, they might not catch a single fish all day long. However, with good luck, they could catch up to several kilos or even tens of kilos of big fish.


    The skewers weren''t filling enough; even after grilling for so long, they were hardly enough for Nangong Yan. Compared to that, fish were much better; a fish weighing one or two kilos would probably satiate Nangong Yan.


    "You go ahead, I''ll do the grilling!" Nangong Yan waved her hand and stood in front of the barbecue grill.


    Suming wiped his hands on his apron and headed towards the fishing old man.


    He hadn''t gone far when several barks echoed in the distance. A few young men, armed with sticks and bats, ran towards the fishing old man from afar along theke.


    Leading them was a man holding two big wolfhounds, the tattooed bald guy Suming had seen at the fisherypany.


    "Who gave you the permission to fish here!" the bald guy bellowed from a distance.


    The old man jolted in fright, hurriedly reeling in his fishing line and grabbing his stool to run.


    The bald man let go, and the two wolfhounds dashed forward, quickly catching up with the old man and trapping him front and back, barking and growling menacingly at him.


    The old man, fearing the dogs might bite him, crouched on the ground, too scared to run any further.


    At this point, the bald man caught up from behind, snatched the old man''s fishing rod, and sharply snapped it over his knee into two pieces, casually tossing it aside. He then fiercely asked, "The reservoir is leased by my boss. Who allowed you to fish in the reservoir?"


    The old man looked at his broken fishing rod with distress but dared not say anything. Instead, he pleaded, "I''m so sorry, big brothers, I really didn''t know the reservoir was leased. I haven''t caught any fish, and my rod is already broken. I won''te back anymore, isn''t that enough..."


    A sleazy-looking young man kicked the old man, "Bullshit, just because you say you didn''t catch anything means you didn''t catch anything?"


    After being kicked to the ground, the old man didn''t resist, instead showing his empty fish basket, "Big brothers, look, I really didn''t catch any fish."


    "I don''t care whether you caught anything. Pay the fine, five hundred bucks!" the bald man impatiently said.


    "Big brother, I only have a few bucks on me for the bus fare, I really don''t have¡­"


    The bald man raised a steel pipe and menacingly swung it in front of the old man, viciously saying, "Stop wasting words. Either pay up or I''ll break one of your legs! Your choice!"


    He was wielding a steel pipe to intimidate the old man when he spotted a young man looking over from a distance. He turned around, raised the pipe in his hand to point, and bellowed at Suming, "What are you looking at? It''s none of your business, scram!"


    Suming wasn''t one to meddle in other people''s affairs; under normal circumstances, he wouldn''t get involved.


    These thugs were hired by the fisheriespany to watch over the fish pond, specifically to prevent anyone from stealing or fishing. Driving the old man away was within reason, even if their methods were somewhat excessive. Without showing a bit of ferocity, people wouldn''t be intimidated, and the fish in the reservoir would''ve been pilfered long ago.


    However, this bald guy repeatedly cursed at people to their face, which definitely irked Suming. Anyone else would have been enraged in his shoes.


    As the distance closed, the bald man recognized Suming and red at him, "Hey, it''s you. So what, are you nning to step in?"


    Suming ignored him, squinted his eyes to survey the water area where the old man was fishing, and then said, "I remember you guys leased the eastern area of the reservoir. The old man is fishing here; it doesn''t seem to concern you."


    The bald man''s face twisted with malice as he asked in a sinister tone, "I''m just asking you, are you intending to meddle in this?"


    With that, several thugs quickly circled up, ring at Suming with ill intent.


    Two wolfdogs, spurred on by their owner, also shifted their focus, their blood-red eyes fixating on Suming. Their sharp teeth bared from the corners of their mouths as they let out low growls, looking ready to pounce.


    Suming nced at the two wolfdogs and, without a change in expression, released his spiritual power. As soon as the dogs came into contact with the spiritual power, they immediately became much more docile, sitting down on the spot. Their eyes softened, and they stuck out their long tongues, panting heavily at Suming with a haha sound, even wagging their tails.


    The bald man looked at the two wolfdogs in befuddlement, somewhat at a loss. These two dogs were usually fed live chickens and ducks, known for their ferocity and had bitten people who came to fish or steal fish more than once. Why had they be so docile today?


    Suming bent down to pick up a broken fishing rod from the ground, then continued, "You are supposed to guard the fish pond. It''s one thing to drive people away, but what right do you have to break someone else''s fishing rod? And when you fine people, do you provide a receipt?"


    "I can tell, you came looking for trouble today! You want a receipt, right? I''ll give you a receipt!"


    The bald man raised the steel pipe and swung it down towards Suming''s shoulder while bellowing, "Hit him!"


    The thugs were just about to make a move when they witnessed a scene that left them stupefied.


    The meddling kid, seeing that they were about to attack, surprisingly turned around and bolted without hesitation!


    "Fuck! Trying to run! Hei, Erhei, go!"


    Upon hearing their owner''smand, the two wolfdogs sat foolishly in ce, shaking their heads at the bald man, then looking at the fleeing Suming, their tongues hanging out as they panted, but they refused to get up and give chase.


    The wolfdogs were raised by the fisheriespany and, although they were intimidated by Suming''s spiritual power and wouldn''t attack him, Suming''s current strength wasn''t enough to make the dogs turn on their owner. So the wolfdogs were feeling quite lost, unsure of whose side to take.


    "Damn it, this is insane!"


    The bald man cursed and led his men to chase after Suming himself.


    The path along the riverbank was rough. These thugs often brawled and were physically fit. It didn''t take long for them to almost catch up with Suming.


    From afar, Nangong Yi had already taken out his phone, prepared to call the police.


    Before he could make the call, a buzzing sound suddenly arose from nearby, and a ''ck cloud'' floated out from the woods, flying towards the direction of Suming and the bald man.


    "What is that... Fuck! Wasps! Watch out!"


    The bald man got a big scare, knowing as tough as he was, he dare not challenge a swarm of wasps, so he abruptly halted his chase.


    Seeing the waspsing, Suming also stopped running, turned around, and gave the bald man a peculiar smile. He then slowlyy down on the ground, covering his head with his hands and staying motionless as if terrified of attracting the attention of the wasp swarm.


    Once prone, Suming looked up at the bald man with seemingly good intentions, blinked admiringly, shed a thumbs-up, and shouted, "The wasps are here, and you''re not hiding? That''s gutsy!"


    The bald man was taken aback, musing that he had seen many fools but never one like this. Did he think by lying down and covering his head, he''d be invisible to the wasps?


    No sooner had the thought passed than, as if to prove the simplest principle: ''if you don''t dodge, wasps will sting you,'' the swarm of wasps, initially hovering between the two groups, suddenly swarmed towards the bald man and his men.

 Chapter 47: 47 How Many Years to Wait?

    ```


    After the wasps appeared, the situation suddenly reversed. The bald men, who were chasing Suming with steel pipes, couldn''t care about Suming and the fine anymore, as they were frantically chased by the wasps.


    The two wolfdogs squatted on the side, looking bewildered as they watched the bald men screaming and running past them, followed by arge swarm of dark objects.


    The wasps quickly caught up with the bald men. On the distant riverbank, there were constant wails and howls of misery. The bald man who had been leading the charge was the first to suffer, being stung several times on his bald head, which swelled withrge welts, making him look like a descending Buddha from afar.


    Under Suming''s deliberate control, the wasps stung the men in non-lethal areas. Although the venom released wasn''t deadly, it was enough to give them an unforgettable lesson.


    In the blink of an eye, the ruffians were stripped of their defenses and had fled without a trace.


    The two wolfdogs, realizing their master had disappeared, looked at each other and then stood up, trotting over to Suming, wagging their tails and sticking out their tongues to lick Suming''s face.


    "Stop licking, that''s all slobber, pretty disgusting."


    Suming rubbed the wolfdogs'' chins, got up from the ground, dusted the mud off his body, and showed Nangong Yan a grin, "A bunch of idiots, they don''t even know to hide when they see wasps, with that intelligence, they can only be thugs."


    "Are you okay?"


    Nangong Yan circled around Suming, inspecting him to make sure he hadn''t been stung by the wasps, then she pulled out a pack of tissues, took one out, and handed it to Suming to wipe his face.


    Suming acted as if nothing had happened, casually holding the leads of the two wolfdogs in his hands.


    "Hey, you''re not thinking of..." Nangong Yan''s eyes widened as she looked at the two wolfdogs.


    "If they want to follow me, what can I do? I''m actually in need of some guard dogs."


    Suming shrugged, squatted down, and seriously asked the wolfdogs, "I''m asking you, are you following me willingly?"


    The two wolfdogs'' tongues hung out long, panting with big huffs of breath.


    "Oh my... you really are the king of beasts!" Nangong Yan said, exasperated.


    The old man who had been fishing, still shaken up, interjected, "You two, better leave quickly. If theye back with more people, we won''t be able to get away!"


    They had left with two people, but returned with three, plus tworge wolfdogs.


    The Wrangler had two rows of five seats. When Suming arrived, he had removed the rooftop, so the two wolfdogs sat in the cargo area, leaning their front paws on the edge of the car, curiously looking out as theyy there.


    Suming chatted with the old fisherman while driving.


    The old man''s name was Zhu Chenggui, who was already in his sixties. He used to live by the reservoir. Back then, there was no Huating Reservoir; Zhu Chenggui and all the mountaineers nearby lived off thend, farmed a few acres, raised fish, and in winter went into the mountains to hunt and gather winter bamboo shoots and walnuts; life was not bad.


    Later, when the reservoir was developed and arge relocation project ensued, all the vigers nearby were moved out. Zhu Chenggui received a sum of money for settling down and moved to the city to live.


    Having spent the first half of his life in the mountains andcking education, he couldn''t find any decent work after moving to the city. He could only work as a security guard at a factory, earning very little. With rent to pay and a life to live, he could barely make ends meet. After decades, he hadn''t married, and the subsidy he received for settling was running out. Unwilling to buy groceries, he would asionallye to the reservoir to fish to supplement his living.


    From this perspective, Zhu Chenggui was actuallying to the reservoir to "steal fish."


    Suming, struck by a thought, asked, "You know how to fish, but do you know how to raise fish?"


    Zhu Chenggui cracked a smile showing his yellowed teeth, somewhat pridefully, "Sure, what mountain people don''t know how to raise fish? We used to have a fish pond at home, made quite a bit of money every year, but it was all filled in when they built the reservoir."


    "That''s perfect, I have ake. You help me take a look, see if fish can be raised there."


    ```


    The old man nced at the time, somewhat hesitant, "I still have to work the night shift, I need to be back before nine o''clock tonight!"


    "Don''t worry!" Suming floored the gas, and the Wrangler sped off like a wild beast.


    Suming first dropped Nangong Yan home on the way, then returned to the zoo with the dog and Zhu Chenggui, heading straight for Shuijun Lake.


    "The water area is certainly vast, probably over a hundred acres. If farmed well, you could get over ten thousand pounds of fish per acre!"


    "Over ten thousand pounds per acre?" Suming was startled. What an idea, it would be like theke was full of fish, with fish bumping into fish, and you could flip a fish with any random stone you throw.


    Zhu Chenggui said, "Mixed farming is the way to go. You farm the ''four major family fish,'' and with good management, over ten thousand pounds per acre is easy."


    The four major family fish are the traditional four kinds of freshwater fish, which are collectively known as ''ck, grass, silver, bighead carps.'' Carp is alsomon in Huaxia, even more so than the four major family fish, but due to the Tang Dynasty''s avoidance of the ''Li'' surname, the court banned fishing and consumption of carp, so it''s not among the four major family fish.


    These four aren''t the most delicious of fish, nor do theymand high prices, but they dominate the market and are the mostmonly seen, with the widest distribution channels.


    Although some specialty fish are valuable, their farming costs are high, too. The more precious the fish, the weaker its resistance to diseases and the stricter its requirements for growth environment and food. A slight inattention can result inplete loss, so for now, Suming wasn''t considering them.


    Zhu Chenggui continued, "The silver carp and bighead carp move along the water surface, while the ck and grass carps stay at the bottom¡ªone vegetarian, the other carnivorous. The mixed farming of these fish not only avoids mutual interference but also promotes each other, increasing yield."


    "With mass breeding like this, there must be a significant cost for fry and feed, right?" Suming calcted briefly; he had less than two million left. Without being sure of making a profit, he couldn''t possibly invest all his money in fish farming.


    Shuijun Lake had over a hundred acres of water surface, but without much experience, he couldn''t farm too much. Even at the farming density previously mentioned, investing in fish fry and daily feed for a third of that area wasn''t a small expense.


    Zhu Chenggui revealed a cunning peasant''s smile, "You certainly need to buy the fry, butter on, the big fish produce the little fish, and then you have the fry in yourke, allowing you to gradually reduce the introduction of new fry each year. As for the feed, try to give as little as possible. Let me tell you, fish that grow on feed have a fishy taste and won''t sell for much. In the past, when we farmed the four major family fish, no one would ever think of buying feed for them; feeding with feed would be like smashing one''s own brand!"


    "Then what do we feed them?" Suming asked, puzzled.


    Fish grown on feed may not taste great, but they grow fast. What else to use if not feed? Natural growth is good, but it''s too slow, sometimes taking years to gain a pound; there was no time for such dys!


    Seeing Zhu Chenggui intentionally smiling without speaking, Suming quickly handed over a cigarette, and with a heh-hehugh, Zhu Chenggui lit up and took a puff before speaking, "You don''t need to feed them anything. The key is, you have to raise more ck fish in theke! As long as you have ck fish, you don''t need to feed the others; they''ll grow quickly and well naturally!"


    "Why is that?" Suming asked curiously.


    "After you raise ck fish, go buy some small mixed sea fish for them every now and then. The mixed sea fish are oily, and after the ck fish eat them, their feces are oily and nutritious. The other fish will eat the ck fish''s feces. Since the feces are naturally produced and high in oil, the other family fish grow even better than the wild ones after eating it."


    Listening to Zhu Chenggui''s exnation, it seemed quite reasonable, so Suming inquired, "Are mixed sea fish expensive?"


    "If you buy them in the market, a ton costs about one to two thousand yuan. If you collect directly from the fishermen, it''s even cheaper. They usually can''t sell those small fish."


    "You wouldn''t need to feed mixed sea fish every day; grow some aquatic nts, green algae, and mix in some loaches and snails, and that''s pretty much it. If you do well over a year, I can''t guarantee ten thousand pounds per acre, but harvesting three to four thousand pounds of the four family fish and two to three thousand pounds of ck fish per acre is absolutely doable."


    Having technical skills doesn''t always equate to being a boss, and Zhu Chenggui was a typical example. He had the skills to farm fish butcked the capital and space to do so. Suming was the opposite.


    "But this water of yours..." Zhu Chenggui pointed at the somewhat ckish water of Shuijun Lake and shook his head, "is too poor."


    "What should I do then?" Suming asked.


    "When we used to farm fish, we had ponds that were just a few acresrge. We would drain all the water from the pond when catching fish and then draw fresh water from theke, so water quality wasn''t an issue. Yourke is too big, emptying it entirely is definitely not an option. You can only start by raising fewer fish and growing more aquatic nts to restore theke''s ecosystem first. After a few years, when the water quality improves, you can startrge-scale fish farming."


    Suming pped his forehead, after all that, it turned out he would have to wait a few years to start!


    I''ve only leased it for three years!

 Chapter 48: 48: The Cat-Dog War

    Seeing it was gettingte, Suming drove Zhu Chenggui back to the factory where he was on duty.


    On the way back, Zhu Chenggui brought up the topic of cigarettes and alcohol,ining about how life was so tough that he couldn''t even afford a little drink.


    Suming, being a perceptive person, stopped by a supermarket and specifically bought two bottles of Jiannanchun and a pack of Double Happiness cigarettes for Zhu Chenggui.


    For the two hundred yuan worth of goods, Zhu Chenggui kept thanking him and said if there was ever any issue with fish farming, he should just ask. He might be old, but if there was one thing he was skilled at, it was fish farming and fishing.


    Though they hadn''t spent much time together, Suming could tell that Zhu Chenggui was sly in a peasant-like way and somewhat mercenary, so he had no ns to rely too much on him for fish farming matters.


    Heading back to the zoo, Suming hit the evening rush hour and encountered traffic jams all the way, arriving at Whisperwind Pavilion when it was already pitch dark, around eight o''clock.


    Before even entering, he could hear a cacophony of cats and dogsing from inside the pavilion.


    Upon pushing the door open, the house was inplete disarray, pots and pans knocked over everywhere, and two big wolfhounds and the Meow Corps led by Hei were having a standoff, tense and ready for battle.


    Under Hei''s leadership, several felines formed a semicircle, cornering the two wolfhounds against the wall. Their fur bristled, they stood on tiptoes, and their tails were as straight as antennas!


    The wolfhounds, not showing any weakness, stuck by the wall, their upper bodies crouched down, mouths open to reveal sharp canine teeth, and fiercely barked at the group of cats as if they were ready to pounce at any moment!


    The alligator turtle, apparently havinge inside to find something to eat, had a bag of chips in its mouth, caught between the frayed nerves of the felines and the wolfhound brothers, leaving it stretching out its big head in a panic, unable to decide whether to advance or retreat.


    As the saying goes, those who love to watch the turmoil don''t fear the chaos escting. Er Gouzi, the wasp, not wanting to be outdone, crawled out of its little nest in the beams and buzzed annoyingly around the room, making a bad situation worse.


    "Will all of you f***ing stop it!"


    Suming strode in, stood tall, and yelled at all the animals up and down.


    Seeing its chance while the cats and the wolfhound brothers were taken aback, the alligator turtle, still holding the bag of chips, scurried out of the pavilion like the wind, and plopped into the pond with a ssh.


    "Woof woof woof..."


    "Meow meow meow..."


    "Buzz buzz buzz..."


    "Buzz your mother! It''s none of your damn business!" Suming looked up and pointed at Er Gouzi, "Back to your nest!"


    Er Gouzizily circled the room and returned to its small wasp nest, but its two belly eyes twinkled with mischief, unable to resist the urge to keep watching the drama unfold.


    The wolfhound brothers wagged their tails frantically, almost dragging their tongues on the floor, doing their utmost to ingratiate themselves with Suming, hoping he would take their side;


    "Aren''t you two a bunch of cowards? You''re supposed to be descendants of wolves, and you let a few cats bully you and have the nerve toe whining to me?" Suming rolled his eyes.


    The felines, too, pulled back their bristled fur, walked with their heads held high and elegantly sauntered to their corner to lie down one by one.


    "And you guys, stop this nonsense. If you want to fight, take it outside, and look at the mess you''ve made in the house!" Suming pointed at the mess on the floor.


    Hei yawned, rubbed his face with his meaty paw, and carried an air of indifference that seemed to say he couldn''t give a damn.


    "I''ve got toy down some rules for you all, from now on, anyone who causes trouble will go without food for a day!"


    Suming was already frustrated with the fish farming business, and ording to what Zhu Chenggui said, it would be years before he could profit from fish farming. What''s the point then?


    Even though money came easily to him, he couldn''t afford to waste it like this. A few yearster, the lease would be up and the nearly seventy thousand yuan he paid for the lease would have been for nothing!


    As Suming tidied up the Fengshui Pavilion, which had been turned upside down, he pondered over how to purify the water in Shuijun Lake quickly.


    The nearby Huating Reservoir was suitable for fish farming because of its good water quality.


    Shuijun Lake, being a man-madeke which had been unmanaged for many years, couldn''t possibly reach the water quality of Huating Reservoir in a short period of time. But if it could even reach 30 percent of Huating Reservoir''s water quality, it would be enough to farm fish.


    The two wolfhounds, unconcerned with Suming''s mood, wagged their tails and trotted around him as if they had urgent news to report.


    With a slight probe of his spiritual power, Suming realized these two guys were starving. They hadn''t eaten anything all day.


    Without needing to ask or think, Suming knew for sure that the Meow Corps must have bullied the neers and hoarded all the food, so he turned his head and red at Hei.


    "Meow..." Hei meowed reluctantly and then dragged a pile of stuff from the depths of the cat''s nest.


    Cat food, dog food, snacks... and there were even several lively little fish and shrimps...


    "You''ve even learned to hide stuff now? No more bullying the wolfhounds, and you two, don''t bite the cats... Alright, you two will be called Wang Cai and De Fu," Suming decided as he pointed at the wolfhound brothers.


    Wang Cai and De Fu scampered off with their food to eat, while Hei and some junior Meow Corps members, already full, listlessly yed with a half-dead crayfish. The crayfish, dragging its tail to escape, was scooped back by Hei''s paw after several flips, brandishing itsrge pincers threateningly at Hei.


    Because they had been following Suming around all day and frequently came into contact with Animal Friendship, the cats'' strength and speed had noticeably increased. After several snapping attempts by the crayfish, Hei skillfully dodged them and with a hefty pat, the crayfish was smacked into the wall with a st, its shell cracked, clearly beyond saving.


    "If you''re going to eat, can you not be so cruel..."


    While talking, Suming suddenly had a revtion, as if he had remembered something very important!


    "Wait! Wait... the crayfish... where did the crayfishe from?"


    Suming remembered that when he had sent Big Head and the alligator turtle to scout Shuijun Lake, he found that although there were very few fish, there were lots of loaches, crayfish, and crabs, which thrive in dirty water and mud.


    A bold idea emerged in his mind!


    Without further thought about tidying up the house, he ran to the tform and yelled towards theke, "Old Turtle,e with me!"


    Then, he turned and ran towards Shuijun Lake.


    The zoo was already closed, and there wasn''t a soul around Shuijun Lake, the breeze rustling the willows on the shore with a sound like whispers.


    Near the shore,rge ripples appeared on the water as a big-headed catfish over a foot long surfaced, whiskers fluttering and half a loach hanging from its mouth. Seeing Suming, the big-headed catfish swallowed the loach whole with a gulp, then straightened its body in the water, tail flicking, waiting for Suming''smand!


    "Old Turtle, Big Head, both of you go into the water and herd all the loaches, crayfish, crabs, anything that digs holes, right up to the shore. I want to talk to them!"

 Chapter 49: 49 The Su Family Construction Team

    ```


    Shuijun Lake, a sleepless night!


    A clever catfish with an oversized head, alongside a ferocious snapping turtle, the two rascals teamed up to cause a ruckus in Shuijun Lake, like warlords recruiting strongmen, driving groups of loaches, eels, crabs, and crayfish toward theke''s edge.


    In such argeke, if humans were to undertake this task, it might take a month or two to find all the crabs and crayfish, but the catfish had lived in the water for a while, idly wandering around every day, bing extremely familiar with every inch of this territory.


    Where the crayfish were, where the loaches were abundant, the catfish knew like the back of its fin, leading the snapping turtle straight to the key spots.


    The snapping turtle acted timid in front of cats and dogs, leaving one speechless, but in front of aquatic life, it instantly transformed into the most terrifying predator. Any that didn''t obey were bitten to death as a snack. Shuijun Lake had plenty of crayfish and crabs, and Suming didn''t mind giving his subordinate a bit of a treat.


    Suming wasn''t idle either. As soon as the catfish locked onto a location, Suming would rush over by boat, controlling all the hole-digging aquatic creatures in the area with his spiritual power, and then hand them over to the snapping turtle to be escorted to thekeside.


    He was busy until three or four in the morning, finally going over the entire Shuijun Lake. Apart from a few that slipped through the, almost all the hole-digging aquatic creatures had been driven to an abandoned dock nearby.


    There weren''t many aquatic creatures in theke, but that''s rtive to the hundred acres ofke surface. Now, with the loaches, eels, crayfish, and crab soldiers gathered together below the hundred-acre surface, the scene was quite terrifying. In the darkness, the ck water churned violently, and dense shadows kept flickering under the surface.


    Suming took a deep breath, casting his spiritual power like a fishing over the densest area of creatures below the water''s surface.


    Suming issued a simplemand to the creatures like the loaches, "Dig towards Huating Reservoir!"


    His idea was simple and rough: if Shuijun Lake could be connected to Huating Reservoir, theke could be a lively body of water, and its quality could significantly improve within a month, rendering future concerns about water quality unnecessary!


    "Let''s get to work!" Suming waved his hand grandly.


    On the surface, Shuijun Lake appeared unchanged, but a huge engineering project hadmenced in the pitch-ck depths!


    Loaches and eels were expert diggers, both in skill and endurance. These creatures, fond of "burrowing," didn''t mind hard work and could keep going for days without tiring. In the city''s clogged sewage pipes, releasing a few loaches and eels could clear the blockage in no time.


    Crayfish and crabs were the best transporters. Perhaps they were kin to dung beetles, as they seemed to enjoy shaping mud into balls and blocking their burrow entrances with them. This behavior was now particrly useful, as they could move the soil excavated by the loaches and eels out of the tunnels and, when encountering rocky obstructions, act as a shock troop to clear the debris.


    To prevent the newly dug channels from copsing, Suming had even obtained the zoo''s construction blueprints, starting the excavation from geologically stable directions and keeping the size of each channel within certain limits.


    If needed, he would even purchase pipes toy in the holes dug by the loaches.


    The shortest distance between Shuijun Lake and the reservoir was a little over a kilometer. The digging process would undoubtedly produce arge amount of soil, which could conveniently be used to form a thickyer of silt on thekebed for breeding snakehead fish or perhaps even cultivating economically valuable aquatic nts like lotus roots.


    Suming could now control hundreds of aquatic creatures at once, then use these controlled creatures to influence their peers. With the snapping turtle and the catfish assisting on the side as supervisors, they could muster a workforce of about five to six hundred at a time. The remaining loaches, crabs, and the like were organized into shifts, taking turns at the front lines.


    ```


    Based on digging for about seven to eight hours a day, the tunnel would not take half a month toplete.


    But just two hourster, Suming was already struggling, his spiritual power was nearly exhausted. Even though the amount of spiritual power increased daily after having Monkey Wine, it still couldn''t keep up with controlling so many aquatic creatures working continuously.


    With no other choice, he had to temporarily halt the work and return to his waterside pavilion for a sleep to replenish his spiritual power.


    However, before he could sleep for a few hours, he was woken up by tourists boating outside. Muttering curses, Suming rubbed his eyes and climbed out of bed.


    After the initial excitement of the first month, the boat business had settled down from being hot to steady. It was bringing in slightly over ten thousand a week, which amounted to about fifty thousand a month.


    After deducting expenses, the 10% management fee for the zoo, and the half-share for Wang Hao, Suming himself could make a stable twenty thousand a month.


    He wasn''t concerned about the money now, so he decided to temporarily shut down the boating service. Once the artificialke''s channel waspleted, he nned to move the boating business there and let the cats take turns collecting money.


    If other businesses, such as fish farming, grew, Suming even thought about hiring more park staff to manage the boat business. It wasn''t tiring; they could sit back and earn moneyfortably. This would be a welfare benefit for the park staff, and it would be a good exnation to Mr. Song since he would need the zoo staff and Mr. Song''s support for many things in the future.


    But the time for that wasn''t now. After getting up, Suming first went to feed the animals.


    In the wolf pack, the she-wolf had grown her belly and had a poor appetite,ying listlessly in the house all day, but the Wolf King was indifferent, busying himself with his aloof and cool demeanor, acting as if it''s none of his business.


    There was no Wang around the Wolf Pen, only the red fox and the ck bear family. ck Bear Dad, of course, couldn''t run over from dozens of meters to mess with the Wolf King''s wife. Even if the red fox had the desire, itcked the courage, and even with the courage, it didn''t have the ability.


    Suming was the only zookeeper who dared to enter Haidong Qing''s cage to feed it. Upon seeing Suming, Haidong Qing pped its wings and pounced towards him.


    Suming lifted his arm, and Haidong Qingnded steadily on his forearm. Even with the thick protective sleeve, Haidong Qing''s talons, sharp as knives, still made Suming''s forearm sting.


    "I''ll find a chance someday to take you out for a flight," Suming nodded to Haidong Qing, knowing the creature longed for the boundless blue skies for more than just a day or two.


    Out of a desire to protect Haidong Qing''s wild nature, if Suming could tame it, the zoo authorities would permit him to asionally take Haidong Qing into the wild for outings.


    Upon Suming''s arrival, the male peacocks in the Peacock Garden all unfurled their tail feathers in a sh, unting them seductively, making Suming quite embarrassed. I''m not a female peacock, yet you guys disy your feathers at me every day, what''s your game?


    After tending to the animals, he returned to his waterside pavilion, ready to continue sleeping and replenish his spiritual power to battle it out at thekeside tonight.


    As soon as he entered, he smelled a faint sweet scent.

 Chapter 50: 50: The Giant Blue Honey

    Inside the courtyard of the small two-story vi of Huating Fisheries Company, a bald man and his several subordinates stood in a row, each with a bruised nose and a swollen face. The bald man had it the worst, his head still wrapped in a bandage.


    That day they were chased by hos until they were scared out of their wits, and in the end, with no other choice, they all jumped into theke to escape the cmity.


    Even though they reacted fairly quickly and saved their own lives, they still suffered a great loss. The one who was most severely injured nearly died in theke and was sent straight to the hospital for emergency care, barely hanging onto life.


    On the way to the hospital, the bald man began to convulse in the ambnce and even lost control of his dder and bowels.


    ording to the emergency doctor, they were lucky; being targeted by such arge swarm of hos in the wild and still managing to save their lives was quite fortunate.


    But saving their lives came at a cost. Mr. Zhou of the Huating Fisheries Company ended up paying over twenty thousand yuan in medical expenses for them at the hospital.


    "Mr. Zhou, it''s definitely that kid who sabotaged us! Once I''ve recovered, I''ll take a few brothers and teach him a lesson!" the bald man said indignantly.


    Zhou Jin, the boss of the fisheriespany, was an old gangster. Back in the day, he had quite the reputation among the hooligans of Yangchuan City, until he was sentenced to twenty years for causing a fatal injury.


    After his release, he realized the world had changed, that money is what truly matters now, and that just fighting and killing would eventually lead to obsolescence, so he gathered a group of brothers released from jail, contracted a section of the Huating Lake Reservoir in the east, and started a fish farming venture.


    While it''s true that in fighting and killing were already outdated, his underlings were a group of fierce and ferocious cohorts. They dominated the fish market, andbined with the genuinely delicious fish raised in Huating Lake, they became very popr. In just a few years, Zhou Jin had already secured arge share of Yangchuan''s fish market.


    Hearing the bald man''sint, Zhou Jin slightly frowned, "It''s your own stupidity. You didn''t know to avoid it when you saw the hosing; you deserved to be stung! Why didn''t the hos sting him?!"


    The bald man huffed and did not speak. Strictly speaking, it seemed the incident couldn''t really be med on that kid.


    But no matter what, if it weren''t for that kid''s meddling, how would he have ended up stung so badly by the hos!


    Just thinking about how he lost control of his dder and bowels in the ambnce, and how his brothers still teased him about it, the bald man couldn''t help but seethe with anger!


    "The two dogs are also missing; could they have been taken away by that kid?" said another gangster.


    "If they''re gone, they''re gone, just buy two more!"


    Zhou Jin waved his hand impatiently, interrupting the gangsters''ints, his face darkening as he said seriously, "Let''s put the ho issue aside for now. Next month we are releasing the fry; I want all of you to focus and be vignt! If anything goes wrong with the fish pond, I''ll skin you alive!"


    With a gangster history deeper than anyone present, and being their senior boss, Zhou Jin''s stern look made all the underlings, including the bald man, dare not utter another word.


    ...


    As Suming just entered the gate of the water pavilion, he smelled a faint sweet aroma wafting through the room.


    A few cats, having a day off from work, idled at home. Right now, they were forming a small circle on the ground, looking up at the ceiling beam with eager eyes.


    Wang Cai and Defu were also looking up, barking incessantly at the ceiling beam.


    It was Er Gouzi''s small nest on top of the ceiling beam; somehow he had offended this group of cats and dogs.


    Buzz buzz buzz...


    A swarm of bees, carrying a fist-sized mini beehive, flew down from the beam, slowly descending in front of Suming, with Er Gouzi following behind, circling the beehive in a frenzy.


    The scent wasing from the beehive.


    "Honey?"


    Suming reached out and took the beehive, only to see that it was covered with tightly-packed small holes, with ayer of pale golden, sticky substance on it.


    Honey doesn''t actually have much of a scent before it is processed, but the honey in this small beehive emitted an incredibly sweet, heartwarming fragrance.


    Er Gouzi loved honey the most. He circled the beehive eagerly, yet he didn''t dare to snatch the food from Suming''s hand, buzzing anxiously.


    "Big brother, you''re a ho, not a fly. Can''t you have some dignity? Stop buzzing all the time!" Suming red at Er Gouzi, but still scooped out a little bit of honey with his pinky and stretched it towards him.


    Er Gouzi swooped over to Suming''s honey-covered finger in a sh, opened his mouth, and devoured the honey voraciously while fluttering his wings at the same time.


    Suming watched with repulsion. The way this creature ate from his finger was just like a fly sitting on dung!


    "Come on, what''s seen must be shared!" Suming scooped out some honey from the beehive again and smeared a bit onto the mouths of the cats and wolf-dog brothers, causing the several pets to zealously lick their lips.


    Wang Cai and Defu''s saliva even dripped from the corners of their mouths to the ground, and these silly creatures actually bent down to lick the saliva that was vored with honey.


    "Is it really that delicious?"


    Suming was slightly stunned. To his knowledge, the taste of unprocessed wild honey was quite in and nothing to rave about. Some people even thought it had a weird taste.


    Could there be something unusual about this honey?


    He decided to try some himself.


    Indeed, the taste was good, sweet, and deliciously fragrant, somewhat like a syrup.


    Not only that, but after the honey entered his mouth, his spiritual power started to recover rapidly!


    "Holy smokes, this is like the legendary ''Elixir''!"


    Fearing he might be mistaken, Suming tried a little more honey, and his spiritual power indeed soared swiftly!


    Based on this rate, a fist-sized beehive of honey would be enough to replenish his current spiritual power seven or eight times over!


    This was definitely great news. With this treasure, he wouldn''t need to wait each day for his spiritual power to recover slowly. If he ran out of spiritual power, eating some honey would replenish it!


    This way, not only could he elerate the progress of the work, but it would also benefit other aspects significantly. For example, if he carried some honey with him wherever he went in the future, he could sustain bat'' for extended periods.


    Amidst his excitement, Suming bought several well-known honey products from the local store and conducted experiments with each one.


    In the end, he discovered that only the honey produced by the bees he had saved could enhance spiritual power, while other honey had no such effect, and in terms of taste, seemed to be inferior to the wild honey made by his bee colony.


    Suming pondered for a moment. First, there was the Monkey Wine that could increase the upper limit of spiritual power, and now, the honey that could elerate the recovery of spiritual power... There was no doubt that this was because the bees hade into contact with spiritual power and undergone some changes.


    "Let''s go and check on that group of bees on the back mountain!"

 Chapter 51: 51: Giant Queen Bee

    Suming, apanied by Wang Cai and De Fu, climbed up the back mountain. As they approached the woond where the bees had settled, several wasps suddenly descended from the sky, buzzing as they blocked the path.


    One wasp lowered its altitude and flew in front of Wang Cai and De Fu, a pair ofpound eyes sizing up the wolfhound brothers.


    The wolfhound brothers immediately became tense and barked furiously at the wasps circling in the air.


    "Easy now, hold your fire, they''re friendlies!" Suming snapped his fingers, projecting a thread of spiritual power to soothe the wolfhound brothers slightly.


    The Wasp Squad was positioned there by him to protect the bees, and it seemed that the wasps were not only diligent but also quite clever; they even knew to set up a checkpoint outside the woods rather than just aimlessly wandering inside. This way, if a formidable enemy that the wasps couldn''t resist appeared, they could raise the rm beforehand, giving the bee colony time to relocate.


    At the same time, he reached out with his spiritual power and made brief contact with the sentry wasps. Recognizing the familiar sensation, they circled Suming a few times before flying off with a p of their wings, continuing their sentry duties.


    The wolfhound brothers sheathed their fangs but still looked puzzled. They seemed to misunderstand Suming''s words. How could these little fellows with wings, who looked nothing like them, be ''friendlies''? Could they be winged puppy cubs?


    ...


    Inside the forest, life was thriving, and the bee colony appeared to have regained its vitality. Bees of all sizes were busy flying about, collecting nectar and making honey. There were also squads of wasps patrolling back and forth, clearly dividing their duties.


    Several heavy beehives were hanging in the center of the woods; those were the residences of the bees.


    Moreover, on the treetops of the forest, many fist-sized beehives hung like ''fruits'', the same kind that had been given to Suming before, with bees continuously entering and exiting the hives.


    A little farther away, two huge wasp nests, which could be described as gigantic, hung around twenty or thirty meters above the ground on the treetops. They looked like tworge eyes, ''watching'' over every movement in the woods from a high vantage point.


    The bees and wasps each had their roles: one group made honey, the other served as guards on watch, with no further incidents of fire and bloodshed.


    The backbone of the bee colony was mostly survivors of thest battle, all of whom recognized Suming. Seeing him arrive, they gathered around him from all directions. Hundreds of bees big and small circled around Suming, creating an unsettling scene, which once again set off Wang Cai and De Fu''s incessant barking.


    "Hard work,rades, go on with your tasks!" Suming waved his hand gently like a reviewing general, and the bees dispersed once more, each going about their work.


    Standing on tiptoes, he plucked a fist-sized beehive from a nearby tree, fully packed with honey. He tasted a bit, and sure enough, like before, it had the effect of enhancing spiritual power.


    In just over a dozen days, the bee colony had recovered its vitality, not only increasing in number but also startingrge-scale honey production. This was partly due to the Animal Friends ability, and another important reason was that within the bee colony, a new Queen Bee had emerged!


    The Queen Bee was indispensable to the colony, able tomand it and continuously breed new bees to expand the flock. In some ways, the Queen Bee''s contribution to the colony was even greater than Suming''s!


    Without Suming, this group of bees would at most exist haphazardly, like other wild bee colonies. But without a Queen Bee, the colony would gradually decline.


    The Queen Bee''s hive was as big as a basketball, hanging on an old locust tree about four or five meters off the ground. Suming took off his shirt and climbed up the tree branches little by little until he reached the hive.


    Peering through the holes in the hive, he saw lying inside a Queen Bee with a slender waist and plump hindquarters, her wings already atrophied!


    "This one''s huge!" Suming was somewhat surprised; a normal Queen Bee was just slightlyrger than a regr bee, at most two to three times the size of an ordinary bee.


    Yet this Queen Bee before him was about the size of half a c bottle, truly colossal!


    No wonder the bee colony had recovered so quickly. Such a gigantic Queen Bee must have incredible reproductive capabilities!


    This littledy sure could bear offspring!


    The Queen Bee also noticed Suming''s arrival. After staring at him for a while, she took the initiative to send out a consciousness.


    Although the consciousness was weak, its message was very clear. If tranted into human words, it would be just two: Master.


    Suming paused, slightly startled. What''s going on here?


    The intelligence of a typical bee swarm is quite low; only Er Gouzi, who has been following me for a long time, has shown a significant improvement in intelligence. The rest can only simply ept orders and are not yet capable of municating'' with me.


    Like the Queen Bee, conveying rtively clear consciousness requires at least the intelligence of several cats. The Queen Bee''s ability tomunicate just now even seemed to surpass that of the bighead catfish.


    Speaking of the bighead, Suming couldn''t help but get annoyed. That guy was just a simpleton, growing flesh but not brains. After following him for so long, he still often gets confused, and expressing a simple idea requires half a day ofmunication and may still not be clear.


    Inparison, this newly born Queen Bee was naturally much smarter than the other bees!


    "Do you need me for something?" Suming tentatively sent out his spiritual power.


    The Queen Bee actually made a somewhat anthropomorphic gesture, shaking its transforming little wings as if waving, followed by a wave of uneasy emotions.


    Animals have an almost instinctual intuition for danger, and Suming could sense that the highly intelligent Queen Bee was not very satisfied with this forest, feeling that it was not a safe habitat.


    "You mean you want to move?"


    Suming pondered for a moment and felt that the Queen Bee had a point.


    Although this was already deep in the forest, the nearest man-made road was probably more than five kilometers away, but that did not mean that people would definitely note here.


    Now the bee swarm was very useful to him, providing a steady supply of ''honey'' that could restore spiritual power. And this Queen Bee, clearly the product of evolution, would definitely attract human attention if discovered, which could lead to potentially being caught for research.


    If anything happened to these bees, the loss would be enormous!


    Even though they were protected by the Wasp Squad, Suming did not want to have all the people who identally stumbled in here to be silenced by the wasps. He was a friend of animals, not a homicidal maniac.


    Moreover, as the bee swarm continued to grow in size and number, more honey would be produced in the future, making the flowers and nts in this forest seem somewhat insufficient.


    Thinking of this, Suming smoothly slid down the tree trunk to the ground.


    He suddenly unleashed all his spiritual power, enveloping all the bees and wasps around him, and then gave amand to the swarm.


    Move deeper into the mountain!


    The specific location was for the Queen Bee to decide, ensuring safety while also having an abundant environment with enough flowers for honey production.


    Since the bees and wasps could all fly, travelling long distances was not an issue. Once they settled, the Wasp Squad would just need to inform him of the exact location, and regr tributes to the ''big blue hive'' would suffice.


    After arranging everything, the bees began to get busy, carrying their hives down from the trees and flying slowly towards the depths of the mountain.


    Suming did not immediately leave but held the hive where the Queen Bee resided, walking with the moving group in the mountains for a while and constantlymunicating with the Queen Bee using spiritual power.


    He could distinctly feel that each time the Queen Bee made contact with his spiritual power, it would send back a wave of joy. The fact that this giant Queen Bee could develop a degree of wisdom and had arger body size than typical Queen Bees was certainly due to the association with spiritual power. To the Queen Bee, Suming''s spiritual power was even more attractive than royal jelly, making it the perfect opportunity to ''interact'' with the Queen Bee for a while.


    The Queen Bee was not content to stay quietly in the hive but waggled its round, plump tail,zily climbed out, and aimed right into Suming''s arms, constantly sending him a dependence-filled emotion, as if wanting Suming to hold it.


    "Easy, easy, don''t break your little waist!"


    The Queen Bee at this moment was almost the same size as a newly born kitten, and because of its overlyrge and round tail, it appeared to have an extremely delicate waist, giving the illusion that it could snap into two with just a light touch.


    Suming quickly and gently supported the Queen Bee with both hands, cradling it in his arms like a child.


    The Queen Beey in Suming''s embrace and sweetly fell asleep.

 Chapter 52: 52 Great Success

    Suming followed the bee swarm deeper into the mountains, starting off through grassy ins and woonds, which gradually became rougher to traverse, strewn with chaotic rocks. From the distant forests, there asionally came cries of night animals, which were hard to identify.


    Only then, did Suming set down the Queen Bee, and bid the swarm a temporary farewell.


    The massive main hive was carried by hundreds of worker bees, hovering midair while the Queen Bee poked a tiny head out from the hive, watching Suming leave and constantly sending waves of reluctance to part.


    "It''s not like we''re parting in life or death, no need to be so clingy!" Suming, on the other hand, was heartlessly cheerful,ughing at the Queen Bee, waving his hand, and turning to stride towards the outside of the mountains.


    The Queen Bee even threw a bit of a ''tantrum,'' refusing to go. She just sprawled in the hive, desperately using her spiritual power to contact Suming until he was so far away that her feeble spiritual power couldn''t reach him anymore.


    Because of the kinship with animals, the Queen Bee''s ''intelligence'' far surpassed that of ordinary honeybees. For her, Suming was not only her owner, but also her ''mentor'' in life''s growth; he was also the only one in this world that she couldmunicate with.


    After Suming walked away, the Queen Bee slowly crawled back into the hive, lying in therge empty nest.


    Even with her kind flitting all around, the Queen Bee''s simple heart felt an odd emotion called ''loneliness'' for reasons unbeknownst to her.


    ...


    When Suming rushed back to the zoo, it was already the early hours of the morning. He first returned to Whisperwind Pavilion for a cup of Monkey Wine, then, with the jar of Blue Bee Honey tucked in his arms, he headed straight for Shuijun Lake.


    The nighttimeke was deathly still, with not a single shadow around Shuijun Lake.


    Thousands of ''excavators'' were lurking beneath the calm surface of theke, ready for themand!


    "Let''s get to work!" Suming waved his hand grandly, his spiritual power sprinkling across theke.


    This time, it took a full five hours, and Suming replenished his spiritual power once with bee honey, until the sky slightly brightened, only then did he stop the work and return to Whisperwind Pavilion to sleep and rest. Spiritual power isn''t omnipotent, after all, and he needed at least a few hours of sleep a day; he didn''t want to drop dead at the edge of theke.


    During the day, he apanied Mr. Peng to feed the animals in rounds.


    The pregnant she-wolf had been very irritable these days, always looking at everyone crossly and at times, had nearly injured the keepers.


    Whether it''s women or female animals, they''ve never been the reasonable sort. When picking fights and getting angry, their intelligence seems to rival Einstein''s; when they lose their temper, their fighting power is second only to Ultraman; when they go crazy, their danger is only slightly less than that of a Tibetan Mastiff... The danger presented by a pregnant she-wolf had obviously surpassed that of a Mastiff; even the Wolf King dared not get close to her.


    With a piece of beef in his mouth, the Wolf King approached the she-wolf cautiously, his tail even swaying unnaturally a few times in a submissive manner, only to be pped across the face by her, nearly wrecking his good looks.


    In an instant, the Wolf King''s hair became disheveled. Getting up, he nced sideways at Suming as if to say, ''you deal with her.''


    "Coward, you can''t handle your own wife and you''re asking me to deal with her?" Suming rolled his eyes.


    To this, the Wolf King could only express his helplessness. Every family has its own difficulties, wolves included.


    Suming cajoled and deceived until he finally managed to handle the mother wolf, mixing beef and sour plum tomatoes into a mush and feeding it to her through the cage.


    "When''s she giving birth, this is too exhausting!" Suming pointed at the mother wolf and asked Mr. Peng with a bit of a headache.


    "Just hold on, it''s almost time." Mr. Peng patted Suming on the shoulder with a helpless look. Now, among all the zookeepers, only Suming could approach the mother wolf to feed her, so the responsibility of caring for her fell entirely on Suming''s shoulders.


    After being scorned by Suming several times, the new anteater finally showed a hint of enlightenment, no longer licking every hole it saw. But for some reason, it developed a new bad habit, a fondness for digging holes.


    Suming had a ''few talks'' with it, but to no avail. This big fellow from North America seemed to be struggling with the local conditions, bing restless like someone with an anxiety disorder, never still for a moment, constantly moving and biting.


    "Do I have to speak English tomunicate?" Suming scratched his head, letting it be. If it loves digging, let it dig. The zoo floor is made of concrete anyway, and anteaters aren''t known for their digging skills. It could dig its whole life and still not expect any aplishment. Once it wears its ws out to bleeding, it''ll surely stop being restless.


    Days passed like this, interacting with various animals during the day, and at night, a lonely figure would sit on thekeside dock by the dark waters of Shuijun Lake, staring nkly at theke surface for most of the night.


    The underwater construction project was progressing very smoothly, advancing at a rate of forty to fifty meters a day.


    As Suming''s spiritual power grew stronger, so did his control ability. The ''excavation team'' controlled by his spiritual power became smarter, and the project''s speed elerated.


    One night around half past midnight, Suming felt sleepy and the underwater passage suddenly copsed with a swoosh, burying dozens of loaches that were wriggling forward under the rubble, and several crabs that were transporting gravel were crushed to death on the spot. It took a great effort for the loaches to get out from the site of the copse.


    Miners have always had a tough lot, getting buried alive with nopensation to speak of.


    Since it was an underwater operation, with the tunnel deep underground and the mud holes softening in the water, copses were inevitable. Suming learned from this mishap and covertly purchased a batch of pipes. Whenever a section was dug and he found soft soil that might lead to a copse, he would ce a pipe down.


    As the skills of the digging workers increased, these little creatures seemed to find the knack of excavation. About a weekter, there were no more incidents of copse. Instead, the pipes Suming had bought were hardly put to use.


    At half-past three in the morning, Suming was dozing off by theke, his head drooping little by little, his spiritual power spreading faintly into the water.


    De Fu and Wang Caiy on the grass on either side of him, already asleep. Still, at the slightest rustle, the brothers'' ears would perk up alertly.


    Suddenly, arge swirl of water arose on the surface, and a crocodile turtle, covered in mud and waterweeds, emerged from beneath the water straining its neck toward Suming, its thick neck pulsing as it made a hoarse sound.


    Suming''s eyes snapped open, his spirit instantly electrified!


    Atst, the first passage was excavated!


    Within the perceivable range, the bottom of Shuijun Lake and the distant reservoir were now connected by a passage a few dozen centimeters in diameter. The waters of both sides mingled in the passage, flowing into each other. The poor-quality stagnant water from Shuijun Lake was streaming into the reservoir, while the high-quality fresh water from the reservoir slowly poured into Shuijun Lake.


    Not far from this passage, four other simrly sized passages were also nearingpletion.

 Chapter 53: 53 Hurry up, Big Head!

    As the first underwater passage waspleted, Shuijun Lake and Huating Reservoir were finally connected, and the waters from both sides began to flow slowly through the underground channel.


    The national standard ssifies water quality into five grades, with Grade I being the water source quality, natural reserves, and reputed to be the best in quality, but it is very rare and almost nonexistent in human settlements;


    Grade II is suitable for centralized drinking water sources, first-ss protection zones of surface water, habitats of rare aquatic organisms, spawning grounds for fish and shrimps, and foraging grounds for juveniles and young fishes; Grade III covers second-ss protection zones for surface water sources, wintering and spawning migratory passages for fish and shrimps, aquaculture areas, and swimming zones; Grade IV applies to general industrial water areas and recreational water areas with no direct human contact; Grade V serves agricultural water areas and general scenic water bodies.


    Water below the fifth grade is basically of no use and is generally referred to as wastewater.


    Huating Reservoir itself is a national AA scenic spot with water quality reaching the second grade. Grade II water sources can be said to be the best water avable in human settlements, and because of this, the fish cultivated in Huating Reservoir are of high quality and popr in the market;


    In contrast, the water quality of Shuijun Lake is at the fifth grade, the lowest level, which is vastly different from that of Huating Reservoir. There''s no guarantee the fish can survive in it, and even if they do, the taste would definitely be poor. It''s barely suitable for personal consumption, let alone selling in the market for profit.


    It was for this reason that the old fisherman Zhu Chenggui once told Suming that to raise fish on arge scale in Shuijun Lake, theke''s ecology must first be improved, and the water quality enhanced over several years.


    Now, with the underwater passage connecting Shuijun Lake and Huating Reservoir, allowing the waters from both sides to flow through, theoretically, it should not be long before the water quality of Shuijun Lake can approach that of Huating Reservoir!


    By dawn, the remaining passages had also been opened up.


    "Big Head, follow the channel and swim over to the other side," Sumingmanded the Mekong giant catfish.


    The ones sent to explore are usually expendable; a copse in the tunnel, arge fish appearing in the reservoir on the other side, just about any minor ident could result in losing one''s life. The Mekong giant catfish, being a creature that feared death and coveted life, did not hesitate to gather dozens of loaches and a group of crabs before cautiously entering one of therger underwater passages, with the loach and crab squad following closely behind.


    It wasn''t foolish; in case of blockage or copse, if trapped in the mud, the ''rescue squad'' behind it coulde in handy, ready to begin rescue operations at any moment.


    "My goodness, you''re not as dumb as I thought. When ites to fearing death and coveting life, you''re as shrewd as anyone!" Suming was taken aback and chuckled softly.


    Big Head swam slowly through the passage, surrounded by the gentle flow of water from bothkes. asionally, some small fish or shrimp from either side would slip into the channel, scattering in panic as Big Head passed.


    The journey was safe throughout. Most parts of the passage were reinforced with pipes, which essentially prevented copses. At most, some mud and gravel created obstacles, but with the rescue squad following close behind, it wasn''t a problem. The loaches could easily loosen up obstructions at the front, and then the crabs and lobsters would join forces to clear the pipes.


    In short, everything was calm. After about half an hour, a faint light suddenly appeared ahead in the pitch-dark passage, signaling the end of the tunnel was near!


    With a powerful flick of its tail, Big Head shot out of the passage like a torpedo and entered the waters of Huating Reservoir!


    Upon entering the reservoir, Big Head instantly felt an exhrating sense of relief and began to circle around joyously, thoroughly enjoying itself.


    The water quality here was far superior to that of Shuijun Lake, reminiscent of someone who had been living in a smog-filled capital city and suddenly arrived in an idyllic haven of green mountains and clear waters.


    Bighead was considered an ''old troop'' under Suming''smand, and after many instances of ''coboration,'' the spiritual power connection between the two was much more stable than with ordinary animals. With other animals at such a distance, Suming wouldn''t be able to make contact at all.


    Even so, a distance of over a kilometer made Suming feel powerless, the spiritual power connection with Bighead felt as if it were barely there, extremely weak, prompting him to bellow, "There will be plenty for you to y withter, but first scout the area clearly for me!"


    Suming was Bighead''s boss, provider, and spiritual anchor. Hismands were more effective than anything else, to the extent that they could even subdue Bighead''s innate love for water typical of fish. On receiving the instructions, Bighead immediately stopped wandering aimlessly. Its whiskers by its mouth swayed with the ripples of water, and with bulging round fish eyes, it carefully observed the surroundings.


    The tunnel''s exity beneath a small hillock made of a mix of rock and soil, which was rtively sturdy and would not copse except in the rare case of a heavy downpour. Its location was quite secluded with no nearby roads, just shrubbery, with some waterfowl nesting among them.


    The exits of the five tunnels were all about three meters deep under the water surface, with the shallowest being over two and a half meters.


    This was something Suming had nned before the tunneling: the exits had to be secluded and hidden enough to ensure they were not easily discovered by others. He didn''t want to go through the effort of creating the tunnel, only to have someone easily seal it from the other end.


    From what he saw so far, the locations of these exits were very good, almost impossible to be found.


    In a nearby reed bed, a long-beaked water bird seemed to notice Bighead''s presence. It opened its wings, its long legs forcefully kicking as it took to the air, swooping down towards Bighead, skimming the water''s surface!


    Like an arrow released from a bow, the water bird dived with lightning speed directly above Bighead, its long sharp beak thrusting viciously towards Bighead''s head!


    Whoosh...


    The bird''s sharp beak carved a long ripple on the water surface, almost flying past t against it!


    Luckily, Bighead had been with Suming for so long that both its reactions and fitness were far superior to a typical catfish. In the nick of time, Bighead executed a ''thousand-pound plunge'', its plump tail thrashing desperately as it dove headfirst into the deep water, narrowly escaping danger!


    Even so, Bighead was scared out of its wits, and pfft¡ªbehind its tail, a cloud of murkiness emerged; it had lost control of its dder and bowels in fright¡­


    Don''t be fooled by Bighead catfish now over a foot long, almost equal in size to the water bird¡ªwater birds were its natural predators. No matter if it grew to ten or twenty pounds, the sight of a water bird would still send it into hiding, as in the bird''s eyes, it was merely arger lump of flesh.


    Seeing its meal slip away, the water bird circled resentfully above the water for a few rounds, quacking strangely a couple of times at the water before eventually flying away listlessly without finding a solution.


    In the water, Bighead was still recovering from the shock, darting around crazily almost as if it had lost its mind, with even Suming''s spiritual power unable to calm it down immediately due to the great distance separating them.


    One moment up, the next diving down, now darting to the east, then bolting to the west¡ªafter more than ten minutes and having moved several dozen meters away from the shore, Bighead''s emotions gradually began to settle.


    It flicked its tail, ready to turn around and swim towards the tunnel, but it couldn''t muster any strength, feeling as though something behind it was ''clutching'' it tightly!

 Chapter 54: 54: Fish Seedlings that Fall from the Sky

    The bighead carps'' recently calmed little heart immediately began to pound wildly once more, terrifyingly as if its soul had flown to the heavens. It struggled desperately in an attempt to break free from the ''monster'' behind it¡ª but inadvertently, the more it fought, the tighter it got ''grabbed''.


    As it thrashed about in a frenzy, the bighead carp somehow ended up in a stretch of fishings, with its tail getting hooked by the.


    Fishings areid out with particr care; those set up by the experienced are not for catching fish, but rather for ''entangling'' them. Once fish and shrimpe into contact with thes, they get tightly bound. The more they struggle, the more thes embed into their scales, making it difficult for evenrge fish to escape. In the end, they could do nothing but be entangled and wait for death.


    At this moment, the that ensnared the bighead carp extended indefinitely to both sides, forming a long underwater wall, encircling a vast expanse of water on one side of the Huating Reservoir.


    On the other side of the, the interior side, was a scene brimming with life.


    Myriads of fish swam to and fro¡ªfinger-length crucian carp, three- to four-tael ck carp and grass carp, stickleback-like silver carp, half-pound bighead carp. At the bottom of the water, in the mud, dark sleepers, four or five taels in weight, opened their mouths wide in search of any edible thing, ...


    It was truly a world filled with fish.


    "Don''t be afraid, bighead, I''ll send the shrimp soldiers and crab generals to rescue you right away!" Suming quickly dispatched a pair of crabs, charging towards the, ws waving.


    ...


    On the shallow banks on the east side of Huating Reservoir, dozens of boxes filled with juvenile fish were piled up. A bald man and a group of his men lifted box after box, dumping them into the reservoir. The cramped fishlings poured eagerly into the water, scattering rapidly in all directions.


    Not far away, several trucks continued to deliver more boxes of fishlings to the shallow bank.


    Countless fishlings kept being released into theke; soon, thekeside was overrun with various small fish, pping their tails and thrashing about, before swimming off again, only to be followed by more new fishlings dumped into thekeside...


    The so-called ''fishlings'' were not the kind that are semi-transparent and only a few millimeters in size;mon species like the ''Big Four'' fish, only counted as juveniles when they grew to a few taels. Aquaculturists buy these juvenile fish, and within a fast half a year or a slow year, they can be reared to weights ranging from half a pound to several pounds, ready to be sold for money.


    Since juvenile fish are rtively weak and incapable ofpeting withrger fish for food, they must be raised together until they grow to a certain size before they can be spread out to be raised with the otherrger fish.


    Zhou Jin, the owner of Huating Fisheries Company, d inrge rubber boots, stood on the shallow bank, very satisfied with the scene before him, and shouted loudly to his subordinates, "Stay sharp in theing period, Baldy, you and a few others will live by the riverbank!"


    The bald man waved to a few other fellows, signaling them to keep working, then he jogged over to Zhou Jin. He pulled out a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes, offering one to Mr. Zhou, and said with a ttering smile, "Don''t worry, Mr. Zhou, with us here, no one dares to steal any fish!"


    Zhou Jin took the cigarette and nodded, "I paid a lot for these fishlings. They are all first-rate. We can''t afford any mishaps!"


    The bald man showed a somewhat ferocious grin, baring his teeth and saying, "This is what we do. If anyone dares toe here and fish or steal, I''ll break his damned legs!"


    Zhou Jin nced sideways at the bald man and said indifferently, "Mind your measure, don''t maim them, and certainly do not cause any deaths!"


    "Don''t worry, Mr. Zhou. The brothers are all out of the big prison; handling a few people is no sweat. We all know the score!"


    ...


    While Zhou Jin was releasing fish fry by the shore, Suming''s crab rescue team had also arrived at the designated location.


    Below the unseen surface of the water, a dozenrge crabs scuttled onto the fishing, and with a few clicks and cks, they tore a big hole in the that was trapping the bighead catfish.


    The bighead catfish wanted to flee by shaking its tail, but then Suming issued anothermand.


    Upon discovering the group of fry, Suming immediately realized they must be those that Mr. Zhou from Huating Fisheries Company had released for cultivation.


    There was only one contractor for the entire Huating Lake, no other.


    The bighead catfish had no choice but to obey, and together with the group of crabs, they slipped through the hole in the.


    It wasn''t until 9:30 in the morning, when the zoo was about to open, that the bighead catfish finished scouting the inside of the. The number of fry inside was uncountable, mainly consisting of the four major families of fish, along with several othermon food fish, such as the snakehead.


    Mixed cultivation was not a sophisticated method; most fish farmers adopted it, just differing in specific methods.


    Suming did a quick calction and estimated that so many fry, along with the associated water nts and shells, would likely require an investment in the millions.


    Shuijun Lake wasn''trge, and ording to what Zhu Chenggui previously said about mixed breeding of the four major families of fish and the snakehead, the initial investment in fry alone would probably be around three to four hundred thousand. Furthermore, this was Suming''s first foray into fish farming¡ªhe didn''t know where to purchase such arge number of fry, and secondly, hecked the experience to judge the quality of the fry. If he wasn''t careful, he might spend a lot of money only to buy arge amount of sick or inferior fry.


    If it were another fish farmer, Suming might have given it some thought; after all, it''s not easy for people to raise fish, and ''stealing'' these fry would indirectly harm someone.


    But as for Huating Fisheries Company, he had no such psychological burden.


    When he initially sought advice, Zhou Jin''s attitude was one thing, but the actions of his subordinates, who beat people and finessed money with their near-robbery ''fines'', were enough to show these people were not of good character.


    Not to mention, they released attack dogs without a second thought that day. If it had been someone else without the capability of Animal Friends, they would have been mauled half to death by those two wolfhounds.


    After the conflict with the bald man, Suming kept an eye out and made specific inquiries about Zhou Jin. His fisheriespany indeed had a good reputation for the quality of its fish, but Zhou Jin and thepany itself had a poor reputation. It was said that Zhou Jin had done quite a few bad things in his earlier years. He had relied on some dishonorable tactics to drive away several fishermen who wanted to contract Huating Reservoir, andter in business, it was not umon for him to practice bullying and forced buying and selling.


    The fisheriespany had only contracted a small part of the reservoir, yet now they treated the entire reservoir as their own territory. On the Yangchuan forum, there were not a few posts about people getting bitten by guard dogs or beaten up while fishing near Huating Lake, and regardless of whether they called the police or went to seek justice, it all came to nothing.


    In in terms, this fisheriespany was a business gang with a background in darkness and evil.


    Suming was not the least bit lenient when dealing with Huating Fisheries Company.


    Now, all he needed to do was wait for a week or two until the waters of the reservoir and Shuijun Lake were fully exchanged and the water quality in Shuijun Lake improved, then he could make his move on the fry in the reservoir!

 Chapter 55: 55: Determined Honor

    After making up his mind, Suming sent Big Head to monitor the reservoir while he waited for the water quality of Shuijun Lake to improve.


    He wasn''t idle either, finally able to move the boat business to Shuijun Lake.


    That morning, Mr. Yang, whom Wang Hao had found to help inspect the boats, drove a container truck through the back door of the zoo, going straight to a dock beside Shuijun Lake.


    "Su, the boats are here!" Wang Hao had grown even fatter recently, looking like a round ball, and he ''rolled'' out of the passenger seat.


    Mr. Yang also got out of the driver''s seat, greeted Suming with a smile, and said, "Impressive, young man, in just a few days, your business has grown even bigger!"


    Shuijun Lake was more than ten timesrger than theke at Whisperwind Pavilion, and those few little bumper boats were certainly not enough. So, after deciding to move the boat business to Shuijun Lake, Suming asked Mr. Yang to help ce an order at the boat factory for ten rowing boats, eight pedal boats, and two assault boats.


    The rowing boats were the cheapest, nothing more than a big piece of iron sheet. Pedal boats were a little more expensive, and the most expensive were the assault boats. In total, Suming spent nearly three hundred thousand.


    When Wang Hao heard about it, he even took the initiative to invest the more than eighty thousand yuan he had earned earlier as a second investment, putting it all in.


    As he put it, you need to invest to reap, clear ounts make good friends, and because we have a good rtionship, I can''t just take a share of the profits for nothing.


    Mr. Yang directed the workers to unload all the boats from the container, tethering them by theke, while Wang Hao rubbed his hands together excitedly on the side: "Hey, those two assault boats are so cool! Later, let''s take a spin on theke!"


    Looking at the surface of Shuijun Lake, Mr. Yang suggested, "With such a bigke and only twenty boats, plus the original bumper boats, that makes only 28. That might not be enough."


    Given the size of Shuijun Lake, even several times more boats could fit, but Suming no longer considered the boat business as his main venture. Furthermore, he needed to raise fish, and too many boats on theke would easily frighten the fish.


    Moreover, Suming had calcted the zoo''s visitor flow; the number of boats would be just right. During holidays, there might be a queue for boating. If there were more boats, many would be idle on regr days, which was neither necessary nor cost-effective.


    Among these boats, Suming also nned to allocate one as a rescue boat and one as a dredging boat.


    After securing all the boats, Suming and Wang Hao hopped onto an assault boat, slipped life jackets over their necks, and started the motor.


    A gust of wind hit them head-on, the waves parting along the sides of the assault boat. Riding the wind and breaking waves, the boat roared across theke surface; sshing water surged from both sides, like a wild dog breaking free, happily dashing forward, leaving a long trail of ripples behind it.


    The speed of the assault boat wasn''t actually very fast, at least notpared to a car, but at forty kilometers per hour on the water, it was enough to make one''s blood surge, to truly experience what speed and passion are!


    "I''m the king of the world!" Wang Hao stood at the bow, opened his arms, and screamed into the wind like a pig being ughtered.


    Sumingughed heartily, if you''re the king, then what am I, the Queey?


    "I''m the Big Monster!"


    Suming also stood up and roared into the wind!


    The full pond of fish, shrimp, eels, and crabs joyfully danced along at the bottom of the water!


    ¡­


    With the boat business opening once again, a small ticket booth was newly built next to the dock at the entrance of Whisperwind Pavilion. Suming hired Zhou, who used to sell souvenirs at Whisperwind Pavilion, to sell tickets.


    With Zhou''s help, the workload of the cats was significantly reduced¡ªthey only needed to make an appearance each day, pose at the window, and asionally fiddle with some money.


    Unexpectedly, this turned into a new gimmick.


    ces running small businesses often have Lucky Cat figurines with a swinging arm, but now, the "on-schedule" cats sitting in the window became the money-drawing mascots of the boat ticket office.


    Customers liked it, so that''s what Suming provided. He simply trained the cats to perform a silly motion: sitting still, then mechanically waving their front paws back and forth.


    This action was exactly like that of the Lucky Cat figurines. Each time the cats did this, it amazed the new visitors, practically turning them into a live advertisement for the boat service!


    Some of the experienced visitors who had been to Whisperwind Pavilion wouldment with an air of expertise, "That''s nothing... let me tell you, one of those cats even picked up a ten-yuan note from me before..."


    The curious onlookers would immediately start asking questions, and at such times, Zhou would excitedly stick his head out of the ticket office to tell the crowd, "Don''t rush, folks, every weekend, our Lucky Cats will perform a special money-collecting trick!"


    It was predictable that the business on weekends would skyrocket.


    Zhou was so energetically hawking because he had his reasons.


    Although he had an easygoing job at the zoo, his ie was small¡ªonly two thousand and four hundred yuan a month, even less than the animal keepers who had various subsidies. His job was to watch over the gate of the Whisperwind Pavilion and asionally sell some souvenirs, but the money went to the zoo, so life was tight for him. When Suming first gave him a Zhonghua cigarette, he had been reluctant to smoke it.


    Now that Suming had employed Zhou to sell tickets right beside the Whisperwind Pavilion, and it didn''t conflict with his regr job, he could manage both. He was paid two thousand and five hundred yuan a month, effectively doubling his ie!


    An old man without education or special skills, with a total monthly ie of five thousand yuan, could now match the sry of office workers in bigpanies. Zhou was grinning from ear to ear every day, and whenever he met people, he would enthusiastically praise Suming for his abilities and kind heart.


    Apart from Zhou, Suming also hired Mr. Peng and Li, a keeper from Xiongshan.


    They worked in shifts. When not feeding the animals, they would manage the boats at the dock, taking care of passenger embarkation, boat maintenance, and being ready to rescue any visitor in danger.


    Mr. Peng, with financial difficulties and a daughter in college, was both Suming''s mentor and a senior employee at the zoo. Suming paid him a monthly sry of three thousand, and no one would object. Li, being young and single like Zhou, was paid two thousand and five hundred.


    Mr. Peng didn''t say much in the way of thanks but simply worked very hard. When drinking with friends behind the scenes, he would sometimes be sentimental, saying that as he grew old, he had acquired a good apprentice; the heavens were looking out for him.


    Li, generally a bit slow-witted, knew very well how to be grateful.


    After Suming had helped him get rid of a beehive and saved him, Li had been deeply grateful to Suming. Now, he had be Suming''s avid fan. If he ever overheard anyone saying anything negative about Suming, he would immediately jump into the conversation, ready to argue heatedly.


    Actually, no one at the zoo genuinely spoke ill of Suming behind his back¡ªpeople are usually quick to praise others when they''re doing well. Recently, as Suming became more sessful, the staff only regretted not having established a close rtionship with him early on like Mr. Peng had done, instead of gossiping.


    Mr. Song, the head of the zoo and the real boss, immediately decided to reserve the title of Advanced Worker for the second half of the year for Suming after hearing about his hiring the three employees.


    After learning about it, Suming could only give a helpless smile. There was no need for the old zoo director to be so tantly favoring him.


    It was just a few months into the year, and the Advanced Worker award for the second half of it was already settled!


    "Mr. Song, I absolutely cannot ept this honor!" Suming said decisively to Mr. Song.

 Chapter 56: 56 Today is a good day

    "Why can''t I have it?"


    Mr. Song looked a bit bewildered at Suming and said, "To be honest, thest ''Employee of the Month'' was somewhat to encourage you, but this time it''spletely different, you truly deserve this honor."


    Mr. Song pointed to a big pile of documents in front of him and said, "I won''t even mention the lifesaving incident. The revenue from ticket sales at the zoo has stabilized with an increase of about 20% because of your boat business¡ªthat''s a great achievement! Second, the honor you brought to the zoo led to recognition from our superior units and even got us funding! Third, Mr. Peng and Mr. Zhou are long-time employees of the zoo with tough family situations. Li might be young, but he''s also a key person, and his family''s rural background isn''t great. You hired them, which increased their ie and indirectly contributed to the zoo. Fourth, leasing Shuijun Lake generated a one-time ie of over seven hundred thousand for the zoo. Fifth, your own work has been excellent; the pregnant she-wolf in Wolf Pen now only recognizes you..."


    "Director, Director, let me interrupt a moment!" Suming quickly cut off Mr. Song, who was listing off his aplishments. What does he mean the pregnant she-wolf only recognizes me? It''s not like I got her pregnant!


    "Go ahead."


    "My dad taught me a saying, ''Don''t just look at the path ahead but also the road behind. The more sessful you are, the more you mustn''t lose your bearings,''" Suming said.


    It was somewhat cryptic talk, but people of Mr. Song''s age could understand the subtext in Suming''s words.


    However, he hadn''t expected someone of Suming''s age to say such things, so he was a bit surprised. After staring at Suming for a few seconds, he said, "Are you afraid of others getting jealous and causing trouble behind your back?"


    "That''s not it. Our colleagues in the park are all pretty easy to get along with. But I think it''s best not to challenge human nature. I''ve made money now, received honors, and my business is doing alright. Why hoard all the good things? For a hollow reputation, a few hundred bucks, always blocking the ways of other colleagues. Nothing mighte of it in the short term, but over time, inevitably, it might lead to dissatisfaction among others," Suming said.


    "Did youe up with these thoughts all on your own?" Mr. Song looked at Suming with an even stranger expression.


    Suming''s insights possessed a certain wisdom of the workce. It would seem reasonableing from a workce veteran who had been around for decades, buting from a twenty-something like Suming, who had just graduated from school, Mr. Song found it quite unexpected.


    Even Mr. Song himself hadn''t thought so deeply before; he merely felt that Suming truly deserved the honor.


    Suming chuckled, "There''s knowledge to be found in everything, isn''t there? Just like that old saying goes, no matter what you do, you need to think it through."


    Suming was well aware that, despite his ''friends of the animals'' abilities, he still lived in the secr world. To have afortable life, he must manage his rtionships with those around him and the secr world well.


    A coward doesn''t be a true warrior just by gaining a golden finger; at best, they be a bully. A loser who can''t even be amon person won''t achieve true ultimate sess simply because they''re a ''friend of animals''.


    Maybe one day, when the ''friend of animals'' powers grow strong enough, Suming could ignore all mundane concerns, but that time wasn''t now.


    Besides, the mundane world, with all its splendor, held countless wonders!


    "Your considerations aren''t without merit. Let''s leave the ''Employee of the Month'' for the second half of the year vacant for now."


    Mr. Song nodded, "But I want to tell you something. A couple days ago, our district was asking for nominations for model workers, and our zoo nominated you!"


    "Model worker of the district?"


    "Of course, it''s not decided yet. There are so many units in the district, and in the end, only ten spots for model workers. It might not necessarily be you," Mr. Song said.


    Suming pondered for a moment. Being nominated as an honorarybor model was rather inconsequential, a distinction separate from the zoo''s own glory, and it did not conflict with the honors of other staff members. Even if there were a conflict, it would be with Mr. Song, who obviously wouldn''t mind.


    ...


    It was the middle of the night again.


    Spending every night by thekeside, Suming felt like he was about to develop night vision. Everything around was pitch-ck, yet he could see quite clearly, not missing any rustling of the grass within a dozen meters.


    "De Fu, will I be like you, with eyes that glow at night?" Suming asked the wolfhound brother lying beside him.


    Wang Cai and De Fu sat squatting on the grass, lifting their heads with an innocent and bewildered look, their four little eyes shining brightly.


    The wind blew, and arge patch of dark clouds drifted from afar, obscuring what was already a dim moonlight.


    Tonight was without light!


    "What a perfect night for thieving!" Suming stretchednguidly, dispersing his spiritual power into theke.


    At the bottom of the artificialke, the mud roiled violently, and crabs and lobsters, eels and loaches emerged from dark corners, either twisting their bodies or waving theirrge pincers, gathering into dozens of small squads.


    Among them, some that had been in contact with spiritual power several times, being slightly superior in strength and intelligence to their peers, naturally became squad leaders. Suming channeled all his spiritual power into these squad leaders, who thenmanded their own teams.


    Rows of shrimp soldiers and crab generals, like an army, entered the passageway in session, burrowing into the tunnel leading to Huating Reservoir on the opposite side.


    Soon, these uninvited guests passed through the tunnel, emerging one after another from the exit on the Huating Reservoir side, lining up and stopping beneath the exit in the water, quietly waiting for something, like a series of solemn military formations!


    The alligator turtles were too big to squeeze through the tunnel; leading the rear this day was a bighead catfish. It emerged from the exit, wriggled a few times, then swam to the very front of the formation.


    "Let''s get to work!" Suming snapped his fingers, issuing the order to the bighead.


    The bighead flicked its tail, swimming forward, and the entire team moved as well, following the bighead''s lead, towards the distant fish nurserys.


    Half an hourter, the gigantic fishing surrounding the fish nursery had been torn open at the bottom by fiverge holes, big enough for a person to pass through. Pairs of shrimp soldiers and crab generals charged through these holes into the!


    Suming''s fish and shrimp, following the ''rehearsals'' of the past few days, lined up in columns, like a giant whirlpool, simultaneously enclosing an area of water about an acre in size, then continuously shrinking the space, herding the enclosed nursery fish towards the center.


    The arrival of these unwee guests immediately caused intense panic among the nursery fish; the entire body of water boiled over, and consequently, the surface rippled, asionally bursting with sprays of water.


    Baldy and a few others were ying cards inside the shack when they heard noises outside. Grabbing shlights and clubs, they rushed out.

 Chapter 57: 57: Escorting the Fry

    People who linger in the shadows are often night owls. Past one in the morning, the lights in the fish shed on the shore were still on. The ground inside the shed was littered with beer bottles tossed every which way, and there were a few leftover dishes on the table. The bald man and a few thugs were bare-chested, ying a game of Fight the Landlord.


    "What''s that noise?"


    The sound of water from theke reached the fish shed, and the bald man dropped his cards onto the table and turned to peer out the window.


    "Must be the wind, what else could it be in the middle of the night? Dude, y your card!" another thug said nonchntly.


    The bald man looked out the window for a moment; outside was pitch ck, no sign of anyone around. He kicked a guy who was dozing off and said, "Erzi, go check out what''s going on!"


    The one called ''Erzi'' muttered a few words, reluctantly got up, grabbed a shlight and a steel pipe, and walked out of the fish shed.


    "Keep ying cards!"


    The bald man and the others continued their game. Before long, Erzi came back, flopped onto a bed, and yawned widely.


    "I sent you to check things out, howe you''re back so soon?" The bald man kicked him again.


    Erzi replied with annoyance, "Nothing, bro, just the fry jumping around! Probably going to rain, the air''s stuffy andcks oxygen."


    ...


    Below theke surface, the shrimp soldiers and crab generals had already herded all the fry within an acre together, and then, like escorting prisoners, pushed the school of fry towards the outside of the fishing, in the direction of the underwater passage.


    Fish have a natural tendency to follow the crowd, instinctively swimming together, especially the smaller ones, because they have little ability to protect themselves. Swimming alone makes them easy prey for other strong aquatic creatures, but sticking with the group is much safer.


    Leading at the front was a bighead carp, followed by thousands of fry forming a long queue, quite a spectacle.


    Initially, the procession was orderly, but soon after leaving the fis and not swimming far, chaos ensued!


    Due to therge number of fry and the varied species among them¡ªthis group alone contained seven or eight different species¡ªsome, out of fright or other reasons, veered off the nned route and scattered in all directions.


    The shrimp soldiers and crab generals roamed around the perimeter of the school of fish, and when they came across any fry straying from the group, they would rush forward and herd them back onto the intended path.


    Of course, there were formidable ones among the school of fry; some fish were even the natural predators of shrimp and crabs!


    A small ckfish, weighing about half a pound, flipped its tail and charged at a pair of shrimp soldiers and crab generals with its mouth wide open!


    Unlike the timid and mild-mannered crucian carps, this omnivore, which preferred meat, even had a row of fine teeth lining its mouth, making it one of the more ferocious kinds among freshwater fish.


    The ckfish opened its mouth wide and sucked in forcefully, creating a powerful current!


    A small crayfish, the closest to it, flicked its tail, trying to escape, but the immense suction pulled it right to the ckfish''s mouth!


    The ckfish didn''t have to struggle; it simply mped its mouth shut, effortlessly biting the small crayfish in half, and gulped down its sulent tail with a satisfied swallow!


    The ckfish, content, wobbled its head and turned towards its next target. The area was teeming with little shrimps and crabs¡ªits favorite food; it could have a feast without any effort!


    From the standpoint of the food chain, the ckfish was a natural enemy of the shrimp soldiers and crab generals, and its presence should have sent the little crabs and crayfish scattering in terror!


    But it immediately realized something was off!


    After the sacrifice of one crayfishpanion, rather than fleeing, the remaining shrimp soldiers and crab generals didn''t scatter; instead, they closed in on it from all directions!


    The ckfish felt a slight pain behind it, as a small crab, barely a fraction of its size, with tworge pincers viciously mped onto its tail!


    Such a minor injury was nothing to the ckfish, who forcefully flicked its tail, instantly flinging the small crab away.


    It turned around, ready to punish the audacious crab, but before it could charge, several other areas on its body simultaneously erupted in intolerable pain¡ªmore crabs and lobsters hadtched onto it!


    A small crab, barelyrger than a coin, even deviously climbed onto its gills, a tiny yet extremely sharp w mercilessly jabbing towards the ckfish''s eyeball!


    Scared out of its wits, the ckfish couldn''t care less about punishing the previous crab and was solely focused on shaking off these detestable little creatures, desperately twisting its body in the water, trying to use the current and its own thrashing to rid itself of the shrimps and crabs clinging onto it.


    The water churned in a wild brawl, with crabs and lobsters repeatedly being tossed away, but immediately after, even more fearless shrimp soldiers and crab generals charged at the ckfish!


    Soon, the ckfish was coated in ayer of ''armor'', as dozens of crabs and lobsters of varying sizes clung onto it like bone-eating maggots, covering its entire body¡­


    ¡­


    This scene was everywhere.


    Of course, this aggressive character within the school of fish fry wasn''t the only one; the ckfish, green fish, and even the grass carp were not easy to provoke. Fish fry continuously attempted to break away from the main group or to prey on the nearby shrimp soldiers and crab generals.


    As natural predators, these fierce fish fry had individualbat strengths far surpassing that of the crabs and lobsters!


    However, after undergoing Suming''s training, the crabs and lobsters were no longer disorganized militia but had be an orderly, fearless ''army''. After paying a small price, they easily suppressed the fierce fish fry that dared to create trouble.


    One after another, confident fish fry dashed out from the ranks only to return shortly thereafter, covered in wounds, back to the main group, obediently following along through the underwater passage to Shuijun Lake.


    Suming sat in an assault boat, waiting on the surface above the passage. Whenever a fish fry entered, he would simply use his spiritual power to ''brainwash'' them unreasonably, thoroughly subduing the fish fry.


    His spiritual power, if not needed for control but solely for conquest, had no trouble at all with the almost brainless, small fish fry¡ªit was an easy and straightforward task to wash their brains.


    With countless fish fry, his spiritual power quickly bottomed out. Suming picked up the beehive on the boat, scooped a clump of honey, and stuffed it into his mouth before taking a big gulp.


    In no time, the entire school of fish from a whole acre of water in the Huating Reservoir had been herded into Shuijun Lake, bing wholly Suming''s ''private property''.


    The shrimp soldiers and crab generals regrouped, returned to the Huating Reservoir, and once again cordoned off an area of water about an acre in size, following the same method to herd the fish fry into Shuijun Lake like sheep.


    It took an entire night, but finally, Shuijun Lake was saturated with fish fry, including not only the four main household fish and ckfish mentioned by Zhu Chenggui but also a considerable number of carp and upturned-mouth fish.


    Suming''s spiritual power drained again and again, then refilled swiftly. With the aid of the great blue honey, he was practically a perpetual motion machine, his spiritual power never running dry!


    Suming estimated that just this batch of fish fry had saved him at least four to five hundred thousand yuan, and that was assuming a smooth transaction without being swindled.


    But for the Fishery Company, the loss was much more than four to five hundred thousand yuan!


    On one hand, though the shrimp soldiers and crab generals were very diligent, many fish fry still escaped during the transfer!


    The worst part was that severalrge holes had been made in the fishings, and within a few days, the remaining fish fry in thes would mostly escape through these holes.


    "Zhou, you''ve had it hard!"


    Suming sincerely sped his hands and bowed in the direction of the Fishery Company Vi, then shamelesslymanded the shrimp soldiers and crab generals to take arge amount of snails and aquatic nts used by the Fishery Company for nurturing fish fry and slyly moved them to Shuijun Lake.

 Chapter 58: Chapter 58: The Problem with Feed

    Now they had fish fry, and they were all top-quality specimens. Their fish farming venture could finally take the first step.


    What came next was the problem of feed.


    Early the next morning, Suming went online to research "mixed sea fish."


    Zhu Chenggui had mentioned that the key to polyculturey with the snakehead fish; they needed to be fed mixed sea fish regrly to produce oily, nutrient-rich "snakehead poop," which would serve as high-energy food for the other species.


    The so-called mixed sea fish weren''t a single species but rather a collective term for many kinds of sea fish. These fish were either very small or simply did not grow big, and their taste was not as good as other sea fish. However, they were abundant: fishermen could haul up a lot with a single cast of theirs. Due to their lowmercial value, they were usually sold by the ton, processed into feed, as a byproduct of fishing.


    There were plenty of mixed sea fish for sale online: fresh, frozen, and even processed ones.


    But the prices made Suming frown.


    The cheapest were 1,200 yuan per ton, with better ones ranging between 1,500 and 2,000.


    And with shipping fees, it was even more expensive!


    The snakehead was a voracious eater by nature; the more they ate, the faster they grew while also undertaking the important mission of "pooping." They not only had to poop but to poop a lot, and of good quality and quantity...


    That meant they needed arge amount of mixed sea fish to feed them.


    Considering the density of snakehead cultivation in Shuijun Lake, it was estimated that from the start of the farm to when the fish go to market, at least a few hundred tons of mixed sea fish would be required. Adding in the small amount of other feed needed, just the cost of feed would be over 500,000 to 600,000 yuan.


    It wasn''t that Suming couldn''t afford this amount; there was still more than half of the money left from selling Monkey Wine¡ªover a million yuan. However, in business, it''s always wise to have a way out. Since the future sales volume of this batch of fish was still uncertain, it would be somewhat risky to hastily invest most of the money.


    But to ensure the quality of the fish, mixed sea fish had to be bought. Suming ced an order online for ten tons of mixed sea fish and a small amount of various feeds, transferring 20,000 yuan through Alipay. The seller promised delivery within two weeks.


    After shutting down theputer, Suming''s eyes darted around. He needed to think of a way to recover the feed costs from somewhere else.


    While Suming was pondering over the cost of feed, over at Huating Reservoir, a bald man took his crew out on theke in boats and began pouring bags of premium fish feed, which they had brought with them, into the waters of Huating Lake.


    Large amounts of feed were scattered on the water surface, creating ripples as they slowly sank. However, there was no frenzy of fish vying for the food¡ªonly a few sporadic little fish popped up here and there, making the vast surface of theke seem sparsely popted.


    "Why aren''t the fish biting?" the bald man asked in surprise.


    Zhou Jin sat beside him, looked up at the weather, and said, "New fish are always like this, they get scared. It takes a few days for them to start feeding. The weather has been a bit stifling these days, so it''s normal they aren''t biting. You guys keep a close watch, and make sure no one steals the fry!"


    The bald man patted his chest firmly, "You can rest easy, Mr. Zhou. If the fish aren''t biting, that''s out of my hands, but if someone dares to steal the fry under my watch, you hold me ountable!"


    Zhou Jin nodded in satisfaction. Looking at the bandage on the bald man''s head, he patted the bald man''s shoulder, "I trust you to handle things. Work hard, and when this busy period is over, I''ll pull out a few tens of thousands of yuan for you to get some payback!" Find your next favorite at m vl-em|p-yr


    "Thank you, Mr. Zhou!"


    Zhou Jin snorted coldly, "You''ve been with me for more than a day or two, so of course, I have to take care of things when you get into trouble! Besides, that Suming kid still wants topete with us for business. If we don''t teach him a lesson, soon everyone will have the courage to go against us!"


    ...


    In the following two days, everything was calm and quiet. The fry at Shuijun Lake had just arrived and weren''t eating yet, so there was no need for Suming to worry.


    The boat tours were also doing well, with over twenty boats operational for eight hours each day, enjoying an upancy rate of nearly seventy to eighty percent. With Mr. Peng, Zhou, and Li managing everything, Suming could rest easy, only having to send over a cat to act as a mascot at scheduled times.


    Suming slightly reduced the price of the boat tours, with the average cost of different types of boats being about thirty yuan per hour. Based on the volume of customers in the past few days and the expected increase during holidays, the boat tour business could bring in an ie of around one hundred and fifty thousand yuan per month. If managed well, it could exceed two hundred thousand yuan.


    After deducting various expenses, Suming and Wang Hao could easily fifty thousand yuan each month, which was a fairly stable ie, neither too big nor too small.


    The so-called "neither too big nor too small" was, of course, from Suming''s perspective. He now had a seven-figure sum on his bank card, so a few tens of thousands of yuan didn''t mean much to him.


    But for Wang Hao, fifty thousand yuan a month was a huge sum. As a civil servant of his level, his monthly ie was only a few thousand. Even if he dared to risk his head for corruption, he might not be able to embezzle that much in a month.


    Wang Hao was a bit anxious these days, somehow not feeling quite right. He was on the verge of bing a minor financial tycoon, with a Range Rover and long-leggeddies seeming within reach, yet he dared not show the ecstasy in his heart, especially not to his father.


    To have fifty to sixty thousand yuan rolling in each month without any effort... it was something he feared might shock his father if mentioned.


    Anyone would be a little overwhelmed by such a situation. Everyone hopes for a windfall from heaven, but if one were actually hit by a nugget of gold while walking down the street, they''d probably be dumbfounded on the spot.


    "Su, how on earth did you pull this off? I can''t wrap my head around it. Just two months after graduation, and I''m looking at an annual ie of nearly a million? I just can''t grasp it, it''s like a dream!" Wang Hao''s voice even trembled over the phone.


    "Then I wish your dreames true!" Sumingughed heartily. This was just the beginning; the boat tour business had only been running for a few days, and even if it continued like this, there was still a distance from an annual ie of a million yuan.


    Moreover, Suming was well aware that the boat tour business had reached about asrge a scale as possible. There wouldn''t be explosive growth in the short term.


    Even with argerke surface and more boats, it would only lead to vacancies.


    Unless his capital increased substantially, allowing the boat tour business to enter another level. For example, taking over the entire boat tour business of West Lake in Hangzhou, or starting a cruise business on a freshwaterke or even the Yangtze River.


    However, such goals were currently far too distant. Without tens of millions in capital and a strong backing, it was virtually impossible.


    Er Gouzi established contact with the bee swarm. Under the leadership of the Queen Bee, the honeybee and ho swarms found a nice new home, almost deep in the mountains, very safe, and surrounded by lush flowers and nts, ideal for making honey.


    The only downside was that the ce was too remote and the path difficult. Suming estimated that a trip there and back would take him several days, so he could only wait until the fish farming waspletely stable before finding some free time to go and have a look.


    During the day, Suming would walk around with De Fu and Wang Cai, feed the animals, and let the wolf-dog brothers get to know the other animals in the zoo to avoid future mishaps.


    Most animals were fairly easy to get along with. The likes of red foxes were naturally afraid of wolf-dogs. The bear family, because of Suming''s influence, was quite enthusiastic towards the wolf-dog brothers, even extending friendly gestures like offering the wolf-dogs watermelons to eat. The tigers, although majestic and proud, did not give the wolf-dog brothers a hard time.


    The only ones that didn''t get along were at Wolf Pen!

 Chapter 59: Chapter 59 The Wolf Cub

    The wolf-dog brothers, each time they encountered the Wolf King, looked as though they were sworn enemies turning green with envy. Despite once being of the same species, they now couldn''t stand the sight of each other, facing off with a ferocious roar through the bars of their cages each time they met.


    The reason for this didn''t need to be spelt out for Suming to guess.


    The Wolf King probably thought, "You bunch of traitors have abandoned the glory of our ancestors to grovel and fawn over humans. How dare you parade in front of me, the shamelessness is utterly unbearable!"


    As for the wolf-dog brothers, "You might be tough, but you''re still trapped in a cage, all bark and no bite, what''s the point of putting on airs!"


    It was the Wolf King''s pregnant wife, who was about to give birth, that actually seemed to have a fairly good attitude towards the two wolf-dogs, making Suming feel somewhat guilty on behalf of the Wolf King.


    "Su, hurry up, the female wolf is giving birth; you need to go there!" Early on Tuesday morning, Mr. Peng hurriedly called Suming out of his waterside pavilion and dragged him towards the Wolf Pen.


    What Mr. Peng hoped for was that when the wolf pups were born with Suming present, they''d firsty eyes on Suming upon entering the world. This natural bonding would make future care and management much easier.


    Mr. Peng meant well, but Suming always felt there was something odd about what he said.


    Why do I have to be there when the female wolf gives birth? I might be Bigmonster, but really, those pups have nothing to do with me!


    That said, when he heard about the wolf giving birth, Suming was actually quite happy.


    Damn it, I''m finally liberated. Never again will I have to put up with that sulky face of the pregnant wolf!


    The one who felt equally liberated was the Wolf King, who had endured his fair share of humiliation during this time.


    Strangely enough, the wolves in the zoo seemed tock some wildness due to their upbringing, which affected their temperament and habits, making them quite different from the wolves in the wild.


    Wolves take great care of their pups and are loyal to their mates, but it''s unheard of for a male wolf to dote on a pregnant female wolf too. The female wolf, during her pregnancy, was extremely irritable, constantly snarling at the Wolf King who, to everyone''s surprise, would just take it all without showing a shred of his supposed kingly domineering presence, looking like a beleaguered little man. Suming found it quite pitiable to watch.


    The pregnancy period of the female wolves in the zoo also differed from that in the wild; wild wolves usually give birth in the spring.


    During spring, life rejuvenates, and after a hungry winter, most animalsck peak strength and are preupied with finding food, which lowers their alertness. This makes it easier for the female wolf to hunt, enabling her to produce ample milk to nourish her litter.


    The wolves in the zoo, however, didn''t have to worry about food. While they didn''t necessarily feast, they were at least well-fed, which even altered their birthing schedule, sometimes leading to births in summer or autumn.


    Even weirder, while a female wolf in the wild normally has at least three or four pups in a litter, the zoo''s female wolf only gave birth to a single pup, leaving everyone quite baffled.


    Among nine dogs and one Tibetan mastiff, that sole one is always the fiercest. It''s uncertain whether this one and only wolf pup will grow up to be the strongest wolf.


    Regardless, the fact that the birth had finally happened was good news for everyone.


    Due to the hot weather and the pregnant female wolf, the zoo spared no expense in installing a ss chamber and air conditioning in the Wolf Pen.


    Looking through the clear ss, the Wolf King sat quietly inside his cage, asionally ncing around warily, while the female wolfy in her den, continuously licking arge chunk resembling a centa with her protruding tongue.


    It wasn''t intent on consuming the centa but rather on licking off the blood scent from it, to keep away other carnivores, avoiding a threat to the newborn cubs. Even though some habits have changed for wolves in captivity, the majority of their instinct still remains deep in their bones.


    By the mother wolf''s side, therey a little grey, downy-furred wolf cub with ck bristles, relentlessly burrowing into its mother''s embrace.


    Mr. Songy propped up against the rail at the edge of the Wolf Pen, leaning forward with squinted eyes as he watched the mother wolf and her cub for a while before saying, "The Wolf King and his mate are both old now, and the mother wolf is two years older than the Wolf King, so I''m guessing she doesn''t have much milk. Mr. Peng,e with me, we need to take the cub out for bottle-feeding."


    The lifespan of prairie wolves is normally 12-16 years, and the Wolf King couple were already ten years old when they came to the zoo. Having lived here for another two years, by human standards, they are elderly, especially the mother wolf, who is in her twilight years, thus her milk is understandably scarce.


    Stay tuned for more on m-vl-em,pyr


    "Let me do it!" Suming quickly dissuaded Mr. Song and Mr. Peng.


    Wolves normally have very strong aggressive instincts, and the mother wolf, being protective of her cub, was especially tense and sensitive at this time, making it extremely dangerous to approach the cub. Although there are protective measures in ce in the zoo, it''s not one hundred percent safe.


    If someone else went, even if their own safety could be ensured, it could easily startle the recently delivered mother wolf. If this caused a postpartum depression or some other problem, it would be bad.


    Mr. Song looked at Suming, nodded, then signaled Mr. Peng to give the bottle to Suming and patted Suming''s shoulder, "Be safe!"


    Carrying the bottle, Suming circled behind the Wolf Pen and opened the iron gate, slipping through the keepers'' corridor.


    Simr to the interior of Xiongshan, the keepers'' corridor at the back of the Wolf Pen was separated from the pen itself by an iron fence. The mother wolfy not far from the fence, and Suming crouched by it, close enough to touch the cubs with an outstretched hand.


    Hearing the footsteps approaching, the mother wolf, lying down at first, suddenly jumped up as if electrified, her wolfish howl erupting from her neck. She used her body to shield her cub, baring her fangs and emitting a low growl.


    "Easy!" Suming released a wave of spiritual power, shaking the bottle at the mother wolf.


    The mother wolf smelled the familiar scent on Suming and let down her guard, lying back down beside her cub.


    Now closer, Suming could see the cubs more clearly: the little wolf cub was just slightlyrger than a palm, with a thin grey film still covering its eyes, which were blue, watery, and the pupils were already visible as dark spots.


    Seeing a strangere in, the little fellow, which had been energetically burrowing into his mother''s embrace, suddenly stiffened his tail and limbs, tilted his body sideways, and with a little thud, fell to the ground, eyes tightly shut, his body going rigid and motionless.


    It looked as though the little wolf cub had been frightened by Suming to the point of a heart attack, dropping dead on the spot.


    "Such an over-the-top performance!" Suming almostughed; the little cub didn''t recognize him and was ying dead.


    So, releasing a faint spiritual power, Suming probed towards the little cub.


    Newborn wolf cubs are naturally sensitive to spiritual power; upon contact with it, they immediately sensed that the ''big guy'' in front of them held no malice. Instead, they felt an attachment.


    Only then did the little cub let down its guard, slowly opening its eyes, curiously looking at Suming before shaking its head and struggling to rise.


    It reached out with its tiny paws to wave about in the air, as if trying to catch that ''spiritual power,'' but came up empty, lost its bnce, and tumbled again.

 Chapter 60: Chapter 60: The Busty Mom

    The little wolf that had just been born didn''t have much strength, its legs were weak and wobbly, making walking very difficult. Falling over a few times would only benefit its growth without any harm.


    Suming bent down to check the mother wolf''s chest and sure enough, it was dry and shriveled, with hardly any milk.


    It made sense, considering the mother wolf''s age. In human terms, she would be at least sixty years old. For her to still be able to give birth was a miracle in itself, so of course, there was no chance she could have much milk.


    "Who would have thought that I, the grand bigmonster, would one day find myself ying the role of a wet nurse!" Suming chuckled as he unscrewed the milk bottle and passed the nipple through the bars.


    But he wasn''t offering it to the cub, but to the mother wolf first.


    The mother wolf sniffed the scent from the nipple, then somewhat puzzledly stuck out her tongue and licked it.


    With a little squeeze from Suming, several streams of milky white fluid squirted from the nipple into the mother wolf''s mouth.


    A few drops of milk trailed down the mother wolf''s fur, and the little wolf, smelling it, immediately pushed forward, extending its barbed little tongue and furiously licking the milk off the mother wolf''s fur, making a very strange noise.


    "It''s for the little wolf to drink!" Suming said with a smile.


    The mother wolf swiped her front leg, pushing the approaching cub to the side, then bent her head down, licking the milky drops from her fur. Once she had ensured safety, she felt at ease and picked up the cub by the mouth, cing it in front of Suming.


    Seeing the nipple approach, the cub let out a ''whine'' and clumsily charged at the nipple, grasping it in its mouth and sucking vigorously.


    A stream of bubbles emerged from the bottle with a gurgling sound, and a fair amount of milk dribbled from the corners of the little wolf''s mouth.


    Outside the Wolf Pen, Mr. Song and Mr. Peng, who had been anxiously watching since Suming entered, finally breathed a sigh of relief. Mr. Peng chuckled, "Su really has a knack for this job. It seems there''s no animal out there that he can''t handle."


    Mr. Song also nodded, adding, "Alright, let''s leave the wolf to Su. We shouldn''t crowd around here, lest we scare it and spoil the situation."


    Seeing the people outside the Wolf Pen leave, Suming found feeding through the cage too bothersome. He sent a calming wave of spiritual power to the mother wolf, and seeing that she had no objections, he simply opened the small door between the keeper and the Wolf Pen, and crawled inside.


    Upon Suming''s arrival, the Wolf King and a few other wolves nced his way, but otherwise remained still, showing no signs of objection, and certainly no aggression.


    The mother wolf stood up, stretching out in a long, dog-like yawn, then yawned again before settling down, watching Suming feed the little wolf.


    Suming sat down against the bars, casually scooping the little wolf into hisp. With one arm securing it, he fed it from the bottle held in his other hand.


    At first nce, the little wolf cub didn''t seem very different from a puppy, but on closer contact, the differences were significant.


    Puppy cubs, when they''re born, have very smooth and sleek fur, giving off an immediately adorable impression; however, the wolf cub was entirely different. It was fundamentally still a wild creature. Although it was covered in fine, soft, ash grey down, sporadically there were longer, harder, and darker wolf hairs poking through the down. With the fur varied in length and uneven, it emitted a wild aura. Holding it felt somewhat prickly, and there was a faint wolf musk about it¡ªnot unpleasant, but definitely exuding a wild scent.


    The cub''s head was dark and shiny, and its eyes couldn''t even fully open, only half-lidded. Yet it had already grown fine, sharp fangs. The fangs protruded out from the sides of the nipple, baring outside its lips, and it looked quite fierce while drinking milkpared to a little puppy cub.


    Watching the wolf cub suck on the pacifier with its little sharp teeth, Suming subconsciously touched his own chest, feeling a sudden chill over his nipples.


    A few minutester, Suming felt the cub''s belly, which was somewhat swollen. He then picked the little guy up by the scruff of its neck and set him down. Read now on m_vl_em_p_yr


    The wolf cub was not willing to leave. With its bloated stomach, it couldn''t stand up, so ity beside Suming, rolling onto its back, belly up, swinging its little paws toward Suming.


    Suming, seeing how small it was, extended a finger and gently pressed on the little one''s belly. The cub made afortable ''woo woo'' sound, and with its two front paws, hugged Suming''s finger and tried to bring it to its mouth.


    Suming felt a ticklish and tingling sensation on his fingertip, along with a little bit of pain, and promptly pulled his finger out of the wolf cub''s mouth.


    The wolf cub was still young, with not much strength, and its teeth hadn''t fully grown in. Biting Suming was more yful than harmful, so it didn''t cause Suming any real injury.


    "You dare bite me!" Suming said with augh, flicking the wolf cub''s head with his finger. The little wolf whined and rolled over, then wriggled back up and clumsily moved closer to Suming again.


    After ying with the little wolf for a while, it finally began to feel sleepy. Suming picked it up and returned it to the wolf den, cing it under the mother wolf. The pup nestled against her belly and soon fell asleep, emitting very soft snoring sounds.


    The mother wolf quietly watched over them, her eyes half-open, while the Wolf King and a few other wolves guarded outside, creating a serene and peaceful environment.


    The red foxdy living next doory on the ss window, peeking over with round eyes opened wide, curiously watching the newborn wolf cub.


    "How tragic, a single dog... oh no, a single fox!" Suming grinned and teased the red fox.


    The red fox gave him a frosty look, stared at Suming for a while, then turned away haughtily, shaking her fluffy tail and swaggered back into the small woods, leaving behind a solitary silhouette.


    After the mother wolf gave birth, the zoo simply reassigned Suming''s duties, allowing him to put aside other work and temporarily be a dedicated nanny.


    Although there was less variety in his work, the workload had increased.


    If it were someone else, just calming the mother wolf and the extremely energetic cub would consume a lot of time, but Suming didn''t have this problem. Taking half an hour twice a day to feed milk, his work for the day was generally done.


    It was not clear whether it was due to the nutrition of the milk prepared by the zoo or Suming''s affinity with animals, but in just a few days, the wolf cub had grown significantly stronger and more lively. No longer the shaky little thing from the beginning, it could now run around wildly in the Wolf Pen.


    Shuijun Lake was also brimming with life. Boaters suddenly discovered that thiske, which used to be lifeless, seemed to have unexpectedly be home to many varieties of fish.


    The newly introduced fish had finally adapted to the environment after a few days and would asionally pop up to the surface, even performing tricks like the carp leaping over the dragon''s gate, attracting quite a number of tourists who would bring bread and steamed buns to feed the fish.


    If it were just bread and steamed buns, that would be one thing¡ªthough it would not really benefit the fish, it wouldn''t harm them either.


    But a few dayster, Suming noticed something was amiss!

 Chapter 61: Chapter 61 Fish Feed

    Dogs are naturally swimmers, and ever since Suming had thrown De Fu and Wang Cai into the water once, they hadpletely fallen in love with Shuijun Lake. They spent most of their time soaking in theke, no longer caring to frolic with the cats.


    Suming even specially ordered a set of small life jackets for them, so now they could cool off in the water and asionally y the role of lifeguards.


    That morning, Wang Cai brought back a stic snack bag from the water and barked at a few tourists rowing on theke. That''s when Suming learned that some uncivilized tourists not only fed the fish but also threw trash into theke.


    If fish ate the stic bags, they would certainly be doomed. Even if the fish didn''t eat them, such items were hard to dpose naturally. They would umte on thekebed, and over time, they would be difficult to clean up, causing significant water pollution.


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    Suming immediately had Li take a motorboat around theke, and fortunately, the wolf-dog brothers had discovered the pollutants in time. There weren''t many stic bags and the like in theke, but even so, they retrieved more than a dozen.


    Having no choice, he erected signs stating "No Swimming, No Feeding the Fish" around Shuijun Lake at intervals. He then had the wolf-dog brothers patrol the area, asking Zhou, Mr. Peng, and the others to keep an eye out and remind the tourists not to litter.


    The stic bag incident served as a wake-up call for Suming. Shuijun Lake was an open waterbody, and it was impossible to prevent outsiders from getting close. With the steady flow of people, it was inevitable that some would throw things into the water; simply reminding the visitors was not enough.


    He sent Er Gouzi back to the mountain and had him bring back fiverge blue beehives filled with honey.


    With these tonic supplements, Sumingvishly used his spiritual power tomunicate with all aquatic life in theke, entrusting them with some important tasks, such as not sneaking back to the reservoir through the channel and not eating the trash dropped by visitors.


    You can''t me the tourists entirely for littering; it''s not always right to escte it to a matter of ''quality'' or ''morality''. The zoo itself did not have many trash bins, and there were even fewer near Shuijun Lake. Often, you had to walk several hundred meters to find one, so sometimes tourists just threw garbage into theke for convenience.


    Therefore, Suming dug into his own pocket and spent over ten thousand yuan on several dozen simple trash bins, which he ced in a row along Shuijun Lake.


    After taking care of these matters, the ten tons of Mixed Sea Fish and half a ton of ordinary feed ordered by Suming finally arrived.


    Zhu Chenggui had saidst time that to ensure the freshness and quality of the fish, they should reduce feeding them other fish food. Feeding less did not mean not feeding at all. The half ton of ordinary feed Suming bought was not intended to be the main diet for the fish. It was primarily to bnce their nutrition and also had some water purification and antibacterial effects. It was a practical type of concentrated feed that people usually mix into the fish''s diet.


    Wang Cai and De Fu, who were about to go swimming to cool off, could smell the fishy scent from the truck from far away and barked furiously at it.


    The Mixed Sea Fish had already been preliminarily processed into minced chunks and were frozen. As soon as the truck''s door opened, an intense fishy smell wafted out, causing Suming to stagger several steps back.


    "Take it to the warehouse!" Suming quickly pulled down the rear shutter of the truck with a snap, covering his nose as he sat down in the passenger seat and said to the driver.


    If so much Mixed Sea Fish were stored near Whisperwind Pavilion, nobody could live there anymore. The stench could kill a person. At that rate, they might as well convert it into a fly farm.


    The zoo had arge warehouse with pools, a cold storage unit, and even a small ughterhouse¡ªeverything was all-inclusive. Normally, it was mainly used to store food for the animals, but because the zoo was under financial stress, a good half of the warehouse was left vacant, which was quite a waste.


    The space was unused anyway, so when Mr. Song heard that Suming was truly nning to raise fish, he straightforwardly approached Suming with a proposition to rent a portion of the warehouse to him. Suming could store the fish feed and other rted items there, and in the future, if there were fish for sale, they could also be stored in the warehouse. The condition was that it must not encroach upon the space for the zoo''s various goods.


    Suming agreed without hesitation. After all, the warehouse was huge, and even with the addition of feed and such, it would hardly be filled to capacity, so there would be no issue of taking up space needed for the zoo''s goods.


    The crux of the matter was that the rent was dirt cheap!


    The zoo employees Mr. Lin and Lin, an uncle and nephew pair who managed the warehouse, earned just over two thousand yuan a month. The rent Suming paid for the warehouse, aside from the utilities which he covered himself, was to provide each of them with a stipend of fifteen hundred yuan a month.


    By this calction, for such an expansive and well-equipped warehouse, the yearly rent was just over thirty thousand yuan, and he had two experienced hands in Mr. Lin and Lin to help look after it¡ªsuch a deal was impossible to find elsewhere.


    Since the warehouse was the property of the zoo, with just a word from Mr. Song, Suming benefited from this great deal. It proved how crucial it was to maintain good rtions with the boss!


    The zoo was just as much a beneficiary. Although the majority of the warehouse was vacant, it couldn''t be rented out to anyone outside the organization. The warehouse housed food for the animals, and any ident would have led to big trouble and disputes. Besides, outsidersing and going wasn''t convenient. Renting to Suming negated these concerns.


    At first nce, the zoo didn''t earn any money from this, but Mr. Lin and Lin, the uncle and nephew, did benefit.


    The uncle and nephew''s wages were among the lowest in the entire zoo, even less than what Suming earned when he first joined. With the current cost of living, a little over two thousand yuan a month was simply poverty level. The Lin duoined to Mr. Song every now and then, begging for a raise. Yet, since wages for each position were fixed, Mr. Song couldn''t simply increase them on a whim. If he raised their pay, what about everyone else?


    By renting, Suming essentially solved Mr. Song''s headache and effectively appeased the staff''s sentiments.


    It might not seem like much, an extra thousand or two, but for someone used to receiving a fixed few thousand yuan per month, this sudden increase was truly significant and made a real difference. If it hadn''t been for Suming''s intervention, they would have had to wait at least seven or eight years for their sry to rise by that amount through seniority alone.


    And this was for technical staff. For someone like the Lin family''s uncle and nephew, it was unlikely their wages would increase by that much even by the time they retired.


    First, there was Mr. Peng, Zhou, and Li, and now Mr. Lin and Lin, the uncle and nephew, who had seen their ies greatly increase due to their association with Suming. Consequently, the enthusiasm of all the zoo staff was significantly boosted, and everyone felt hopeful.


    So, when they saw Suming arrive, Mr. Lin was even warmer than when he saw Mr. Song. With Li in tow, they bustled about, enthusiastically moving all the feed into the warehouse.


    "Mr. Su, take a seat; we''ve got the moving covered." Lin made a cup of tea for Suming and then came over with a grin, asking eagerly, "Mr. Su, by the way, do you need extra hands for feeding the fish?"


    Feeding the fish? When Suming heard these words and nced at the mountain of feed, a brilliant idea seemed to strike him.

 Chapter 62: Chapter 62 Nurse Hu

    Feeding fish certainly required manpower; with over a hundred acres ofke surface, and fish fry worth hundreds of thousands, they needed to eat every day. Even with automatic fish feeders, someone needed to regrly add feed and operate the machines.


    But Suming was unwilling to hire additional staff just for the sake of feeding fish.


    After all, contracting Shuijun Lake was about doing business to make money, not charity. In a mutually beneficial situation, he was willing to contribute to the zoo, and didn''t mind sacrificing a little profit.


    However, Mixed Sea Fish was not cheap, and in order to raise healthy fish, it was necessary to purchase them, which in itself was a considerable investment. With theke''s fish yet to yield profits, hiring several people specifically to feed the fish would simply be too costly.


    Suming had been pondering this issue for a while. Various fish could grow by eating Hei''s feces; Hei ate Mixed Sea Fish, saving the cost of other feeds. But Hei itself was quite a big eater¡ªa big Hei weighing several pounds needed nearly a pound of food a day.


    With this calction, the cost of buying Mixed Sea Fish for one fishing season seemed rather frightening.


    Mixed culture methods weren''t exclusive to Suming''s practice; most fish farmers used them, each with their own techniques. If not for learning the trick of using Hei feces from Zhu Chenggui, Suming wouldn''t have had much technical advantage in simply culturing the four major fish families.


    So, Mixed Sea Fish was a necessity to purchase and feed.


    Generally speaking, fish farming wasn''t an excessively profitable industry; just the input of fry and feed alone took up arge portion of costs. Not to mention the factors of natural disasters, human misfortunes, and market fluctuations. With bad luck, a fish farmer could work hard all year only to not make a profit, but actually lose money.


    Companies like Huating Fisheries Company were, after all, the minority, upying reservoirs with excellent water quality, essentially free from natural disasters, with powerful backing, and unfazed by human misfortunes and market fluctuations¡ªessentially making a sure profit.


    Hearing Lin mention this issue, and recalling the previous trash incident in Shuijun Lake, Suming suddenly thought of a possible solution, though he wasn''t sure whether it would work.


    He bought several pounds of lychees and, carrying them, proceeded to Mrs. Tong''s office.


    Mrs. Tong was ying online "Landlord" when she heard the knock. Without looking up, she called out "Come in."


    "Ah, it''s Su¡­"


    Upon seeing Suming enter, Mrs. Tong quickly yed out her four twos, sessfully finished her game, then clicked the ''exit game'' button, stood up, and weed Suming in. Seeing the lychees he was carrying, Mrs. Tongughed and said, "You didn''t have to be so polite, justing in was enough."


    "Heh, it''s nothing special," Suming chuckled, cing the lychees on the table and sitting down. He asked, "Mrs. Tong, you mentioned your niecest time, Nurse Hu from our Zoo Health Clinic, how busy is shetely?"


    Mrs. Tong was noticeably startled: "Ah? Hu... Hu... You, want to find her?"


    The zoo had a small health clinic with one doctor and three nurses, mainly serving various animals¡ªin other words, a veterinary clinic.


    However, it also served ''humans''. Medicine for regr illnesses was not avable, but for the asional cold or fever, getting medicine from the clinic was much cheaper than at a regr hospital, which was a minor perk the zoo offered to its internal staff.


    The zoo had its fair share of job cements through connections, and Nurse Hu was from Mrs. Tong''s hometown, making her technically a distant rtive who should call Mrs. Tong "Auntie" by theplex familial terms.


    Mrs. Tong was a warm-hearted person. When Suming first contracted theke pavilion''s boating business and Mrs. Tong found out Suming was single, she tried to set him up with Nurse Hu. However, Suming had no such intentions, and every time Mrs. Tong brought it up, he would casually dismiss it.


    Later, within a single month, Suming made over three million from an auction and significantly expanded his business. Mrs. Tong stopped bringing up the match-making.


    The reason was simple: before, Suming, who came from the mountains and was rtively poor and a temporary worker, was at most a match for Hu, perhaps even reaching too high. But now, things werepletely reversed. Suming had transformed into a young and wealthy boss, quite handsome too, and there seemed to be something going on between him and a beautiful TV reporter. He obviously wouldn''t give a second look to her niece.


    So, hearing Suming bring up Nurse Hu himself, Mrs. Tong was exceedingly surprised, wondering if Su actually preferred the kind of robust, capable girl who could manage a household and raise children well?


    "My elder sister, that''s not what I meant!" Suming hastily exined to Mrs. Tong, and only then did she understand.


    She made a phone call to the health clinic, and before long, Nurse Hu arrived.


    Nurse Hu had a tall figure, standing close to 1.7 meters, which definitely made her stand out among other girls. However, proportionate to her height was her waist, which was as thick as a bucket. Her loose nurse uniform on her looked like a tight outfit, hugging her tightly and highlighting the rolls of fat on her stomach that resembled Michelin tires. She also sported a healthy, rosyplexion on her face.


    Anyone who saw Nurse Hu for the first time would agree with Mrs. Tong''s opinion: she was a rugged and hearty girl, one who could manage a household and bear children well.


    "Yo, Mr. Su is here too!" As soon as Nurse Hu entered, she called out loudly and greeted Suming, even looking like she wanted to p him on the shoulder.


    "Hey hey hello, have a seat..." Suming quickly shuffled backward. His frail body certainly couldn''t handle her p; if she actually pped him, he would copse on the spot, and that would be a huge loss of face.


    Mrs. Tong shot Nurse Hu a stern look: "Don''t be so informal, sit down. Su has something good to ask you about!"


    "Ah? What good thing? Tell me, Mr. Su, I''m all ears!" Nurse Hu plopped down on the chair carelessly, grabbed a lychee, peeled it, and tossed it into her mouth.


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    "It''s like this, your health clinic doesn''t have much going on usually, right? I happen to have a little business on my side but short on manpower..."


    ...


    That very afternoon, Nurse Hu, along with two other nurses, walked toward Shuijun Lake, each carrying severalrge buckets.


    The other two nurses, slender and frail, each carried a small bucket and seemed to struggle, holding them with both hands as they slowly made their way to theke. Nurse Hu, on the other hand, was decisive. She found a carrying pole, hooked arge bucket on each end, and set off with the vigor of a fierce wind!


    "Here theye!" Mr. Peng had already been notified by Suming and greeted Nurse Hu and her colleagues with a beaming smile as they arrived.


    "We''re here! Don''t mind us, carry on with your work!"


    Nurse Hu called back with her loud voice. Then leading the other two nurses, they carried the buckets to thekeshore near the boat dock, picked up arge wooden sign that was covering the buckets, and shoved it fiercely into the ground. Then, casually picking up half a brick from the ground, she banged the top of the sign several times with it, driving the sign deep into the soil.


    The sign had two lines of big characters.


    The first line read: Fish feed for sale, 5 yuan per bag!


    The second line read: Bottle feeding fish, 10 yuan per bottle!


    After setting up the sign, she untied three small folding stools from the carrying pole, sat on one herself, and said to the other two nurses, "Sit down."


    "Sister Hu, do you think anyone will buy it?" One of the nurses asked timidly while looking around, a bit embarrassed.


    "You are acting like thieves, no wonder no one is buying! When selling things, how can you not shout about it? Watch me!"


    Nurse Hu rolled up her sleeves and, like a magician, pulled out a megaphone. She then started to shout into it:


    "Selling fish feed here, fragrant and sweet fish feed! Buy a bag of fish feed, feed the fish while rowing the boat. It''s an exercise and allows you to watch the fish, killing two birds with one stone, folks!"

 Chapter 63 Spending Your Money to Feed My Fish

    Nurse Hu''s shout was so loud that the other two nurses turned bright red with embarrassment, and the younger nurse gave Hu a punch, "Goodness, why are you shouting so loud? It''s so embarrassing¡­"


    "You two are just too delicate. How can you sell anything without calling out? Learn from me!"


    Nurse Hu gave them a stern look and continued, unabashed, to shout into the megaphone:


    "Selling fish feed! Fragrant and sweet fish feed here! Five bucks a bag, it''s not a loss, it''s not a cheat, buy a bag of fish feed, get a day''s good mood¡­"


    The boat dock already had some people preparing to row and others strolling by theke; her calls instantly attracted a lot of attention.


    People love a spectacle, and with three nurses in uniforms sitting in a row by theke, many tourists couldn''t resist crowding around out of curiosity.


    "Didn''t they say not to feed the fish?" someone asked.


    Nurse Hu said nonchntly, "That''s for not feeding them at random. What have you all been feeding them? stic bags, junk food, the fish would all die from that! Our feed is genuine Mixed Sea Fish, mixed with quality feed. The fish grow big and strong from it, how can it be the same?"


    The tourists weren''t foolish, and someone quickly caught on,ughing, "That''s clever, so your zoo is having us feed the fish and we have to pay for it!"


    "Give and take, right? Everyone''s here to have a good time. A few bucks won''t break the bank, that''s the idea, isn''t it?" Nurse Hu said.


    She was right: for Suming, feeding the fish was a job, not entertainment; for the tourists, it was the exact opposite. Throwing feed into the water, attracting a swarm of fish scrambling for food, was entertainment, not work.


    Everyone had their own agenda. With different starting points, the calctions differed. For the tourists, spending a few bucks for some fun was only natural.


    This approach wasn''t original to Suming, as many agritourism sites already offered ''pick your own'' or even ''nt your own'' experiences. Customers do the picking and nting themselves, effectively sparing the farmers the trouble, and still paying them for it¡ªit''s the same principle, paying money for happiness.


    On the outskirts of Yangchuan City, there was a famous strawberry farm. Every year, when strawberries were in abundance, many visitors would flock there to pick strawberries and experience the joy of ''hands-on''bor. The growers saved on the costs of picking, transport, and packaging, yet the strawberries sold for a higher price than those on the market, boosting the local farmers'' economy and giving city folk a chance to get close to nature¡ªa win-win.


    Nurse Hu was eloquent, and in no time, she had sold nearly half a bucket of fish feed.


    Those who bought fish feed went on the boats and sprinkled it generously over theke. They hadn''t expected much fish activity, but to their surprise, as soon as the feed hit the water, it boiled with activity as countless fish jostled and surfaced to vie for food.


    The fingerlings had been deliberately starved by Suming for several days, so they naturally gorged themselves when they encountered food.


    For a while, theke surface was erupting with schools of fish andrge sshes. The scene was quite spectacr; Shuijun Lake seemed to have e alive'' all at once.


    The feed mostly consisted of broken pieces of Mixed Sea Fish which domestic fish wouldn''t eat; these would sink to the bottom to be consumed by ck fish, while the four domestic species mainly feasted on the small amount of pellet-shaped quality feed mixed in.


    "Tell me, youngdy, what''s the deal with feeding fish with this ''baby bottle''?" an olddy with her grandson asked, looking puzzled at Nurse Hu''s sign.


    Nurse Hu pulled out a baby bottle from the bucket, which was actually just an empty mineral water bottle, but fitted with a rubber nipple. The bottle was full of quality feed and finely chopped Mixed Sea Fish.


    The nipple was cut with a fewrge slits, and there was a small bamboo pole tied to the back, about a meter in length.


    "You see, just like this!"


    Nurse Hu took a bamboo pole to the riverbank, extended a bottle full of feed to the water surface, where the feed leaked from the cut nipple and fell into the water, enticing the fish below to surface, swarm towards the bottle, each with their round mouths, jostling to suck the feed from the nipple.


    Smack, smack, the little fish vied with each other, rushing to nibble on the nipple, looking like a group of kids sucking on milk.


    Since the majority of the feed in the bottle were Mixed Sea Fish, mixed with only a small amount of premium feed, those domestic fish had to suck hard to pull the tiny pieces of Mixed Sea Fish out of the nipple.


    In this way, the fragments of Mixed Sea Fish would also sink to the bottom, to be eaten by the snakeheads.


    "Granny, granny, I want to y, I want to y..." The little grandson pped his hands with joy, tugging at the aunt''s sleeve and acting coy.


    "Alright, alright, dear, how much is it for one go?" the aunt asked.


    Nurse Hu handed over a bottle and said, "Ten yuan per bottle, with no time limit!"


    A bag of mixed feed cost five yuan, and the bottle contained roughly the amount of one bag, yet the price was doubled. As for time, it was irrelevant ¨C a bottle of feed, at most less than a kilogram, would be eaten up by the fish in no time.


    With the first person paying up, others followed suit. Those whoe to the zoo were either young people or parents with children, as well as quite a few couples. Nurse Hu had prepared over twenty bottles, and in less than an hour, all were sold out.


    A row of older and younger kids squatted by theke shore, extending the bamboo poles with bottles into the water to attract the fish, creating a scene of merriment.


    ...


    Suming stood at the top of Whisperwind Pavilion, taking in the view of Shuijun Lake and the majority of the zoo, and when he saw Nurse Hu energetically hawking below, he couldn''t help butugh. He really hadn''t picked the wrong person; Nurse Hu''s personality was just perfect for this line of work. She sold the feed better than he had anticipated ¨C not only did she hawk loudly, but she even came up with the clever idea of using the bottles.


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    He had made an agreement with the three nurses from the clinic that when they were off duty, they would take turnsing here to sell fish feed by the boating area, using the money from selling feed to cover the shortfall of buying feed.


    Even if he bought the best Mixed Sea Fish and premium feed, including the cost of shipping, it would only amount to two thousand yuan per ton, averaging out to one yuan per jin (half a kilogram).


    He would then wholesale the feed to Nurse Hu and the others at four yuan per jin, allowing them to take the goods first and payter, settling ounts once a week. It was nearly impossible for them to lose money, and any profit they made was theirs to keep.


    In this calction, as long as he could sell 25% of the feed, he would be able to recover his capitalpletely, achieving a break-even point, which meant he would be raising fish essentially for free.


    Suming was shrewd. A profit of one yuan per jin wasn''t much, but it couldn''t be ignored considering therge total volume. If they sold a certain amount, Nurse Hu and the others must set aside a portion of the profit to be reinvested in the clinic to buymon medications, which would be distributed for free to sick employees at the zoo.


    That way, if the feed sales increased significantly in the future, everyone in the zoo would get a share of the benefits, reducing the likelihood of jealousy.


    Of course, talking about big profits was still too premature at this point.


    Suming observed for a while, noting that there were indeed many visitors buying feed to feed the fish. The threerge buckets of feed brought by Nurse Hu and the others were sold out in less than two hours.


    He suddenly realized that, including the free fish seedlings, if everything went smoothly, once the hundred acres of fish grew to adulthood, it was practically all clear profit!


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 Chapter 64: Chapter 64 The shameless dog

    By 4:30 in the afternoon, the zoo was still open, but Nurse Hu had sold all the animal feed she brought. She took her gear and went back to the clinic to settle the ounts, sending Nurse Liao and little Nurse Liao to find Suming to arrange for tomorrow''s ''goods,'' nning to order another two hundred pounds.


    Suming was a bit surprised, considering they only started selling the feed in the afternoon. In reality, they only worked for a mere two hours and sold a hundred and thirty pounds of feed, earning over two hundred dors. Moreover, today was the first day they set up shop. As word spread, the number of customers seeking animal feed would only increase.


    ording to that calction, for an eight-hour day, they should at least n for four or five hundred pounds for tomorrow to make sense.


    After asking around, he found out that the three of them had to do shifts at the clinic and couldn''t spend the whole day by theke, so they could onlymit three or four hours each day to this venture.


    Suming nodded his head, realizing that selling animal feed could be a viable path, but relying solely on these three nurses was not enough.


    "Why are you two so stressed? With such an introverted personality, it''s not a big deal if you''re not cut out for business. But how will you manage dating and marriage in the future?" After discussing the important matters, Suming chatted idly andughed.


    Nurses Liao, who were cousins, came straight to the zoo after earning their associate degree and had been working there for just half a year, always inside the clinic without much interaction with people, animals aside. They had rather introverted personalities. Sitting in the back of the Wrangler following Suming to the warehouse to pick up goods, both of them kept their heads down all the way. If Suming asked them a question, they would just reply and not dare to say anything extra, looking all nervous.


    The little liveliness that Nurses Liao had mustered up with great difficulty vanished instantly upon hearing Suming mention dating and marriage. They buried their heads into their chests, their ears turning beet red.


    Suming shook his head helplessly, knowing the sisters were famously reticent. They would blush at the drop of a hat when speaking with male colleagues, to the point where the zoo''s young men felt awkward about going to the clinic, fearing they might be assumed to be up to no good.


    Luckily, the wolfhound brothers were also in the car. While Nurses Liao might not be good with people, they were quite affectionate with animals. Each of them held a big dog in their arms, checking tongues and scratching itches, making the wolfhound brothers sofortable that their tails wouldn''t stop wagging.


    "You turncoats... Are you brothers nning to marry the pair of sisters?" Suming sent a scornful message with his spiritual power.


    All of a sudden, little Nurse Liao let out an "Aiya" from the back seat, rming Suming into thinking she got bitten by a dog. He immediately hit the brakes and turned to look.


    The bashful sisters had their heads hanging even lower, their faces flushed a cooked crab''s shade of red. They huddled together like two quails, shivering and about ready to cry, not daring to look at Suming.


    The wolfhound brothers were eagerly rubbing against the sisters and sticking out their long tongues, trying to lick their faces!


    Upon closer inspection, even Suming''s face turned red!


    After being fondled by the sisters, the wolfhound brothers shamelessly became aroused, poking around their waists with... that thing.


    The awkwardness Suming felt at that sight was indescribable; he seriously wanted to dig a big hole, bury these two shameful hooligans first, then bury himself!


    "Get down, you shameless rascals!"


    This time, without using his spiritual power, Suming pped them with two smacks, causing the wolfhound brothers to howl in protest as they scrambled down from the back of the Wrangler.


    Completely oblivious to the concept of shame, the brothers stood on their hind legs at the door after getting out of the car, with their tails wagging they stuck out their tongues at the nurses, disying an exceedingly lewd expression, as though the words "perverted wolfs" were engraved on their faces.


    "Go on, get lost!" Suming kicked the elerator and restarted the Wrangler.


    After thatmotion, the atmosphere in the car grew even more awkward. The nurses sat silently, blushing and keeping their heads down, and Suming didn''t know what to say, so he pretended to enjoy the scenery while driving.


    Fortunately, the warehouse wasn''t too far and they arrived shortly. Suming called on Mr. Lin and little Lin from the warehouse to open the door, and they weighed out two hundred pounds of feed from the cold storage.


    "Thank you, Mr. Su..." little Nurse Liao finally managed to force out the words, looking as if it was the hardest thing she''d ever done.


    Afterwards, silence ensued. The wolfhound brothers were off mixing somewhere for half the day and only returned to Shuijun Lake around 8:30 in the evening.


    When ites down to it, mating is a natural instinct for animals, and humans too get impulsive¡ªit''s just that humans know how to control it, or to put it another way, humans know how to pretend.


    Education is still necessary, Suming said seriously, "Love doesn''t distinguish age, gender, or nationality, but it does distinguish species. No matter how cute you two act, the nurse sisters won''t let you climb onto their beds or get fresh with them. You''re barking up the wrong tree, purely wasting your energy and feelings¡­"


    The wolf-dog brothers didn''t seem to understand and sat side by side with nk expressions, looking at Suming.


    A few catsy in their nests, looking at the wolf-dog brothers with scorn. Your journey continues on m-vle-mpyr


    Speaking of which, the wolf-dog brothers were also unlucky. They used to live by the Huating Reservoir, where they asionally encountered a few stray dogs to settle their personal issues. Now living in the zoo, although their living conditions have drastically improved, they''ve had topletely give up on that aspect of their lives.


    The zoo had all sorts of animals, except for dogs, and no matter how bold the wolf-dog brothers were, they didn''t dare target tigresses, lionesses, female crocodiles, or female bears. Even if they had the guts, they didn''t have the ability.


    "How about I get you two neutered? That would save all the fuss," Suming scratched his head, tentatively asking.


    Perhaps understanding him this time, the wolf-dog brothers let out a pitiful howl, their tails curled between their legs, mping their hind legs tightly together as they shook their heads frantically.


    "Why so dramatic, it was just a suggestion... No sense of humor at all..."


    ...


    A week passed by quickly, and on the weekend, Nurse Hu came to settle the feed ounts with Suming.


    It wasn''t even a full week, just over four days, with each of the three taking turns spending two hours a day selling the feed, almost one thousand pounds of mixed feed were sold.


    Nurse Hu might not be much to look at, but she was really thoughtful. ording to her observation, the reason for the good sales of the feed was partly because the fish in Shuijun Lake were abundant; every time a handful of feed was thrown in, it would draw many fishpeting for it, creating a quite spectacr scene!


    Moreover, there were a rich variety of fish, unlike ordinary parks with only koi. People get aesthetic fatigue; if they can only see one kind of fish, they lose interest over time. The fish Suming brought from Huating Reservoir mainly included the ''Four Major Families'' of fish, along with seven or eight other species, even some that weren''t economically valuable but notmonly seen.


    "Goodness, this money is too easy to make!" Nurse Hu pped a stack of bills in her hand, making a snapping sound.


    The total amount of money wasn''t huge; over half a week, the profit for the team of three nurses was just over thirteen hundred, averaging out to just over four hundred for each nurse, close to two thousand per month.


    Just like the actual situation for all zoo staff, the nurses didn''t have much to do, their sry wasn''t high, and they didn''t have many opportunities for extra ie. An additional two thousand a month was purely a no-cost business, free money.


    After settling ounts with Nurse Hu, it was already past ten in the evening, and Suming went to Shuijun Lake alone to check out the fruits of the week''s work.


    The feed was basically pollution-free. The Mixed Sea Fish was almostpletely eaten by the snakehead fish, and the shrimps and crabs in the water also benefitted.


    At the bottom of theke, the mud showed signs of snakehead fish moving around, and asionally dark clumps would emerge from the mud, resemblingrge clumps of water grass slowly drifting up to the surface.


    Of course, it wasn''t water grass but snakehead fish poop.


    Without waiting for the snakehead fish poop to fully disperse in the water, various domestic fish, drawn by the smell, would converge from the surroundings and open their mouths to vigorously suck in the floating snakehead fish poop¡­


    With an overabundance of snakehead fish, if you stood beneath the surface of the water at that moment, thekebed would seem like an active ''volcano'', with poop erupting from various ces, and immediately afterward, swarms of fish would rush over to consume it.


    Suming scratched his head, unsure if this scene should be described as spectacr or creepy¡­


    In fact, although snakehead fish poop is excrement, it isn''t as dirty as one might imagine. After a round of purification through the digestive tract of snakehead fish, things in the feed that might not have been very hygienic and could cause pollution, or bacteria, would be broken down and absorbed, neutralized. Therefore, snakehead fish poop was definitely much cleaner and more nutritious than most of the things wild fish ate.


    In summary, in just a short week, the ecological chain of Shuijun Lake was basically established. If you observed carefully, you could see that the sizes of various fish fry had grown a bit.

 Chapter 65: Chapter 65 Joy for Some, Sorrow for Others

    Suming purposely used his spiritual power to catch a few crucian carps and found that the fishes'' growth rate had somewhat exceeded expectations, or rather, exceeded the normal speed ofmon sense.


    Among the four major domestic fish, the crucian carp grows the slowest; artificial breeding sees crucian carps going to market at just over half a pound, and one pound is considered big.


    If it''s a purely wild crucian carp, one pound is rather rare.


    Shuijun Lake is now connected to Huating Reservoir, and the water quality of both is simr. Although it is considered artificial breeding, the quality of the fish is not much different from that of the wild ones, which is one of the reasons why the fish from Huating Reservoir sell so well.


    In just one week, these crucian carp fry, which were originally only around two taels, now averaged about two and a half taels each.


    Fish tend to grow faster when they are young and slower as they get bigger. For instance, if a two-tael young crucian carp is well-fed, rested, and taken care of, it might grow one tael of flesh in a month, but a one-pound crucian carp might not grow an additional tael in half a year.


    Even so, the growth rate of the fish in Shuijun Lake is somewhat rming.


    If this pace continues, in at most half a year, the crucian carp will generally weigh over half a pound each, and various principal fish species will also reach the standard for sale and dining.


    Suming had a few reasons in mind.


    First, the ck fish feces is indeed a wonder for feeding fish; good food leads to good growth. Second, the water quality of Shuijun Lake has significantly improved, and a variety of fish, along with shrimp soldiers, crab generals, loaches, and eels, have formed a good ecological system, which means a better living environment.


    Besides, the contribution of the animal friend couldn''t be overlooked. The alligator turtles, bees, cats, and dogs, all of which had interacted with the animal friend, underwent some positive evolution. The fishes in Shuijun Lake had all been blessed by Suming''s spiritual power, which naturally made them different from ordinary fish.


    Speaking of ''evolution'', in recent times, the fastest to evolve in theke had to be the bighead catfish.


    Its size was now close to one and a half feet, which, while notrge for a catfish, was a colossal sizepared to its original size of less than half a foot.


    Compared to other fish, the bighead catfish not only had better food and living conditions but also possessed an advantage that no other fish could match: it had followed Suming the longest. As a result, both in terms of favor and intelligence, it was the highest in theke, naturally bing the manager of theke.


    Under the nourishment of power, the big meaty catfish grew even more stout.


    Suming squatted by theke, extended a finger, tapped the bighead catfish''s ser-ball-sized head, andughed, "Be careful not to get caught and turned into a fish head hotpot!"


    The bighead catfish seemed quite unconcerned; in Shuijun Lake, it could summon arge group of underlings at any time. As long as Suming didn''t fancy a fish head hotpot, it was absolutely safe.


    After checking on the growth situation of the fish in Shuijun Lake, Suming decided that he needed to further increase the feeding volume.


    Since the nurses only had limited time, managing only half a day during workdays and selling two tons of feed a month at most, this amount of feed was not enough for one hundred acres of fish.


    Since the zoo had plenty of manpower, Suming simply got Mr. Peng, Zhou, and Li to join the feed selling team. The three of them would take shifts, plus the three nurses on rotation, ensuring that visitors could always buy feed during the zoo''s opening hours, without any gaps.


    After trialling this method for another week, Suming was stunned to discover that he not only earned back the money spent on the feed but also made a profit!


    For every pound of feed, he could make a profit of over forty cents. Even if the fish grew biggerter on and the feed from the visitors was not enough, he could use the profits to hire someone specifically for feeding the fish.


    After calcting the ounts, Suming felt great and picked up a baby bottle, squatting by theke and feeding the fish together with a bunch of kids.


    Watching the innocent smiles on the children''s faces, Suming felt somewhat guilty and thought, Am I being too mercenary?


    ```


    Whether hearts are ck or red isn''t important, what''s important is, whether it''s the fish in Shuijun Lake, the zoo workers, or the visitors, everyone is overjoyed!


    But in fact, is there such a thing as a win-win solution in this world that doesn''t let down the Buddha or one''s beloved? If someone is happy, then surely someone is unhappy!


    The boss of Huating Fisheries Company, Mr. Zhou, has been very unhappytely!


    About a week ago, Zhou Jin started feeling that something was off!


    For several days in a row, when it was time to feed, barely any fish surfaced, and at first, Zhou Jin thought it was due to the weather¡ªperhaps the fish weren''t biting, so he didn''t worry too much about it.


    But a few dayster, despite the weather improving, the situation remained the same; he would dump several boatloads of feed into theke, but there would still be little activity.


    Zhou Jin had been fishing for more than a year or two, and he had an incredible amount of experience in this field. He immediately sensed that there was a problem! Even a neglected, wild pond wouldn''t be this lifeless.


    It''s just like with people: when someone feels down, at most they eat less, but they don''t just stop eating altogether.


    If one stops eating entirely, that''s not simply feeling down, that''s suicide!


    Of course, fish wouldn''tmit suicide!


    He thought perhaps it was some fish disease that had caused a mass loss of appetite, so he hastily sent a bald-headed man with a team to catch some fish to inspect.


    To their astonishment, after casting severals, they only managed to haul up a few small fish and shrimp!


    Zhou Jin stared at the empty fishings, his heart skipped a beat, a chill running up his spine, and he hurriedly jumped onto a trawler, personally steering the boat around theke.


    The trawler wasrge with plenty of horsepower, and the trailing was sturdy too, but it was all for nothing. In the end, the oue was no different from before; it was as if all the fish beneath the water''s surface had vanished overnight!


    "Dammit! How many times did I tell you to watch the fish, watch the fish! You tell me, where are the fish!"


    As Zhou Jin looked at the empty fishing, veins bulging on his forehead, he kicked the bald-headed man over, grabbed him by the cor, and asked with a twisted expression and a stern voice.


    The bald-headed man''s eyes widened. He stammered, "Mr. Zhou... we have been living by theke... patrolling every day, it''s impossible for anyone to steal the fish..."


    "Then you tell me, where are the fish! Did they grow wings and fly away?!"


    "Could it be those water birds..." Hearing the word "wings," a lightbulb went off for the bald-headed man, who cleverly nced towards the bushes on the shore.


    He had been guarding this ce for some time, and although he spent most of his time sleeping and ying card games, hardly diligent, the idea that someone could steal all the fish right under their noses seemed impossible. There were so many fish in theke; losing a few, or even several dozen, would be understandable, but not all of them!


    "Bullshit! Even a thousand times more water birds couldn''t eat that many fish!"


    Zhou Jin pointed frantically at theke surface, "Go, get into the water and find them!"


    The bald-headed man and a few followers put on diving gear and descended into theke. They roamed around the area where the fry were being raised, and finally confirmed a fact that made Zhou Jin''s eggs twitch: indeed, the fry had vanished!


    "Mr. Zhou, there are several big holes under the fishing over there! The fish must have escaped through those holes!"


    ```


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 66: Chapter 66 The Incident Occurred

    "What, the fishings are broken? Impossible!"


    When Zhou Jin heard from the bald man that the fishings were broken, his first reaction was that it was impossible.


    As a professional breeder, he obviously knew how crucial thes for enclosing fish fry were. If even thes were torn, there would be no profits, only losses.


    Having farmed in Huating Lake for many years, he knew theke''s conditions - there could be some shrimp and crabs, and asionally bigger fish woulde to steal food. Therefore, before releasing the fry, he had invested a great deal of money and effort to buy top-quality fishings.


    Although the fishing lines were not thick, their tenacity was extremely strong, interwovenyers uponyers. As soon as fish or shrimp approached thes, they would get entangled and couldn''t escape, eventually getting trapped by the and dying.


    ording to the quality of thes he purchased, not to mention ordinary fish and shrimp, even if a small Yangtze alligator appeared, it wouldn''t possibly break through thes, likely ending up entangled and waiting to die.


    "Mr. Zhou, could I possibly utter lies with my eyes wide open? If you go down and see for yourself, you''ll know!" the bald man said.


    "I''ll go take a look!" Without another word, Zhou Jin put on his diving suit and dived into theke, swimming towards the direction the bald man had pointed out.


    After more than ten minutes, ripples spread across the water''s surface as Zhou Jin emerged, quickly swimming back to shore, striding up the bank, taking off his helmet, revealing a face colder than theke water itself.


    The bald man indeed hadn''t lied. In the water on one side of the, there were five big holes, each about the size of a foot basin. With holes thatrge, not just fry, but even fully grown fish could easily escape.


    Judging from the waterlogged edges around the tears, these holes must have been there for at least seven or eight days. That length of time was enough for all the fry to have escaped!


    Zhou Jin was a sullen person, rarely smiling, but the bald man who had followed him for several years had never seen him looking as terrible as he did then. The bald man, somewhat afraid, swallowed his saliva and mustered the courage to say, "Mr. Zhou..."


    "Shut up!" Fire seemed ready to burst from Zhou Jin''s eyes, yet his tone was frigidly cold, like ice chunks, as he gritted his teeth and asked the bald man word by word, "Don''t you stand guard here all day? Someone made such a big hole in the and you''re telling me you didn''t know?"


    "Could it be the work of a ferocious fish rather than a human? Maybe it''s not man-made?"


    The bald man couldn''tprehend. The was located several tens of meters away from the shore and was in deep waters too. Besides, thes were very sturdy. If it was sabotage, the culprit would have either had to row a boat over thes or wear a diving suit, not to mention having the right tools. It was definitely impossible for this to happen under their watch.


    "If there was only one hole, that could be possible. But five holes, all about the same size and in a row? You''re telling me this is the work of fish? Did the fish be spirits?"


    Furthermore, Zhou Jin had carefully checked around therge holes; there were no remnants of fish scales on the nearbys. If arge fish had broken through, it couldn''t have left no trace at all.


    Besides, if it really was a big fish that had collided with or bitten the, it would have certainly caused a greatmotion. Only humans could have quietly damaged the fishing.


    Hearing Zhou Jin say this, the bald man muttered, "It''s hard to say, those hos the other time..."


    Zhou Jin pped him across the face, causing the bald man to stumble and angrily said, "How dare you bring up that damn ho bullshit to me? How many times have I told you to keep an eye on the fish? I pay you to prevent these issues! Damn it, you''re always going on about hos, and now under your watch, someone has stolen over a million yuan worth of my fry. What do you have to say for yourself?"


    After being pped by Zhou Jin, the bald man''s mind seemed to clear, his eyes lighting up with doubt as he said, "But, Mr. Zhou, I just remembered hearing that the Naval Lake Zoo has started raising fish too."


    "There''s such a thing? Go check it out, what kind of fish the zoo is raising and how many," Zhou Jin said.


    Raising fish in Shuijun Lake was no secret at all; it was easy enough to find out. A thug interjected, "There''s a post on the Yangchuan forum from a tourist who fed the fish at the zoo,plete with pictures. From what I saw in the photos, there are loads of fish, and they are all small. At the time, I even thought, isn''t thispeting with our business? We should teach them a lesson..."


    "Take me to see it!"


    A group of people returned to thekeside vi, went online, opened the forum, and found the post.


    Zhou Jin''s eyes were sharp; he immediately noticed that the fish in the photos were all fingerlings. The young man who had oncee to him asking for advice on fish farming was standing on thekeside with a broad grin, feeding the fish with two wolfhounds at his side.


    "Damn, that''s Hei and Erhei!" The bald man eximed as he pointed at the two wolfhounds.


    Zhou Jin''s face grew stern as he checked the time the post was made, which coincided with shortly after he had stocked his fingerlings.


    All the signs were just too coincidental!


    "Mr. Zhou, it''s definitely that kid Suming who''s messing with us! I''ll take a couple of guys over to deal with him!" The bald man erupted in anger.


    After all, Zhou Jin was an old hand in this game, having seen plenty of the world. After an initial burst of rage, he quickly calmed down and, frowning, considered for a moment, then said, "There are two things to do now: get over there and handle them. First, the fish farm at the reservoir can''t be left idle, order another batch of fingerlings immediately, and if we hurry, we can still catch the season; second, get Suming''s number for me, I''ll give him a call, have a chat."


    "Have a chat?" The bald man paused, then said, "Mr. Zhou, if you ask me, we might as well just call the police. Isn''t the deputy chief of the police station close to you? Lock him up, and it would still be up to you how to deal with himter."


    "What about evidence? With no solid evidence in hand, how can the police arrest someone from the zoo?"


    Zhou Jin hummed darkly, "Stealing my fish won''t be so cheap. I''ll have a good talk with him, make him spit out what he owes! If he doesn''t see sense, I naturally have other ways."


    The bald man, along with a few men, angrily made their way to the Naval Lake Zoo that same afternoon.


    This group was all buzz cuts with dragons and phoenixes tattooed all over, their faces menacing, as if afraid others wouldn''t realize they were thugs. Simply standing at the entrance of the zoo, they truly frightened many tourists into taking a detour.


    However, intimidating ordinary folks was one thing, but the zoo was a state establishment; to let a few punks scare them would be a joke. Their actions, in fact, alerted the security department of the zoo. Dong, the head of security, led several young guards to block them at the entrance and didn''t let them in.


    Dong, capable of being the head of security, naturally had some solid connections¡ªat least, he was on the same level as Zhou Jin, and he certainly didn''t give any credence to the bald man''s bluster.


    In the end, it was Zhou Jin who made a call and obtained Suming''s mobile number.


    "Mr. Zhou, I''ll speak inly; if you have business, then talk business, but don''t mess around. This young Su is someone our director values," Mr. Dong said calmly into the phone.


    "Don''t worry, Mr. Dong, it''s just a bit of business I want to discuss with him. He raises fish, doesn''t he? We could coborate," Zhou Jin''s voice could not be discerned for any wrongdoing over the phone, as though he truly had a cooperative project to discuss with Suming.

 Chapter 67 Cooperation?

    That afternoon, while Suming was feeding milk to the young wolves in the Wolf Pen, his phone rang.


    The little wolves had grown robustly under Suming''s care, darting around yfully in the Wolf Pen every day. Seeing Suming pull out a ''ck box,'' the little wolves mistook it for a new milk bottle, whimpering as they mbered onto him, their paws reaching for Suming''s phone.


    "Go y on your own."


    With a tap on the little wolf''s forehead, a game Suming often yed with them, the little wolf would stiffen and topple over backward, feigning death just like ying possum.


    From the other end of the phone came the voice of an unfamiliar middle-aged man, who introduced himself and mentioned the fish theft at Huating Reservoir.


    "Mr. Zhou, I don''t understand what you''re getting at. Your fish fry have gone missing, but what''s that got to do with me?"


    "Whether it concerns you or not, you and I both know very well," Zhou Jin said.


    Since Suming was the perpetrator, he had anticipated that Zhou Jin would eventually suspect him. The fact that he was farming fish in Shuijun Lake was no secret and couldn''t be hidden. Receiving Zhou Jin''s call, he wasn''t surprised and responded indifferently, "If I remember correctly, you once said something, and now I''ll return the favor in kind, ''You raise yours, I raise mine; we are unrted to each other.''"


    No evidence, just inner certainty¡ªworthless. If a certainty could convict someone, what would be the need forws?


    So, without any evidence, Suming wasn''t worried at all that Zhou Jin could do anything to him.


    The underwater passages were very well hidden and located a considerable distance from the fish enclosure. Discovering those few entrances was virtually impossible. Furthermore, Suming had arranged for regr patrols around the passages, shrimps and crabs acting as his guards. Even if Zhou Jin stumbled upon them by sheer luck, Suming could seal off the passages at any time, leaving no evidence behind.


    Suming adamantly denied any involvement, and Zhou Jin wasn''t surprised either, having expected Suming to deny it. He chuckled coldly, "Young man, do you think you can just hide in the zoo every day without any evidence and I''ll have no way to touch you? I advise you to be clear about one thing; don''t think you arepletely safe just because the animal farm has got your back."


    "Mr. Zhou, are you threatening me?" Suming grinned.


    "Threatening? No, no, I''m aw-abiding businessman; how could I threaten you?"


    Both parties were not fools. In this day and age, recording devices were all toomon. Both were wary of each other, careful not to leave any leverage over the phone. Zhou Jin chuckled and said, "I have a proposal for cooperation. If you agree, it would be beneficial for both of us. As for the fish fry, I can let bygones be bygones. A loss of around a million is bearable for me. Who knows, we might even be friends in the future."


    Cooperation? Suming pondered briefly. What could there possibly be to cooperate on between him and Zhou Jin, and to mutual benefit at that?


    After thinking it over, he caught Zhou Jin''s drift and asked, "Are you suggesting that once the fish grow bigger, I should sell them directly to you?"


    "Smart man! No wonder those bald-headed guys lost to you," Zhou Jin admitted.


    Hearing Zhou Jin put it that way, Suming''s mind raced. In fact, this wasn''t entirely uneptable.


    Firstly, there was no deep hatred between him and Zhou Jin¡ªit was just business, and if he could make money from it, it wouldn''t necessarily be a bad deal. Secondly, being new to the breeding industry, he didn''t have established channels for selling his fish. If Zhou Jin would take them off his hands, even at a lower price it would do, especially since he hadn''t spent a dime on the fish fry or feed.


    "What''s the price?" Suming asked.


    "20% of the market price," Zhou Jin stated.


    Suming''s expression darkened slightly, "Mr. Zhou, is this how you make friends?"


    Offering 20% of the market price was as if Suming had worked hard only to benefit Zhou Jin in the end, even at a loss to himself.


    Zhou Jin, however, had calcted a great deal for himself. If he could buy at that price, it would be even more cost-effective than raising the fish himself.


    Zhou Jin chuckled coldly on the other end of the line, "Don''t forget, I''ve lost a lot more fish fry than you have in yourke. If you don''t agree, I assure you, you won''t make a single cent in the end."


    "Then there''s no need to talk further." Suming hung up the phone.


    On the other end, Zhou Jin''s phone emitted a series of beeps.


    The bald man by his side had been carefully observing Zhou Jin''s expressions and guessed much of the situation, saying, "Mr. Zhou, since that kid doesn''t appreciate what''s good for him, he can''t me us. I can take a few guys to climb the fence at midnight, slip some poison into hiske, and guarantee all his fish will be dead in less than three days."


    This was an old tactic of Zhou Jin''s crew. In the past when there were some scattered breeders near the reservoir, Zhou Jin would never beat or scold them, but he would secretly send the bald man to poison their ponds, killing all the fish. Most small-scale breeders couldn''t withstand such a loss, which would immediately end their business.


    Over the years, with this method, Zhou Jin had swallowed up all the breeders around Huating Reservoir, creating a monopoly with Huating Fisheries Company.


    But Zhou Jin shook his head, "No, in the end, Shuijun Lake is part of the zoo''s property, and poisoning is a serious crime; the police would certainly investigate thoroughly!"


    "So we just let that kid off the hook?" the bald man protested, "Mr. Zhou, I can wait for him at the zoo''s entrance. I don''t believe he''ll never leave the zoo!"


    "Having been in the breeding business for so many years, of course, I have a way to make him suffer in silence! Come with me upstairs."


    Zhou Jin led the bald man and a few underlings up to the second floor of the vi, entering his bedroom.


    In the center of the spacious bedroom stood a huge aquarium, about four to five meters long, resembling a giant coffin.


    Inside the ss tank, seven or eight long-bodied, eel-like creatures swam slowly.


    Compared to eels, these creatures were muchrger, with the longest nearly reaching a meter in length, as thick as an adult''s arm, covered in diamond-shaped scales like armor, and equipped with long, bird-like beaks.


    At first nce, they looked more like crocodiles without legs!


    Next to therge tank, there was a smaller aquarium with a dozen or so koi swimming back and forth. Zhou Jin scooped a koi more than half a foot long with a small fis and tossed it into therge aquarium.


    As soon as the koi hit the water, one of the creatures darted toward it like an arrow, its long mouth filled with backward-curving fangs, mping down on the koi.


    Before the koi could struggle, the other creatures also rushed over, tearing and shredding it.


    In the blink of an eye, that koi, weighing at least two pounds, was torn to pieces and devoured by the creatures, leaving no trace behind as if it had never existed, except for the faint red blood threads floating in the water, creating a bloody, gruesome scene.

 Chapter 68 : 68: The Crocodile Gar

    As soon as the big koi hit the water, it was immediately torn apart and devoured by several strange fish, while the bald man and a few thugs watched in astonishment, "Holy shit, these fish are fierce, Mr. Zhou, are these piranhas?"


    "These are not piranhas, but they''re worse than piranhas!"


    Zhou Jin grabbed a towel and wiped his hands as he said, "This is the crocodile garpike, one of the fiercest freshwater fish, brought over by a friend from South America. These creatures are like crocodiles but even more vicious. They eat only meat and are poisonous. The biggest ones can grow to five or six meters long. In a pond, if you have one of these, hmph..."


    "Oh, I get it! Mr. Zhou, you mean to secretly release these crocodile garpike into Shuijun Lake to devour all the fry!"


    The bald man gave a big thumbs up: "Brilliant! Mr. Zhou, that''s really smart!"


    "Hmmph, didn''t that kid say we should each raise our own? Fine, I''ll let him raise them. I want to see what he can raise with these creatures around! Not to mention fish, even crabs and loaches will be entirely wiped out!" Zhou Jin said fiercely, throwing down his towel.


    A henchman off to the side wasn''t so sure, "Mr. Zhou, these creatures are fierce, but there''s only a few of them, and thatke of his is over a hundred acres. Even if these crocodile garpike eat their fill, they can''t consume that many fish, can they?"


    "You don''t understand." Zhou Jin sneered with a shake of his head: "There are many fish that eat other fish, even humans, but why is the crocodile garpike notoriously vicious? Because it''s violent in nature, loves to kill indiscriminately. It will bite to death all other fish in its vicinity, whether it can eat them or not. There''s a term for it, called ''overkill''."


    "Besides, we''re not talking about a day or two here. We''ve got all the time in the world. Today a few dozen, tomorrow a few dozen more. By the time that kid notices, there''ll barely be any fish left in theke."


    The bald man was eager to get started: "You can count on me, Mr. Zhou. I''ll climb over the fence tonight and release them into Shuijun Lake."


    ...


    Around ten o''clock at night, Suming was stopped by a patrolling security guard who mentioned that Mr. Dong had been looking for him during the day. With nothing in particr to do, Suming nonchntly made his way to the security office.


    As he entered the gate, he was greeted by a wall disying dozens of TV screens, each showing surveince footage from different areas of the zoo.


    "Mr. Dong, you really upgraded the artillery!" Suming greeted Dong, who was sitting at the monitoring station, with a chuckle.


    Thest time he was in the monitoring room, not even a third of those dozens of TVs had clear images, most of the surveince equipment was broken.


    "It''s all thanks to you. After that incident with the lucky cat, the higher-ups approved some funding. Plus, you donated a hundred thousand, and the zoo finally had the money to beef up security. We overhauled the entire surveince system, installing and recing where needed. The project was justpleted today."


    Mr. Dong said while gesturing for a young security guard to bring a chair over.


    "Mr. Su, please take a seat," the young guard said politely.


    "Thank you," Suming nodded at the guard, then jokingly said to Mr. Dong, "So all our moves are being watched under your ever-watchful eyes now, are they?"


    "You little rascal, can''t you just say what you want to say instead of beating around the bush and cursing me?" Mr. Dongughed heartily and then said, "I get it, it''s about privacy. The old zoo director said there''s no need to monitor where we staff live. It''s mainly the perimeter fence and the animal areas that matter. You''re not nning to bring a girl back to the waterside residence for some fun and are worried I''ll see, are you?"


    "I wish, but unfortunately, no girl is willing." Sumingughed.


    "That''s not true, I hear those three girls at the nurses'' station are always chattering about you behind your back. They might just be interested in you."


    Whenever Suming thought about the nurses'' station, his scalp would tingle. After the wolf-dog incident, it was a bit awkward whenever he encountered those nurse sisters. As for Nurse Hu, she was still as carefree as ever.


    But Suming really didn''t have the courage to bring Hu back to the waterside residence.


    "Let me ask you something. Why have you gotten involved with someone like Zhou Jin?"


    Mr. Dong shifted his gaze from the monitors, nced at Suming with some concern, and asked, "Is there a conflict in business? Zhou Jin is not an easy opponent. If you need help, I can talk to him."


    "His own fish go missing, and he uses me of stealing them," Suming said.


    "What a joke, with several kilometers between Shuijun Lake and Huating Reservoir where his fish farm is, how could they be stolen? Digging tunnels? He''s just used to being a bully. Seeing your fish thriving, he wants to swindle you. It''s not the first time this has happened. Several of our neighbors have been pressured by him to the point where they couldn''t continue and eventually moved away. You don''t need to pay him any mind. If there are any problems, the park will take care of you."


    Mr. Dong''s casualment had almost guessed the truth, and Suming also smiled without saying much.


    After a little more small talk, Suming was ready to leave.


    Before he could step out, a figure suddenly appeared on one of the surveince screens, d in torn, ragged clothes, clumsily climbing over the zoo''s fence and jumping out.


    Immediately afterwards, the wolf-dog brothers appeared in the frame. Although the footage was silent, it was evident they were furiously barking in the direction of the person who had climbed the fence.


    In light of a recent sabotage where Monkey Mountain''s fence was tampered with, Mr. Dong''s heart skipped a beat when he saw the surveince footage. He grabbed the walkie-talkie at once, "Zhao, Zhao, go check the east back wall. Someone just climbed over! They were chased off by Suming''s wolf-dogs!"


    "I''ll have a look too," said Suming.


    By the time the group arrived, the fence climber was long gone, but the wolf-dog brothers were still guarding the base of the fence. With no hope of catching up now, Mr. Dong could only instruct the security guards to be more vignt during their night patrols.


    "I''ll be going then, Mr. Dong, you''re busy," Suming said, seeing there was nothing for him to do. He turned around with the wolf-dogs and headed towards Shuijun Lake.


    Since he was raising fish, Suming naturally had to prevent sabotage or theft. These days, he had the wolf-dog brothers stationed near Shuijun Lake most of the time, especially after today''s threatening call from Zhou Jin. Suming had also specifically dispatched several cats to the area and had instructed the alligator snapping turtles and bighead catfish to strengthen their vignce.


    He even sent Er Gouzi to the back hills to gather a swarm of bees and hos, hiding them in the trees surrounding Shuijun Lake.


    With creatures that fly, run, and swim, all under hismand, Suming had set up aprehensive defense in the air, onnd, and in water. No matter how capable Zhou Jin was, he''d find no way to mess with Shuijun Lake.


    The person who climbed the fence must have visited Shuijun Lake before, to have been chased by the wolf-dog brothers.


    ...


    Under the moonlight, the bald man sprinted down the path along the edge of the reservoir, anxiously ncing back while running, afraid of being pursued.


    After finally reaching Zhou Jin''s vi, the bald man breathed a sigh of relief and yelled at ackey, "Water... water... get me a ss of water..."


    Meanwhile, outside the vi, Er Gouzi, who had been stealthily following, was perched on a tree branch. Hispound eyes coldly watched the bald man enter the vi before buzzing his wings and heading back towards the zoo.


    "How did it go!" Zhou Jin hurried down the stairs.


    After guzzling half a teacup of water, the bald man wiped his mouth and replied hesitantly, "Uh, uh, uh, done!"


    "Did anyone see you, and did anyone chase you?" Zhou Jin pressed.


    "Nope, I was wearing a mask. Looked around the whole time, no tails!"


    "Good."


    Zhou Jin''s eyes suddenly narrowed with suspicion as he scrutinized the bald man''s disheveled appearance, "How did you get into such a state?"


    Upon Zhou Jin''s inquiry, the bald man nearly burst into tears andmented with a miserable face, "Mr. Zhou, I''ve suffered! I nearly lost my life trying to get this done!"

 Chapter 69 : 69: A Hard Life

    Although the bald man was only a thug, on Yangchuan Road, mentioning "Bald Brother" still meant something.


    He might not daremit murder or arson, but when it came to fighting and brawling, he never pulled his punches. By all ounts, one could say that he was tough enough to be categorized as a ruthless man. Even if he got his head split open, tears wouldn''t be expected, yet at this moment, the bald man was crying miserably, like a little wife who had been wronged.


    "Stop beating around the bush, get to the point!" Zhou Jin said, ring at him impatiently and pointing at therge bumps on his head, he asked in surprise, "Hey, did you get stung by wasps again?"


    The underlings nearby immediately thought of thest time the bald man was stung by wasps and had an ident with his dder and bowels; they almost burst intoughter.


    "Laugh my ass off! Let him speak!" Zhou Jinmanded angrily.


    With tears streaming down his face, the bald man began to recount his encounter that evening.


    As darkness fell, he packed seven crocodile eels, each at least half a meter long, into arge snake skin bag and climbed over the wall into the zoo.


    When he stealthily made his way to the edge of Shuijun Lake, the bald man was quite proud of himself.


    This time, not only would he avoid being held responsible for the loss of the fish, but he could also take this opportunity to seriously retaliate against Suming.


    In truth, he had no significant grudge against Suming. Logically speaking, the bald man understood that the wasp sting from before should have been an ident and had nothing to do with Suming.


    But obsession is a dangerous thing. The more the bald man dwelled on the past incident, the more he hated Suming. The more Zhou Jin held him back from personally dealing with Suming, the stronger the bald man''s desire for revenge grew, like a seed taking root and sprouting in his heart, growing everrger.


    Now, with these crocodile eels, all the fish in theke would not survive. That kid was bound to suffer a significant loss.


    Crocodile eels didn''t just eat fish. Theserge crocodile eels could band together and even biting a person to death wouldn''t be a problem. If a visitor were injured, that kid would definitely have to take responsibility.


    By then, not only would Shuijun Lake not be up for lease, but he might even get fired. Temporary workers are, after all, meant to take the fall.


    If Suming was fired, without the protection of the zoo, Suming, being an outsider, would be at the mercy of whatever he, Bald Brother, wanted to do to him, whether it be crush him t or twist him into a pretzel, it would all depend on his word.


    Watching each of the crocodile eels slide into theke from the snake skin bag and quickly vanish in the water, the bald man couldn''t help but get excited. He seemed to foresee the future where Suming would cry and beg for mercy under his steel pipe.


    "I''m going to break your third leg as well... Ow, what the hell is that..."


    Engrossed in the fantasy of his future violent acts, the bald man suddenly felt an intense pain on his head, as if he''d been pricked by a needle, and instinctively pped his bald forehead.


    With a smack, he hit nothing, but the buzzing sound that he remembered all too well reached his ears!


    "Damn it, not this again!" Hearing the sound, the bald man nearly had a heart attack and quickly retreated several steps. He wrapped his head with the wet snake skin bag tightly, leaving only his eyes visible, and looked around cautiously.


    Fortunately, there were only one or two wasps circling him. The bald man waved his arms frantically and finally managed to drive the wasps away.


    Although the wasps were gone, therge bump on his head was incredibly painful. It seemed that the wasp''s venom was particrly potent; in less than half a minute, the bald man felt dizzy and an oppressive sensation in his chest, as if arge stone were pressing down on him.


    He leaned against a tree and retched "urgh, urgh, urgh" a few times, but other than saliva, nothing came out.


    Looking up, he saw a few cats squatting on the grass in a dark corner not far away, staring coldly at him.


    Thekeside was tranquil and serene, the faint moonlight glittering on the surface of the water, creating ripples as smooth as jade. In such a beautiful moment, the bald man involuntarily shuddered inside and uttered a rather bookish phrase,


    "This is not a ce to stay for long!"


    Thinking this, he hastily turned around and fled the way he came. Thankfully, he didn''t encounter any patrolling security guards. His escape went incredibly smoothly. After walking a distance through the pitch-ck woods, he was just about to reach the fence that surrounded the woods.


    Just then, the bald man suddenly felt something was off. From behind him came the sound of rustling footsteps, as if something was following him.


    "Who''s there!" A chill ran down his spine, and he slowly turned to look back.


    Not far behind him, tworge dogs that looked like calves slowly emerged, their eyes pitch ck as they gazed at him oddly, tilting their heads.


    "Eh, Hei and Erhei? It''s you guys!" The bald man recognized the two dogs at a nce¡ªthey were exactly the ones they had raised to guard the fish pond by biting people.


    His eyes twirled, and he thought that Zhou Jin had been quite dissatisfied with him recently, if he could not onlyplete the task smoothly this time but also bring back the two stolen wolfhounds, maybe he could improve the impression Zhou Jin had of him.


    It seemed that these two dogs had been following him all along, but they hadn''t pounced to bite, which meant that Hei and Erhei still recognized him.


    The bald man sneakily looked around, and seeing no one else, he whistled at the two wolfhounds and whispered, "Hei, Erhei, follow me!"


    Upon hearing the whistle, the two wolfhounds cocked their heads, as if they remembered something, and their eyes grew even more bewildered.


    "Come on, Hei... Erhei..."


    The bald man, afraid of incidents happening if they dyed, and of being discovered by patrolling security guards, crouched down and started moving towards the dogs, intending to lead them away. He had barely taken two sneaky steps when suddenly the expressions of the wolfhound brothers changed. They lowered their bodies, their eyes turned fierce, and they slightly bared their teeth, revealing two rows of gleaming fangs, and started to growl lowly.


    "Woo... woof..."


    Wang Cai finally let out its first bark, and the sound immediately carried far away. In the distant woods, two shlight beams appeared; someone had heard the noise and was rushing over!


    The bald man didn''t even think before he turned and ran!


    In his panic, he forgot a basic rule: you should never run when encountering dogs in a narrow path!


    The two wolfhounds were originally feeling somewhat sentimental, but his running away instead infuriated the wolfhound brothers, who chased after him like lightning from behind.


    Howl howl howl... Howl howl howl...


    In the darkness, there was a tangle, and it was unclear whether it was a human or a dog that was yelping.


    Luckily, these two dogs had been trained by Suming, not to bite people to death. They didn''t bite at vital parts and still sort of recognized the bald man, showing ''mercy'', or else the tworge wolfhounds were more than capable of literally biting the bald man to death.


    Even so, in just a few seconds, the fleshier parts of the bald man''s buttocks and thighs were ferociously bitten several times, causing heart-wrenching pain, and arge chunk of his trousers was torn off.


    The shlight beams were getting closer, and the sound of footsteps could be heard clearly. The bald man bit down on his pain, and in this critical moment, he burst out with surprising potential and fought hard to shake off the two wolfhounds'' pursuit. He scrambled up the back wall, running up to the top in a few quick steps and sat straddling it.


    The wall top was covered in shards of broken ss, and as the bald man straddled the wall, he screamed out in agony. The intense pain in his buttocks and the two hands that grasped the wall top were pierced and bleeding profusely, and his whole body was impaled by his own weight.


    Having dozens of ss shards stuck in his behind was an indescribably ''special'' experience. The bald man''s mouth and facial muscles twitched, and any slight movement brought piercing pain.


    "Who''s there!"


    The security guard finally emerged from the woods, shone the shlight toward the wall top. The bald man hurriedly covered his face, and at this point didn''t care about anything else, flinging one leg over the side of the zoo.


    Crack crack... a few faint snaps rang out, and arge number of ss shards on the wall suddenly disappeared, all embedding into the bald man''s buttocks.


    ...


    "Mr. Zhou... I''m literally risking my life for your business... Ow, be gentle..."


    The bald many on the couch, sobbing as he recounted the ordeal, with a henchman using tweezers to remove the ss shards from his buttocks one by one. A few other henchmen couldn''t hold back anymore and burst intoughter, covering their mouths.


    "First, it was hos; could this guy really train hos?" After hearing the bald man''s story, even Zhou Jin was a bit skeptical.


    It wasn''t impossible, as beekeepers could use the nature of bees to simplymand them.


    One of the henchmen held back hisughter with a cough and said, "Mr. Zhou, we should send the bald guy to get some shots first, in case he contracts rabies. That wouldn''t be good."


    Zhou Jin looked at the bald man with a bit of disgust, waved his hand, "You take him to the hospital, and you guys,e with me to guard the fishpond. We cannot afford any problems with this batch of new fish fry!"

 Chapter 70 Encircling the Crocodile Gar Fish

    As the bald man recounted his miserable experiences, a life-and-death battle was unfolding in the waters of Shuijun Lake.


    On the calm surface of the water, waves sshed about as if some monster was struggling beneath.


    Suming was seated in a motorboat, eyes intently fixed on the water''s surface, while two German Shepherds rested their front paws on the edge of the boat, tongues out as they stared at the water, asionally emitting threatening growls.


    Despite their excellent water skills and formidablebat abilities, the dogs were helpless when it came to fighting aquatic creatures!


    The recently introduced ferocious Alligator Gar hadn''t been in theke for long before the big-headed catfish that guarded theke detected their presence!


    Alligator Gars are natural-born killers, and the big-headed catfish stood no chance against them. Thetter wouldn''t dare to engage directly inbat, for approaching would only be tantamount to suicide. In desperation, the big-headed catfish could only lead the nearby fish far away, doing its best to minimize losses.


    By the time Suming arrived, in less than twenty minutes, the seven Alligator Gars had already killed dozens of various fish and shrimps!


    Suming immediately recognized these creatures notorious as "freshwater destroyers" and unleashed a surge of spiritual power upon them.


    The Alligator Gars, being one of the ten most ferocious freshwater fish, surprisingly had a strong resistance to spiritual power. They were irritable and fierce and difficult to tame. Upon contact with spiritual power, they wriggled free from control and struggled to escape.


    With Suming''s current level of spiritual power, he was not totally helpless, but the size of theke was vast and the Alligator Gars were highly cunning. It was not easy to urately pinpoint their location. Even if they could be barely locked on, the Alligator Gars would not submit in a short time.


    Suming quickly guzzled arge mouthful of blue honey, replenishing his spiritual power to the brim, and controlled the school of fish to lure the Alligator Gars towards the center of theke.


    On the way, dozens more juvenile fish, used as bait, were sacrificed!


    "Damn it! Zhou Jin, I swear I''ll make sure you have a failed harvest every year!" Suming gritted his teeth fiercely.


    At that moment, in the waters beneath the boat, appeared a huge whirlpool made up of thousands of various fish species!


    At the very center of the whirlpool were the seven gathering Alligator Gars!


    Layers of juvenile fish, connected head to tail, swam around the Alligator Gars rapidly, like migrating schools of fish in the ocean.


    On the outermostyer were the weakest Crucian Carps, norger than a palm. Being nearly defenseless, they were positioned on the periphery for protection. Their main mission was to drive the whirlpool, ensuring the formation remained intact. Since fish have a schooling instinct, with the Crucian Carps constantly rotating, the whirlpool''s formation would not be disrupted!


    The rtively plump ck Carps formed the backbone of the whirlpool. They were muchrger than the Crucian Carps, and the force of their full-on collisions in the water was formidable, acting like walls to protect the fragile Crucian Carps and other small fish.


    Sleek and fast-swimming Silver Carps darted through the whirlpool like des, causing confusion amongst the Alligator Gars.


    The seven Alligator Gars were like being trapped in a giant iron barrel, the water currents stirred up by the fish whirlpool causing them to sway. However, their ferocity was fully provoked at this moment, as they madly charged at the fish formation, tearing open gaps in the whirlpool each time!


    Fortunately, with theke teeming with fish, each loss was quickly replenished by more, with ck Carps tightlyyered overyers of defensive rings, as thick as fortresses. The impact of their own swimming also generated strong forces, and the Alligator Gars'' charges hit the whirlpool like heavy blows on slippery butter, with half of their energy dissipating due to the whirlpool''s rotational force!


    The main purpose of the fish whirlpool was to prevent the Alligator Gars from escaping. The only ones truly qualified to fight the Alligator Gars were the Snakeheads!


    As carnivorous fish, the Snakeheads, although not as infamous as the Alligator Gars, were no match for ordinary freshwater fish. Their bodies were all muscle, their strength formidable, and their mouths filled with sharp teeth containing slight venom.


    If the Alligator Gars were like special forces amongst fish, then at least the Snakeheads were akin to well-armed militia!


    With their numerical advantage, and under Suming''s unified direction andmand,rge groups of Snakeheads burrowed through theke''s muddy bottom, entering the midst of the whirlpool fearlessly from below,unching a group charge toward the Alligator Gars!


    It wasn''t just the ckfish; the bottom of theke had turned into a veritable ''forest of swords and sabers.'' Countless crabs and lobsters, brandishingrge and small pincers, surged upwards. If a crocodile gar swam a tad too low in an attempt to rest and regain its strength, it would immediately be mped so viciously that it was left with wounds all over its body.


    The greenfish and grass carp were rtively fewer in number, but they had likewise joined the fray.


    The grass carp wererger and packed a more powerful ramming force than the silver carp. A single grass carp weighing around five pounds could knock an adult unconscious with its full force in water!


    Wherever the whirlpool showed a weak point, arge grass carp would immediately fill in. If the crocodile gar wasn''t paying attention, it would be knocked aside and sent sliding far away.


    Greenfish are omnivorous and their favorite food is snails. They are nicknamed ''snail cracker'' and even though their teeth are long gone, their sucking power is remarkable. With their fleshy lips, they can suck the flesh of snails right out of the shells. Under the waters home to greenfish, there''s often a thickyer of empty snail shells.


    One by one, the greenfish mped theirrge mouths firmly onto the crocodile gar, severely slowing down the speed of these otherwise lightning-fast creatures.


    Suming''s side kept sustaining casualties, and with it, the crocodile gar''s stamina was rapidly depleting.


    Gradually, the whirlpool currents and water movements, which had seemed trivial at first, began to have a significant impact on the battle. As the fish swirled faster and faster, a vortex even appeared on the surface of the water, and the crocodile gars in the water started to falter and il.


    In water, fish are like people onnd: if a person can''t walk steadily on shore, it can only mean that they have reached the brink of exhaustion!


    "Now''s the time!"


    Suddenly, the whirlpool opened arge gap, and a monstrous-looking alligator turtle with a swaggering gait entered the battleground from the fissure!


    Whether in offense or defense, the alligator turtle was far superior to the crocodile gar. Against one-on-one, there was no question of the oue. But normally, faced with seven crocodile gars, the alligator turtle would have to flee!


    However, at this moment, the crocodile gar had reached the end of their tether. The arrival of the alligator turtle was thest straw that broke the crocodile gar.


    Looking every bit the demon, the alligator turtle chased the disoriented crocodile gar in a frenzied pursuit. Repeatedly, crocodile gars would crash into the ''walls'' of the whirlpool, only to be pushed back by the formidable collision force, and then chased again, crashing back into the whirlpool...


    Seeing the opportune moment, Suming licked arge mouthful of honey and violently poured his spiritual power into the seven crocodile gars without any reservation!


    Nearing utter exhaustion, the crocodile gars finally could no longer withstand the erosion of spiritual power and gave up resistance!


    The water''s surface gradually returned to calm...


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    After the great battle, nearly three hundred of Suming''s fish fry, shrimp, and crabs had perished, with the majority being crayfish. Due to their shelled bodies, these creatures were actually quite fragile; a sweep from the long bodies of the crocodile gars killed many at once.


    Compared to the total poption of Shuijun Lake, these losses were negligible. But if not for Suming''s timely discovery and strategicmand using spiritual power, given enough time, these few crocodile gars could have wiped out everything in theke.


    All seven crocodile gars were captured and brought back to the Fengshui Pavilion. They looked like prehistoric monsters, with slimy scales covering their bodies and long mouths filled with sharp teeth¡ªthey looked unspeakably strange.


    After recovering a bit of strength, the crocodile gars even showed signs of rebelling once more!


    "Give up resistance, turn away from darkness and toward the light, right the wrongs, switch sides and strike back¡ªthat''s your only way out!"


    Suming sat inside the Whisperwind Pavilion with a cold smirk.

 Chapter 71: Chapter 71 The Tragic Daily Life of the Crocodile Garfish

    In the lobby of the first floor of Whisperwind Pavilion, seven gar-pike eels were strung up by ropes threaded through their gills, hanging from the beams like a row of salted fish, asionally writhing.


    The gills are a crucial part of a fish, and even the most ferocious fish would immediately lose the ability to resist once a rope was threaded through them, rendering their great strength useless.


    Besides, Suming was constantly bombarding them with his spiritual power.


    The fishy smell emanating from the gar-pike eels drew the attention of several cats. Fish was the felines'' favorite food, and to them, these formidable creatures that even snapping turtles would hesitate to provoke were merely sizeable meals.


    The cats, as if fitted with springs, pounced haphazardly on the ground, leaping up to try to snag the suspended gar-pike eels with their front paws.


    However, the beams of the Fengshui Pavilion were over three meters high, and the longest gar-pike eel was less than one meter, leaving a gap of about one to two meters from the ground, a height the cats could not reach.


    Hei tried to jump repeatedly, the highest attempt falling short by less than half a meter, eyes locked on the gar-pike eel it nearly grasped. Dissatisfied, it paced with feline steps, circling the eels several times before it actually started directing the other cats to form a ''catdder''.


    "Get down, get down, all you ever do is cause a ruckus! With no need to sell tickets every day, are you all just bored to death?"


    Suming stepped forward and grabbed the cat at the bottom of the ''catdder'' by the neck, pulling it out. The makeshiftdder copsed instantly, and the cats on top tumbled to the ground like little meatballs.


    "I''ve already told you, the only way out is to forsake the dark and seek the light, to correct the chaos and return to order!"


    Holding the cat in his arms, Suming red fiercely at the gar-pike eels and said, "Let me tell you, if you don''t behave, you''ll hang there for a day. With me here, you won''t even be able to die if you wish to!"


    As he spoke, he sent another wave of spiritual power their way, and the gar-pike eels, which were already at death''s door, seemed to regain some vitality.


    At this moment, Suming bore not even the slightest hint of ''animal friendliness''; he was nothing short of a demonic jailer.


    The only ones to me were the gar-pike eels themselves for being so obstinately rebellious!


    Other animals, even fierce ones like tigers, could usually bemunicated with normally¡ªthey were just ''difficult to manage'' and didn''t fall under Suming''s control. But these gar-pike eels were like rocks in atrine, stinking and unyielding, making any attempt at propermunication like ying the lute to a cow,pletely ineffective.


    To draw an analogy, when dealing with people, while everyone''s personality is different, most are still normal human beings. If you reason with them and make sense, they usually listen, and even if they disagree with your point of view, you can stillmunicate.


    But some individuals¡ªlike these gar-pike eels¡ªare simply mentally ill, with personality disorders, possibly even paranoid or prone to violence, perhaps even a bit insane; they are not normal and thus you cannot use the normal approach with them.


    When they were first caught and brought ashore, Suming tried to ''talk'' to them with his spiritual power, but these fellowspletely ignored him. With a forceful flick of their tails and a quick turn, they opened their mouths to reveal their sharp teeth, biting at Suming, who narrowly avoided them thanks to his preparedness!


    Since reasoning failed, he resorted to force! Dealing with the gar-pike eels was both challenging and straightforward¡ªoverpowering them with violence, no matter whether they were paranoid or mentally disturbed, breaking their willpletely, subduing and frightening them, would naturally result in their obedience.


    Suming had all the time in the world¡ªshould one day prove insufficient, he would carry on for two days, and if two days were not enough, then four days it would be.


    The stubbornness of the gar-pike eels subjected them to a hellish daily existence.


    Three times a day¡ªmorning, afternoon, and evening¡ªroutine ''torment'' by spiritual power was their due.


    If souls did indeed exist, Suming figured that spiritual power could directly reach them, capable of invoking both a sense of closeness and a primal fear and pain.


    True to the phrase "refining both body and mind," to merely flog the gar-pike eels with spiritual power was far from adequate.


    Suming, at the height of his excitement, had even crafted a small leather whip for himself. Whenever he had nothing else to do, he would take it out andsh it a few times just for fun.


    The garpike''s body was covered in armor-like scales and coated with mucus, which should have protected it from blows. But Suming was cruel and vicious, and he always waited until the mucus on the garpike''s body was dry before hitting it. With each crack of the whip, several scales would be stripped away.


    Physical pain was one thing, but the greatest torture was fear!


    From time to time, a few cats would casually stroll into the Fengshui Pavilion, looking up at the garpike with ill-intent, as if contemting the best ce to sink their teeth in.


    Once when Suming was away, Hei somehow persuaded De Fu, who was resting at home, to let him climb onto its back. De Fu actually agreed, and with one leap, Hei managed to snatch the longest garpike, hugging its body and viciously taking a big bite...


    When Suming returned, he saw Hei using all four limbs like a ko, clinging to the garpike''s tail and swinging in mid-air, with its sharp little ws flicking out and digging into the gaps between the scales, causing the garpike so much pain it nearly passed out.


    The garpike was lucky that its scales were incredibly hard, and Hei couldn''t bite through them; otherwise, it would probably be reduced to a fish skeleton by now.


    If the cats could not pose a real threat to the garpike, then the alligator turtles certainly could, and with ease!


    The one that was over a meter in diameter, with legs as sturdy as iron pirs and standing over a meter tall, could easily reach the garpike with a full stretch of its long neck.


    Conveniently, the alligator turtle''s gargantuan, millstone-like teeth could grindingly crush the garpike''s scale armor.


    Even more coincidentally, the garpike was also on the alligator turtle''s menu...


    After enduring multiple forms of torture, in less than three days, the garpikes had already be docile. Compared to the creatures that were always thinking of eating them, Suming, who merely beat them, seemed almost angelically kind...


    The moment they couldn''t see Suming, the garpikes felt uneasy. After all, being humiliated and whipped was still better than being eaten bit by bit!


    "What about you guys, aren''t you pathetic?"


    Suming asked, pointing with the tip of his whip at the several garpikes.


    The garpikes had been let down and werenguidly crawling on the floor of the Fengshui Pavilion. When they heard Suming speak, they quickly twisted their bodies and swam to his feet, raising their heads and eagerly trying to climb onto his legs like a bunch of tentacled creatures.


    "This scene is disgusting!" Suming shuddered with distaste.


    Now that the garpikes had calmed down, Suming no longer nned to torture them. He left two small ones to be raised in the littleke of the Fengshui Pavilion and released the other five into Shuijun Lake.


    To avoid these personality¨Cdeficient creatures harming other fish, Suming specially enclosed a few dozen square meters of water near the corner of Shuijun Lake by the back mountain for the garpikes to live in temporarily.


    The garpikes, having gone several days without food, frenziedly swam in circles upon being released, desperately searching for something to eat.


    In the rest of Shuijun Lake outside, there was ''food'' everywhere. However, after Suming''s discipline, these creatures wouldn''t dare to eat the fish or shrimp from theke, even if it killed them.


    "If you want to eat, find it yourself!"


    Suming looked in the direction of Huating Reservoir and let out a coldugh.

 Chapter 72 A Big Incident Occurred!

    Although the surveince footage didn''t capture his face, subsequent feedback from the bee and dog attacks indicated that the sneaky individual who had released the crocodile gar into the fish pond, and then got stung by wasps and bitten by dogs, was indeed the bald man.


    Suming wouldn''t believe it was just the bald man''s personal actions and had nothing to do with Zhou Jin, even if you killed him.


    The bald man''s backer was Zhou Jin. Zhou Jin had already clearly threatened Suming over the phonest time, and besides, releasing crocodile gar to wreck the fish pond ecology, this kind of ''technical'' sneaky move, was not something the bald man with his level of intelligence coulde up with.


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    Putting all these incidents together, the mastermind behind them could only be Zhou Jin without a doubt.


    Since Zhou Jin had shown his true colors, Suming did not intend to be polite with him. He decided to fight fire with fire, sending the crocodile gar back to the reservoir through the channel to eat Zhou Jin''s fish.


    These few crocodile gar had a massive appetite, and it would cost a pretty penny to feed them. Suming didn''t want to pay that bill.


    ...


    From the sky above, Huating Reservoir looked like the shape of a cbash, divided into tworge bodies of water in the east and west, connected by a narrow stretch of water in the middle.


    The western body of water, connected to the Yangtze River, was several timesrger than the eastern one and served as the main body of the Huating Reservoir, being an open public water area;


    The smaller eastern body of water, on the other hand, was a fish farming area contracted by Zhou Jin, withrges separating it from both sides.


    The eastern sector was divided into a Fry Zone and an Adult Fish Zone. Normally, once the fry had grown for two or three months and reached a slightlyrger size, they would be moved from the Fry Zone into the Adult Fish Zone to be raised freely.


    This was also why, though Zhou Jin suspected that those fry had fallen into Suming''s hands, he couldn''t do much about it openly. With a big hole in the fishing, those fry could have also escaped into the reservoir, and unless he could clean out the entire Huating Reservoir on both sides and confirm there weren''t enough fry in the reservoir, he couldn''t report a fish theft.


    This mammoth project was impossible, not just for apany boss like him, but even the municipal government couldn''t manage it.


    The crocodile gar, swimming through the underwater passage, arrived at the ''cbash'' eastern side, at the fisherypany''s Adult Fish Zone. After roaming around in the water, they discovered a new batch of fry where they had released fryst time.


    It seemed that Zhou Jin had restocked the fry. However, this time, the Fry Zone''s security was extremely tight.


    The fishings under the water surface had all been reced with high-strengthposite materials, and in addition, there were three small motorboats patrolling back and forth on the surrounding water.


    A small cruise ship was moored not far away. After suffering a significant lossst time, Zhou Jin simply moved to theke with two of his subordinates, living on the ''Chuanhua Zi 008'' cruise ship, directing operations day and night.


    After the catfish and the crocodile gar passed through the passage, they quickly reported back the situation to Suming.


    Suming pondered for a moment. If he sent the crocodile gar to forcefully attack the Fry Zone, with their ferocity, they could certainly bite through theposite materials given some time. However, that would definitely cause amotion and attract the attention of the patrol team on theke.


    "Never mind the fry, go eat the big fish in the reservoir!" Suming made a decisive decision, changing his strategy.


    If eating the fry was like cutting off Zhou Jin''s future harvest, then eating the fish in the reservoir was like severing Zhou Jin''s current harvest.


    The several crocodile gar, ted, rushed towards the Adult Fish Zone in the east. Considering their nature and appetite, the reservoir was bound to experience a significant reduction in production within half a year.


    After arranging all of this, Suming suddenly found that he seemed to have unexpectedly be idle, with nothing to do.


    The pleasure boat business was proceeding in an orderly fashion, and with Mr. Peng and his team in charge, and several cats taking turns as the mascot, there was no need for worry. He could just sit back and earn tens of thousands a month;


    In terms of fish farming, the water quality of Shuijun Lake had already reached that of the reservoir. The fish''s living environment was not an issue, and with the three nurses primarily in charge, assisted by Mr. Peng''s team, he didn''t even have to handle feeding himself. Thest batch of feed that cost twenty thousand hadn''t beenpletely sold yet, but the cost had already been recouped, with a little profit made;


    The only person who might cause him trouble, Zhou Jin, couldn''t stir up any waves for the time being. The defense around Shuijun Lake was tight, both onnd and in the air. Zhou Jin didn''t even know that the alligator-sauridae had already defected. There were likely to be no other disturbances any time soon.


    Even if there were any idents, he always had two bodyguards with him, one overt and one covert. At least one of the wolf-dog brothers would be out in the open, and Er Gouzi was hidden in the shadows, ready to summon a swarm of wasps at any moment.


    He had been consuming Monkey Wine and honey from the big jars daily. Plus, by constantly directing andmunicating with various animals, and with his "Animal Friend" ability, both his total spiritual power and control were steadily improving every day.


    Life was getting a bit too uneventful¡ªspending days wandering around the zoo, thening back for a long nap, and ordering another batch of feed online.


    Not even a week had passed when Suming himself started to feel a bit restless, as life was too leisurely, which was quite unsettling, and he was always looking for something to do.


    Thus, he pondered taking half a week off to visit the new home of the bees in the back mountain. The Queen Bee had sent several messages wanting to see him. Plus, he had promised Ji Xiang, the Haidong Qing from the zoo, that he would take it out for a flight when the chance arose.


    However, before Suming could properly prepare, Nangong unexpectedly called him with another big piece of news!


    The one in trouble wasn''t Suming, but Zhou Jin from the fisheriespany!


    A major ident had urred at Huating Reservoir. The owner of the fisheriespany, Zhou Jin, had sustained serious injuries and had nearly died!


    It''s a long story to tell, and it was essentially Zhou Jin''s bad luck.


    He had been raising fish for many years and was naturally a good swimmer. He would often enjoy swimming in the reservoir. The day before yesterday at noon, as usual, he went swimming in the reservoir and was fiercely rammed in the chest by a strange aquatic creature. He spat out blood and immediately passed out, sinking below the water.


    Fortunately, he was not far from a small pleasure boat, and his subordinates rescued him. They promptly called 120 and took him to the hospital.


    It was said that Zhou Jin suffered several broken ribs and was still in the hospital for emergency treatment. Whether he could be saved or not was still unknown.


    However, this wasn''t the "big incident" that Nangong was talking about!


    At the time Zhou Jin was hit, there happened to be a few people ying by the Huating Reservoir. They recorded the moment the "aquatic creature" struck Zhou Jin with their phones and uploaded it to the inte.


    From the video footage, the aquatic creature appeared to have short fins and swam from a distance at high speed toward Zhou Jin.


    After hitting Zhou Jin, the creature also leaped out of the water and in a panic, it identally crashed its head into the side of the nearby pleasure boat. Its head was immediately busted open, blood sttered, and it left a dent in the side of the boat.


    Some people recognized the chubby creature, looking somewhat like a pig, as the Yangtze River dolphin, a national first-ss protected animal.

 Chapter 73: Chapter 73 Yangtze River Finless Porpoises

    Stay tuned for stories on m-vl-em,py-r


    The Yangtze finless porpoise, a ss I protected animal of the nation, is somewhat simr to dolphins, butcks the dolphin''s elongated snout. Its head is rounded and somewhat pig-like, hence it is also called ''river pig''.


    The Yangtze finless porpoise had long been listed on the endangered species as, with fewer than a thousand individuals remaining worldwide, even rarer than the giant panda. They typically inhabit rivers andkes near the Yangtze River. Years ago, wild finless porpoises were spotted in Dongting Lake, but with the incessant exacerbation of environmental destruction, no sightings of wild porpoises have been reported for many years.


    At this moment, a Yangtze finless porpoise, even rarer than the Baiji Dolphin, had appeared in the reservoir and had collided with a person, immediately drawing widespread attention. The TV station, naturally, would not miss such explosive news and sent Nangong Yan to conduct the interview.


    Nangong Yan was unaware of the so much grudge and gratitude that had happened between Suming and Zhou Jin during this period. She called Suming simply wanting to consult with the specialist on why the typically docile finless porpoise would suddenly attack a human.


    "Probably because the porpoise was frightened," Suming gave a vague answer.


    In fact, upon hearing Nangong Yan''s ount, Suming had already guessed the reason.


    With its massive size, what could possibly startle a finless porpoise in a reservoir? It must have been targeted by several crocodile-snouted garfish. Focused solely on escape, it inadvertently collided with Zhou Jin, who was swimming.


    Perhaps it had been chased all the way from the western part of the reservoir to the east. Thoserges would not stop crocodile-snouted garfish.


    A fish weighing five jin could knock an adult unconscious with a full force collision in the water. Getting hit by a fish weighing ten jin was almost like being hammered.


    The porpoise in the video must have weighed at least seventy to eighty jin, maybe even over a hundred jin. Being struck by such a hefty creature, it was fortunate that Zhou Jin did not die on the spot.


    After hanging up, Suming quickly called back several crocodile-snouted garfish and, sure enough, it turned out just as he had expected¡ªthe finless porpoise had initially been in therge area on the west side of the reservoir. For some reason, it had been chased by the garfish and broke through the barrier separating the two parts of the reservoir, rushing into the water area contracted by Zhou Jin.


    Not long after Suming ''inquired'' with the garfish, Mr. Song called him over.


    When Suming arrived, Mr. Song was reviewing the video. A chubby porpoise, over a meter long, first collided rapidly with Zhou Jin, who was swimming in the water. Then it leaped like a fish, banging its head against the side of a nearby small cruise ship with such force that it even dented the ship. Both the porpoise, which was injured and bleeding from the head, and Zhou Jin spilled blood into the water, turning the surface red.


    "Judging from the video, it''s definitely a finless porpoise. The reservoir is very close to the Yangtze River, and the gates are opened every few years. It''s likely that the finless porpoise swam upstream into the reservoir during open gates," Mr. Songmented while handing a document to Suming, "Prepare yourself for this notice issued from above. You''re joining the team with me."


    Suming looked at it. It was a red-titled document issued from the provincial level, "Notification on the Establishment of the Huating Reservoir Yangtze Finless Porpoise Protection Investigation Team."


    "Since the discovery of the finless porpoise, rted departments at all levels have taken it very seriously. A special task force has been formed, led by provincial and municipal agricultural, forestry, and fisheries officials, with the assistance of the Agricultural Sciences Academy and the zoo, to jointly conduct the investigation. The injured porpoise would find it difficult to survive in the natural environment. The most crucial task now is to locate this injured porpoise and protect it immediately. Arrange your affairs and then head to the reservoir with me," said Mr. Song.


    "There''s nothing special to instruct, shall we go now?" asked Suming.


    "Good, drive your car, and let''s departure at once!" Mr. Song nodded seriously. After finishing his words, he walked briskly out of the office. They descended the stairs and got into Suming''s Wrangler, heading directly towards Huating Lake nearby.


    They quickly arrived at the site of the incident at Huating Lake. Several vehicles were parked by theke, and arge military-green temporary tent had been erected.


    Inside the tent were a few machines, with arge table set up in the middle, atop whichy a t map of Huating Reservoir. Around the table, about ten people were gathered in discussion.


    Standing at the very front was an elderly man in his sixties, wearing ck-rimmed sses, with only a few tufts of ck hair remaining on his bald head. At first nce, he resembled an older version of San Mao.


    "Mr. Song,e over here, we were just waiting for someone from the zoo!"


    As Mr. Song walked into the tent, the "elderly version" of San Mao looked up and quickly waved him over.


    "This is Professor Chu Tianning from the Provincial Agricultural Sciences Academy, Assistant Director of the investigation team and also an old ssmate of mine," Mr. Song hurriedly said to Suming before striding into the tent to briefly greet Professor Chu and the others around him.


    The people inside were divided into two groups, one from the Agricultural Sciences Academy, led by Professor Chu, with a few younger individuals who were his students and two employees from the Provincial Aquatic Wildlife Conservation Center.


    The other group consisted of government officials, led by a middle-aged man in his fifties.


    "This is Suming, Su, a young key member of our zoo, and he will be joining me in the group''s work."


    As Mr. Song introduced Suming, the middle-aged man gave Suming a meaningful smile.


    Seeing this man, Suming felt amused; this leader was none other than Wang Hao''s father, Director Wang Jianse.


    Every time Suming saw Wang Hao''s dad, he found it quite funny. Wang Jianse was considered an idol-level figure among middle-aged and older women, resembling Chen Daoming in appearance, but how could Wang Hao just happen to look like Guo Degang? Itpletely defied the theory of gics.


    Although they recognized each other, in this public setting, both of them tacitly avoided any acknowledgement.


    "Mr. Wang, everyone''s here now. Would you like to say a few words?" Professor Chu asked.


    "All of you are engaged in animal research and protection. I won''t go over the importance of the finless porpoise in our country''s animalmunity. Let me just briefly convey the spirit from our superiors," Mr. Wang began with a chuckle, then his expression turned solemn as he continued, "The discovery of a wild finless porpoise has been given great importance by our superiors, and they have made two demands of us. First, we must find the injured finless porpoise, and second, we must ensure its protection."


    After finishing his speech, he looked at Professor Chu and Mr. Song with a smile and said, "Chu, Song, you two are the experts on this matter. You decide how to proceed. I won''t lead experts out of my field. I''ll take care of the logistics for you. If you need any equipment or manpower, just let me know."


    Professor Chu nodded and turned to Mr. Song, "Song, time is of the essence, so I won''t beat around the bush. Here''s the work n: Mr. Wang will instruct from shore, and for the rest of us, three people per boat, equipped with sound detectors, we''ll conduct a dra search from both sides of the reservoir to find that finless porpoise. Does that work for you?"


    Instead of responding directly, Mr. Song looked at Suming and asked, "Do you have anything to add?"


    Professor Chu''s students and the two other government workers were baffled; at such a gathering, there was little room for such a young person to speak, nor did they understand what special skill this inconspicuous young man possessed to warrant such consideration from Mr. Song.


    Feeling a bit embarrassed by the attention, Suming scratched his head, "No additions, we''ll do as directed by the leaders."


    Director Wang Jianse gave Suming a slight smile and said, "Alright, then let''s get started."


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 74 : 74 The Expert Specified Above

    The entire work group consisted of fifteen people, and after excluding Wang Jian She and two government workers, the actual field operation team, including Suming, totaled twelve.


    These twelve split into three groups, each equipped with radios and sonar detectors, along with some shallow water equipment, before boarding three small boats.


    Originally these three boats belonged to a fishingpany, but now that Zhou Jin was hospitalized and still in critical care, the boats had been temporarily requisitioned.


    As a matter of course, the few followers of Zhou Jin were also requisitioned as ''local citizens cooperating with the work'', responsible for guarding the fishing boats.


    The bald man had snuck off to release the crocodile snakest time and ended up returning with injuries all over his body; he had just been discharged from the hospital yesterday.


    Who would have thought that just as he stepped out, Zhou Jin was admitted, and suddenly seeing Suming, the bald man felt a shiver of unease for no apparent reason, with a chill rising simultaneously from the top of his head and his rear end. Instinctively, he took a step backward and eximed in shock, "It''s you?"


    Before Suming could speak, Wang Jian She''s secretary, with a stern face, asked, "This is Mr. Su, the expert assigned by the higher-ups. Do you have a problem with that?"


    The bald man nced at the serious-faced secretary and then back at Suming with a look of uncertain surprise. Wasn''t this guy just a temp at the zoo? How in the world did he suddenly turn into an ''expert designated by the higher-ups''?


    Whether he was an expert or not didn''t really matter; it was the words ''the higher-ups'' that were truly frightening.


    "Oh, no problem, we know each other," Suming chuckled, "Mr. Bald, now''s not the time to catch up."


    "Yes, yes, yes..." Baldy came to his senses as if waking from a dream, quickly stepping aside to untie the ropes of the fishing boat and allowing Suming and the others to board.


    Before long, the fishing boat had sailed away from the shore.


    The bald man stood on the shore with a few of his followers, and one of them, seeing that they were all to themselves, leaned in and said, "Bro, doesn''t this punk have a grudge against us? This is the perfect chance to get him!"


    "Get your sister!"


    The bald man red at him, then with a mix of helplessness and frustration, smacked his forehead heavily, saying, "Didn''t you see he''s got connections with the government? I wondered, how could he dare topete with Mr. Zhou and cause trouble with just being a temp? Turns out he''s got people up top! No wonder, no wonder..."


    "So we just let it go?" the follower asked.


    "What else can we do?"


    Baldy gestured towards the temporary tents on the shore and said, "Those people in the tents, which one of them can we afford to offend? If we get on their bad side, with just a word from Mr. Wang, Mr. Zhou''s reservoir contract won''t happen, and we''ll be left eating air and drinking farts!"


    ...


    The fishing boat Suming was on wasn''t much different in size from the assault boat he used on Shuijun Lake. Besides Mr. Song and Suming, there was also a graduate student of Professor Chu named Liang Shi.


    Liang Shi was the kind of person who looked very honest at first nce, wearing thick sses, speaking little, and had been staring tensely at the sonar indicator at the bow of the boat ever since embarking.


    Drip... Drip... Drip... Drip...


    The sonar device emitted a consistent soft beeping sound. The principle behind the monitoring system was simr to radar, continuously scanning the surrounding hundred meters of water with their boat as the central point.


    From the video footage of the collision with Zhou Jin, the finless porpoise appeared to be at least 1.2 meters long, presumably an adult, and the sonar would reflect anyrge creatures over a hundred centimeters in length onto the monitor.


    Mr. Song was also holding a radio,municating every now and then with the search personnel on the other two boats.


    Suming wasn''t particrly in a hurry. Having learned that a special team had been assembled to investigate, he had already instructed the alligator gar to return to Shuijun Lake and even temporarily blocked those few passages at the reservoir end, lest they survive the enemy''s gunfire only to fall into the hands of their own people.


    Before sealing off the waterway, Suming had specifically summoned the bighead catfish, along with a dozen or so juvenile ck carp, to scatter and search the water for any injured Chinese River Dolphins.


    After searching for more than half an hour, the three boats found nothing, and Suming received no feedback either. He didn''t know whether the dolphin was dead or had simply hidden itself.


    Liang Shi was staring intently at the sonar screen the whole time without moving his eyes. He was nearsighted and kept rubbing his eyes, which were blood-red; seeing this, Suming couldn''t help but feel a bit of pity. He patted Liang Shi''s shoulder and said, "Take a break, I''ll take over for you."


    "Thank you so much! Then I''ll trouble you to watch for a bit while I put in some eye drops ande back to relieve you."


    Liang Shi repeatedly expressed his thanks, made way from in front of the monitor, and sat at the back of the boat. He took out a bottle of eye drops, removed his sses, tilted his head back, and squeezed a few drops into his eyes.


    Suming, preupied, watched the monitor and made small talk, "Liang, you''re still a student, right? Howe even the student army has been sent out?"


    "Yeah... I''m in my third year of graduate studies... Oh, Mr. Su, we''re about the same age, you can just call me by my name..."


    With his eyes closed, Liang Shi spoke in a rather wooden tone, "Our agricultural academy''s graduate practice courses count for credit, and my thesis topic happens to be about wild Chinese River Dolphins. That''s why Professor Chu specifically brought me along for this operation."


    "Oh, so you''re the real expert on river dolphins," Suming teased.


    Liang Shi said a bit embarrassed, "It''s all theoretical knowledge from books; in fact, I''ve never even seen a wild river dolphin."


    "Ah? Then how will you write your thesis?" Suming asked, taken aback.


    Talking about the river dolphins, Liang Shi''s words clearly became more plentiful, "It''s like this, there are three types of river dolphins. The ones we''re talking about are usually the freshwater ones, called Yangtze River Dolphins. In 2006, the United Nations conducted a survey, and the wild poption of the Yangtze River Dolphin was less than 1,500. Moreover, it decreases by about 10% every year. By now, the number of wild Yangtze River Dolphins in the whole world is probably less than five hundred. In reality, it might even be fewer. Over the past few years, I followed Professor Chu and traversed through the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze, including nearby Poyang Lake and Dongting Lake, but there have been no signs of river dolphin activity for a long time."


    "How will you write your graduation thesis?" Suming asked.


    "I just hope we can find that dolphin this time; if we really can''t, I''ll have to stay for an extra year and change my topic," said Liang Shi with a wry smile and then opened his eyes. He crawled toward the front of the cabin and said, "Mr. Su, my eyes are better now, let me do it."


    Suming was about to make way when a ''beep'' suddenly sounded from the detector!


    All three people on the boat turned their gaze to the sonar at once, and on the screen, about twenty meters from the boat, a dark, fish-shaped shadow appeared underwater, maintaining the same direction as the fishing boat and slowly swimming forward.


    Liang Shi immediately became excited, grabbed the walkie-talkie and blurted out, "Hey hey hey, Boat Two has discovered a suspicious target, Boat Two has discovered a suspicious target!"


    After some faint static, Professor Chu''s voice came through the walkie-talkie, not directly answering Liang Shi but instead asking, "Song, are you there?"


    Liang Shi was startled, realizing his reporting overstepped his bounds, as Mr. Song was the team leader on the boat. With an awkward scratch of his head, he handed the walkie-talkie to Mr. Song.


    Mr. Song nodded at him without saying much and spoke into the walkie-talkie, "I''m here. We found something big, looks a lot like that dolphin."


    "Let the young people go down and check it out."


    "All right," said Mr. Song, putting down the walkie-talkie. Before he could speak, Liang Shi had already hurriedly started pulling on a diving suit, eximing, "I''ll go, I''ll go!"


    "Su, you go with him. The two of you watch out for each other and be careful!" Mr. Song said.

 Chapter 75 : 75: Someones Missing!

    Huaxia had not discovered wild Jiang dolphins for many years, and the recent sighting at Huating Reservoir was taken very seriously by the higher-ups, who allocated a batch of specialized equipment. Every fishing boat was equipped with diving suits.


    Mr. Song had already given Suming a brief instruction on how to use the diving equipment. Mimicking Liang Shi, Suming suited up properly, and then the two of them sat on opposite sides of the boat, giving Mr. Song a ''thumbs up'' for ''ready.''


    "Be sure to pay attention to safety!"


    Still not at ease, Mr. Song added another word of caution. Suming and Liang Shi looked at each other through their diving goggles, nodded simultaneously, and then, leaning backward, plunged into theke with a backward somersault.


    Meanwhile, in another direction, a bighead catfish was also racing towards them at high speed.


    After getting into the water, Liang Shi gestured to Suming, pointing ahead, and then with a twist of his waist, he took the lead and swam towards the direction where the shadow had appeared.


    Suming gently glided through the water with his fins, following about half a meter to the side and behind Liang Shi, ready to assist at any moment.


    ording to the data from the detector just now, the ''target'' was deep underwater. The two dived headfirst, swimming diagonally downwards. As they went deeper, the light from above dimmed, and they were surrounded by murky darkness, with visibility less than half a meter. There was not a single sound in the water, nothing but an eerie and deathly silence.


    Liang Shi, with far more experience using the diving equipment than Suming and eager to find the Jiang dolphin, swam faster and faster, soon leading by a considerable distance. Suming, following behind, could barely see Liang Shi anymore; he could only discern a figure floating ahead, so he quickly turned on the underwatermp on his helmet.


    A focused beam of light shot out from the searchlight, cutting through the gloom under the water, forming a long column of light. Countless tiny aquatic organisms, like specks of dust, glittered as they passed through the beam.


    Within the visible range of the searchlight, however, there was no sign of Liang Shi!


    Suming startled slightly, thinking, Where did this guy go?


    Just as this thought crossed his mind, his helmet was bumped, and suddenly, a series of dull thuds... thump, thump, came from behind¡ªit was as if something in the water was knocking on his helmet!


    A buzz ran through Suming''s scalp; he felt a surge of blood ready to burst out. Instinctively, he turned his head to look back!


    He saw a huge head pressing against the helmet, its two pitch-ck eyes staring directly at him through the diving goggles!


    Several tentacle-like barbels floated above therge head, pale and ghostly under the searchlight''s illumination!


    "Shit!"


    Suming hadn''t quite recovered from the shock, which had rattled him considerably. He paddled water frantically backward, waving his arms in confusion as bubbles of oxygen burbled chaotically from his mouth.


    With some distance between them, Suming could finally see that it was not some ghost from the waters but actually the bighead catfish.


    The bighead catfish, shaking its head, swam beside Suming, nudging his helmet with its mouth, seemingly quite curious about this object.


    "Next time don''t just suddenly ''biu'' out like that; you can scare someone to death!"


    Suming was sweating bullets, almost wanting to strangle the creature. If he weren''t underwater, he might have been frightened to the point of urinating! Come to think of it, he might already have been scared enough to do so without realizing it because of being in the water...


    "Have you seen any other people?" Suming asked the bighead catfish using his spiritual power.


    Finding the Jiang dolphin would be great, and it wouldn''t be a big deal if they didn''t, but it was absolutely essential that Liang Shi remained unharmed!


    The bighead catfish nodded, circled around Suming a few times, and then, with a flick of its tail, swam leisurely off at a thirty-degree angle. Suming quickly made a few strokes with his hands and followed close behind.


    After following the bighead catfish for approximately fifteen meters, Suming finally saw a blurry shadow in the distance, over a meter long. From afar, it looked like both a fish and a person.


    Suming powerfully kicked back with his legs, stepping hard on the water, and shot towards the shadow.


    As he got closer, Suming realized there was something off about this shadow. Although it was about the length of a human, it definitely wasn''t human-shaped!


    If it were a person, it should have been elongated, unlike the roundness of a Jiang dolphin.


    The shadow in front was like a massive ellipse!


    He hurriedly drew his arms back, halting his forward momentum and staying motionless in the water, not daring to move an inch and even trying to minimize his breathing.


    In the beam of the shlight, ayer of dark green scales swept by¡ªa massive creature underwater slowly glided past Suming.


    Since it had scales, it definitely was not Liang Shi nor a finless porpoise, but some kind of giant fish! Suming remained still, holding his breath and focusing on the enormous fish just a short distance away. A fish of such size was extremely dangerous in the water; a casual flick of its tail could easily knock a person unconscious.


    The giant creature seemed not to have noticed Suming, as it kept moving slowly toward the deeper parts of theke, gradually distancing itself from him.


    Suming finally exhaled in relief, nning to quietly approach the giant fish and attempt to control it with his spiritual power. Such arge fish was extremely rare; if he could control it, the benefits would be numerous.


    No sooner had Suming moved than the giant fish seemed to sense something amiss, abruptly flicking its tail and turning to charge right at Suming!


    In Suming''s pupils, the rapid approach of a gaping maw reflected!


    ¡­


    At that moment, the surface of the water was in uproar!


    "I told you to be careful, to be careful¡ªwhy don''t you ever listen!"


    Mr. Song''s eyes almost shot fire as he red at Liang Shi in front of him, berating him so fiercely that his spit flew all over Liang Shi''s head and face.


    Having scoured the waters below and determining that the dark shadow was not a finless porpoise, Liang Shi had turned back the way he came. His objective had only been to find the porpoise, and it wasn''t until he got back on the boat that he realized they had lost track of Suming.


    Mr. Song and the others waited on the boat for a while longer, but still, Suming did not surface. It was then that Mr. Song became anxious, swiftly making contact with the other boats to ry the situation.


    Learning that someone was missing, Professor Chu and the others panicked, no longer concerned with searching for finless porpoises. They hurriedly approached from afar, gathering above the area of the incident.


    Professor Chu and Mr. Song conferred, and although Mr. Song had trained Suming in the use of diving equipment, it was, after all, Suming''s first dive, which carried great risks. With such a long time psed without surfacing, something might have indeed gone wrong. They made an immediate decision not to wait any longer, deploying all the divers avable to work in pairs and search for Suming under the water!


    "Chu, Song, don''t panic just yet, I''m on my way. Little Su is quite clever; it''s not certain that something will go wrong."


    Through the walkie-talkie, Wang Jian She tried to reassure the two older experts, but his tone was more anxious than anyone''s.


    Not to mention the rtionship between his son Wang Hao and Suming, if an ident had truly happened and someone had died, he, as the leader of the team, would be the first to me!


    Professor Chu''s face was ashen with frustration as he red at Liang Shi, "You, you, how could you be so careless! It''s good to be fully invested in your research, but in situations like these, you... oh... "


    "Teacher, it''s all my fault, all my fault!" Liang Shi was also frantic, almost in tears.


    Professor Chu said nothing, turning instead tofort Mr. Song: "Song, it''s just a big green fish. Fish are timid creatures that generally get frightened away by humans¡ªthere shouldn''t be much danger."


    "I hope so," Mr. Song sighed deeply, pausing to pray for divine protection. A green fish thatrge could easily cause someone to ckout from the slightest collision. Fainting in the water was as good as being dead.


    "Everyone, pay attention! Pair up and get ready to dive for the search and rescue!"


    Wang Jian She''s voice rose above theke, as he stood on the bow of the yacht with a megaphone, his face an ashen hue.


    Liang Shi put his diving helmet back on, preparing to be the first to dive in search of the missing person.


    Just then, the surface of the water suddenly rippled, and arge ssh erupted!


    "What is that thing!" someone on the boat eximed.


    Among the sshes, an enormous green fish, the size of a small hill, emerged!


    And astonishingly, there was a person riding on the back of the green fish!

 Chapter 76 The Fish Knight

    The person on the fish''s back was wearing a diving helmet, making it hard to see their face, but Mr. Song still recognized them right away, eximing in rm, "Suming!"


    Hearing Mr. Song''s cry, the person on the fish''s back took off their helmet with one hand, revealing a grinning face ¨C who else could it be but Suming!


    As soon as Suming emerged from the water, he saw arge crowd of people gathered on the boat, staring at him open-mouthed. He was momentarily stunned, but quickly understood what had happened ¨C these people must have thought he was in trouble. Your adventure awaits on m,v le,mpyr


    Without further ado, he removed his helmet and rode the big fish in a wide circle on the water''s surface, waving to the people on several boats around him and calling out loudly, "I''m fine, how about you all!"


    The enthusiastic greeting was met with no response!


    Everyone on the three nearby boats was leaning forward, their eyes glued to Suming and therge fish beneath him, their mouths agape and jaws nearly dropping, disbelief written all over their faces!


    Therge green fish under Suming''s crotch was at least one and a half meters long, who knows how old it was. After it emerged from the water, it thrashed about frantically, shaking its head and darting around in the water ¨C clearly trying to rid itself of the pesky guy on its back!


    What was strange was that no matter how the fish darted about, Suming sat steadily on its back, and every time the fish tended to sink or sped up so fast that he might lose his bnce, Suming would forcefully ''wave his hand'' and then, astonishingly, therge green fish would obediently swim in the direction of Suming''s wave.


    After Suming had ridden therge green fish around in the water for several circles, the onlookers realized that he was holding a thick and long water weed in his hand, the end of which passed through the gills of the green fish like ''reins'', steering the fish.


    The water churned in waves as the green fish swam with Suming on its back,ughing heartily, sometimes even letting out ''giddy up'' calls, thoroughly enjoying himself.


    Mr. Song, Professor Chu, and Wang Jian She, the elder of Wang Hao''s family, each stood at the bow of their boats, exchanging nces. All three of them rubbed their eyes as if to make sure they weren''t seeing things.


    After ''riding'' the green fish for a while, Suming eventually slowed down beside the boat, saluted the people on board in an awkward manner, and loudly reported, "Reporting to the leaders, I have determined that the dark shadow was not a finless porpoise but thisrge green fish. I have subdued it, please give instructions!"


    Only then did the three leaders fullye to their senses. Mr. Song waved at Suming with a cryugh expression, leaning over the side of the boat, and shouted, "Alright, alright, if you''ve had your fun,e back on board. We have serious business to attend to!"


    Professor Chu alsoughed and, using the ng of the younger inte crowd, said, "Su, better rein in your ''Divine Skill'', it''s not easy for the green fish to grow this big. Don''t kill it!"


    Wang Jianguo gave a long sigh of relief, feeling as if a huge weight had been lifted from his shoulders and plopping down onto a chair at the bow of the boat.


    Whether the fish lived or died wasn''t his concern. Even if all the fish in the reservoir died, he would still be a leader as long as the people were safe ¨C that was the real stroke of luck!


    While the leaders each had their own thoughts, the younger folks had already taken out their cell phones and were snapping away at Suming riding the fish.


    Two girls from the Agricultural Science Institute, excited and shouting, aimed their phones at Suming. He struck a victorious pose for the camera with augh and then turned back to say, "Reporting to the leaders, I''ve just detected some otherrge fish in theke, which will definitely interfere with our search! I suggest that if we find any fishrger than one meter, we should capture and detain them right away!"


    This was indeed a problem. If every time the sonar detected arge fish people had to go down to investigate, not only was it unsafe, but it was also a waste of time and could lead to duplicate efforts.


    "Chu, Song, what do you think?" Wang Jian She turned on the walkie-talkie on the boat and asked.


    "It''s feasible, we have the fishing and trawlers ready, but where do we put such a big fish when we get it out of the water?" Professor Chu spoke through the walkie-talkie.


    Mr. Song and Suming were the closest, with Suming now astride the fish, leaning against the side of his boat. Hearing Suming''s ''suggestion'', Mr. Songughed, pointed his finger at Suming in a mock gesture, and then responded into the walkie-talkie, "Let''s ce it in our zoo. Su is in charge of Shuijun Lake, and the water quality there is pretty good. It''s more than adequate for raising these fish!"


    If it were any other time, it definitely wouldn''t be allowed to transfer fish from a reservoir to a private pond, but due to the urgency of finding the river dolphins, such concerns were overlooked. Besides, the victim Zhou Jin was still lying in the hospital, with no one to object, so the three leaders quickly reached an agreement. Mr. Song made a call to Mr. Dong of the Security Department, asking him to bring a small truck to transport the fish.


    Mr. Dong soon arrived at theke with the truck, sticking half his body out of the cab, and shouted across the water, "Hey Su, what kind of acrobatics are you performing? When did you learn to float on water with Divine Skill!"


    From his distant vantage point, Mr. Dong could only see Suming seemingly floating on the surface, until Suming rode the fish to the shore. The big blue fish stranded in the shallows revealed the truth, startling Mr. Dong so much he almost hit the gas and drove into the water.


    Everyone on the boat also came ashore and surrounded Suming and the big fish, bombarding him with questions. Liang Shi and his group of graduate students looked at Suming with a newfound respect, realizing why the zoo had sent him. He truly had skills.


    Not to mention, encountering such a huge fish underwater, not only did Suming manage to safely escape, but he also subdued it. Such quick-wittedness, calm bravery, and clever adaptability were not something ordinary people possessed.


    The bald man saw Suming from afar, surrounded like the moon by stars by various leaders and government officials, and couldn''t help swallowing his saliva, thinking regretfully, "Of all people I had to offend, it had to be him!"


    To add insult to injury, from a distance Wang Jianguo patted Suming''s shoulder affectionately¡ªa sight that made the bald man wish he could p himself!


    The big blue fish wasn''t taken away immediately; first, it was weighed. It was a whopping 184 pounds, measuring up to one and a half meters long!


    Wang Jian She called the bald man over, looking strictly businesslike, and said, "Let''s make this clear, Su, this fish was found in someone''s contracted area, so you can''t just take it for free. You need to pay the market price for the fish! How much is a pound for a blue fish now...¡­"


    Such arge fish was a rare find and its value couldn''t be measured simply by weight. The bald man looked between Wang Jian She and Suming. After hesitating for a moment, he clenched his teeth, mustered a smile, and said, "Hehe, dear leaders, for wholesale blue fish, the price is six yuan per pound..."


    "I''ll pay ten yuan, I absolutely won''t let you suffer a loss!" Suming dered emphatically, pping his chest as if he refused to take advantage of anyone.


    In the end, the huge fish was bought for less than two thousand yuan. It seemed fair, but it was practically a steal!


    After this small episode, Mr. Dong escorted the truck and delivered the big blue fish back to Shuijun Lake, and everyone resumed their search for the river dolphins.


    The search wasn''t going very well, though. As the day turned into night and three boats had circled the entire reservoir, not a single dolphin was found. Instead, they caught four big fish over one meter long¡ªtwo carps, and one blue and one grass fish respectively.


    These big fish were naturally ''bought'' by Suming at ''market price'' and all were released into Shuijun Lake.


    Thus, the first day of the search effort concluded. Wang Jian She took some government officials back to the city, while Professor Chu, Mr. Song, and others stayed overnight in tents by theke.


    Suming once again became an inte sensation as a video of him riding the fish posted by a female student from the Agricultural Science Academy went viral on Youku Video. In just a few hours, the views rocketed to the top of the homepage and were spotlighted by Youku''s official rolling disy!


    The Youku editor even gave the video an extravagant title: "The Man Standing on the Azure Waves¡ªThe Fish Knight."

 Chapter 77 The Worlds Number One?

    Suming had no idea that he had gone viral on Youku. After a full day of work that left him exhausted, he naturally had no time to go online because of the evening meeting to n the next day''s search efforts.


    Nangong Yan called after nine in the evening, right after the meeting, with the words, "You''re done for, how could you not tell me about such explosive news!"


    His words confused Suming, whoter learned that he had be a fairly well-known ''inte celebrity.''


    The "stepping on the blue waves" video on Youku umted over five hundred thousand views, with more than three hundredments below.


    Alongside the video were several popr web dramas; with its five hundred thousand views it may not seem like muchpared to several million hits for other dramas, but it should be noted that the video had only been uploaded for a little over three hours, with no publicity behind it. It attracted attention purely on its own merits and made it to the homepage in a few short hours, alongside many web dramas that had been uploaded for months.


    After browsing through thements, one caught his attention; aizen named ''Eats Fish Without Spitting Bones'' mentioned that such a big carp could qualify for the Guinness World Records.


    Suming had a moment of inspiration and quickly did a Baidu search.


    If he really could set a world record, the appearance of the ''world''srgest carp'' in Shuijun Lake would definitely be a huge boon, both for the zoo and his own business!


    Not to mention anything else, just by selling exhibition tickets, both the zoo and he could make a fortune!


    However, the results were somewhat disappointing for Suming. Thergest carp recorded to date was a fish caught in Jinling Reservoir in 2004, measuring 185 centimeters and weighing 106 kilograms.


    The biggest ones caught today were only around 180 kilograms, slightly short of the world record.


    In thements following the video, some had found this record, but mostizens were not so much concerned with the size of the fish.


    "So what if it''s the world''s first? It''s just big, but who can ride it like the fish in the video?"


    "That Guinness World Records fish has long been made into a specimen. Among the living carps, this one might actually be the biggest!"


    A well-known user with the nickname ''Professor'' humorouslymented, "Who would have thought that a fish could steal a horse''s job, this is outright choking the industry!"


    Thisment sparked even more discussion than the original post, as the ''Professor'' was actually the screenwriter for a popr web drama from next door, ''Never Would Have Guessed.'' Manyizens started egging on the ''Blue Wave Knight'' to ride the fish and make a cameo in ''Never Would Have Guessed.''


    Sumingughed at thements; theizens were really a rowdy bunch. What did this have to do with ''Never Would Have Guessed''? If he were to appear anywhere, it should be on a geography magazine, or some program about vicious big fish, or perhaps a wilderness survival show.


    But what Suming never would have guessed was that Nangong Yan actually shared the video on YouTube, attracting a lot of attention from viewers abroad.


    Before long, someone mentioned in the university group chat, "Su, when are you gonna take us to ride fish for fun?"


    "Ride what fish? Can you even ride a fish?" someone replied, not everyone had seen the video.


    An idea lit up in Suming''s eyes ¨C that was a great idea! Once the river dolphin issue was resolved, he could definitely try to develop a ''fish riding'' experience. It was sure to be profitable!


    ...


    The next day, as dawn broke, the investigation team continued their work, still divided into three groups, searching the reservoir for the injured river dolphin.


    Boats slowly moved across the surface of theke, with sonar detectors conducting a dra search.


    As time ticked away, the river dolphin remained nowhere to be seen.


    Professor Chu, Mr. Song, and the others looked increasingly grave¡ª with the river dolphin suffering from serious injuries, the longer it took to find it, the greater the likelihood of its death.


    "Song, do you think it''s possible that the river dolphin is already dead, and that''s why the sonar detector can''t find it?"


    From the other end of themunicator, Professor Chu asked with a heavy tone.


    The search team had scoured the entire reservoir yesterday, and even today, they had systematically checked half the reservoir to no avail. Sonar detectors can only locate living creatures; if the river dolphin was already dead, no matter how hard they searched, it would be undetectable.


    Mr. Song shared the same concern and, looking at Suming, asked, "Do you have any thoughts on this?"


    Liang Shi, also in the group, shifted his gaze off the detector screen and onto Suming''s face, eagerly anticipating some different insight from him.


    "Is there a possibility¡­" Suming pondered for a moment before saying, "Maybe the river dolphin is hiding in some corner of the reservoir to heal its wounds, which is why the detector can''t find it?"


    "If that''s the case, we''ll have to rely on manual searching bit by bit. The workload for the search is too much!"


    Liang Shi looked out over the vast expanse of water before him, voicing his worries, "There are just over a dozen of us; even if we all dive in to search, it would take at least two weeks to cover the entire reservoir. By that time, even if we find the river dolphin, it''s almost certain to have died from its severe injuries!"


    "We have no other choice but to count on luck now," Suming said, helplessly spreading his hands.


    In fact,st night, he had returned to the zoo and had the creatures of Shuijun Lake open a new pathway, summoning arge number of his subordinates into Huating Reservoir to begin a-style search underwater.


    The underwater search was progressing no slower than the detector, and was even more precise in uracy. If it weren''t for the fact that aquatic animals are generally quite slow-witted, he would have had his shrimp soldiers and crab generals inquire about the river dolphin to each of their passing kin.


    Having confirmed that the detector could only detect creaturesrger than one meter, Suming no longer had any concerns and simply called the crocodile gar to help search in the reservoir.


    The more capable a person is, the bigger their temper; geniuses hand in hand with madness, and the crocodile gar were no exception. Although their character was somewhat twisted, once tamed, their ability to work underwater was quite formidable, surpassing other fish species.


    Hearing Suming speak this way, Mr. Song promptly decided and told Professor Chu, "Chu, we don''t have any other choice now. We''ll have to do our humanly best and leave the rest to fate; let the young fellows dive in and search!"


    "We have no other choice! Ah, Song, let''s just pray to heaven. If we can''t find this river dolphin, in our lifetime, we may never again have the opportunity to witness a wild river dolphin," Professor Chu said with a hint of despondency.


    Subsequently, allrades under forty, including Suming, who had nearly "gone missing" yesterday, got into their diving suits one by one and plunged into the reservoir like arrows.


    Shortly after Suming entered the water, he spotted two crocodile gar twisting their bodies in the water and drifting over to his side like seaweed!


    "Have you found anything?" Suming asked.


    The two crocodile gar wrapped around Suming''s arms, seeming rather eager to please, one on the left and one on the right, making him look like an Arhat in a temple harnessing dragons. After entwining Suming''s arms, they tilted their heads slowly in the water, both pointing diagonally in the same direction; then they exerted force simultaneously and pulled Suming, swimming forward with great effort.


    "Huh? Where are you taking me?"


    Suming felt a strong pulling force from both arms as the two crocodile gar dragged him, and with a whoosh, his body shot through the water.

 Chapter 78: Chapter 78 A Family of Three

    ```


    Underwater, two moray eels functioned like engines, dragging Suming through the water at an extremely high speed. Suming didn''t have to exert any effort at all. As long as he stretched both arms straight forward, he would shoot forward, with the underwater scenery zipping past him as if flying.


    "I''ve be a superman underwater!"


    If instead of water, it had been air surrounding Suming, at that moment, he would have looked just like Superman flying with his arms extended!


    While Suming was having the time of his life underwater, the people on the surface were almost scared to death!


    Because Suming had nearly ''had an ident'' when he entered the water yesterday, Wang Jian She had specially allocated a batch of ''top-grade''municators, which could not only locate divers within a short distance but also allow for simplemunication with them.


    "What''s going on! Su, what''s happened?"


    "Su, if you receive this, please respond, please respond! Are you in danger?"


    The urgent shouts of Mr. Song and Professor Chu came through the earphones.


    At that moment, to Mr. Song and the others, it seemed that shortly after Suming had entered the water, he suddenly elerated and started moving at a startling speed below the surface. They were shocked and thought Suming had encountered some danger, so they hastily checked the situation through themunicator. Find more to read on m_v-l -NovelFire


    Unable to speak in the water, Suming could only press the green button on his waist three times in session to indicate that he was safe.


    "This kid, could he be swimming?" Professor Chu was somewhat puzzled, looking around at several students with a bemused look, muttering to himself.


    "Wow, he swims so fast, just like Phelps!" A female student sped her chest with a look of adoration on her face, clearly a die-hard fan of Phelps, the swimming champion known as the North American Flying Fish.


    An older male student''s mouth twitched with a hint of contempt, shaking his head in silence.


    As fast as Phelps, what a joke!


    From the speed of ''Su,'' Phelps might just barely keep up with him in a short sprint. But once the distance exceeded a hundred meters, no, there wasn''t even a need for a hundred meters, probably just fifty meters, Phelps would likely not even see his shadow!


    The real experts are hidden amongst themon people!


    With the help of the moray eels, Suming swam incredibly fast, and soon he left the control center''s detection range and entered a tributary of the reservoir.


    At the end of the tributary was a small pond. Of course, ''small'' is rtive to the reservoir; in terms of area alone, this pond was probably not much smaller than Shuijun Lake.


    The pond had been abandoned for many years and was rarely visited. To prevent fish from the reservoir from escaping into the pond, thick fishings were ced at the junction where the waters of the two sides met at the end of the tributary.


    But at that moment, Suming saw arge hole in the, obviously burst open by some creature. The hole was nearly two feet in diameter, and even with Suming''s waistline, he could easily squeeze through, not to mention allowing dolphins to pass.


    "Is the river dolphin in the pond?" Suming asked the moray eels, not so sure.


    As aquatic creatures, the moray eels'' brains weren''t much more useful than a big head, and their ability to express themselves was just as vague; Suming could only guess as he went along.


    "Cut the chatter and lead the way!" Suming decided not to bother guessing further; they must have brought him here with a purpose, so he simply let the moray eels drag him through therge hole in the fishing.


    The moray eels entered theke and headed straight for the opposite bank with a clear destination in mind. It didn''t take long to cross the pond, and the water around them became shallower and shallower.


    Suming simply stood up, stepped on the muddy bottom, and climbed up the bank, dripping wet.


    Suming took off his diving helmet, gave his arms a shake, and whoosh, one moray eel slid down his arm to his chest, coiling around his torso, while the other wrapped around his waist like a belt.


    In front of him was arge expanse of reed marsh that had begun to yellow a bit, standing about as tall as a person. When the wind blew, the reeds made a soft whooshing sound. Thankfully, it was daytime; it would have been quite scary if it was nighttime.


    Arge swath of reeds had been knocked down in the marsh, creating a ''path.'' Wet mud still clung to the ttened reeds, as if something had crawled over them, leading deep into the marsh.


    "You guys better not be setting me up!"


    Looking at the reed marsh pathway, Suming''s heart skipped a beat.


    After all, the Yangchuan area was known to have specimens of the Chinese alligator! If it wasn''t a river dolphin but a ferocious beast like a Chinese alligator in the reeds, that would be just too ridiculous!


    ```


    My spiritual power may barely suffice to deal with Yangtze Crocodiles, but that would be if they confronted me head-on.


    The problem is that the dense reeds all around could provide cover for a sneaky attack if a Yangtze Crocodile were tounch a surprise strike from hiding, which would be really bad!


    Suming worried, but the two crocodile fish seemed to say, "Don''t worry, everything''s gonna be alright," stretching their necks like they were swollen body parts, adamantly pointing in the direction of the path through the reeds.


    "I''ll trust you this time, but if there''s any trouble, when we get back, I''ll stew the both of you tentacle freaks together!"


    Suming threatened the crocodile fish viciously, then cautiously grabbed arge stone from the ground and edged his way into the reeds.


    Following the path that had been trampled down, after about seven or eight meters and a slight bend, a very low bleating noise came from the bushes ahead, sounding like a young goat crying out.


    Relieved by the sound, Suming quickly ran forward, parting the reeds in front of him in one swift motion!


    In the small clearing aheady three creatures that looked like dolphins, but with round heads¡ªonerge and two small.


    Jiang dolphins! And there were three of them!


    Thergest dolphin was over one and a half meters long, and it had arge wound on its bare forehead where the bone was visible, oozing a mix of pale red blood and light yellow pus, giving off a terrible stench with several flies buzzing around it.


    Its body was covered with cuts of all sizes, apparently inflicted while breaking through fishings.


    Therge jiang dolphiny motionless; it was unclear whether it was dead or alive.


    The bleating noises came from the two smaller dolphins, each only half a meter in size, huddled on either side of therger one''s body.


    On the ground were a few fish the size of a palm. One young dolphin struggled to move its tiny fins, pushing the fish towards therger dolphin''s mouth as if trying to feed it;


    The other youngster persistently nudged therge dolphin with its head, but therge dolphin remained still, causing the two little ones to cry out in distress.


    Suming''s arrival startled the two young dolphins, who stopped their movements and looked at him with fear.


    Perhaps sensing a threat, therge dolphin, whose condition was uncertain, also weakly opened its eyes.


    After seeing Suming, it struggled to move its injured fin as though it wanted to shield the little ones behind it, but sadly, weakened by severe injuries, its fin drooped down again before it could fully open.


    Thus, therge dolphin could only look at Suming with cloudy eyes, filled with a pleading expression.


    A single tear slid down from the corner of therge dolphin''s eye.


    "Don''t be afraid, don''t be afraid!"


    Suming quickly released three waves of kind spiritual power, enveloping the dolphin mother and her two offspring.


    Unexpectedly, the spiritual power, which always worked wonders on animals, failed on the jiang dolphins!


    Seeing Suming approach, the young dolphins didn''t be friendlier but instead shrank back in fear, burying their heads behind therger dolphin, trembling.


    Suming was taken aback but then understood the reason!


    The dolphin family wasn''t afraid of him but was frightened by the two crocodile fish clinging to his body!


    "Wait outside!" Suming grabbed a crocodile fish in each hand and tossed them forcefully out of the reeds, where they traced an arc in mid-air and plopped into the pond outside.


    Sure enough, after throwing the crocodile fish aside, the hostile demeanor of the dolphins disappeared immediately.


    The two little dolphins even dared toe closer to Suming, energetically raising half their bodies and struggling to bring their fin-like hands together in front of their chests for reasons unknown.


    The two chubby little creatures finally managed to bring their fins together at their chests and, like worshipers praying to Buddha, put their hands together and incessantly bowed to Suming.


    "Don''t worry, I''ll save your mom!" Suming nodded and channeled all his spiritual power into the jiang dolphin mother''s body.

 Chapter 79 Rescuing the Yangtze Dolphin

    When Suming''s spiritual power barely made contact with the dolphin mother, he immediately realized that she was severely injured and on the brink of death.


    If she were human, a critical condition notice would have been issued, preparing for whates after life. Suming had just appeared when she suddenly woke up, wanting to protect her calf¡ªpurely a brief return to a more conscious state before death.


    Find your next read on m_v l|e-NovelFire


    After a reassuring dose of spiritual power was transferred into her body, the dolphin mother slowly fell back into a deep sleep.


    "This isn''t going to be easy!"


    Frowning, Suming continuously channeled spiritual power into the dolphin mother. From the feedback, it was clear that her injuries were too serious for ordinary medical methods to cure. First she was chased by an alligator gar, then she injured her head, and finally, she broke through a fishing and was bleeding out, waiting for death here; her life force was almostpletely drained. Even if she was brought to the world''s most advanced medical facility right now, it would be difficult to save her¡ªit would only dy the inevitable.


    As the saying goes, medicine can''t cure a dying patient; whether it''s humans or other creatures, if the life force is exhausted, no treatment, no matter how powerful, will work.


    The two small dolphinsy pitifully on either side of their mother, theirrge, dark eyes looking at Suming with both curiosity and expectation.


    "Don''t worry, little guys," Suming said, releasing two streams of spiritual energy to soothe the youngsters'' emotions, then gently touched their heads.


    Now, the most important thing was to use spiritual power to help the dolphin mother recover her life force little by little. Once her life force began to grow stronger, conventional treatments would be effective.


    Suming decided not to notify Mr. Song and the others just yet. Their presence wouldn''t help, and they might even cause harm in their rush to ''treat'' the dolphin, potentially making things worse.


    With that in mind, Suming gestured towards the sky.


    As a loyal guardian, Er Gouzi was incredibly dutiful and had been working very hard. Wherever Suming went, it followed, even if Suming was in the water, it had to follow from above, never straying more than a few steps away.


    At one call, Er Gouzi made a shining entrance, buzzing out and diving to kill several flies circling the dolphin mother''s wound, invigorated by the meal.


    "Stop eating for now, we have serious work to do! Go to the bees and bring back some honey! If you can manage it, bring back some food as well. Remember, it''s food for me to eat, not flies or mosquitoes!"


    Treating the dolphin mother was going to be a massive task, likely not a short-term endeavor. Suming needed honey to replenish his spiritual power and had to eat as well.


    Suming gave detailed instructions several times, specifically stating ''human food''. He didn''t want Er Gouzi naively bringing back a bunch of dead bees and dragonflies. It would be a disaster if he starved before the dolphin mother was healed.


    "Buzz... buzz... buzz..." Er Gouzi left, visibly tired.


    "Wait! Have the Queen Bee make some royal jelly for you to replenish your strength!" Suming quickly added another order.


    "Buzz buzz buzz!" Er Gouzi perked up and flew off swiftly.


    As time ticked by, just when Suming felt his spiritual power was nearly depleted, the dolphin mother''s life force finally showed signs of stabilizing. Although she wasn''t out of danger yet, she wasn''t as close to death as she was at the beginning.


    The dolphin mother opened her eyes once again and used her fins to pat the two young dolphins. She looked at Suming with eyes full of pleading.


    Dolphins are much more intelligent than fish, not far off from dolphins in terms of IQ. Suming immediately understood her and, with a grin, said, "Don''t worry, you won''t die. You don''t need to worry about your young."


    From afar, the familiar buzzing sound finally arrived, and a mixed transport squad ofrge bees and hos appeared, bringing three big blue beehives full of honey, plus a few peaches that were not fully ripe.


    Beyond that, Er Gouzi also brought a ''message'' from the Queen Bee, who seemed to be missing Suming.


    "Missing me?" Suming scratched his head, surprised that the Queen Bee could even exhibit ''emotions'' now.


    From a scientific perspective, only vertebrates are thought to be capable of experiencing ''emotions''. As for the Queen Bee? Suming wasn''t sure if she counted as a vertebrate.


    ```


    However, upon second thought, the queen bee was much smarter than the other bees, and besides, she was a female; it seemed quite normal for her to have the asional temper tantrum.


    "Got it, let her be for now, I''ll check on her when I''m free,"


    Suming waved his hand and took a couple of bites out of a peach. The peach wasn''t fully ripe and tasted a bit tart, so he decided to smear some honey on it and eat it that way, both replenishing his spiritual power and staving off hunger.


    Two curious little river dolphins approached, looking greedily at the peach and honey in Suming''s hand, their mouths half open, drool almost dripping.


    Suming chuckled, dipped some honey with his finger, and spread it near the little river dolphin''s mouth. The dolphin, tasting the sweetness, was very pleased and began to roll around on the ground, flipping back and forth with its chubby body.


    "Can''t give it all to you guys; I need this to save your mom," Sumingughed, but it reminded him that the little river dolphins probably hadn''t eaten for a while, so he shouted, "Er Gouzi!"


    Buzz... Er Gouzi appeared, his mouth full of royal jelly.


    "Have the two gar reapers catch some fish... "


    ...


    "People are gone again! What''s going on here!"


    Professor Chu was frantic, pacing back and forth in the temporarymand center with such speed that his few remaining strands of hair swayed as if he were an immortal about to ascend to the heavens.


    After a day''s search, when it came time to count heads, they realized that Suming was missing once again!


    As the highest-ranking leader, Wang Jian She showed his face on the first day but didn''te after that. Therefore, the actual leader in charge now was Professor Chu, with Mr. Song assisting. If they failed to find the river dolphins and instead lost a person, nobody could escape the responsibility.


    The underwatermunicator had a limited range; it didn''t work beyond three hundred meters, making it impossible to contact Suming.


    As for cell phones... who on earth brings a cell phone while diving...


    Mr. Song, having learned from yesterday''s experience, was reasonably calm and not too worried. He gave a few students a look, signaling them to keep quiet for the moment, but stood up and waved to Professor Chu, "Chu, Chu, don''t panic. I know Su, he''s quite skilled at fieldwork and shouldn''t have run into any big trouble. Besides, he sent a safety message earlier today."


    Professor Chu was already on the edge, and none of the students dared to speak up. Only Liang Shi, who was an honest and straightforward person, said, "Hey, thest safety confirmation was four or five hours ago! If something really happened, the oxygen in his tank would have been depleted long ago!"


    Professor Chu, with nowhere to vent his anger, found a target in Liang Shi''s remarks and pointed at him shouting, "You, you¡ªlook at you! You''re the one who got him lost yesterday, and you still haven''t learned your lesson today. You should''ve kept an eye on him! Damn it, such a tall man but with a head full of mush! Get out and stand guard!"


    "I..." Liang Shi''s mouth fell open, full of grievance. He did want to keep an eye on Suming, but with Suming''s swift swimming speed, who could keep up? Besides, they weren''t even in the same group today...


    Disheartened as he was, with a signal from Mr. Song, Liang Shi obediently went outside the tent to stand guard.


    To say Mr. Song wasn''t anxious at all would be false, but Suming was his man. He couldn''t add fuel to the fire at this point but could only try to soothe the situation, scooping up a bowl of steaming soup from the big pot and handing it to Professor Chu, "Chu, have some food first. Maybe Su has found some clues about the river dolphins and that''s why he''s dyed."


    Professor Chu put the soup bowl aside. With so much on his mind, he had no appetite for soup. Hebed the few sparse hairs on his head to one side, pped his forehead with his hands, andmented, "Ah, how can I even think about river dolphins now. I''ll be fortunate if there''s been no ident, this is killing me!"


    "Let''s eat first, and then we''ll all go look for him," Mr. Song called out.


    Exhausted from the day, everyone started eating noisily.


    Just as they were halfway through their meal, Liang Shi, who was standing guard outside, suddenly shouted excitedly:


    "River dolphins!"


    ```


    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and


    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!

 Chapter 80 People and People

    The tent was said to be pitched by the water''s edge, but in reality it was still fifty to sixty meters away from the water. So when they heard Liang Shi''s cries, everyone was startled, casting curious looks toward the entrance. Professor Chu even mmed his chopsticks down hard on the table, eximing angrily, "What finless porpoise? Can finless porpoises just crawl up to the shore on their own? This kid is getting more and more muddled!"


    With a rustle, the tent p was swept aside, and a soaking wet Suming walked in from outside, followed by a shocked Liang Shi.


    All eyes were focused on what Suming was cradling in his arms!


    In Suming''s arms, he held a finless porpoise on each side. The two youngsters, probably frightened by the sight of so many people, burrowed hard into Suming''s chest, revealing only four small ck eyes that looked around with curiosity, yet also a hint of wariness, at everyone inside the tent!


    Mr. Song was stunned, his chopsticks falling silently to the ground while the bowl of soup in his other hand tipped over, spilling hot soup all over him!


    With his face flushed with excitement, Liang Shi pointed to the finless porpoises in Suming''s arms, stammering as he yelled, "Tea.. Teacher... finless porpoises, finless porpoises, look, two baby finless porpoises!"


    It was only then that everyone seemed to awaken from a dream. Professor Chu red fiercely at Liang Shi, "I''m not blind, quit your yelling!"


    Seeing Suming, Mr. Song let out a long sigh of relief, the weight finally lifting from his heart, before turning his interest to the baby finless porpoises.


    "Howe there are two youngsters? What about the one in the video?" Mr. Song asked.


    "I found them in an abandonedke nearby, a family of three. The big one is injured; I couldn''t move it, so I brought the two youngsters back first. We need to prepare the boat quickly and go save the big one," Suming spoke as he gasped for breath.


    He had carried the two hefty ''babies'' out of the water, up to the tent, and he too was exhausted.


    "A family of three! Goodness, if you don''t open shop for three years, when you do, it''s a boom! How many years has it been since we''ve encountered wild finless porpoises? And now, not only have we found them, but an entire family at once! Su, you''ve made a great contribution! Wahahaha!"


    Professor Chu suddenly burst outughing like a madman, throwing his head back while his wild hair danced around.


    The others were also smiling from ear to ear.


    From a biological perspective, discovering three wild finless porpoises at once is of significant importance for research and conservation.


    From an individual career development perspective, everyone in the survey team had earned substantial merit, and for Mr. Song and Chu in charge of the team, they might just make a prominent mark in the annals of academia.


    "What are you waiting for? Stop eating, let''s move! Su, lead the way!"


    Everyone dropped their utensils and ran as a swarm outside; once on the boat, Suming returned the two baby finless porpoises back to the reservoir. Just as Professor Chu was about to say something, he saw that after the baby finless porpoises went into the water they didn''t flee but instead stood upright in the water, pointed with their flippers ahead, then swam slowly forward just atop the surface, as if guiding the way.


    Mr. Song knew this must be another of Su''s good deeds and asked with some uncertainty, "Have you tamed them?"


    Suming chuckled, "Finless porpoises are very intelligent, you know, and since I''m their savior, taming them was easier than taming those wolves."


    "You''ve got a knack for this. When we get back, I''ll make sure tomend you!" Mr. Song patted Suming''s shoulder with great satisfaction.


    When they found the mother finless porpoise, she was still lying immobile among the reeds, her wound looking quite dreadful, as if she wouldn''t make it, which distressed Professor Chu.


    But Suming was confident. Are you kidding? He had poured all of his spiritual power, from three bee nests into her, and the mother finless porpoise''s vital signs hadpletely stabilized. She was merely very weak and would recover quickly with proper care.


    However, scars on her head were probably inevitable, marring her appearance.


    Everyone used a tarp to shield from the rain, scrambling to lift the river dolphin into the onboard water tank. Following the reservoir''s tributary, they returned to the shore-based main camp.


    Normally, they should have immediately sent therge river dolphin to a city with better medical facilities, or even to the capital for treatment.


    But now the river dolphin''s injuries were "severe", there was no time to dy, and it couldn''t withstand the long journey, so Professor Chu and the others discussed for a while and decided to treat the river dolphin on the spot.


    "Song, I''m going to call Mr. Wang and the Agricultural Science Academy right now to request personnel and equipment to be sent over. Does Yangchuan have an aquarium or something where we can temporarily house and treat the river dolphin family?" Professor Chu asked Mr. Song.


    Mr. Song patted Suming on the shoulder, his eyes full of expectation: "Su, make some sacrifices and let the river dolphin family stay in your Shuijun Lake for now."


    The size and water quality of Shuijun Lake were suitable for the life of river dolphins, and since it was within the zoo''s control area, putting the river dolphins there was naturally the best choice.


    However, Shuijun Lake was used for fish farming, and river dolphins'' main diet was fish. Even a small river dolphin had an astonishing appetite; once put in theke, it would definitely eat a lot of Suming''s fish, causing some losses.


    Seeing that Suming didn''t speak immediately, Professor Chu thought that Suming was reluctant. After all, the river dolphins were not personal property, but "national" assets, and it seemed somewhat unreasonable to ask Suming to sacrifice his personal interests to take care of the river dolphins.


    "Su, don''t worry too much. Since we found the river dolphins, the authorities will definitely allocate funds. Rest assured, I won''t let you suffer any personal loss!" Professor Chu said earnestly.


    In fact, what Suming was thinking about wasn''t the issue of funds at all. No matter how big the appetites of the two small river dolphins were, how many fish could they eat? Compared to the entire Shuijun Lake, it was a drop in the bucket; at the worst, he''d earn a few thousand less.


    Even if Mr. Song and the others hadn''t mentioned it, Suming was nning to take the initiative and offer to temporarily house the river dolphins in Shuijun Lake. He was thinking about more distant matters.


    Now that Professor Chu had also taken the initiative to promise "subsidies", Suming naturally had no hesitation, immediately nodding his head: "Of course there''s no problem, protecting animals is everyone''s responsibility!"


    "Good, young man, you''re conscientious!" Professor Chu patted Suming''s shoulder heavily.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    These old fellows had been toughened by going to the countryside, their hands were frighteningly strong, and Professor Chu, fuck, was like someone who had practiced the Vajra Palm technique, sending Suming staggering with one p, his teeth clenched in pain.


    "Meep meep..." The small river dolphin started calling out in dissatisfaction at Chu, even opening its mouth as if trying to scare Chu. But the round little fellow was too cute, and when it got angry, it didn''t look fierce at all, but rather it made everyoneugh heartily.


    After making their decision, the investigation team rushed back to the zoo overnight. Su allocated a roughly four to five mu area of water at the northeastern corner of Shuijun Lake for the family of three river dolphins to live temporarily. The mother dolphin couldn''t move around freely for the time being and was ced in shallow water. Find more chapters on m_v l|e-NovelBin


    Professor Chu was initially worried and scooped up some water to sniff under his nose, then his eyes brightened and he eximed, "Song, when did the water quality of Shuijun Lake be so good?"


    "It''s all thanks to these young people!"


    Mr. Song stretched his hand to pat Suming''s shoulder, but seeing the situation "turning sour", Suming twisted his waist and dodged.


    Mr. Song''s hand stopped mid-air, and he let out a heartyugh, pointing at Suming and saying, "Chu, in my opinion, we old bones should almost let go now and let the young ones take on the responsibilities!"


    Professor Chu looked at his direct student Liang Shi.


    Liang Shi was squatting by the water, staring at therge river dolphin with a silly grin on his face.


    Professor Chu then looked at Suming, sighing in frustration and saying helplessly, "Ah, you can''tpare people with one another!"

 Chapter 83 Look at your mom!

    About how to "arrange" those five big fish, Suming had considered it as well.


    The smallest of these fish weighed just over 100 jin (approximately 50 kg), with thergest green fish reaching 180 jin (approximately 90 kg); they definitely couldn''t be treated like ordinary fish, killed for their meat or sold off.


    In modern society, it is exceedingly rare for fish to grow sorge; it would take at least several decades. ording to the elder generation, suchrge fish have "spiritual power" and killing them would be an inauspicious act.


    As for releasing them, that''s nonsense. Not to mention that Suming had bought them with his own money, even if he did release them, they might be caught by someone downstream in a few days after being released upstream.


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    These days, with sand dredgers and fishing boats everywhere, severe pollution, and the wild living environment of animals being horribly destroyed, these fish would probably not have as good a life in the wild as they would following Suming.


    In the end, Suming was not someone with an entirely noble and righteous backbone; he frankly couldn''t be bothered to do things that involved sacrificing his interests for the greater good.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Under normal circumstances, capturing such big fish usually leads to an exhibition with an entrance fee. People seek novelty, and these enormous fish, all five of them, would certainly attract plenty willing to pay to see them.


    Suming thought further ahead, possessing the ability to befriend animals, it would be too wasteful to merely use suchrge fish for exhibition purposes.


    As he had told that reporter, he indeed wanted to develop a "fish-riding" attraction.


    Riding horses ismon, but riding fish is an unprecedented idea; no zoos around the world, including ces like Disney, have a fish-riding attraction.


    Maintaining horses is expensive; a batch of good horses is costly by itself, and with feed and maintenance, the investment is significant. Moreover, horse riding is rtively more dangerous and not widespread in China.


    Big fish, on the other hand, are different. The five fishbined cost less than ten thousand yuan, while just one leg of a decent horse is worth more than that. Daily feeding is easy to manage; they would eat whatever is in theke, are unlikely to get sick, and are very easy to keep alive.


    Therefore, the prospects for the fish-riding attraction are undeniable.


    But to truly create a fish-riding attraction that is both safe and fun, the conditions are not yet ripe.


    With Suming''s spiritual power to control them, riding these big fish would be no issue, but that doesn''t mean others could ride them too. If someone else tried, the big fish simply wouldn''tply, and Suming would need to slowly "train" them.


    Beyond that, management issues also need to be resolved. Like the boat ride attraction, the fish-riding attraction would definitely require management by professionals with specific knowledge.


    Typical aquarium attendants could handle this job, but Yangchuan City Zoo is so poor it can hardly make ends meet, having barely any decent aquatic animals, let alone ''high-end configurations'' like an aquarium, thus no aquarium attendants.


    It''s not that there are no aquatic animals; in fact, the zoo has many, all residing in Shuijun Lake. Although there are no rare protected species, there are enough in quantity.


    The fish-riding project is temporarily unable tounch. Not just fish riding, but even the boat ride business has been temporarily suspended due to the arrival of the finless porpoises, to avoid startling the injured porpoise.


    Professor Chu, true to his word, allocated two thousand yuan from the research funds topensate Suming for his financial losses during this period.


    "Two thousand yuan..."


    Suming felt speechless while holding the money. He didn''t even mention the loss from the boat ride business¡ªjust the fish that the two young dolphins had eaten recently probably amounted to more than two thousand yuan.


    These two youngsters lived up to their reputation as "Love for Life," indeed having appetites as enormous as pigs. Despite their small size, only slightly bigger than babies, they did nothing but y and eat from morning to night, consuming severalrge buckets of food each day.


    There''s a saying that a child without a mother is the most pitiable, but for Suming it was quite the opposite. He couldn''t bear to treat these two guys poorly and wouldn''t let them eat the four major types of fish from theke. Instead, he would go to the market every day and specially buy foods like grenadiers, big silverfish, and bass, which happen to be the dolphins'' favorite foods.


    Both God and the constitution say that all men are created equal, and by that logic, animals should be equal, too.


    In reality, that''splete nonsense.


    Just as people with good looks receive preferential treatment everywhere, as two of the world''s few remaining wild dolphins, the treatment of the two dolphin calves was the best in the entire Yangchuan City Zoo.


    After a few days, these two rascals had be picky eaters and turned their noses up at the ordinary fish in theke.


    Nevertheless, Suming really couldn''tin about theck of money. Just for this 2000 yuan subsidy, the research team had to organize a discussion meeting and go through a bunch of procedures to get it approved.


    Protecting animals might sound glorious, but even if done well, it doesn''t add a single cent to the nation''s GDP. Professor Chu and his team often run on insufficient annual funds, so being able to provide 2000 yuan is already quite considerate.


    Suming now couldn''t be bothered with worrying about this small amount of money. He simply bought himself a small motorboat and moored it in the middle of Shuijun Lake, lounging in a deck chair to sunbathe while scattering his spiritual power into the water.


    During this period, the fish in theke had grown a size bigger. With the rate they were growing, they would be ready for sale in just a few months.


    Lately, the gharial gar fish had be much better behaved. Without Suming''s control, they would go to Huating Reservoir to feed on time each day ande back full, resting within the area Suming had designated for them quite obediently, saving Suming quite a bit of trouble.


    The alligator snapping turtles and the bighead carp had nothing better to do; they did nothing but eat all day, quickly growing in size.


    The alligator snapping turtles were somewhat better off, mainly putting on muscle and looking like muscr men. Paired with a fierce-looking shell, they looked quite majestic, and could probably scare quite a few people if they went out at night;


    Bighead carp, however, was a lost cause, growing fat and clumsy with a tendency to mutate into a pig. At first nce, it resembled a plump, ck dolphin.


    The mother dolphin was undergoing treatment, and without her to keep them in check, the dolphin calves acted like two idling hooligans all day in Shuijun Lake, messing around. Sometimes when they saw tourists, they would even pop up to spit water, turn in a circle, and wiggle their butts, baiting for some snacks and screams from young girls.


    When they saw Suming''s boat approaching, the two dolphin calves started calling out joyfully from afar, leaping through the wind and over the water''s surface, quickly reaching the side of the motorboat, where they stood upright on the water, twisting and turning.


    Suming casually threw a bass from the bucket, and before the bass even fully hit the water, one of the dolphin calves waiting by the side of the boat leaped, its tail gliding over the surface as if it were sliding on the water, and snatched the fish in its mouth.


    The other dolphin calf, having missed out, was so anxious that it kept calling out, paddling with its flippers while perched on the edge of the boat, its round head desperately pushing towards the direction of the bucket.


    "You shameless thing¡­" Suming grabbed a squid and tossed it over; its tentacles spread out in the wind, stting the face of the dolphin calf with a ''biu'' sound.


    The dolphin calf opened its huge mouth, leaned its body slightly backward, and then inhaled forcefully, slurping the entire squid into its belly, much like slurping noodles.


    "Stop eating, go see your mom!"


    "Go see your mom" had recently be a popr phrase in Yangchuan City. Ever since the TV report about the family of dolphins at the zoo, swarms of tourists were attracted every day, eager to personally see this animal even rarer than pandas. Later, some cheeky person wrote aedic article online titled "I''ve Come to See Your Mom."


    The article went viral overnight, and "go see your mom" became a popr phrase, meaning "see something rare."

 Chapter 84 Giving Up Treatment

    Actually, due to the needs of treatment, the mother finless porpoise was strictly protected. The treatment room built by the side of Shuijun Lake was surrounded by reflective warning tape, and there were patrol officers from the police station who would not allow any unrted people to approach, so the majority of visitors had no chance to see therge finless porpoise up close.


    Although they missed seeing therge finless porpoise, the visitors were not disappointed, as their attention was quickly drawn to two young finless porpoises frolicking in theke.


    The young finless porpoises were naturally friendly towards people, and with Suming''s secret "instructions," they would also intentionally approach the visitors, acting cute and coy up close, quickly capturing the hearts of many tourists.


    In these few days, the zoo''s ticket sales skyrocketed, pleasing Mrs. Tong so much that she couldn''t stop smiling, and Shuijun Lake also became famous in the process.


    Over at the treatment room, to avoid frightening or infecting therge finless porpoise, only Professor Chu and a few medical personnel coulde and go. Other staff members of the zoo, including Mr. Song, were not allowed to enter freely.


    Although Suming was the finless porpoise''s lifesaver, he was not a member of the medical staff, and treating the finless porpoise was not his responsibility. At first, he was among those restricted from entering freely.


    Yet for some reason, after therge finless porpoise had slightly recovered its strength, it suddenly refused to take its medicine and was very resistant to human proximity. Whenever there was someone in the treatment room, therge finless porpoise would be very nervous, unwilling to quietly ept treatment and constantly thrashing its body.


    This disturbance not only prevented its recovery but also showed signs of worsening its condition.


    Professor Chu was an expert in this field and had encountered such a situation more than once. Therge finless porpoise was originally a wild animal, and it had been injured due to a collision with a human, most likely developing a "psychological shadow" towards humans.


    To get therge finless porpoise to ept treatment, Professor Chu had the medical personnel inject it with a sedative.


    But each time the effect of the sedative wore off, it would start causing trouble again.


    Sedatives and anesthetics, if injected multiple times, can cause irreversible harm to an organism, reducing biological function and intelligence¡ªpossibly even turning it into a vegetative "nt fish." Therge finless porpoise was now a preciousmodity, being closely watched by the government, media, and public. There was no room for error. Professor Chu did not dare to force it, yet he could not just let the porpoise die from its injuries. In just two or three days, having tried countless solutions to no avail, he was so anxious that his hair turned white.


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    When Mr. Song heard of the situation, he casually reminded Chu, "Su is the finless porpoise''s lifesaver, why not let Su try? The kid has a way with animals, even the troublemakers in the zoo are quite obedient under his care."


    Initially, Chu wasn''t very hopeful. The animals in the zoo were artificially bred, nothing like wild finless porpoises. Taming animals did not mean he could make the finless porpoise obedient.


    But he had no other options. With the mindset of a dead horse being used as a live horse doctor, he let Suming give it a try.


    When Suming walked into the treatment room, something astonishing urred!


    The previously disobedientrge finless porpoise suddenly calmed down, even making an effort to prop up its body and crawl to Suming''s feet, affectionately rubbing itsrge head against Suming''s legs, showing none of its earlier defiance but resembling a well-behaved little girl, or rather, a young wife...


    A few medical staff members and Professor Chu were stunned then and there, with faces full of bewilderment.


    "Where''s the medicine?" Suming gestured to Liang Shi, who was preparing the medication, with a flick of his finger, and Liang Shi, as if waking from a dream, hurriedly passed arge syringe full of medication to Suming.


    Suming squatted down and patted therge finless porpoise''s head, saying, "Good girl, open your mouth."


    Previously, administering medicine to therge finless porpoise was a hassle, requiring it to be restrained with bands, then two people had to force open its mouth and inject the medication inside. Despite this, most of the medicine would still be expelled by the finless porpoise.


    But at that moment, with just a simplemand from Suming, therge finless porpoise seemed to understand and obediently opened its mouth, allowing Suming to inject the medication.


    The medicine was bitter and astringent, and after ingesting it, the Yangtze river dolphin pped its flippers near its mouth a few times in dissatisfaction, making discontented humming sounds as if it found the taste quite unpleasant.


    "Have a candy..." Suming reached into his pocket, unwrapped a piece of milk candy, and popped it into the river dolphin''s mouth.


    "You can''t just feed it anything..." just as Liang Shi was about to stop Suming, Professor Chu, who had been observing from the side, stopped him.


    Suming then fed the river dolphin several other types of medicine and, finally, some perch as food. After having its fill, the river dolphin was finally willing to lie in the water quietly and heal.


    Liang Shi quickly took the opportunity to attach several metal tes connected to a device onto the river dolphin''s body, focusing on the readings to monitor its recovery.


    Professor Chu pulled Suming out of the treatment room and asked, "Su, do you have some sort of method? Why does the river dolphin listen to you so well?"


    Suming thought it amusing inside. Wasn''t it obvious? At the critical moment when the river dolphin''s life was hanging by a thread, he had continuously infused it with spiritual power for six or seven hours straight. As a result, an indelible mark was left in the river dolphin''s consciousness. Combined with his ability tomunicate with the dolphin directly, it would be strange if it didn''t listen to him.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    But he couldn''t just tell Professor Chu inly, so Suming smiled and said, "Nothing special, really. It''s probably just like what Mr. Song said, I saved it, so it trusts me more, I guess."


    This exnation seemed somewhat far-fetched, but beyond that, Professor Chu really couldn''t think of any other exnation.


    Besides, the intelligence of river dolphins is already quite high,parable to that of a three or four-year-old child. Children of that age rarely act on reason and often go with their feelings, listening to those they like.


    At that moment, Liang Shi rushed out of the treatment room, his face alight with joy as he held up the detector and eximed, "Professor, look, the river dolphin''s recovery effect is especially good this time, and the medicine''s effectiveness has even exceeded the best expectation by more than 20%!"


    "Oh? Better than the best expectation?" While Professor Chu''s eyebrows lifted in delight, he felt somewhat puzzled as well.


    Exceeding the best expectations was undeniably a good thing. However, the effects of the medicine were scientifically calcted and verified, with the upper and lower limits determined by countless scientific experiments. The medicine purchased for the river dolphin was also top quality, free from any counterfeit or substandard issues. How could it exceed the best medicinal effect?


    He looked at Suming with suspicion, as if trying to find the answer in his expression.


    Suming chuckled, saying half-jokingly, "It''s just like with people, if you''re in a good mood, you heal better, that''s all."


    "That sounds pretty reasonable."


    Professor Chu realized that Suming definitely had some ''trick up his sleeve,'' but extracting it from him was simply impossible.


    He pushed back a few stray hairs from his forehead and said to Suming, "Well, since the river dolphin''s mood improves when it sees you, it looks like you''re going to be busy for a while. From now on, you''ll have to visit the treatment room three times a day, morning, noon, and evening, for an hour each time to feed the dolphin its medicine!"


    "What about my actual job?" Suming asked.


    "Saving the life of a river dolphin is the greatest contribution you can make to the country!"


    And so Suming, the temporary worker, became someone who had to clock in at the treatment room ''for work'' at scheduled times each day to contribute to the nation.

 Chapter 85 Wedding Dress?

    For a whole week, Suming devoted himself entirely to the treatment of the Yangtze River dolphin. Although the schedule was supposed to be three times a day, one hour each time, in reality, he was almost always in the treatment room from morning to night, staying with the dolphin.


    The River dolphin''s recovery speed far exceeded everyone''s expectations. By Saturday, it had almostpletely healed, but for safety''s sake, it still needed to be observed for a few more days.


    So, today Suming finally got some free time, taking the two little ones out on theke.


    After the arrival of the River dolphin and those big fish, the number of tourists exploded. Even though the boat tours were temporarily suspended, the feed business boomed tremendously. As the feed was mostly made of Mixed Sea Fish, it was not only suitable for feeding ordinary domestic fish, but the young river dolphins also liked it. asionally, with good luck, it could even attract those huge fish weighing over tens of pounds, causing a wave of exmations from the tourists.


    In these few days, tons of feed were sold daily, and the iepensated for the losses from the boat business. Just within a week, the ie earned by the three nurses from the health clinic and Mr. Peng and his colleagues from selling feed amounted to what they usually made in a month.


    When Suming entered the treatment room, Liang Shi was holding a notebook, observing the River dolphin, and making some records, preparing for his graduation thesis.


    Seeing Suming, Liang Shi hurriedly put down his notebook and greeted him, "Mr. Su, you''re here!"


    Suming nodded, touched the River dolphin''s head, and immediately, it turned over, belly up towards Suming, and wiggled its stomach to act spoiled.


    "How''s the recovery going?" Suming asked, partly addressing the River dolphin and partly Liang Shi.


    "Hmm, very good. It canpletely stop the medication tomorrow. Mr. Tang is writing a summary report for the higher-ups."


    "What about your thesis? With three River dolphins as your subject material, you shouldn''t have any problems now, should you?" Suming asked with a smile.


    Liang Shi scratched his head and grinned naively, "Shouldn''t be any problem now. Many domestic experts who specialize in River dolphin research don''t get this kind of opportunity. I was just lucky this time, thanks to Mr. Tang and you, Mr. Su. Speaking of which, I''ve caused you trouble during this time and even affected your business. Once it''s off the medication, Chu will arrange for it to be transported to the provincial capital to be raised together with the other Baiji Dolphins."


    "What, it''s going to be moved?" Suming frowned slightly.


    "Yes," Liang Shi said as if it were a matter of course, "We can''t keep it in Shuijun Lake forever, can we?"


    "Why not?" Suming pointed to the waters outside, saying, "This area isrge enough, and the water quality is quite good. There shouldn''t be any problem keeping them here."


    Liang Shi shook his head, "The facilities and conditions in Yangchuan City are rtively poor. The provincial capital has arge conservation center withplete settings and staff. Generally, any endangered or injured aquatic creatures are sent to the conservation center in the provincial capital. The future feeding, breeding, and training for release into the wild will also be done by the provincial side."


    Hearing this, Suming suddenly became a bit annoyed. After all the hard work, was he just making a wedding dress for someone else?


    Seeing Suming''s darkened expression, Liang Shi didn''t know what to say. He was just a student, and he had no say in such a big matter. Even if he wanted to help, he was powerless.


    "Don''t get me wrong, this has nothing to do with you. You do what you need to do."


    Seeing that Liang Shi''s expression wasn''t great, Suming waved his hand at him, signaling him not to feel guilty about it or anything, and then turned and left the treatment room, heading straight for Mr. Song''s office.


    After giving Mr. Song a brief overview of the situation, Mr. Song also let out a wry smile after hearing it.


    "You think I don''t want to keep the river dolphins at the zoo? What a joke. I''d love nothing more! Our zoo doesn''t even have a handful of national first-ss protected animals, and even fewer aquatic ones. Look around, we don''t even have a small aquarium! If we could keep these three river dolphins, it would be a tremendous help to the development of our zoo!"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Then, can''t you speak to the higher-ups to keep the river dolphins here?" Suming said, holding a water bottle and filling up Mr. Song''s cup with water.


    Mr. Song picked up the cup and took a sip of water before continuing, "It''s useless! There are some things you probably don''t know about. Yangchuan City and the provincial capital are both top-ranking cities in our province. Because the provincial capital is administratively higher than Yangchuan, it has always implicitly held sway over Yangchuan City. And Yangchuan? They don''t really take orders from the provincial capital either. Both sides have always been openly and covertlypeting in all aspects, including the ownership of these river dolphins."


    "The river dolphins were found in Huating Reservoir; they should definitely belong to Yangchuan City!" Suming said.


    "You might say that, but the provincial capital has other ideas. Huating Reservoir is connected to the Yangtze River, and it''s clear these dolphins swam into the reservoir from the Yangtze when the gates were opened. Why should they definitely belong to Yangchuan City? Besides, the river dolphins are a shared treasure of Huaxia, even of the Earth, not just a single locality''s. Once they throw that big hat down, what can you say?" Mr. Song had probably experienced many such incidents before and spoke with some indignation.


    "Damn it, if they can pull rank, can''t the leaders of Yangchuan City do the same?" Suming cursed and muttered.


    Mr. Song gave a bitter smile, "Just in terms of protecting the river dolphins alone, we can''tpete with the provincial capital. The provincial conservation center''s hardware and software surpass anything in Yangchuan City or any other wildlife conservation agency. It''s truly first-rate. The dolphins would be better cared for there. Also, Liang Shi told you, didn''t he? It''s standard practice for endangered animals to be sent to the provincial conservation center," he said with a sigh.


    "There are so many reasons; it''s already a done deal that the river dolphins will be sent to the provincial capital..." Mr. Song sighed.


    "Even Mr. Wang doesn''t care..." Suming said irritably. After all, it was a feather in Wang Jian She''s cap, too; how could he just resign himself to giving it away?


    Mr. Song shook his head slightly, lowering his voice before saying, "Actually, if you paid close attention, you should have noticed some signs. Take, for example, the head of this special team is our own Mr. Wang from Yangchuan City, but from the beginning to the end, he has only shown up two or three times and hasn''t been too concerned with the team''s affairs. On the other hand, Professor Chu from the provincial agricultural college, the deputy team leader, and his students are the ones actually handling the team''s work. Think about why that is."


    Suming originally thought that this was because Professor Chu was a professional, but after hearing what Mr. Song said, he pondered for a moment and then had a sudden realization.


    "Oh, I see now. The provincial agricultural college is in the provincial capital, and that conservation center is also managed by the college. Mr. Wang knew all along that even if the river dolphins were found, they would end up going to the provincial capital in the end. It''s not that Yangchuan City wouldn''t get any credit, but the lion''s share of the credit, and all the benefits that the dolphins would bring, would actually go to the provincial capital. So, he just didn''t bother to invest much effort in this matter, just going through the motions."


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    Mr. Song nodded, "In fact, Chu and his team, like me, are schrs at heart and still have a passion for protecting animals. They probably haven''t thought so much about it, but in reality, it''s just like you said! Think about it: you, me, Mr. Wang, even the city officials, we would all like the river dolphins to stay in Yangchuan City. These animals are even rarer than the giant pandas. If managed well, they could be a major feature of Yangchuan City, but nobody''s taking the lead on it. Why not? Because everyone knows, even if they raise the issue, it wouldn''t make a difference!"


    "So you''re saying there''s absolutely nothing we can do? If all else fails, can''t we keep the two younger river dolphins?" Suming asked.


    "That''s even less likely," Mr. Song replied helplessly, shaking his head, "Suming, don''t think too much about it. No matter what, even if the river dolphins are sent away, your contributions can''t be erased."

 Chapter 86 The Meeting about the Ownership of the River Dolphins

    After leaving Mr. Song, Suming still felt somewhat unconvinced.


    For a national-level protected animal like the finless porpoise, ownership belongs to the state, not to any particr province or city, and certainly not personal property.


    But in practice, who is responsible for raising and managing the finless porpoises can be quite different.


    It was like with Zhao Yun, whose private museum housed many items that the nation prohibited from trade, which inly speaking, are national property. Zhao Yun was merely a custodian.


    Yet, over a decade, with the help of these ''state-owned'' collections, Zhao Yun rose in prominence, bing a member of Yangchuan City''s elite and even establishing substantial connections overseas.


    Therefore, economically speaking, it was essential to keep the finless porpoises; from a personal attachment perspective, the finless porpoise family was like friends to him. After spending time together, they had developed a friendship, and a forced separation would be hard to ept.


    If someone suddenly tried to take away his caninepanions or the feline stars from Suming''s side, he would certainly disagree. Even with creatures like Da Tou, Er Gouzi, and the crocodile snakeheads, Suming couldn''t bear to give them away.


    Besides, without me, the finless porpoise family would have long perished. Now youe to put in your two cents and im credit?!


    He sat in the pavilion by the water, pondered for a while, and then made a phone call to Wang Hao.


    "Looking for my dad?" Wang Hao was initially startled and said jokingly, "Hey, Su, you''re really moving up in the world, treating my old man as your equal now. Just two days ago, he was talking about you, telling me to learn from you more."N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Soon, a deep voice came from the other end of the phone, Wang Jian She.


    After listening to what Suming had to say, Wang Jian She thought for a brief moment and said, "Mr. Song is right, although Yangchuan City would also like to have the custody of these fish..."


    Suming''s mouth twitched, thinking to himself, Leader, finless porpoises are not just any fish; you are, after all, in charge of parks, agriculture, and fishery - could you not be a bit more professional?


    However, it was unnecessary to get hung up on these details; he just waited to hear Wang Jian She say ''but.''


    "But... as much as everyone desires it, there''s hardly any possibility in operation. Mr. Song has already told you the reasons. Moreover, my position isn''t suitable for speaking out lightly."


    Anyone reaching Wang Jian She''s position was shrewd. Although he had an appreciation for Suming, without full confidence, Wang Jian She wouldn''t rashly suggest keeping the finless porpoises. If the attempt ultimately failed, it would give the impression to superiors that he was unreliable in handling matters.


    Wang Jian She pondered for a moment and then continued, "How about this, if you really are confident that you can keep these fish here, then let Mr. Song file a request. Draft a report in the name of the zoo, submit it up the chain to me, and I will consult with the city government, following the due process."


    The zoo has a duty to protect animals, and developing its own business is also an implied part of its role. If the proposal to keep the finless porpoises came from the zoo and was reported step by step, even if it didn''t work out in the end, Wang Jian She wouldn''t be held ountable.


    With no other options at the moment, Sumingmunicated with Mr. Song once more, Mr. Song thought it over and saw this as a glimmer of hope, so he drafted a proposal that very day.


    "Suggestions on Keeping Three Wild Finless Porpoises in Yangchuan City Zoo for Raising and Care."


    The proposal was processed through several steps and arrived at Wang Jian She''s office. After reviewing it, he took it along with a few other forestry and agricultural documents to the municipal partymittee and found a deputy mayor in charge of this area.


    "Wang, what is your opinion?" Leaders generally do not take the initiative to express their views. After reading all the documents, Mr. Sun, the deputy mayor, picked out the report from the zoo and asked Wang Jian She.


    Wang Jian She pondered for a moment and did not answer directly but smiled and said, "Thank goodness the finless porpoise is still at the zoo. If it had already been transported away, there would be nothing to discuss."


    Mr. Sun also smiled and said, "Then should we have a meeting with the people from the provincial capital and talk about it?"


    "To be honest, the chances are slim. However, if we don''t fight for it, then there''s no chance at all," Wang Jian She said.


    With one word from the leader, the subordinates scramble to act. That very evening, the deputy mayor in charge of agriculture, forestry, and fisheries from the provincial capital, the heads of the relevant departments, and the Agricultural Sciences Academy all received a letter from Yangchuan City. A team led by Mr. Sun and managed by Wang Jian She was formed on Yangchuan''s side to handle negotiations with the other party.


    "What a joke! Song, do you know the condition of your zoo? Do you have specialized equipment, professional staff, and what will you do for the reproduction of the finless porpoise? Who will take responsibility for training the young porpoises for release into the wild? Who will look after their daily lives?"


    Sitting around the conference table were rows of leaders of all levels, with Professor Chu bombarding his old ssmate, Mr. Song, the head of the zoo, with a barrage of questions.


    "Chu, calm down, we''re in the middle of a discussion," Wang Jian She said amiably in an attempt to smooth things over.


    Mr. Song replied indifferently, "Chu, what you''re saying isn''t right. If we don''t have it, we can build it, we can buy it. Once we have the finless porpoises, we can then develop the necessary facilities."


    "Song, you make it sound so easy. Of course, with the economic strength of Yangchuan City, I believe it can be done. But that''s not something that happens overnight. If there is a problem with the finless porpoise in the meantime, who will take responsibility?"


    The one speaking was Mr. Jiang, the head of the agriculture department from the provincial capital, who led the team for this meeting. The provincial capital had a slightly higher status than Yangchuan City, and Mr. Jiang''s rank could barely match that of deputy mayor Mr. Sun. However, Mr. Sun did not attend the meeting, so the ranks were perfectly matched.


    "Mr. Jiang, can you guarantee that sending the finless porpoise to the protection center will not result in any problems?"


    Wang Jian She picked up his teacup, used the lid to wipe away theyer of tea foam on top, blew on the scalding water, and with a smile said, "As I understand it, when Professor Chu and his team were treating the finless porpoise, the animal wasn''t cooperative at all and nearly died. It was only thanks to the core staff of Yangchuan City Zoo and Comrade Su that the problem was resolved. To go back further, when it was time to search for it, therades from the Agricultural Sciences Academy exerted great effort but failed to find the finless porpoise. Instead, it was Su who found a family of three finless porpoises. Without Su, the porpoises might have died long ago, and we wouldn''t need to have this meeting to discuss the fate of the porpoise."


    Professor Chu''s face turned dark. As a respected professor and a top expert in his field, he had encountered significant ''errors'' both in finding and treating the finless porpoise, and it seemed, was outperformed by an ordinary zoo employee, and a temporary one at that.


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    In such a situation, how could he have the face to say that Yangchuan City Zoo couldn''t take good care of the finless porpoise?


    Seeing the change in Professor Chu''s expression, Wang Jian She put down his teacup and chuckled towards Professor Chu, "Chu, don''t misunderstand me. I''m not questioning your professional level. What I mean is that our Yangchuan City Zoo has talent too and is fully capable of taking good care of the finless porpoise."


    Professor Chu frowned slightly and said, "If Comrade Su Ming were to take care of the finless porpoise, I would be at ease. However..."


    "Wang, the state has spent tens of millions to establish the protection center. If the finless porpoise is not sent there, it would notply with the policy!"


    Mr. Jiang from the provincial capital interrupted Professor Chu, his eyes sweeping over the individuals from Yangchuan City and profoundly stating, "To put it bluntly, if we send the finless porpoise to the protection center and something unexpected happens, we will still be following regtions. But if it stays in Yangchuan City, and given that the city''s conditions are somewhat inferior, if something happens to the finless porpoise, how will you exin to the higher-ups and the public?"

 Chapter 87 Group Events

    The meetingsted for about an hour, and afterwards, Mr. Song returned to the zoo and informed Suming of both parties'' final decision.


    They would still follow the original n and send the river dolphins to the provincial capital.


    However, the provincial capital was willing to pay a sum of money, about one hundred thousand yuan, as a reward for the members of the special rescue and protection team who had performed meritoriously¡ªin in terms, this meritorious member was Suming and the zoo. They were using money to seal their lips.


    Besides, after the river dolphins were sent to the protection center in the provincial capital, Yangchuan City Zoo could send staff to the protection center at any time to participate in the study, nurturing, and future wildlife release of the river dolphins.


    "They sure are cunning to the extreme, sending people over there is just freebor for them," Mr. Song said, not entirely convinced.


    At the negotiation table, Yangchuan City''s side had actually gained the upper hand.


    Without equipment that could be purchased, having technical personnel like Suming there, and with Shuijun Lake currently serving as a ready-made habitat for the river dolphins¡ªthey could simply set aside a part of the reservoir for the river dolphins'' habitat if it really came down to it.


    But what ultimately settled the matter was a sentence from Mr. Jiang of the provincial capital.


    Sending the river dolphins to the protection center was following the rules. Conversely, keeping them in Yangchuan was an exception, a breach of the system. If things turned out fine, then all was well. But should the river dolphins suffer the slightest mishap, everyone would have to bear the responsibility, especially a few leaders on the Yangchuan side.


    The ''River Dolphin Ownership'' first meeting thus concluded.


    One hundred thousand yuan was something neither Suming nor the zoo cared much about. It wasn''t that the amount was small, but inparison to the immense various values of the river dolphin, one hundred thousand was insignificant, hardly worth mentioning. With the river dolphins present, the zoo could see a monthly ticket revenue increase of much more than this amount.


    It''s like thinking you''ve found a nugget of gold when in fact, upon appraisal, you discover it''s merely a piece of brass. Brass can be sold for a little money, butpared to gold, it''s pure trash.


    Not only did they fail to reach their goal, but they also stirred up a potential ho''s nest.


    After the meeting, in an increased state of ''vignce'' and to prevent any unforeseen issues, Mr. Jiang from the provincial capital immediately phoned the protection center that evening, asking them to send a vehicle to pick up the family of river dolphins.


    Early on the third day, arge container truck with a huge water tank drove into the zoo and arrived at the edge of Shuijun Lake.


    Professor Chu looked at Suming, scratched the few strands of hair on top of his head with some embarrassment, "This... Su, no matter what, we''re all working to protect the river dolphins..."


    "Anyway, I think the way the provincial capital is handling this isn''t very honorable. Why should all the good things be sent to the provincial capital?"


    Suming rolled his eyes, openly expressing his dissatisfaction.


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    Within the crowd of onlookers, someone loudly said, "Exactly, it was discovered in Yangchuan City to begin with. Are the residents of the provincial capital the people while our Yangchuan residents are ss enemies?"


    Once one person spoke up, there was immediately another to support the statement, "Why should you provincial capital folks get all the benefits?"


    "Pure hegemonism, it''s bullying!"


    Apart from the public, reporters from several media outlets received the news overnight and arrived at the zoo early in the morning, setting up their cameras and capturing the scene of the river dolphin transport.


    "Su, it''s not something that can be exined clearly in a sentence or two, I just hope you can understand," Professor Chu said with a wry smile before gesturing to his students and shouting, "Load the river dolphins into the truck, be careful!"


    The three river dolphins were wrapped in waterproof fabric. The container truck extended a mechanical arm and lifted each of the three dolphins into therge water tank at the back.


    After entering the water tank, the river dolphins swam around in a daze for a moment. Seeing Suming through the transparent ss of the tank, all three approached his direction, waving their fins frantically at him through the ss.


    "You guys need to behave yourselves from now on." Suming extended a hand and pressed it against the ss.


    The river dolphins, oblivious to what was happening, saw Suming reaching out. Thergest dolphin used its round head to nudge against the ss towards Suming''s hand.


    "All right, let''s go!" Professor Chu said.


    The container truck slowly started moving. Suming followed for a couple of steps, and it was only then that the river dolphins, watching Suming getting further away, realized he wasn''t going with them.


    The two young river dolphins immediately began crying out anxiously and stood up, trying to squeeze their small heads through the lid and edge of the water tank.


    Butpared to the narrow gap, their heads were simply too big to fit through!


    The adult river dolphin looked towards Suming and swam back and forth anxiously, continuously hitting the ss tank with its head and tail, creating loud thudding noises and causing water to ssh everywhere.


    Seeing this, the container truck had to stop, and a group of journalists and Suming hurriedly caught up to the truck.


    "What''s going on?" Professor Chu asked with a frown.


    "Isn''t it obvious? These river dolphins can''t bear to part with their owner!" Nangong Yan eximed loudly.


    "Look, the river dolphins are crying!"


    All three river dolphins stood upright in the water tank, like tiny prisoners, piteously leaning on the clear ss, their fins repeatedly pping against it, as they looked at Suming with small eyes that shed clear tears, like streams of spring water.


    At this sight, many people fell silent.


    Professor Chu felt a bit of a sting in his nose; he clearly remembered that many years ago, they had rescued a river dolphin that had been injured by a fishing boat. That dolphin, just like today, shed tears before it died.


    "Mommy, they are all bad people... the river dolphins are so pitiful..." came a young girl''s voice from the crowd, quivering with sobs.


    Suddenly, someone in the crowd shouted loudly, "We can''t let them take the river dolphins away, the river dolphins belong to Yangchuan City!"


    "Protect our river dolphins!"


    And that was it, the onlooking crowd surged forward, forming a human wall around the container truck, determined not to let it leave.


    "What are you doing!"


    Professor Chu red fiercely at Suming before standing on the truck and yelling to the crowd, "This is the government''s decision, not something any one person can change. Sending the river dolphins to the conservation center is for their own good! Comrades, please understand!"


    The crowd was not buying it.


    "Understand my ass!"


    "We''ll understand if you leave them here!"


    Professor Chu was between a rock and a hard ce and hopped off the truck to pull Suming aside and whispered, "Su, don''t cause trouble unnecessarily. If this turns into a mass incident, neither of us can afford it!"


    "Professor Chu, it''s not like I instigated this, I can''t afford anything!" Suming said, and indeed this wasn''t something he had caused; Friends of the Animals wasn''t powerful enough to manipte people to this extent.


    "Get Song here. If we have to call the police to resolve this, it won''t look good for anyone," Professor Chu turned and ordered a student.


    Mr. Song, the zoo director, soon rushed over and, though reluctant, patiently persuaded the surrounding crowd.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    After more than an hour ofmotion, even the local police had arrived and spent a long time trying to persuade the crowd, who finally gave way to let the container truck restart and slowly make its way out.


    This time, it hadn''t gone ten meters when a loud ''bang'' came from inside the water tank!

 Chapter 88 Refusing to Leave Even if Beaten to Death!

    A loud crash!


    The river dolphin mmed into the ss like it was trying tomit suicide!


    The tank ss housing the river dolphin was special reinforced, thickened tempered ss, strong enough that not even a shark could break it¡ªlet alone a river dolphin!


    Despite the ss remaining unbroken, therge aquarium tank shook violently, water sshing out through the seams of the lid and soaking the interior of the vehicle.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The container truck had to stop again, but the river dolphin, as if gone mad, continued to ram itself against the ss of the tank without regard for its own life.


    Crash! Crash! Crash!


    The sounds were like explosions, frightening enough to make people afraid, and the wholepartment began to tremble slightly.


    Now things really escted! The river dolphin already had a scar on its forehead from a previous injury which had only recently healed; after several collisions, the wound split open again. A stream of crimson blood seeped from the dolphin''s forehead, spreading rapidly inside the tank, and, in no time at all, by the time Professor Chu arrived to check the situation, the water in the tank had turned a faint red!


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    There was also arge gash on the dolphin''s head, and despite this, it continued relentlessly to collide with the ss.


    Professor Chu''s face turned ashen instantly.


    Not only was Chu almost scared to pee, but Suming also felt his scalp tingle, and he hurried over to release spiritual power into the aquarium tank.


    Indeed, the actions of the river dolphin hitting the ss had everything to do with Suming. This was a ''sneaky trick'' he had conceived. The matter of the dolphin''s ownership was actually quite simple¡ªif the river dolphin itself refused to leave, then nobody could do anything about it!


    Suming''s tactic was to get the river dolphin to make a bit of amotion, to bang against the ss a bit just to show that it wanted to stay. For one, it would attract the attention of the onlookers, and second, with so many reporters present, once it hit the television, public outcry would likely force the issue, and the river dolphin could probably be kept there.


    But Suming never expected the river dolphin to take it so seriously and go overboard, colliding too fiercely, actually disying a tendency toward suicide!


    It was also Suming''s oversight this time; he neglected the basicmon sense that, although river dolphins are intelligent, they certainly don''t have the same cunning as humans, their thoughts are straightforward and they don''t act. Realizing it truly might be separated from Suming, the river dolphin was extremely reluctant to part; its fierce collisions were not an act but a true outpouring of emotion.


    Regardless, animals are still animals, and their intelligence cannot bepared with humans. If the one in the tank wasn''t a river dolphin but Wang Hao, Suming believed he would have definitely put on an outstanding performance.


    With the river dolphin injured, the two smaller dolphins were so anxious they frantically pped the ss with their fins, crying out distressingly, pleading Suming for help!


    Suming gritted his teeth and released all his spiritual power without reservation, calming the river dolphin and treating its wounds simultaneously.


    Now the public anger that had just settled down exploded once again. Spectators charged forward, surrounding the vehicle; some young people even pulled open the vehicle door, dragging the driver and one of Professor Chu''s students out while raising their fists to strike!


    "Everyone, my friends, please stay calm," Suming implored as he hopped up onto the vehicle, shouting to the angry crowd.


    It was all supposed to be an act, and if people were really hurt, the nature of the incident would change; moreover, Professor Chu and his colleagues were quite decent people. They just had different opinions from Suming''s, and there was no need to harm them.


    "Do they still want to take the river dolphin away?" someone asked loudly.


    "This is not protection, it''s murder! We absolutely cannot let them take the river dolphin away!"


    "Let them say it themselves, leave the river dolphin here!"


    Old Chu''s mouth was filled with bitterness, feeling extremely frustrated. With things the way they were, there was no point in taking it!


    The river dolphin clearly acted in a way that if it were to be taken away, it would rather die. If the vehicle continued driving out, the dolphin''s brains might actually get smashed out!


    They couldn''t possibly bring back a dead river dolphin. If they forcibly took the river dolphin, causing it tomit suicide, not only would there be no credit for the Province''s Agricultural Science Institute or the Yangchuan City government, but it would also be a major ident. Old Chu would be scorned by thousands, stinking for miles against the wind, and his lifetime reputation would be washed away, and he would be shunned by the whole academicmunity!


    Moreover, his true aim wasn''t to vie for fame and profit, but rather to protect the endangered river dolphins. Even if he had to take them to a conservation center, it was out of consideration for their survival.


    After all, protecting river dolphins shouldn''t turn into forcing them to their deaths¡ªthat would make him a true sinner!


    To put it more severely, whoever caused the death of the river dolphins would not only be disgraced but might also end up in prison!


    "We''re not taking them, not taking them for now. Hurry up, take the big river dolphin to the treatment room, release the two smaller ones back into Shuijun Lake," Professor Chu nearly roared. At this point, the ownership of the river dolphins was no longer important; saving the life of therge river dolphin was what mattered most!


    ¡­


    That very afternoon, the TV station reported the scene that had unfolded at the zoo. The river dolphin refused to leave and began by shedding tears and crying, then proceeded to hit its head against the wall.


    The image of a creature ready to die for its beliefs, coupled with Nangong Yan''s heartbreakingly sad tone of voice, instantly ignited sympathy in everyone!


    The media present at the zoo weren''t just from the TV station¡ªnewspapers and websites also quickly covered the incident, sparking tremendous attention.


    By evening, what had started as news solely about the river dolphins slowly began to ferment, with the finger of me pointing towards the provincial government!


    Manyizens and viewers raised sharp views, suggesting that the tragedy urred because the provincial capital, in pursuit of political performance projects and regional interests of its own city, disregarded the life and death of the river dolphins!


    In just two days, the topic exploded like a virus,


    "River dolphin cannot bear to leave its saviors, dies to make a statement"


    "Thest tears, no fame or profit in heaven..." as if the river dolphins had died, the sensational headlines suggested¡­


    "Don''t let politics kill humanity''sst friends!"


    In a talk show with three hosts, a middle-aged host wearing sses said, "As everyone knows, dolphins are among the most intelligent of animals. But what about the river dolphins? Let''s first take a look at a few pictures¡­"


    In a well-known dating show, female guest number six unhesitatingly turned off her light, pointing out to the male guest who boasted about owning several expensive pet dogs, "I like men with a caring heart! If you truly have a caring heart, you should act like the zookeeper from Yangchuan City Zoo and take real action to help animals in need, instead of just talking big here!"


    Not just ordinary people, but some celebrities also got involved.


    "Blessings to the river dolphin family!" Before a reality show started, several celebrities lit red candles together, praying for the river dolphins.


    The web series director Jiao Shou, who had leftments onlinest time, issued a call for donations for the river dolphins and tagged many well-known online personalities.


    A veteran superstar from Xiangjiang even offered to adopt some protected animals to support animal protection with concrete actions.


    So-called ''adoption'' and ''taking in'' are different; taking in only means bringing the animals home to care for them, whereas adoption involves merely paying a sum of money and getting one''s name listed, leaving the care of the animals to zoo-like animal protection agencies.


    At the same time, it also sparked a trend of showing off pets. Many celebrities posted selfies with their pets, showcasing theirpassion;


    Several famous inte influencers, during their live streams, had cats and dogs sitting proudly on their chests or along their long, slender legs. A session of coquettish behavior and seeking affection won them countless rewards¡­


    One scene after another was broadcast, one Weibo post after another was shared, and Yangchuan City''s forum was bursting at the seams with this topic. In Baidu searches, the words ''river dolphin'' surged to the top three positions.


    Fortunately, the main character of the incident, therge river dolphin, recovered quickly under Suming''s care.


    A few dayster, Yangchuan City and the provincial authorities once again held a meeting, at the same room as before.


    "The second discussion meeting on the issue of the ownership of wild river dolphins!"

 Chapter 89 The Second Meeting about the Ownership of the River Dolphins

    The same location, the same participants, the same agenda.


    But the mood of the parties waspletely different fromst time!


    The meeting service staff prepared tea for all the attending leaders and set it on the table. Wang Jian She, the actual person in charge from Yangchuan City, lifted his teacup and leisurely scraped off the foam at the top with the lid, smilingly said to hisrades from the provincial capital across the table, "Everyone, have tea, please."


    Mr. Song didn''t rush to speak either, his eyes half open as if his mind was wandering far away.


    On the other hand, the faces of several people from the provincial capital, Mr. Jiang, Professor Chu, weren''t looking too good.


    After the river dolphin incident was reported a few days ago, they immediately faced pressure from all sides. The media called them all day to interview, asking sharp questions, leaving them exasperated;


    The media was one thing, but the key issue was that their superiors had questioned them more than once: what exactly went wrong? Something that started as a purely joyous asion, how did it turn into such chaos!


    The whole country, evenpatriots from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan, were paying attention to this matter; even the main leaders of the province had personally inquired once!


    The instructions from the city leaders of Jiangjin City, the provincial capital, were very clear.


    First, resolve the river dolphin incident as soon as possible, minimizing the impact, and ensure that the incident does not continue to ferment and cause even worse effects;


    Second, they must still try their best to secure ownership of the river dolphin.


    At this point, the matter had escted beyond just a river dolphin issue. It subtly revealed thepetition between the two major cities in the province.


    To put it seriously, the provincial leaders were watching from above. The officials who could handle the matter better, securing the river dolphin and avoiding public bacsh would be seen as morepetent in the eyes of the leadership!


    The little river dolphin even had an impact, to some extent, on the careers of both parties!


    Of course, this impact was not decisive, nor was it very serious; at most, it would cause the superiors to take a slightly closer look. But the achievements of officials umte just like this, little by little. Moreover, in the officialdom, no one wants to be a stepping stone for others to climb higher.


    Thus, the actual situation nowying before them: in terms of procedure and material conditions, the river dolphin rightfully belonged to Jinhai City, the provincial capital;


    However, considering public opinion and the current actual condition of the river dolphin, Yangchuan City seemed more appropriate to keep it.


    With leaders on both sides preupied with their own thoughts, no one wanted to bring up the issue first and risk being at a disadvantage.


    It was Professor Chu, ustomed to academic pursuits, who couldn''t hold back. He cleared his throat lightly and said, "Song, the river dolphin refuses to leave because, frankly, it''s too attached to your zoo''s Su Ming! You go talk to him, let him handle it."


    "How should he handle it?"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Mr. Song finally opened his eyes. "Song, ssmates are ssmates, but reason is reason, and I have to make this clear. It''s true that the river dolphin is close to him, and little Su does have some talent in dealing with animals. But at the end of the day, the river dolphin can''t understand human speech. How do you expect little Su to deal with it? Are you suggesting he tell the river dolphin, ''Be good, stop making trouble, obediently go with the leaders from the province because they have delicious food and treats for you'', and then the river dolphin will honestly obey and go with you?"


    As Mr. Song put it that way, Wang Jian She at the sideughed heartily while Professor Chu red, "Song, when did I ever say the river dolphin could understand Su Ming''s words! You''re just being obstinate!"


    "That was too harsh, Chu, too harsh. I don''t think that''s what Mr. Song meant."


    Mr. Jiang, the mayor of Jinhai City, hastily tried to smooth things over. For talks of this level, using phrases like ''troublesome and nonsensical'' was not quite fitting of their status. Behind the scenes, they could fight for their ims, but on the surface, it was all about maintaining a harmonious front.


    His gaze turned to Wang Jian She and he said, "Wang, what do you think about this? You and Su have a talk, get him to cooperate with us, and we''ll take the finless porpoises away. Then, on a few other cooperative projects, we could make some small concessions."


    Both cities were in the same province and wereparatively economically developed, engaged in bothpetition and coboration. Mr. Jiang and Wang Jian She held simr positions in their respective cities and, aside from the matter of the finless porpoises, there were quite a number of other ongoing projects between them.


    By giving a little leeway on this issue, Mr. Jiang could make Wang Jian She''s work go much more smoothly, which was an advantage too good to ignore.


    Unexpectedly, Wang Jian She shook his head firmly, saying, "Mr. Jiang, let''s keep things in their ownnes. We''re talking about the finless porpoises, let''s not get sidetracked."


    Seeing that despite his cheery demeanor Wang Jian She was quite resolute, Mr. Jiang frowned slightly and asked, "Do you really insist on keeping the finless porpoises in Yangchuan?"


    "It''s not that we insist on keeping them; it''s the finless porpoises'' own wish."


    "Wang, stop joking, what wishes could finless porpoises have?!"


    Wang Jian She chuckled and unlocked his phone, bringing up several news articles, "Alright, alright, not the finless porpoises'' wishes, but surely this represents the will of the people! Look online, on TV, the public is strongly demanding that the finless porpoises stay in Yangchuan. Mr. Jiang, serving the people, isn''t it?"


    In a private meeting, Wang Jian She brought out this big argument, leaving Mr. Jiang somewhat speechless. He was a bit irritated and red at Wang Jian She, saying, "Wang, if you put it that way, does that mean the people of Jinhai City aren''t ''the people''?"


    The back-and-forth bickering continued, and the negotiation once again reached a deadlock.


    At that moment, Mr. Jiang''s phone suddenly lit up with a text message from his secretary, and his eyes lit up as he started to smile.


    "Wang, at the end of the day, the key lies with Comrade Su Ming from the zoo. This young fellow is outstanding in his work and very capable, but how can such a goodrade still be a temporary worker without formal employment status at the zoo?"


    Before Wang Jian She could respond, Mr. Jiang turned to Professor Chu, asking, "Chu, if we transfer him to your Agricultural Science Institute and give him a staff position, wouldn''t that be no problem?"


    Professor Chu''s eyes sparkled, "No problem, I''ll talk to Zhao."


    The ''Zhao'' he referred to was the president of the Provincial Agricultural Science Institute and also a disciple of Professor Chu. Even without the issue of the finless porpoises, getting a staff position at the institute for someone was easily sorted with just a word from Professor Chu.


    Mr. Jiang nodded, "Not just the Agricultural Science Institute, I suggest we directly transfer him to the Conservation Center. He''s got the skills, consider it a special recruitment, directly appointing him as a deputy-level clerk! Additionally, didn''t our bureau recently allocate a bonus of one hundred thousand yuan for meritorious employees? We could add a bit more to that."


    "Mr. Jiang, what are you implying, just taking our people away?"


    Wang Jian She was not pleased, his expression darkening slightly, "Anything you can offer, are we incapable of matching? Mr. Song..."


    Mr. Song spoke leisurely, "Ah, I''m getting old, and I''ll retire in a few years. Su certainly is worth cultivating as my sessor."


    "Heh, Mr. Song, don''t beat around the bush with me. Isn''t your zoo about to undergo organizational restructuring and be self-sufficient? If he takes over, wouldn''t that just be like taking on a huge burden?"


    Mr. Jiang waved his hand dismissively and said, "I think we should ask young Su himself what he wants."


    To most people, since Jinhai is the provincial capital and a half-grade higher than Yangchuan; and with the provincial government also located in Jinhai, even a position of the same level would offer a far better development prospect and sry than one in Yangchuan. Besides, the zoo was soon to be restructured, while the Conservation Center offered a secure job for life¡ªas long as the state existed, the Conservation Center would be state-supported. Anybody in their right mind would know which option to choose.

 Chapter 91 Those with money contribute money, those with strength contribute effort

    Three anesthesia needles went in, and the Yangtze finless porpoise still hadn''t passed out after twenty minutes.


    Professor Chu waspletely stunned. These anesthesia needles were specialized forrge animals¡ªeven an African elephant wouldn''tst more than three to five minutes!


    Of course, the finless porpoise is much smaller than an elephant, so the injection amount was also reduced ordingly.


    However, under the same dosage, a Baiji Dolphin would pass out in at most two minutes. Therger Yangtze finless porpoise, which has a simr size and physical structure, shouldn''t possibly withstand it for more than five minutes!


    The dosage for the smaller finless porpoise was less, only half that of therger one, but it should have been enough.


    No matter how you looked at it, there was no way it would take twenty minutes to take effect, but the reality was that the three finless porpoises were fine, as if the three shots of anesthetic had all expired simultaneously.


    "Give it another shot!" Professor Chu said through gritted teeth.


    This couldn''t keep dragging on like this. The leaders of both cities had already made a decision¡ªthe matter needed to be resolved quickly. If they couldn''t take the finless porpoises with them, then the porpoises would have to stay in Yangchuan.


    As eight o''clock approached, if they dyed until the zoo opened and visitors started pouring in, things would be very troublesome. Even if they managed to sedate the finless porpoises, the crowd might not let them take the porpoises away.


    So the second wave of anesthesia needles went biubiubiu flying out, and the three sharpshooters once again performed steadily, hitting the finless porpoises with each shot!


    As time ticked by, Professor Chu and a group of provincial workers were incredibly anxious, spinning around in ce like ants on a hot pan, but the finless porpoises still had not passed out. They didn''t even show any signs of fainting and continued shaking their heads and locking eyes with Suming...


    Another twenty minutes passed.


    Out of options, Professor Chu looked at the anesthesia gun, his expression hesitant, and he was reluctant to make the decision for the third shot!


    Too much anesthetic could cause irreversible damage to the animals. Although the finless porpoises hadn''t passed out, ording to Professor Chu''s experience, two doses of anesthetic were already at their limit. If another dose was administered, the finless porpoises might pass out.


    But more likely, once they passed out, they might never wake up again!


    Besides, who could guarantee that the third shot would definitely sedate them? If they still didn''t pass out after the third shot, should they just keep shooting one after another?


    Keep hitting them until they obey, until they''re dead??


    As these thoughts ran through his mind, sweat beads began to form on Professor Chu''s bald head.


    "Old Chu..."


    Mr. Song walked over to Professor Chu, patted him on the shoulder, and spoke in a very calm tone, "We''ve been old friends for a lifetime. I know what''s on your mind. If it''s all for the good of these animals, why be so adamant about sending them to the conservation center?"


    "But... sigh!" after struggling internally for a long while, Professor Chu let out a long sigh in the end.


    "Come here!" Chu gestured to Suming, motioning him toe over as he had something to say to him.


    Suming was now exhausted!


    Theoretically, after the first shot of anesthetic, both therge and small finless porpoises should have been down, but Suming had been secretly using his spiritual power to fight against the anesthetic in the finless porpoises'' bodies, which is why they barely managed to stay conscious.


    It was a bit like the martial arts novels where the finless porpoises were poisoned, and Suming used his Inner Strength to expel the poison from their bodies.


    Nowadays, the anesthetic produced by medicine is quite potent. With six shots for the three finless porpoises over two rounds of anesthesia, the total dosage was enough to bring down arge elephant. Suming''s spiritual power might be powerful, but to expel so much toxin from the finless porpoises'' bodies was very taxing for him.


    The finless porpoises didn''t pass out, but he himself was so tired that he was feeling dizzy. If a few more shots were administered, he might be the first to copse.


    When Professor Chu called out to him, Suming felt like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders, "Professor Chu, do you need me for something?"


    "Su, these three Yangtze finless porpoises might just be thest three wild ones on Earth."


    Professor Chu gazed at the porpoises in the water with deep affection before turning to Suming with a serious expression, staring at him for a long time.


    It was to the point that Suming started to feel ufortable when Professor Chu finally shifted his gaze away from Suming''s face, stroked the few strands of hair on the top of his head, and then suddenly bowed deeply to Suming.


    "Professor Chu, what are you doing!" Suming quickly stepped aside to dodge and then helped him back up.


    "From now on, the care of these porpoises is entrusted to you, and you must take good care of them no matter what," said Professor Chu passionately.


    Old Chu was simr to Mr. Song in some respects, both exhibiting an admirable obsession with animal protection and scientific research, a cause to which they could be said to have dedicated their entire lives.


    Suming had thought that due to the issue of the porpoises'' ownership, Professor Chu might have been unhappy with him, but he did not expect Professor Chu to make such a statement at this moment. He was at a loss for words, only able to pat his chest repeatedly, ensuring that he would definitely take good care of the porpoise family.


    Mr. Songughed with a "hehe" while holding onto both Old Chu and Suming, "Su has great abilities, he will definitely take good care of them. Old Chu, you can rest assured, I''m here too. If this kid dares to let the porpoises suffer, I''ll be the first to not let him off the hook!"


    "I''m counting on you both!" Professor Chu nodded firmly.


    That afternoon, negotiation teams from both Jiangjin City and Yangchuan City held the ''Third Meeting regarding the Issue of Ownership of Yangtze Finless Porpoises'', which was also to be thest.


    The agenda was the same, the venue was the same, the people were the same.


    Contrasting with the calcted stances of the first meeting and the tense atmosphere of the second, by the third meeting, since there was no longer any doubt regarding the ownership of the porpoises, the atmosphere was very rxed, truly harmonious.


    Several decisions were reached at the end of the meeting.


    First, the three wild Yangtze finless porpoises would stay in Yangchuan City, with Yangchuan City Zoo specifically responsible for their feeding, protection, as well as future breeding and reintroduction to the wild. They could be exhibited to the public within the premise of not harming the porpoises;


    Second, the Provincial Agricultural Science Institute and the Provincial Endangered Aquatic Life Conservation Center had the right to inspect the living conditions of the porpoises in Yangchuan City periodically and were obliged to provide technical support to Yangchuan City Zoo; at the same time, they could observe and study the porpoises in the zoo when there was a need for scientific research;


    Third, Yangchuan City, led by Wang Jian She, would establish a special Yangtze Finless Porpoise Conservation Group, and the city government would regrly allocate funds, designated for the feeding and protection of the porpoises;


    Finally, it concerned rewarding those who had made significant contributions to the special team.


    Since most of the benefits had gone to Yangchuan City, the reward money came from Yangchuan City: 150,000 yuan in total, with 100,000 given to Professor Sun and his team at the Provincial Agricultural Science Institute as research funding. The remaining 50,000 was awarded to a temporary worker at the zoo, Suming, for his role in discovering the porpoises.


    Suming wasn''t particrly concerned with the 50,000 yuan reward, but when he saw the final decision of the meeting, he immediately realized something very important!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    From now on, while the porpoises would still be under his care, the costs of their upkeep would be funded by the government!


    The expenses for feeding and caring for the three porpoises were no small matter; in just a week or two, the cost of fish alone had eaten up thousands of his money.


    In the future, there would be breeding and reintroduction to the wild, and they couldn''t just be kept in Shuijun Lake forever¡ªa specialized care facility might even need to be built.


    There would also be regr health check-ups, various testing equipment, and a whole host of assorted expenses¡ªall costing money.


    Calcted out, if all these expenses were toe out of Suming''s pocket, with his current financial capability, it would be quite a strain.


    But now, with the conservation agency footing the bill, a significant burden had been lifted, the wealthy contributing money and the able contributing effort.

 Chapter 96 The Crazy Woman and Her Mother

    Seeing Zhaoqian suddenly change her mind and forbid Chengcheng from riding the fish, Zhao Yun let out a heartyugh, grabbed a life jacket, and without exnation, helped Zhaoqian into one and put one on himself.


    "Hey, Zhao, what are you doing!"


    Zhaoqian was shocked and immediately guessed what her husband was nning. Her face turned pale with fright as she shrank back repeatedly, "No, no, no... I don''t want to... I don''t want to... I''m scared..."


    "Su, can I just go ahead and put her on?" Zhao Yun, embracing Zhaoqian, turned his head and asked Suming with a beaming smile.


    Suming was stunned. She is your wife; What does that have anything to do with me? But in such a public setting, "just going ahead," seemed a bit too bold, didn''t it?


    However, he quickly realized that Zhao Yun''s ''put her on'' wasn''t what he was thinking, and promptly nodded, "Oh, oh, oh, just go ahead, just go ahead, hold on to the saddle, there are footrests on both sides."


    "I don''t want to... I don''t want to get on..."


    Zhaoqian was almost in tears, iling her arms wildly, but Zhao Yunughed heartily, disregarding her protests, scooped her up around the waist, walked to the water''s edge, and bent over to ce Zhaoqian on the seat behind the big green fish.


    Once seated on the fish''s back, Zhaoqian continued to struggle, but Zhao Yun scared her by saying, "Don''t move around, or you''ll scare the fish!" While speaking, he pulled a ''safety belt'' from the saddle and clicked it into ce.


    Startled by her husband''s intimidation, Zhaoqian dared not move about carelessly anymore, afraid of rming the big fish beneath her and being thrown off; she gripped the saddle tightly and pleaded with a mournful face, "Husband...e up quickly, I''m scared riding by myself..."


    Zhao Yun and Zhaoqian, one a handsome middle-aged uncle and the other a charming and graceful young woman, were a perfect match, a picturesque pair that naturally attracted attention wherever they went. With this little disy between the couple, the people around them couldn''t help but startughing.


    Zhao Yun swung a leg over and mounted the front of the big fish like a big boy, shook the reins, and shouted to Liang Shi, "Let''s go!"


    "Wuu... wuu... wuu..." A deep horn sound echoed.


    The big green fish flicked its tail, turned around smoothly in the shallow water, and began moving slowly towards the center of theke.


    "They can really ride it!" Seeing the couple safe and sound, the people on the shore let go of their doubts, watching Zhao Yun and his wife with a mixture of curiosity and nervousness.


    The big fish gradually entered the deep water area, and while Zhaoqian initially felt scared, she gradually realized that the big fish under her was very stable, showing no sign of falling into the water. Coupled with her husband''s sturdy and reliable figure right in front of her, her heart, which had been in suspense, finally began to ease somewhat, still with three parts fear and seven parts curiosity, she reached out bravely to touch the big fish beneath her.


    Many small fish followed behind the big fish, yfully swimming around near her feet.


    Although Zhao Yun was a man of wealth with no small amount of experiences, riding a fish was a first for him, and being amidst the green hills and waters already made for a joyful mood, he suddenly felt the impetuous spirit of youth. Holding the reins in one hand, he drew a fake stic sword from his side, swinging it at the air and let out a loud "Charge!"


    As if understanding hismand, the fish''s fins shot up, doubling its speed and throwing up waves as it surged through the waves, with the strong breeze blowing in their faces and whipping Zhaoqian''s long hair about.


    "Husband, this is so thrilling!" Zhaoqian, now letting herself go, spread her arms wide and shouted from behind.


    On the shore, the tourists couldn''t wait to try riding the fish, but with only five fish avable and now fewer left, it was a matter of the quick getting the chance and the slow missing out; they immediately swarmed towards the dock.


    "Big brother, hurry up, hurry up, the fish are going to be taken by them. Let''s quickly pick one!" Chengcheng was on the verge of tears. She had been promised a fun day, and now her parents were the ones having fun first, leaving her aside while the remaining few fish might not even be avable for her turn.


    "Don''t worry, you''ll ride to your heart''s content today!"


    Suming was rather calm and not in a hurry at all. What a joke, my fish, and I can''t ride it when I want to?


    He had already called the security department in advance, and Mr. Dong had sent several young security guards to wait by the dock. At Suming''smand, the security guards immediately rushed over and formed a barrier in front of the crowd.


    "Ladies and gentlemen, tourists and friends!"


    Suming, as if by magic, pulled out a megaphone and yelled at the crowd stopped by security: "Today is our internal testing, today is our internal testing! The fish riding attraction is not open yet... That''s a good question from our friend there, when will it be open? Starting next week, it''ll be open four days a week¡ªWednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, five hours each day!"


    "Another excellent question from our friend here, of course, there''s a fee, ten minutes per ride, sixty yuan per person!"


    Sixty yuan was quite a bargain. Suming remembered the karting venue in the city charging sixty for just eight minutes. This fish riding was a unique experience in the world¡ªten minutes for sixty yuan, excellent value for money!


    "Only four days a week, and just five hours each day?" someone called out, thinking the operating hours were too short.


    "Brother, these are fish, not boats. Try being ridden all day long, they''d be dead tired! Five hours is pretty good!" Mr. Dongughed heartily.


    Even though it was already announced that they were not open today, the tourists still gathered at the dock, refusing to leave. They couldn''t ride the fish themselves, but watching others ride was a rare sight to see.


    Some quick thinkers hurried to the boat ticket office to buy tickets, rowing out onto theke for a closer view. In just a few minutes, the twenty or so boats were all booked.


    "Let''s go, Chengcheng, mount up!"


    "Oh yeah! I want to ride a unicorn!" Chengcheng yelled excitedly.


    Find your next adventure on m_v l|e-NovelBin


    Liang Shi strode into the shallow water, "leading" the fish disguised as a "unicorn," the secondrgest green fish, to the shore. Suming lifted Chengcheng onto the back seat and climbed onto the front seat himself.


    It was fortunate that these were big fish trained by Suming''s spiritual power and fitted with wooden nks to lighten their load. Otherwise, evenrger fish wouldn''t have been able to support the weight of two people.


    Even so, when Suming sat down, he could clearly feel the second green fish sinking down sharply.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Good thing I didn''t let Mr. Wange!" Suming thought to himself.


    The second green fish slowly swam out of the harbor and headed for the vast waters. Chengcheng made a megaphone shape with her hands around her mouth, shouting towards Zhao Yun and his wife in the distance: "Daddy, mommy, here wee!"


    Zhao Yun flicked the reins, and the first green fish nimbly turned in the water, heading their way to rendezvous!


    Suming''s grin was devilish as he pulled arge water gun from under the fish''s saddle, pumped it a few times, and sneakily handed it to Chengcheng.


    Chengcheng understood immediately, her big eyes cunningly curved into two crescent moons. She hid the water gun behind Suming''s back. As the two fish drew near, she suddenly pulled out the water gun from behind Suming and yelled, "Hands up, surrender or get soaked!"


    Zhao Yun and Zhaoqian were already having a st, and Chengcheng had a mischievous grin as she opened fire.


    Hissss... As they passed each other, Zhaoqian let out a delicate shriek, soaked from head to toe by her daughter''s water gun spray. Angrily, she pped Zhao Yun''s shoulder heavily: "Look at how naughty your daughter is!"


    Zhao burst intoughter, "You can fight back, you know!"


    It was still quite hot, and everyone wore shorts and T-shirts, so there was no fear of catching a cold. As they say, like parents, like daughter; Chengcheng''s mischief was probably inherited from Zhao Yun and Zhaoqian. Indulged by Zhao, Zhaoqian still had a little girl''s nature. Hearing her husband''s words, she actually searched around the big green fish and found a water gun!


    "There really is a water gun! Hurry, turn around. I''m going to get back at that naughty little thing!"


    Soaked through, with her hair all disheveled, Zhaoqian looked like a wild kid who couldn''t grow up, holding her water gun and charging over the water surface.


    "Chengcheng, mommy''sing!"

 Chapter 97 Monkey Tricks

    The battle began, with both sides equally matched; Suming had two people, one pilot and one little attacker, while Zhao Yun also had two people, simrly divided in their roles, and the fight was too close to call!


    Shuijun Lake, with its hundred acres of water,cked nothing more than ''ammo'' for water guns, enough for these two mad women to fight till the end of time!


    What a chaotic battle! Caught up in the excitement, Zhao Yun even drew a stic sword to attack the enemy pilot, Suming, who of course wouldn''t show any weakness either, pulling out an intable trident from beside the second green fish, and like knights in a duel, they passed by each other, stabbing and shing wildly without any rhyme or reason!


    The onlookers, who loved a goodmotion, cheered enthusiastically from the shore as the battle raged on the water, shouting encouragements like "Go for it, go for it..."


    In the early morning, dozens of people gathered together shouting, making quite a spectacle, their voices carrying all the way to the animal area and attracting even more tourists to gather around Shuijun Lake to watch the battle. Continue your adventure at m|v-l''e -NovelBin


    The three yful river dolphins couldn''t stay idle seeing such a scene, constantly leaping out of the water near thebatants, jumping about.


    Mr. Song and Mrs. Tong initially thought some group incident had urred and ran to the edge of Shuijun Lake, but upon seeing the situation, both were dumbfounded. Mr. Song, after asking around with Mr. Dong and Liang Shi, finally understood that this was a new attraction developed by Suming: riding fishbined with taking photos with them.


    "This kid, how does his brain work so well! What a brilliant idea!" said Mr. Dong with a big grin.


    "It''s not just about having a smart brain, even if you share this idea, without his fish-training skills, others can''t imitate it," Mrs. Tong said.


    Mr. Song, with an air of nonchnce, said lightly, "Little Tong, you go back and write a report. I think it''s time we raise the entrance fee to our zoo. Let''s increase it by five yuan."


    The zoo''s admission had always been twenty-five yuan, and although prices had risen over the years, the admission fee had stayed the same. It wasn''t that they didn''t want to raise it, but the key issue was theck of appealing attractions to justify an increase, and without that, higher-ups would not approve.


    First came the Lucky Cat Cruise Boat, and now a fish-riding attraction, not to mention the family of three river dolphins. Mr. Song pondered that now was the perfect time for a price hike.


    If the higher-ups approved, it would mean the zoo''s ie would increase by 20% without any additional effort.


    "Hehe, Mr. Song, about our year-end bonuses, don''t you think they should also go up?" Mr. Dong asked with a mischievous smile.


    "You from the security department, make sure to keep a good watch over this area of Shuijun Lake. From now on, Su''s business is the zoo''s business. Don''t let any problems arise with his ventures. As for the year-end bonus, if the zoo''s performance improves, how could I shortchange you?" Mr. Song said.


    ...


    The water battle was so intense that even Suming and Zhao Yun were taken aback; when women go crazy, they don''t consider age andpletely lose control.


    This, however, was agony for the two big fish on their ''first day at work''; even with Suming deliberately replenishing their spiritual power, they were struggling to keep up with the prolonged high-speed sprint. When the four riders dismounted on the shore, the tworge creaturesid t in the shallow water, unwilling to move.


    Those big fish weren''t silly at all; they were very perceptive.


    If it were any other tourist riding them, they would most likely conserve energy and do the bare minimum. But with Suming bringing people along, it was different. If they could ingratiate themselves with Suming, they''d have better days ahead, and today, they really gave it their all.


    "Huff, huff, huff... I''m so tired, so tired..."


    The moment they got off the fish, both women uttered the same words. Suming and Zhao Yun exchanged helpless nces. You''re tired after fighting so enthusiastically? The fish aren''tining about being tired, so what are you tired for?


    "Quick, change out of your wet clothes!" Zhao Yun, anticipating that they''d likely get wet today, had wisely brought several sets of dry clothes.


    Suming also realized that his preparations were still somewhatcking. After the official opening, he''d need to buy some raincoats to prevent visitors from getting their clothes wet.


    "Over there, go to the Whisperwind Pavilion to change."


    Leading Zhao Yun and his family of three, Suming entered the Whisperwind Pavilion by the shore of Shuijun Lake.


    The Whisperwind Pavilion was a bona fide scenic spot, a six-story tower that was muchrger than Whisperwind Pavilion. The first floor sold souvenirs, while the upper floors housed wooden statues. Usually, not many people were willing to pay to go upstairs to have a look, as the space was veryrge. Zhaoqian and her mother ran up to the third floor, while Suming and Zhao Yun changed clothes on the second floor.


    "This Whisperwind Pavilion has been around since I was young; it''s a pity to see it standing empty all these years, such a waste," said Zhao Yun with a hint of regret as he changed clothes.


    Imitating ancient architecture, the pavilion boasted carved balustrades, painted rafters, soaring corners, and beastly roof charms, located close to Shuijun Lake. Each level had a viewing gallery around it; opening the surrounding imitation antique wooden doors, one could gaze far at the Qinling Mountains or admire the dense forests andkes of the zoo, making it a rare and ideal ce to visit.


    Strictly speaking, the Whisperwind Pavilion was also within the scope of Suming''s contracted area. Suming felt it a waste to let it stay vacant; he had once considered asking Zhao Yun to exhibit some antiques there.


    However, after discussing it with Zhao Yun, it seemed unfeasible. Firstly, the average personcked the ability to distinguish between genuine and counterfeit goods. Qin Shi Huang''s toilet and a thirty-yuan imitation from the street side ced together, not many people could tell them apart. Secondly, every piece of Zhao Yun''s antiques was valuable. Bringing them for exhibition, a bump or scratch would be a big problem, not to mention the high cost of security measures would outweigh the benefits.


    "No rush, good opportunities sometimes rely on luck. If ites, ites; if not, no amount of brooding will help," Zhao Yun said.


    The twodies took over an hour to change clothes. When they came down from upstairs, they even applied makeup and looked nothing like they did during the water fight.


    "Dad, big brother, my mom and I are so hungry our stomachs are growling," Chengcheng said.


    "Do you have anything tonight? Let''s go out to eat together," Zhao Yun asked Suming.


    Suming thought about it and realized he had nothing on. The cats and dogs were left to their own devices; the major-headed alligator, croquet eels, and crocodile snooks were mixing it up, while Liang Shi was taking care of the dolphins andrge fish in the pond. They didn''t conduct boat tours or feed sales at night, so now he was quite free.


    "Bring the little monkey too!" Chengcheng called out.


    "Sure," Suming chuckled. Xiao Kong, the little monkey, had grown quite a bit. Taking it out to eat was feasible, but he wasn''t sure whether the restaurant would allow it in.


    In the end, at Chengcheng''s earnest request, Suming went to Monkey Mountain and carried Xiao Kong out.


    "Mr. Su, please be very careful not to lose it!" Hou, the Monkey Mountain keeper, followed behind, incessantly giving reminders.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Now with his increased status and riding the tide, Suming managed all the animals in the park. Keeper Hou, his subordinate, didn''t dare to oppose him despite harboring reluctance, and could only follow behind with a mournful face.


    "Its father could have sneakily escaped long ago; if it were going to get lost, would it wait until now?" Suming found this amusing but agreed, saying don''t worry, if the monkey gets lost, I''ll just stick some fur on myself, y monkey and sneak into Monkey Mountain for you.


    The Monkey Mountain keeper didn''t know whether tough or cry, thinking to himself, my lord, if the monkey really runs away, you''re in favor, and I''ll be in a pit of trouble!


    Seeing Xiao Kong, who had grown considerably, Chengcheng could hardly recognize the monkey. But Xiao Kong was quite clever, standing on Suming''s shoulder and chattering away, gesturing a hello to Chengcheng.


    The group took Zhao Yun''s Audi A8 and headed straight for a famous seafood restaurant in the city. As soon as Chengcheng and her family entered, Suming, following behind, was stopped by the security guard.


    "No monkeys allowed in!" the security guard said.

 Chapter 98 Kidnapping the Lady Monkey

    This really couldn''t be med on the security guard. Suming was wearing just big shorts and sandals, with a monkey standing on his shoulder, he was short of having a begging bowl in his hand¡ªno one would believe he wasn''t a street performer.


    And what a coincidence it was¡ªout of a shadowy corner opposite, a beggar in tattered clothes emerged, with a monkey squatting on his shoulder as well.


    But that monkey was almost bald all over, dirty, small, and skinny, nowhere near as impressive as Xiao Kong.


    The street performer eyed Suming from across the street, their gaze meeting subtly, a look of mutual understanding in his eyes, while Xiao Kong waved enthusiastically at the monkey opposite from afar.


    Given that scene, it would have been strange if the security had let Suming in.


    Suming scratched his head and snapped his fingers, suddenly Xiao Kong leaped from his shoulder, stepped on the security guard''s head midair, hopped over him, and dashed straight into the restaurant.


    "Xiao Kong,e here!" Chengcheng called out, and Xiao Kong jumped into her arms.


    "We''re together," Zhaoqian called out to the security guard from a distance.


    Suming didn''t expect Zhao Yun to have such a big face. When the restaurant manager saw Zhao Yun, he ran over from afar, incessantly calling out ''Mr. Zhao, Mr. Zhao,'' signaling the security guard to let them through and personally leading them to a specially arranged private room.


    In the private room, Suming picked up a piece of steamed Chinese sturgeon, tasted alright, and then casually passed the fruit te to Xiao Kong. Xiao Kong was picky and chose two cherry tomatoes, one in each hand, their juice sttering all over his face as he ate.


    Chengcheng had forgotten her hunger as well, cheering as she dashed out of the private room. Soon, she returned with a big te of cherry tomatoes, tossing them one by one to Xiao Kong, who leaped up to catch them, sometimes seeding, and sometimes missing, spilling cherry tomatoes all over the room.


    Zhaoqian followed with a bowl, trying to feed Chengcheng, who, holding cherry tomatoes, was busy chasing Xiao Kong...


    In the end, only Suming and Zhao Yun were eating at therge table. Suming picked up a piece of sturgeon, which was quite tasty, and, curious, he asked, "Mr. Zhao, do you own this restaurant?" Along the way in, the staff''s courtesy towards Zhao Yun wasn''t something a regr customer would experience.


    "A friend runs it, but I have a small stake," Zhao Yun replied with a smile. "I''m quite a meddler in business, like to get involved in a bit of everything."


    Zhao Yun spoke modestly, but Suming was very aware of the man''s strength. He wasn''t the managerial type but an investor, who didn''t need to show his face in everything, a rather low-profile rich man.


    Shares are shares, and bills are bills. Although Zhao Yun was a shareholder, he still had to pay for his meals. When the bill came after the meal, Suming took a peek¡ªone table with eight dishes and one soup, totaling three thousand five hundred.


    "Damn!" Suming couldn''t help but twitch his eyebrows. Over three thousand was affordable for most, but this wasn''t for treating clients or leaders¡ªit was purely casual dining among acquaintances, yet it had cost over three thousand, definitely a bit too extravagant.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It seemed he was still too poor!


    "Poor? You''ve graduated less than three months and already have your own business, flourishing at that. Even city officials know about you, and you still want more? At your age, I was still a welder in a factory," Zhao Yun said as he drove. "Perfect, I have quite a few friends who run restaurants. When the fish from Shuijun Lake are ready, make sure to let me know."


    "That would be great," Suming nodded. He had researched and found that the big restaurants in Yangchuan generally sourced their freshwater fish directly from Huating Reservoir, which was Zhou Jin''s fishingpany, because the fish there were indeed of high quality. This had more or less monopolized the supply chain for the big restaurants.


    If he could get a piece of that action and leverage the restaurants'' volume and reputation, the sale channels for Shuijun Lake''s fish would smoothly open up.


    After briefly discussing the future fish sales with Zhao Yun, they arrived at the gates of Yangchuan City Zoo. Suming got out of the car, said bye to Chengcheng, and then took Xiao Kong back to Monkey Mountain first.


    Before entering Monkey Mountain, Xiao Kong stood on Suming''s shoulder and bared his teeth towards the distant woods, making a few sounds.


    Suming was startled as he saw the bushes shake and a scrawny, dirty little monkey, bald all over, poke its head out of the forest, cautiously looking this way.


    Xiao Kong swooped down in a sh, dragging the skinny monkey to Suming''s feet, wildly gesticting with his hands and feet, and making squeaking and chirping noises.


    The skinny monkey didn''t dare make a sound, looking very nervous, constantly shrinking behind Xiao Kong.


    Suming thought the scrawny little monkey looked a bit familiar; upon closer inspection, he realized it was the dirty monkey from the old man who performed with it outside the restaurant. The skinny monkey had a few small, firm lumps on its chest ¨C surprisingly, it turned out to be female.


    "Oh man, such a young age and already learned to abduct women!" Suming almostughed out loud,


    "Squee squee squee... Chatter..." Xiao Kong was frantic, scratching his head and ears, his hands moving hectically as if he were a deaf-mute.


    "Alright, alright, let''s not make this a habit, eh!" Suming was speechless; wild monkeys will be wild monkeys, after all ¨C bold and daring creatures capable of all sorts of antics.


    Hou, the Monkey Mountain keeper, hearing themotion, came over. At the sight of the two monkeys, he thought he was seeing things and rubbed his eyes. It took him a while to realize that there were indeed two!


    He looked at Suming with a bit of confusion, wondering how to broach the subject. You took one away and brought back two; what sort of logic was that?


    "I told you I wouldn''t lose her. I''ve returned her with interest, you owe me a drink next time!" Suming chuckled, patting him on the shoulder.


    "I''m impressed! Where did you find her?" Hou said with augh.


    "Ran into a wild monkey on the road. The key thing is personal charm; even monkeys can''t resist, insisting on following me home!" Suming said with a proud look on his face.


    Xiao Kong, standing to the side and pointing to his own nose, chirped away in protest, wanting to pierce through Suming''s thick skin. Clearly, it was Xiao Kong that had the charm, enticing the female monkey toe back, right?


    What Xiao Kong and the abducteddy monkey did, Suming had no idea; once back at Fengshui Pavilion, the alcohol started to hit him, and he went straight to bed.


    The night passed without incident, and the next morning, Nangong Yan barged straight into Whisperwind Pavilion, hauling the still groggy Suming out of bed.


    "Sister, could you be a little moredylike, please? Bursting into a single man''s residence like this is so awkward. What if you saw something you shouldn''t have? It''s only eight-thirty in the morning! Let me sleep a little longer!" Suming groaned with the nket over his head.


    Nangong Yan hade today with a mission!


    With one bizarre incident after another at Suming''s ce, the TV station''s leaders, knowing that Suming and Nangong Yan were ssmates, had sent her to conduct an interview. As a result, she had almost be the station''s lead reporter, appearing on camera more frequently than official reporters. Her visit today was specifically for the ''fish-riding project''.


    "Don''t act all cute after getting a bargain. The TV station is giving you free advertising, and you''re not happy? Hurry up, take me to ride the fish, or you''re dead meat!"


    "Sister, are you here for business or to y?" Suming said helplessly, smacking his forehead.


    "Mixing business with pleasure!" Nangong Yan said confidently.


    After taking Nangong Yan fish riding for half an hour and ensuring that she had her fun, she finally started her official report on the fish-riding project in earnest.


    In the age of the inte, there are no secrets. Not long after Nangong Yan''s first-hand report, videos of Zhao Yun''s family riding fish spread online, and someone even dug up the old Blue Wave Knight video.


    In the era of the inte, the speed at which information spreads is truly astonishing. In just two or three days, not only Yangchuan City but most of the province knew that Yangchuan City Zoo was about tounch a brand new entertainment project the following week: fish riding!

 Chapter 99: Chapter 99 Ticket Scalpers

    The Ride Fish project hadn''t officiallyunched yet, but it already garnered extensive media coverage, attracting countless attentive eyes.


    If it were just "riding fish," it wouldn''t be that unusual of an activity.


    Zoos and circuses have their dedicated trainers, among whom there are experts in dolphins, and with special training, riding fish isn''t impossible.


    But that could only be done by professionals, and it had to be in a designated area.


    However, turning fish riding into an entertainment activity, open to the general public so everyone could ride, suitable for all ages, was indeed a groundbreaking first!


    Prior to this, Suming''s "hunger marketing" coupled with overwhelming media publicity, quickly started to ferment and show its effect. The photos and videos of Zhao Yun''s family riding fish that day, along with the first video of Suming as the Blue Wave Knight, had astonishing numbers of views andments. On the Yangchuan forums, for the past few days, nearly all other topics were overshadowed by discussions about Yangchuan Zoo''s new project.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Not only did riding fish possess entertainment value, but it also held an auspicious symbolic meaning in Huaxia''s history, representing the achievement of enlightenment and a carefree, joyful existence.


    Legend has it that during the Warring States period, there was a man from Zhao State named Qin Gao, skilled in maneuvering through water and who lived for over two hundred years. One day, Qin Gao gathered his disciples and instructed them to bathe, burn incense, and wait at a riverside shrine he had told them to build. After saying this, Qin Gao dove into the great river and vanished from sight.


    His followers did as instructed, setting up an altar by the water and waiting for several days. Suddenly, Qin Gao appeared, riding on a giant red carp, surfacing on the water. He then ascended to immortality on the fish, observed by a crowd of thousands.


    Wang Anshi wrote a poem that said, "First learned of the water immortal riding a crimson carp, forever sought the mountain ghost with the schrly fox." Water immortals and mountain ghosts are quasi-divine beings, while crimson carp and schrly foxes represent aquatic and terrestrial spirits, symbolizing the mystical spirits of the mountains and waters.


    Riding fish at the zoo obviously wouldn''t turn you into an immortal, but those fish, dressed up as various mythical monsters, certainly gave off a cosy vibe.


    The zoo could almost be described with the words "the focus of public attention." Every day, there would be visitors specifically inquiring about the Ride Fish project. Mrs. Tong''s office received multiple calls from media outlets wanting to report and interview throughout the day. The few ''armed'' fish even managed to steal the limelight from the river dolphins, which had been a hot topic until then, achieving a perfecteback.


    Seeing that the momentum was already built up, the Ride Fish project finally officiallyunched.


    As soon as the zoo opened that morning, the queue of people waiting to buy entrance tickets extended all the way to the distant road. More than a dozen media reporters had already arrived early at the main entrance, ready to rush into the zoo to gather firsthand information.


    The five big fish were simply not enough to meet demand; they were booked up in the blink of an eye by the visitors at the front of the line, and at a minimum, each booking was for an hour or more. The giant blue fish was even reserved by a tycoon for the whole day.


    The crowd of visitors became unhappy. Over a hundred people were lined up, waiting to ride the fish, and if everyone was going to book for over an hour, those at the back of the line wouldn''t get a turn even if they waited all day.


    As new visitors kept joining the queue, thekeside became noisy and chaotic. Just as the crowd was about to be passionately excited, Suming made a timely appearance, introducing a new rule: during the opening month, each person could only ride for a maximum of twenty minutes to ensure that the majority of visitors could have a turn if they were willing to wait. This calmed the angry crowd.


    Tagging along with Suming was the alligator turtle.


    The business of ride fish was booming beyond expectations. Suming, believing a noble alligator turtle shouldn''t live off handouts while doing nothing, brought the turtle over to the site, much like the fish, to be ridden by people.


    This guy looked fierce without any deliberate dressing up, already resembling a great monster, and Suming, for added entertainment, had actually crafted a ''giant python'' out of rubber and foam, which he coiled around the tortoise''s body inyers.


    "Thank you, friends, for your enthusiastic support. To show our gratitude, we''ve also introduced a surprise for today:"


    He pointed to the tortoise, asrge as a small hill, and said loudly through the loudspeaker, "That is the Xuan! Wu! Divine! Beast! Ten minutes for a hundred bucks!"


    With the alligator snapping turtle in the shallow water, about the size of a table top, its limbs like sky-supporting iron columns, it cooperatively lifted its head towards the crowd on the shore and let out a low roar as Suming spoke, even shaking the rubber python tied around its body.


    The visitors instinctively shrank back, but since everyone was clear that this was an entertainment projectunched by the zoo, akin to a haunted house ¡ª scary to look at but actually safe ¡ª no panic ensued.


    Thus, the bootleg ''Xuanwu'' joined the big fish brigade, with the six hefty creatures almost ceaselesslymuting between the diving area and theke''s surface every ten or twenty minutes, carrying the next group of visitors.


    Despite their best efforts, the queue waiting to ride the fish grew even longer, and the visitors who had ridden the fish before became walking advertisements for the attraction, posting photos on socialworks and friends'' circles after their ride, promoting the zoo for free.


    By noon, seeing the long queue, Suming had an idea and dialed Mrs. Tong, "Mrs. Tong, have the snack bar whip up some boxed lunches to sell by Shuijun Lake!"


    "Alrighty!" Mrs. Tong was thrilled as she hung up the phone, and after a while, Mrs. Sun from the snack bar showed up by Shuijun Lake with a cart full of boxed lunches, shouting, "Boxed lunches for sale, boxed lunches for sale, ten bucks each, one meat, three veggies..."


    Mrs. Sun made a tidy sum and after cleaning up the lunchbox trash, she found Suming and covertly handed him a pack of Zhonghua cigarettes, then left happily.


    That''s how the first day went by, with the six mounts never getting a moment of rest.


    The next day, the queue was even longer than the first, and even ticket scalpers appeared!


    A few shady-looking young men arrived early to stand in line, and after buying their tickets, they didn''t get on the fish but began shouting to sell their spots for five to six times the price to those lined up behind them.


    Upon seeing this, Liang Shi didn''t dare take any action on his own and hurriedly reported the situation to Suming.


    "I hate scalpers the most!" Suming frowned and told Liang Shi, "Tell them, no reselling fish tickets. Anyone who doesn''t wait in line and buys a ticket from someone else, it''s null and void. We won''t acknowledge it!"


    Liang Shi did as Suming had instructed and informed those young men that reselling tickets was not allowed.


    But the men, seeing Liang Shi''s honest face, ignored himpletely and even dragged him into a nearby grove, with the lead blond kid actually pulling out a knife and threatening Liang Shi, saying if they messed with their business, they shouldn''t me them for not giving Liang Shi any respect...


    "This kind of thing is happening! In the mighty Huaxia, and ofws, daring to pull a knife on my turf, is there no king''sw anymore!" Suming furiously eximed upon hearing the news.

 Chapter 100: Chapter 100 The Thoughts of the Wolf King

    In the zoo, Mr. Song''s word was thew, and by the side of Shuijun Lake, Suming was thew!


    "There''s not much point in involving the police station with this matter. At most, they''ll grab those little ruffians, give them a brief education, and release them. It doesn''t really ''cure the illness or save the people.'' To deal with these types, you have to let them know that Ma Wang has three eyes!"


    He made a direct call to Dong, and before long, Dong arrived with seven or eight young security guards who stormed down to Shuijun Lake, grabbing necks and pressing down shoulders, dragging and kicking those little ruffians all the way to the security office.


    "There''s now and order anymore!" Mr. Dong mmed his leather belt heavily on the table with a dull thud.


    Don''t be fooled by Mr. Dong''s friendliness in normal times; he was a bonafide reconnaissance soldier who had retired from the military, and one who had seen action¡ªa tough character. With just a darkened face, he could scare someone to death. His fighting skills were also exceptional; with a baton wrapped in rubber, he greeted those little ruffians with a merciless flurry of blows. They were beaten so badly that each one cried for their fathers and mothers, none capable of getting up, and strangely there were no visible injuries.


    "Dong, that''s enough. They''re just kids who don''t know any better. Why bother with them? Keep at it for another ten minutes, then send them to the police station," Suming suggested kindly.


    ...


    "Hello, everyone. I''m Nangong Yan, an intern reporter from Yangchuan Television Station, reporting live from the zoo, where I am covering the fish-riding activity. The zoo''s fish-riding activity has been running for a full two weeks, providing the public an excellent ce for leisure and entertainment. ording to our research, our city''s zoo is the first in the country, and even the world, to poprize the fish-riding project..."


    On TV, behind reporter Nangong Yan was a long line of visitors waiting to ride the fish.


    The fish-riding activity had been running smoothly for two weeks, other than some minor issues with ticket scalpers at the start, and was a huge hit every day.


    In order to ensure the fish''s stamina, Suming adjusted the opening hours based on the zoo''s flow of visitors, setting them to four days a week¡ªWednesday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday¡ªwith only one hour in the morning and three hours in the afternoon.


    Because Suming employed a strategy of scarcity marketing, limiting the avability, he could ensure that there would be a long period when the big fish would not be left idle.


    He had calcted the ie from this period, and at this rate, the five fish and one alligator turtle would collectively generate a revenue that would far exceed that of the pleasure boats, approaching one hundred fifty thousand in just one month!


    Sixty yuan for a ride was actually a price made for the benefit of the public. If he wanted, he could charge two hundred yuan per ride, and people would still be willing to pay. But since it was a zoo, aside from making money, he also had to consider public welfare. It wasn''t necessary to earn an extra few hundred thousand at the risk of beingbeled something detrimental, which could affect future development.


    He had called Professor Chu and decided to give Liang Shi, as an internship wage, three thousand yuan.


    Managing the big fish was practically Liang Shi''s major, so Professor Chu naturally had no objections. After expressing gratitude, he asked Suming over the phone to take good care of Liang Shi.


    If it were a master''s student studying something likeputer science, three thousand yuan for a month''s internship sry would be considered quite average. But Liang Shi''s field of study was rather niche, and most people didn''t get any internship stipend at all, being able to eat was good enough, and finding a job after graduation was difficult. Now, not only was Liang Shi well-fed and well-amodated, but he was also earning three thousand yuan. He could probably be considered the best off among his peers.


    Since Suming had contracted Shuijun Lake, there was no need to pay extra management fees to the zoo. Deducting what was paid to Liang Shi and the expenses for the fish and alligator turtle''s food and drink, the pure profit from the fish-riding activity in one month exceeded one hundred thousand yuan.


    With this addition to the pleasure boat ie, the entertainment activities on Shuijun Lake were already generating over one and a half million in revenue for Suming per year!


    Of course, during winter the pleasure boat business slumped, and the fish-riding activity was also subject to weather conditions¡ªno swimming during rain, snow, or cold weather. Even so, on an annual basis, the entertainment activities on Shuijun Lake would still bring in a substantial ie of a million yuan!


    Even for Suming, this was a sum that couldn''t be ignored¡ªit was a stable ie! Even if the fish farming business suffered an unexpected setback, Suming could livefortably on the ie from the entertainment activities alone.


    In fact, looking at it now, it seemed highly unlikely that the fish farming business would run into major trouble.


    The only enemy, Zhou Jin, was still in the hospital and could never have imagined that the garfish he had sent were now traitors to their cause, not only causing no damage to Shuijun Lake''s fishery but spending their days in the reservoir eating Zhou Jin''s fish;


    At the same time, due to contact with spiritual power, the fish in Shuijun Lake had be very friendly to humans. Arge number of tourists flocked to Shuijun Lake to ride fish and go boating. Far from disturbing the fish, this interaction actually promoted the growth of various species.


    The fish in Shuijun Lake were now well fed, living in a good environment, getting plenty of exercise every day, and were in good spirits, so it was impossible for them not to thrive. All that was left was to wait a few more months for them to grow up, and then discuss supply issues with Zhao Yun.


    Reportedly, there were already people from other areas looking to emte Suming by trainingrge fish to start a fish-riding business.


    But only Suming knew clearly that without the help of Animal Friends, at best, they could only get professional breeders to ride the fish briefly. To poprize it as a lucrative entertainment business was practically impossible.


    The only regret was that there were too fewrge fish. It would have been even better if there were a few more fish weighing over a hundred pounds. Each big fish was like a cash cow, constantly earning money for Suming.


    However, this was not something that could be rushed. It was rare for ordinary domestic fish to grow sorge; it required great fortune.


    In recent times, the garfish had swept through Huating Reservoir, consuming countless fish of various sizes, but they had not seen any weighing over a hundred pounds; even those over fifty pounds were rare.


    Without weighing over a hundred pounds, they simply could not support the weight of a person. Even with Suming helping with his spiritual power, it wasn''t enough, so to be selected for the ''cavalry team,'' they had to meet the threshold of weighing at least a hundred pounds.


    Suming had developed a habit; when everything was going smoothly, he would disappear from everyone''s sight, stay away from the hustle and bustle, and immerse himself in his primary work, mixing with the animals.


    Animal Friends was his foundation, and Suming had never forgotten that. Therefore, even his various business ventures were built on the basis of Animal Friends. If he forgot this and only focused on making money, indulging in the glittering world, his future achievements would end there.


    Perhaps it was because he had offspringte in life, but ever since the arrival of the wolf pups, the Wolf King had been distracted, sitting by the cage alone, staring nkly at the outside world, sometimes ignoring his food when offered.


    Suming had casually thrown a piece of beef to the Wolf King just now, but he remained unchanged, ncing at the meat before continuing to look outside, brooding deeply.


    "Squeak, squeak, squeak..." The sound of scratching ss came as the red fox next doory on the ss, its bright little eyes staring at the piece of beef the Wolf King had not touched, scratching the ss with its paws.


    Suming picked up the beef and tossed it over the cage. The meat fell next to the red fox through a gap on the top of the cage, and the red fox happily dragged the big piece of beef into the bushes.


    "Eat slowly, don''t choke yourself to death!" Suming shouted to the red fox across the cage.


    Just then, the Wolf King suddenly stood up, gazing out of the cage, and let out a mournful and long howl.


    "Awoo..."


    As the Wolf King howled, the other wolves also raised their heads and began to howl outside the cage.


    The wolf pups, just awakened by the noise, also didn''t understand what was happening. They stared at their father, puzzled, and then instinctively joined in the howling with the Wolf King, though their voices sounded milky and were slightly hoarse.


    "Stop howling, this can''t be rushed, take it slow!"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    In the entire zoo, the only one who understood the Wolf King''s feelings was Suming.

 Chapter 101: Chapter 101 Model Worker

    Everyone had their own duties to attend to, and while Suming was having a heart-to-heart with Wolf King, Wang Jian She was in his office reviewing documents.


    The secretary knocked and came in, cing a stack of materials on the corner of Wang Jian She''s desk, and said, "Mr. Wang, Mr. Li has asked me to deliver these model worker materials for your review. This year, their district has a total of ten model worker slots, but they''ve received over a hundred nominations. These neen individuals are rted to our agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors."


    "Mmhmm, got it. I''ll take a look. Come pick them up tomorrow morning," said Wang Jian She without lifting his head.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    There are many aspects involved in the operations within a bureaucracy, such as selecting district model workers, which is quite an art.


    Choosing model workers isn''t a decision made by a single person; many aspects must be taken into ount. For example, Wang Jian She is from the city bureau and oversees issues rted to agriculture, forestry, and fisheries in the whole of Yangchuan City, but he does not specifically manage the work of any particr district. Ultimately, the district model workers are determined by the district leadership team, but nominations rted to agriculture, forestry, and fisheries must seek Wang Jian She''s opinion.


    Simply put, out of the ten slots, two are for the agriculture, forestry, and fisheries sectors, and Wang Jian She gets to select these two.


    Wang Jian She was very busy, juggling his routine duties and caring for the Yangtze Finless Porpoise Conservation Group''s work, busy from morning till night without a moment''s rest. It wasn''t until close to the end of the day that he rubbed his temples, leaned back in his office chair, and began to read through the model worker candidate materials the secretary had brought.


    Li Mingyu, deputy director of the city park...


    Bai Tao, head of the Shipping Administration...


    After reviewing several candidates in session, none seemed quite right. Some had been model workers for several years in a row, and reappointing them as such would be meaningless and might even attract criticism; others had no noteworthy achievements to speak of, making it impossible to convince the public;


    Still, there were some suitable candidates, but with limited slots, it was impossible to amodate everyone.


    "Zhou Jin, General Manager of Huating Fisheries Company, provides nearly a thousand tons of fishery products to the provincial fishery market every year and is Yangchuan City''srgest freshwater fish breeder and supplier, with annual taxes reaching the scale of one million yuan..."


    There are many private enterprises with tax scales reaching millions, but those in agriculture, forestry, and fisheries typically earn less. Reaching a tax scale of one million is certainly a giant within the industry.


    As the person in charge, Wang Jian She had had some interactions with Zhou Jin and was familiar with him.


    Zhou Jin left an impression on Wang Jian She as being one of those uneducated but capable and ambitious, or rather, having grand aspirations like a crude, self-made individual. He had always wanted to secure an official position and had been active in various circles, even going through Wang Jian She''s connections.


    However, Wang Jian She had always been cautious in his official conduct, never engaging in anything that broke the rules, as was evident from the fact that he only bought a Ford EcoSport for Wang Hao. Besides, with the state''s strong anti-corruption efforts, Wang Jian She dared not mess around.


    The Yangtze finless porpoise was discovered in the Huating Reservoir this time, and for this, Zhou Jin even suffered several broken ribs. Although there was no contribution to speak of, his hardships were undoubtedly significant, and giving him a model worker title could be considered a constion from the higher-ups.


    Wang Jian She thought for a moment, then drew a circle in the upper right corner of this list, indicating this person could upy one slot.


    Then he continued to look down the list until, upon reaching thest person, Wang Jian She suddenly curled the corners of his mouth, unable to suppress augh. The photo of the young man wearing a sunny smile was none other than Suming.


    Wang Jian She deliberated for a moment, then drew a half-circle in the upper right corner of Suming''s list, and also drew half-circles on the lists of two other individuals.


    A full circle meant that Wang Jian She suggested the person be a model worker; a half-circle meant that Mr. Wang acknowledged the person but whether the district leadership team would grant the title of model worker was ultimately their decision.


    The slots were very limited, and although Suming had some merit, everyone else nominated also had their own significant achievements.


    After all, Suming''s qualifications were quite junior, and he was a bit too young.


    Furthermore, following the Yangtze finless porpoise incident, there had been his regrization, promotion, and bonus awards; he had already received the rewards due to him. Without any new significant achievements, if they insisted on giving the model worker title to Suming, while the district would agree to save Wang Jian She''s face, it would be too obvious, as if Wang Jian She was overly eager to promote Suming.


    Wang was now highly regarded by the Deputy Mayor and was at a crucial stage of being promoted into the leadership of the Municipal Committee. At this time, the most important thing for him was to maintain stability.


    In such a situation, if it were any other leader, Suming wouldn''t even be considered. Yet, due to the Yangtze Finless Porpoise incident and the rtionship between Suming and Wang Hao, Wang Jian She eventually made a half-turn and left the decision to the district leadership team.


    Discover hidden tales at m,v l''e-NovelBin


    ...


    The district had just confirmed seven model workers and three pending, and with over half a month left before the announcement of the awards, the candidates for model worker were already conveyed.


    "Mr. Zhou, if you ask me, they might as well just hand out some cash, what good is being a model worker!" said the bald man visiting Zhou Jin in the First People''s Hospital, peeling an apple andining at the same time.


    Zhou Jiny in the hospital bed, temporarily unable to move, but hisplexion had improved significantly.


    He sure was lucky.


    Watching TVst time, Zhou Jin was so infuriated by Suming that he spat out a few mouthfuls of blood. Unexpectedly, this misfortune turned into a blessing. After the doctor''s emergency treatment, it turned out that the chest congestion was cleared. Those mouthfuls of blood he spat out actually helped with his recovery.


    "What do you know!" Zhou Jin snapped, "Being a model worker is an opportunity, you understand?"


    "An opportunity for what?" The bald man was good in a fight, but talking politics to him was like ying the lute to a cow.


    "Forget it, forget it, you wouldn''t understand anyway," Zhou Jin let out a long sigh, suppressing his anger, and reminded himself to just see the bald man as a pig-headed fool. He couldn''t afford to get angry again at this moment.


    Bing a model worker was the first step. If he could ride this east wind and manage to progress further, it would greatly benefit his future business endeavors.


    He directly ordered the bald man, "Go get some bank cards made... and also, arrange a meeting with Mr. He for me. If he''s free, drive him to the hospital. I have something to discuss with him."


    The bald man nodded, "Oh. But will Mr. He be willing to help?"


    Zhou Jin frowned. Mr. He was very shrewd; he was always amiable in dealing with people, offending no one. Zhou Jin had asked him for a few small favors in the past, so they were somewhat acquainted.


    However, to what extent Mr. He would be willing to help, Zhou Jin wasn''t sure. Strictly speaking, his rtionship with Mr. He wasn''t deep, and the few favors he had asked were not against any principles, just expediting matters with the handling staff below.


    As the line of national legal enforcement grew tighter, Zhou Jin couldn''t tell whether Mr. He was actually willing to go out on a limb for him.


    But since Mr. He was the highest-ranking official Zhou Jin knew who also happened to be in direct charge of his affairs, he couldn''t think of anyone else but Mr. He to turn to.


    "Alright, I''ll get it done." The bald man finished speaking, crunched into the peeled apple with relish.


    The bald man had been peeling the apple next to Zhou Jin for quite a while. Zhou Jin initially thought it was for him and felt moved, thinking that despite the man''s simplicity, there was at least some sentiment there, some sign that he cared.


    But to his surprise, the bald man had no such intention. Zhou Jin''s eyes went wide with incredulity, "That apple..."


    "Huh? Mr. Zhou, you want an apple? You should''ve said so earlier!" Holding the apple with a bite taken out of it in one hand and a fruit knife in the other, the bald man asked with wide eyes.


    Zhou Jin turned red with anger, struggled to turn his head away from the bald man, and said with a weak and breathless voice, "Get out, out, out... go get the cards, find Mr. He... Stop hovering around me... wait, call... call the nurse in..."

 Chapter 102 : 102 Freedom

    Wolf King stillcked the ability to express his thoughts as precisely as humans, but he possessed the intelligence of a child of several years old, was capable of simple reasoning, and had improved intellectually with the help of Suming and Friends of the Animals after some time of interaction.


    During this time, he had been howling to Suming, conveying a simple message: freedom.


    Freedom is something ingrained in the bones of all wild animals, who would rather endure hunger and cold, battle with nature and humans, and fight other ferocious beasts than to be kept in cages as pets for people''s amusement.


    The Wolf King and his mate were old and had lived in the zoo for many years. Even if they went to the wild, they most likely wouldn''t adapt and wouldn''t survive.


    But it was different for the wolf cub; it was still young and fully capable of adapting to life in the wild, returning to the vast nature instead of spending its lifetime in this iron cage, being gawked at by people.


    No parents in the world would ever wish for their children to be destined from birth to live their entire lives devoid of freedom, trapped in a cage.


    Wolf King''s gaze was icy as he looked at Suming.


    "Old buddy, if you''re asking me for a favor, can you give me a more friendly look? Can you stop being so cool and pretending to be Ximen Chuixue all the time?" Suming squatted side by side with the Wolf King on the steps of the Wolf Pen, nced at the Wolf King, and said with irritation.


    Wolves naturally have that chilling gaze and are not good at expressing emotions, even when they look at their cubs, they still wear that same expression.


    The fact that the Wolf King ''condescended'' to squat next to Suming like arge dog was already showing him a lot of face. asionally tourists passing by the Wolf Pen were amazed by this scene and would take out their phones to snap photos.


    "Wolves aren''t in a good mood today; no pictures! Those who are just hanging around, go row boats and ride fish instead!"


    Suming waved his hand to shoo away the tourists like flies, used his spiritual power tomunicate with the Wolf King, and tried to calm its mood first. The Wolf King was already in his twilight years and wasn''t very healthy; thest thing he needed was to be sick from worry.


    In theory, training animals to return to the wild is also one of the responsibilities of a zoo, and as long as there is a suitable method to return the wolf cub to the wild, Mr. Song, the zoo director, wouldn''t oppose it.


    In the provincial animal protection center, one of the most important duties is ''release to the wild,'' which involves nurturing the animals'' wild instincts and re-introducing them to nature.


    ''Release to the wild'' may sound simple, but it''s quite difficult to achieve. It requires a lot of manpower, material resources, and there''s a whole slew of follow-up work to be done. The state has limited resources in this regard, so for now, they can only be applied to endangered species such as giant pandas and Baiji dolphins. Prairie wolves aren''t at that level and it wouldn''t be feasible to spend the effort and money on them exclusively.


    Moreover, the act of releasing them to the wild itself carries great risks. Wild animals are naturally suited for the wild environment and can learn survival skills from their parents and pack. However, the wolf cub was born in the zoo, surrounded by ''rtives and friends'' who are also captive animals, and the skills for hunting and surviving in the wild arergely forgotten. The little wolf cub has nowhere to learn even if it wanted to.


    Rashly releasing the wolf cub into nature could only backfire.


    Butpared to Wolf King and his mate, the little wolf cub had a natural advantage; it was young, unassimted by humans, like a nk te. If trained properly from a young age, there was hope for it to return to nature when it got a bit older.


    After leaving the Wolf Pen, Suming went straight to Mr. Song, the zoo director, and shared his ideas.


    As expected, Mr. Song''s thoughts were simr to Suming''s. Although prairie wolves are protected animals, they aren''t particrly rare. The zoo wouldn''t be greatly impacted whether there were a few more or a few less.


    On the contrary, if they could train the wolf cub to return to the wild, it wouldn''t only benefit the animal, but it would also be a fine project for the zoo to promote, showcasing their achievements.


    "Since you have this in mind, I have no objections. However, there are two conditions, first, you must not harm people or the wolves; second, the zoo currently cannot afford to fund this." Mr. Song said straightforwardly.


    "No problem, as long as you give the go-ahead, I have my answer." Suming said.


    "How do you n to start? Reintroduction is a major challenge worldwide, and after years of experiments, even the province''s Baiji dolphins haven''t been sessfully released back into the wild." Mr. Song asked with a bit of curiosity.


    Suming thought for a moment and said, "Right now, I don''t have any particrly good solutions, but I think that since the wolf pups are just born, they can''t stay in the Wolf Pen forever. Otherwise, if they get used to being fed by humans for too long, they will lose their innate wildness, making it even harder to return them to the wildter on."


    Mr. Song was somewhat surprised and asked tentatively, "Are you saying, to let the wolf pups out?"


    "Yes!" Suming nodded confidently.


    "That is a wolf! Don''t be fooled by its size now; it won''t be long before it can harm people!" Mr. Song said.


    Mr. Song said, "Suming, if I have you with them, you should be reassured, right?" Suming said this while casually picking up a water bottle, and with a smile, he filled Mr. Song''s cup with water.


    Mr. Song hesitated for a long while, finally agreeing reluctantly, "Su, don''t cause any trouble. If something doesn''t seem right, lock the wolf pups back up immediately!"


    "Don''t worry, it''s just a small wolf! With you overseeing the zoo, even a dragon would have to lie down obediently, let alone any jackals or leopards."


    "Quit the fooling around. You''re always up to something. Shuijun Lake has just started flourishing, and now, herees the issue with the wolf pups, keeping this old man on tenterhooks."


    "Heh heh, with you at the helm, our zoo''s ship won''t capsize!"


    After getting Mr. Song''s approval, Suming felt like he had a powerful talisman in hand, and he went back to the Wolf Pen to pick up the young wolves.


    The Wolf Pen was Mr. Peng''s territory. After giving him a heads up, Suming took the wolf pups out directly.


    The Wolf King and his mate did not behave like most parents whose children were leaving on a long journey, fussing over them for miles. The old couple nced at their offspring icily through the bars of the cage, then turned away simultaneously and went back to their den as if the pups taken away were the children of someone else.


    "Aroo..." The young wolfy on the concrete steps outside the Wolf Pen, and let out a somewhat pitiful howl toward its parents in the dark distance.


    Seeing that its parents were unmoved, the young wolf tilted its head looking at Suming, its little mind unable to understand why mom and dad didn''t want it anymore.


    Growth inevitablyes with growing pains. Suming snapped his fingers at the little guy, turned, and slowly walked away, casually saying, "Come on, a wolf must learn to grow up on its own..."


    Having been walked away from by Suming, and ignored by the Wolf King and his mate, the young wolf stood on the steps, looking around bewilderedly, first this way, then that way.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    A gust of wind blew, and the young wolf instinctively shrank its neck, with its small ears suddenly standing up. It looked back at the Wolf Pen with some reluctance as if it had made up its mind, then turned its head, and with its four little legs, it ran towards Suming, picking up speed as it went.

 Chapter 103 : 103: The Bird Thief

    The arrival of the little wolf caused quite a disturbance in Whisperwind Pavilion.


    Merely in terms ofbat strength, the cats and dogs were all stronger than the little wolf. The wolf-dog brothers need not be mentioned, for one p from them could send the little wolf flying. Even the felines, under Suming''s long-term nourishment of spiritual power, had be quite fierce, and could hold their own in a one-on-one skirmish with the little wolf. If Hei himself took action, he could even suppress the little wolf.


    As for the alligator gar, snapping turtles, and river dolphins, those were aquatic forces, a different matter entirely.


    Yet it was this fuzzy little wolf that, upon appearing, triggered immense wariness in the cats and dogs. The usually feuding wolf-dog brothers and the felines actually set aside their differences and formed a united front, leaning against the wall and growling at the little wolf.


    The little wolf cub was not to be outdone, its eyes cold and fierce as it swept over the line ofrger opponents, its sharp teeth peeking out from its lips as it prepared to pounce.


    The little wolf was naturally wild, fundamentally different from the cats and dogs. That essence of wildness about it instinctively made the cats and dogs feel afraid.


    If in the wilderness, they were creatures of entirely separate camps, for predators and prey were not distinguished based on size!


    When hunting, the small hunting dogs dared to attack giant ck bears and wild boars frenziedly. This is not because the hunting dogs were brave, but rather because they were so terrified that they resorted to almost insane behavior. Animals attack humans often for the same reason.


    Humans are the same, when practicing boxing, one''s pores open in a flush at the moment of power exertion, the sensation akin to the fright of encountering a ghost on a nocturnal path. When a vertebrate is deeply shocked, the nervous system is stimted, unleashing potential. The difference is that humans have reason; after being frightened, they may be too scared to attack, whereas animals be even more ferocious.


    "Everyone, stay put!"


    Suming shouted angrily. His spiritual power swept over both groups like a heavy nket, serving as a mediator, as he used his spiritual power to connect the cats and dogs with the little wolf.


    Spiritual power connected at the most basal and fundamental level ofmunication, and with Suming in the middle acting as a peacemaker, the tense standoff between the two sides eased considerably.


    "You guys stay home and watch the house for the next few days. I''m taking Huiya to the back mountain!"


    Huiya was the name Suming had given the little wolf cub. Hopefully, one day, it would be a wild Grey Wolf with sharp ws and teeth...


    Since it was about preparing for the wild, it would not do to keep the little wolf like the household pets in Fengshui Pavilion, but instead take it out into nature as much as possible.


    After the bees found a new homest time, the Queen Bee wanted to see Suming more than once, but he had been too busy to visit. Now was the perfect time tobine both tasks: to take the little wolf to Monkey Mountain and also pay the Queen Bee a visit.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The bees'' new home was quite far, and Suming estimated that going back and forth in the mountains would take two to three days. He would have to spend the nights in the mountains, so he had to prepare in advance. First, he drove to the city''s outdoor gear store and bought some wilderness equipment.


    A tent, Swiss Army knife, windproof lighter,pressed biscuits... He couldn''t bring too much, just filled a backpack.


    In theory, Suming, with his Animal Friend ability, was invincible in the mountains and security was not an issue. But perhaps it was because he had grown up watching various supernatural creature movies that his first solo venture into the deep mountains gave him an exciting feeling. After leaving the outdoor gear store, he went to a military surplus store and bought a dagger and a replica AK bay, which made him feel fully secure.


    After finishing all of that, he returned to the zoo and picked up Huiya.


    Besides Huiya, there was another ''old friend'' he needed to take with him.


    He had long ago promised Haidong Qing to take it out for a few days, and he had never had the chance to fulfill his promise, but this time there was an opportunity to mix business with pleasure.


    As soon as he entered the bird park, the Haidong Qing, whose ws were like white jade, seemed to acutely sense something and pped its wings to take flight,nding steadily on Suming''s arm.


    "How many times have I said not to clutch my arm! It hurts!" Suming rolled his eyes and with a shake of his hand, Haidong Qing hopped onto his shoulder.


    Haidong Qing is scientifically known as an ipiter, acimed as the bird that flies the highest and fastest in the world, with the moniker "the deity of eagles", the legend goes that out of a hundred thousand divine eagles, only one "Haidong Qing" is born.


    As with all myths, the story of one Haidong Qing emerging from a hundred thousand divine eagles isrgely nonsense; however, the ferocity and rarity of Haidong Qing are true. Among birds of prey, the Haidong Qing has virtually no rival. In fact, owing to its ability to fly, it does not have natural predators in the animal kingdom, besides humans.


    During the Qing Dynasty, if anyone caught a white-wed Haidong Qing, it had to be presented to the Imperial Household Department for the emperor''s enjoyment. A single Haidong Qing was worth dozens of taels of silver, sufficient for amon family''s needs for several years; even a criminal could achieve amnesty by offering a Haidong Qing.


    Several Qing emperors, notorious for their bad poetry, ironically all loved to write poems. Kangxi himself penned, "Of winged insects thrice-a-hundred in sixty, the Haidong Qing is the most divine."


    In modern times, due to excessive hunting by humans, the Haidong Qing almost became extinct, especially the white-wed Haidong Qing, which became even more rare. Thus, before the appearance of the finless porpoise, this white jade Haidong Qing was nearly the most precious of the few animals in the zoo.


    When Suming wanted to take away the Haidong Qing, Mr. Peng was initially a bit anxious, but seeing how obediently it perched on Suming''s shoulder, he shook his head with a smile and didn''t say much more, turning to return to managing the pleasure boats at Shuijun Lake.


    It''s said that "one in ten survives, rare is the name of eagle". Taming a wild eagle is extremely difficult. After capturing one, you first have to tie up its "feet with tethers" and prevent it from sleeping for days on end, wearing down its wildness, which is known as "waiting out the eagle"; then you proceed through other steps like running it on a leash, andstly "slimming down", scraping out its intestinal oil to make the bird hungry before it can be tamed. Only after that can you take it out for falconry.


    Once tamed, the loyalty of an eagle is quite high. Seeing the Haidong Qing obediently hopping onto Suming''s shoulder, Mr. Peng knew that this Haidong Qing had beenpletely tamed by Suming, and there would be no problem taking it out.


    As for how it was tamed, Mr. Peng didn''t ask further.


    Suming had a way with animals, and this was no longer a secret. Comparing oneself with another in terms of training animals, or always pondering how Suming managed it, is nothing but masochism.


    As Suming was about ''to carry'' Haidong Qing out, suddenly, a very shrill voice next door erupted, eximing, "Thief! Bird thief!"


    Suming was startled and looked around; outside the cage, there was nothing but emptiness, not a ghost in sight.


    "Idiot, idiot!" a voice blurted out, no more than four or five meters away from Suming.

 Chapter 104: Chapter 104 Diamond Parrot

    Two voices rang out in session; Suming looked around but couldn''t find anyone speaking, then suddenly remembered something, chuckled, and turned his head to look at the birdcage next door.


    In the neighboring birdcage lived a pair of ''sisters''!


    The two half-meter-tall Diamond Parrots, were standing on the treetops, seemingly unconcerned, their curved beaks preening the feathers on their bodies.


    The Diamond Parrot is a type of parrot thates from Mexico and Brazil, growing to nearly a meter in length, making it one of the most spectacrrge parrots, with its body covered in bright red feathers, with blue and red tails and wings, hence the name ''Diamond Parrot''.


    Like all parrots of their kind, the Diamond Parrots are also known as ''strongmen''; in the rainforests of the Americas, there are many tough nuts that are hard to crack even with a hammer, yet Diamond Parrots can easily use their beaks to peel off the outer shell of the fruit and get to the seeds inside. Explore more at m,v l''e-NovelBin


    Aside from their beautiful, magnificent exterior and immense strength, the Diamond Parrots have another incredible ability: many of the fruits and flowers in their diet are poisonous, but having consumed these over time, the parrots have developed a resistance to poison, giving them an indestructible physique.


    Those who like to chatter tend to live longer, and this is true for parrots as well; Diamond Parrots can even live to eighty years old. This pair of sisters is only in their early twenties, in the prime of their youth.


    Needless to say, those sentences from before hade straight from the beaks of these two Diamond Parrots.


    "Pretend, keep pretending!"


    Ignoring their ''it wasn''t me'' act, Suming chuckled and threw a nut through the bars of the cage, hitting one of the parrots on the head. The parrot tilted its head, caught the nut in its beak, and then cracked it open with a snap.


    Seemingly having picked up some foulnguage from the tourists, the other parrot tilted its head and called out to Suming, "Idiot! Idiot!"


    "No swearing allowed!"


    Suming red at the two culprits, then prepared to leave with Haidong Qing.


    Not long after they stepped out of the birdcage, he heard the Diamond Parrots pping their wings behind him, and in a strange tone, they said, "Take me with you, take me with you..."


    "And me, and me..."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Turning his head, Suming saw both parrots pressing against the cage, calling out to him through the wire gaps, pping their wings trying to follow, but the cage barred their way.


    Parrots are quite intelligent and can naturally mimic human speech. Suming, whenever he visited the aviary, wouldmunicate with them using spiritual power, chat with them and amuse them. Over time, these two rascals could actually conduct simple exchanges using humannguage.


    "You two are too clever! Just stay put in your cage!"


    Suming had no desire to bring these two along; bringing too many animals at once could lead to idents, and it would be difficult to exin to Mr. Song.


    Actually, if it were any other animal, even a fierce beast like a tiger or lion, Suming would be willing to take them, but not the parrot sisters!


    The animals in the zoo each had their own personalities, such as the aloof wolf, the suspicious fox, the simple bear...


    These parrot sisters, in particr, were extremely chatty, with incessant babbling that was incredibly noisy.


    It was fine to chat with them asionally, but after more than ten minutes, Suming would feel like there were buzzing flies around his ear, unintentionally giving rise to an impulse to strangle the pair.


    Seeing that Suming was ignoring them, the parrot sisters became agitated and started shrieking with their hoarse voices.


    "Idiot! Idiot! Come back! Come back!"


    "Someonee! Someonee! There''s a thief! There''s a thief!"


    The parrots'' voices were sharp and piercing, carrying far and wide, which soon disturbed the nearby tourists, with many heading in this direction. Upon seeing Suming with Haidong Qing on his shoulder, the tourists gave him strange looks, as if they were looking at a thief.


    "I''m a keeper!" Suming hurriedly exined.


    Unrelenting, the Diamond Parrots kept shouting from behind, "A thief! A thief!"


    Another parrot chimed in, screaming: "Catch the thief! Catch the thief!"


    Suming wasn''t worried about actually being mistaken for a thief since he was carrying his zoo ID.


    But who knew what kind of trouble these two mischief-makers would stir up next! It''s not unusual for a parrot to speak, but if the Diamond Parrot disyed intelligence far beyond mere mimicking, that would be too shocking and might arouse suspicion.


    "You vile creatures, you''ve even learned to make threats!"


    Before the Diamond Parrots could cause any trouble, Suming quickly sent two bursts of spiritual power their way, "I''m taking you with me, now shut up immediately!"


    The Diamond Parrots immediately fell silent, flew back to their perch, and started pecking at the fruits with their heads down. Yet they asionally nced up at Suming, worried he might sneak away without keeping his promise.


    "Am I that kind of person?" Suming rolled his eyes.


    ...


    Thus, the group departing that day had gained two parrots as tall as small children.


    There were no roads in the mountains, not even trails suitable for a Wrangler to navigate, so Suming entered the mountain through a small path. At first, he encountered a few hikers sporadically, but after three or four hours, the path led to wilderness, with not a soul in sight.


    Er Gouzi was buzzing ahead, leading the way, while Haidong Qing soared in the skies above, its sharp eyes scanning the ground. asionally, it would dive into the forest and lightning-fast snatch a small snake.


    Since the two parrots were toorge for Suming to carry, they flew low, from one tree to another on his left and right, advancing in a ''leaping'' fashion.


    "Hurry up, dumbass!"


    "Dumbass, hurry up!"


    The parrots'' urging sounds were incessant.


    Huiya followed closely behind Suming¡ªabout the size of a small dog and with no great ability to defend itself, but it showed no signs of fear. Instead, it was curious about everything around, pawing at every dry tree and pile of leaves it saw. asionally, it would stop and growl at the dense woods in the distance.


    Suming walked in the middle, carrying arge backpack, with a replica military spike hanging from his waist and a dagger strapped to his calf. A Swiss Army knife andpass were tucked in the pocket of his jeans. His gear weighed over twenty pounds, but thankfully, his friendship with animals had also increased his physical strength significantly, otherwise, he couldn''t have walked so far.


    The deeper he went into the mountains, the more difficult the terrain became. There were no signs of human activity, and various birds would fly out of the forest from time to time. Before five in the afternoon, the dense woond blocked out all the sunlight, and darkness gradually settled in the forest.


    By around six o''clock, the forest waspletely dark, the trees casting heavy shadows, the woods silent except for the asional cry of an unknown animal. Every step he took on the thick nket of dead leaves made a squeaking sound.


    In the darkness, Huiya''s eyes glowed a soft blue light.


    The parrots had not stopped chattering all the way, and now they started up again.


    "I''m tired! I''m tired!"


    "I''m hungry! I''m hungry!"


    The two creatures were like a double act, standing on the treetops, endlessly squawking.


    "Make camp right here!"


    Suming simply called a halt to the march, pulled out his bay, and cleared a small area of dead leaves.


    The Diamond Parrots flocked to Suming,nding in front of him, waiting for him to feed them.


    Suming waved the bay at the Diamond Parrots and asked with a sinister smile, "How about I roast the two of you for dinner?"

 Chapter 107 Battle in the Valley (Part 1)

    "What''s going on? Could there be a mutiny?!"


    Seeing the bees fighting amongst themselves, Suming was shocked. It had been a good month since hest saw them, and now he wondered if there was some conflict between the honeybees and the wasps, or if something had happened to the honeybees themselves that started infighting.


    Looking closely, most of the wasps weren''t participating in the battle. They were grouped together, guarding thergest hive; it didn''t look like a mutiny. They were probably protecting the Queen Bee''s safety.


    Moreover, honeybees are naturally pacifistic, and their stingers can only be used once. After stinging, they would die, so honeybees normally won''t engage in battle lightly, let alone attack their trenchmates, the wasps, without any good reason.


    Furthermore, with the Queen Bee, whose intelligence far exceeded that of a regr honeybee, presiding over the swarm, such circumstances should have never urred. The swarm should only thrive and grow.


    With these thoughts in mind, Suming, filled with doubt, projected his spiritual power into the warring bee factions.


    As soon as his spiritual power entered the swarm, the honeybees he touched were immediately distinguished. They split into two clearly divided camps.


    A small portion of honeybees gave off a familiar feeling, like poverty-stricken peasants seeing their Red Army kin; while the vast majority of honeybees seemed perplexed by the spiritual power, showing no response at all, as if it was their first encounter with spiritual power.


    Suming then realized it wasn''t a mutiny within his swarm, rather, his own bees were battling unfamiliar ones from the mountains.


    In that case, of course, he had to help his own.


    Without hesitation, and no time to ask any questions, Suming channeled half of his spiritual power into his faction of bees, organizing the individually fighting swarm into a systematic battle formation, just like thest time. Withrger, stronger bees leading the groups and Suming in overallmand, they fought strategically.


    At the same time, he used the old method, throwing the remainder of his spiritual power over the enemy swarm.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The bees in the forest were so densely packed that when the spiritual power hit, it controlled arge number of the enemy honeybees, like a descending upon them.


    Suming''s spiritual power now vastly surpassed the level it was at the first time he controlled bees, forcibly causing hundreds of the enemy honeybees to ''defect'' at once.


    If any refused to obey, Suming didn''t bother with words. With a jolt of spiritual power, if he didn''t shake them to death, at least he could stun them, rendering them incapacitated!


    With that, the previously disadvantaged Su Army Bees suddenly got a shot of adrenaline. With the help of arge number of controlled defectors, theyunched an effective counterattack against the opposing swarm, significantly changing the situation.


    But the enemy''s numbers were truly overwhelming. Although the bees Suming controlled amounted to hundreds, they were just an insignificant part of the enemy''s force. The remaining enemy swarm still held an absolute numerical advantage.


    After a brief initial confusion, the enemy honeybees, of unknown origin, quickly turned the tide, using their superior numbers to firmly suppress the Su Army Bees, regaining the upper hand.


    Even with Suming''smand, it often took three or four of the enemy''s lives to take down one of the Su Army''s, but the enemy bees were nearly innumerable, like a nket covering the sky. It wasn''t just a matter of trading three or four lives for one of Suming''s bees; they could afford to trade thirty or forty, and still have plenty to spare.


    If this trend continued, the Su Army Bees would be wiped out before all the enemies could be killed.


    Moreover, there were enemy forces that had clearly spotted Suming, swarming towards him in droves.


    "Damn it!"


    Suming''s scalp tingled as he stared at the dense swarm of bees getting closer and closer. Just the group flying towards him probably numbered over ten thousand. No matter how powerful his spiritual power, he could not possibly control so many at once.


    "Save me! My God, someone save me!" Suming''s voice cracked as he let out a frantic shout, nearly wetting himself with fear.


    There was a slight shadow overhead as three gigantic birds descended from the sky, charging towards the swarm!


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    The Haidong Qing let out a long cry, diving with its wings spread like des on either side of its body. It struck hard into the middle of the swarm!


    Lunging forward at high speed, the Haidong Qing, like a sharp battle sword, easily cleaved a clear path through the dense swarm, splitting the bees in half!


    The Haidong Qing soared back into the sky, then once more performed a dive, charging repeatedly through the swarm at high speed, each time easily breaching the bee''s defense and slicing the dense swarm into pieces, throwing them into total disarray!


    If the Haidong Qing was an invincible de, then the two Diamond Parrots were like twin hammers!


    The flying capability of the Diamond Parrots was subpar, nowhere near that of the Haidong Qing. If they tried to replicate the Haidong Qing''s stylish, high-speed dive, the only result would be a nosedive into the ground, leaving them dazed and confused!


    But they had their own methods!


    The Parrot sisters, one on the left and one on the right, charged into the wings of the swarm like two hefty penguins, waddling with plump figures. With a powerful p of their wings, they could create a gust that blew awayrge clusters of bees.


    Though their flight was weak, they were not incapable of flying. Within the swarm, the two parrots glided more than they flew, hopping and skipping like tworge tanks bulldozing through a crowd of infantry, scattering the surrounding bees in all directions with every move.


    "Squash you, squash you!" They squawked as they barged through.


    Birds are the natural nemesis of bees. They have thick, dense feathers that even the stingers of bees or hos can''t prate. Both the Haidong Qing and the Diamond Parrots were exceptional in this regard. In their presence, it didn''t matter how numerous the Su Army Bees were; they could only passively receive blows.


    Moreover, Suming was causing havoc in the rear with his spiritual power! This time he had learned to be smarter. Instead of using his spiritual power to directly control the rebellion of the bees, he divided his power into several streams, causing chaos within the swarm, harassing here and stirring up trouble there. Sometimes, he even deliberately gathered the bees in the path of the three birds'' attack, scattering arge group with a swoop.


    After the three birds dispersed the bees, they didn''t wait for the opponent to regroup. A surge of spiritual power would shake violently, knocking the recently recovered bees into disarray.


    It didn''t take long for the bees, with their limited intelligence, to lose all ability to mount an effective offensive, bingpletely disorganized.


    The terrifying aspect of a bee swarm lies in its numbers. Thousands of bees attacking at once would even make wolves and tigers flee. But now, with the desperate defenses of the three giant birds and Suming''s interference, the attacking battalion of bees heading for Suming had been totally routed!

 Chapter 107 : 107: Battle in the Valley (Part 1)

    "What''s going on? Could there be a mutiny?!"


    Seeing the bees fighting amongst themselves, Suming was shocked. It had been a good month since hest saw them, and now he wondered if there was some conflict between the honeybees and the wasps, or if something had happened to the honeybees themselves that started infighting.


    Looking closely, most of the wasps weren''t participating in the battle. They were grouped together, guarding thergest hive; it didn''t look like a mutiny. They were probably protecting the Queen Bee''s safety.


    Moreover, honeybees are naturally pacifistic, and their stingers can only be used once. After stinging, they would die, so honeybees normally won''t engage in battle lightly, let alone attack their trenchmates, the wasps, without any good reason.


    Furthermore, with the Queen Bee, whose intelligence far exceeded that of a regr honeybee, presiding over the swarm, such circumstances should have never urred. The swarm should only thrive and grow.


    With these thoughts in mind, Suming, filled with doubt, projected his spiritual power into the warring bee factions.


    As soon as his spiritual power entered the swarm, the honeybees he touched were immediately distinguished. They split into two clearly divided camps.


    A small portion of honeybees gave off a familiar feeling, like poverty-stricken peasants seeing their Red Army kin; while the vast majority of honeybees seemed perplexed by the spiritual power, showing no response at all, as if it was their first encounter with spiritual power.


    Suming then realized it wasn''t a mutiny within his swarm, rather, his own bees were battling unfamiliar ones from the mountains.


    In that case, of course, he had to help his own.


    Without hesitation, and no time to ask any questions, Suming channeled half of his spiritual power into his faction of bees, organizing the individually fighting swarm into a systematic battle formation, just like thest time. Withrger, stronger bees leading the groups and Suming in overallmand, they fought strategically.


    At the same time, he used the old method, throwing the remainder of his spiritual power over the enemy swarm.


    The bees in the forest were so densely packed that when the spiritual power hit, it controlled arge number of the enemy honeybees, like a descending upon them.


    Suming''s spiritual power now vastly surpassed the level it was at the first time he controlled bees, forcibly causing hundreds of the enemy honeybees to ''defect'' at once.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    If any refused to obey, Suming didn''t bother with words. With a jolt of spiritual power, if he didn''t shake them to death, at least he could stun them, rendering them incapacitated!


    With that, the previously disadvantaged Su Army Bees suddenly got a shot of adrenaline. With the help of arge number of controlled defectors, theyunched an effective counterattack against the opposing swarm, significantly changing the situation.


    But the enemy''s numbers were truly overwhelming. Although the bees Suming controlled amounted to hundreds, they were just an insignificant part of the enemy''s force. The remaining enemy swarm still held an absolute numerical advantage.


    After a brief initial confusion, the enemy honeybees, of unknown origin, quickly turned the tide, using their superior numbers to firmly suppress the Su Army Bees, regaining the upper hand.


    Even with Suming''smand, it often took three or four of the enemy''s lives to take down one of the Su Army''s, but the enemy bees were nearly innumerable, like a nket covering the sky. It wasn''t just a matter of trading three or four lives for one of Suming''s bees; they could afford to trade thirty or forty, and still have plenty to spare.


    If this trend continued, the Su Army Bees would be wiped out before all the enemies could be killed.


    Moreover, there were enemy forces that had clearly spotted Suming, swarming towards him in droves.


    "Damn it!"


    Suming''s scalp tingled as he stared at the dense swarm of bees getting closer and closer. Just the group flying towards him probably numbered over ten thousand. No matter how powerful his spiritual power, he could not possibly control so many at once.


    "Save me! My God, someone save me!" Suming''s voice cracked as he let out a frantic shout, nearly wetting himself with fear.


    There was a slight shadow overhead as three gigantic birds descended from the sky, charging towards the swarm!


    The Haidong Qing let out a long cry, diving with its wings spread like des on either side of its body. It struck hard into the middle of the swarm!


    Lunging forward at high speed, the Haidong Qing, like a sharp battle sword, easily cleaved a clear path through the dense swarm, splitting the bees in half!


    The Haidong Qing soared back into the sky, then once more performed a dive, charging repeatedly through the swarm at high speed, each time easily breaching the bee''s defense and slicing the dense swarm into pieces, throwing them into total disarray!


    If the Haidong Qing was an invincible de, then the two Diamond Parrots were like twin hammers!


    The flying capability of the Diamond Parrots was subpar, nowhere near that of the Haidong Qing. If they tried to replicate the Haidong Qing''s stylish, high-speed dive, the only result would be a nosedive into the ground, leaving them dazed and confused!


    But they had their own methods!


    The Parrot sisters, one on the left and one on the right, charged into the wings of the swarm like two hefty penguins, waddling with plump figures. With a powerful p of their wings, they could create a gust that blew awayrge clusters of bees.


    Though their flight was weak, they were not incapable of flying. Within the swarm, the two parrots glided more than they flew, hopping and skipping like tworge tanks bulldozing through a crowd of infantry, scattering the surrounding bees in all directions with every move.


    "Squash you, squash you!" They squawked as they barged through.


    Birds are the natural nemesis of bees. They have thick, dense feathers that even the stingers of bees or hos can''t prate. Both the Haidong Qing and the Diamond Parrots were exceptional in this regard. In their presence, it didn''t matter how numerous the Su Army Bees were; they could only passively receive blows.


    Moreover, Suming was causing havoc in the rear with his spiritual power! This time he had learned to be smarter. Instead of using his spiritual power to directly control the rebellion of the bees, he divided his power into several streams, causing chaos within the swarm, harassing here and stirring up trouble there. Sometimes, he even deliberately gathered the bees in the path of the three birds'' attack, scattering arge group with a swoop.


    After the three birds dispersed the bees, they didn''t wait for the opponent to regroup. A surge of spiritual power would shake violently, knocking the recently recovered bees into disarray.


    It didn''t take long for the bees, with their limited intelligence, to lose all ability to mount an effective offensive, bingpletely disorganized.


    The terrifying aspect of a bee swarm lies in its numbers. Thousands of bees attacking at once would even make wolves and tigers flee. But now, with the desperate defenses of the three giant birds and Suming''s interference, the attacking battalion of bees heading for Suming had been totally routed!

 Chapter 109: Chapter 109 Indigenous Alliance Army

    Bees are not prone to warfare. Apart from natural instincts, there''s another important reason: their intelligence is quite low.


    War, politics, or, in other words, the actions of grabbing money, food, women, or territory are mostly exhibited by higher life forms. Creatures like bees, who are almost brainless, will not engage in a life-or-death struggle unless other beings threaten their survival. Their tiny brains certainly don''t entertain thoughts of ''honor,'' ''conquest,'' or ''progress.''


    In fact, except for humans, the vast majority of animals do not attack other animals unless their lives are threatened or for the sake of hunting to survive.


    If the Su Army Bees were still like ordinary bees, there would, of course, be no issue, and what Suming would have seen today would have been a beautiful scene of colonists and Indigenous Bees living harmoniously together. Unfortunately, the new bees had been baptized by spiritual power, and both their intelligence and other abilities far surpassed those of the Indigenous Bees.


    The Queen Bee was among the best of them, even beginning to develop a rudimentary thinking ability. In a sense, this Queen Bee had already transcended other bees by a whole level of life, bing a different species entirely. The gap might even be greater than that between human ancestors and apes.


    When the neers'' civilization far exceeds that of the natives, yet the natives upy the richestnds and endless resources, war is almost inevitable.


    But it is only ''almost'' inevitable, not absolutely so.


    Although the Queen Bee wasrge, it had littlebat ability and was, in fact, the least warmongering among the bee colony. The existence of the Indigenous Bees did not threaten the survival of the Su Army Bees. Under normal circumstances, fighting might not ur.


    But the problem just had to lie with the Queen Bee!


    Since acquiring rudimentary thinking ability, the Queen Bee was no longer on the same level as other bees, even those from its own tribe. Despite the size of the colony, there was not a single bee capable ofmunicating with it.


    In the vast valley, therger the bee colony grew, the more intensely the Queen Bee felt its solitude.


    People cannot be idle; too much idleness leads to mischief, and this is even more true for women, whose idle thoughts run wild over time. Granting women the same rights to work as men is indisputably one of humanity''s most creative legitive acts. By channeling women''s excess energy into work, it has liberated countless malepatriots...


    "I digress!" Suming continued to organize his thoughts.


    Idle and bored, what could an idle woman do? Shop and buy clothes? Clearly, the Queen Bee was not in such a condition; gossip with girlfriends? Please, there wasn''t any other bee worthy of being her girlfriend here!


    So that left only one option: think about men!


    Therefore, within her secluded chamber, the lonely, cold, empty, and helpless Queen Bee increasingly longed for her spiritual and life mentor, Comrade Su Ming.


    She had tried several times through Er Gouzi to send a message, wishing to see Suming, but Suming had been too busytely, barely touching the ground with his feet, and thus, visiting the bee colony in the mountains had been on hold.


    When a woman has too much idle time and starts to indulge in wild thoughts, it is already a very dangerous omen, and if this woman wields power, it often leads to big trouble!


    Bees are the same, with the Queen Bee feeling bored, she actually started entertaining the thought of "expanding her territory", turning her longing for Suming into the drive to increase her tribe''s domain.


    Experience new stories on m v|l e''-NovelBin


    In her simple mind, an unsophisticated idea emerged: since the swarm could provide honey to help Suming, then expanding the swarm''s territory and bringing more bees under hermand would produce more honey and better help Suming.


    And so, a fierce war thus unfolded!


    In the valley, there were originally twelve groups of Indigenous Bees, with even the smallest group outnumbering the Queen Bee''s followers; however, the bees led by the Queen Bee, in both individual and team fighting strength, surpassed the Indigenous Bee groups. Not to mention they also had arge group of fierce ho enforcers. Thus, during the initial days of the war, the Queen Bee''s troops took the Indigenous Bees by surprise, quickly annexing two small tribes!


    As a result, they had now provoked collective fury!


    Bees, with their low intelligence, don''t think much and don''t have any schemes in their bellies, but precisely because of this, they have a natural and urate instinct for danger. The behavior of these foreign bees posed a huge threat to the remaining Indigenous Bee groups in the valley, and they decided to join forces topletely eliminate this group of invaders.


    The remaining ten groups of bees joined hands, outnumbering the Queen Bee''s followers by dozens or even hundreds of times, and within just a few days, the Queen Bee''s troops were forced into a retreat, suffering heavy losses. Not only did they lose all the gains from their conquests, but they also had most of their original territory snatched away, leaving them only with this small forest as a base, struggling to resist the Indigenous Alliance Army.


    Luckily, the Indigenous Alliance Army did not have amander like Suming and only acted on instinct. After gaining a good position, they did not press on to annihte the Su Armypletely but, every day, sent arge group of bees to attack the forest.


    Sometimes they sent more, sometimes less; even at its smallest, the enemy forces outnumbered the Su Army Bees by one or two times. Fortunately, the Indigenous Bees were not smart, and within their own groups, there was hardly any coordination, let alonebined arms across tribes. Meanwhile, the Queen Bee had arge group of hos, which, at critical moments, could serve as a surprise weapon, enabling her to barely hold on up until now, though each day the ranks were thinning.


    "So you''re saying it''s all my fault? It''s because I''m cold-hearted and uncaring, failing to show concern, that we''re in this situation?" Suming asked the Queen Bee, pointing at his nose.


    The Queen Bee dared not make a sound, which amounted to an admission.


    "Damn it! Since the battle has started, why didn''t you notify me earlier?"


    Suming was a bit annoyed. Since the war had already begun, the Queen Bee should have informed him earlier. If he''d known there was a war of annihtion going on in the valley, he would have dropped everything toe here on a two-day leave.


    A feeling of distress emerged from the spiritual power of the Queen Bee, as if afraid of being punished by Suming. It had started the war and if it had won, of course, there would have been no issue; but with the current situation of being passively beaten and suffering heavy losses, it seemed hesitant to ask Suming for help, fearing his punishment.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Or rather, it worried that Suming, who rarely visited as it was, might distance himself even more because of this incident.


    Suming almost burst intoughter at the absurdity: "Good grief, you aren''t even a real woman, can''t you be a bit less delicate in your thoughts? Big sis, as the Queen Bee, don''t you think you should have the imposing presence of a mother of the world? You''re making me scared here. If in a few years you really develop human intelligence, won''t I be tormented to death by your gloomy grudge?!"

 Chapter 110 Friend and Foe

    As for the Queen Bee''s feminine whims, Suming was truly speechless. Different animals have different personalities¡ªbears, wolves, and even two foul-mouthed parrots, Suming could understand, but the Queen Bee had now transformed into a resentful woman, which really gave him the creeps!


    What the heck, sister, you''re just a bee, do I have to date you all day long or what?!


    Even if you have a nice figure, a slim waist, and a big butt, Nangong Yan''s figure isn''t bad either, not to mention she''s got two big white buns in the front. As the saying goes, you can nibble when you''re hungry and squeeze out a juice when you''re thirsty; they can even warm your hands when it''s cold. Sister, as a bee, even if I wanted to date you, how would that work? Do you want me to break you?!


    "Yikes, that''s so vile..." Suming shivered, "Forget it, forget it. Let''s not assign me. Trouble has been caused, so I''ll clean it up. Next time you have any actions nned, report to me first!"


    Queen Bee: "..."


    Now isn''t the time to discuss who''s right and who''s wrong. In wars among animals, talking about right and wrong doesn''t really make sense. Romance between humans and beasts... Damn it. I said I wouldn''t bring this up...


    The key point is that the Queen Bee is under Suming''smand. Even if she was at fault, Suming didn''t want to me her. As the saying goes, familyes first, not reason; your elbow must never turn outward! Experience more content on m v|l e''-NovelBin


    The pressing matter at hand is how to win this battle!


    Suming''s Queen Bee had already deeply offended the other bee queens in Hundred Flowers Valley, and irrevocably so!


    It''s said that women are petty and hold long grudges, but this issue isn''t really about gender. From a biological perspective, the Queen Bee is the mother of the entire hive, the highest ruler. Each hive can only have one queen bee, and when two hives merge into one, one of the queens must inevitably be killed!


    A mountain cannot have two tigers, a house cannot have two queens... Huh???


    Anyway, no matter what, now that war has broken out and brains have been bashed out, Suming''s Queen Bee is naturally opposed to the other indigenous queens, stuck in a deadly struggle! Either the nine queens of the other hives will die, or the Su Army Queen Bee will fall. Otherwise, the war will never end!N?v(el)B\\jnn


    If Suming had to choose, of course, there was no suspense¡ªhe''d let the other nine queens die!


    Suming wondered if there was a rtively simple way to solve the problem, like using spiritual power to forcibly control the other queens and incorporate their hives under hismand.


    Let''s not talk about whether it''s feasible. Even if it is possible, there would be two huge potential problems.


    First, if the original queen bee still exists, her hive will not truly assimte with another hive. In the future, the dozen or so hives would still be loose sand, acting independently, only nominally under Suming''s rule;


    Second, and most troublesome, the Queen Bee has developed intelligence because of spiritual power, so the other queens, after long exposure to spiritual power, will likely also develop intelligence and learn simple reasoning.


    Perhaps it''s because the Queen Bee is ''female'' that her thoughts are veryplex. A thinking female queen bee is already enough of a headache for Suming. Imagine if in the future he has to deal with over a dozen thinking female queens, rife with ongoing grudges and conflicts¡ªwouldn''t he be driven mad?!


    Furthermore, what if, just what if, all those dozen or so queens wanted to date him, each with their own different temperaments¡ªcould their jealousy and other odd rivalries lead to another fight? Would they not rest until they''ve ripped each other''s guts out and sttered each other''s brains everywhere?


    "Why must it be like this, could being too charming be a curse?"


    Suming looked up to the sky and let out a long sigh. I''m supposed to run a zoo, not be an emperor. I don''t need any of this pce intrigue stuff!


    After giving it some thought, Suming, embodying the boldness of a bigmonster, decided to thoroughly settle the issue once and for all by killing all the Queen Bees from the other species to prevent future troubles!


    "Sympathy for women and love for beauty, I never understood that crap! What I love is to mercilessly destroy beauty, to brutally force my way, mwahaha!"


    The Queen Bee immediately conveyed a burst of jubnt emotion, twisting her slender, plump hips toward Suming. Herpound eyes glittered with something called ruthlessness, appearing like an aplice!


    "So cruel! So cruel!"


    "So malicious! So malicious!"


    The two Diamond Parrots hopped around noisily, constantly squawking, until Suming grabbed their beaks.


    "Let me go, let me go..." the parrots shook their heads, trying to struggle out of Suming''s devilish grasp.


    "Keep bbering and moving, and I''ll send you two to be the vanguard!" Suming threatened them fiercely.


    The two Diamond Parrots immediately fell silent.


    Don''t be fooled by their recent triumph, decimating the native bee tribes effortlessly, but that was only because today''s attacking bee tribe was just a small part of the Indigenous Alliance Army. Furthermore, they had the home-field advantage, with the Su Army Bees taking the front, Haidong Qing leading, and Suming backing them up, allowing for a glorious battle record as if they were fighting in an uninhabited territory.


    If the pair of them dared to charge into Indigenous Alliance Army''s territory alone, facing the remaining ten groups of the alliance bees, even if they were twice as fierce, they wouldn''t be able to withstand it. They wouldn''t die but certainly would be stripped of ayer of skin.


    "Just how many are in the Indigenous Alliance Army!"


    The Queen Bee couldn''t provide an exact number. The enemy hadn''t sent their entire forces in one go yet. If that had happened, the Su Army would have already beenpletely wiped out!


    Hence, Suming could only gather a rough estimate. Among the remaining ten groups of bees, the smallest group had more than five times the number of the original Su Army, not considering the current Su Army, which had already been reduced by 30%. Thergest group, on the other hand, had numbers over fifteen times greater than that of the Su Army! The bee army they repelled today was merely a small part of the alliance.


    "Damn it, now it''s truly going to be one against a hundred!"


    Even Suming was a bit shocked. What kind of concept was that? Thousands simply couldn''t describe it. It was probably several hundreds of thousands!


    With so many bees gathered together, not even Haidong Qing or the Diamond Parrots could do anything. Although they had thick feathers to protect them from the bee stings, their stamina was limited. The alliance army could simply assign a portion of their forces to exhaust them to death.


    Faced with such a vast number of bees, Suming''s current spiritual power was also of little use. Controlling hundreds or even thousands at a time was futile and wouldn''t take long to be overwhelmed by the bee army.


    Moreover, thebat strength on their side was already dwindling. After several days of intense warfare, not only had the Su Army Bees been severely reduced, but the warriors were also extremely tired. Some couldn''t even fly properly anymore and were resting on the ground. Forcing them into battle would be no different than sending them to their deaths.


    Additionally, Suming''s side had a fatal weakness!

 Chapter 111: Chapter 111 Counter-Decapitation Operation

    The strongest ces are often also the greatest fatal weaknesses; the human brain controls all actions, and an army''smand center directs hundreds of thousands of troops. Just a single bullet or a shell can bring down a person or paralyze an army.


    Therefore, for Suming''s side, the most dangerous and weakest link was actually Suming himself, as themanding officer.


    If the Indigenous Alliance Army was just a bit smarter and directly sent hundreds of thousands of bees to attack Suming himself, Suming wouldn''t even have a chance to escape and would immediately be dead as a doornail. Even if the Indigenous Alliance Army wasn''t smart enough to think of a decapitation strategy, just like today, with random attacks and a small portion of bees swarming, it was enough trouble for Suming!


    "Mother..." The thought of being stung by hundreds of thousands of bees made Suming''s skin crawl, and he shivered involuntarily.


    "Mother... Mother..."


    "So itchy... So itchy..."


    The Diamond Parrot not only mimicked speech but also imitated Suming''s shivering motion, convincingly trembling a few times while squawking strangely and shaking its feathers. A number of dead bees were sandwiched in its feathers, and they fell like rain showering arge swath of bee corpses as it shook.


    "Shut up, are you shaking fleas off!" Suming red at them, and then his eyes rolled around aimlessly.


    Actually, it wasn''t entirely without a solution!


    The greatest weakness of the Bee Allied Army was their low intelligence; so far, even after being defeated today, there was not the slightest indication that they would deploy their entire force. Hence, they were virtually incapacitating themselves, relinquishing their greatest advantage: numbers.


    If Suming was willing to take it slowly, subduing a portion of the bees today, taking out a squad of the Alliance Army tomorrow, gradually wearing down the enemy''s strength, the tide would turn in his favor, and he could eventually eliminate the Alliance Army.


    The problem was that this approach was too time-consuming; it certainly couldn''t be resolved within ten days or half a month. Suming had only taken a few days off, and he had brought out several protected animals from the zoo; if he didn''t return after half a month, the zoo would surely file a missing report. The police, apanied by sniffer dogs, would surely search the mountains, and it would be no good if they stumbled upon this ce by mistake.


    Not to mention anyone else, after being missing for over ten days, they would definitely notify my mother. My mother is already in poor health; she mustn''t get so agitated that she passes away ¨C that would mean gaining a wife while forgetting one''s own mother...


    Wait? Did I just say something strange...?


    "What should I do? Decapitation? Wait, I''ve got it!"


    Suming thought for a while, and his eyes lit up ¨C if the Bee Allied Army didn''t know how to use the decapitation tactic, why shouldn''t he?!


    Although the Queen Bee of the Alliance Army wasn''t as crucial to them as Suming was to hismand, she was still the leader of the swarm, having a significant impact on the whole swarm''sbat strength!


    If he could eliminate the Queen Bee from each group within the Alliance Army, theirbat strength would drop drastically, and it was very likely that many of the Indigenous Bees would defect to the Su Army, which had a Queen Bee. Suming didn''t believe that bees had any racial pride or a never-surrender integrity; for most animals, the saying "He who provides is mother" wasn''t derogatory, but a rule of survival.


    Then, with his support from the sidelines, maybe it would only take a few days to resolve the Alliance Army''s issue and subdue thempletely.


    Ever since acquiring the ability tomunicate with animals, Suming had mostly encountered lone animals and was used to overpowering them with his spiritual power; he seldom faced being overpowered by them, so much so that it took him a while to remember precision targeted strikes.


    "I''m so itchy... I''m dying from the itchiness..."


    The two Diamond Parrots were still shaking their ws when Suming gripped their necks, one in each hand, and lifted them out, "You two, go ahead with me to scout the enemy''s position and figure out the exact location of the Queen Bee! Haidong Qing, stand by in the air!"


    To carry out a counter-headhunting strategy, the first step was to ascertain the position of the enemy''s Queen Bee; otherwise, searching for the nine Queen Bees amidst the vast Hundred Flowers Valley and countless protective bees was almost like looking for a needle in a haystack.


    Huiya leaped forward a few steps, ready to follow, but Suming quickly released a burst of spiritual power: Stay put.


    Huiya''s thinyer of downy hair was no match for the attacks of a swarm of bees, not to mention itself, even its father, the Wolf King, surrounded by so many bees, would meet his end.


    The animal kingdom has its peculiar rules, one thing suppressing another; wolves dare to sh with Haidong Qing and even more so dominate the Diamond Parrots, yet ironically they stood no chance against little bees. On the contrary, even the smallest bird species, as long as they are feathered, are not afraid of bees, having a dead grip over them.


    Leaving the beehive forest where the Queen Bee''s headquarters was located, Suming headed towards the depths of the valley with his three bodyguards. The Diamond Parrots, being toorge, hardly flew and hopped along on either side, while Haidong Qing circled overhead, observing the overall situation.


    Not far along the way, they neared the territory of the Allied Army, and just by looking from afar, Suming''s heart skipped a beat!


    It was a vast forest that was almost impossible to see across at first nce. Inside the forest, dense beehives hung like fruit on the branches. From a distance, the forest looked like a witch''s dwelling in a magical world''s ck Forest,pletely shrouded in a ck mist, swarming with countless bees.


    "How many could there possibly be!" Suming''s scalp tingled at the sight, and he didn''t dare to get too close, but from such a distance, it was impossible to see where the Allied Army''s Queen Bee was.


    Fortunately, the world nevercked traitors. Sumingy in the bushes, controlled a few passing Indigenous Bees using spiritual power, and instructed them to scout the forest.


    The forest was dozens of timesrger than the small woond where the Su Army was stationed, looking like a small forest itself. After the traitor bees flew in, they casually wandered around and only an hourter did they fly back,zily.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Even so, they hadn''t figured out the positions of all the Queen Bees, only finding fourrge beehives.


    "Four is still four, one less for every one killed!"


    Sumingy in the bushes, using a Diamond Parrot as a shield, and gave instructions to Haidong Qing, "Follow the guidance of the traitor bees to perform targeted strikes, behead the Queen Bee!"


    The informant returned to therge wooded area and flew about twenty meters into the grove, finally stopping beneath an old elm tree!


    On the branches of that elm tree, there hung a beehive the size of a basketball, twice asrge as the others ¨C clearly, a Queen Bee resided inside!


    "Now''s the moment, take it down!" Sumingmanded Haidong Qing to carry out the beheading!


    Haidong Qing let out a long cry, its wings mped tightly against its back. It dived at a diagonal angle from mid-air like an arrow, fiercely plunging into the grove towards therge beehive!

 Chapter 113 The New Troops

    In the Su Army''s headquarters, the Queen Bee and Er Gouzi, along with arge swarm of Su Army Bees and hos, are buzzing around, receiving a briefing from Suming.


    Suming, hands sped behind his back, paces back and forth, muttering to himself, "Such a bloody lesson!"


    "Lesson... lesson..."


    "Bloody... bloody..."


    Two Diamond Parrots stand at the treetop, parroting loudly, imitating Suming''s demeanor, with wings folded behind them, their bellies puffed out, and their heads nodding minutely, as if they''re delivering a lecture to the bees.


    "The key issue now is..."


    Suming had gotten into the habit of talking to himself after spending so much time with animals. He was in the middle of a sentence when he suddenly shut up and looked up at the parrots.


    The parrots also gazed at him as if they were waiting for him to finish so they could mimic him.


    Suming rolled his eyes, thinking that the real issue was the overwhelming number of the Bee Allied Army. Their numbers were so terrifying that even the Haidong Qing, the fastest among them, couldn''t capture the enemy Queen Bee and kill her before being surrounded. It was even worse for these two hefty and slow-moving Diamond Parrots; at least the Haidong Qing could escape, but these two were simply delivering themselves on a tter.


    Could he only keep wearing them down slowly? This approach would waste a lot of time. Or he could go back to the city to buy those beekeeper suits... But that would take too much time and, considering today''s attack by the Haidong Qing, it was possible that the Bee Allied Army could crush him under their weight.


    The Haidong Qing had sustained minor injuries, but it didn''t affect itsbat ability. It had made a round in the sky and somehow grasped a sparrow, now bloodied and munching on it, intestines dangling out!


    Seeing the sparrow, an idea struck Suming. He yelled at the Haidong Qing, "Stop eating!"


    "Stop eating! Stop eating!" The two parrots had been waiting for Suming to speak and hurriedly imitated him.


    The Haidong Qing paused, looking nkly at Suming with a sparrow''s intestine hanging from its mouth, slurped it in, and waited for Suming''s briefing.


    "You forced my hand, using human-wave tactics against me, you''re still not up to par!"


    Suming snapped his fingers at the Haidong Qing, "Go, catch birds, any kind of bird! They have to be alive!"


    "Catch birds! Catch birds!"


    "Alive ones! Alive ones!"


    "Shut it, you two don''t just stand there either, you winged creatures, always hopping on the ground, aren''t you ashamed? Go and help out!" Suming turned and pointed at the two parrots.


    The parrots also pointed their wings at Suming, "Ashamed, are we? Ashamed, are we?" "Go help, go help!"


    "Damn it, I''m telling you two to go help!"


    Suming, striding like a reactionary warlord, marched up and smacked each of the parrots with a p.


    The Diamond Parrot sisters'' heads tilted from the impact, a couple of feathers flying up, finally realizing they were being told to move. They hopped and skipped out of the woods, pping hard and taking to the sky in a clumsy flight, joining the Haidong Qing to catch birds.


    "All units, rest, prepare for battle!" Suming barked the order at the Queen Bee.


    Subsequently, the two Diamond Parrots kept bringing back a variety of birds.


    Tiny sparrows, pitch-ck crows, chattering magpies that never stopped shrieking, delicaterks, intricately patterned thrushes, and even arge heron, a nationally protected animal.


    The heron, a waterfowl, was somehow captured by the Haidong Qing. After being dropped off, it looked bemusedly at a crowd of varied birds that werepletely different from itself.


    Sometimes the Diamond Parrots brought the birds back alone, and sometimes they herded arge flock like ducks. On one asion, the two parrots even teamed up to bring back an eagle.


    The eagle appeared dejected, covered in scratches, clearly having suffered. Presumably, during the capture, the eagle tried to resist and got a harsh lesson from the Haidong Qing.


    With every bird they brought, Suming used his spiritual power to indoctrinate them; only cooperation and obedience were their way out, to serve the Party-State dutifully, and how he wouldn''t treat them unfairly, continuously bombarding their minds with these thoughts.


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    By evening, the catching nearedpletion. Nearly four hundred birds of various species and sizes filled the tree branches, forming a dense and silent cluster.


    At the highest point, beside therge beehive, the Haidong Qing watched the birds below with a stern gaze.


    Suming, hands still behind his back, looked on with satisfaction at his newly formed aerial force. The two Diamond Parrots stood by his side, heads held high, chests out.


    "Everyone present, await orders!" Sumingmanded as his spiritual power emanated.


    "Swoosh..." Hundreds of birds at once tucked in their wings, standing tall on the treetops, ready for Suming''smand.


    Suming stepped out of the woods, slowly raising his arm, pointing towards the dark forest ahead, "Direction, straight ahead! Target, the Bee Allied Army''srge beehive! All units, prepare!"


    No sooner had the words left his mouth than hundreds of birds took flight from the grove behind him, swirling together in the air without dispersing, forming a sudden dark cloud overhead.


    Suming, like a wizard of legend, emerged from the midst of this dark cloud, his arm pointing to the forest ahead now thrust down sharply, mimicking the gesture of a beheading.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "All units, attack! Against any resistance, kill without exception!"


    The Haidong Qing let out an eagle cry that split the sky, leading the flock of birds in the charge! The dark cloud swept across the sky, drifting towards the distant Bee Allied Army''s headquarters, casting a shadow over the forest!


    A dark cloud so heavy it seemed the city might copse!

 Chapter 114 The New Queen Bee

    This was a battle without any suspense.


    Birds are the natural predators of bees, and even the weakest of sparrows holds an overwhelming advantage against bees, posing no threat to them until their strength is exhausted. No matter how numerous the bees may be, they cannot threaten the birds until their energy is depleted.


    More than four hundred birds of various kinds formed a flying force, plunging into the forest andunching a one-sided ughter against the Bee Allied Army, which outnumbered them by a thousandfold.


    Just an hourter, the Bee Allied Army in therge forest hadpletely disintegrated, and tenrge hives housing Queen Bees were brought before Suming by the flock of birds, neatly lined up on the ground in a row.


    Considering that the Bee Allied Army would be his subordinates in the future, and that the strategy of beheading had already seeded, there was no need to kill the ordinary bees. Suming sounded the retreat to have the flock of birds temporarily leave the woods and stand guard near the hives to prevent the Bee Allied Army from attempting a recapture.


    Two Diamond Parrots tore open the hives with a peck and a bite, easily exposing the Queen Bees inside.


    The ordinary Queen Bees were entirely outssed by Suming''s Queen Bee, with thergest of the allied Queen Bees not exceeding the length of a cigarette pack, and the smallest about the size of a USB drive. Next to them, Suming''s Queen Bee seemed a giantpared to dwarves.


    Suming tested them with his spiritual power and found these wild Queen Bees to indeedck intelligence, reacting very weakly to the spiritual power and not even as evolved as the ordinary bees of the Su Army.


    In light of this, he had no intention of keeping these Queen Bees, to avoid future troubles, so he asked his own Queen Bee, "It''s up to you, how do you n to deal with them?"


    The Queen Bee''s tiny mandibles cked together a few times. The mandibles of ordinary bees have almostpletely evolved to be invisible, and though this Queen Bee, due to the spiritual power, has regrown some, they remained very small, appearing not at all ferocious but ratherical when waved around.


    "Eat them?" Suming was mildly surprised. Queen Bees feed on royal jelly, belonging to the herbivore category. When had this creature changed its diet and started eating meat?


    A few slightlyrger Asian Giant Hos buzzed over, circling above the allied Queen Bees, and Suming then understood what his Queen Bee meant. It wasn''t that she wanted to eat the rival Queen Bees herself but rather wanted the Asian Giant Hos to eat them.


    Before Suming''s arrival, the Asian Giant Hos had yed a significant role in the battle against the Bee Allied Army. Although they had not participated directly in all the fights, they staunchly defended the hives housing the Queen Bee, and had it not been for them, the numerically superior Bee Allied Army might have wiped out the Queen Bee long ago.


    Within the bee poption, the Queen Bee holds the highest status, growing by consuming royal jelly. Consequently, the ''nutritional value'' of a Queen Bee is the highest. The Su Army Queen Bee, by allowing the robust Asian Giant Hos to eat these enemy Queen Bees, was rewarding them.


    The social structure of the Asian Giant Hos is even moreplex than that of bees; they too have a Queen Bee, followed by drones and worker bees. When Suming subdued this group of Asian Giant Hos, his experience with spiritual power was still limited. Due to an oversight, he killed their Queen Bee andter, to ensure a supply of royal jelly for therge blue bees, gave all the royal jelly to the bee colony for quick recovery and production of a new Queen Bee, neglecting the Asian Giant Hos'' development.


    As a result, this group of Asian Giant Hos has yet to produce a new Queen Bee. Originally numbering only a few hundred, the swarm was powerful inbat but,cking a Queen Bee, was unable to reproduce, dwindling with the death of each ho. After several fierce battles, now fewer than a hundred and some Asian Giant Hos remained, perilously close to extinction.


    The intention of the Su Army Queen Bee was to give all the rival Queen Bees and the royal jelly from the hives to the Asian Giant Hos, allowing them to quickly produce a new Asian Giant Ho Queen Bee. In the future, the hos would continuously grow in numbers, staving off the danger of extinction.


    If there had been tens of thousands of Asian Giant Hos at that time, maybe the Queen Bee could have slowly devoured the Bee Allied Army without Suming''s help.


    "Huh, you''re quite clever! Let''s do exactly that!"


    After getting Suming''s approval, the returning Asian Giant Hos carried the captured Bee Allied Army''s queen bees and the broken beebs full of royal jelly back to their nests.


    Er Gouzi had been following Suming closely, busying himself before and after the saddle, and he also received a Bee Allied Army queen and arge chunk of the beehive as a reward. Usually harmless and docile in front of Suming, he now revealed his ferocious side. Pouncing on the queen bee the size of a lighter, he snapped the queen''s waist with a crunch and began to devour her rapidly.


    In the forest on the opposite side, the scattered Bee Allied Army showed signs of rallying. Their Queen Bees had been captured by Suming, and the remaining bees seemed to want toe to the rescue. However, with several hundred birds waiting sternly on Suming''s side, the leaderless Bee Allied Army was simply a mess and could not organize an effective attack. After several futile charges, they were easily defeated by Suming''s flock of birds.


    By the afternoon of the next day, the Bee Queen sent a message: a new Queen Bee had finally emerged among the Ho Swarm.


    Perhaps inheriting traits from the Su Army Queen Bee, the new Asian Giant Ho Queen Bee was about ten centimeters in length. Though not as terrifyingly sized as the original ho queen, she was still muchrger than the average ho queen.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    On the chest of the Ho Queen was arge patch of jet-like ck, and along her round waist were rings of dark, bizarre patterns, deep in color as if ink.


    Such Asian Giant Hos, with darker ck on their bodies, are more venomous. The patterns on ordinary hos are merely dark brown, while the newly-born Ho Queen clearly possesses a toxicity far superior to her kind.


    It can be foreseen that the offspring she will produce will also possess shocking venom.


    Suming tested her with his spiritual power and, unsurprisingly, the Ho Queen''s intelligence exceeded that of ordinary hos. It was on par with that of the newly-born Bee Queen, capable of simplemunication.


    Given this, he simply stayed in the valley for another day, nurturing the new Ho Queen with his spiritual power.


    By doing so, he inadvertently resolved the issues troubling the Bee Queen.


    The biggest problem for the Bee Queen was not finding anyone tomunicate with, leaving her lonely and isted. Now, the Ho Queen was her equal in ''social status'' and also possessed an intelligence not inferior to hers, making for suitablepanionship.


    Suming had been worried that the two queens might have conflicts due to their different species. Unexpectedly, after just half a day, the two queensmanded their subordinates to move their hives together. They even built a corridor between the entrances of each other''s hives, allowing direct ess to each other''s ''bedrooms'', clearly disying a tight-knit friendship.


    "Good, very good. You two sisters should get along well. As the saying goes, harmony in the family leads to prosperity in all things!" Suming said with heartfelt emphasis.

 Chapter 117 Water Monster?!

    "The monster is out!"


    At this moment, Suming was even more nervous and curious than the poaching divers, staring unblinkingly at the surface of the water from a distance.


    With a ssh, water flew in all directions, but the result was very disappointing to Suming; it wasn''t a water monster at all, but a poacher diver.


    The poacher popped his head out and made a gesture to the shore, indicating he had caught nothing.


    Soon after, two more divers emerged from the pool and made the same gesture to their leader, He.


    "You guyse up first!"


    The three wet divers mbered onto the shore, and after He said a few words, they took off their diving suits and switched ces with three men on the shore. The new trio took up guns to stand guard, while He, removing his sses, donned a diving suit with two other poachers and plunged into the pool.


    A few minutester, the second group of divers also surfaced, and it seemed they too hade up empty-handed.


    "Could the intelligence be wrong?"


    Suming was practically concerned for the poachers; they seemed as if even they didn''t know if the target they were after actually existed¡ªit was merely a ''possible existence'' and not a certainty. If there was truly nothing in the pool, wouldn''t the poachers have made a wasted trip?


    Please, no, if you guyse up empty, I''d feel bad evenunching an attack!


    After He came ashore, he didn''t send anyone back into the water but instead gathered a few men to discuss something.


    Before long, two of the poachers left the camp, guns in hand, and entered the forest. After a while, two gunshots rang out from the woods, and the poachers returned, spreading their hands towards He in a helpless gesture, indicating they found nothing.


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    Suming didn''t know what they were nning but kept watching from a distance, motionless. He watched as He paced back and forth, appearing to ponder something, then he gestured toward a cage not far away that contained a Diamond Parrot and said a few words.


    The burly Da Xiong immediately opened the cage, grabbed the Diamond Parrot by its neck with one hand, and pulled it out.


    The Diamond Parrot was still very much alive, struggling as Da Xiong held it, but he was very strong and experienced. He grasped it from behind by its neck, rendering the Diamond Parrot''s biting and scratching futile.


    He took out a long climbing rope, tied one end to the Diamond Parrot''s waist, and held the other end in his hand, then nodded at Da Xiong.


    Da Xiong grinned, swung his arm in aplete circle, mimicking the motion of a throw, and with that, the Diamond Parrot was flung through the air.


    The Diamond Parrot screamed as it arced through the air and plopped into the pool, causing a ssh.


    He, clutching the rope, quickly led the other thieves into the nearby woods and dropped to the ground, staying motionless as they concealed themselves.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Afternding in the water, the Diamond Parrot iled a bit before floating to the surface.


    Mammals are generally born swimmers, varying only in their proficiency. There''s a joke that in ''Journey to the West'', when Monkey could not defeat Friar Sand in the Flowing Sands River, he called for Zhu Bajie''s help, suggesting that pigs swim better than monkeys.


    Humans are born with the instinct to swim; infants, soon after their birth, first learn to il their arms and legs, which is actually the motion of swimming. However, many people grow up withouting into contact with water and gradually lose this swimming instinct,pounded by fear, they end up unable to learn how to swim.


    While golden monkeys can swim, this was not a leisurely dip in the zoo during the hot summer months; it had been terrified by poachers. After falling into the water, it emitted a pitiful cry and iled about trying to swim to the other side of the pond to escape.


    The pond wasn''trge, and as the monkey called out, it used its arms and legs to paddle, reaching the bank in a few strokes.


    Just when the monkey was about to scramble ashore, the climbing rope tied around its waist suddenly yanked back. He, hidden in the forest, gave a forceful pull on the rope, and ''whoosh,'' the monkey fell back into the pond, dragged to the center by the rope.


    The monkey was quite clever and tried to untie the climbing rope from its waist, but the knot the poachers had tied was quite professional, and despite the monkey''s pulling and scratching, it couldn''t get it undone and eventually gave up, trying to swim in another direction instead.


    But its efforts were bound to be in vain. Just as it nearly reached the bank, the climbing rope jerked again, and the monkey was once more yanked back into the pond by He.


    After being tormented like this, the monkey''s cries became even more intense. It was practically thrashing about in the water, wildly iling its limbs, and Suming could hear it all too clearly from a distance.


    It was then that Suming realized He and his men''s intention ¨C since they couldn''t find their target in the water, they simply used the monkey as bait, aiming to lure the target out, just like fishing.


    Themotion made by the monkey was significant and its size not negligible, so to most carnivores, it would appear to be a sizeable meal. If their target was in the pond or nearby, it would surely be disturbed by the monkey and unable to resist jumping out.


    However, the monkey was about the size of a street dog and probably weighed at least ten pounds. To use it as bait meant that the poachers'' target must be quiterge in size! Could it actually be something like a Yangtze alligator?


    After sshing and crying in the water for quite a while, with no response from the pond, the monkey seemed to realize that it couldn''t escape its fate and stopped swimming randomly. Instead, it climbed onto a rock under the waterfall, curled up in fear and despair, and watched the surroundings. It asionally let out a sharp ''squeak¡­'' possibly as a distress signal.


    The two Diamond Parrots on the shore had held back for a long time but finally couldn''t resist any longer. They started yelling at the monkey, "So noisy, so noisy!" "So annoying, so annoying!"


    Before they finished speaking, there were two ''biubiu'' sounds, and two darts flew out from the forest, hitting the parrots right in their plump buttocks.


    "Ah¡­ so dizzy¡­"


    The two parrots moaned weakly, rocking and tumbling down inside their cage.


    Suming, startled, hastily checked with his spiritual power and discovered that the parrots were still full of life, they had just fainted, which reassured him. It seemed the poachers, wary that the parrots'' calls might scare away their target, had administered a tranquilizer.


    Suming felt both annoyed and amused, thinking to himself that he had told those two chatterboxes not to make noise, yet they still did, and now they got what they deserved!


    At that moment, the monkey perched on the rock seemed to sense something, suddenly turned around, facing the direction of the waterfall, baring its teeth and screeching fiercely at the waterfall.


    "Has it gone mad, screaming at the waterfall for what?... No, wait, I understand now!"


    Behind the waterfall, a dark creature suddenly burst forth, grabbed the golden monkey in an instant, and swiftly pulled it behind the fall!


    "Damn, what is that!"


    Suming broke into a cold sweat. During that fleeting glimpse before the creature''s head emerged from the waterfall, he had clearly seen its gaping mouth filled with rows of interlocking sharp teeth!

 Chapter 118 Reality Show

    ```


    The nameless creature suddenly appeared from behind the waterfall, mped onto a golden monkey in its jaws, and swiftly retreated back behind the waterfall.


    Suming had an epiphany, no wonder He and his group of poachers had sent two teams underwater, scoured the riverbed entirely, and still hadn''t found their target!


    The "thing" wasn''t in the pool at all, but behind the waterfall above the pool!


    If he hadn''t guessed wrong, there must be a cave or some habitable space behind the waterfall, where the "thing" was hiding all along. It was only a waterfall away from the poachers, a mere stone''s throw between them!


    "Could it be a giant python?!" Suming suddenly recalled a horror movie titled ''Anaconda'', where humans were being chased by a mutated giant python and took refuge behind a waterfall. However, the situation was reversed now; the "thing" was hiding behind the waterfall, while the poachers were outside.


    If it indeed was a mutated python tens of meters long, it might actually be worth millions of US Dors!


    However, ording to Suming''smon sense, pythons couldn''t possibly grow to tens of meters; reaching over a dozen meters was already a marvel of nature. Even with his current level of spiritual power, nurturing it over several years might help a grown python break past its size limit, but reaching tens of meters seemed improbable.


    A quantitative change is bound to lead to a qualitative change. If there really was a python tens of meters long behind the waterfall, then these few men might not be able to handle it! Even guns would be useless!


    There was no time for further thought; after the golden monkey was snatched away, a piercing scream resounded from behind the waterfall, then all went silent!


    "Surround it! Surround it!"


    Six poachers sprinted out from the opposite woods, guns in hand, and rushed to the edge of the water, forming a semicircle as they raised their rifles towards the waterfall, encircling the poolpletely!


    The appearance of the ''water monster'' was as shocking to Suming as it was thrilling to the poachers, whose voices unconsciously grew louder in their excitement, allowing Suming to hear everything clearly.


    "What the hell is that, He?"


    "Is it the thing the client is looking for?"


    The poachers, guns at the ready, pointed towards the waterfall and asked He loudly.


    He''s reply was unexpected; he shouted, "It might be, everyone be careful! We want it alive!"


    Hearing their conversation, Suming was stunned; this group of people didn''t even know what their target was!


    Could it be they found this ce based on a strange water sample and were nning to capture any peculiar creature they saw? Was their employer really that unreliable, or were they just burning through money, tossing around over a million US Dors for fun?


    At the water''s edge, He had already pulled out a ''stick'' as thick as a calf and over a meter long from his gear.


    With a flick of his wrist, another section popped out; it was a rodposed of several sections, much like a fishing rod.


    He pulled out seven or eight segments in quick session, making the rod roughly ten meters long, with a small ring at the tip of the first section. Another poacher took out a steel wire, slipped it onto the rod''s ring, then joined He in holding the tail end of the rod, and they both thrust it towards the surface of the waterfall where the creature had retreated back to!


    Unexpectedly, the space behind the waterfall seemed vast; with this thrust, He and hisrade jabbed into emptiness and stumbled forwards, nearly toppling over.


    He was not willing to give in; after getting up, he pulled out a few more segments from the rod, extending it to a total length of a dozen meters or so, and thrust it into the waterfall again!


    ```


    Unexpectedly, the result was still the same; they touched nothing, and the creature behind the waterfall did not show itself, as if it had vanished into thin air.


    He, wielding a long stick, poked around that spot as if measuring the ''terrain'' behind the waterfall.


    Even Suming now realized there must be a hole about a meter wide behind the waterfall, a rather deep one. Without a doubt, the ''water monster'' was hiding inside the hole!


    "I want to see what you will do!" Suming was no longer in a hurry; hey hidden in the fallen leaves, watching with great interest the poachers'' next move.


    For Suming, this had turned into an exhrating reality show!


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    As the stars of this reality show, the poachers now had two choices. The first was to wait for the water monster in the cave toe out on its own. But this option was purely a matter of luck, dependent on fate. Who knew when the creature might emerge.


    The poachers had just delivered a ''feast'' to the ''water monster'' behind the waterfall. Suchrge creatures, though they need to eat a lot, also have quite the ability to endure hunger¡ªhiding away for one or two months after eating the golden monkey would not be unusual.


    Even though this ce was deep in the wilderness, the poachers were, after all, engaged in illegal activities. How could they possibly wait calmly in this ce for one or two months? The night is long, and dreams are many. Who could predict what unexpected events might happen over two months?


    The second choice was to send someone to risk passing through the waterfall and enter the cave on the other side...


    This option, of course, was the most straightforward, but it was also extremely dangerous, almost tantamount to gambling with one''s life!


    Nobody knew what kind of creature the ''water monster'' behind the waterfall was, and the hole was notrge, allowing at most one person to bend over and move in and out. Even with a gun, there was no guarantee of safety!


    In such a cramped space, firing a gun was a gamble with life. With just a bit of bad luck, there was no need for the ''water monster'' to take action; a ricochet could be deadly!


    If it really was arge python lying in wait behind the waterfall, then it would be a sure death for anyone who entered!


    There was still another choice: turn back and leave. But then the 1.5 million dors inmission would be washed away. Converted into Huaxia currency, each of them could take home over a million!


    At this moment, the poachers had to make a difficult decision!


    After discussing for a long time, they finally decided to send someone behind the waterfall to find out what was there, driven by the lure of money.


    He brandished his Type 56 rifle and dered loudly, "Who will go in first? If the job is done, you''ll get an extra 200,000 dors!"


    The poachers looked at each other, all a bit hesitant. Life was precious, but the temptation of 200,000 dors was equally significant!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suming was certain that in the end, someone would be willing to earn those 200,000 dors, and surely, it would not be He.


    As expected, after a few minutes, a poacher stepped forward: "He, I''ll go. But let''s make it clear¡ªmy extra 200,000 must not be a penny less."


    The one who stepped forward was not the muscr Da Xiong but, surprisingly, thenky Mr. Qian, who had been the most vocal withints on the road.


    "Good!"


    He nodded, drew a pistol from his waist and handed it over to Mr. Qian, meanwhile unloading Mr. Qian''s shoulder rifle, and said, "The buyer wants it alive; the price will be greatly reduced if it''s dead. The rifle is too powerful; you take the pistol! Don''t shoot unless you have to. It''s best to use a knife!"

 Chapter 119 The True Face of the Water Monster

    Mr. Qian grumbled a few words as he took the pistol, probably something along the lines of cursing andining.


    In the previous moment of terror, everyone saw clearly that the creature behind the waterfall was as thick as a barrel, with staggered sharp teeth in its wide mouth and lightning-fast speed. It had dragged the golden snub-nosed monkey into the cave in the blink of an eye, and the monkey had lost its life without even a chance to resist.


    Such a ferocious ''monster'' might not be dealt with by a mere handgun.


    But while Mr. Qianined, he knew very well that a dead animal was worth far less than a living one. If he brought several rifles and opened fire, he''d be safe, but if they killed the ''monster,'' it would be worthless.


    In their line of work, they gambled with their lives. Without certain risks, why would he earn two hundred thousand dors more than others?!


    As they talked, the brawny Da Xiong had already inted a small rubber dinghy using an air pump. Mr. Qian jumped onto the dinghy and slowly paddled towards the waterfall.


    When he was about a meter away from the waterfall, Mr. Qian poked behind it twice with his oar, locating the position of the cave behind the waterfall. Seeing that there was no movement, he tucked the pistol into his waistband, held a military dagger in one hand, and carried something like an electric baton in the other. He stood up from the boat, stepped on arge stone at the edge of the waterfall where the golden snub-nosed monkey had been standing, gritted his teeth, and plunged into the waterfall!


    A few secondster, a hand reached out from behind the waterfall, signaling ''safe'' to those outside.


    Suming became even more curious. Logically, after Mr. Qian rushed behind the waterfall, he should have encountered the ''monster ''face-to-face, but this gesture meant that there was no immediate danger, indicating he hadn''t seen the creature.


    From this, one could deduce either that the ''monster'' had already fled, which seemed unlikely, as the area around the waterfall was tightly encircled, or that the ''monster'' could be invisible; otherwise, it couldn''t possibly disappear from sight under such scrutiny.


    Or there was a veryrge cave behind the waterfall that Mr. Qian couldn''t see the end of it when he entered, hence he hadn''t seen the ''monster''.


    The poachers around the pool didn''t idle either. Two of them guarded with guns, while the other three set up arge very skillfully in a position directly facing the entrance of the waterfall cave. Anything rushing out from inside would smash into the, trapping itself.


    After all was done, everyone stared at the waterfall without blinking.


    The water rushed down from high above, forming a constantly flowing curtain of water. The sound of the water churning echoed in the mountains, adding a sense of oppression, making each second feel exceptionally lengthy.


    After about five or six minutes, a gunshot suddenly came from behind the waterfall!


    The gunshot was muffled and echoed as if it came from a great distance!


    Immediately after, there were several more shots, getting closer and closer to the mouth of the cave!


    The water curtain at the entrance flickered, and a thick shadow burst out from behind it, plunging into the pool with a plop.


    The poachers at the entrance had already spread their, waiting. Two of them shouted at the same time, and the was cast over, trapping the shadow in an instant.


    The shadow, wrapped in the, let out ''wa wa wa'' cries. Its massive body thrashed and twisted in the pool like a wicked dragon, sshing water everywhere.


    He bellowed, "Drag it up!" Two poachers grabbed the fishing and, with efficiency, dragged the ''monster'' ashore. While being pulled, the creature didn''t stop twisting its body in 360-degree turns, sending pebbles on the shore flying all around and plowing a small trench in its path.


    One of the poachers was quick to react, picking up a tranquilizer gun and taking brief aim. A mist of anesthetic shot through theting and hit the creature, which then thrashed a few more times before gradually going still.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mr. Qian then leaped out from behind the waterfall, holding a handgun in one hand while surprisingly holding the golden monkey from before in the other.


    However, the golden monkey was limp all over, its head, limbs, and tail drooping, motionless, and it was unclear whether it was alive or dead.


    Standing on the rubber boat, Mr. Qian called out loudly, "Did you get it?"


    "Done!" He gave Mr. Qian a thumbs-up, while the other two poachers clumsily untangled the from the creature, revealing the true identity of the ''monster.''


    Suming squinted at the sight. The creature had a dark greenish-ck body, nearly two meters in length, with a tail and four legs, a t and rounded head ¡ª somewhat reminiscent of a lizard and a bit like a crocodile, but without any scales on its body, which appeared fleshy.


    "Is it actually a Chinese Giant Smander?" Suming was stunned.


    The Chinese Giant Smander, also known as ''baby fish,'' is thergest extant amphibian in the world and one of the most precious. It is a national second-ss protected animal, and it cries in a way that sounds like a wailing baby.


    Though the Chinese Giant Smander might look somewhat dopey and cute ¡ª even imitating the cries of a baby ¡ª it can be deceiving. If you''re fooled by its appearance and approach it, you''re bound to suffer a significant loss.


    Chinese Giant Smanders are ferocious by nature, feeding on creatures like fish, shrimp, birds, turtles, and snakes. Their mouths are lined with sharp, dense teeth; once they mp onto their prey, it''s almost impossible for the prey to escape. Their hunting methods bear some resemnce to crocodiles: they stealthily stalk their prey or lie in wait in a cave, maintaining position until the prey approaches, then they explode with astonishing speed,unching a surprise attack and swallowing their victim whole.


    A Chinese Giant Smander over one meter long can bite off an adult''s arm with no trouble; its danger level isparable to that of crocodiles.


    Luckily, these poachers chose to send someone into the cave instead of waiting by the pool. Chinese Giant Smanders have a strong ability to endure hunger; an adult can survive without food for two to three years. If the poachers had stubbornly waited at the cave entrance, they likely would have starved to death while the smander hid without showing itself.


    Nevertheless, Suming still found it iprehensible. A wild Chinese Giant Smander was indeed precious, but it was just that ¡ª precious, certainly not worth millions of US dors!


    "Could it be because this Chinese Giant Smander is particrlyrge?" Suming wondered.


    The Chinese Giant Smander is also known as the ''longevity fish.'' Its lifespan is rted to water quality; with good water and abundant food, it can average seventy to eighty years, with the oldest on record living over one hundred and twenty years.


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    As a result, there''s a folk belief that the longer a Chinese Giant Smander lives, the higher its nutritional value, and it can even cure certain terminal illnesses.


    This Chinese Giant Smander, from a distance, appeared to be roughly two meters long, likely having lived over a century. Could it be that a buyer was suffering from a terminal illness and wanted to consume the smander as a cure?


    However, just like the myth of ''riding a fish to immortality,'' these are just stories. No one truly believes that riding a fish can turn someone into an immortal, and simrly, there''s no scientific evidence or real-life examples to prove that Chinese Giant Smanders can cure terminal diseases.

 Chapter 120 Covert and Overt Sentinels

    Not only was Suming puzzled, the poachers by the pond were clearly also a bit confused. The buyer offered such a high price, could it be just for this Chinese Giant Smander?


    He, the boss, had a thought and raised his head to loudly ask, "Mr. Qian, what else is behind the waterfall?"


    Mr. Qian pointed at the waterfall and shouted back, "Boss, something''s not right. There''s a really big karst cave back here, with quite a few holes in the cave walls. It took me half a day to find this smander and drive it out!"


    Startled by this, He looked at the other poachers andmanded loudly, "Mr. Qian, lead the way. Da Xiong, you two, take the equipment and follow me in for a look. Yangzi, you two stay outside."


    "Alrighty!" The two poachers guarding the pond shook their rifles in their hands.


    He hesitated for a moment before adding to them, "Stay sharp, this is a big deal we have here. If anyonees, take them out directly, and make sure not to let any word out!"


    After that, He and the other two poachers shouldered their equipment, jumped onto a small intable raft, and followed Mr. Qian back into the cave behind the waterfall.


    Four of the six men had left, taking most of the guns and equipment with them, leaving only two poachers behind. Suming''s mind stirred slightly; now was the perfect opportunity to rescue the Diamond Parrots and the other animals!


    The two men first put the giant smander into arge cage, then whispered to each other for a while. One, with a pistol tucked away, sat in the center of the camp, guarding the equipment and the prey;


    While the other, with a rifle slung over his back, ran into the woods near the camp, climbed a tree, and hid in the shade of the leaves, establishing two guard positions: one visible, one hidden.


    From this tiny detail, it was evident that this was a very experienced group of poachers, who might have even received military training.


    This setup of visible and hidden guard posts was extremely cunning. If someone identally wandered deep into the mountains and came upon the camp, seeing only one person, they would certainly approach for directions or help. Then the hidden guard in the tree would open fire first, while the visible guard in the camp would take advantage of the confusion to draw his pistol and act, ensuring that none of the intruders would escape.


    Even if they encountered police or paramilitary forces, the poachers wouldn''t get caught all at once; the hidden guard couldunch a surprise attack, or fire a warning shot to alert the fellows in the cave.


    Sumingy on the opposite side of the river, observing both sentries with clear vision, and almost couldn''t help butugh out loud.


    If these two had just stayed together, guarding the campsite by the water with their guns, it would have been more difficult to get to them, but they had cleverly separated, digging their own graves. Well, they could hardly me me for that.


    Just a few minutester, the hidden sentry in the forest suddenly let out a loud "ow" and the branches around him shook violently.


    The visible sentry in the camp instinctively reached into his chest, grabbing the pistol grip, shifted his body to take cover behind arge cage, peeking out with half his head, and shouted towards the direction of the hidden sentry, "Yangzi, what happened?"


    "Nothing, dammit, got stung by a wasp, hell, these wasps are so venomous, it''s killing me!"


    The branches trembled as the hidden poacher Yangzi showed his head behind the treetop, telling the visible sentry, "Bring me some insect repellent!"


    "Why do all these weird things always happen to you! Dammit, why didn''t the wasp sting me?"


    The visible sentry climbed up from behind the cage, rummaged through the equipment for a while, and walked into the woods with a bottle of insect repellent, casually handing it to the hidden sentry in the tree, while still advising, "That stuff has a strong smell, don''t use too much."


    "I know, stop nagging," the hidden sentinel in the tree took the potion and smeared it on his exposed skin.


    Ming Shao walked back to the camp leisurely.


    Before long, another scream came from the area where the sentinel was positioned.


    "Didn''t he apply the potion? How did he get bitten again?" Ming Shao was taken aback and shouted toward the sentinel''s location, "Stop crying wolf, a few hos won''t kill you. Endure it and be careful not to get discovered."


    Apparently, the sentinel was also worried about being discovered and didn''t make another sound, but the branches around him shook a few times as if to protest.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Ming Shao nced over and muttered, "Damn! Everyone''s so eager to split the money, but when ites to doing some work, it''s like pulling teeth!"


    After speaking, seeing no more movement from the sentinel, he took out a can of beef, pried it open with a knife, and started eating.


    At this time, a poacher named ''Yangzi'' sat rigidly on a branch not far away, with a steel-greyplexion, his rifle hanging on his chest, and both hands hanging by his side, unable to move a muscle, let alone a finger. Terror filled his wide-open eyes, and his breathing grew faster and weaker.


    On his wrists and neck, there were two tiny holes each, oozing dark beads of blood.


    Two silver ring snakes slowly slithered across his body, winding up to the treetops along his neck.


    The venom of the silver ring snakes was fierce, ranking in the top five among their kind. A bite would be unquestionably fatal without immediate treatment. Readtest stories on mvl


    Even so, ordinary silver ring snake bites would not result in instant death; the victim usually had enough time to call for help.


    But these two snakes caught by Haidong Qing and controlled by Suming injected all their venom into Yangzi in one go, several times the normal dose.


    Besides, a bite from the silver ring snake isn''t particrly painful; the victim would feel like they''ve been stung by something¡ªoften less painful than a ho¡ªtaking several minutes before the nervous and respiratory systems began to numb.


    Yangzi, leaning against the tree, initially thought it was a ho sting when he was bitten by the snakes. He didn''t pay much attention at first. By the time he realized something was wrong and tried to call for help, the poison had taken effect, paralyzing his nervous system, and he couldn''t even scream. It took all his strength to shake the branches twice, hoping to catch the attention of hispanion Ming Shao, who dismissed it as a ho sting too and didn''t take it seriously.


    Yangzi was still alive but indistinguishable from a dead man. He couldn''t speak or move, feeling the numbness spread throughout his body as he helplessly watched himself slip closer to death.


    From the opposite grove, Suming gauged that the hidden sentinel wouldn''t survive much longer. He surveyed the terrain, noting that the camp where Ming Shao was stationed was located on a clearing between the pool of water and the woods, surrounded by rounded pebbles on the ground,pletely bare with no concealment. From any direction, it would be challenging to guarantee that the enemy could be eliminated before they could fire a warning shot.


    He thought for a moment, tore several pieces from his own clothing, smeared some mud on his face, and then nonchntly stood up and walked out of the forest.


    "Who''s there?" As soon as Suming appeared, Ming Shao spotted him and asked cautiously from a distance.


    "Brother, a few of us ssmates came to the mountain for fun and got lost!"


    Seeing someone, Suming immediately put on an excited and relieved expression, rushed out of the woods, crossed the stream, and ran towards the camp,pletely unguarded and looking naive and inexperienced.

 Chapter 121 Female Classmate??

    "How many ssmates do you have? It''s way too dangerous to get lost in these wild mountains!"


    The sentry casually handed a bottle of mineral water to Suming and asked with a smile. He shook his hand, which was behind his back, in the direction of the sentry, signaling not to shoot yet and wait until he got a clear picture of the situation.


    Suming took the mineral water and drank it fiercely without a word, as if he had been thirsty for a long time. After guzzling down more than half the bottle, he even let out a satiated burp before stopping.


    His gaze swept over the cages holding the animals and he asked with some confusion, "Big brother, what is this...?"


    "Oh, we''re from the Provincial Animal Protection Association. These animals are injured, and we''re taking them back for treatment."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Ming Shao said with a righteous face, "You young folks are too reckless. Deep in the mountains and forests isn''t a ce for you. If something happened, how heartbroken your parents would be!"


    "It was those female ssmates who insisted on going on an adventure into the mountains. Then, there was no cell signal, and even thepasses and such started malfunctioning. We''ve been walking for a whole day and night without finding a way out."


    When he heard "a few female ssmates", a sly glint quickly shed in Ming Shao''s eyes. With a stern face, he said, "Where are your other ssmates? Hurry and get them here, we have a map. When we leave the mountain, we''ll take you with us!"


    "They''re just a short distance behind us. Hey you guys,e over here, we''ve met some good people!"


    Suming cupped his hands around his mouth to amplify his voice and called out loudly toward the forest they hade from.


    Ming Shao also squinted his eyes, following Suming''s gaze, looking for those ''female ssmates''.


    "Where are they?"


    "They''reing, they''reing. Look, those few in the woods..." Suming pointed towards the forest.


    Indeed, there was a rustling of tree branches, as if someone was walking towards them.


    Ming Shao licked his lips and said with a smile, "Such a young age, and already acting as a guardian of beauty. Your female ssmates must be pretty, huh...?"


    "They''re all campus beauties, and we even have amateur models!" Suming said earnestly.


    "Ah, that''s good, that''s good!"


    Before Ming Shao''s words had finished, he felt a thud at the back of his head and a sharp pain, stars bursting in his vision. Then his body swayed, and he knew nothing anymore.


    "Screw you, asshole, who said you could touch my female ssmates? I haven''t even had my turn yet!"


    Suming kicked the copsed Ming Shao twice, holding a blood-stained cobblestone in his hand.


    Ming Shaoy motionless on the ground, his back head covered in blood, no one could tell if he was dead or alive.


    Suming checked his breathing and realized that the notion in TV dramas of knowing whether someone is dead by their breath is misleading. With severe injuries, the breathing could be so faint it''s almost like being dead. Without professional knowledge, it''s really hard to judge.


    Suming didn''t stand on ceremony with him; he searched his entire body, found a wallet with several thousand yuan, and stuffed it all into his own pocket. He then took the handgun from his embrace, the dagger from his leg, as well as a small stun gun, and armed himself with them.


    I had wanted to summon the banded kraits to bite Ming Shao one more time, but those two snakes had already depleted their venom. Other extremely poisonous creatures in the mountains were also few and far between, not so easily found. So, I decided to call over a small swarm of hos to sting him instead.


    The venom of those hos was quite potent, easily enough to kill a person with just ten or so stings, let alone someone who was half-dead already? I guessed Ming Shao would reunite with the hidden sentry in the underworld very soon.


    "Does this count as murder?" Suming scratched his head, finding it quite strange.


    One would think that at this moment, emotions should beplex, with a bit of fear, but Suming felt almost no ripples in his heart, as if he had just gone to the market to buy some vegetables.


    Could it be that after spending so much time with animals, I''ve changed, truly bing a big monster?


    "To regard human life as worthless, it seems I can take the path of a cold-blooded killer! Hahaha, it looks like I was born with the air of an overlord!"


    Suming, full of self-mockery and braggadocio, then opened the cage and let Haidong Qing grab the two Diamond Parrots that were still unconscious and fly to a safe ce to stand by.


    He checked with his spiritual power and, somehow, the golden monkey wasn''t dead, just passed out. The Chinese Giant Smander was also groggy. Suming nced at the waterfall; with all themotion, a considerable amount of time had passed since He and his men had entered. They mighte out at any moment now, and there was no time to save these two creatures.


    Filled with curiosity about the cave behind the waterfall, Suming steeled his heart, gripped his pistol in one hand, and an electric baton in the other, and swam to the big rock beneath the waterfall before diving in behind it.


    There was a recessed space behind the waterfall that could amodate one or two people standing. The ground was covered with mossy stones that were slippery; one had to hold onto the rocks to barely be able to stand.


    In the middle of the recess, there was a hole about a meter or so, less than two meters in diameter. It was pitch-ck and unknown where it led, with a trickle of water constantly flowing out of the hole, merging with the waterfall''s flow and into the pool below.


    Sumingy down at the opening of the hole to listen. There were no sounds inside, so he raised his pistol and electric baton and crawled into the hole.


    A cold breeze that wasn''t too strong hit him in the face, along with a thick mist. Using the faint lighting in from behind, he saw that the cave was vertically oval-shaped. Walking inside, Suming could barely stand upright, but the space was very narrow on both sides. In some ces, he had to sidle through.


    The cave was damp and dark. The deeper he went inside, the quieter it became, a stark contrast to the tumultuous sound of flowing water outside, giving off a creepy and somewhat terrifying atmosphere.


    Fortunately, the cave wasn''t too deep¡ªbarely twenty meters¡ªand he reached the other end, which suddenly opened up. Continue your saga on mvl


    "Oh my goodness!"


    Suming was taken aback by what he saw. In front of him was a ratherrge karst cave, its ceiling covered with stctites pointing sharply down at the ground, which was rugged with stones and crisscrossed by streams.


    Based on its location, the cave''s ceiling should be right beneath the creek that flowed above the waterfall. Water trickled down from the cave ceiling intermittently, falling onto the ground and forming little pools from the constant dripping over the years.


    There were possibly some small holes at the top of the cave or cracks leading to the surface, allowing sunlight to squeeze through and cast various weak spots of light inside the otherwise pitch-ck cave, bringing faint illumination.


    With the help of the light, he could see many small andrge caves on the surrounding cave walls, ranging from palm-sized ones to ones big enough for a person to crawl into, much like a traditional cave dwelling.


    As Suming marveled at the sights before him, he suddenly heard footsteps and voices emanating from the depths of the cave.


    He quickly crouched down, hiding behind arge stone pir, peeking out with half his face to observe the surroundings.

 Chapter 122 Savage

    The cavern was spacious, and even the slightest sound could cause an echo, so for a time Suming couldn''t determine the exact direction of the noise. He could only guess at a general area, which seemed to be on a piece of the mountain wall to his front right.


    There were more than a dozen openings of various sizes on the mountain wall. It wasn''t long before a shadow flitted across thergest cavern mouth, and He emerged, clinging to the stone wall as he jumped to the ground, followed closely by the burly Da Xionging out from the same hole.


    "Damn it!" Da Xiong cursed, rubbing his head, a faint trace of blood still visible on his forehead.


    The caves inside the cavern varied in height; Da Xiong was tall and burly, which made crawling through the holes quite inconvenient. He probably had hit his head just now. He ignored him, taking a whistle to his lips and gave it a blow.


    It seemed that this group was searching for something inside the cavern.


    Immediately, an answering echo came from within the mountain. It wasn''t long before Mr. Qian led another poacher to poke their heads out of another hole.


    The hole was over two meters high and over a meter wide, probably thergest one in the cavern. It was only thirty or forty centimeters above the ground. Mr. Qian stepped onto the ground, pointed toward the hole behind him, and said, "He,e and take a look at this. It seems like someone''s been living here!"


    "What? Someone living here?" He was slightly startled. This damn ce was dark and damp, and even in the height of summer, it was deathly cold. At night, it could freeze a person to death. Who would live here? It was tantamount to a long-lived person hanging themselves because they were tired of living.


    Despite his surprise, He still proceeded into therge cave with Da Xiong.


    Suming had no idea what Mr. Qian had discovered in the cave to think someone lived there. He too was eager to check out therge cave, but showing himself now was tantamount to suicide. The entrance to this cavern was so well-hidden it was ridiculous. If it hadn''t been for the incident with the silurus, even if someone stood outside the waterfall, they wouldn''t suspect there was arge cavern behind it. If he died here, even when his bones turned white, no one would find them.


    Therefore he could only suppress his curiosity, patiently waiting. He thought to himself that He and his group would leave at some point, and now that he knew the location, he coulde back to exploreter.


    It was only a shame he hadn''t found more poison, otherwise, he could have let some venomous snakes lie in ambush at the entrance and have them bite He and his men as they left the cave. All of those men would die here.


    Having already taken action, Suming wasn''t nning on showing any mercy.


    These people had small methrowers, which weren''t easy to deal with. Suming calcted that after they left the cave, he would have Er Gouzi bring a group of hos at night to ambush them. If He could order two sentries to kill someone, it meant that this group wasn''t made up of good people. If they died, so be it; the big cave would serve as a perfect grave.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    It wasn''t long before He and his group came out of thergest hole. As they walked, He was saying, "Maybe what the buyer wants is that thing in the cave. Since it''s nesting here, that thing will definitelye back. Let''s go out first and lie in ambush around the pool. Everyone stay alert!"


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    "Thing? What thing?" He hadn''t needed to say anything. By mentioning it, he made Suming''s insides itch with curiosity. What kind of animal lived in thatrge cave that was so valuable?


    We''re talking millions of US Dors here. Even if a giant panda''s ancestor showed up, it might not fetch that price!


    Luckily, it seemed that He and his men weren''t nning to linger in the cavern for much longer. After briefly discussing, they started to head back toward the entrance the way they came.


    The poachers'' procession passed perilously close to Suming''s hiding spot behind a stgmite. At the closest point, they were less than a meter away from Suming. They filed out one by one, crawling through the opening towards the outside. Suming hid behind therge stgmite, holding his breath and daring not to move a muscle.


    Only after all those people had crawled into the exit tunnel did Suming tiptoe over, like a big cat, stealthily running towards the entrance of therge cave.


    A putrid smell of rotting flesh wafted out from the cave; Suming turned on the shlight attached to the other end of his stun baton and shone it inside.


    He saw that therge cave was only about four to five meters deep, with animal bones stained with flesh scattered on the ground.


    At the end of the cave, there was a pile of dry grass and firewood, looking like a sleeping nest, and by the side of the grass pile was an assortment of rocks with different shapes¡ªsome t, some long and thick like clubs, and some the size of watermelons; their purpose was unclear.


    "Uh-oh, not good!"


    Suming was observing the cave when he suddenly remembered He and his men saying they would guard the cave entrance. How could he get out then!


    Besides, Ming Shao''s corpse was still outside. If He and his men saw theirpanion''s dead body, they would definitely be cautious!


    "Damn, I''ve overstepped, and now I''m in trouble!"


    Thinking this, Suming wasted no time pondering over any strange creature inside the cave, hurrying back the way he came, hoping to escape behind the waterfall while He and his men were shocked by theirrade''s death.


    As long as he could flee into the woods, the mountains were his domain. Unless He obliterated the mountain with a nuclear bomb, even if they had ten times the firepower, they couldn''t do anything to him. On the contrary, he had numerous ways to deal with them.


    Following the tunnel leading to the exit, he barely reached the entrance and was about to pass through the waterfall when he heard several fierce roars and gunshots outside on the bank.


    "What now!" Full of courage, Suming peered out from behind the water curtain.


    On the bank by the camp, there stood a stark-naked hulk of a man, possibly two meters tall, with bronzed skin, a full beard, and hair reaching his waist.


    "A wild man!?" Suming was startled. Man, although he is scruffy, could this wild man''s physique be any more dashing? Generally, wild men are raised by animals; they walk on all fours with hunched backs, and their behavior resembles animals more than humans, but this long-haired, bearded ''man'' had no excessive animalistic features. Instead, he was tall and straight, with a muscr build that reminded Suming of the War God from Greek mythology.


    Suming was sure if someone shaved this creature''s long hair and beard and dressed him in human clothes, he would probably look no different from a normal person.


    At that moment, out of the four poachers, three were aiming guns at the strong man, who was holding the bodybuilder-like Da Xiong by the neck with one hand, suspending him mid-air as if he were a pitiful rag doll.


    "Roar! Roar!"


    Using Da Xiong as a human shield in front of him, the wild man issued fierce roars towards the other three poachers. He had a huge wound on his right shoulder, the skin and flesh turned inside out, oozing blood profusely.

 Chapter 123: Chapter 123 One by One, They Die Miserably

    "Bang!"


    It wasn''t clear who fired the shot, but the wild man, with agility thatpletely belied his huge stature, bolted out like a civet, incredibly evading the bullet.


    However, Da Xiong in his grasp was not so lucky, and it seemed to vent his anger, the wild man swung his arm and powerfully smashed Da Xiong onto the ground.


    Despite the crashing noise of the waterfall, Suming could clearly hear the dull sound of the impact, ''thud,'' his eyelids twitching. He saw Da Xiong''s head nt into the ground like a stake, forcibly driven in by the wild man so that his head and half his shoulder were buried underground, leaving most of his body exposed.


    The ground of the campsite was covered with ayer of pebbles on top and mud beneath. After Da Xiong was ''plugged'' into the ground, his legs twitched up a couple of times, and copious amounts of fresh blood oozed out from between the pebbles.


    "Damn, that''s too horrific!" Suming grimaced and drew in a sharp breath, it hurt just watching.


    The wild man, having vented his anger and killed Da Xiong, suddenly found himself without a shield and was surrounded by the remaining three poachers, each armed with a rifle. They kept their distance, and it seemed the wild man was somewhat afraid of firearms. He dared not make any sudden moves for the moment, bending his body slightly and growling lowly at the poachers.


    The poachers had never expected to encounter a wild man on this trip!


    When it came to value, a living wild man was priceless. Despite having lost threerades, if they could capture the wild man, this trip would be worth it!


    He''s face turned vicious as he yelled, "Don''t shoot to kill! We need him alive! Mr. Qian, the tranquilizer gun!"


    The poachers were brutal men, ustomed to killing and death and not in the least deterred by the loss of theirrades. On the contrary, they were excited, advancing slowly towards the wild man with their guns, operating on the principle of ''every man for himself.'' The more who died, the fewer people there would be to share the loot!


    Mr. Qian pulled out a tranquilizer gun, not bothering to aim, and fired!


    The wild man, in turn, dodged to the side, evading Mr. Qian''s shot, but before he could regain his footing, another poacher shot him from behind with a tranquilizer dart, hitting him squarely in the waist!


    "Aaah!" the wild man bellowed, ferociously reaching back to snap the tranquilizer dart''s needle off in his waist. He staggered but didn''t fall, instead picking up a pebble and hurling it furiously at the gunman.


    The poacher was already bracing for the wild man''s retaliation. Before the wild man could throw the pebble, the poacher bent his knees slightly, preparing to dodge.


    Unexpectedly, before he could jump aside, a barely audible ''pfft'' sound came from the waterfall behind him, as a tiny tranquilizer dart flew out and stuck him in the lower back.


    Of course, the tranquilizer wouldn''t take effect instantly, but being stung in the kidney area was distracting enough. In that split second before he could react, the wild man''s pebble came whistling through the air, striking him squarely in the face!


    ng! down he went!


    The strength of a human skull isn''t exaggerated, and the hard pebble shattered into several pieces against it. The man''s head was like it had been hit by a sniper''s bullet, a bloom of ''peach blossoms'' appeared as his face was smashed into a watermelon-like pulp, and he dropped to the ground with a wobble.


    "Oh my god! Too bloody!"


    Suming gasped in shock again. How strong could this wild man be? The rock in his hand was as deadly as a firearm!


    There was chaos outside, and as anotherrade''s death was witnessed, He and Mr. Qian both instinctively fired their guns at the same time, "bang, bang" two shots, one hit the wild man''s thigh and the other hit his buttocks. The wild man let out a strange cry, covered in blood, and fell to the ground.


    The wild man had an incredible vitality. If it had been a normal person, being shot three times by a rifle would have likely half destroyed their body, and even without the gunfire, the anaesthetic needles would have been enough to take down two or three ordinary people. Your journey continues with §Þ??


    Even so, the wild man was struggling to hang on, lying on the ground, huffing and puffing, with blood flowing out of his wounds as if it cost nothing.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Damn, this is worth it! Mr. Qian, one hundred and fifty thousand US Dors! Seventy-five thousand each for the two of us!"


    "Hey, that''s not right, He. We agreed I would get an extra twenty thousand! Now that everyone else is dead, are you going back on your word?" Mr. Qian flipped his eyelid, and subconsciously moved the muzzle of his gun, originally aimed at the wild man, slightly towards He.


    He''s face turned grim: "Fuck you! Mr. Qian, what the hell are you doing? We haven''t even sold the goods, and you''re starting a fight in our nest! I''m telling you, if you kill me, you won''t be able to get it out of the mountains by yourself!"


    "That''s not how you speak, He. We both live life on the edge. If you bully me, that''s not eptable!" Mr. Qian said ominously.


    "Enough talk, if you want an extra twenty thousand, you''ll get it! Hurry up, put that wild man in a cage! Get some hemostatic medicine too, don''t let it die!"


    "Yeah, that''s more like it! See, this is why I respect you, He. A man of his word, honorable!" Mr. Qian said.


    He waved his hand impatiently: "Stop talking crap, and get a move on. With such a big fellow, we still need to figure out how to get it out of the mountains!"


    "Alright then!" Mr. Qian slung his rifle over his shoulder, held a pistol in one hand and a metal baton for subduing wild animals in the other, and walked towards the wild man.


    This kind of metal baton was specifically designed for animals ¨C about one and a half meters long, with a noose at one end. Once the noose was ced around the neck of the prey and pulled tight, the rope would constrict, making it impossible for the prey to reach the person at the other end of the stick, over a meter away. To avoid being strangled, the animal had no choice but to submit.


    Mr. Qian skillfully flicked his hand and the noose went around the wild man''s neck. The wild man roared, attempting to get the noose off, but Mr. Qian pulled lightly, and the noose tightened around the wild man''s neck, digging into its flesh.


    "Roar... huff..." The wild man let out a reluctant cry, its hands with long nails clinging tightly to the noose, its eyes bloodshot with rage.


    "What''re you yelling for? If it weren''t for the fact that we n to sell you, I would''ve blown your head off already!" Mr. Qian dragged the wild man towards the cage like dragging a dead dog.


    Just then a loud gunshot rang out suddenly from behind Mr. Qian.


    Mr. Qian ducked his head in fright and instinctively rolled to the side, smoothly unloading his rifle from his shoulder and aiming it at He while lying on the ground: "Big-head He, fuck your mother!"


    But He still had his gun slung on his back, holding a half-bottle of mineral water, which he dropped in shock at the sound of the gunshot. He then reached back for his gun.


    It wasn''t until Mr. Qian aimed at him that He''s hand barely touched his gun-barrel, so the shot couldn''t have been fired by him.

 Chapter 124 Surrender and Spare Lives

    Mr. Qian raised his gun and realized that He hadn''t even taken his rifle off his back¡ªthe shot hadn''te from He at all.


    Both men were taken aback.


    "What lousy shooting!" Suming muttered from behind the waterfall.


    It must be stressed that Suming was legitimately skilled with a handgun! His old man worked in wildlife conservation outdoors, and Suming had been exposed to the ''54 pistol from a young age. As he grew up, he even experienced live ammunition shooting during military training, so the captured replica ''54 wasn''t at all unfamiliar to him.


    However, being able to shoot a handgun doesn''t necessarily equate to shooting urately.


    Mr. Qian was only about twenty meters from the waterfall. Suming, holding the gun behind the waterfall, aimed for a long time but still missed. The bullet flew at least twenty or thirty centimeters from Mr. Qian into the trees.


    Shooting a handgun is challenging¡ªit''s not just about firing, but hitting the target urately. At a distance of more than twenty meters, even trained police officers can''t guarantee a hundred percent uracy; a sixty percent hit rate would already be considered good. Being able to hit any target within twenty meters is the level of a sharpshooter.


    For a gun enthusiast like Suming, missing the target at a distance of twenty meters wasn''t really a disgrace.


    Outside the waterfall, after a momentary stun, He and Mr. Qian both shifted their gaze behind the waterfall. Guns without silencers make distinguishable noises, and anyone but a deaf person could urately pinpoint the location of the gunshot.


    Both men immediately performed standard tactical movements, lying down on the sandy beach, aiming their rifles towards the waterfall''s mouth.


    "Damn it! Who''s there,e out!"


    Before Mr. Qian''s words fell, another bang came from behind the waterfall, and a bullet hit the ground less than twenty centimeters from him, kicking up chipped pebbles that left a bloody mark on his face.


    Without saying another word, He fired three consecutive bullets behind the waterfall. The bullets vanished into the curtain of water as if into the abyss, without stirring up the slightest ripple. Continue reading at §Þ??


    Suming also cursed under his breath, thankful that he had watched plenty of war movies and had somebat experience. He didn''t stay put after shooting; he immediately ducked into the cave.


    No sooner had he ducked inside than several sparks emerged from where he had been standing on the wall. The three bullets had knocked down a considerable chunk of rock¡ªif he had been a bit slower, his body would have had several new bullet holes by now.


    Since he''d already blown his cover, Suming decided to go for broke. Clearing his throat, he managed a not-so-standard Mandarin, and yelled out seriously to the outside, "This is the forest armed police, this is the forest armed police, you are surrounded. Dropping your weapons is your only way out!"


    "Fuck you!" was the retort, met with a bullet.


    Suming, undeterred, fired back by instinct.


    It''s hard to say if Mr. Qian was unlucky or lucky. Suming shot at him every time but never hit him. Another bullet struck the ground not far from him, skipped up, and flew past his scalp.


    "Fuck!" Mr. Qian felt a slight pass over his head, as if it had been grazed by a knife, nearly pissing himself in fear. Had the bullet been a centimeter lower, his life would''ve been over.


    Without hesitation, he executed a side roll and tumbled to a blind spot behind the waterfall at the mouth of the cave. Unless the person inside the cave came through the waterfall, there was no way they could aim at him again.


    Mr. Qian had just rolled to safety and hadn''t had the chance to raise his gun to aim when something mmed into his back, as if he had collided with something.


    Immediately after, his neck tightened, and an unpleasant body odor wafted over from behind. Mr. Qian suddenly realized that under his panic, he had unwittingly rolled right next to the wild man!


    Just the thought that the wild man, who killed as easily as ughtering chickens, was right behind him, sent Mr. Qian''s heart plummeting to his intestines!


    "Why am I not passed out yet, could the tranquilizer gun have failed?!" That was Mr. Qian''sst thought.


    The wild man, filled with sorrow and anger, still a bit dizzy, saw Mr. Qian practically deliver himself to the doorstep. Not one to be polite, he seized Mr. Qian''s neck with one hand, and without waiting for Mr. Qian to raise his gun, the other hand, clenched into a fist the size of a sand pot, rained down three heavy punches onto Mr. Qian''s head.


    If this were ancient times, the wild man''s fists might have been even more fierce than Lu Zhishen''s who had killed Zheng the butcher with a flurry of punches. But this man simply needed three. After the three punches, half of Mr. Qian''s head was buried in the ground, and the half that remained outside resembled an overturned sauce jar, red and white blood messy and mixed.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Well now, of the six poachers, only He remained, gued by intense frustration.


    What was this mess?! His group of six, all armed to the teeth, each one an experienced hand, could have held their ground against a squad of armed police, yet they hadn''t even seen their opponent''s face when five were finished off with brutal efficiency!


    If it weren''t for He''s military experience offering him a robust mental fortitude, he might have broken down without needing Suming or the wild man toy a finger on him.


    Especially the two men outside the cave who died so mysteriously: one lying on a tree, body turned ck as if poisoned; the other with the back of his skull shattered, his face swollen like a pig''s head. If it weren''t for their clothes, He would hardly recognize them.


    His two subordinates were no slouches and pretty sharp, too, or he wouldn''t have entrusted them with the watch. Yet, they were effortlessly taken down by the enemy, without even a chance to sound the rm. This suggested that the enemy didn''t have numbers, but were indisputably masters among masters, proficient in closebat, adept with poisons, proficient with¡­ rocks?


    Who on earth could this be? Several groups shed through He''s mind at once: the hunting squads from the Middle East, the ck Death mercenaries from South Africa, the Fallen Angels from North America, ckwater security...


    His mind was in disarray; these factions were not ones they could afford to provoke¡ªin fact, they weren''t even qualified to provoke them.


    Was it the employer silencing them? He was shocked, took a deep breath, and hid behind a metal cage. With one hand holding a gun and the other clutching a backpack filled with dry food, he slipped stealthily toward the woods.


    Even though He wore sses, suggesting a schrly look, they were actually in ss for disguise¡ªhis natural vision in both eyes was 1.2. He came from a line of hunters and grew up to fight jungle warfare in the military. He was confident that once he retreated into the woods, it would be his domain. Using the deep mountains and forests as cover, he could slowly ascertain the enemy''s situation and even unexpectedly turn the tide of battle.


    "I''ll say it onest time, drop the weapons and surrender to save your life,"


    a voice resounded faintly, genuine and sincere, from behind the waterfall.

 Chapter 125: Chapter 125 Theres No Cure for a Sharp Tongue

    As the saying goes, "fine words butter no parsnips," Suming''s good intentions, when they reached He''s ears, were mistaken for a sign of Suming''sck of confidence. If he were notcking in strength, why would he bother calling out instead of charging out and exterminating them on the spot?


    "ying this game with me, you''re still too green!" A fierce look shed in his eyes as he crouched and slowly backed into the forest, nning to find cover to hide behind and then take action depending on the situation.


    In the deep forest, there were far too many ces to take cover; everywhere wererge trees that two or three people could barely get their arms around. With a quick movement, He hid behind a tree, revealing only part of his face as he peered through binocrs towards the waterfall.


    Just as he was watching, from deep within the jungle suddenly came a buzzing sound that grew louder and closer.


    He swiftly turned his head to look, and at that nce, he was stunned.


    He saw arge swarm of hos, like a dark cloud, buzzing towards him, and within the blink of an eye, they were upon him.


    Suming, hidden behind the curtain of water, saw a dark ''ball'' tumble out of the forest. The ball stumbled towards the river bank, screaming heartrendingly as it ran, until it copsed to the ground after only a few strides.


    "I can hardly bear to look..." Suming felt goosebumps all over, his entire body itching unbearably.


    By now, all six poachers had perished, and the hos had returned to stand by in the forest. He''s corpse was a gruesome sight to behold. Suming crawled out from behind the waterfall, sighed as he looked at He''s body, and thought to himself, I wasn''t deceiving you; if you had been willing to surrender, I truly wouldn''t have killed you. I could have turned you in to the authorities, and who knows, I might have even gotten a reward for it.


    But now, all six were dead. How was he to hand them over to the authorities? Not to mention six, he wouldn''t be able to carry even one. Besides, without proof of their guilt, it would be hard to exin.


    "Forget it, I won''t add to the burden of the crematorium colleagues. Let''s just return them to the bosom of nature."


    As Suming leaned against arge stone by the creek, he vomited while distracting himself by thinking of this and that. The scene was simply too gory, and even he found it hard to stomach.


    Haidong Qing, along with Huiya, kept a vignt watch over their surroundings, one on the ground, the other in the air.


    "All dead! All dead!"


    "So disgusting! So disgusting!"


    The two parrots, somehow having woken up, hopped out of the forest. Upon seeing the scene, they started to squawk horrendously.


    One of the parrots, not paying attention,nded right on the savage. After the savage had hammered Mr. Qian to death, hey motionless. The parrot, likely thinking the savage was already dead, leaned in to peck at him.


    Before it could peck, the savage suddenly shot out a hand and firmly grasped the neck of the Diamond Parrot!


    "**** sister..." The parrot''s stream of invectives was cut short as its voice ceased. With its neck seized, it could no longer make a sound, its body shaking frantically, feathers flying everywhere.


    "Stop!" Suming bellowed. The scene had been too chaotic, and he''d forgotten about the savage. This creature had frightening strength; even on the brink of death, a casual grasp could probably kill an adult, let alone the Diamond Parrot.


    The savage was still six or seven meters away, and snapping a neck could be done in an instant. Even if Suming could fly, it would be toote to rescue the parrot. Talking nonsense really does kill a bird!


    Suming turned ashen, cursing inwardly. Look where your smart mouth got you! Mom''s warning from this morning was for nothing. Now that you''re awake, you just had to be a smart aleck!


    Are you happy now? You''ve finally talked yourself to death!


    Suming, used to using his spiritual power, sent a burst of it toward the savage without thinking in his moment of panic!


    To his surprise, as soon as his spiritual power touched the savage, the hand that was about to snap the parrot''s neck stopped. The savage struggled to lift its head, itsrge, bright eyes looking nkly at Suming, even showing a trace of wariness.


    "Eh? What''s going on?" Suming was also bewildered; it seemed like he couldmunicate with the wild man using spiritual power!!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Communicating with animals using spiritual power was not a problem, and controlling them was something Suming had considered before. After all, humans are also a type of animal. Since spiritual power was effective on animals, it might well be effective on humans too.


    For this reason, he had tried several times, but whether it was because he was wrong or because human intelligence far exceeded that of other animals, spiritual power had no effect on humans, at least not that he could notice.


    However, in that moment, both the wild man''s reaction and the feedback from the spiritual power proved that spiritual power did work on the wild man.


    "Could it be because this guy lives in the wilderness or grew up with animals, so he''s considered half-human, half-beast?"


    Enjoy more content from §Þ??


    While Suming was wondering, he released a bit of spiritual power to probe the wild man again, filled with benevolence. Judging by the spiritual power alone, Suming''s attitude towards the wild man was even more affectionate than a long-lost lover''s reunion.


    As expected, the wild man slowly put down the parrot, and the wariness in his eyes quickly disappeared.


    The Diamond Parrot, once freed, quickly fluttered its wings and hopped away, opening its mouth to curse, "Shit sister! Shit sister!"


    The other parrot was not to be outdone and chimed in from another direction, "Smash your mouth! Smash your mouth!"


    Even Suming wanted to strangle them both now; who had they learned these nonsense words from? Next time, he must put up a sign in the parrot area prohibiting visitors from swearing!


    Of course, the wild man couldn''t understand these swear words. Uttering a faint "ho ho..." from his throat and clutching his wounded shoulder, he gave Suming a pleading look for help.


    "Oh oh oh, hang in there, I''ll find something to stop the bleeding!"


    Suming quickly scrambled to his feet, rummaging through the poacher''s gear in a frenzy. It was only because of the wild man''s robust constitution that he hadn''t bled to death from the bullet wound, or passed out from the tranquilizer dart.


    After fumbling about clumsily for a while, he finally found a bottle of Yunnan Baiyao, as well as some hemostatic gauze and alcohol; summoning his courage, he approached the wild man and shook the medicine in his hand.


    "I''m going to save you, it''s going to hurt a bit, but don''t you hurt me..." Suming cautiously crouched down, conveying his intent in both humannguage and spiritual power, repeating the message twice.


    The wild man stared with wide eyes and nodded vigorously.


    Only then did Suming feel reassured, he opened the Baiyao, scooped out a small pill from the powder, and ced it in the wild man''s mouth for him to swallow.


    The old-style Yunnan Baiyao always contained such small pills, known as ''life-saving seeds,'' for internal use.


    When the wild man opened his mouth, his teeth were fairly white, but due to ack of dental care and eating raw food, his breath was so foul, it almost knocked Suming unconscious.


    After feeding him the pill, Suming held his nose and cleaned the wild man''s wound with alcohol, then sprinkled Baiyao over the injury.


    Throughout the process, the wild man''splexion was pale, clearly in tremendous pain, but he seemed to understand that Suming was helping him and gritted his teeth to endure it.


    But for now, this was only a temporary measure to stop the bleeding; there was still a bullet in the wound, and he needed to get out of the mountains immediately to have a doctor operate and remove the bullet. Otherwise, infection and inmmation could be fatal.


    The problem was that the wild man was injured and probably unable to travel that far; with hisrge size, Suming couldn''t carry him either. He might manage to carry him a few dozen meters, but the idea of carrying him out of the deep mountains was a pipe dream.


    Unless a helicopter came to rescue them right now, no matter what, the wild man wouldn''tst until they could get out of the mountains.

 Chapter 126 The Fallen Leaves Must Return to Their Roots

    Suming used alcohol to disinfect the Wild Man''s wound and then applied Yunnan Baiyao and gauze for a simplified dressing, which barely managed to stop the bleeding.


    It was less that the bleeding was stopped, and more that the Wild Man''s blood was almost drained. With three bullets, three holes, in his shoulder, and behind his thigh and buttocks, he received no timely medical treatment after being shot and had just been lying on the ground. During the fight between Suming and He, the Wild Man even managed to contribute a few moves, ultimately killing Mr. Qian.


    By the time everything settled, nearly ten minutes had passed. For an ordinary person, with threerge bullet wounds, they would have bled out long ago. It was only because the Wild Man''s physical condition was so astonishingly robust that he was still alive.


    It was also a stroke of luck¡ªit was probably because of the excessive bleeding that the anesthetic didn''t work. The Wild Man was pale but still somewhat conscious and hadn''t fainted. If he had fallen unconscious with such severe wounds, not even a deity could save him.


    "Hang on, I''ll carry you down the mountain to find a doctor!" Suming said, sweating profusely with urgency. There was a long way to go to get out of the mountains, and carrying the Wild Man would slow him down even more. Even if he managed to carry him out, the Wild Man likely wouldn''t survive that long and would die halfway.


    There was no other choice, they had to treat the situation like a dying horse on itsst legs. Although the Wild Man could sense spiritual power, he was not a pure beast, and the healing effects of the spiritual power were not as evident on him as they were on other animals¡ªespecially since his wounds were too severe and he was nearly bled to death.


    People do what they can and leave the rest to fate¡ªit was up to the Wild Man''s own destiny now.


    Just as Suming bent down to hoist the Wild Man onto his back, the Wild Man waved arge, fur-covered hand and then struggled to turn over, crawling towards the direction of the pond.


    "Hm? Could it be that the Wild Man has a tradition of water burial? Is he going to the pond to wait for death?" Suming was startled.


    The Wild Man crawled on the ground, leaving a trail of blood behind. Before he even reached the shore, he ran out of energy andy on the ground, gasping for air and tilting his head to stare toward the waterfall.


    Suming suddenly realized, dismissing the thought of a water burial. This guy was trying to crawl back to the cave behind the waterfall. That cave with signs of habitation was likely his ''home''!


    "Hold on, hold on! I''ll take you inside!"


    Suming tested with his spiritual power and his guess was indeed correct. The Wild Man had a strong desire to return to the cave. Suming didn''t know exactly why he wanted to go back, but there was no time to discuss it now. He quickly went over, grabbed the Wild Man''s arm, exerted himself to lift the huge body on his back.


    As the saying goes, "dead weight," which implies heaviness, certainly applies when someone has passed away. Though not dead, the Wild Man was close to it and already heavy due to his two-meter stature. Suming stumbled, nearly copsing under the Wild Man''s weight.


    The Wild Man also groaned in pain.


    Fortunately, the waterfall wasn''t far. Suming gritted his teeth, carried the Wild Man to the edge of the pond, ced him on a small intable boat, and then jumped in himself, paddling towards the waterfall. It took a Herculean effort to carry the Wild Man to the recess behind the waterfall and drag him through the cave entrance into the interior.


    The Wild Man''s breath grew weaker, and his consciousness started to fade. The feedback from spiritual power was muddled; his body asionally convulsing, he seemed on the brink of death!


    "Hey, hey, hey, don''t you die! Hey!" Suming was desperate, pping the Wild Man''s face with a crack. He meant to just pat his face, but in his urgency, he struck too hard, turning it into a p, echoing crisply through the cave.


    Spiritual power was poured into the Wild Man like it was free, hoping to stimte him back to life.


    Luckily, it worked. After being pped twice, the Wild Man''s cloudy eyes brightened slightly, and he made a "ugh" sound from his throat, regaining some awareness.


    After surveying his surroundings, the wild man twitched his nose twice, tilted his head, and extended his tongue like arge dog, licking the damp spots on the cave floor.


    Suming thought he was thirsty from heavy blood loss and hurriedly took down the military canteen from his waist to feed the wild man.


    The wild man sniffed the opening of the canteen but didn''t drink the pure water inside, instead continuing to lick the dampness on the ground.


    Suming, faced with the wild man''s picky behavior, simply emptied the water from the canteen, stood up, and looked around.


    In fact, the cave was located beneath a waterfall and river, its floor was stony, with water constantly seeping down from inside the cave and its ceiling. These drippings, umting over time, formed trickling streams that gathered in the uneven ground, creating puddles of various sizes. Suming found a basin-sized puddle, filled the canteen halfway with water from it, and handed it back to the wild man.


    After a brief sniff, the wild man nodded heavily and made "uh-uh-uh" sounds from his throat, opened his mouth wide, and, holding the canteen, began to guzzle the water with gusto.


    Having drunk the water in the canteen, the wild man seemed revitalized, like an injection of a cardiac stimnt had been administered. His gaze cleared, and he even propped himself up with one hand and sat up on the ground, panting heavily.


    Suming, surprised by the scene, hurriedly scanned him with his spiritual power and found that the wild man''s vitality had clearly increased.


    He quickly filled another half canteen with water, then assisted the wild man as they slowly walked back to thergest den, which evidently was the wild man''s home. Upon entering, the wild man copsed onto a pile of dry grass, gasping for air.


    Through all these exertions, the wild man''s gunshot wound burst open again, the gauze turning blood-red as blood continuously seeped from the wound.


    Suming frowned slightly and after a moment''s thought, pulled out a Swiss Army knife and a lighter from his pocket. Imitating what he had seen on television, he disinfected the de by repeatedly running it through the me.


    Extracting a bullet is a skillful job, requiring an incision to be made in the flesh over the wound, then forcibly removing the bullet. During this process, the patient not only experiences excruciating pain, but it is also extremely dangerous. A slight mistake could damage tendons, resulting in permanent disability, and if the bullet had prated bone, it would be even more troublesome.


    Moreover, opening up the wound could lead to significant blood loss and possibly death.


    Of course, Suming didn''t possess such skills, let alone practical experience, but now he was left with no choice but to take a gamble on luck and extract the bullet by force. Any further dy and the wound might be infected and fester, putting the wild man''s life in grave jeopardy.


    Suming looked at the wild man and said very seriously, using both spiritual power and humannguage, "I am going to extract the bullet! It will hurt a lot... "


    The wild man, with wide eyes, seemed to understand Suming''s intention, made "uh-uh" sounds from his throat, and then nodded.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suming, holding the searing hot knife, gestured over the wound on the wild man''s leg, pondering where to make the incision.


    "I''m doing this to save you, you better not hit me!"


    After saying this, Suming cut down fiercely with the knife.

 Chapter 127 Surgery

    The cave echoed with one scream after another...


    Huiya and Haidong Qing, standing guard outside the cave, looked at each other. Initially ready to rush behind the waterfall to ''save someone,'' fortunately, Suming notified them in time with his spiritual power, and this group of creatures obediently stayed by the pond to keep watch.


    The screams inside the cave gradually turned into low moans.


    Actually, it didn''t take long, but Suming felt as if it had been years¡ªthe surgery was finally over. Looking at the two bullets that had been removed, he let out a long sigh of relief, exhaustedly sitting down on the ground.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Although the wild man''s face was covered in hair, it was still obvious¡ªhe looked pale and scary, lying there listlessly, the pile of grass beneath him stained red with blood.


    He was rather lucky; none of the three bullets had hit vital parts. The wild man''s muscle density was astonishing, two bullets were embedded in his muscles, and one rifle bullet had gone straight through, flying out the other side; therefore, Suming only found two.


    As for Suming''s surgical skills, they were, of course, horribly bad. This could be judged from the wild man''s screams¡ªan indicator of the ''barefoot doctor'' Suming''sckluster scalpel work.


    When he first cut into the flesh, Suming was able to stay calm, his heart steady and hands without tremor. Although the wild man was in pain, it was a sharp and clear sort of pain, a decisive hurt.


    But searching for the bullets in the wound was not so easy. With blood and muddled flesh and bones mixed together and the cave''s lighting very dim, it was not easy to find such tiny bullets. Suming himself was a nervously crude man, roughly equivalent to poking around in the wild man''s wounds with his fingers.


    The wild man passed out from pain and woke up again several times¡ªa testament to his brute strength, for anyone else might have died from the pain long before.


    If the roles were reversed, Suming felt that if he were the wild man, he would rather die than let an amateur like himself perform surgery.


    But all of this had finally passed. Compared to surgery, Suming''s bandaging skills were obviously much better, using alcohol to disinfect, sewing the wound with thread, applying medicine...


    After being busy for most of the day, he was finally done!


    "Actually, it''s not too bad, huh!" Suming''s hands were covered in blood as he took an interested look at the wound on the wild man''s thigh, which had been stitched into a flower-like shape.


    The wild man was still alive, turning his head to look at his wound and managing to give Suming a silly grin.


    That grin seemed to pull at his wound, and he winced, his voice trembling slightly.


    "Get some rest. If you don''t have a fever by tonight, you can consider your life saved!" Suming told the wild man.


    The wild man pointed at the water bottle, seeming thirsty again. Suming passed the water bottle to the wild man, who indeed had arge capacity¡ªhe had only drunk half a bottle when entering the cave. Now, with a few gulps, he drained half of the military water bottle, and still seemed to be looking for more, licking his lips and pointing towards the small puddle outside the cave.


    "Still drinking? Damn, let me make it clear, if you drink too much, I am not going to attend to your peeing needs!"


    Suming was exasperated. It had not been that long, and this savage had already guzzled down five or six jin of water. How big could his stomach possibly be?


    The savage looked at Suming with bright, clear, pitiful eyes, making Suming unable to bear it. He waved his hand in surrender, "Alright, alright, I won''t abuse a patient. I''ll go get you some water." After speaking, he picked up the kettle and stood up, walking outside to find a small puddle and gurgled back with half a kettle of water.


    The savage seemed pleased, babbling at Suming in a series of unintelligible noises, then held the kettle with his functioning hand and in a blink, the half kettle of water was gone.


    Today, this guy had been shot and operated on by Suming, having teetered between life and death several times. After drinking the water, he finally couldn''t hold on any longer and fell into a heavy sleep, emitting faint snores.


    Suming checked, and the savage''s forehead temperature was still normal; he didn''t have a fever. At the same time, he noticed that the snoring sound was different from a person''s. A person''s snorees from the nose or throat, some overweight people snore from their chest cavity, but the savage, his snoring came from his abdomen, simr to that of a wild beast. Huiya''s belly would also rumble when it slept.


    Suming was now full of various questions and extremely tired, but there was no time to explore the truth, nor was it the time to sleep. He first left the cave and saw the bodies strewn haphazardly outside, which needed to be dealt with quickly, lest the smell of blood attractedrge predators.


    Fortunately, the poachers came equipped. Several entrenching tools were a big help for Suming, and Huiya also helped by digging the ground with its front paws. Before long, they dug out arge hole.


    Suming scavenged for a while, finding a total of more than six thousand in cash, three bank cards with unknown PINs, a few handguns, and some random trinkets on the bodies.


    As the saying goes, wealth is external, you can''t take it with you in life or death. Since these people had gone off to meet Marx, they certainly wouldn''t need the colorful bills and guns; the great proletarian revolutionary leader might even denounce them as the "ck five" and have them criticized by the people even in death.


    Given this, Suming took everything and only then pushed the bodies into the hole to bury them. He covered it with ayer of cobblestones so that it looked no different from the surrounding ground.


    "Dust to dust, ashes to ashes, when youe out to hustle, you must always pay your dues, Mother Earth is fooling you¡­" Respecting the dead, Suming murmured several incoherent eulogies, then turned to rummage through the equipment these people had brought.


    Guns and ammunition, outdoor tools, hunting equipment, food, and drinking water¡ªapart from thest two, Suming currently had no use for the rest.


    Not only were they of no use yet, but most of the items couldn''t even be exposed¡ªfor instance, the rifles, handguns, and the small pile of shiny bullets wrapped in oil paper would mean trouble if discovered.


    But they mighte in handy in the future, especially the weapons and ammunition, which were too dangerous to carelessly discard; they might harm the flora or get picked up by children, which would be troubling...


    Suming called Diamond Parrot over to help, and they moved all these items to a hidden cave behind the waterfall, cing them in elevated, dry alcoves where they mighte in handy in the future.


    When all of this was done, it was almostpletely dark. Suming left Er Gouzi outside,manding several wasps to stand guard, and called all the animals into the cave.


    Haidong Qing, Huiya, and Diamond Parrot, as the seasoned regrs, were very obedient. Upon entering the cave, they curiously looked around, but without Suming''s orders, they didn''t dare to wander and all gathered in arge cave facing the savage''s, resting for the time being.

 Chapter 128 Strange Water

    The two new members of the team, the golden monkey and the baby fish, got along fairly well after somemunication with Suming''s spiritual power.


    The golden monkey actually hadn''t suffered any serious injuries. Upon examination, Suming found that the little guy had just shed some fur and had a few superficial wounds, while everything else was normal. The baby fish had a habit of storing food and had probably nned to eat itter when it was dragged into the cave, still not hungry. However, before the baby fish had a chance to eat, Mr. Qian had wriggled into the cave, driving the big baby fish out.


    Compared to monkeys like macaques, the golden monkey was rtively ''well-behaved''. After understanding the situation, the little golden monkey sat in the corner of the cave, hunching its shoulders and staring with its dark, fearful eyes at the Diamond Parrot sisters and Haidong Qing. These guys were several timesrger than it in size, and their presence in the cave felt quite oppressive.


    And that scruffy little wolf didn''t look too easy to mess with, either.


    "Call me big brother! Call me big brother!"


    "Smile! Smile!"


    The two parrots began to teasingly hassle the golden monkey, one on either side.


    The little golden monkey wouldn''t call anyone big brother as it was scared stiff, huddled in a corner, daring not to move an inch.


    "Don''t scare it, you guys! Especially you two, if you''re so capable, make Haidong Qing call you big brother!" Suming specially warned them, considering, after all, that they were a national ss-1 protected animal.


    The giant baby fish had also woken up by then. Its two dark, little fishy eyes stared at Suming for a while, looking somewhat unfriendly, but soon it shook its head and chickened out.


    The creature might have been fierce, but it wasn''t stupid; plus, it had been living for who knows how many years, so it was pretty sharp. It quickly grasped a few things: first, Suming meant no harm; second, it was powerless to resist; and third, it seemed that the person in front of it had saved it. Taking these points together, it would be foolish to make trouble for itself.


    The big baby fish seemed very familiar with the cave, wagging its tail as it crawled into the wild man''s den, nudging him with its head. Seeing that the wild man seemed still alive, it wagged and squirmed back out, found a bed-like big rock in the cave, and climbed up to lie down.


    "So, you two are neighbors?" Suming discovered the rtionship between the baby fish and the wild man only after probing with his spiritual power.


    Initially, he had thought the baby fish had raised the wild man, but observing the wild man''s behavior and mannerisms, he seemed more like a human than a feral child raised by animals.


    It appeared that the two were merely neighbors, and it was extraordinary how they had managed to coexist peacefully until now without getting eaten by one another.


    "Wa wa... wa wa..." The baby fish''s cries echoed in the still cave as Suming''s eyelids grew heavy. Holding a handgun and resting not far from the wild man, he soon fell asleep.


    He didn''t know how long he had slept when he felt a warm sensation on his face. Upon opening his eyes, there was the wild man''s fuzzy face close to his own,rge nostrils huffing out hot air.


    "Good morning..." Suming didn''t even know when his courage had grown so much. If it had been the past, waking up to such a sight would probably have scared him half to death, but now he waspletely unppable, not feeling the slightest bit of fear, and evenzily greeted the wild man.


    "Hoh hoh..." The wild man showed an ugly smile on his face, shaking Suming''s military water bottle in his hand at him.


    "Wow, you want water again, big brother? Can you ever get enough, or are you the reincarnation of Sha Wujing..."


    Before Suming could finish muttering, the savage surprisingly got up from the ground, bent at the waist, leaned against the wall, and slowly made his way to the cave entrance. Then, mimicking Suming''s actions from the previous day, he pressed the water bottle to a puddle to fill it with water.


    "Huh?" Suming was somewhat surprised. This guy has recovered so quickly? Shot three times, and after just one night''s sleep, he could barely walk!


    He scurried to his feet and walked to the cave entrance. The savage didn''t look at him, squatting by the puddle, eyes wide open, intently staring at the water bottle and swaying it back and forth, making strange emphasis in his throat as if encountering something iprehensible.


    Suming looked into the pool andughed. The fellow had the bottle''s opening facing up, above the water surface, while putting the bottom of the bottle into the puddle. After trying to fill it for quite a while, not a single drop of water went in.


    "That''s not how it''s used. Let me teach you," Suming said, shaking his head with a smile. The savage was imitating his water-filling actions from yesterday, but he hadn''t seen clearly while lying in the cave.


    The savage handed the water bottle to Suming with a puzzled look. Suming deliberately slowed down his movements, tilted the mouth of the bottle towards the puddle, and gently ced it in. Then the water poured into the bottle, creating a bubbling sound.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Heh heh... heh heh..." The savage''s eyes brightened, and he danced with joy. However, his movements were too vigorous, and he aggravated his wounds, making him grit his teeth in pain.


    "You try it!" Suming poured the water back into the puddle and handed the empty bottle to the savage.


    The savage''srge hands took the bottle, first looking at Suming, then at the bottle in his hands, and finally staring at the puddle a few times. He hesitantly mimicked Suming, slowly tilting the bottle''s mouth into the puddle.


    With more bubbling, seeing the water fill the bottle, the savage was very excited,ughing foolishly with "heh heh heh" like it was a game. He kept pouring out the water from the bottle, filling it up again, then pouring it out and filling it up again, thoroughly enjoying himself.


    Every time he filled the bottle with water, the savage would shake it towards Suming as if showing off a treasure. Hearing the sound of water hitting the sides, he wouldugh contentedly.


    Suming smiled and shook his head.


    At this moment, aside from being a bitrger and more imposing than a normal person, the savage didn''t seem much different from an innocent and naive child;


    Yet just ten or so hours before, Suming had seen another side of him that was extremely dangerous. Da Xiong, a big burly man, was held like a doll in the savage''s hands and was smashed to death. With one punch, he blew Mr. Qian''s head apart, and he even managed to dodge the first bullet at thest moment by sheer instinct.


    Suming rubbed the messy-haired head of the savage and said, "I''ll teach you something elseter. For now, stop ying and go back inside the cave to rest."


    Without using spiritual power, the savage seemed to understand some of Suming''s words, and nodded vigorously. Then, with both hands, he offered the water-filled bottle to Suming.


    "Is this for me to drink?" Suming asked.


    "Heh heh! Heh heh!" The savage thought Suming didn''t understand his intention, so he gestured a drinking motion with his head held high while holding the water bottle, and handed it back to Suming.


    Suming took the water bottle, frowning slightly.


    He had felt that there was something strange about the water here yesterday.

 Chapter 129 Asking Me to Take a Bath?

    When I first saw the poachers by the pond, they were using a small device to test the water quality, as if they hade here based on the sample of water quality, which indicates that the water here is distinctly different and very specialpared to other ces.


    Unfortunately, the device was smashed to pieces along with Da Xiong''s head by the wild man; otherwise, it could have been useful.


    Another aspect was the wild man himself, whose recovery speed was astonishing. On one hand, it was due to his robust physique, and on the other, his spiritual power also yed a role, albeit to a lesser extent. But now that I think about it, it seems to be closely rted to the water here as well.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    After being injured, the wild man struggled to return to the cave, and once inside, he immediately wanted to ''drink water.'' Before surgery, he chugged several jin of spring water, and when he woke up, the first thing he did was to fetch some water to ''thank'' his lifesaver, me. All of these subtly indicate that the water here is definitely extraordinary.


    Beyond that, the size of that baby fish is also quite astonishing! The size of the baby fish is rted to its age, which in turn is directly linked to the food and water quality. This baby fish appears to be no less than two meters long, suggesting that the water here is incredibly good, far surpassing that of Shuijun Lake. Suming estimated that it''s even likely to exceed national first-ss water quality.


    The logic seems to make sense, and since the wild man drank it without any issues, getting more energetic with each sip, the animals that drank plenty of the cave water should be safe from poison.


    Suming poured some water into his palm and then stuck out his tongue to taste it.


    The taste¡­


    Generally, spring water doesn''t have much vor. If spring water has a taste, well, that''s bizarre¡ªunless someone upstream is peeing¡­


    Yet this spring water has an extraordinarily faint ''strange vor.''


    Worried that it might be his imagination, or that he had contaminated it with the scent of his palm, Suming bravely bent over the edge of the pond and took a small sip.


    Indeed, there was an indescribable ''strange vor.''


    By ''strange vor,'' I don''t mean to say it was unpleasant to drink. The water was crisp and initially tasted slightly astringent and sweet, but that sensation almost immediately vanished. After the water flowed down the throat, it even gave the impression of ''merging'' into the body.


    Overall, the water in the cave was colorless and tasteless, yet drinking it made one feel as if it were very ''fragrant.''


    "Could it contain some special nutrients?" Suming wondered, not quite sure.


    The wild man saw Suming drinking water and smiled broadly, contented, then he tooy down by the water''s edge, plunged his head in, and gulped down the water voraciously, nearly draining the puddle in one go.


    Such puddles weremon throughout the cave, with water continuously flowing from various parts of the cave and quickly refilling the emptied puddles.


    The cave was quite spacious, but aside from the various holes in the stone walls around it, the main space was rtively open and could be seen at a nce. Suming craned his neck and looked around; there was nothing particrly remarkable about the cave.


    Stctites hung from the cave ceiling in all directions, with droplets of water dripping down their tips and falling to the ground.


    "Perhaps it''s because of the stctites?" he mused.


    Suming was also somewhat uncertain. In ancient legends, consuming ''stctites'' after cultivation was said to lead to asceticism. Of course, that idea seemed far-fetched; eating this stuff daily, Suming wasn''t sure if you''d be an immortal, but getting kidney stones was guaranteed.


    Stctites are essentially calcium carbonate and calcium hydroxide which indeed have some medicinal value. Many medical texts record their uses¡ªnot for immortality, but in small quantities, they can serve to cool heat, remove fire and nourish yin, and strengthen yang.


    Maybe the quality of the water here has something to do with those stctites hanging overhead.


    The savage had his fill of water and saw Suming lost in thought. He looked puzzled, then imitated Suming by plopping down on the ground, tilting his head back, gazing up at the sky with a vacant look in his eyes, not knowing what to see.


    Suming couldn''t help butugh. He pointed at the water on the ground and then at the stctites above, sending a query through his spiritual power.


    "Ho! Ho!" the savage shook his head vigorously.


    Suming was taken aback, "The water here has nothing to do with the stctites?"


    "Ho ho! Ho!" The savage stood up, leaning on arge stone, and pointed towards the deepest part of the cave, calling out twice.


    Seeing Suming was still sitting, he simply reached out to pull Suming''s arm, dragging him in that direction.


    "Slow down, slow down, don''t split your wound open again!" Suming quickly got up and turned to support the savage instead.


    "Ho!" The savage seemed a bit anxious, pointed ahead, and led Suming toward the depths of the cave.


    Although the savage walked slowly, the cavern wasn''trge, and they soon reached the deepest part of the cave.


    This ce was rtively high within the cavern. One side had a cliff face, and below it, like the waterfalls outside, there was a pool of water.


    However, the pool wasn''trge, about the size of a twelve-person round table at a hotel. A small stream kept flowing into the pool and then flowed out. Standing here, one could see that most of the water in the cave came through this pool.


    The savage led Suming to the edge of the pool and pointed at it, grunting incessantly.


    "There''s nothing special here..." Suming looked around and waspletely puzzled. It wasn''t a spring, just a bigger puddle, at most thirty to forty centimeters deep. One could easily see the pale rocks at the bottom of the clear water. There were no fish or anything else; everything looked very normal and nothing seemed unusual.


    The savage sat on the edge of the pool, tilted his body, and slid into the water. Hey on his back, with the wounds on his buttocks and thighs soaking in the water. Then with the hand he could move, he scooped up some water and poured it on the wound on his shoulder.


    Suming chuckled, "Oh, I get it, this is your regr bathing spot? Are you inviting me to take a bath?"


    The water quality here indeed was excellent, and a cool bath on a hot day would indeed be refreshing. However, Suming had no intention of bathing. The cave was already damp and chilly; the water here had a strong cold energy. Suming didn''t have the savage''s indestructible physique¡ªif he wasn''t careful and caught some illness, it could be serious. An ordinary person soaking in such cold water could end up with cold qi entering their body, likely leading to infertility.


    The savage didn''t respond to Suming, lying in the pool, amusing himself with the water for a while until he was thoroughly drenched and then, satisfied, he turned and took a big gulp from what seemed like a rge bathtub.''


    Suming swallowed hard: "..."


    Right at that moment, the savage suddenly opened his palm and grabbed toward the bottom of the pool, where the pale rocks were!


    With one grab, the hard rocks crumbled like brittle foam, the savage tearing off arge chunk in his mighty grip and leaving the imprints of his fingers on the rock underneath!


    "What the heck, is this some kind of Mighty Eagle w Skill!"


    Suming''s eyes nearly popped out of his head; that was just too exaggerated!

 Chapter 131 Treasure

    Since "Ì«Ëê" isposed of various types of ''fungi,'' these fungi will disperse into the water, making the water infused with "Ì«Ëê" beneficial to some extent.


    Of course, whether these ''effects'' are beneficial or harmful cannot be generalized.


    So far, a few things can be confirmed. The poachers found this ce using a special water sample; the water quality here is unique, not due to the waterfall outside, but because of the presence of "Ì«Ëê" in the cave. The water in the cave flows through the pool where "Ì«Ëê" resides, gets soaked by "Ì«Ëê" and finally flows out of the cave into therge pool outside.


    Secondly, the effects exhibited by this "Ì«Ëê" are mostly positive. The "wild man" and the "Chinese Giant Smander" must have been consuming the water steeped with "Ì«Ëê" for years, resulting in the smander''s long lifespan and the wild man''s robust physique and astounding recovery abilities.


    This is also the most important point.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The quality and effects of "Ì«Ëê" grown in different environments are vastly different. "Ì«Ëê" grown in ces of pristine mountains and clear waters can be said to absorb the essence of nature, possessing extraordinary qualities. It is said that there are simr entities like "Ì«Ëê" in swamps; by the same logic, those that reside year-round in muddy, polluted waters, or even miasmatic airs, absorb corrupt essences, bing extremely toxic over hundreds or even thousands of years.


    Suming sent a st of spiritual power to the "wild man" then assisted him in climbing out of the small pool and took position on the opposite side to help Suming lift "Ì«Ëê" from beneath the water surface.


    Unexpectedly, "Ì«Ëê" was extremelyrge, and felt all too soft and slippery when touched. Suming attempted to lift it a couple of times only to find it incredibly heavy; the squidgy mass gave no purchase, making his efforts feel like tugging at fatty flesh¡ªlifting only arge chunk at a time, utterly impossible to hoistpletely.


    Continuing in this manner would surely tear "Ì«Ëê" apart.


    "Ì«Ëê" has self-regenerating capabilities, simr to fission. Even if a piece is periodically cut off, it won''t take long for it to grow back fully, and the carved-off section can still survive as a new "Ì«Ëê"¡ªa truly marvelous feature.


    Though "Ì«Ëê" has this marvelous ability, aplete "Ì«Ëê" is certainly valued higher. Moreover, from a subjective human point of view, there is an inexplicable reverence towards giant life forms. A whole enormous "Ì«Ëê" is far more impressive than a pile of fragments, even if they have the same value.


    Suming thought for a moment. The squishy "Ì«Ëê" in front of him reminded him of a scene from the novel he had read, "Ghost Blows Out the Light". Without a second word, he stripped off all his clothing, leaving himself d in just a pair of boxer shorts.


    The temperature in the mountains was already low, and it was even colder in the sunless cave, instantly causing Suming to shiver uncontrobly and his "bird" to retract.


    Seeing Suming strip, the "wild man" scratched his head in confusion, then looked down at himself. His body was nothing but fur; it didn''t seem like he had any clothes to take off.


    "Come help!"


    Suming jumped into the pool, standing on the soft "Ì«Ëê" underneath, and, with much iling, maneuvered his clothes and trousers to wrap around it. The "Ì«Ëê," sprawled on the bottom of the pool and almost as wide as Suming''s height, thankfully was soft and easy to handle; no matter how much it was twisted and squeezed, there was no issue. After much effort, they finally managed topletely cover "Ì«Ëê" with the clothing. The originally sprawling mass of "Ì«Ëê" now looked like a small mound of flesh gathered on top of the clothes.


    "One, two, three¡ªlift!"


    Suming and the "wild man" each grabbed an end of the clothes and pulled hard, slowly lifting "Ì«Ëê" out of the water. Judging by the feeling in his hands, Suming estimated that this "Ì«Ëê" weighed at least a hundred pounds.


    With a ssh, they finally lifted "Ì«Ëê" out of the waterpletely.


    Themotion attracted the attention of Huiya and the others; all the animals had gathered around, except for the Haidong Qing that had gone hunting early in the morning.


    Huiya circled the "big meat pie" incessantly, asionally reaching out its paws to scratch the Chinese Giant Smander a few times, clearly intrigued;


    The big axolotl crawled over to the Chinese Giant Smander with a patter, its two small eyes fixated on the plump and tender creature, looking as if it had long been drooling over it. Seeing this, the savage kicked the big axolotl, sending it tumbling over several times and crashing into arge rock. It got up, still eyeing the Chinese Giant Smander from a distance, clearly with bad intentions.


    p p p, the sounds of wings beating filled the air as the Diamond Parrot sistersnded directly on the Chinese Giant Smander, jumping on it like a trampoline, their bodies bouncing up and down.


    "So dizzy! So dizzy!"


    "So slippery! So slippery!"


    "Get off!" Suming grabbed the two troublemakers by the neck and yanked them off, joking aside, the Chinese Giant Smander''s body was soft and defenseless under the paws of these two, who had not jumped much before their hard ws punctured many little holes into it.


    The white-faced golden monkey seemed to be the most timid,ing overst with its tail tucked, and after arriving, it did not make any other moves like the other animals were, but sat obediently close to Suming''s leg, flicking its tail back and forth.


    "Let me tell you something, listen up, from now on no hurting this Chinese Giant Smander, especially you, Chinese Giant Smander and you two parrots!" Suming pointed at the Chinese Giant Smander as his spiritual power enveloped the animals present.


    The exact uses of this Chinese Giant Smander, how long it had lived, and any other relevant information were still unclear to Suming. However, the value it currently demonstrated was already quite astonishing.


    The hidden boss behind the poachers offered over a million US dors just for thebor costs for this thing, and if it were to be sold on the market, the price would definitely reach a staggering figure;


    Additionally, the water soaked by the Chinese Giant Smander had some very special effects, Suming was now in the aquaculture business, so it might be helpful, and it seemed both the savage and the big axolotl needed this kind of special water;


    Besides, such arge Chinese Giant Smander, even if its medicinal value were zero, would still be an extremely rare collectible as an item itself.


    Therefore, to describe this Chinese Giant Smander as a priceless treasure might seem an exaggeration, but for Suming, this creature truly deserved the description "of immeasurable value." He had to protect it at all costs¡ªif these animals, in their rough y, identally harmed it, he would be devastated.


    Spiritual power, like radar, spread out in all directions, greeting each animal in the vicinity;


    And a portion of that spiritual power coincidentally passed over the Chinese Giant Smander.


    Unexpectedly, the Chinese Giant Smander responded!


    "Huh?!" Suming''s eyes suddenly widened as he stared intently at the Chinese Giant Smander on the ground.


    This thing wasn''t an animal, so how could it react to spiritual power like one¡ªcould it be alive?!


    Fearing he was mistaken, Suming quickly concentrated and sent another wave of spiritual power toward the Chinese Giant Smander.


    Just like before, as soon as the spiritual power touched the Chinese Giant Smander, it immediately responded!

 Chapter 134: Chapter 134 Two Big Pieces of News

    Early the next morning, Suming rushed to Mr. Song''s office and had a lengthy, hushed discussion with him. Then he went to cancel his leave with Mrs. Tong, enduring a lecture due to his sudden disappearance.


    Chapter Stay:n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    In the afternoon, the zoo was buzzing with two pieces of news!


    Firstly, the Monkey Mountain administrator noticed an oddity during feeding time: a small monkey with a pale face and light golden fur had appeared on the mountain.


    Being in charge of Monkey Mountain, he was quite familiar with monkeys and immediately recognized that this little neer was a Qinling Golden Monkey, a national first-ss protected animal!


    Originally, the macaques living on Monkey Mountain were also nationally protected animals. However,pared to the Qinling Golden Monkey, they paled in significance. As a national first-ss protected species, there are fewer than 3000 Qinling Golden Monkeys left. They are listed on the World Conservation Union''s endangered species red list and undoubtedly count as a national treasure!


    Speaking of national treasures, Huaxia had many, but in terms of cherished status, Qinling Golden Monkeys were even less regarded than giant pandas. However, the panda is indigenous to Shu, and as valuable as it is, it bears no rtion to Yangchuan City or the province. Meanwhile, the Qinling Golden Monkey is a representative and treasured species local to Yangchuan City, whose value cannot be overstated.


    In fact, the mascot of Yangchuan City was the Qinling Golden Monkey, but the zoo had not seen a true "Qinling Golden Monkey" for many years.


    Not only did theyck Qinling Golden Monkeys, Yangchuan City Zoo hadn''t even acquired any other variety of golden monkeys for many years. For arge national zoo, this was quite unreasonable; as rare as they are, the species is numerous, and obtaining a few should not be difficult.


    The reason for this was quite clear upon reflection. If Yangchuan City''s symbol was the Qinling Golden Monkey, but other types of golden monkeys were being kept in the zoo, it would seem like the city was contradicting itself. This would suggest that Yangchuan''s animal protection efforts were poor, failing to preserve their own unique species, resorting to disying ''counterfeit'' substitutes instead.


    "Out of sight, out of mind," became the approach of Yangchuan''s rted leaders, who outright banned the zoo from introducing any variety of golden monkeys.


    The administrator rubbed his eyes, confirming the identity of the little creature not far away as a Qinling Golden Monkey. He was initially bewildered, then overjoyed, followed by a sudden drop in his heart.


    The macaques are not the docile type. Despite all being monkeys, the macaques would not show a golden monkey any kindness, quite the opposite: they''re known to be unfriendly towards intruders in their territory!


    Seeing therge group of macaques surrounding the golden monkey, the administrator''s legs went weak, nearly breaking into tears!


    If a Qinling Golden Monkey was attacked or even killed by the other macaques in front of him, his days as an administrator would be over!


    "Oh my goodness!!" The administrator, quick-witted in a crisis, swiftly took out his phone to call Suming. In this situation, apart from him, it was unlikely anyone else could help.


    However, the administrator''s fingers paused on the dial button. He had been in Monkey Mountain for several minutes already and now, looking closely, he observed that the macaques, far from intending to attack the golden monkey, were merely chattering anxiously around it, driven by curiosity and even disying some ''friendly'' gestures.


    The old Monkey King sat atop a nearby hill, showing no displeasure at the intruder, merely squinting and basking in the sun.


    The old Monkey King''s beloved son, Xiao Kong, was in the center of the troop, squatting behind the golden monkey, picking lice off of it; and the grimy little female monkey that Suming had somehow acquiredst time¡ªnow the ''crown princess''¡ªwas offering the small golden monkey some fruit, presenting a scene of brotherly respect and harmonious affection.


    "Huh?!"


    The administrator felt that his attempts had once again been turned on their head, and he stood there dazed for a good while before remembering that he needed to report the situation immediately. So, he dialed the office of the director and stammered out, "Director¡­ there''s something that''s appeared out of nowhere at Monkey Mountain¡­"


    "Oh, a golden monkey, right? Suming already told me about it, he found it ying in the back mountain, it was injured, so he brought it back to the zoo to be cared for."


    "Ah? Oh¡­" the administrator said nkly.


    "Well then, just take good care of the golden monkey. I''m writing a report about the discovery of the golden monkey to submit to the authorities. If there''s nothing else, I''m hanging up."


    ¡­


    An additional golden monkey in Monkey Mountain didn''t cause much of a stir among the majority of visitors and staff, as most couldn''t tell the difference from a distance and it didn''t create too much of a sensation.


    However, not far from Shuijun Lake, near the construction site of the aquarium that was under construction, quite amotion had erupted: people crowded around threeyers deep, including zoo staff, visitors, and construction workers.


    After it was decided to keep the finless porpoise in Yangchuan City, the provincial capital could only reluctantly ept it, but the porpoise couldn''t be kept in Shuijun Lake indefinitely. That ce was open to the public, with peopleing and going and boats moving back and forth on theke, which was not conducive to the protection of the porpoise.


    So, Yangchuan City and the provincial government invested some money to build an aquarium at the zoo. A while ago, Wang Jian She had arranged the financing and the construction of the aquarium had officiallymenced.


    Mr. Dong of the Security Department wore multiple hats, acting as construction supervisor on behalf of the zoo, and he, along with several security guards, conducted daily inspections at the site.


    A little after three in the afternoon, Suming arrived at the construction site apanied by a burly stranger, who was pushing a cart. Suming called out from a distance, "Dong, Dong, when building the aquarium, add an annex for raising baby fish!"


    "What baby fish? Where did you get baby fish?"


    Dong was taken aback and hadn''t grasped Suming''s meaning, when he saw the burly man tip the cart over, revealing a big ck, long, and thick creature that started to wriggle out of the cart.


    "Holy mother, what is that thing!" Dong was startled by therge creature in the cart, but upon closer inspection, he realized it actually was a baby fish!


    Baby fish weren''t particrly rare; they could be bred on arge scale artificially, and a pound could be bought for two to three hundred yuan on the market. However, seeing a baby fish over two meters long with your own eyes was a totally different experience!


    It was like crocodiles, whether wild or domestically raised, their numbers far exceeded those of baby fish. But if one day, a gigantic crocodile over ten meters long suddenly appeared before you, the shock would not be easy for the average person to ept.


    "Back up! Back up! Everyone, be careful!"


    Dong shouted into the megaphone and then cautiously approached the baby fish, pointed an electric prod at it, and asked Suming, "Is this really a baby fish? How did it get so big, and where did you get it from?"

 Chapter 136: Chapter 136 Distant Cousin

    Suming''s excursion into the mountains had reaped considerable rewards, yet the greatest feat, or rather merit, actuallyy in wiping out an entire squad of armed poachers.


    However, exining this merit was too troublesome, and revealing it would likely invite a string of trouble for himself, so Suming had no intention of telling anyone.


    He called Wang Jian She to seek his help in solving the "identity" problem of the Wildman; the guy couldn''t always be without an ID.


    He gave Wang Jian She a rough overview of the situation, sticking to the story he''d crafted long ago, "Right, he''s a rtive from my hometown, sort of a distant cousin of mine. Back when they were enforcing the birth control policy, he was the second child and never got his household registration, remaining undocumented. He had a fever when he was little that damaged his brain, so he''s not very articte, and he''s a bit slow. Now he''se to the city to join me, and I''m thinking it might be possible to get him registered."


    "It used to be difficult to do, but now that they''ve rxed the one-child policy, it''s much easier. Do this, send me his photo and name, and other such information, and I''ll have someone take care of it for you," Wang Jian She agreed quite readily.


    Name? Suming thought for a moment. Since this guy was so fierce and supposedly my cousin, let''s just call him Su Meng.


    Wang Jian She also made some small talk with Suming on the phone, though it wasn''t just idle chatter as it carried some significant information. He told Suming that if he got selected as abor model, that would be great, but if not, there was no reason to be disappointed. After all, Yangchuan City hadn''t seen someone as young as Suming be abor model in the past ten-plus years. Given the rapid rise Suming was on, even if he didn''t get selected this time, he''d definitely make it in the future.


    While bing abor model certainly had its perks, Wang Jian She all but guaranteed Suming a spot, meaning that even if he didn''t make it this time, he would next time. Naturally, Suming had no reason to say much more on the matter.


    Wang Jian She also advised Suming to speak with Wang Hao, asking him to drink less often. He''d heard that Wang Hao''s health hadn''t been great recently, with blood pressure and lipids rmingly high during several hospital exams.


    "Mr. Wang, you know how his work is, with all theworking. How about this? Once my business gets a bit bigger, I''ll just let Wang Haoe work with me," Suming said, shaking his head. When hest asked for Wang Hao''s help in finding someone to make a fish saddle, Wang Hao had mentioned a project involving attracting investment that kept him busy wining and dining all sorts of people every day. It seemed morous on the surface, but such entertaining was in fact quite taxing.


    Suming hadn''t expected Wang Hao to stick with the project with such diligence. After all, he had his father''s protection and a share of the tour boat business profits. Even if Wang Hao aplished nothing, he could livefortably.


    The callsted only a few minutes, and by the time Suming hung up, a whole pot of fish had disappeared. Comrade Su Meng, the Wildman, didn''t look full at all, still cradling the big pot in his arms and licking the bottom with a scraping sound.


    "Is my cooking really that good?" Suming''s mouth twitched twice, thinking, I don''t have the energy to cook another pot, let''s just order takeaway.


    He ordered several hundred bucks worth of takeaway, considering it was Su Meng''s first time eating prepared food, Suming didn''t dare to order too much greasy, fatty stuff, getting a portion of various dishes, along with a ten-yuan serving of steamed buns.


    A dozen or so dishes¡ªfried, saut¨¦ed, deep-fried, boiled¡ªfilled therge round table to the brim, an inviting array of colors and tempting aromas.


    Without hesitation, Su Meng reached out with his big hand to grab a te of stir-fried kidney, but a pair of chopsticks appeared out of nowhere and smacked his hand.


    Su Meng recoiled, looking at Suming in confusion.


    "From now on, you eat with chopsticks!" said Suming as he demonstrated chopsticks in his hand, then deliberately slowed his movements, cing them on the table, picking them up again slowly, holding food, and repeated the use of chopsticks.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "You try it!"


    Suming ced the chopsticks in front of Su Meng, who scratched his head, looking at the chopsticks, and then, mimicking Suming, awkwardly grasped them with his fingers.


    "Good, now try picking up some food!" Suming encouraged.


    Suddenly, Su Meng lifted the chopsticks high and stabbed them down hard!


    "You don''t use a fork¡­" Suming covered his face, only to find that Su Meng hadn''t attempted to ''stab'' the vegetables but had speared arge white steamed bun onto his chopsticks, taking a huge bite that halved it instantly.


    Sumingughed, pushing the te of oil-braised kidney flowers with sauce towards him, saying, "Dip it, dip it!"


    "Ho! Hoho!" Su Meng''s throat emitted muffled sounds. Using the steamed bun, he dipped it into the sauce and ingeniously wrapped some kidney flowers inside, making a Chinese ''burger.''


    Suming chuckled, surprised that Su Meng was quite clever, and thus went on to teach him the use of chopsticks and spoon several more times.


    During the lesson, Su Meng quickly mastered the use of the utensils, and the entire spread of dishes was thoroughly polished off.


    Thankfully, Suming had the foresight to buy ten fist-sized white steamed buns at one yuan each, which finally satiated the big oaf.


    "Ugh¡­"


    Lying on two reclining chairs on thekeside tform of Shuixie Lake, Suming and Su Meng basked in the sun while digesting. Su Meng, patting his belly, atst ceased his ho-ho-ing and gave a sonorous burp of satisfaction.


    Suming turned to look at Su Meng, thinking if he was to integrate into human society, this constant ''uh-uh-uh'' and ''ho-ho-ho'' wouldn''t do; he''d have to slowly teach him how to speak.


    "Come on, repeat after me, ''Abra-cadabra''¡­"


    "Hoho¡­ Uh-uh¡­"


    "Abra-cadabra!"


    "Uh-uh¡­ Hoho¡­"


    Seeing no other choice, Suming had to temporarily abandon the idea of getting Su Meng to speak. Perhaps after living in human society for a while and bing familiar with people''s speech patterns, it wouldn''t be toote to teach him then.


    The water quality of Shuixie Lake was still inferiorpared to Shuijun Lake. That old sturgeon seemed to have the ability to evolve the water''s quality; however, having been released into the smallke for less than a day, there hadn''t been much of an effect. The clean-water-loving big baby fish stayed in theke for just a short while before crawling onto the shore, finding a cool spot to lie down motionlessly. From a distance, it looked just like arge piece of tree root.


    Today was Hei''s day off. These cat aliens had learned to eat the public grain. After ''clocking out'' from the cruise boat area, they would casually catch a few fish from Shuijun Lake to eat. Hei dragged a palm-sized crucian carp next to the big baby fish, chewing energetically, asionally ncing at the baby fish, seemingly contemting where to take the first bite.


    "Hey, Mr. Zhao, got a question for you."


    Suming, lounging on the recliner with his legs crossed, dialed Zhao Yun''s number.


    On the other end, Zhao Yunughed with interest after understanding Suming''s intention, asking, "Guinness? What have you found this time, applying for a Guinness World Record?"


    "Baby fish!"


    Suming had checked online. Thergest recorded baby fish was 120 years old, 180 centimeters long, and weighed over 60 kilograms. He had measured his own; he didn''t know its exact age, but it was 244 centimeters long and weighed 73 kilograms.


    Unless something unexpected urred, this baby fish was about to set a new record, bing thergest baby fish in history, and earn a spot in the Guinness Book!

 Chapter 137 Guinness

    Speaking of the Guinness World Records, the timeline could trace back over half a century ago to a huntingpetition in Wexford County, Ennd.


    Hunting, as a sport, has been regarded by the British elite as a traditional ''aristocratic'' activity since the Middle Ages. Every aspect of the hunt was highly borate, from the choice of horses and breeds of hunting dogs to the selection of shotguns and shooting skills, even including the minute details in attire. Each detail was a reflection of a traditional noble''s style. To sessfully hold a hunt or to stand out in the event was a matter of great pride for the traditional nobility.


    From the early 19th century, with the robust growth of capitalism, traditional nobles gradually lost their dominance. However, those with proud pedigrees and old-fashioned nobility still looked down upon the newly risen upstarts, who were wealthy butcked cultural depth. Thus, at hunts and social gatherings, there was often a rivalry between the old and the new.


    Lord Hugh Beaver, the managing director of the Guinness Beer Company, was a typical example of a ''nouveau riche'' in the eyes of the old aristocracy.


    At that moment, Lord Beaver''s shotgun was aimed at a golden plover over forty yards away, hidden among the reeds. Seven or eight Labradorsy quietly by his side, waiting for their master to shoot the target. Once he did, these obedient little hounds would swarm forth to catch the pitiful golden plover.


    "Bang..."


    With the sound of the gunshot followed by a puff of smoke, the distant golden plover, in a sh, had spread its wings, flying away like an arrow.


    Lord Beaver fired a miss, his face turning slightly red, and he muttered, "Good heavens! Golden plovers must be the fastest-flying birds in the world¡ªI bet no hunter can hit one at forty yards!"


    "Ha-ha, my dear Sir, the golden plover is certainly not the fastest-flying bird!"


    The speaker was an earl with white hair, not far away, whose family had a long history dating back to the reign of King George, a typical old-fashioned noble. He pointed to a grouse he''d just caught and called out loudly to Lord Beaver, "The grouse is the fastest-flying bird in the world! Perhaps you''ve been too busy making money to bother learning the basics of biology!"


    Lord Beaver''s face turned a bit awkward; his previous statement had been offhand. To tell the truth, he indeed did not know what the fastest-flying bird in the world really was.


    However, in such an asion, Lord Beaver was not willing to be derided by this earl, a relic of the past, and said somewhat displeased, "Earl Warren, you im that the grouse is the fastest-flying bird in the world. Do you have any evidence to support this im?"


    "Ha-ha, there''s no need for proof; our ancestors already affirmed this in thousands of years of hunting activities. Every old-fashioned noble who frequently participates in hunts knows this well,"ughed Earl Warren heartily.


    Thus, in this huntingpetition, Earl Warren won what was referred to as dignity, while the shrewd Lord Beaver, following the contest, spotted a business opportunity amidst the mockery!


    If there were a book in the world that could answer the question of ''what truly is the number one in the world,'' it would surely be a hit!


    Therefore, the ''Guinness World Records'' magazine, named after the Guinness Beer Company, was founded and, within a mere six months, became one of the most popr magazines in Europe.


    After several decades of development, the Guinness World Records has influenced the entire world, and ''Guinness'' has evolved from a small magazine to a vast international institution.


    In a sense, the Guinness Records institution is itself a ''world''s first.''


    In the 1990s, the Guinness World Records prated Huaxia¡ªand where everyone loves spectacle andparison¡ªand Guinness has since attracted considerable attention.


    A super-sized dollfish could surely attract a lot of tourists, but if this dollfish also had the halo of ''world''srgest'' above its head, the economic benefits and political influence it could bring would be absolutely worlds apart.


    Suming currently had the ability to apply for the Guinness World Record, not only for that dollfish but also for the Tai Sui.


    ording to current records, the Tai Sui in his hands was about two to three timesrger than the existingrgest one!


    However, Suming had no ns to expose Tai Sui prematurely, and for a long time toe, he wouldn''t let anyone know that he held such a Tai Sui.


    First, it was for the sake of his own safety.


    The financial backers behind He and his group of poachers had spent so much money, and what they likely wanted was this very Tai Sui. Once it was exposed, it would inevitably attract trouble.


    Suming did not believe he currently had the strength to go head-to-head with a financial backer who could casuallye up with a million US dors in service fees to organize an armed theft squad;


    Second, he considered it from an economic standpoint.


    Tai Sui had much more research value than giant pandas or dollfish, and once it was revealed, it could even lead to government intervention and possibly direct expropriation.


    Although some Tai Sui were preserved by private individuals and could be sold and even profit handsomely, that was because those Tai Sui were generally about a hundred years old and not very valuable, so the government didn''t bother to intervene. However, the world''srgest Tai Sui was preserved in a national exhibition hall, so Suming had to take precautions in case someone came over and said, "Hand it over to the nation..."


    There were no such concerns with the dollfish, though. While the nation did ban capturing, selling, and consuming wild dollfish, private breeding wasn''t prohibited. Artificially bred second-generation or higher dollfish could be sold and consumed.


    The world''srgest dollfish was currently in the hands of a private domesticpany, serving as breeding stock, and had reproduced many offspring over the years, earning thepany a lot of money.


    If there were no idents, this dollfish should be simr to the antiques of Zhao Yun, with ownership belonging to Suming, yet it had to be well protected, and it could not be sold or ughtered, among other restrictions.


    Thus, he mentioned the dollfish to Zhao Yun, who was quite interested and said, "Applying for Guinness is very simple now, you just fill out the form and pay the fee on their Chinese webpage. Hey, let me ask you, is this fish owned by your zoo, or is it personally yours?"


    "It''s personally mine," Suming said.


    "That''s good. If there''s a chance, you should get a female to try for egg production. The economic value of dollfish is quite decent. I''ll help you make some contacts, and you should be able to sell it for a good price," Zhao Yun said with a smile.


    About the breeding of dollfish, Suming had indeed done some research online. In previous years, a pound of dollfish could sell for two to three thousand in restaurants, and even direct sales from breeders were over a thousand. However, in recent years, the state has tightened regtions, and many luxury consumptions have disappeared from the public eye, causing the price of dollfish to plummet to two or three hundred. Even so, this was still far more valuable than the four major domestic fish.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I''ll give it a try if there''s a chance," Suming also smiled. He was not in a rush to do breeding now; the old giant dollfish had been a bachelor for nearly a couple of hundred years, so there was no urgency to find a mate immediately. First, he should proceed with the Guinness application.

 Chapter 139: Chapter 139 Promotional Campaign

    Huaxia has to this point achieved 129 Guinness World Records. Each time a new record is established, media from all walks generates a buzz around it, especially in recent years with the development of the inte: as soon as a record is created, it immediately spreads across the nation, and hundreds of millions of people quickly be informed.


    However, it seems there has never been a case where a potential Guinness Record became a heated topic before it was even set.


    Therge "big baby" fish at Yangchuan City Zoo appears to have broken this rule, at least within the scope of Yangchuan City.


    The day after Suming and Murong Yan''s conversation, posts about therge "big baby" fish gradually began to appear on the Yangchuan forum.


    The initial posts were somemonly seen travelogues.


    Nowadays on the Yangchuan forum, about seventy to eighty percent of the local travelogues center around the zoo, featuring fortune-bringing cats, crocodiles as big as mountains, finless porpoise babies, and superrge fish, nearly filling up the entire section.


    The previously rather quiet ''Yangchuan Tourism'' subsection, therefore, became lively due to this.


    If it were any other organization, forum members would have grown impatient with travelogues about it dominating the discussion all day, certainly considering it spam by paid posters formercial promotion. But the zoo was different, with one fresh event after another, all rarities not seen for decades, and some, like riding a fish, werepletely unprecedented.


    The key was the proximity to the localmunity. If anyone didn''t believe it, they just needed to spend two yuan on a bus ride to the zoo to experience it firsthand and then they would know the truth of the matter.


    The first batch of travelogues came with photos of therge "big baby" fish. One daring individual managed to somehow slip past the security cordon,y a meter away from the "big baby" fish, and even shed a V-sign with his fingers for a photo op.


    In the photo, the fish was even longer than the person taking the photo! "Big baby" fish aremon, but ones thisrge were practically mythical creatures; most people would never hear of such a thing in their lifetimes!


    Latter on, someone uploaded a short video in which therge "big baby" fish cast aside its usual ''mild and adorable'' image known to the public, showing a ferocious side as it snapped a thick branch with a crunch of its toothy maw!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    In this day and age, what the general public craves is novelty and excitement! If a crocodile were the one to snap a branch, it wouldn''t be anything noteworthy, but a "big baby" fish the size of a crocodile doing so was aplete overturn of everyone''s cognition!


    A wolf killing a sheep is not unusual, but if a sheep were to crisply snap another sheep''s neck in one bite, that would definitely be explosive news!


    This little clip was quickly shared like wildfire. Not to mention WeChat Moments, several major domestic websites also reposted it. Within just two or three days, it amassed impressive click rates.


    At that time, Yangchuan City TV Station very opportunisticallyunched a special program titled "This Zoo is Extraordinary."


    The feature journalist for this program was assigned to Yangchuan Television Station''s rising star, Nangong Yan. An assistant zoo director responsible for the animals, Comrade Su Ming, apanied the crew throughout the entire zoo, covering the recent happenings in the zoo for an overall report.


    Not only did they cover the fortune-bringing cat and fish-riding, but there were also too many other zoo happenings worth reporting on. Even some events that Su Ming considered ''second-tier'' attracted more audience attention than the majority of other news!


    "The zoo has always cared about the reintroduction of captive animals into the wild. This little wolf, named Huiya, has already lived sessfully in the mountains behind for a while and is beginning to adapt to life in the wilderness..."


    "Yes, as the viewers can see, the most distinctive monkey at Monkey Mountain, the very symbol of Yangchuan City that hasn''t been spotted for many years, is none other than the Qinling Golden Monkey. And why can the Golden Monkey live together with macaques? Do we even need to ask? Animals too need to establish a harmonious society. Different species of monkeys living together in love and harmony, sharing fruits, sharing wives...uh...director, please delete this part in post-production..."


    "Let me rify that the phrase ''look at your sis'' wasn''t said by me, but by these two Diamond Parrots! Here, I''d like to appeal to our visitors to be civilized when touring the park, especially in front of the parrots. Don''t use curse words, teach them civilizednguage like ''hello, handsome''...Damn, if you two dare to cuss at me again, I''ll pluck all your feathers! Uh...director, please delete this too..."


    "Under the concern of provincial and city leaders and the strong support of the Provincial Agricultural Science Academy, the zoo is about to establish a small aquarium for the finless porpoises to live in. It will also be open to our visitor friends... Oh right, the giant doll fish that''s been dubbed ''the ruffian'' online will be neighbors with the finless porpoise family!"


    Nangong Yan asked in a timely manner, "I heard that you discovered ''the ruffian'' in the mountains and are preparing to apply for a Guinness World Record for it, is that so?"


    Suming nodded, "That''s right! I have some good news for everyone. My application has been epted, and this Saturday morning, Guinness will send a special Certification Officer to the zoo for an on-site certification. On that day, the zoo will be open to the public for free. We wee all citizens and media friends toe and witness the birth of a new world record!"


    Three dayster!


    In thergest grass section of the zoo, a temporary stage had been set up, with a vibrant banner fluttering in the wind bearing the words ''World''s Largest Wild Doll Fish''.


    In the center of the stage, there was a several-meters-long transparent aquarium, and the giant doll fishy on the pebbles at the bottom of the tank.


    Under Suming''s deliberate direction, the giant doll fish shook its head and wobbled at the surrounding tourists, asionally opening its big mouth to show off its sharp teeth, disying a fierce and diabolical appearance, which scared some timid girls into low-pitched screams.


    The best spots in front of the stage had been taken by the media that rushed to the scene, with over a dozen media outlets forming a semicircle below the stage.


    However, the snapping sounds from the professional media werepletely drowned out by the noisy crowd on thewn behind them. Behind the media team, there was a sea of tourists that looked like an ocean of people.


    Today was the weekend, most residents were already off work, the zoo was free to enter, plus the chance to witness the creation of a world record. Such opportunities didn''te every day!


    "Ladies and gentlemen, please be quiet!"


    From the loudspeakers on the stage, a somewhat weird and shrill voice rang out!


    Far from quieting down, the crowd underneath erupted into a good-natured burst ofughter, and Wang Jian She and Mr. Song, sitting at the back row of ''leaders'' seats on the stage, couldn''t help butugh as well.


    Suming stood behind the speaker, but the one speaking wasn''t him.


    On his left and right, there were two round stools with a Diamond Parrot standing on each, half a meter tall. The phrase from before was spoken by the parrot sister on the left.


    After the parrot sister finished speaking, she tucked her head in and gave way. The parrot sister on the right quickly leaned over to the speaker and, with an odd intonation, said, "Now, please wee, the Guinness Certification Officer, Mr. Zhao, to the stage!"

 Chapter 140: Chapter 140 Grand Ceremony

    As Sister Parrot finished her sentence, a melodious sound of Scottish bagpipes arose from outside thewn, and the crowd below automatically dispersed to both sides, clearing a path.


    Zhao Yun, dressed in a formal western suit, walked towards the stage with a smile, greeting and gesturing to the surrounding people as he advanced.


    A row of bagpipers, dressed in traditional Scottish kilts and wearing little hats adorned with feathers, followed behind Zhao Yun, ying a traditional Scottish tune.


    It was only a few days ago that Su Ming learned that a certification officer named ''Zhao Yun'' was in charge of certifying the record.


    At first, he thought it was a coincidence of namesakes, but after receiving confirmation from Zhao Yun himself, did he realize it was indeed the museum curator, a dapper middle-aged man. This Guinness Certification Officer was just one of Zhao Yun''s many leisurely positions.


    Su Ming couldn''t help but feel a little sentimental; this dapper middle-aged man really had a finger in every pie!


    Zhao Yun ascended the stage and shook hands with Su Ming, then in front of the entire audience, loudly recited the oath of the Guinness Certification Officer and rified the certification rules.


    Afterpleting all this, Zhao Yun took off his suit and put on a set of rubber protective gear. Apanied by Su Ming, he entered one end of therge aquarium to measure the Chinese Giant Smander''s length. Then, several security guards came up, lifted the creature, and ced it on arge electronic scale to weigh it.


    Though most people already knew the oue, the moment Zhao Yun, holding the certification results, stood back in front of the loudspeaker, the entire ce quieted down, looking at Zhao Yun with great anticipation!


    "Ladies and gentlemen, after full supervision and certification by this officer, this rare wild Chinese Giant Smander measures 247 centimeters in length and weighs 73.16 kilograms, breaking the 12-year record and bing thergest Chinese Giant Smander in the world!"


    Zhao Yun''s voice, amplified by fourrge loudspeakers ced around, rang above thewn. He handed the certification certificate to Su Ming, smiling, "Congrattions, Mr. Su, and congrattions to all friends present. Together we have witnessed the birth of Huaxia''s one hundred and thirtieth Guinness World Record!"


    "Bang! Bang! Bang!..."


    Outside thewn, a row of cannons fired eight times consecutively, countless ribbons and golden foil papers flew towards the sky, whirling around like a grand daytime fireworks festival!


    At this moment, the shbulbs below nearly outshone the sun, with the sounds of cameras clicking and cheers merging into one.


    I don''t know who was the first to raise both hands and start shouting aloud, "Bandit! Number one in the world!"


    Immediately thereafter, many more people raised their hands, like a human wave, voicesbining into four words.


    "Number one in the world!"


    "Number one in the world!"


    ...


    A regr Guinness certification, when held elsewhere, would at most attract a few local media reports. Yet, the certification of the bandit Chinese Giant Smander was turned into a nationwide celebration by Su Ming!


    The certification ceremony was just a beginning. After the awarding, they brought in a dozen barbecue stands and a long line of trays filled with drinks and pastries, arranged in a circle around thewn.


    Several clowns, seemingly from nowhere, holding a long string of balloons, entered among theughing children.


    The vendors who usually sold their goods near the zoo were also given special permission to enter today, with their fluffy white cotton candy, bright red tanghulu with a sour tang, refreshing big bowls of tea, and colorful soap bubbles floating in the air¡­ Not far away, an asional loud pop of popcorn being made took everyone back to their childhood.


    At the same time as the pic, some of the more docile animals from the zoo, led by their caretakers, came to the center of thewn for a close and intimate encounter with the adults and children present.


    And the star of the day was the "bandit" big baby fish who had truly been outfitted like a bandit!


    There had been a surplus of materials from the previous outfitting of a fewrge fish, which Suming repurposed to custom-make a set of "battle armor" for it.


    It had short jeans on its four legs, wooden revolvers tucked at both sides of its waist, a bandana wrapped around its head leaving only two shiny ck eyes exposed, swaggering through the crowd shaking its head and wagging its tail, looking every bit the ouw from the American Wild West!


    This grand event began at nine thirty in the morning andsted until the zoo was about to close in the afternoon. Just before leaving, everyone was given a free newly printed promotional booklet for the zoo, and many people still wanted more.


    It''s okay if you''re left wanting more because tonight, Yangchuan City TV Station will rebroadcast the celebration. With the TV station''s reputation, a program that draws this much attention will surely be reyed over and over. If you haven''t had enough, just watch it at home on TV.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Everyone was very satisfied with the results of the certification; the government even made a special call to praise them. The only person with mixed feelings was Mr. Song.


    It was he who had told Suming to make a big show of it to increase the zoo''s poprity and argue for better policies at the restructuring meeting.


    Little did he know that Suming''s nning would take the event fromrge to astonishingly grand. To the uninformed, it would appear as if Yangchuan City was hosting a major celebration. Huaxia had many Guinness records, adding a total of 130 this time, yet none had ever been made with such an extraordinary disy of effort.


    As a result, the goal was far surpassed, and the sess of the event was undeniable. With the TV station broadcasting it several times, Yangchuan Zoo made a nationwide name for itself.


    But a great deal of money had also been spent. The funds that had just been approved for the protection of the golden monkeys were almost half-gone before they even warmed the zoo''s bank ount.


    "You kid, you make money fast, but you spend it even faster!" Mr. Song said somewhat helplessly.


    Suming, however, appeared unconcerned, smiling and saying, "As long as the money spent is worth it, then it''s not wasted!"


    Suming''s words were soon proven true.


    In the following weeks, the zoo''s visitor traffic skyrocketed, more than doubled the usual, even surpassing the crowds seen during major national holidays. The additional ticket revenue alone had not only recouped the costs of organizing the festival but also turned a profit.


    Previously, Yangchuan Zoo didn''t weigh much in the hearts of Yangchuan City residents, regarded merely as amon leisure destination, and being quite far from the city center, it was considered a ce "you''d think of only if there was nowhere else to go," perhaps visited once a year.


    However, after Suming''s initiatives, the zoo rapidly became a "highly distinctive and interesting" location, not just for local citizens of Yangchuan City who would visit whenever they had time but also for visitors and business travelers to Yangchuan, who made the zoo a must-see attraction.


    Substantial earnings also came from group tickets sold to schools andpanies for social outings.


    Not only did the zoo earn money, but so did Suming. With the simple logic of rising visitor numbers, all his business ventures flourished, leading him to consider adding more tour boats and raising the prices for fish rides.


    Financial gain was one aspect, but there was also political sess.


    That morning, the district notified that Su Ming, due to his outstanding performance and significant contributions to the construction of the zoo and Yangchuan City, had been recognized as the year''s District Model Worker!

 Chapter 141 Each Harboring Their Own Schemes

    Speaking of which, the title of "Model Worker" in Yangchuan City''s Shuanghu District might not seem very significant, but after all, Yangchuan City is among the top thirty in the nation, a medium-torge city capable ofpeting with provincial capitals. Shuanghu District is a rtively prosperous area within the city, and in terms of strength, it''s not inferior to some prefecture-level cities, so the distinction of being a Model Worker of Shuanghu District carries considerable weight.


    The Model Worker award ceremony took ce in the district government auditorium, presided over by District Committee Secretary Sun. After a somewhat dull and lengthy routine speech, District Organization Department Minister He presented awards to the ten Model Workers.


    Including Suming, ten Model Workers from various units, dressed in suits and adorned with sashes, filed onto the stage and stood in a row.


    To say they "stood" might not be entirely urate, as among the ten people, only nine were standing. The remaining one was sitting in a wheelchair, pushed onto the stage by a ceremonial usher.


    That person was naturally Zhou Jin. Seeing Zhou Jin''s chest and abdomen bound with splints and bandages like a rice dumpling, Suming couldn''t help but want tough, thinking to himself that this guy was really fighting hard.


    Injured so severely, yet he didn''t forget to worm his way into the circle of fame and gain, with five or six ribs broken, he didn''t properly recover in the hospital. How long had it been? He rashly checked out to receive the award. Any slight bump on the road could cause secondary injuries, potentiallynding him back in bed for several months.


    As the saying goes, with broadened horizons, one''s heart grows wider. Compared to the fully armed poachers with foreign financial backers that Suming had dealt with in the back mountains, Zhou Jin now seemed to Suming like just a local ruffian leader, with a bunch of hooligans at hismand, no longer posing any substantial pressure.


    Zhou Jin saw Suming as well but his expression wasn''t as rxed as Suming''s. He could never have imagined that Suming would be a Model Worker, too.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    To be aware, Huating Fisheries Company is an established powerhousepany in Yangchuan''s fishery industry, dominating the freshwater fish market in Yangchuan City for many years, adding millions in taxation annually. Almost half the freshwater fish on the tables of Yangchuan''s residentses from Huating Reservoir. Zhou Jin himself had lobbied up and down over the years, establishing powerful connections in the government. Even so, it had taken considerable effort to be named a Model Worker.


    Zhou Jin was very clear in his mind that if it weren''t for this incident with the finless porpoises and the serious injuries he sustained, he might not have been considered for the Model Worker title this time!


    Howe this guy, who had been on the scene for only a short time, could so easily be a Model Worker?


    Seeing the calm and collected expression on Suming''s face made Zhou Jin so frustrated that he couldn''t contain his anger. Although there was no evidence so far, he always had the feeling that Suming''s rise to prominence was built at least in part on his shoulders, or perhaps even more... Yes, it''s like he''s standing on my head and taking a piss... The more Zhou Jin thought about it, the less pleasant he felt.


    That''s why one should never get stuck in a rut; being narrow-minded is like practicing the technique of ''Seven Injuries Fist,'' first injuring oneself before hurting others. If one''s skill isn''t proficient, one might end up hurting oneself severely before even touching another. As Zhou Jin pondered this, he felt a heavy pressure in his chest, as if a stone were lying on him. He hurriedly took out some strong medication and swallowed it, thus avoiding another public incident of vomiting blood.


    Since they were under the public eye on stage receiving awards, although both had their own thoughts, there was no chance for conversation. Their eyes briefly met, and each had their own contemtions and emotions.


    Behind District Organization Department Minister He, two ceremonial ushers followed onto the stage, awarding the Model Workers one by one.


    "Comrade Zhou Jin, outstanding private entrepreneur, founder of Huating Fisheries Company, skilled in aquaculture, a major taxpayer, enriching the food baskets of the citizens..."


    "Comrade Li Dazhuang, an eighth-grade machinist, dedicated for decades at the grassroots level, diligently contributing withoutint..."


    "Comrade Suming, an outstanding core staff member of the zoo, an exceptional animal conservation worker, a Guinness World Records creator..."


    As Mr. He handed out awards, the big screen in the auditorium disyed an introduction of the corresponding Model Worker.


    When Suming was introduced as a ''Guinness World Record Creator,'' the severalrge characters caught the attention of quite a few people in the audience.


    There are district model workers every year, which honestly, is just a regional award. The Guinness World Records, on the other hand, are unique and global. The two are iparable.


    After Mr. Sun finished the opening speech, he took a seat in the middle of the first row of the audience and turned to Mr. Yang, who was sitting beside him, whispering with a smile, "No wonder both the zoo and Mr. Wang rmended this Comrade Suming. It turns out he''s a world champion."


    Mr. Sun and Mr. Yang are the top two officials of Shuanghu District, having coborated for many years and maintaining a good personal rtionship. Mr. Yangughed and said, "Exactly! You just returned from an inspection yesterday, so you probably haven''t watched TV. The award ceremony by Guinness for him was very grand; it''s be a major event for our city!"


    Mr. Sun''s expression became serious, "Oh? I need to see that to avoid embarrassment at the meeting in the city this afternoon if the leaders ask about it and I don''t know." He turned and ordered the person behind him, "Mr. Wang, when you go back, get me the video of Suming''s Guinness award presentation to watch."


    ...


    The award ceremony wasn''t long,sting less than two hours in total. After the leaders concluded their closing remarks, it ended.


    As the officials left, the honored workers also departed from the auditorium, everyone returning to their own homes and finding their own mothers, those who were acquainted made ns to go drinking and dining, which goes without saying.


    Suming stepped out of the auditorium and casually handed the prize money and the certificate of honor to Su Meng.


    Su Meng, the wild man, had be Suming''s personal bodyguard. Clothes make the man, and Su Meng, already very masculine and tall, was now dressed in a sharp ck suit, making him look like one of the Central Security Bureau Bodyguards standing at the entrance of the district government building, drawing curious nces from many people who thought he was guarding some high-ranking official.


    Walking with Su Meng to the parking lot, Suming saw a Toyota Alpha parked opposite the Wrangler. The bald man was pushing Zhou Jin beside the Alpha, waiting for ackey to open the door.


    After thest incident with the river dolphins, the bald man''s attitude towards Suming had subtly changed from within. He harbored a certain indefinable reverence for the ''expert sent from above.''


    In fact, during thest rescue operation, the bald man was practically working under Suming. So when he saw Suming, he was momentarily startled and stood there awkwardly, not sure whether to greet him or pretend he hadn''t seen him.


    Zhou Jin was oblivious to the change in the bald man''s expression and stared darkly at Suming from across the parking space.


    Having lived in the wilderness for a long time, Su Meng had developed a keen sixth sense and immediately sensed the hostility from Zhou Jin opposite him. His eyes widened and he was about to go over and beat Zhou Jin up.


    To be sure, Su Meng could take down several men, including the bald man, all by himself. But there were surveince cameras everywhere, and since they were within the district governmentpound, fighting wasn''t a wise choice. Suming patted Su Meng''s shoulder and said with a smile, "Let''s not stoop to the level of a disabled person, let''s get in the car!"


    As the Wrangler slowly drove past the Alpha, Zhou Jin couldn''t help himself and called out with a pointedment, "Mr. Su, how''s the fish farming goingtely?"


    Suming''s expression shifted slightly as if hit in a sore spot, but he squeezed out a smile, "Very well! No need for you to worry!"


    "That''s good, that''s good. If you can''t sell the fish at the end of the year, remember to look for big brother. I still have some connections in the market," Zhou Jin chuckled.

 Chapter 143: Chapter 143 Old Friends

    But then again, if Su Meng is like a sharp steel knife, then Suming is the sheath; with Suming around, Su Meng wouldn''t cause too much trouble.


    However, Su Meng''s episode did remind Suming that many of his subordinates, as well as the animals, birds, and fish, are still single. Take the Wolfhound brothers, for example, their personal issues remain unresolved. To this day, they still leer at the nurses in the medical center. Even the fierce bandits could use a partner; they''re quite lonely.


    "I''m still single myself." Suming didn''t have much of a solution for this sort of thing; it all came down to luck and fate.


    Speaking of being single, that wasn''t quite urate for some. A few of the feline residents had been getting cozy with each other, and one of the seven croc-gecko-eels seemed to be pregnant. And the parrot sisters, always cuddling up together to preen each other''s feathers, made Suming suspect that they might be a couple.


    The happiest were surely Mi Hou and Hu Hou; they nevercked malepany. With literally thousands in their bee and ho colonies, they could mate with whomever they pleased, which made Suming quite envious.


    The next day was the weekend, and another celebration was held internally at the zoo to honor Suming.


    The stage from the previous Guinness event was still up, and Mr. Song stood on it, waving to the crowd below, "Suming, get up here and say a few words! Let''s give him a round of apuse!"


    "p p p p p..." The apuse was enthusiastic, and Suming was pushed onto the stage by Mr. Peng, Li, and others.


    Suming scratched his head, chuckled, and said into the microphone, "What should I say?"


    Amidst the friendlyughter below, Mrs. Tong called out loudly from beneath the stage, "Just say whatever you''ve got to say."


    "Well then, I said I''d treat everyone to a celebration when the boat business kicked off, but never found the opportunity. I''ll skip the rest, and just say this: after work today, I''m treating everyone to a feast at Fish Joy Park. Everyrade from our zoo, count yourselves in; food''s on me, drinks aplenty!"


    The apuse from below was even warmer. Mr. Songughed and said, "That''s a straightforward offer. Dong, have your security department arrange a shuttle service for everyone from the zoo after work."


    The upside of working at a zoo is the leisurely pace. After the meeting, most people were already off duty. Aside from a few on call, around thirty people boarded the zoo''s shuttle. Liang Shi and Mr. Song followed Suming''s Wrangler, and arge group noisily set out for Fish Joy Park.


    "Fish Joy Park" was not an "amusement park" but a restaurant specializing in fish dishes. As Suming expected, Zhao Yun was friends with the owner, so he invited Zhao and his family along too.


    Zhao Yun''s connections were... Seeing Zhao cheerfully greeting the restaurant owner, Suming felt his own aplishments were still far too modest.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    They opened three interconnected banquet rooms. The dozens of guests took their seats and began toasting and passing drinks around. One after another, the zoo staff came to offer Suming drinks. At first he managed to fend them off, but it wasn''t long before his steps began to wobble, and his tongue started to slur.


    Su Meng stepped up, valiantly defending his cousin. Alone, he faced the crowd, downingrge cups in one gulp. Drinking liquor as if it were water.


    Zhao Yun and Suming sat on a nearby sofa, sipping brewed tea to sober up. Seeing how Su Meng drank, Zhao almost spat out his mouthful of tea, his eyes bulging, "Your cousin is too fierce! Who drinks like that!"


    "Mountain folk, they can usually hold their liquor..." Suming let out a full burp, his eyes bleary as he spoke.


    "I''m impressed!" Zhao Yun gave a thumbs up, then said, "I''ve got something to tell you. Remember Jacky from Xiangjiang we metst time?"


    Suming was a bit muddled from the drink and took a while to remember who Jacky was, then chuckled, "Oh, Zhang Tianwang. You could have just said his Chinese name, kept saying ''Jacky'', it took me a minute to catch on."


    "Saying the name directly will get the book banned!" Zhao said seriously.


    Suming: "..."


    "Jacky will be holding a concert tour in the provincial capital in a few days," he said. "He got in touch with me and wanted to invite you over to meet him."


    "Meet with me?" Suming was taken aback, thenughed and said, "Such a big star wants me to go all the way to the capital to meet him? If he has something to discuss, he cane directly to Yangchuan. They''re not that far apart, just a few hours'' drive."


    From the perspective of a fan, if Jacky personally invited him, Suming would be willing to go. Plus,paratively speaking, Jacky''s time was indeed much more precious than Suming''s, who spent his days leisurely eating and ying.


    However, after theirst meeting in Xiangjiang, their rtionship should be more appropriately defined as friends. Moreover, Jacky''s search for him was probably rted to Monkey Wine; so asking him to meet and having Zhao Yun convey the message did feel a bit like ying the diva.


    Zhao Yun chuckled, waved his hand, and said, "You might be misunderstanding. He''s not that familiar with you, and afraid you might get the wrong idea, that''s why he didn''t approach you directly and had me pass on the message instead. He needs you for something rted to his concert tour; he''s asking for your help."


    "Ah? To be a guest performer?!" Suming''s eyes lit up, thinking to himself, could it be that I''m going to be a big star in the entertainment industry?!


    Zhao Yun looked Suming over, his smile holding a hint of teasing, "Why don''t you sing a song for us to hear first?"


    "Uh... that..."


    "You have his personal number, right? Give him a call after dinner, let him tell you the details," Zhao Yun suggested.


    ...


    If you look at the Guinness World Records, Jacky was actually a predecessor of Suming''s.


    Back in 1995, Jacky set a world record for a singer''s solo concert with his ''You Learn Friends'' 100-show tour;


    In 2007, at the age of 45, Jacky challenged himself again by holding the ''Light Years World Tour'' and served as the artistic director of the concert. The toursted 12 months, spanned 58 cities, totaled 105 shows, and sold over two million tickets,pleting an undisputed world wonder and breaking his own Guinness World Record.


    In today''s world where countless little stars rise rapidly only to dim just as quickly, relying on scandals and controversies to grab attention, such achievements may well be unsurpassed.


    Actually, in the golden age of Xiangjiang, each star of Jacky''s level had a brilliance behind them that would be hard to replicate.


    For example, Andy, who is also among the top tier of stars, has stood firm in the entertainment industry for thirty years, winning more than 500 various awards, setting a Guinness World Record for the most awarded entertainer in the world.


    When Suming walked out of the airport with Nangong Yan and Su Meng, he saw Jacky''s assistant with two bodyguards holding signs to wee them at the exit from afar.


    The assistant greeted Suming, then nced at Nangong Yan, his eyes lighting up. He gave Suming a thumbs up with an exaggeratedugh, "Wow, Su Sheng has such good fortune, such a stunning girlfriend, absolutely gorgeous!"


    Nangong Yan''s face turned red, and Sumingughed, saying, "Just a friend, just a friend..." Before he could finish, he felt a sharp pain in his back, where Nangong Yan had pinched him hard.


    The assistant pretended not to see their yful banter and arranged for his subordinates to handle the luggage. He then led Suming and the others to a business van parked at the entrance, and opened the door: "Su Sheng, Miss Nangong, please get in the car, Jacky and the nning team are waiting for you at the hotel."


    After getting in the car, the assistant tactfully closed the partition between the driver''s seat and the back seat. Nangong Yan let out a sigh of relief, dropped her poised facade, and looking incredulous, asked Suming with wide eyes, "You really know Jacky? I thought you were joking the whole way here!"


    "Old friends," Suming said with an expression as if struck by lightning.

 Chapter 144: Chapter 144 Legend of the Hungry Wolf

    In a top-floor suite of a four-star hotel in the provincial capital, Jacky, dressed in casual clothes, stood up from the sofa and strode forward to give Suming a hug, then turned to point to the other people in the room and said to Suming with a smile, "This is my nning team. There are too many to introduce individually, you''ll get to know them when we work together."


    "Hey, Su Sheng!"


    "Hello, Mr. Su!"


    After greeting everyone in the team, Suming took out a bottle of red wine from behind and handed it to Jacky, "There, don''t say I''m not a good friend. This is for you."


    As soon as the wine was brought out, the nning team, including Jacky''s assistants, were obviously taken aback.


    The bottle of red wine was obviously cheap mass-produced wine, not to mention thebel was entirely in Chinese and itcked a seal, indicating that it had been opened, and the cork even had a small hole.


    Although it''s the thought that counts in the gift exchange between friends, Jacky is, after all, a megastar, not a beggar. Giving such low-grade wine, and one that had been opened no less, seemed like an insult. The team members, meeting Suming for the first time and sharing no particr camaraderie, had a few sour expressions, and someone''s face darkened into an unfriendly grimace.


    Nangong Yan, following behind Suming, blushed furiously, wishing she could crawl into a hole.


    She had told Suming before that if he was not going to give a gift, that was fine, but if he did decide to give one, it should at least be something decent, especially since Suming didn''t care about spending a few thousand dors more. Contrarily, Suming, in a careless manner, had asserted that it was a man''s business, and said she shouldn''t worry about it, insisting that the gift had enough weight to it.


    Initially, she thought Suming was joking about meeting Jacky, not taking it seriously, but now here they were for real, and to her disbelief, Suming actually presented this ''second-hand wine'' to Jacky publicly!


    Jacky himself was taken aback at first, but then he seemed to remember something, swiftly uncorked the wine with a ''pop,'' and sniffed it, his eyes lighting up with a look of surprised delight.


    "Could this be..." Jacky trailed off.


    "Of course, it is," Sumingughed.


    "Wow, this gift is too generous!" Jacky beckoned an assistant over, handed the bottle over with great care and instructed, "Julia, secure this wine in the safe. No one is allowed to touch it; you''re personally responsible for it. Remember to carry it with you when we leave."


    Seeing Jacky''s serious demeanor, the assistant and team members were a bit puzzled. Julia nodded, holding the wine close like a child, and headed into the next room.


    Jacky let out a long sigh, then said to Suming, "I asked for your help, and you give such a precious gift. How can I ept this!"


    "It''s nothing, it''s just your good luck, and I happened to find some again," Suming replied, sounding as if it were no big deal when, in reality, he felt quite rxed about it. The Monkey Wine brewed by the Monkey King - he had a few big mineral water bottles of it at home, drinking it daily like a health supplement. Once winter came around in a few months, the Monkey King would brew plenty more, effectively making it an unending supply.


    But of course, this secret was unknown to the others. In Jacky''s eyes, this present was extremely valuable.


    "Let''s not talk about this now. Regarding the matter we discussed on the phone, I''ve almost taken care of it. Let''s start the meeting and finalize the concert details; we shouldn''t dy your important business," Suming said.


    Men''s meetings are boring. After discussing with the nning team for a while, Nangong Yan couldn''t help covering her mouth to stifle a yawn. Jacky noticed and gestured to his assistant, "Julia, why don''t you and Miss Nangong take a walk around the shopping district downstairs? You''re both beauties; you should find plenty to talk about while shopping together."


    The assistant named Julia was pretty good-looking and tall, but standing next to Nangong Yan, the term ''beauty'' probably wouldn''te to mind for her. There had been rumors of something between Jacky and this assistant, but that was their personal business, and Suming wasn''t interested in meddling. After all, what sessful man doesn''t have rumors? A man without rumors is either not sessful or too cunning, managing to keep everything in perfect bnce.


    Women''s rtionships can be strange. Julia and Nangong Yan didn''t know each other at all, yet the moment shopping was mentioned, they instantly became close friends,ughing and leaving the suite arm in arm.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    With the floors below housing stores of world-famous brands, where any trinket costs thousands, Suming thought, take it easy,dy, don''t spend the equivalent of half the ticket sales from Jacky''s concert. He then shot a look at Nangong Yan.


    Nangong Yan shot him a re that seemed to say, do I look like someone who hasn''t seen the world?


    ...


    At 8:30 in the evening, the provincial capital performance center''s stadium was filled with the concert which started as scheduled, and beneath the stage, thousands of fans held glow sticks in their hands and shouted ''Jacky''s name loudly!


    "Wow, this is my first time sitting in the front row at a concert! Jacky! Jacky! Jacky!" Nangong Yan, pulling on Suming''s sleeve, yelled excitedly, her forehead beading with fine sweat.


    She was actually not Jacky''s fan, and neither was Sumingpletely. For people of their age, Jacky was considered an old-timer. But in such a grand scene, with everyone shouting together, the adrenaline of each person surged wildly, and they were infected without realizing it.


    "Big sister, calm down a bit!" Suming couldn''t help wanting tough. The guy on stage had just given Nangong Yan a full set of Herm¨¨s a few hours ago; they were acquaintances. Was there really a need to be so excited?


    After thousands of calls, a high-pitched wolf howl filled the stadium, and Jacky finally made a grand entrance, kicking off the concert with "Legend of the Hungry Wolf" under the explosive music!


    "She turned off the evening lights and her shoulders became dim;


    Sparks intertwined, trapped in the sediment


    The heart just wounded, can''t stand the changes


    "


    Just like the title, "Legend of the Hungry Wolf," there was a part in the instrumental interlude of the song that included wolf howls as harmony.


    When he finished the lyric "Love is like a hungry wolf, its mouth seems sweet, but if you approach it for fun, its ferocious nature will show," fireworks suddenly shot up around the stage; and in the middle of the stage behind him, an elevating tform slowly rose!


    Seven living Grey Wolves, lined up side by side on the tform squatting in a row, appeared before tens of thousands of spectators in the stadium. At the same time, they howled towards a microphone in front of them!


    The wolf howls in the background music just now weren''t synthetic; they were real wolf howls!


    "Legend of the Hungry Wolf" actually featured real wolves!


    After a brief silence in the venue, the thrilling scene instantly set the crowd on fire!


    "She leaned on my shoulder, her breath loud near my ear


    High temperature generated,plexions doing damage


    While the gentleman ys with fire, the warm smoke cannot be blown away


    She adds her lips to mine, forcing me to endure


    Overwhelming love rushes at me, kissing and entangling wildly


    Even though it''s known that love leaves me with no tomorrow"


    As Jacky tip-toed, singing and dancing on the stage, those wolves actually followed his steps, revolving around him like backup dancers, matching the music and letting out long howls to the sky!


    The audience below nearly went mad, countless glow sticks waving everywhere, the entire stadium was filled with fans'' screams, the enthusiasm of the fans almost flipping the roof of the stadium!

 Chapter 145: Chapter 145 He Came to My Concert

    After a rendition of "Legend of the Hungry Wolf" that caught everyone by surprise, even to the point where it could be called unprecedented, the stage lights dimmed.


    Then the music rose again, transitioning into another fast-paced song.


    "A wild cat''s life, beautiful and untamed


    Women like wild cats,ughing as they challenge you to take your shot"


    This was a niche song that hadn''t been widely sung, but the audience was made up of Jacky''s familiar fans; most of them were not strangers to this fast-paced song, "Love of the Wild Cat."


    Amidst the cheers, Jacky appeared on stage, his body covered with multicolored feathers, tiptoeing like a giant cat!


    Behind him followed six differently colored cats, all stepping in a cat-like manner lined up in a row, following Jacky''s movements, wiggling their chubby bottoms to the beat of the music as they sashayed onto the stage!


    If you imed that the cats were too small, that only the people in the front row could see them clearly while those at the back couldn''t at all, then the thirty-meter-high big screen vividly presented the scene to every viewer¡ªsix cats, ck, white, and spotted, lifelike as they followed Jacky in the performance, executing nimble turns and hip twists;


    "A wild cat, ying like it''s hunting"


    As the song reached its climax, Jacky threw his arms up, and with a unified flick of their tails, all the wild cats stood up and started waving their plump little paws at the audience below.


    The crowd''s voices were nearly hoarse, and even Nangong Yan, who had known the concert itinerary since the morning, was so stimted by the scene that she jumped up, mimicking the movements of the cat-like beings on stage, twisting and turning while desperately shouting at them.


    "A wild cat, your efforts are futile, how can you break free from the confines of my heart..."


    As the song came to its end, Jacky gestured a pistol with his hand and "bang"¡ªhe shot at the wild cats.


    The row of cat-like beings fell in response, like dominoes one after another, tumbling into a heap on the stage.


    After the upbeat music, it was time for a slow song. Apanied by a mncholic piano tuneden with autumn sorrow, Jacky''s voice, tinged with a trace of world-weariness, filled the air as the stage backdrop transformed into bleak autumn winds and falling leaves,


    "The intense feeling of autumn, heavy on the hearts of those who part


    A cup of wine carries a myriad of emotions


    Partings are frequent when the leaves fall


    Holding your hand, pressing it to my heart


    "


    A gust of wind blew, and on the dry branches of an old tree, a solitary Haidong Qing stared into the distance...


    ...


    "Damn, what''s going on? The ruckus in there¡ªisn''t it like they''re fighting?" asked a captain standing among a line of armed police responsible for security outside the concert stadium.


    The lieutenant turned around to look but couldn''t see the inside clearly and said, "I don''t think so. From what I''ve heard, the concert is so popr that they pulled us inst minute to keep order."


    "I mean, these people, just for chasing stars. Is it worth being so crazy? They make it sound like a battle, with the shouting audible for miles. Anyone unaware would think there''s a riot," the captain said dismissively.


    ...


    ```


    "This time, you''ve really put in the hard work!"


    At the small celebration the next day, Jacky raised a ss of red wine and gently clinked sses with Suming, then excitedly¡ªand somewhat indecorously¡ªdowned it in one gulp,


    "Jacky has held hundreds of concerts, but none has ever been as explosive asst night!" Julia said with a lightugh from the side, "We owe it to our special nning consultant."


    This ''special nning consultant'' referred to Suming.


    Right after the concertst night, before Jacky even had time to remove his makeup backstage, Julia had Suming summoned so she could hire him as the team''s ''special nning consultant.''"


    The so-called ''special consultant'' didn''t need to follow the team around to participate in events and had ample free time. If necessary, Suming could get involved in future team nning and would charge a fee based on the number of times he participated.


    Not just with concerts, but with filming too, there were plenty of opportunities for coboration.


    Suming had justughed at the time, saying that since they were friends, there was no need to talk about fees; a few VIP tickets to the front row of the concert would suffice. Whenever Jacky needed help, if he could spare the time, lending a hand would be no problem.


    Despite Jacky''s usual rogue middle-aged man demeanor, having mixed in the chaotic Xiangjiang entertainment industry for many years, he was very particr about doing things right. Since Suming didn''t want money, he signed a check for 500,000 on the spot and donated it to Yangchuan City Zoo to improve the living conditions of the animals.


    "I won''t refuse this money." Suming epted the check with a heartyugh.


    "Eh? Where''s Miss Nangong? Why isn''t she here?" Jacky looked around curiously, wondering why the space behind Suming was empty.


    "She was so spurred by the efficiency of your Xiangjiang colleagues that she''s been passionately working on a press release in the hotel since early morning!" Suming replied with a smile.


    The efficiency of Xiangjiang''s reporters and paparazzi was indeed astonishing; the news ofst night''s concert was on the front pages of several major newspapers and various tabloids by early morning. Photos and videos of Jacky performing with various animals had been shared so widely that half of the ind already knew about it.


    Nangong Yan had quite a few media colleagues in her social circle. As soon as she opened her eyes that morning, everyone in her feed was talking about the concert. Nangong Yan was so regretful she could hardly stand it. She had been on the scene, yet she hadn''t published the news immediately!


    So, she skipped the celebration entirely, holing up in her hotel to rush out her article.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Wow, does it have to be thatplicated? Julia, just push back this afternoon''s fan meet by a couple of hours, and ask Miss Nangong to give me an exclusive interview," Jacky said, shrugging his shoulders with an easy smile.


    "Why not make it a joint interview with both you and Mr. Suming?" Julia suggested, "After all, it was the two of you working together that made the concert such a huge sess."


    And so, Suming''s return trip to Yangchuan was dyed by several hours. The content of the exclusive interview was nothing special, mainly about how Jacky met Suming and their coboration on nning this unique concert. However, in the article, Suming was portrayed not just as a ''zookeeper'' or a ''boat tour operator,'' but rather, with some intentional shaping by Jacky and Nangong Yan, as a ''hidden expert in the midst of the city.''


    Towards the end of the interview, Suming made a suggestion, encouraging Jacky to adopt an animal.


    Now that the maind and Xiangjiang were one family, there was a high degree of openness towards Xiangjiang''s artists. Adopting an animal in the maind could greatly increase an artist''s recognition by both official and public circles, even though Jacky was already sessful and didn''t need to urgently make money in the maind. As an artist, increasing one''s fame was never a bad thing at any point.


    "Jacky, Mr. Suming''s proposal is great!"


    Julia said, cradling an iPad and looking down at it while speaking in a professional tone, "After yesterday''s concert, thements on Weibo were several times more than usual, and the number of followers has also clearly increased. Adopting an animal now would greatly help your development in the maind."


    "At my age, just singing songs and acting in ys, it''s all good as long as everyone''s happy," Jacky said,ughing.


    However, as an artist, nobody wouldin about bing more famous, so the news of Jacky adopting an animal, after some nning, quickly made media headlines.


    On the morning of the third day after the concert finished, Jacky, apanied by several team members, made a special visit to the zoo with Suming.


    ```

 Chapter 146 Donation Ceremony

    ```


    As a veteran superstar idol with undeniable fan numbers, although many fans are no longer in their youthful years and have grown up, even bing parents, their attitude towards the idol is now more rational and mature, no longer as crazed as in their early days.


    But when Jacky''s nanny van arrived at the entrance of Yangchuan City Zoo, Suming was still shocked by the sea of fans that greeted them!


    The few security guards at the zoo werepletely overwhelmed by the enthusiastic fans. The city bureau had to send a toon of armed police to help maintain order. The local police station had almost all of its officers present, who, together with the armed police, set up a long security line in front of the zoo, keeping the excited fans on both sides.


    The news had only been out for three days, and Suming couldn''t help but mutter, "You''re more famous than the ****..."


    Jacky, while waving to the fans on both sides, winked at Suming and said with a lowugh, "Of course, the **** has only been president for a dozen years, but I''ve been a heavenly king for decades..."


    Suming: "..."


    To Suming''s surprise, Zhao Yun''s wife, Zhaoqian, was also one of his fans. She was at the very front of the crowd with Chengcheng in her arms, waving her hands furiously at Suming and shouting, "Su, Su, let me in, let me in..."


    Zhao Yun was away on a business trip today, otherwise with his status, he could have avoided mixing with the general public. Suming spoke into the walkie-talkie, "Dong, Dong, let that woman in the dress holding a child in..."


    There were too many people, and Suming hadn''t noticed that Dong was right behind him until he was tapped on the shoulder. Dong, sweating profusely, red at Suming, "Why didn''t you notify us a few days earlier? You only mentioned this big star wasing yesterday, and we are all in disarray."


    Without waiting for Suming to speak, Dong somehow fished out an old-style CD, which looked like Jacky''s album that sold over 500 gold, ''Farewell Kiss'', and handed it to Jacky, unabashedly asking, "Idol, could you sign this for me..."


    Suming was speechless. Dong could use his position to get Jacky''s autograph, but other zoo staff couldn''t do the same. Nurse Hu could only squeeze through the crowd toward them, and Mr. Liao, ovee with excitement, even forgot to hold onto his waistband when he saw Suming... And there was Zhaoqian, who was too far to hear what she was shouting, with Chengcheng looking like a little stuffed doll in her arms, almost getting squished out of shape...


    Suming quickly rushed in front of Jacky to Zhaoqian and whispered into her ear, "Mrs. Zhao, take Chengcheng to the Whisperwind Pavilion. Once the event is over, I''ll have Jackye over himself. You can have him sign as much as you want, even write essays... Please don''t squeeze in here, if Chengcheng gets hurt, Zhao won''t let me off the hook..."


    "Really? Are you that close to him..." Zhaoqian''s eyes sparkled.


    A star is like a bomb, creating a stir wherever they go. Jacky''s team, with great difficulty, entered the gates of the zoo under the protection of the armed policerades, and the fans followed like a swarm of bees.


    On thewn where the Guinness awards were presentedst time, a few leaders in suits were standing and smiling, pping their hands in anticipation.


    Wang Jian She''s official position was quite high, but he only stood in an off-center position to the middle-left. To his right, which was the very center of the leadership team, stood a smiling, amiable old man in his sixties, a familiar face who often appeared on television news from Yangchuan City and even the provincial level.


    Most of the media had also gathered on thewn, with Nangong upying the best spot. She had upgraded her equipment; a whole team worked just for her, setting up several unique-looking cameras that looked like Transformers at the best spot under the chairman''s tform.


    "Hello, I am the director of Yangchuan Zoo..." Mr. Song stepped down from the red carpet to greet them, shaking hands with Jacky first, and Suming tugged at his sleeve, ncing towards the tform, "Who is that leader? He looks very familiar."


    Under Mr. Song''s leadership, as Jacky and Suming walked towards the tform, Mr. Song, looking around, quietly introduced, "That''s Mr. Sun, the Deputy Mayor, the direct superior of Mr. Wang. He''s personally presiding over the ceremony since he heard a big star was making a donation..."


    "Wow, such a high-ranking official hase. Looks like I''ll have to bleed a lot!" Jacky said with augh.


    As for high-level ''officials'', Yangchuan''s Deputy Mayor wasn''t particrly significant for Jacky, who had been in Xiangjiang for decades, having met numerous Governors, Special Administrative Region Chief Executives, and Chief Secretaries countless times, undoubtedly an individual well-versed in handling major events. Furthermore, the circle he was in was very diverse, ranging from various super second-generation individuals to gang leaders rising from the underworld. A Deputy Mayor from a non-capital city was unlikely to make Jacky bleed too much. Instead, due to Jacky''s poprity, he might even add to the political achievements of the retiring Deputy Mayor.


    However, locally speaking in Yangchuan City, the Deputy Mayor''s personal participation in the zoo''s donation and adoption event was a significant show of face for Yangchuan City Zoo.


    After ascending to the stage, Jacky shook hands in turn with Mr. Sun, followed by Wang Jian She and a crowd of government officials, following protocol.


    Next, Mr. Sun spoke, highly praising the support of the Xiangjiangpatriots for the maind''s animal protection efforts, expressing his sincerest gratitude and hoping that morepatriots from Xiangjiang woulde to the maind and to Yangchuan City for tourism and investment.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    As a star who had received various honors like the Top Ten Youth Award and Outstanding Representative several times, Jacky was no stranger to such events and even improvised a speech in Mandarin, which was not perfect.


    Next, two ceremonial hostesses brought up a giant check the size of a door panel with ''Huaxia Currency Five Hundred Thousand Yuan Only'' written on it. Jacky, Mr. Sun, and Mr. Song, holding the check together, smiled and posed for the photographers.


    The donation ceremony was only the first step; to be frank, this donation was in thanks to Suming for using animals in his concert. Suming, considering their friendship, did not charge a fee, so the money was instead donated to the zoo.


    The main purpose of Jacky''s visit today was adoption.


    As mentioned before, adoption and fostering are different. As the name implies, fostering means taking it home to raise, with custodial rights, while adoption does not grant these rights. The animals are still cared for by the zoo; Jacky is responsible for the money, which is just nominal ''fostering''.


    Beforeing, Jacky had asked Suming what would be the best animal to adopt.


    ```

 Chapter 148: Chapter 147 Outdated?

    ```


    So embarrassing, so utterly embarrassing!


    Whenever Suming thought about yesterday''s situation at Whisperwind Pavilion, he felt overwhelmingly mortified. Usually, everyone acted so dignified, but why did they lose all their integrity at the sight of a celebrity, tossing it all into Shuijun Lake!


    Initially, he had arranged for Zhaoqian and some zoo staff to wait inside the pavilion. Not all of these people were Jacky''s fans; in fact, to some extent, the era of the Four Heavenly Kings had passed.


    But such a big star isn''t someone you can meet at any given moment, and since he was visiting the zoo, it would be a pity not to get an autograph or something.


    Somehow Wang Hao got the news, probably from Wang Jian She, and he also came over.


    To be honest, Wang Hao wasn''t a Jacky fan, at most a well-meaning passerby; he was a die-hard fan of Chi-ling! But this kid was born to love excitement. Not only did hee by himself, but he also posted a message in the university group chat, saying, "Suming has captured a wild Heavenly King Jacky. If you want to touch your idol up close, hurry to the zoo."


    Social circles and group chats have a terrifyingly fast spread. This message quickly proliferated from the ss group chat to the major group chat, followed by the alumni group chat...


    The news that Jacky wasing to Yangchuan had already been widely spread by Suming and Julia''s deliberate nning and wasmon knowledge in Yangchuan City, so no one in the group doubted the authenticity of this message.


    Now there was a huge crowd at the zoo entrance, all from Suming''s school, whether they knew him or not.


    The zoo''s security guards recognized Wang Hao, knowing he was a beefy friend of Suming and Mr. Wang''s son, so naturally, they didn''t dare stop him. Wang Hao led arge group of people straight to Whisperwind Pavilion.


    Logically speaking, with so many people rushing into Whisperwind Pavilion, it should have called down a horde of hos, and not one would have made it out alive.


    Luckily, Er Gouzi had been growing smarter recently and notified Suming upon seeing the situation, thereby averting a disaster for these alumni.


    Even so, as they charged toward Jacky, Suming still vaguely saw several people withrge bumps on their foreheads, probably caused by making too much ruckus in the pavilion, warranting a warning from Er Gouzi''s dispatched soldiers.


    After closing in on their idol, this group revealed their shameless true colors.


    Asking for an autograph was one thing, but why the need to take off your shirt and have someone sign your belly?


    Having an autograph on the belly was one thing; after all, it was still within the range allowed by the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television, at most vulgar, but not against the rules!


    But what about that female alumna who graduated who knows when? What is that you''re holding? You think just because it doesn''t have straps, I can''t recognize those round, rolling semicircles? There are kids here, do you really want a major celebrity to sign your 34A bra?


    Although the ce for signature was inappropriate, it at least wasn''t bodily contact.


    But for those of you puckering up, insisting on kissing Jacky, that''s not so great, right? No matter how you look at it, the man is married with two kids who, in ancient times, would have been old enough to marry. Plus, there''s a scandal-ridden assistant behind him; it''s a bit improper for a group of girls in their twenties to cling to him like that!


    As for a certain male ssmate who also started amotion wanting a kiss, Suming couldn''t be bothered to scold him and simply kicked him into theke...


    Luckily, Jacky was used to big scenes, and this level of ''enthusiasm'' wasn''t new to him. He managed to cope.


    Amidst a thudding sound, Suming thought someone had brought in cotton-picking. On a closer look, it turned out to be the breezy guy, known for his golden voice since university, who would always take the stage with his guitar during school performances, garnering countless gazes as he briskly appeared.


    The breezy guy insisted on pulling Jacky aside to listen to his cover of "Li Xiann."


    ```


    "Bro, do you think my voice could make it in a talent show?" Suave Bro asked Jacky full of hope. Once the heartthrob of the campus, adored by thousands of girls, he was now just another face in the nightlife of bars, not doing particrly well for himself.


    This time, Jacky was really stumped, and it was hard to give a direct answer. After thinking it over, he patted Suave Bro on the shoulder seriously, "You could easily get by with your good looks, why do you feel the need topete with talent?"


    Suave Bro sat by the water, hugging his guitar, lost in his reflection, unsure whether he was admiring his ''good looks'' through the water, the ones he could supposedly rely on, or contemting jumping in to never resurface.


    Signing autographs, stealing kisses, and unting vocal skills¡ªSuming tolerated it all as he watched from the sidelines. It was a bit embarrassing, but after all, it was driven by genuine affection for Jacky!


    However, the behavior of a few young girls left Suming speechless.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Don''t worry, I won''t leave until everyone has an autograph!" Jacky said with a smile, pen in hand, as he asked the three young girls, "Where would you like me to sign?"


    One girl lifted her head, her cheeks blush-red, and with big blinking eyes said, "Uncle Jacky, do you know Gu Tianle? I really like him..."


    "Wu Yanzu is the real heartthrob! Uncle Jacky, could you please get me his autograph..."


    Thest girl, tentative yet hopeful, said, "If it''s not too much trouble, I also really like brothers Peng Yuyan and Wang Dalu..."


    Jacky''s pen hovered mid-air: "..."


    Wang Hao joined in the teasing, "And Sister Zhiling..."


    "Scram, scram, scram¡­" Suming kicked him away.


    Looking at the innocent faces of the young girls, if it weren''t for the fact that they were his juniors, Suming seriously considered letting two big wolves take care of these three girls disrupting the event!


    Jacky burst intoughter and said that if he happened to meet those celebrities in the future, he''d help them get autographs, or if they came to Xiangjiangter, he would take them to hang out with them.


    ...


    After causing a ruckus at the Whisperwind Pavilion until the afternoon, Julia nced at the time and reminded Jacky that it was time to go, or he''d miss his flight. It was only then that Jacky managed to extricate himself from the crowd of true fans and faux passersby.


    "You''ve really had a rough day!" Suming said earnestly as he saw him off to the car.


    "Haha, I have a secret, want to hear it?" Jacky raised an eyebrow.


    "Go on," Suming said with a smile.


    Jacky startedughing, "If it weren''t for seeing the enthusiasm of your ssmates today, I would have thought I was already out of touch with the younger crowd!"


    "No way, bro."


    "It''s all because of you! Since I''ve known you, you''ve never shown the excitement of meeting a celebrity. Every time you see me, it''s like you''re looking at an ordinary person, you never even asked me for an autograph, it really made me think my time was up."


    "Then, Bro, could you sign something for me?" Suming burst outughing.

 Chapter 154: Chapter 153 Little Spy

    ```


    After some thought, it seemed unlikely that Lin would mistreat the dogs, as there was absolutely no need for that.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    So I looked up the news reports from that time on my phone, and that''s when I found the reason.


    It turned out that these dogs had already been through Ghost Gate Pass once. The first time, someone had rescued them from the dog meat market, but somehow, they ended up being sold again. This rescue was like their second lease on life.


    There was only one exnation: these dogs, having witnessed countless of their own kind being butchered alive at the dog meat market, were utterly traumatized.


    Helpless, Suming could only stop trying tomunicate with them and instead used his spiritual power to simplyfort them, hoping they could find some peace. However, the effect wasn''t very good; after all, most of the dogs still suffered from serious injuries, and both their physical and psychological traumas were equally lethal.


    "Hello, Mr. Song? It''s Su," Suming called Mr. Song, and faint sounds of a child''s voice could be heard from the other end of the phone, so Mr. Song was probably taking care of his grandson at home.


    I discussed the situation here with Mr. Song, who fell silent for a while before saying, "This is something you''ll have to decide on your own. But you need to think it through, bringing back so many dogs, how will you manage the situation afterward? ording to what you said, these dogs definitely can''t be adopted by others. If brought back, the zoo itself would have to care for them. Over time, that will certainly be no small expense. Money is one aspect, but managing so many dogs is another issue..."


    Mr. Song went on and on, then finally sighed, "Ah, what I see doesn''t bother my heart. If I were there myself and witnessed this scene, I would be soft-hearted too. Anyway, say what I might, the decision is yours to make."


    Suming knew what Mr. Song was worried about. A zoo has a greater scale and level than a rescue station, but that doesn''t mean it has endless funds. On the contrary, with arger scaleesrger expenses. Nearly a hundred dogs added would be a significant burden for the zoo to support for no reason. Moreover, just as he had discussed with Mr. Song earlier, these dogs definitely could not be adopted out; they would need to stay in the zoo indefinitely. They might even have to avoid too much human contact for a short period to prevent further psychological trauma.


    Actually, as for how to deal with these dogs, Suming had thought of a possible solution to try.


    However, what he was most curious about right now was exactly what Lin was up to?


    Snoring sounds came from Lin''s room, and since Suming had drunk quite a bit, his tolerance wasn''t great, and he felt dizzy. It didn''t take long before he couldn''t hold out anymore, and he simply went to the guest room to sleep it off.


    After sleeping until ten o''clock the next morning, Suming woke to find that Lin and Lin had already gotten up, each carrying a big basin filled with some mushy dog food, feeding the dogs in the yard.


    Seeing Lin and Lin, the dogs refused to eat anything. Lin and Lin could only use a spoon to scoop the mush into the small food bowls in front of the dog cages. Only after they moved far away did the dogs dare to carefully lick at the food.


    The Wrangler brothers ran back and forth, sniffing cage after cage, trying to express their friendliness. But the other dogs still didn''t pay much attention to them, making them lose interest. Seeing Suminge out, they wagged their tails and ran to Suming''s feet.


    "Hey, another three diedst night. At this rate, it won''t be long before they''re all gone," said Lin with a sigh. "What''s the zoo''s final word on this? We need toe up with a solution fast."


    "Where are the dead dogs?" Suming asked.


    "I had Lin take them up the mountain and bury them in a deep pit."


    Suming grew even more suspicious. What was this, out of sight, out of mind?


    ```


    He thought for a moment, then said with slight apology, "I talked with our director over the phonest night, and there are simply too many dogs here for the zoo to take care of. We can send over a batch of dog feed and a small amount of medicine, but for the rest, we''ll have to trouble you to handle it."


    "What the hell use is that!" Lin muttered under his breath, and then started cursing those dog lovers, pointing at the dog cages and saying, "Why bother saving these dogs? Kill them with one swift cut¡ªit''s quicker for them, and at least if they get eaten, they have some value. But now, they not only will end up dead, they''ll die painfully, suffer themselves, and drag us into this mess..."


    Suming didn''t care to listen to hisints any longer. Maybe he had a point, butining solved nothing. So he packed up a little, then got back into the car with Su Meng and the wolf dog brothers, and said, "Mr. Lin, we''ll be heading off then. I''m really sorry we couldn''t be of help this time, I''ll arrange for the zoo to send over the feed as soon as I get back."


    "Ah well, that''s the only thing we can do. It''s tough for everyone; we understand!" Lin extended his rough hand, shook hands with Suming, and then saw him out to the door, watching the Wrangler depart.


    It wasn''t until the Wrangler had gradually disappeared from view that Lin returned to the rescue station''s room.


    Su entered from outside before long, saw only Lin there, and asked, "Uncle, did the zoo''s people leave?"


    "Yeah, they left."


    "So, what about these dogs?"


    "They won''t take them; we have no choice. We can only deal with them little by little." Lin turned to look at the dogs and muttered, "Such a sin."


    ¡­


    Suming drove the Wrangler away from the rescue station, but he didn''t leave Changping County. Instead, he found a small motel not far from the edge of town, close to the station, and settled in for the time being.


    "It''s all on you now!" Suming snapped his fingers at Er Gouzi, who was circling above his head. Buzzing, Er Gouzi took a few turns and then staggered out through the motel window, heading toward the direction of the rescue station.


    Suming knew very well that if he stayed at the rescue station, the Lins would definitely not make any move. Therefore, to get a clear picture of what they were up to, it was essential for him to leave first. However, once he had left, he would have no idea what they were doing. Both Su Meng and the wolf dog brothers were too conspicuous for reconnaissance.


    So the responsibility fell on Er Gouzi, a creature that wouldn''t raise suspicions wherever it flew. Although it wasn''t very intelligent and unlikely to ''narrate'' a situation in full detail, it could at least provide some scattered fragments of what it saw, from which he could roughly deduce what had happened.


    While waiting for news from Er Gouzi, Sumingy on the small bed in the motel,zily chatting with Su Meng while resting with his legs crossed.


    Su Meng couldn''t speak humannguage and could only make some simple sounds. Staring wide-eyed, he uttered "Oh, oh... Mhm, mhm..." leaving it unclear what he was trying to express.


    Actually, after spending a day with the Lins, Suming didn''t think they were evil people. They were barely maintaining this shabby little rescue station with the little money they received, which was indeed not an easy task. If it was up to him, with a hundred thousand a year for both sry and rescue funding, he would have dropped everything and left¡ªthe situation was a joke! With only that little money, the so-called rescue station was nothing more than a facade that couldn''t aplish much.


    But what was the Lins'' trick? Now that Suming himself had some wealth and plenty of time, the little affluent idle man couldn''t rest easy without getting to the bottom of this. It itched at his conscience and was an ufortable feeling.

 Chapter 156: Chapter 155: I Dont Really Look

    "Su Meng, move to the back!" Su Ming snapped his fingers at Su Meng, and after Su Meng climbed to the back to sit with the wolfhound brothers, he opened the door and Nangong Yan ducked in, still holding a pair of high heels.


    "That''s your cousin, right? Hi, nice to meet you, I''m Nangong Yan, your cousin''s ssmate." Nangong Yan was seeing Su Meng for the first time, and she greeted him politely.


    The two wolfhounds were way too familiar with Nangong Yan to need an introduction; upon seeing her, they happily squatted on the back seat, sticking out their tongues and panting heavily at her.


    Not being used to interacting with others, Su Meng didn''t know how to respond to Nangong Yan''s greeting. However, as someone who had lived in the wild, he was very good at imitating, so he turned to look at the wolfhounds, scratched his head, and mimicking them, squatted in the backseat and stuck out his tongue, panting at Nangong Yan.


    Nangong Yan was startled and asked Su Ming in a low voice, "Is there something wrong with your cousin here..." while saying this, she pointed to her temple.


    "Don''t you dare insult our hometown''s unique way of greeting!" Su Ming said with dead seriousness.


    Nangong Yan''s mouth twitched a couple of times, but she was used to Su Ming''s often erratic behavior. She snorted, then casually pulled out the seatbelt and buckled up, before magically producing a small makeup kit. She opened the car''s vanity mirror, started to touch up her makeup without even turning her head, and said, "What exactly happened, tell me about it."


    Su Ming nced at her out of the corner of his eye, and said with resignation, "No need to put on makeup, it''s an undercover investigation!"


    "What do you know, who told you that you can''t wear makeup on an undercover assignment? Besides, putting on makeup is in a woman''s nature, and since it''s undercover, I''ll just do a natural look... Ah, why am I even exining this to you, you wouldn''t understand, just tell me, what''s happening?"n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Women seemed to have an innate gift for makeup; Nangong Yan chatted while looking into the small mirror, her hand moving swiftly over her face. Using things like makeup remover pads, she quickly wiped off her original makeup, then went on a frenzy of application that resulted in what she called a ''natural look,'' which did seem quite natural.


    "Be careful not to poke your eye out!" Su Ming said as he watched her draw on the eyeline with a sharply pointed eyebrow pencil while sitting in the car. He couldn''t help but be a bit afraid and reminded her, before briefly exining the situation to her.


    "Oh, I know, I know,st time when those people were rescuing these dogs, our station had colleagues who went to report on it! It caused quite a stir back then. They blocked the dog delivery truck on the highway, determined to take the dogs with them. The driver delivering the dogs even drew a knife; in the end, the police arrived, found out that the batch of dogscked quarantine certificates, and confiscated them all. The news caused quite a debate online after it was reported... Hey, how do I look in my makeup?"


    As Nangong Yan was talking, she turned her head and looked at Su Ming with a beaming smile. Su Ming was taken aback by her sudden change of topic and after staring at her face for a few moments, he said, "Not bad, pretty, it looks a lot like you."


    "Howe this doesn''t sound like anything nice?" Nangong Yan snapped her makeup case shut, shoved it into her purse, and then pointed at the truck ahead: "Is that the truck?"


    "Yeah, let''s see where exactly they''re taking the dogs!" Su Ming said.


    "Alright, you drive, I''ll start filming..."


    Nangong Yan had already pulled out a handheld camcorder and began filming the truck ahead, speaking slowly: "This is Yangchuan City TV Station, I''m the reporter Nangong Yan, and right now we are conducting an undercover program. ording to information provided by our source, these two trucks in front of us are carrying several dozen dogs rescued by animal lovers two months ago. However, after just two months at the rescue station, these dogs were once again secretly loaded onto these two trucks with unknown destinations, which is really quite suspicious... Now we''ll interview our source, sitting right next to me, Su Ming..."


    "Dammit, don''t film me..." Before Su Ming could finish, Nangong Yan mischievously gave him a shot on camera, yfully adding: "This face must be very familiar to our viewers, as it''s none other than Yangchuan City''s model worker, holder of a Guinness World Record, a legendary figure at the zoo, always dedicated to animal protection, Mr. Su! Mr. Su, could you briefly tell us how you came across this issue?"


    That wicked girl, filming me even though I said not to! Su Ming pinched Nangong Yan''s thigh hard where the camera couldn''t see, causing her to grimace in pain. Only then did he cough artificially at the camera and say, "First, let me correct you, the Guinness record holder is my pet axolotl, not me. This is what happened..."


    "Alright, we can now see that the trucks carrying the dogs have entered Jiangjin City District. Oh, it seems that the provincial capital is even more congested than our Yangchuan City. While we''re stuck here, let''s continue our interview with Mr. Su. Mr. Su, what''s your opinion on animal lovers rescuing dogs? Opinions are divided on the inte; someizens believe that dogs are man''s best friend and should not be treated the same as pigs and sheep, and they highly support the actions of animal lovers; while others argue that animal lovers are not qualified to enforce thew, and thatw is the baseline for morality. They say that in breaking thew to talk about morality, they are acting irrationally. So, what do you think?"


    "I don''t really have an opinion," said Su Ming, gripping the steering wheel and facing forward. He couldn''t care less to get involved in these pointless debates. He thought he might as well sleep than waste time squabbling, so he shrugged his shoulders, looked ahead with an expressionless face, and continued, "I think that for a driver, the most important job is to focus on the road, to be responsible for their own life and the lives of others, rather than chatting while driving. Don''t you think? Pretty girl?"


    "Tsk, not cooperative at all! This segment should be cut!" Nangong Yan scorned him with a re, then temporarily turned off her camera to save the battery.


    The provincial capital was indeed jam-packed; it wasn''t even six o''clock when they entered the city, and it wasn''t until nine-thirty at night that they finally crossed the district and stopped in front of arge group of buildings on the outskirts, at the big iron gate.


    Su Ming and their vehicle were parked far back, at the edge of the forest.


    "Huh? Why is it this ce? What are they doing bringing dogs here?" Nangong Yan stared at the big sign over the gate, puzzled.


    "Let''s follow them and find out! Su Meng, you stay here with the dogs, Nangong, you''re with me on the truck!"

 Chapter 157: Chapter 156: Old... Classmate

    The truck transporting the dogs was parked not far outside the metal gate. The driver got out of the truck and was handing something off to the security guard. Suming and Nangong Yan parked their car at a distance and, taking advantage of the darkness, sneaked up to the back of the truck.


    When Suming was young, he lived in the mountains where transportation was inconvenient. Every time he went to the city, he''d travel on foot, hitching rides on any passing vehicle he could. This developed into a ''great skill'' for climbing onto vehicles, be it tractors, dump trucks, or lorries¡ªas long as they weren''t fully enclosed in the back, he could climb on.


    It was more difficult for Nangong Yan, though. She had grown up in the city, her family having chauffeured her in small cars since the day she could remember. Having never done anything like this before, especially in high heels, she struggled to climb onto the back of the truck, her slender arms grappling in vain for a long time without sess.


    "Clumsy, clumsy, clumsy, clumsy!" Suming tapped her on the head and then hoisted her up onto his shoulder with one hand gripping the back of the truck and his feet braced against the tires. He effortlessly climbed up into the truck''s cargo area.


    Nangong Yan''s eyes nearly popped out. "When did you be so strong?"


    "I''ve always been strong, just low-key about it." The abilities granted by his affiliation with Friends of Animals, although not as exaggerated as in cultivation novels, were more than enough to carry a person weighing a hundred or so pounds.


    "I knew it, I must have lost weight recently, haha!" Nangong Yanughed foolishly.


    "Quiet down, don''t talk!" Suming immediately gestured to Nangong Yan with his index finger, signaling her to keep quiet lest the driver overhear.


    There were about twenty cages inside the truck, housing the same dogs they had seen at the rescue station. The dogs showed no affection when they saw Suming, looking at him with a numb expression. A few of the more timid ones even curled up in the corners.


    "Shh! You guys stay quiet too!" Suming silently released some spiritual power to prevent the dogs from barking before Nangong Yan could.


    Not long after, the gate that was blocking their way opened, the driver climbed back into the truck, and the big vehicle slowly drove inside.


    Along the way, through the gaps in the canvas at the back, they could see young men and women frequently walking by on either side. Nangong Yan whispered into Suming''s ear, "This is the Medical University in the provincial capital. What do you think they''re bringing dogs here for?"


    Suming had noticed the ''Jiangjin City Medical University'' sign hanging at the entrance of the big iron gate when the truck had stopped there earlier.


    Both of them hadn''t expected that the truck''s destination would be a university, instead of ces like dog meat restaurants as imagined.


    "Maybe they are brought here for experiments. Have you forgotten that our school also used animals for live experiments?" Suming said.


    "I was in the Department of Chinese, how would I know about your department?"


    "Who said so, didn''t you once say that rabbit tasted very good? That rabbit was..." Suming closed his mouth, wearing a mischievous smile.


    Nangong Yan froze, and after several seconds, she pinched Suming fiercely, "You''re too cruel! Errr..."


    "Stop it! That rabbit died after the experiment and it was anesthetized during the experiment, so it died peacefully..."


    Nangong Yan rolled her eyes, "But if it''s being brought here for experiments, there''s not much of a story. All the medical institutions in the country use living animals for experiments, and it''s within the regtions. At most, it''s a story about the rescue station selling dogs on the side, but that''s not a big deal¡ªit''s to a university, not to private individuals..."


    That was indeed unexpected, even Suming hadn''t anticipated such an oue, but since he was here, he couldn''t just do nothing. He needed to find an opportunity to get those dogs out. A person''s role could truly dictate their thoughts; back when he was a student, he could dissect little white rabbits without flinching, and even feed them afterwards. Now that he had changed his identity, transformed into a "beast", watching dogs being experimented on was something his conscience, quite frankly, couldn''t bear.


    It wasn''t long before the truck stopped in front of aboratory building, and Suming quickly led Nangong Yan to jump off from the back.


    Just as the two of themnded, the driver had alreadye around to the back. Seeing two young people behind the vehicle, the driver was taken aback: "What are you doing here?"


    Nangong Yan was startled and froze.


    "We''re senior students, here to conduct experiments in theb building," Suming retorted confidently, "And what are you doing?!" While speaking, he nced at the back of the truck, "Oh, you''re delivering experimental materials, right?"


    With students everywhere in the school, the driver didn''t think much of it and assumed they were just passing by, nodding his head: "Yes, that''s right. Don''t get too close though, these dogs haven''t been quarantined yet." After saying that, he climbed into the back of the truck. As he was climbing, he muttered to himself about how all the students looked so mature these days.


    Suming, Nangong Yan: "..."


    The two ''students'' who were obviously older were left speechless, then went to sit on a bench not far away to observe the situation.


    Shortly after, a few younger-looking male students came out of theboratory building and helped the driver move the dogs inside.


    Er Gouzi followed behind and circled in the woods nearby, and Suming gave it an order to follow those students and see where they ultimately ced the dogs.


    Ever since hearing the remark about looking old, Nangong Yan had been pouting and looking gloomy. After sitting down, she took out a small mirror and started inspecting her face from every angle, all the while mumbling: "Do I look old? Where exactly? Howe?"


    "Big sister, can we focus on the task at hand?" Suming shot her a nce, pointing to the small camera hidden in her bag. Reluctantly, Nangong Yan uttered an "Oh," then stealthily turned on the camera, filming the scene unfolding outside theboratory building from a small hole in her bag.


    About fifteen minutester, all the dogs had been moved into theboratory building. The truck driver and a student who looked like a leader had a brief exchange, and then the driver left with the vehicle.


    "Let''s go, let''s go inside and have a look!" Suming said, pulling Nangong Yan toward theb building.


    However, when they reached the entrance of theboratory building, they hit a snag. Entry required a campus card, and these two fake students, where would they get such a thing? There were also several cameras around the entrance, making it clear that forcing their way in was not an option.


    "What do we do now?" Nangong Yan asked Suming.


    Suming scratched his head, looking around, then suddenly his gaze settled on the entrance. The male student who had just spoken with the driver was still standing at the door, smoking at the edge of a small grove.


    His eyes lit up with a cunning glint, and he turned to Nangong Yan with a dead-serious expression, saying, "Nangong, I think you don''t look old at all and are quite charming indeed!"


    "Really?" Nangong Yan''s eyes lit up with delight, then she paused, "Huh? Why are you being so sweet today?"N?v(el)B\\jnn

 Chapter 158: Chapter 157 A Bad Person

    Suming had a sweet mouth for a reason; he told Nangong Yan about his n with a smile. After listening, Nangong Yan became so angry she almost burst intoughter.


    "You''re simply not human!"


    "I''m clever, aren''t I?" Suming said with a naughty lift of his eyebrows.


    "Well, it is quite clever. Watch me!" Nangong Yanughed heartily, took a quick nce at her eyebrows in a small mirror, then with a snap, she closed the mirror and stuffed it into her bag. Striding confidently in her high heels, she swayed her way toward the grove. Suming looked around like a thief, then turned and ran to an inconspicuous corner to wait.


    ...


    "Oh, hello, hello, how can I help you?" Peng Lin, the president of the Medical College Student Union, looked at the girl in front of him, and his eyes lit up. Her figure and demeanor were clearly a cut above the average college girl.


    "It''s like this..." Nangong Yan said in a coquettish voice, "I graduated this year, and I came back to find my advisor in theb building to get some documents, but when I got to the door, I remembered I needed a campus card to get in¡­" While she spoke, Nangong Yan batted her eyshes in a helpless manner. "Could you help me out, ssmate¡­"


    "No problem!" Before Nangong Yan could finish speaking, Peng Lin patted his chest with a thud and stamped out his cigarette butt. "Come on, I''ll take you inside!"


    "You''re such a nice person, brother!" Nangong Yan said, her smile bright and beautiful as she followed Peng Lin toward theb building.


    Peng Lin was also in high spirits, asking her along the way what department she was from, mentioning he was the Student Union president, and suggesting that since they''ve met by fate, she should give him her phone number so he could take her out for meals and movies in the future¡­


    As they reached the main entrance, Peng Lin had just taken out his card and swiped open the door when suddenly, from a corner nearby, a man rushed out like lightning.


    "Thank you brother, this is my boyfriend. We came together today. Goodbye!" Nangong Yan gave Peng Lin a gentle smile and then, arm in arm with Suming, the two of them walked grandly into theb building, leaving President Peng Lin stunned at the entrance.


    Watching their retreating figures, it took a while for Peng Lin to squeeze out a sentence, grumpily saying, "Damn, the good vegetables always get hogged by the pigs!"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    ...


    "Hey, why are you bing worse and worse now? I didn''t see this bad side of you before," Nangong Yan said, giggling so much that her whole body shook as they walked upstairs.


    "How can you say that? I see you''re enjoying this quite a bit too, right?" Suming imitated Nangong Yan, extending a finger like a delicate orchid, and tapped it on Nangong Yan''s head, asking in a coquettish voice, "Isn''t that right, brother?"


    "Get lost, that''s disgusting!"


    Theb building wasn''t crowded. They asionally passed a few students and teachers who didn''t pay much attention to Suming and her. The students probably thought Suming and her were young teachers, while the teachers thought they were students. In any case, they proceeded smoothly.


    Suming had also graduated from a biology program and was quite familiar with theb building. In mostbs, they worked with chemical experiments, not as much with live subjects as one might imagine, because live subjects are expensive and not that many are avable for student use. There were also a fewbs with human specimens, usually in more remoteboratories, but even those were dry and not scary in broad daylight.


    Er Gouzi had already scouted out that the dogs had been temporarily left on the rooftop. Suming and Nangong Yan climbed the stairs to the top level.


    This level had noboratories, just a door leading to the rooftop, and was quite deserted, with hardly anyone around.


    They had just arrived at the top and weren''t even through the door yet when a teacher-like figure turned the corner and gave them a somewhat strange look, readying to ask them something.


    Suming thought quickly, pretended not to see the teacher at all, and without hesitation grabbed Nangong Yan, pinned her against the wall, and gave her a fierce kiss.


    Nangong Yan was stunned, eyes wide open.


    The teacher looked at them a few times with a curious expression but shook his head and walked past them, apparently mistaking them for two students sneaking around to be intimate with each other.


    "Damn, that scared me," Suming let go of Nangong Yan and sighed with relief only after the teacher had gone.


    It took a while for Nangong Yan to gather her wits, and then she looked at Suming with anger ring in her eyes, "You... took advantage of me!"


    "Sister, it''s just acting, okay?" Suming asked, defiantly.


    "Bullshit! Does acting require sticking your tongue out?" Nangong Yan wiped off the saliva left on her mouth, asking fiercely.


    "I was aiming for authenticity! Doesn''t a bit part need dedication? Doesn''t it need acting skill?" Suming continued to defend himself and then, before Nangong Yan could blow up, quickly turned and headed towards the small door leading to the rooftop, "Stop nagging, if it''s a big deal, I''ll let you kiss me backter!"


    Nangong Yan retorted bravely, "You said it, kid. If you dare go back on your wordter, you''re dead meat!"


    "Ah... wow, the weather is really nice!" Sumingughed awkwardly, clumsily moving past the issue, and pushed the door open to step out onto the rooftop.


    The weather was indeed good, the moon brightly speckled with stars, a big full moon hanging high in the sky, without a hint of smog in sight. These days, with the provincial meetings happening, the weather was exceptionally nice; every day was clear, the smog vanished, pollution gone. It was baffling how the weather turned so pleasant whenever there were significant meetings. It showed that our party, our country, was in harmony with the heavens, a child of destiny...


    "Cut the crap! Lucky for me this camera works at night too; otherwise, it really wouldn''t capture anything clearly!" Nangong Yan took out her camera, tested it, and found it to be quite satisfactory¡ªthe advanced device could film clearly even in the dark.


    Following Er Gouzi''s lead, Suming and the others found a group of dogs caged behind therge water tank on the roof!


    Unexpectedly, in addition to these newly arrived dogs, there were another seven or eight dogs tied next to the pipes behind the water tank!


    "What is going on here!" Seeing these dogs, Nangong Yan''s eyes widened in shock, and Suming also felt a tingling sensation on his scalp!


    The seven or eight dogs before them were almost all injured, hastily wrapped with dirty gauze through which blood seeped, some with stomachs torn open, others with disturbing wounds, and one even had both its front legs gone, oozing foul-smelling pus from the wounds...


    The worst part was, these dogs were all alive! Lying on the ground, they emitted faint whimpers, their eyes devoid of any helpless expression, only emptiness...


    Suming checked them with his spiritual power and found these dogs to be nearly devoid of consciousness, essentially either dazed or just a breath away from death!


    "Damn, how could this happen!" Even Suming got a bit angry. In their past experiments, they at least made it quick for the animals, putting them down after the experiment. It was outrageous to leave these injured animals behind after experimentation, letting them wait for death amid extreme pain!


    This was far beyond the bottom line of scientific research!

 Chapter 160: Chapter 159: What Should Be Done?

    Peng Lin was at the peak of frustration, looking at Nangong Yan with a stomach full of grievances. He had wanted to say something like "I didn''t take advantage of her, she deceived my feelings," but when he saw the brick in Suming''s hand, the words at the tip of his tongue changed to, "Big brother, just ask, I''ll spill everything..."


    "Alright, alright, start from the beginning. Where did you buy these dogs from?"


    One has to say that the quality of the current Young Pioneers is really poor, not a bit of the backbone like Liu Hn or Wang Erxiao. The interrogation went incredibly smoothly. Suming would ask a question, and Peng Lin would spill the beans, often replying with dozens of sentences. Before long, everything was clear.


    All the dogs were purchased from the rescue station, one hundred per dog. As for the funds saved, they all went into Peng Lin''s own pocket. He used that money to operate and run for the student council president.


    "You''re kidding me, you think you''re running for President of the United States? You need to spend money to run for student council president?" Suming felt like his brain couldn''t keep up.


    With a mournful face, Peng Lin said, "Big brother, you graduated many years ago, right? You don''t know the situation. Now, running for student council president is too difficult. If you don''t take people out for meals, drinks, and foster good rtionships, who will vote for youe election time?"


    Suming rolled his eyes, "So you''re saying you ran for student council president just to take everyone out for meals and drinks? Should Imend you for serving the people then?"


    "It''s just that being president gives you some prestige, and it also means more opportunities to interact with female ssmates..." Peng Lin said while sneakily ncing at Nangong Yan.


    Nangong Yan red at him, took the brick from Suming''s hand, and shook it at Peng Lin, "Keep looking at me, and I''ll smack you!"


    Peng Lin trembled with fear, quickly pointing at the young girls, "No, no, big brother, big sister, I meant them..."


    ...


    After getting the situation straight, Suming and Nangong, with Peng Lin in tow, went on a trip to the Changping County Rescue Station.


    To catch a cheater, you have to catch a pair; there had to be a confrontation between Mr. Lin and Peng Lin; otherwise, it would just be one-sided statements.


    Peng Lin was reluctant at first and even thought about taking the opportunity to run away. But when he saw the burly Su Meng sitting in the car and the tworge wolfhounds, he threw that idea out the window. Knowing that the Wrangler cost several hundreds of thousands, Peng Lin was even a bit in awe of Suming.


    You know how young people are, they have an indescribable sentiment towards authoritative and sessful figures¡ªpart envy, more admiration. Especially when the sessful person is about their age. Of course, Suming didn''t really count as a sessful person at the moment, but in the eyes of someone like Peng Lin, who would break thew for three or four thousand yuan a year, he was definitely a remarkable figure.


    When the Wrangler returned to the rescue station, Mr. Lin came out to open the gate and his face changed the moment he saw Peng Lin also sitting in the back of the car.


    "Mr. Lin, I''ve confessed everything, so you should spill the beans too!" Peng Lin would have been wasted not acting; with his demeanor, he could y a traitor without even needing makeup.


    "Ah, at this point, what else is there to say. I had no choice!" Mr. Lin sighed deeply, "Let''s go inside and talk."


    Once inside, Lin was there, peeling sugarcane with a knife. Looking up and seeing Suming and the others enter, Lin was startled and subconsciously shook the knife.


    "What are you trying to do! Silence us?" Peng Lin got scared, hiding behind Su Meng in an instant.


    Then they just saw Lin chuckle and cut off a piece of sugarcane, offering it to Suming, "Want some? Just dug it out from the field this morning."


    Suming took the sugarcane and started munching on it, finding it really sweet. He turned to ask Nangong Yan if she wanted some, to which she red at him and said, "Let''s talk business!"


    "Oh, oh, oh, right, Lin, what exactly are you all trying to do here? How could you secretly sell the rescue station''s dogs for personal gain?" Suming asked, holding half a sugarcane he had bitten into and looking quite stern.


    Lin squatted in the corner, holding his head in his hands, murmuring gloomily, "We had no other choice!"


    "Be more specific, what do you mean you had no choice!" Peng Lin added with false bravado, "I bought those dogs only for scientific research. I''m the one who had no choice!"


    As soon as he finished speaking, Nangong Yan let out an unsatisfied snort of displeasure.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suming went over to pull Lin up, "Sit down, let''s talk while sitting." After saying this, he turned to re at Peng Lin and pointed to the corner, "You, squat over there."


    "But I''m on your side," whined Peng Lin, as he obediently squatted in the corner. Lin sighed again and said, "Mr. Su, you say I''m seeking personal profit, but I don''t ept that usation. Think about it, I sell a dog to the university for a hundred yuan, right? But what if I sell to a restaurant? A kilo of dog meat sells for tens of yuan at a restaurant, and a light dog weighs around four or five kilos, while a heavy one can be twenty to thirty kilos. If I were greedy for money, I''d sell directly to restaurants, making at least one hundred and fifty, or even close to two hundred yuan per dog¡ªno problem!"


    Suming and Nangong Yan exchanged nces; Lin''s words did seem sincere and not without reason.


    "Right, selling to the universities means at least they''re used for research," Lin mumbled on the side.


    "Exactly, we''re doing it for research," Peng Lin tried to pitch in but was silenced with a re from Suming.


    "Also, look here, if I really just wanted to make money, why would I only sell more than twenty dogs, totaling just over forty including the ones from before, not even fifty?" Lin stood up and pointed outside, "Look, there are still over fifty dogs in the yard. If I wanted to make money, I could''ve sold them all."


    "Mr. Su, my uncle truly had no other options," Lin said, spitting sugarcane onto the ground with frustration, "So many dogs came all at once, needing food and care, medicine for sickness, but not a cent came from above. They told us to figure it out on our own. How could we figure it out? We can''t print money! We could onlye up with this idea, to sell a portion of the dogs and use that money to support the remaining ones. It would be best if someone could take these dogs away; if not, once the money runs out, we''ll have to sell another batch to support those that are left."


    "But what about the money left by the kind-hearted people who sent the dogs previously?" Nangong Yan asked.


    "That money was barely enough. It all ran out in just over a month," Lin replied.


    Lin spoke with exasperation, "Now that things havee to this, you''ve taken your photos, we''ve admitted to our actions. Decide what you want to do. The worst-case scenario¡ªwe take our stuff and leave, I''ve had enough of this suffocating rescue station!"


    "What do you think we should do with this situation?" Nangong Yan asked Suming, looking uncertain. She had been ready to make a big deal out of the story, punish the bad guys severely, but it turned out, everyone had their own tough circumstances to deal with. Of course, Peng Lin was an exception.


    "Let me think," Suming said, walking around the yard with his hands behind his back. Outside the dog cages, there were little enamel bowls filled with food, and a faint smell of disinfectant hung in the air. It seemed that Mr. Lin truly hadn''t pocketed the money.


    Nangong Yan followed him out and looked back at the room, quietly speaking to Suming, "Actually, they''re not really bad people, Peng Lin aside, Mr. Lin can be sympathized with. If we just report this directly, Mr. Lin''s job will surely be lost, and it''s not just about losing a job¡ªthere may also be legal repercussions."


    "But we can''t just let this go, can we," Suming said.


    "Of course not, that''s why I''m here to discuss it with you. You''re full of clever ideas," Nangong Yan said, resting one arm on Suming''s shoulder, smiling slyly, "Think of something, a good solution!"

 Chapter 161: Chapter 160 Black and White

    Suming brooded in his room all night.


    There were solutions, of course. This affair, in essence, wasn''t some earth-shattering scandal. Calling it illegal seemed a bit much, but it wasn''t exactly legal either¡ªit was a borderline case.


    The crux of the matter was moral judgment.


    Thew is a yardstick, a benchmark, but no one ever said morality yed that role. Morality is different for everyone, depending on their stance or status; sometimes it''s just hot air. So with this issue, the keyy in how it was ''expressed.'' Different narratives could lead to different oues. Depending on the direction of the narrative, the results could be totally different.


    The next morning, Suming called Mr. Song, "Director, here''s what I think. Since it''s already a done deal, there''s not much point in assigning me. And if we''re being strict, nobody''s really responsible, except for that student who embezzled animal **********. Their responsibility isn''t that great either. If we blew the lid off this, in the end, it would be the little guys, Lin and Lin, who''d take the fall."


    "I''ve talked to Wang about this, and he basically agrees with you. Changping County is under Jiangjin City, and even though Jiangjin City doesn''t get along too well with our Yangchuan City, we''re still colleagues. They''ve got their difficulties, and while our original intention was to help rescue the animals, if this were to be reported, it could justplicate things for the other side''s work," Mr. Song exined.


    "We can''t just let this slide, right?" Suming said with a slyughter.


    "Wang said he''ll discuss the matter with the relevant departments in Jiangjin City. The batch of dogs was their responsibility, and now that we''re taking them in, a little bloodletting is definitely in order!"


    "Exactly, boss, you get me!" Sumingughed heartily.


    "I knew you were the sort to feather your own nest!" Mr. Songughed as well and then shifted to a more serious tone, "So, what exactly are you nning to do with those dogs? The zoo doesn''t have enough space to keep them if you bring them back."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Here''s what I''m thinking..." Suming shared his thoughts in detail with Mr. Song.


    That very afternoon, Wang Jian She spoke with the officials in charge from Jiangjin City over the phone and sent them the video material that Suming had obtained. After that, both sides held meetings and, after discussions that went on into the night, they finally arranged everything that needed to be done afterward.


    Nangong Yan also received direct instructions from the head of the TV station on how to handle the follow-up news coverage.


    The news content remained the same, but the angle of the reporting changed significantly.


    "This approach seems fine, but won''t some people use us of muddling right and wrong?" Nangong Yan asked Suming, somewhat puzzled.


    "What is right, and what is wrong?" Suming rolled his dark eyes, "Do we have to offend everyone in the world to be right? Sister, you can''t always think you''re the sole sober man in a world full of drunks. With this approach, we solve the problem and maximize benefits. What''s wrong with that? If we had just bluntly exposed the truth as initially intended, it might have felt satisfying, but beyond letting off steam, it would have beenpletely ineffective. Insisting on exposing the truth would ultimately be unhelpful, and it might even disrupt the work between the two regions, leading to social instability. Who would benefit from that? The ordinary, honest people would still be the losers. Besides, our report tells the truth as it is, without any fabrication."


    "Why does everything seem so reasonable when ites out of your mouth?" Nangong Yan remarked.


    "That''s because it''s inherently reasonable!" Sumingughed heartily.


    "Alright then, I''m off to prepare the news draft!"


    "Mr. Lin, these dogs will need to stay a bit longer, but certainly not for too much time¡ªI''ve got the next steps nned out. Just one thing: do not sell them again," Suming warned Mr. Lin before leaving.


    "Don''t worry, I wouldn''t dare. But you''d better hurry; I can''t afford to keep them for long. And you said you''d find vets for the dogs, to treat them, to disinfect them. Where will all that moneye from?"


    "No worries. If we''re out of money, we''ll just ask Chairman Peng for it!" Suming patted Peng Lin''s shoulder, "Little Peng, you''ve made tens of thousands over your college years, haven''t you? It''s time to give a little back to society."


    Peng Lin felt like dying. How long had he been the student council president? Less than a year. And managing theb¡ªfor just a year as well. All in all, even with the embezzled euthanasia drug funds, it didn''t amount to four thousand. Where would this so-called tens of thousandse from?


    But Suming had warned him. If Peng didn''t bleed a little for this, the video showing him embezzling funds for animal euthanasia would find its way to the inte, and then not only would he lose the student council presidency, he wouldn''t even be able to keep his student status and would be waiting to be expelled.


    Having no choice, Peng Lin had to cut his losses. He coughed up not only the few thousand he embezzled but also sold off a bunch of his possessions, including hisptop and an iPhone 6, to scrape together twenty thousand yuan. He handed it to Mr. Lin as reimbursement for various expenses incurred by the rescue station during that period.


    After everything was settled, Suming drove back to the zoo.


    A few dayster, media outlets from both Jiangjin City and Yangchuan City reported the story almost simultaneously.


    Three months before, a kind-hearted individual rescued a batch of dogs without quarantine certificates and temporarily ced them in the Changping County Rescue Station. Although the sheltercked funds, Mr. Lin spared no expense, managing just enough to keep most of the dogs alive, waiting for people to adopt them.


    But months went by with no one willing to adopt. With no other options, the shelter initiated a coboration with the Jiangjin City Medical University, donating some of the weaker dogs for medical experiments. In return, the university funded the shelter to ensure humane treatment for both the remaining shelter dogs and those used in experiments.


    To apany the news, there were photos of the dogs in the shelter and images of theb. At least from the pictures, the dogs seemed to be doing quite well.


    Even though it was an act borne out of necessity, the news still sparked a heated debate.


    Some people thought this was a suitable solution, alleviating the nation''s burden while providing medical institutions with suitable test subjects. For these dogs, it was considered a contribution to humanity and certainly better than waiting to die in the shelter.


    Others felt this solution was too inhumane. The dogs had been saved originally to live, but now they were ending up dead anyway, which begged the question of why they were rescued in the first ce.


    Yet, the most intense discussion centered on the dog lovers themselves.


    After rescuing these dogs, why not take full responsibility to the end?

 Chapter 162: Chapter 161 Maximizing Profits

    Were these dogs saved out of kindness and love, or was it merely an act to prove oneself as a kind and loving person, thus obtaining a sense of superiority and gratification?


    This was the topic most discussed these past few days.


    Somehow, someone found a few photos. In the photos, after saving the dogs, the majority of so-called animal lovers wore smiles, shed V-signs in victory poses, took group photos, then shared them on WeChat Moments and Weibo, reaping countless likes. After a celebratory meal, they disappeared without a trace, leaving the dogs to fend for themselves.


    "This is making the rescue station pay for their ''kindness.'' It''s just like someone who keeps saying how much they love their girlfriend, how they would give their life for her, but when it''s time to pay up, that person is nowhere to be found. When the girlfriend needspany, faces crises, that person is just at home ying video games," someone said.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "No one asked them to save those dogs, and they weren''t obligated. But if they chose to step in, they should see it through to the end. Half-hearted efforts like this are no different from abandoning one''s own dog, aren''t they?"


    "Let''s face it, it''s just because those dogs are ugly and dirty, not appealing, right? Looks matter even in the world of dogs."


    ...


    Somehow, the focus was once again diverted towards the animal lovers, sparking heated online debates, with hopes that those who initially rescued the dogs would take responsibility for them.


    With some targeted ''help'' from the authorities in both cities, personal information about the dog rescuers was quickly doxxed and exposed online.


    That''s when things started to escte.


    Whether it was due to pressure or genuine love, a portion of the dog rescuers stepped forward, offering to donate money to help the dogs. A very few even offered to adopt the animals.


    However,pared to the initial number of dog rescuers, very few stepped forward. The majority quietly changed their phone numbers.


    At this point, the official Weibo ounts of the governments from both sides spoke up.


    They addressed three issues. First, whether they are dog lovers or not, civilians are not obligated to engage in dog protection, so it''s wrong to morally hijack or condemn those who love or eat dogs. The government will promptly introduce regtions to standardize the dog meat market, overseeing breeding, transportation, quarantine, and ughter to sales, ensuring the market operates legally and effectively;


    Second, there must be an effective solution for animal rescue. Otherwise, even if this incident is resolved and the dogs at the Changping County Rescue Station are properly settled, simr tragedies will ur in the future.


    Third, due to public opposition, the partnership between the rescue station and Jiangjin City Medical University was temporarily suspended.


    The actions of both governments this time were very swift.


    Yangchuan City Government decided to officially allocate two mountain peaks at the back of Yangchuan City Zoo, covering several thousand acres of woond, to the zoo as part of its industry.


    On one hand, it would serve as arge semi-open rescue area where the dogs saved this time, along with future rescued cats and dogs, could settle down. On the other hand, it clearly demarcated the management boundaries of the zoo, providing a definitive red-letter document for future rewilding efforts and asset management to avoid disputes.


    At the same time, the provincial capital Jiangjin City proactively donated funds to help Yangchuan City Zoo establish arge semi-open rescue area. It also advocated that in the future, if there were more rescued animals elsewhere, they could be uniformly sent here for care, financed by the local government, with Yangchuan City Zoo managing.


    With the government taking such a stance, the online criticism decreased significantly, and even many praises appeared. After all, both governments had presented very concrete ns to address the issue with high efficiency and not just empty talk.


    Originally, it was a disastrous affair. If the incidents of selling and mistreating dogs were to be reported urately, Lin could not escape responsibility, nor could the relevant leaders at the Medical University avoid being criticized. Simrly, the heads of the rescue station and their superiors would have been severely attacked by public opinion. In fact, Yangchuan wouldn''t benefit at all, but rather seriously offend Jiangjin City and Changping County.


    Harming others for personal gain isn''t unusual, Suming often engaged in such actions, but actions that harm both oneself and others, even to the point of causing mutual destruction, are utterly nonsensical¡ªonly a madman would do such things. Later on, those missing kind-hearted individuals might jump out again, standing on the moral high ground to criticize and give orders.


    Now, with the situation handled this way, Lin became two diligent, conscientious grassroots rescuers. The leaders of the rescue station and the Medical University might have used questionable methods, but it showed that they were also working hard to solve the problem. The governments from both sides appeared to act in the public''s interest and decisively intervened, demonstrating formidable governance skills.


    The animal lovers also got off the hook. The zoo took in the dogs so they wouldn''t have to be responsible. However, after this incident, anyone thinking of rescuing dogs in the future would probably think twice before taking action¡ªafter all, with rescuees responsibility.


    Everyone was happy, except for Peng Lin, the president of the student council, who was very unhappy. His iPhone 6 had been switched for a Nokia with a blue screen, his Asusptop for a second-hand desktop, and he could no longer serve as president of the student council. He was busy working in the cafeteria to pay off his debts, leading a life so strapped for cash that he even quit smoking.


    "In that case, I''ve also saved a future lung cancer patient!" Suming suddenly felt his image grow taller.


    In reality, the biggest beneficiary was the zoo.


    Last time, although they had in effect been permitted to use the back mountain for rewilding work under the guise of receiving donations, there was no official document, and it had not been publicly announced. More crucially, allowing the zoo to rewild in the back mountain did not mean giving thend to the zoo¡ªthere''s a big difference between the two. It meant thend could be used, but ownership was not transferred, and others could use it if needed.


    It''s like themunal square in a residential area, wheredies can dance and men can practice Tai Chi.


    But now, with an official document in ce, the significance has changedpletely. The back mountain peaks are now officially the property of the zoo, which can also use areas beyond those peaks following the spirit of previous meetings.


    With thend in the hands of the zoo, it was almost the same as being in Suming''s hands.


    And those dozens of dogs, while shabby and unfriendly from a pet owner''s perspective, could still be put to good use by Suming.

 Chapter 163 Chapter 162 Waiting to Get Diarrhea

    ```


    "This mountain will inevitably be developed sooner orter; better to have it firmly in the zoo''s hands than let someone else do it," Mr. Song said. "We don''t need that much space just for releasing animals into the wild and wildlife conservation. But have you thought about what exactly you want to do with such arge piece of forestnd? Setting up factories or building houses is definitely out of the question, as it can''t affect the animals'' habitat."


    "I understand that, but as for what to do with it exactly, I haven''t given it much thought yet. Maybe nt a load of cabbages when the timees?"


    Suming cracked a joke and then pointed at Shuijun Lake below: "The urgent task at hand is to deal with the fish in theke first, it''s almost the end of the year."


    Time does fly. Wandering here, strolling there, and half a year has almost passed. As the weather gradually got colder, the fish-riding business on Shuijun Lake had already stopped. Severalrge fish had been transferred to the aquarium, where they enjoyed ''benefits'' typically reserved for the nation''s honoured retired cadres, along with the river dolphins and baby fish. Meanwhile, the boat-riding business was still ongoing, with the big and small catsing every day to sell tickets. Stay tuned with empiren/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    One of the cats seemed to have gotten its belly erged by who knows whom,zing around all day. Suming simply gave it maternity leave¡ªwhen the kittens were born and weaned, then it coulde back to work. He wasn''t short of money now.


    He suspected that Hei was responsible, but it could also be another cat; the rtionships among the felines had be veryplex! After getting their fill, these animals became just like humans, all day long thinking about that sort of thing. Since hanging out with Suming, the previously stray cats had skipped ahead an entire human era, bounding into amunist paradise with their legs thrown up high, no worries about food and shelter, hence they seemed tock other pursuits. Especially with their continually increasing intelligence, there seemed to be signs that a sort of ''pce intrigue'' was unfolding.


    The poor wolf dog brothers, both being male and rted by blood, couldn''t even get up to any mischief if they wanted to! But wait until that group of dogs arrived, those two scoundrels were probably going to be worn out.


    Speaking of the fish in Shuijun Lake, they''ve been growing at an astonishing rate recently!


    They say ''astonishing,'' not ''delightful,'' and for a reason. On the one hand, the growth rate of the fish was just too fast, surpassingmon sense. The fish in Shuijun Lake had only been there for six months, and even with Hei''s fish poop acting as fertilizer and Liang Shi''s excellent care, there''s no way they could''ve grown so much in just half a year. The average size now was that of fish that would normally be two years old!


    This of course had to do with the Animal Friends! Suming found that different animals often had varying results when frequently interacting with the Animal Friends. Generally speaking, there were three categories of effects: size, constitution, including strength and agility, and intelligence.


    For animals like cats and dogs, extended interaction mainly increased their intelligence, followed by constitution, with minimal change in size. Fish, on the other hand, primarily grew in size; for example, the bighead catfish, which grew from half a pound to over ten pounds in just six months.


    Suming even wondered if the bighead could live for decades, it might just grow into a whale!


    On the other hand, especially in recent times, the fish in Shuijun Lake seemed overactive. Fish are usually rather quiet when the weather is cold or very hot, dutifully lying low in their nests and not moving much. Buttely, Shuijun Lake has been ''boiling with fish activity,'' with fish of all sizes darting about as if their nests had exploded.


    Liang Shi was taken aback at first, thinking it was either ack of oxygen or some fish disease. He tested the oxygen content in the water, which turned out to be very OK, no issues at all. He then scooped up a few fish to check them, and they didn''t look sick either.


    "So what''s going on?" Suming didn''t understand either.


    "I don''t get it, I can only say the fish have too much energy!" Liang Shi scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed to say.


    Was there such a thing? Suming was surprised. Even with an abundance of energy, there''s a limit, right? Take humans, for example; they get excited for a few days over a joyful asion, maybe act a bit crazy, and that''s about it. But based on Liang Shi''s words, it had been almost a month, and the fish in theke were still in an extremely excited state.


    That wasn''t excitement; that was madness¡ªexactly like Fan Jin getting his degree.


    ```


    Fortunately, this wasn''t really a bad thing. Fish that are more active are less prone to disease and their flesh tends to be firmer. The only issue was their excessive appetite. Recently, the fish feed business alone couldn''t satisfy these creatures, so we had no choice but to employ the zoo staff in full force, scattering feed by the river after work.


    But fish being so lively all the time was ultimately not normal. Suming wouldn''t dare sell them to the market without finding the cause. If people ended up getting sick from eating the fish, the trouble would be huge. Hundreds of tons of fish from Shuijun Lake could harm so many people. If things went south, within half a year, the people of Yangchuan City might all develop illnesses, and then this book could be rebranded as a post-apocalyptic zombie saga¡­


    Thinking it over, could it be that bastard Zhou Jin had done something again, releasing some weird substance into theke?


    That possibility wasn''t nonexistent, but it wasn''t likely. Theke''s defensive perimeter wasx on the outside but strict on the inside. The wolves and cats had been called back from guarding the river banks. However, with the dramatic increase in bee and horsefly poptions in the back mountains, Queen Bee and Hu Hou had sent quite a few minions. Now, nearly every tree by theke had one or two bees or horseflies on duty, so if there was any movement, it surely wouldn''t escape my notice.


    After thinking it through, there was only one possibility: the supernatural being Tai Sui! Recently, Shuixie Lake, where Tai Sui resided, had been connected to Shuijun Lake, with the waters mingling. Clearly, the water that Tai Sui soaked in had some special effects, which the savage and the giant baby fish could attest to.


    Could it be that the water soaked by Tai Sui was causing the fish''s excessive excitement?


    As a result, Suming conducted an experiment specifically for this purpose. Heted several dozen fish of different types and ced them in the aquarium''s tanks. A few dayster, when he checked on them, those fish were indeed behaving normally! But once he returned them to Shuijun Lake, they started causing amotion again.


    Without a doubt, it was the water influenced by Tai Sui that was causing this!


    "Su Meng, draw some water for me to drink," Suming called out to Su Meng, who was sprawled by Shuixie Lake, gulping down water.


    Su Meng, this fellow, ever since following me back to the human world, was quite normal, except for not being able to speak and having extraordinary strength and appetite. In all other aspects, he was bing more and more like an ordinary person. There was just one thing: he drank water from Shuixie Lake every day like an animal.


    Suming sometimes drank a bit of the water Tai Sui had influenced, which indeed had the effect of invigorating the spirit, but it was always boiled first, and he didn''t drink much. Now, he had to confirm that this kind of water indeed had no negative effects.


    Soon, Su Meng returned with arge bucket of water, this time steeped withke water. The water in the bucket seemed to contain some floating matter, looking like cotton fluff.


    "Damn it, consider it a sacrifice for science!" Suming prepared a bunch ofmon medicines, set his mobile phone number to the emergency line 120, and then, with clenched teeth, hugged the bucket and gulped down the water furiously.


    Same old recipe, same old taste! After chugging half a bucket, other than feeling a bloated stomach, everything else was normal. In fact, he felt clear-headed and spirited.


    Then, Suming just sat in the chair, motionless.


    "Little Su, what are you doing?" Mrs. Tong called out from a distance as she walked by thekeside and saw Suming sitting alone on the tform by Shuixie Lake, zoning out.


    "I''m waiting for diarrhea!" Suming waved his hand, looking like he wanted no one to bother him.

 Chapter 164 Chapter 163 Testing Water Quality

    Mrs. Tong looked at Suming with bewilderment. "Has this child gone mad?" she muttered to herself as she walked away.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Even as night fell, Suming didn''t feel any difort in his stomach. On the contrary, he was getting a bit hungry.


    "This works?" Suming was a bit stunned this time. That was half a bucket ofke water with floating particles! Drinking it straight down and nothing happens? Even if it was just ordinary cold water, gulping down so much in one go would surely cause stomach pain!


    To say nothing happened wasn''t quite urate either. Suming had been extremely excited all day, but when it came to sleep at night, he slept incredibly well. He had actually slept for just over four hours, waking up before dawn, yet feelingpletely rejuvenated.


    Could this be the legendary "drink during the day to avoid drowsiness, drink at night for a good sleep"?


    "Mr. Zhao, I need a favor from you." Suming waited patiently until daylight and then called Zhao Yun.


    "Tell me, is it about the fish? Looking at the time, they should be going to market soon. Bring me samples of all kinds of fish, and I''ll help you market them," Zhao Yun asked with a yawn on the other end.


    "The fish can wait a few days. I have a water sample here. Could you find an agency to test it for me? But it has to be confidential," Suming said.


    "Okay, I''ll send it to Switzend for testing. Absolutely no one else will know," Zhao Yun said after some thought.


    Suming had long been aware of Zhao Yun''s influence; even if Zhao Yun had said he would send the samples to the moon for testing, Suming would have found it perfectly normal.


    He now had to find out exactly what effectiveness the water infused by the Tai Sui had - and it had to be scientifically tested!


    After the phone call with Zhao Yun, it wasn''t long before Suming''s phone rang again. It was Lin from Changping County.


    "Boss, I''m on the road with those dogs. We should arrive at your zoo around noon," Lin said.


    "Okay, call me when you get here, and I''lle to the entrance to meet you."


    Regarding the Houshan Nature Reserve, the efficiency of both governments this time was quite remarkable. In just one week, all the necessary paperwork had been processed, and the sponsorship funds of 200,000 RMB from Jiangjin City had been secured. Speaking of 200,000 RMB, Suming had toin a bit. Although it was a symbolic sponsorship, wasn''t it a bit too ''symbolic''? A provincial capital city reduced its troubles so much because of him, and all they coughed up was 200,000 RMB?


    There wasn''t much that Suming could do about such shameless behavior, given the government officials'' higher status. After all, 200,000 RMB was better than nothing. Besides, the money wouldn''t end up in his pocket anyway; he was just the person in charge.


    Checking the time, it was only half past eight. Suming didn''t feel like sleeping anymore. He got up, reached under the bed for an empty mineral water bottle, filled it with water from Shuixie Lake that had been infused by the Tai Sui, and then drove to Zhao Yun''s house with Su Meng.


    As he arrived at the gates of Zhao Yun''s vi, he saw Zhaoqian walking out with Chengcheng, who was carrying arge backpack with a bear pattern on it. Zhaoqian was crouching down to tie her shoces.


    "Chengcheng, why are you pouting so much? nning to hang a soy sauce bottle from it?" Suming approached with a heartyugh.


    Zhaoqian turned her head and was startled by the tall Su Meng before saying, "Oh, it''s you, Su. I''m taking Chengcheng to ballet ss."


    "I! DON''T! WANT! TO! GO! MY! FEET! HURT! A! LOT!" Chengcheng enunciated every word loudly and then, holding on to Suming, she pleaded pitifully, "Big brother, can you take me out to y, please..."


    Zhaoqian hurriedly gave Suming a covert look, signaling him with her eyes. Suming ruffled Chengcheng''s hair and sternly warned her, "No way, little girls who don''t do ballet won''t grow tall!"


    "Really?" Chengcheng looked at Suming skeptically.


    "Uh... haha, hehe, Mrs. Zhao, please exin to Chengcheng. I''ll go inside first..." Experience tales with empire


    After saying that, he hurriedly took Suming and squeezed sideways through the vi''s gate. If Chengcheng were his own child, it wouldn''t matter if she didn''t jump, and ballet wouldn''t necessarily amount to much in the future anyway. But now, no parent wants their child to lose at the starting line, and Zhaoqian kept giving him meaningful looks. As an outsider, it wasn''t good to debunk a child''s mother in front of her, and as for why not doing ballet would stunt her growth, let Zhaoqian worry about that.


    It''s funny to say, but with a father like Zhao Yun, Chengcheng was born way ahead of the starting line. It''s like running a 100 meter dash where everyone starts at the starting point, but Chengcheng starts at the 50 meter mark. Yet that''s still not enough; they want to push her to the 90 meter mark.


    I guess all parents are like that, one can''t understand their feelings without being a parent themselves.


    As soon as he entered the door, he saw Zhao Yun sitting in the living room on the first floor, wearing pajamas and eating breakfast, with many cute little bears printed on the pajamas.


    "Mr. Zhao, does your family belong to the bear n?" Suming grinned andughed.


    "There is no bear n in the whole country," Zhao Yun looked down at his pajamas, alsoughed, and said, "My child''s mother bought them. You know women, they never really grow up." Then he pointed to the various dishes on the table and said, "That must be your cousin, right? He looks quite robust! Have you two had breakfast yet? If not, join in, let''s eat first and then talk."


    "Oh." Suming went to the kitchen on his own, grabbed two pairs of chopsticks, and with Su Meng, sat down at the dining table.


    It turned out to be a bit of a tragedy, Su Meng had a huge appetite and didn''t know what being polite was; he ate so voraciously that soon there was hardly anything left on the table. Luckily, Zhao Yun had eaten early, otherwise he might have gone hungry.


    While eating, Zhao Yun kept staring at Su Meng''s face and asked Suming curiously, "I haven''t seen him before, have I? Why does he look so familiar?"


    "Probably not, but now that you mention it, he does seem familiar," said Suming casually.


    That statement was a stretch of the imagination, but fortunately, Zhao Yun didn''t pay much attention and offhandedly said, "Nonsense, if he''s your own cousin, how can you not find him familiar?!"


    "Could this be what they call a ''generic face''? Familiar to everyone who sees it?" Suming wondered aloud.


    "You might as well say it''s a connection from a past life," Zhao Yun was sometimes nonsensical, and after rambling a bit, he asked, "What about the water sample you mentioned? Show it to me."


    "Oh, oh!" Suming stuffed half a tea egg into his mouth and casually took out a crumpled mineral water bottle from his bag and ced it on the table.


    Seeing the crumpled mineral water bottle, Zhao Yun''s mouth twitched uncontrobly, "Is this what you used to hold it?"


    "I''m testing the water inside, not the bottle," Suming replied.


    Zhao Yun shrugged, grabbed the bottle, unscrewed the lid, and smelled it, "It smells quite nice. Any problems with it?"


    "Nothing too serious, it just seems a bit different from normal water," Suming answered.


    Zhao Yun didn''t ask where Suming got the water; he just nodded, "Alright, I''ll get it tested as soon as possible. Ten days at the soonest, a half month at the most; I''ll let you know when I get the results."


    "Alright, I have something to do at noon, so I''ll head back," Suming stood up and walked towards the exit, casually pocketing thest tea egg on the table, "I''ll take one of your tea eggs."


    "Don''t you have any pride, swiping tea eggs?" Zhao Yun said, exasperated.


    "This stuff is precious. Ordinary folks can''t afford it; I only get to enjoy these when I visit you..."

 Chapter 168 No MSG Added

    Men like it when a woman bats her eyes at them, but fellows like Zhao Yun, who had been married for many years, knew all too well that a wife batting her eyes for no reason was definitely not a good thing.


    That flirtatious look meant that Zhao Yun could start doing hardbor!


    "You wouldn''t think of cking off either. Come with me to kill the fish." The two of them carried a big basin full of fish to the backyard of Zhao Yun''s vi and set it by the tap.


    Zhao Yun turned out to be quite skilled at household chores. The fish were all thrashing about, but with a confident tap of the back of the kitchen knife behind their heads, Zhao Yun rendered them motionless. Then, with scissors, he swiftly sliced open their bellies and scooped out their innards.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Continue reading at empire


    Watching, Suming''s eyelids twitched. It was only fish they were killing, but with Zhao Yun''s technique, he could have been a professional assassin. So, the two men began a bloody butchering task in the backyard of Zhao''s house, which resembled a garden...


    Chengcheng squatted to one side. The little girl was quite brave; she watched the bloody scene of killing fish without blushing or batting an eyelid. Unlike most little girls who would scream about cruelty, she instead perched on a small stool, thoroughly engrossed in watching, showing she truly was her father''s daughter, likely to be adept at fish ughtering in the future.


    "How did your talk go with those few restaurants? Is there any chance for future business?" Zhao Yun asked, his hands covered in blood, as he casually plucked a clump of viscera from the belly of a ckfish and tossed it into the nearby trash can.


    "I delivered a batch to each of them, and they all epted it, paying me market price. But," Suming rinsed off a silver carp that had been gutted, saying, "it seems that they don''t n to order fish from me in the future. After I delivered the fish, they didn''t keep my phone number or business card. I hinted at further business, and they didn''t bite."


    "I see..." Zhao Yun wiped the sweat from his brow with his arm, thought for a moment, and said, "That''s understandable, after all, they''re used to purchasing fish from Huating Reservoir, and changing suppliers suddenly carries certain risks. Let''s take it slow. Since they bought this batch of fish from you, if the quality is good, we can discuss further."


    That was true, but Suming was in urgent need of money. Without selling this batch of fish quickly, he wouldn''t have the funds for many other things, such as investing in the brewery or developing the hillside behind his home.


    "Otherwise, shall I step in to help you negotiate?" Zhao Yun offered.


    Zhao Yun had good rtionships with the owners of several restaurants, even holding shares in some. If he stepped in, they would definitely consider buying a portion of their fish from Suming to honor his rapport with them.


    After thinking for a moment, Suming replied, "Let''s not. If you step in, it would seem like I''m using connections to get favors. Even if they do purchase from me, it might not be a lot, and it could make everyone''s situation awkward."


    "As long as your fish is good, you shouldn''t worry about sales," Zhao Yun said.


    That was easy to say, but what defines good or bad? Average fish might not be discernible to most people. Besides, Suming didn''t have the time to slowly explore the market; it would take too much time.


    "So, what do you n to do?" asked Zhao Yun.


    "I do have a n, something I thought of a long time ago, but I''m not sure whether it will work or not... Let''s not talk about this now. We''ll discuss it after lunch," Suming replied.


    Zhao Yun looked at him curiously, "Why do I feel like you''re talking as if you''re about to eat ast meal..."


    Sumingughed heartily, chopping off a fish head and swinging it about, "That''s exactly what it is, ast meal."


    Chengcheng pped her hands and eximed, "Big brother, your knife skills are amazing!"


    Zhao Yun: "..."


    At noon, the Zhao family''s meal was oddly vish''.


    It was calledvish because there were many dishes, a total of ten dishes and one soup with stir-fried, pan-fried, boiled, and deep-fried varieties, filling the entire table;


    But it was odd because apart from that one soup, all ten dishes were fish-based, including spicy diced fish head, braised carp, pan-fried fish chunks, steamed bighead carp, tofu stewed with ckfish, fish soup...


    Zhaoqian didn''t dare to kill fish, but her cooking skills were pretty good. Even though they were all fish dishes, she managed a variety, so they didn''t look monotonous on the table. With colorful seasonings and variously shaped tes, dishes, and bowls, it looked like a feast that was very appetizing.


    "Let''s start, let''s start, Chengcheng eat slowly, don''t choke on a bone!" Zhaoqian took off her apron and waved her hand with a burst of enthusiasm.


    Suming and Su Meng weren''t shy either, and started eating right away. Suming had been eating fish from his ownke quite oftentely, so he was used to it, regardless if it was tasty or not. However, Zhaoqian''s cooking skills were much better than his own, so he found himself enjoying the meal. Su Meng couldn''t really care less about taste; he ate fish like a meat grinder, with the main goal of filling his stomach. Even if the fish was raw, he''d chew it up and swallow it down, leaving nothing behind, not even skin or bones.


    The Zhao family of three ate their meal in a much more genteel mannerpared to the two from the Su family. Zhao Yun casually picked up a piece of the braised carp''s belly with his chopsticks and just as it reached his mouth, his eyes lit up. After smacking his lips a couple of times to finish the fish, he looked up at Zhaoqian with a smile, "It''s very good, you''ve improved a lot recently."


    "Stop ttering me, it''s always been like this. There''s no increase or decrease," retorted Zhaoqian coquettishly, then picked up a piece of the tofu that had been stewed along with the fish for Chengcheng, saying, "Eat more tofu, it''s good for your health."


    Chengcheng probably didn''t like tofu that much, as she poked at it with her chopsticks, making a few honeb-like holes, then reluctantly sucked on her chopsticks.


    "Wow, it''s so fresh!" Chengcheng looked up with wide eyes and said in surprise.


    "Are you trying to sweet-talk me like your dad? I cooked for you every day and never heard you say it was tasty," Zhaoqian said with augh.


    "No, no, no." Chengcheng shook her head vigorously, her pigtails swinging back and forth, as she seriously said, "Mom, it''s true, I''m not lying to you, your cooking skills have really improved, the tofu tastes pretty good." After finishing that small piece of tofu, she picked up another.


    "Ah, you two, always saying nice things in front of Su." Women like to hearpliments, and although Zhaoqian knew that Zhao Yun and Chengcheng were probably just trying to make her happy, she was still quite delighted, scooping up a spoonful of fish soup and sipping it daintily.


    After tasting it, Zhaoqian was stunned. She stared at the milky white fish soup and mumbled to herself, "That''s not right, why is it so delicious? I didn''t even add MSG?"


    .........


    PS: I just realized it''s been over a month since Ist asked for votes, no wonder I''ve been feeling offtely! Must request some votes!

 Chapter 169 Smashing the Signboard?

    Zhao Yun''s family was particr about cooking healthily, so they rarely used MSG and other chemical products, and given that fish is inherently a fresh ingredient, there was no need for MSG, especially not in fish soup¡ªto savor its pure, original vor.


    Zhaoqian took a sip of the soup and noticed something was amiss¡ªthe fish soup tasted much fresher than before, and it didn''t seem like the artificial vor of MSG or chicken essence.


    "See, I tell you your cooking is improving, but you don''t believe me," Zhao Yun said as he picked up a small piece of fish head to eat and nodded at Suming with satisfaction.


    Zhaoqian quickly grabbed some fish from several dishes to taste and then had a moment of realization, saying, "Oh, Zhao, you must be ttering me, my cooking skills are still the same. It''s the quality of this fish that''s particrly good. Su, aren''t all these fish raised in theke? Howe they taste even better than the wild ones? And there''s a very special vor, I can''t quite put my finger on it, it''s notmon in other fish. Did you add any additives?"


    Hearing Zhaoqian''sments, Suming finally rxed. It proved that the fish from Shuijun Lake, nourished by the water where Tai Sui had soaked, indeed had an extraordinary taste.


    The thing about "vor" is that it''s quite subtle and sometimes subject to psychological influence. The reason to have Zhao Yun and Zhaoqian taste the fish was to avoid being clouded by his own subjective views. They had no idea that the water these fish lived in was extraordinary, and considering Zhao Yun''s experience, the fact that their family, who had seen and eaten a lot, gave their approval, was sufficient to prove that the fish from Shuijun Lake were truly exceptional. Enjoy more content from empire


    "What additives? If there were any, I wouldn''t be bringing them to your house. Our zoo has good water quality! Just look at the finless porpoises and the like; they all used to live in Shuijun Lake and they''re all fine," Suming said while patting Su Meng, who was engrossed in devouring his meal. "This guy drinks directly from theke water all the time, look how strong he''s grown!"


    "Oh, I see¡­" Zhaoqian, appeased by Suming''s exnation, picked up arge piece of fish for Chengcheng. "Eat more, the fish today is especially delicious!"


    Soon, all the fish on the table had been picked clean, leaving only bones. Chengcheng was sucking on a long ckfish spine, while Zhaoqian cleaned up the dishes and Zhao Yun sat on the sofa, brewing two cups of tea. Then he took out an antique-looking pipe, lit it, took a couple of puffs, and said to Suming, "Since the quality of your fish is top-notch, there''s nothing more to say. I''ll call them right now and have them order more of your fish!"


    "No need, no need. Didn''t I mention I have a n? Now it seems I can put it into action¡­" Suming whispered his n to Zhao Yun.


    After hearing it, Zhao Yun was momentarily stunned before pointing at Suming andughing helplessly. "I have stakes in those stores; you rascal, are you trying to sabotage my brand?"


    "That''s why I had to speak to you first,"ughed Suming.


    "Informing me before you sabotage my brand, you''re incorrigible," Zhao Yun didn''t object. He thought for a moment, nodded, and said, "Alright then, just be careful not to overdo it. Not only are those store owners good friends of mine, but I also have shares in them."


    "Don''t worry¡­"


    ¡­


    In the world, most industries earn money by providing services and products to others, selling theirbor. However, there exists an industry where you do nothing, dine and drink everywhere, critique and nitpick to your heart''s content after eating and drinking, and in the end, you don''t even have to pick up the tab.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    This kind of person is called a gourmet, or a gourmet food critic.


    Food criticism is generally a side job. Gourmets themselves are famous chefs with considerable ies, and they do not rely on sponsorships from businesses to make a living. At the same time, they possess a wealth of professional knowledge; their stance is rtively neutral, and the credibility of their reviews isparatively high. A well-known gourmet''s review can even greatly impact a restaurant''s sales to arge extent.


    However, in China, so-called food critics are mostly shills. Their literary skills are better than their knowledge of food, living off kickbacks from businesses.


    Last year, Yangchuan City specificallyunched a food column, airing once a week, introducing the delicacies of Yangchuan City and its surroundings. Initially, they invited a local so-called gourmet. This person''s primary identity is an inte celebrity, living off promoting various foods to their online followers. In a nicer way, they are frencers; bluntly put, they are idle drifters. The reviews from such people aren''t very reliable, and they would only say good things in every episode. The viewers aren''t fools and could tell at a nce that this was a shill, so the show never really took off.


    A few months ago, just when the program was about to be cancelled, the television station made a big effort and invited a foreigner from the provincial capital to be a guest.


    This person named Sibei''er was a Frenchman who had appeared on two episodes of ''The vor of Huaxia'' and was famous for his characteristic reviews. He himself is a Michelin three-star certified chef with several of his own restaurants in France.


    In the world of chefs, a three-star Michelin chef is basically the highest honor, essentially the pinnacle of the industry worldwide.


    After Sibei''er made a few episodes at Yangchuan Television Station, because of his objective reviews and professional attitude, he suddenly boosted the ratings of the program quite a bit. Although it still couldn''tpare with several popr variety shows, it has be well-known among the households of Yangchuan City, and when citizens have free time, many watch it with great interest.


    The host of the Yangchuan Gourmet program and Nangong Yan have a good rtionship; they are like workce besties. Nangong Yan and she whispered some things these past days, and then the Yangchuan Gourmet was preparing to do a show aboutmon freshwater fish.


    "As everyone knows, freshwater fish are the highest-selling fish species in our country. Compared to other precious edible fish, the four major domestic fish might not taste quite as good, but because of their low cost and ease of breeding, they have be the mostmon delicacy on the citizens'' dining tables. In this episode, I will join Mr. Seibel in embarking on a few restaurants that serve freshwater fish to find the tastiest freshwater fish."


    The first stop was the Fish Joy Garden, where they had a dinner party at the zoo; this ce can be regarded as thergest fish-specialized restaurant in Yangchuan City.


    The restaurant was still open for business, and the filming spot was set up in a semi-open private dining room at a corner, where Seibel, despite being there to taste food, was dressed in a neat suit with his hair slicked back. Those who didn''t know would think the old man was going to attend some banquet.


    The server brought over various signature dishes made from fish one after another, and before long, the table was full.


    "Wow, indeed, it''s thergest specialized fish restaurant in Yangchuan City; it looks very appetizing. Mr. Seibel, please enjoy your tasting," said the host on the side.


    However, Seibel did not pick up his chopsticks but looked at the fish in front of him and said in somewhat stiff Chinese, "Eastern people cherish presentation, aroma, and taste in their cooking; based solely on appearance, the chefs at this restaurant are undoubtedly skilled, with excellent color and fragrance. So much so, without even tasting, I can guess that these fish won''t taste bad. However, in my personal opinion, as a chef, turning ingredients into a delicious meal is only the second step. The first step is to keenly select the best kind from among the many seemingly simr ingredients!"

 Chapter 170 The Fastidious Foreigner

    Upon hearing Mr. Seibel say so, the host seemed not quite to understand and asked, "Mr. Seibel, what do you mean by that?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "I believe that an excellent chef should not only possess cooking skills but should also be able to distinguish the quality of the ingredients themselves. Let''s take your fish for example, the same braised fish dish, cooked by the same chef and even underpletely identical conditions in every aspect, would the taste necessarily be the same? No, no, high-quality ingredients have a natural advantage! As far as I know, in Huaxia, chef apprentices don''t get to cook right away, they must first learn to select ingredients, and that''s the reason."


    As Mr. Seibel spoke, he deftly picked up a small slice of braised carp with his chopsticks, choosing not the boneless belly but a tender piece of flesh beneath the fish''s eye.


    "Hmm, just as my tongue tells me, this fish is delicious. Despite the use of many heavily vored artificial seasonings, they can''t possibly mask the natural delicious taste of the fish. The seasoning has perfectly integrated with the fish, and the freshness of the fish itself has been brought out by the seasonings. It is clear that this hotel has a highly skilled chef," he said, putting down his chopsticks.


    After Mr. Seibel finished speaking, the face of the hotel lobby manager standing to the side nearly burst into bloom with a smile.


    "But..." Mr. Seibel changed his tone, "there is a saying in the East: ''Learning has no end.'' The same goes for gourmet food. Just because this dish tastes great, should we stop our pursuit of even more delicious food? No, no, no..."


    The onlooking crowd widened their eyes at Mr. Seibel, unsure what this foreigner was trying to say¡ªwas he suggesting the fish was good, or not good?


    The manager of Yuleyu Restaurant was also feeling perplexed, what was this foreigner up to? Was he here to show support or to undermine them? He shot a plea for help toward the host, who could only shrug helplessly. Mr. Seibel''s thoughts were always unique, sometimes even ''bizarre,'' and he could indeed make some unexpectedments on the show that even she, as the host, couldn''t control.


    However, it was precisely because of Mr. Seibel''s unique style that the viewership of the show had increased, which was very eye-catching. In reality, she, the host, was just an errand-runner and utterly incapable of interfering with Mr. Seibel''s actions.


    Unconcerned with those around him, Mr. Seibel continued, "Currently, from the aspects of culinary skills and seasoning, there isn''t much room for improvement with this fish. Even if I were to cook it, I likely wouldn''t do any better, especially since I''m more skilled with Western cuisine. But my tongue tells me that this is a pond-raised domestic fish. Therefore, in terms of the taste of the fish meat, itcks a bit of the wild and spirited vor..." Continue your saga on empire


    After finishing, he nodded at the hotel manager, "Handsome manager, would you agree with my assessment?"


    "Spirited vor, for eating fish? Why don''t you just eat it alive for guaranteed spiritedness, goddamn foreigner!" the lobby manager cursed inwardly, though he dared not show it on his face and hastily replied, "Oh, yes, it is domestic. However, it''s not raised on feed. We''ve had a longstanding cooperation with our supplier, whose fish quality is absolutely no problem."


    The lobby manager was also exasperated. These domestically raised fish were cheaper and when customers ordered fish, they usually got this kind. He''d never heardints about their taste. Did this foreigner have such a discerning pte that he could tell the difference with just one bite?


    So, he quickly summoned a server to remake the dish. Before long, a new fish soup arrived, with several bright green scallion slices floating in the milky-white broth.


    "Ah, this is much better!" Mr. Seibel didn''t even try the fish this time; he took a sip of the soup and nodded in satisfaction, pointing at the fish soup, "This time, I taste a hint of nature and freedom, which is very important for the fish. If I am not mistaken, this must be a wild fish, right?"


    "Yes, Mr. Seibel!" The lobby manager tried hard to keep up, wondering what this ''freedom'' was about. He swallowed, shed a thumbs-up, and said, "This is from thergest reservoir in Yangchuan City, the Huating Reservoir, which is veryrge and connected to the Yangtze River. It''s practically a wild environment, and the water quality of the reservoir is extremely good, so the fish raised there are especially delicious."


    After speaking, he added in his mind that it was also quite expensive¡ªinparison, the price of the same fish from the reservoir was 20% higher than the artificially raised fish from before.


    "If I were to give a score, I would give the first fish I tasted 60 points, but for this fish, I can give 80 points," Mr. Seibel nodded, wiping his mouth with a napkin, looking ready to stand up and leave.


    The host hade with a ''mission'' and seeing Mr. Seibel about to leave, she hastily thought of a way to steer the conversation towards what Nangong Yan had instructed, but before she could speak, the manager of Yuleyu Restaurant took the initiative to ask, "Mr. Seibel, why only 80 points? You said this fish is very good and even lively and free. It should score at least 90 points, right? Could it be that our chef didn''t do a good job?"


    "Oh, no, no, it''s not to do with you, but rather a certain insistence of mine, this old fellow," Mr. Seibel said with a chuckle, shaking his head, "I believe that only the finest ingredients deserve a score of 90 or above. Such ingredients, when tasted, give an extraordinary sensation. Of course, such superb ingredients are almost impossible toe by, hence, this isn''t your problem."


    "But the fish from Huating Reservoir are already the best in Yangchuan City. I think there might not be any better in the entire country. Your standard seems too mysterious," the lobby manager muttered, thinking to himself that now ''extraordinary'' had been brought up, why didn''t the old foreigner just say that eating it would grant immortality?


    A server whispered a reminder, "Manager, didn''t the zoo send over a hundred pounds of fishst time?"


    "The zoo''s fish are alsoke-raised. People even row boats on theke, so the taste of the fish is likely not even as good as the domestic ones," the lobby manager whispered back with a frown.


    "Just try it, maybe it will meet the foreigner''s taste," the server suggested.


    After thinking it over, the lobby manager pulled the host aside to discuss, "We have another batch of fish here, but I have no confidence in it. If the foreigner doesn''t like it, our reputation will be ruined."


    The host, fully aware of the situation, understandingly replied, "No problem, we''re not live broadcasting. Just prepare those fish, and if Mr. Seibel finds them unsatisfactory, we''ll cut that segment before airing."

 Chapter 171 80-Point Dishes, 100-Point Ingredients

    Soon enough, several fish dishes were remade and brought to the table.


    Just by their appearance, they didn''t seem much different from the previous fish dishes, be it steamed, boiled, pan-fried, or deep-fried. When ced together, it was hard to tell which was superior.


    This time, Seibel chose a fish head with heavy seasoning, the chopped chili fish head. He used his chopsticks to push all the chili aside, then picked out a small tender piece of meat from underneath the eye and tasted it.


    "Mr. Seibel, how is it this time? Do you feel that magical sense you mentioned?" the female host asked, holding back herughter.


    Seibel didn''t speak but waved his hand to indicate to the host not to disturb him. Then he picked up a piece of meat from below the neck of a carp, a spot where the fish''s head and belly meet, and which is usually the fishiest part of the carp. Of course, if the ck lining in the fish''s belly isn''t cleaned out properly, that would be the fishiest part, but obviously, the chefs at Pleasure Fishing Park wouldn''t make such a basic mistake.


    After finishing, Seibel still didn''t speak. He picked at other parts of several fish, tasting a small portion here and there. When he eventually got to the braised snakehead fish with tofu, he didn''t even go for the fish but instead picked up half a piece of tofu. Read exclusive chapters at empire


    The people around were amazed. This foreigner was odd, choosing parts like the tougher back of the fish, the bony tail, or the fishy parts that most people would avoid.


    "Manager, does this foreigner have a tendency towards self-punishment?" the young employee who had proposed using the zoo''s fish asked the lobby manager quietly. These parts of the fish were generally not eaten and were thest to be cleared up to be fed to pigs as slop.


    "You know nothing, it''s precisely these parts that are usually not tasty which can truly demonstrate the real quality difference of the ingredients!" the lobby manager whispered back. At first, he thought Seibel was a bit too superstitious, talking about feelings while eating fish, but now he had begun to admire Seibel, recognizing him as a true connoisseur.


    Everyone was looking on eagerly as Seibel ate the fish. Watching someone savor food made them drool, and Seibel''s slow but meticulous eating made people think, ''I want to taste that too.'' The hall gradually quieted down, and the soft sound of people swallowing could asionally be heard.


    Seibel, unhurried, tasted all the newly prepared fish one by one, finally put down his chopsticks, took a sip of water to cleanse his pte, and let out a long sigh.


    "Mr. Seibel, how many points would you give to these fish dishes?" the female host asked, seizing the moment.


    Seibel, with his infuriatingly slow temperament, shook his head nonchntly, "Let''s not score yet. Mr. Manager, could you prepare a sashimi dish for me to try? Use the same batch of fish from the zoo," Seibel motioned to the fish from the zoo.


    "Sashimi? Isn''t that only for salmon? How can you make sashimi from the four major types of fish and snakehead fish?" the lobby manager asked, puzzled.


    "No, no, no. Although the Yamato People are masters of raw cuisine, the earliest version of sashimi was actually transmitted from your Tang Country, called ''qiekwai.'' All four major families of fish can be used for sashimi; of course, this kind of carp is an exception¡ªtoo many bones and the texture is not suitable."


    After Mr. Seibel made his point, probably for fear that the hall manager and the audience might misunderstand, he turned towards the camera with a smile and said, "Taste-wise, the culinary skills of the chef from Fish Joy Park are impable. The fish from the reservoir I tasted for the second time, and the fish from the third, actually don''t differ all that much. The reason I wanted to eat sashimi was to verify the raw quality of the ingredients."


    The old man Mr. Seibel was a big shot; what he said goes. Soon, arge te of sashimi was brought up. Several types of fish were selected from parts with fewer bones, sliced into individual pieces, and arranged in different sections on the te, forming a sashimi tter.


    Mr. Seibel took a sip of water and then tasted the sashimi made from each fish in turn. Finally, he put down his chopsticks, and this time, without needing anyone to prompt him, he directly addressed the camera, "This time, I am still giving 80 points..."


    "Oh..." A somewhat disappointed murmur rippled through the crowd¡ªit was the same old story after all the fuss.


    Unconcerned with others, Mr. Seibel continued, "Any fish, when cooked with a great amount of seasoning, inevitably masks the original delicate vor of the fish. Therefore, in my opinion, it is simply impossible to surpass 85 points. Thus, eighty points can already be considered very high. But...if we''re just talking about the ingredients themselves..."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mr. Seibel pointed at the sashimi on the table with his chopsticks and uttered a satisfied exmation, "These fish, I must say, are among the most delicious freshwater fish I''ve ever eaten. If I were to grade these fish, in the category of freshwater fish, they''d receive a full score!"


    The notoriously picky Mr. Seibel actually gave a perfect score! Even the host couldn''t quite believe his ears and asked, "Mr. Seibel, are you saying that these ingredients are top-notch?"


    "Of course!" Mr. Seibel nodded vigorously, "It''s hard to imagine that these fish were raised in a man-madeke. Had I not been told about the origin of these fish beforehand, I would have thought they were from some pristine natural water source, like a cier, or a ce untouched by humans¡ªonly such ces could yield such deliciousness!"


    After finishing, Mr. Seibel shrugged with a smile, "It''s a pity that the French don''t have the habit of eating these fish, otherwise I would definitely consider ordering a batch for my restaurant. But who knows, maybe the reason the French don''t like Chinese fish is that they''ve never tasted something this delicious."


    After saying this, Mr. Seibel asked the somewhat stunned restaurant hall manager, "I think you could order arge quantity of these fish. Their future sales prospects must be very good."


    "Huh?" The hall manager finally snapped back to reality. There''s no more fish; the zoo had only sent over a hundred pounds, and more than twenty pounds were used up just for Mr. Seibel''s tasting! But he was quick-witted and promptly said to the camera, "We still have plenty of this type of fish here, and everyone is wee toe and taste."


    The female host¡ªwith the goal now fully achieved¡ªhad a spark of inspiration and sought to gild the lily by asking, "Then Mr. Seibel, apart from being delicious, does this kind of fish have any special nutritional value?"


    Mr. Seibel shook his head and said with a smile, "I think if I said that eating this fish could improve intelligence or increase physical health, our viewers would love to hear that. However, the truth is that I''m just a chef, not a top-tier nutritionist, let alone a scientist, so I can''t offer an answer to that. But I believe that savoring delicious food brings a happy mood, and what can possibly be better for one''s health than feeling joyful?"

 Chapter 173 As One Falls, Another Rises

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    The fish density in Shuijun Lake was actually not very high. ording to polyculture yield calctions, a high yield for farmed fish could approach 4 tons per acre, with a standard yield of around two to three tons beingmon.


    Apart from a few shallow areas on the periphery of Shuijun Lake, there was a total of 123 acres avable for fish farming. If we were to calcte at ''full capacity,'' it would be sufficient to raise 400 tons of fish. However, Shuijun Lake is not a private fish pond after all; it also serves as a recreation spot for visitors. One reason Suming was able to contract it at a low price was precisely this factor. As a result, the density of fish Suming raised at that time was not particrly high. A rough estimate suggested that Shuijun Lake could yield about 200 to 250 tons of fish each year.


    Based on market prices, if all could be sold, it would be around three to four million Yuan, not a sensational figure.


    But the profit margin was substantial. Labor and feed costs for Shuijun Lake were virtually non-existent, as they had been earned back in other ways, with profits still to be made. As for the fish fry, not a penny was spent. Aside from hiring some workers forting and incurring some costs, there weren''t any other significant expenses. It could be said that it was all pure profit.


    Moreover, Shuijun Lake was now capable of producing more than just over 200 tons of fish! Therge channel connecting Shuijun Lake and Huating Reservoir had been cleared. As long as there was a market, fish from Huating Reservoir could be brought over for sale. It should be noted that the farming area in Huating Reservoir was more than ten times the size of Shuijun Lake!


    However, all of this was predicated on having a market. Without a market, even ten thousand tons of fish would be useless and would just have to wait to die and rot!


    The major hotels had ced some orders, but these were not sufficient to fully absorb all the fish from Shuijun Lake. A stall by the zoo next to theke sold fish as a small gimmick; they sold a couple of hundred pounds a day, an additional revenue stream for the zoo employees, but this did not address therger issue for Shuijun Lake.


    So ultimately, a solution had to be found in the fish market. Yangchuan City''s fish market was aimed at the general public and had numerous small fish vendors. This was where the main battlefield for salesy.


    Yet, opening up sales channels in the fish market was not that easy.


    The hotels and restaurants went for the high-end or at least mid-range approach, while most small merchants targeted the daily needs of the public. They preferred to y it safe, reluctant to change suppliers lightly, and moreover, there were too many small vendors tomunicate and pitch to, one by one.


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    There was also an underlying reason why the merchants in the fish market were unwilling to change suppliers; to arge degree, it was because their current supplier was Huating Fisheries Company.


    On one hand, the fish from Huating Reservoir were not much worse off than those from Shuijun Lake, at least not to an extent the average person could taste. On the other hand, those involved in the aquatic market knew that Huating Reservoir had a not-so-clean background, and it was better not to offend them if possible. Previously, there were small vendors who changed suppliers, but their end was not favorable, and they were quickly squeezed out of the aquatic market through various means.


    "Isn''t this too overbearing?" Suming asked Su Meng, opening his eyes wide in astonishment.


    Su Meng waved his fists angrily a couple of times, seemingly ready to resolve the matter by force.


    "Of course, that won''t do. We arew-abiding citizens! Let me ponder this!" Going in with force was definitely not suitable. Huating Company had a reputation for corporate bullying, which wasmon knowledge, but if you really thought about it, there weren''t any concrete legal proofs against them. You can''t just im a fish vendor is afraid of being retaliated against by Zhou Jin to prove that Zhou Jin hasmitted a crime, can you?


    ...


    Zhou Jin, as he wished, finally met with Mr. He. However, Zhou Jin didn''t feel too happy about it. Mr. He was visiting as a representative of the city''s Fisheries Association. Zhou Jin wanted to bring up certain topics several times, but Mr. He inconspicuously interrupted him each time without giving him a chance.


    ```


    There was another worrying matter: the fisherypany was running out of working capital. Zhou Jin made a lot of money, but he also had more ces where it needed to be spent. Despite the grand facade of the fisherypany, the cost of upkeeping rtionships and making investments were allrge figures. Plus, having spent more than a decade in prison and experienced many hard times, Zhou Jin, a bachelor, had always been one to spend when he had money, greatly enjoying life''s luxuries. As a result, thepany''s liquid assets weren''t substantial.


    ording to past years'' patterns, once the fish seedlings were in the water and the feed was prepared, the end of the year would bring in the sales, a cycle that would repeat itself. Zhou Jin had already arranged for the feed and fish seedlings, and there wasn''t much else that really needed spending this year. The money in the ount should have been enough.


    But with Baldy getting injured one after another, and Zhou Jin himself suffering severe injuries and being hospitalized, not to mention the loss of fish seedlings... a series of blows tightened the financial stress. This was amon problem among private enterprises¡ªwithout sufficient reserved funds, they could be aggressive when things were going smoothly, but struggled to cope with various unforeseen disasters and cmities.


    For those in business, working capital is the lifeblood coursing through thepany''s veins. Once cash flow issues arise, the entirepany could be paralyzed. And Huating Reservoir wasn''t like other industrialpanies that could secure mortgage loans from banks; the reservoir was leased, and the lease was nearly up. Their material assets were limited to a self-built small vi without a property title, a few cars, and several fishing boats that had seen better days, none of which could secure much in loans.


    If this were the past, it wouldn''t be a cause for concern because as long as the fishery business operated normally, money would continue to flow in. Especially with the end of the year approaching, which was prime time for fish sales, cash would quickly return once the fish were sold.


    At the beginning of the season, inexplicably, some fish had died in the reservoir, butter on, things improved with fewer fish deaths, and the fish grew fatter and more robust than in previous years.


    Just as it looked like the money was about toe in, several high-end hotels with long-term cooperation suddenly notified him that they would temporarily stop ordering fish from the reservoir!


    Zhou Jin sharply realized that this was a serious problem!


    These orders weren''trge enough to be fatal for the total output of the reservoir. His primary sales channel was the local fish market in Yangchuan City, as well as shipments to other regions.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    But the immediate settlement of the fish payments from high-end hotels provided cash inrge sums within a short period, whereas repayments from the fish market were rtively slower.


    Moreover, supplying fish to high-end hotels wasn''t really about making money, but about building a reputation, essentially getting these establishments to vouch for the quality of the reservoir''s fish.


    For instance, iming that a certain five-star hotel uses exclusively our fish, and that our fish sell exceptionally well in certain prominent restaurants, would establish a reputation. More people woulde to buy the fish as a result, and there would be more willingness to coborate and purchase fish from the reservoir.


    But conversely, if it got out that a certain prestigious hotel, which had always used fish from the reservoir, was no longer sourcing from him this year but had switched to another supplier, it would be a significant blow to the reputation of Huating Fisheries Company.


    Local market influence might not be affected momentarily, as Zhou Jin had the final say in Yangchuan City''s fish market, no fishmonger daring to deal with fish from Shuijun Lake as yet. But for those distributors from outside the city, it was a different story. Some were as influential as Zhou Jin and bought from him because of the quality and fame of the reservoir fish, not because of Zhou Jin''s influence.


    Therefore, while the orders from those hotels might not have beenrge, their significance was critical. If someone were to snatch those orders away, one could foresee that Huating Fisheries Company''s future orders would dwindle, leading more people, especially those distributors from outside, to turn their attentions towards Shuijun Lake.


    ********************


    PS: Mr. Zhou is courting disaster again. How does that saying go? You don''t court death if you don''t seek trouble. What do you say, should we cripple him for good this time?

 Chapter 174 Ant Nest

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    The bald man, however, disagreed with Zhou Jin''s idea, saying, "Mr. Zhou, aren''t you thinking too much? How big can Shuijun Lake be? At most, it''s just two to three hundred tons of fish. Even if they sell them all, it''s impossible for them to steal our market."


    This made sense, actually. Although the cultivation area of Huating Fisheries Company was just a small part of the entire reservoir, not even one-tenth, it was still a behemothpared to Shuijun Lake, and the two were not on the same level in terms of output at all. With millions of people in the entire Yangchuan City and the whole province, the market was so vast that the few hundred tons from Shuijun Lake were insignificant. Even if Shuijun Lake sold all its fish, it couldn''t deal a fatal blow to the reservoir; there was no directpetition between the two at the moment.


    The bald man spoke this way for another important reason. He really didn''t want to provoke Suming again. After several attempts to cause trouble for Suming, not a hair on Suming''s head had been harmed while he himself had nearly lost his life under mysterious circumstances.


    The bald man was not highly educated and was somewhat superstitious at heart. He wondered if this person was under some sort of divine protection. Otherwise, how could he have such smooth sailing?


    Zhou Jin snorted coldly, "What do you know! A thousand-mile dike is destroyed by an ant''s nest, do you understand the meaning? A tiny ant makes a hole on a thousand-mile dike. If you ignore it, let it develop, before long the whole dike will copse!"


    "Mr. Zhou, you''re really cultured!" The bald man quickly pped on some ttery while inwardly scoffing with disdain, thinking to himself, I have at leastpleted nine years ofpulsory education, yet this semi-illiterate who didn''t even finish elementary school dares to spout off to me.


    People stand in different positions, each with their own reasoning. Zhou Jin''s thinking wasn''t necessarily wrong; several hotels changing suppliers all at once, and all choosing Suming''s Shuijun Lake simultaneously, was definitely a dangerous signal. The Suming of now was more than just a tiny white ant. Although far from having the power to confront Huating Fisheries Company head-on, not being on the same level, he was already posing an insidious threat to Huating Fisheries.


    For so many years, Huating Fisheries had virtually monopolized the market in Yangchuan with nopetitors. Now, the sudden rise of Shuijun Lake was undoubtedly a huge provocation and threat to Huating Fisheries.


    "So, Mr. Zhou, what should we do?" The bald man pped his forehead, anxiously said, "It''s quite strange indeed. Those snakehead fishes I put inst time should have caused substantial reduction in the fish poption of Shuijun Lake by now, but it looks like nothing has happened at all. Not only that, but I heard that the fish raised by that kid are particrly tasty, even better than our wild-caught ones."


    "It''s really damned weird, they haven''t had a reduction in output, yet we have lost quite a bit..." a blonde underling muttered a few curses on the side.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Thisment struck Zhou Jin like thunder, suddenly enlightening him.


    He had seen the dead fish in the Huating Reservoir before. Some had died for no apparent reason, while it seemed others had been killed byrger fish or aquatic animals. Huating Reservoir wasrge; the water surface contracted by the fisheriespany was less than one-tenth. It wouldn''t be strange to have some ferocious animals in other areas. In fact, it was impossible to avoid such losses when raising fish in the reservoir, as they were considered part of the nned loss that happened every year. This year, however, there were simply more than usual.


    At the time, Zhou Jin didn''t pay much attention to it, but now, thinking back, it seemed suspicious.


    On the day of the model worker award, he had a chance encounter with Suming in the garage. He had pretended to care while actually probing with a question about the fish in Shuijun Lake recently. At the time, Suming had appeared nonchnt, and Zhou Jin thought he was just faking it.


    There were many other details, including how the bald man had been attacked by wasps and wolf dogs after releasing the snakeheads that day...


    All these incidents, when linked together, led Zhou Jin to suddenly guess the truth: it was very likely that the other party had discovered the bald man releasing the snakeheads all along, but had kept quiet about it, secretly retrieving the snakeheads and introducing them to the Huating Reservoir to harm his fish!


    "It must be so!" Zhou Jin''s face turned blue with anger.


    "What must be so?" The bald man widened his eyes and asked.


    ```


    Zhou Jin red at him with displeasure, "It''s all because you screwed up!" Having said that, he simply repeated his conjecture.


    The bald man felt a deep sense of grievance, thinking to himself, haven''t I been risking my life ving away for you, and now it ends up being my fault?


    That''s what it''s like being an underling, the big brother ims the rewards, and I''m left holding the bag. The bald man sighed and said, "So, Mr. Zhou, what do we do now?"


    "Just waste that kid and be done with it!" That was the same bleached-blond underling from before.


    Zhou Jin paced around the room with his hands behind his back, "No, he''s now a known figure in the city, being direct and harsh would look bad. If they start investigating, it would be very easy for them to trace it back to me."


    "Then I''ll go poison the fish in Shuijun Lake." The bald man said helplessly.


    "That''s just asking for trouble! He''s already started selling fish, if you poison them and people die, a major poisoning case is something nobody can cover up!" Zhou Jin said, while he went over in his mind, from the first time he met Suming to everything that had happened since, hoping to find some clue that could be exploited.


    "Right, do you guys remember when he first came, asking me how to raise fish?" Zhou Jin asked.


    "Yeah, brother, you were so domineering you told him to scram," ackey chimed in with ttery.


    "That''s where the problem lies. He knew nothing about fish farming back then, so how could he have grown so many fish in just a few months? And raised them so well? There has to be someone guiding him!"


    "Could it be someone from the Agricultural Science Institute? I heard there''s a graduate student helping him out," the bald man suggested.


    "No!" Zhou Jin shook his head, "When the Agricultural Science Institute came to Yangchuan, his fish were already thriving¡ªit must have been before that! Oh, I remember now. That day at the river, you guys were stung by wasps because of some old man fishing there, andter, that old man left with that kid, didn''t he?"


    "Right, right, that''s true!" The bald man would never forget the tragedy that unfolded by the river.


    "It might have something to do with that old man. You guys go find him. I have this intuition that it''s highly likely rted to that old man. If we find him, we might just find a breakthrough!" After bing a reservemittee member, Zhou Jin began to speak more and more sophistically; even words like "breakthrough" began to slip out.


    "But that''s like looking for a needle in a haystack! Where do we even start?" The bald man was dumbfounded.


    "Don''t we have surveince footage? Check the tapes, luckily I''ve been ill, so the footage from a few months back probably hasn''t been wiped yet."


    ***********


    PS: Although I rarely show up in the book review section and hardly ever speak much within the book, I do read the reviews every day. You guys always manage to guess the outline for what''sing next, which feels somewhat embarrassing... Covering my face...

 Chapter 175 Zhou Jins Plan

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    Sometimes, people can''t help but believe in fate, as many things, upon looking back, seem to have been destined all along.


    For instance, if Zhou Jin hadn''t fallen seriously ill and been hospitalized, if he had remained in charge of the vi overseeing the entirepany''s operations, his underlings wouldn''t have dared to ck off, thekeside surveince footage would have been reced long ago, and he would never have found Old Zhu Chenggui, who used to fish by theke. And what happened afterward would never have urred.


    But precisely because Suming sabotaged him, Zhou Jin fell seriously ill, too unwell to update the surveince cameras, and thus, quite luckily, found the old man in surveince footage from several months prior.


    Baldy brought some guys over and "invited" Zhu Chenggui to Huating Reservoir.


    Zhu Chenggui was feeling quite depressed during that time.


    A few months ago, he met Suming and taught him some fish-farming techniques, thinking that if Suming wanted to seed in fish farming, he couldn''t do it without him. He assumed Suming was one of those second-generation rich kids who knew nothing about starting a business with their family''s money, so he decided to put on airs and act like an expert, waiting for Suming toe back to him for advice voluntarily. That way, he''d be in a position of power, able to make more demands and benefit from Suming.


    Little did he expect that after putting on an act for several months, Suming would never contact him again, and instead sessfully raise fish and frequently appear on television.


    Zhu Chenggui regretted it deeply, wishing he had put aside his airs and curried favor with Suming from the start. s, the world doesn''t sell regret medicine. At the beginning, helping him out when his business hadn''t taken off would have been like sending charcoal in snowy weather, but now that Suming had made it, trying to butter him up would be nothing but begging.


    So when Zhou Jin asked him about fish farming in Shuijun Lake, Zhu Chenggui didn''t hesitate and bragged about how he had taught Suming to raise multiple species together and how to use snakehead fish waste as fertilizer.


    "Mr. Zhou, when ites to raising fish, I''m quite the expert. I won''t lie to you, the sess Shuijun Lake enjoys today is all thanks to the ideas I gave back then¡­" Zhu Chenggui rambled on, his tone filled with dissatisfaction towards Suming. It was as if he were saying, "I helped you so much, and you fobbed me off with just a few bottles of liquor¡ªthat''s really dishonest."


    "So that''s why his fish are raised so well, it''s all because of using fish manure as fertilizer!" Baldy had an epiphany. He pped his forehead and said to Zhou Jin, "Mr. Zhou, how about we leak the news about him feeding fish with manure? People will definitely stop buying his fish."


    ording to the usual thinking, using manure as feed would certainly be considered unsanitary, and spreading such news would undoubtedly cause an uproar.


    However, one must not generalize. Zhou Jin was an industry insider, and he knew all too well that this method of feeding fish was not only hygienic but was also a natural and pollution-free approach. If this news were to be publicized, it would not harm Shuijun Lake in the least, but instead would serve as free advertising, proving that the fish from Shuijun Lake were naturally raised.


    Every other day, there is a new report online about something containing additives that shouldn''t be consumed, or about something else using chemicals harmful to the body, scaring everyone into believing that anything artificially cultivated is definitely inferior to naturally urring things. People would rather pay more for natural products. This is like vegetables where those that are grown with chemical fertilizers taste worse and fetch lower prices; but those grown with organic fertilizers look plump and lively and have a good market.


    So Zhou Jin red at Baldy and said, "You should spend more time reading books and less being ignoramus!" Recalling some ''past events,'' he added irritably, "Never does anything of use, but always good for nothing!"


    Baldy was quite resentful, thinking to himself that he was on Zhou Jin''s side, trying toe up with ideas and suggestions, yet not a single piece of praise from Zhou Jin¡ªjust scolding at the drop of a hat. Is this how a boss should behave?N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ```


    Zhou Jin had no idea what the bald man was thinking. He turned his head to question Zhu Chenggui, "Old Zhu, I''m asking you, aside from this polyculture and using fish manure as fertilizer, did youe up with any other ideas for him?"


    Zhu Chenggui shook his head, "No, that''s all."


    "That''s strange," Zhou Jin said as he paced back and forth in the room with his hands behind his back. "I''ve seen his fish; they all seem to be over two years old. He''s been raising fish for less than a year. Just polyculture and fish manure alone can''t make fish grow this fast!"


    Zhou Jin and Zhu Chenggui, both experienced fish farmers, pondered for a while but could not figure out why the fish in Shuijun Lake grew so abnormally fast. If they hadn''t grown so quickly, they wouldn''t have taken the market from Huating Company today.


    As Zhou Jin mulled it over, he realized that just specting here on his own wouldn''t yield any results¡ªhe needed someone to actively investigate. So, he patted Zhu Chenggui''s shoulder, "Old Zhu, I need you to do something for me. If you handle it well, I''ll give you five thousand yuan for your troubles."


    Having lived a long life and though somewhat crafty, Zhu Chenggui was no fool; on the contrary, he was quite astute. He had seen the rivalry between Zhou Jin and Suming and, hearing Zhou Jin''s words, Zhu Chenggui hesitantly said, "Mr. Zhou, if it''s something that could harm others, or wrongdoing, I dare not do it!"


    "Rest easy, I wouldn''te to you for things like murder or arson!" Zhou Jin then shared the details of the task with Zhu Chenggui.


    Zhu Chenggui considered it for a long time before finally nodding reluctantly, "I may be able to do this task, I''ll do my best."


    "It''s not about doing your best, it''s about seeding!" Zhou Jin sneered and shook his head, "If you do well, the five thousand yuan is yours. If not, Old Zhu, you will no longer work as a security guard at the factory. Just pack your bags and go back home to farm."


    Zhu Chenggui''s face immediately fell, and ncing toward the not-too-distant reservoir, he thought to himself that his hometown had been ttened to make way for the reservoir, with nowhere left for him to return to and farm.


    "Alright, Old Zhu, you better head back now, waiting for your update. Get it done quickly!" Zhou Jin took out his wallet and gave him several hundred-yuan bills, "Take this to spend first. Once the job''s done, you''ll have your reward!"


    ...


    These past few days, Suming was frequently wandering around the fish market. Even though he had opened up sales outlets at various big restaurants, the market route remained stagnant. The reason was the same: Huating Fisheries Company had dominated the fish market for many years, and challenging their position was not a matter that could be resolved overnight.


    Following the normal rules of the aquaculture industry¡ªnot like real estate or stocks¡ªses cannot happen all at once; it''s hard to be rich overnight. One has to take it step by step, first expanding one''s own aquaculture business. Only after reaching a certain scale topete with Huating Fisheries can one slowly erode their market share through various business strategies.


    This approach is steady but also the slowest. Suming had been considering these past few days if there was a better way to quickly oust Huating Fisheries Company from the fish market. That''s why he was visiting the market every day, scouting for various intel.


    He had just returned to the animal park pavilion that day when he heard from the chat group that Yutian Ayaka had released a new AV, and he was preparing to download it to have a look when his phone suddenly rang. It was the gatekeeper, who said that an old man named Zhu Chenggui was looking for him.

 Chapter 177 No Laughing Allowed!

    At first, Suming couldn''t be entirely sure, he just felt that Zhu Chenggui''s tone and expressions were off, but after the conversation ended, Suming could be one hundred percent certain that his visit was definitely problematic¡ªit was all an excuse for some rtive wanting to raise fish and learn from him!


    Firstly, his fish were now sold to major restaurants and were never seen in the fish markets, except for a little stall in the zoo. Yet, Zhu Chenggui imed he had seen Shuijun Lake''s fish in the fish market where the stall owner even greatly rmended them. This was clearly inexplicable.


    Suming himself wandered the fish market daily but had never seen any fishmonger selling fish from Shuijun Lake. On the contrary, if he asked the fishmongers about Shuijun Lake''s fish, most of them would shake their hands repeatedly, swearing they did not have any. With Zhou Jin reigning over the current fish market, those merchants wouldn''t dare offend him and wouldn''t even stock fish from Shuijun Lake, so how could they possibly be actively promoting it?


    Secondly, if Zhu Chenggui was truly here to seek advice on fish farming, in the end, Suming didn''t actually tell him the secret. Even if he thought Suming had used "banned" chemicals, Suming didn''t reveal which chemicals he had used.


    Yet, when Zhu Chenggui left, there wasn''t a hint of disappointment, but rather, he was brimming with high spirits. Either his mental state wasn''t normal, or he had already obtained what he wanted to know.


    All of this proved, Zhu Chenggui was up to something.


    "I didn''t start trouble with you, but you''vee looking for trouble with me..." If Zhu Chenggui really was up to something, there was no need to guess who was behind it. Now surrounded by friends everywhere, Suming''s only adversary was Huating Fisheries Company.


    However, it''s not entirely fair to say that Suming didn''t provoke Zhou Jin¡ªhe had recently also been nning in the dark how to bring Zhou Jin down. At most, it was just two people plotting against each other, this so-called ''Eight Immortals crossing the sea, each showing their divine prowess''. Whoever has the ability will cross and be an immortal, whoever doesn''t will drown halfway.


    "Er Gouzi, follow that old man and see where he goes!" Suming snapped his fingers subconsciously.


    Experience tales with empire


    The familiar buzzing didn''t sound beside his head, and he then remembered that Er Gouzi had gone to Hundred Flowers Valley''s bee colony for ''restructuring'' these past two days, and was not in the zoo.


    With two intelligence-exceeding-ordinary bees assisting each other, they hadpletely conquered Hundred Flowers Valley''s unity mission. Perhaps the Queen Bees, now bored, had found therge number of bees and the original ''factions'' too disorderly, and wanted to reorganize the ranks. So Suming had sent Er Gouzi to assist them.


    Without Er Gouzi, Su Meng appeared out of a lush treetop with a big head. The zoo had many trees, and this fellow seemed to be developing in the direction of a monkey; idly, he had taken a liking to climbing trees to pick fruit.


    "Follow him, but don''t get caught."


    Su Meng was also a good candidate for tailing someone. Zhu Chenggui had never seen Su Meng before, and Su Meng''s wilderness survival skills were very strong. Not to mention tracking a person, even following a wolf might not lead to discovery.


    Su Meng strode out and followed.


    ...


    "Are you sure he''s put chemicals in theke?" Inside Huating Fisheries Company''s small vi, Mr. Zhou jumped up from his chair, his face alight with excitement, after hearing Zhu Chenggui''s report.


    If the fish in Shuijun Lake were indeed chemically induced to grow, then as long as he could grab evidence and make it public, not a single fish from Shuijun Lake would sell! Not only that, but with such a scandal, Suming would no longer dream of contracting Huating Reservoir, and the zoo might even be pressured into firing him!


    That''s the way people are¡ªthe higher they climb, the less able they are to afford negative news. A major negative news story could destroy a person''s lifetime achievements overnight!


    Zhu Chenggui hesitated for a moment before saying, "He didn''t admit it, but, based on my experience, there''s an eighty percent chance he''s used growth promoters, and judging by his expression, it''s definitely illegal. Mr. Zhou, the moment I brought it up, his face changed color right away, there''s surely something fishy."


    Zhou Jin smacked his forehead with some annoyance. "No wonder the fish in Shuijun Lake grow so fast. If it hadn''t been for getting sick and being swamped with all sorts of misceneous things, I should have thought of this."


    "We must still verify this matter. We absolutely need solid evidence!" Zhou Jin said with his hands behind his back.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Ah?" Zhu Chenggui said with a pained expression, "Mr. Zhou, where would I get evidence from? Otherwise, you could buy a few fish from Shuijun Lake and check them out when you get back. Then you would understand."


    Although the fish from Shuijun Lake weren''t sold directly to the market but primarily to big restaurants, getting a few wasn''t difficult¡ªnot to mention that they were also being sold at the zoo, where they could be easily obtained.


    However, Zhou Jin felt that it would be best to fish out several directly from Shuijun Lake to examine, to prevent any denial from theke authoritiester. After all, the fish that had been sold had changed hands once.


    Having suffered a few silent losses at the hands of Suming, he had now be shrewder. He had finally caught a big handle and was determined to cement the evidence, turning the matter into an irond case, leaving no chance for Suming to turn things around or offer any defense.


    "Baldy, go to the zoo tonight and sneakily fish out a few," Zhou Jin instructed.


    "Ah?! "


    From the start, Baldy had been shrinking in the corner, not daring to let out a sound,pletely stripped of his usual bravado, terrified that Zhou Jin would pick him again to deal with Suming. His heart was in his throat the whole day, and yet he still couldn''t avoid it. Hearing Zhou Jin''smand, Baldy nearly wet himself with fright; his face turned pale as he said with a mournful look, "Mr. Zhou, I have to sneak into the zoo again..."


    Thest time he had snuck in and released the crocodile fish, he had nearly lost his life, and now he had developed a psychological shadow regarding the zoo. Essentially, it was a shadow cast by Suming. Even though he was still with Zhou Jin, he instinctively didn''t want to antagonize Suming anymore.


    Thinking quickly on his feet, Baldy''s eyes darted about as he immediately found an excuse: "Mr. Zhou, there are cameras installed all over the zoo''s fences now. I can''t possibly get in!"


    "Use your brain!" Zhou Jin poked him in the forehead with his finger, angrily saying, "You don''t have to climb the fence. Just take a detour, go around the back mountain. There''s a part of the back mountain that connects to Shuijun Lake. You go down the mountain from there, and you''ll be at Shuijun Lake!"


    Baldy was at a loss for words, utterly miserable. The other underlings on the side smirked maliciously, each enjoying some schadenfreude as they thought about Baldy''s first ordeal with the bees and the incontinence, the second with the dog bite and ss cuts. Who knew what kind of heart-stopping ''adventure'' awaited him this time?


    "Laugh my ass off!" Baldy dared notsh out at Zhou Jin, but he wasn''t afraid of these little hooligans. He menacingly pointed at their noses shouting, "Whoeverughs again will be joining me to steal fish tonight!"


    The small-time hooligans immediately stoppedughing, turning their heads and looked elsewhere with all seriousness.


    *********************


    PS: Next week it''s onto the promotional push. If nothing unexpected happens, it should be on the shelves by next Friday, and it will be explosive!


    I''ve set up a Penguin group: 332352624, verification: Super Zoo, just as the book''s title. Feel free to chat and have augh in there¡ªI mostly keep to myself but I''ll send Er Gouzi to lurk in the corner and quietly keep an eye on you all~~~


    If you''re interested, you can change your group nickname to Lucky Big-headed Old Croc, Huiya, Mr. Song, or anything simr, haha~~

 Chapter 178 The Anxious Bald Brother

    Zhu Chenggui, who had not dared to join the conversation earlier, mustered his courage and asked cautiously, "Mr. Zhou, about the five thousand yuan we agreed on beforehand... hehe..."


    "What''s the rush? I asked you to gather information; can you confirm it now?" Zhou Jin stared at Zhu Chenggui, his face dark as he asked in return, "You can''t be sure, can you? Turns out I still need to send people to investigate. So why should I pay you now? Just wait patiently. If it turns out your guess is correct, then we''ll talk."


    Zhou Jin wasn''t intentionally nning to renege on paying Zhu Chenggui. Although his finances were tight at the moment, five thousand yuan wasn''t arge sum for him, and he could afford it. The reason he wasn''t paying now was to keep Zhu Chenggui on the hook; firstly, in case there was something in the future he needed Zhu Chenggui to do; and secondly, to prevent Zhu Chenggui from telling Suming the truth after getting paid. So before Suming was taken down, he wouldn''t pay up.


    However, Zhu Chenggui couldn''t help but have other thoughts upon hearing this. He was just an ordinary farmer and didn''t have as many schemes as Zhou Jin. He felt that Zhou Jin was being evasive, using him and then going back on his word.


    "Geez, look at this mess. I''ve yed the viin and haven''t even made any money," Zhu Chengguimented. But he was helpless; Zhou Jin was powerful and wealthy. Even if Zhou Jin denied him the payment, what could he do about it?


    For the better part of the day, the bald man had been on tenterhooks. As dusk approached and time passed by, his nervousness grew, with his heart pounding relentlessly.


    "Stay calm, stay calm. You have to stay calm!" The bald man continually reassured himself with positive self-talk. It was just a small zoo, just stealing a few fish, not a person. What was the big deal?


    Even if he were caught, what would be the worst oue? At most, he would be used of trespassing, pay for a ticket, a fine, and reimburse the price of the fish. That would settle it.


    "It''s going to be fine. Just rx, rx!" The bald man took a deep breath and, following the rxation poses taught on a TV yoga program, he did several to calm himself down.


    Hey, it really worked!


    Once he calmed down, the bald man even began to reflect. The past few times, he had failed because of his carelessness, getting stung by wasps, chased by dogs, and ending up with a torn up behind from broken ss on a wall. So this time, he resolved to be well-prepared!


    He found a thick coat with a hood and put on a face mask, wrapping himself up snugly, ready for any wasps. Just to be safe, he also stuffed a can of mosquito repellent spray into the coat pocket.


    This spray could be used on wasps, but more importantly, it could act as a makeshift methrower. Mosquito repellent usually contains alcohol, which, when sprayed towards a lighter, creates a me-thrower effect.


    Besides that, he strapped an electric stun stick to his waist. Should he encounter a dog again, he''ll use the stun stick to zap it unconscious!


    After some thought, he still didn''t feel secure enough and filled his coat pockets with all kinds of small tools for survival and escape, such as a Swiss army knife, a thin wire for picking locks, emergency Yunnan Baiyao... he even packed arge chunk ofpressed biscuits...


    Once he had done all this, the clock on the wall showed half-past eleven, and outside, it had grownpletely dark. The bald man was in luck; the sky tonight was starless and moonless, pitch-ck¡ªperfect for mischief!


    "Huff huff!" The bald man took a deep breath and said to Zhou Jin, who was absorbed in ying online Landlord, "Mr. Zhou, I''m heading out!"


    He expressed himself with the gravitas of a martyr facing the end, hoping to receive some words of encouragement from Zhou Jin. However, Zhou Jin had justnded a good hand as the Landlord and was concentrating on his cards; without looking up, he waved his hand dismissively, "Go early ande back early. Don''t screw up again..."


    "Damn!" The bald man cursed in his heart, then turned around, flung open his trench coat, and strode into the night. If it weren''t for the mood-destroying mask he wore, he might have had the air of a certain underworld hero at that moment.


    Taking arge detour, he first climbed up the other side of Shuijun Lake''s back mountain, trudging through the nearly pathless mountain for over an hour, until nearly two in the morning, he finally arrived at the foot of the mountain on the other side.


    Because theke is right at the foot of the mountain, there is no surrounding wall within a range of one or two hundred meters. Once you reach the foot of the mountain, you are by thekeside. Through the swaying shadows of trees, the distant Shuijun Lake appeared extremely tranquil in the night, ripples like fish scales spread across the water surface, extending into the distance.


    The bald man cautiously scanned the surroundings. The dim woods were silent, showing no signs of anything unusual, and the most feared hos were nowhere to be seen. So he quickly took advantage of the darkness, jogging softly on the moist and muddy ground until he reached theke.


    Everything was normal! The bald man''s heart was half-eased. It seemed that today''s operation should be a great sess!


    He then took out something that resembled a walking stick from his coat, extended it into the water, and pressed a button on the back.


    This was a small fish lure device that emitted a sound wave to attract nearby fish. Although essentially a high-end toy¡ªnot guaranteed to draw fish and certainly not suitable forrge-scale fishing¡ªif one only needed a few fish as samples, the difficulty was not great.


    Dududu... The fish lure device made a faint sound. As the light on it blinked, ripples began to appear on theke''s surface. Judging from the waves, a big creature was swimming towards them.


    The bald man was pleased, keeping a poker face as he waited by theke. When the creature was about to reach the shore, the bald man, wearing rubber shoes, leapt into the water and grabbed hold of the big fish!


    "Huh? What''s this?" The bald man was stunned, feeling something hard, cool, and slightly prickly in his grip.


    Immediately following that, a surge of intense pain shot through the back of his hand. The water''s surface became stained with a patch of blood, as the bald man''s hand was viciously bitten by something!


    "Oh my god..." The pain brought tears to his eyes. He scrambled and rolled back onto the shore, and with the aid of his shlight, he saw that a chunk of flesh from the back of his hand was bitten off, the blood oozing out.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    But right now, he couldn''t care less about the pain; he was more terrified. What on earth was that mysterious creature in the pitch-ck water!


    Slowly, a fierce head emerged from the water, its cold gaze fixed on the bald man.


    "An alligator, damn it, how could there be an alligator here... Oh no, wait, what is this thing!"


    The creature in the water resembled an alligator, but when most of its body emerged, the bald man suddenly remembered¡ªit was the giant alligator turtle owned by Suming, which had once been featured on TV and was said to have acted as a ''lifeguard'' in Shuijun Lake.


    The alligator turtle had grown so huge, it was now nearly as big as a round table top. It looked like a small hill floating on the water, exuding an intense sense of oppression. Moreover, with its ferocious appearance, being stared at by an alligator turtle from a close distance was even scarier than encountering an alligator.


    In fact, that was true. A giant alligator turtle of such size, once it became aggressive, could be even more dangerous than an alligator.


    "Lucky I got to shore in time!" The bald man was relieved, but then he paused: Wait a minute, this creature is amphibious, it could also chase me ontond!


    *********


    PS: I''ve used up all the highlights for this week, more toe next week~~

 Chapter 179 The Mysterious Dog

    The bald man followed Zhou Jin in fish cultivation and gained some understanding of aquatic creatures; such a big-headed crocodile turtle, if it really came ashore, three of himself wouldn''t be enough for it to eat. Despite its four short legs, if it really started running, he couldn''t be sure he could outrun it!


    Gazing at the crocodile turtle''s cold little eyes, the bald man even had the illusion that this guy might be lying in ambush for him?!


    Fortunately, the crocodile turtle didn''t seem too interested in the bald man. After staring at him for a few times, it turned and swam toward the depths of Shuijun Lake. It wasn''t long before it had swum far away and disappeared below the water surface in the distance.


    "Huff, huff, huff..." The bald man was stunned for a long time before he finally came to his senses, the wound on the back of his hand burning with pain.


    He was lucky; it seemed the crocodile turtle hadn''t bitten down urately, otherwise, with its huge size, it could have easily bitten off his entire hand.


    After waiting a while longer and seeing that the crocodile turtle didn''t return, the bald man gritted his teeth, mustered his courage, and once again approached thekeside. He picked up the fish attractor, preparing to ce it into the water.


    Just a few seconds after he put it down, he heard light rustling footsteps from the woods behind him!


    In the quiet of the night, that sound was like thunder in the bald man''s ears. Already paranoid and anxious, the sound made his heart skip a beat, and he abruptly turned around to look back!


    He saw a yellow dog staggering out of the pitch-ck woods!


    "Where did this stray doge from?" the bald man wondered, startled.


    Fortunately, the dog wasn''t big, about the size of a country watchdog, not much taller than a small stool ¡ª not a threat at all. Aftering out of the woods, the yellow dog indifferently nced at the bald man, neither barking nor paying him any attention, and casually went to thekeside to drink water.


    "Scared me to death!"


    The bald man rolled his eyes and sat down by theke, wiping the cold sweat from his forehead.


    "Doodle-doodle-doodle..." The sound of the fish attractor rang out again. This device was somewhat useful for fish, but not for other creatures. As the bald man squatted there drawing fish, the little yellow dog drank water a few meters away, coexisting peacefully without interfering with each other.


    Before long, rustling footsteps sounded from the woods behind him once again. This time, two dogs emerged, a Chihuahua and a Pekingese, but both were filthy dirty, appearing to be strays as well.


    The bald man found it odd and muttered, "What the hell, why are there so many strays in the woods?"


    The Chihuahua and the Pekingese were a bit more ''enthusiastic'' than the yellow dog, trotting over to the bald man''s feet and looking up at him.


    "Scram, get out of here!" the bald man snarled as he shook his fist menacingly. Such tiny creatures didn''t need an electric baton; one punch was enough to kill them.


    The two little dogs, displeased, ran off and settled at a distance, crouching down with their heads over the river''s surface, tonguespping up the water eagerly.


    And so, by thekeside, there was now one man and three dogs.


    But the event was far from over; strictly speaking, it had just begun!


    Minutes passed, and the bald man finally seeded in attracting a silver carp weighing about three to four pounds, but in the process, a Golden Retriever, a Samoyed, and a Dachshund came out of the woods in a group to drink water by the river.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    An idiot could tell something was off with so many dogs appearing all of a sudden. The bald man then remembered a piece of news he had seen recently; a zoo had rescued dozens of pet dogs and established a rescue area.


    It seemed very likely that these dogs were the ones that had been rescued.


    With this realization, the bald man was no longer as afraid. The most terrifying thing in the world is the unexined, but these were just pet dogs. No matter how many, they wouldn''t harm people, so there was nothing to fear.


    He didn''t have time to think too much, and continued to lure the fish, because stealing just one fish wouldn''t be enough to fulfill his task.


    Next, various dogs kept sauntering out of the woods; at one point, three Huskies dashed out and nearly scared Baldy to death. At first nce, he thought they were wolves.


    Before long, there were twenty or thirty dogs drinking water by theke. They were all very quiet, not a single dog barking, acting as if theypletely ignored Baldy.


    The sound of dozens of dogspping up water echospping sounds by thekeside, which was particrly eerie in the quiet of the night.


    Baldy was getting more and more anxious, his scalp tingling. This seemed inexplicable; besides, he felt that there was something off about these dogs'' expressions, but he couldn''t quite put his finger on what it was.


    If he really had to say, Baldy always felt these dogscked the cuteness typically found in pets, giving an impression of coldness and forbidding, like beasts; furthermore, the fact that dozens of dogs were drinking water on their own ord, without ying or fighting among each other, and not a single one barking, was just too odd!


    Even stranger, once these dogs finished drinking water, they didn''t leave but instead crouched by theke, silently staring at him.


    Too creepy!


    His heart was pounding faster and faster, forcibly suppressing the fear in his heart, and under the gaze of dozens of different dogs, he finally managed another ten or so minutes, catching seven or eight fish and clumsily stuffing them into a sack, just as he was about to stand up and leave.


    As he made his move, all the squatting dogs suddenly stood up in sync with his motion!


    "Damn it!" Baldy twitched the corners of his mouth and said with a face as pitiful as if he were about to cry, "Dear dog brothers and sisters, you''re not cats, you don''t eat fish. I''ve done no wrong by catching some fish, let''s not intrude on each other''s territory, okay? Well, I''ll be leaving now..."


    After speaking, he took out an electric baton, waved it threateningly a couple of times, and with heart thumping and trepidation, slowly backed away towards the woods.


    Just then, a cold breeze blew by, as if dispersing the clouds in the sky and revealing arge, round moon!


    Aoou! A high-pitched wolf howl resonated through the woods!


    Simultaneously, all of the dogs started to howl at the sky in unison! The sound of numerous footsteps, shadows upon shadows, dozens of dogs emerged from all directions, surrounding Baldy in the middle.


    The leader of the pack, a little fellow, wasn''t very tall, even smaller than the tworge wolfhounds next to it. However, bathed in the moonlight, Baldy could clearly discern that this was an undeniable wolf!


    "Goddamn!" Baldy bellowed, falling over with a thud, the fish spilling from the sack to flop around on the ground.


    Gazing at the dogs closing in from all sides, baring their teeth, Baldypletely lost hope. Now he was done for, the electric baton was no match for so many dogs and wolves! Not to mention others, even those tworge wolfhounds could take his life!


    Hang on, wait a minute, those two wolfhounds look familiar... Holy sh*t, aren''t those Hei and Erhei?


    "Baldy bro, what a coincidence, we meet again."


    Just then, a figure emerged from the woods, smiling and greeting Baldy cheerfully.


    *****************


    PS: Regarding the updates, some friends have mentioned that they''re too few. Please understand that for the past three months, this book has been updated twice every day without a break; this week is the big push, and after the push, it will be put on sale. After going on sale, there will be an explosion of updates.


    No problem with the explosion, as long as everyone subscribes, we will definitely try our best to burst burst burst. Just don''t let it be that I do all the bursting, but then no one subscribes; that would be too tragic~~

 Chapter 180 Dont Cry Anymore

    There was no need to see a face; just by the voice, Baldy knew it was Suming! He was all too familiar with this hateful sound, as it seemed every time he heard it, he was in for some bad luck.


    Suming walked through the pack of dogs with a chuckle, approached the dumbstruck Baldy, squatted down beside him, patted his cheek, and said, "Baldy, what brings you to my ce in the middle of the night?" After that, he nced at Baldy''s still-bleeding hand andughed, "Next time, give me a heads-up beforeing, so you don''t have to suffer getting chased by dogs and bitten by turtles."


    Baldy originally wanted to talk tough or make some excuse, but when it came to it, he somehow couldn''t bring himself to speak, instead feeling a surge of sadness from within.


    What followed was quite a bizarre scene, as Baldy stared at Suming for a few seconds and then suddenly burst into tears!


    This even baffled Sumingpletely, "Come on, you''re a grown man, and you''ve been a tough guy who''s hacked people as a city manager. I didn''t hit you, I didn''t curse at you, so why the hell are you crying?"


    "Hey, hey, Baldy, don''t be scared, don''t be scared, I''m not going to hit you, not going to hit you," Suming scratched his head, thinking, this isn''t how it''s supposed to go, you''re supposed to wait until after I''ve tortured you before you start crying.


    Ever since Su Meng had followed Zhu Chenggui and found out that he went straight from the zoo to Huating Reservoir, Suming had been sure that it was Zhou Jin''s doing. Of course, he couldn''t predict exactly what Zhou Jin would do next; he could only spread bee sentries around Shuijun Lake: Even though Er Gouzi was not around, there were still plenty of other bees in Hundred Flowers Valley.


    In the middle of the night, the bees didn''t notice anything unusual, but the dogs ying in the back mountain discovered Baldy''s tracks. The German Shepherd brothers immediately informed Suming.


    At that moment, Suming considered the situation. In the dead of the night, in the wilderness, it would have been quite easy to kill Baldy.


    But such an action, other than providing personal satisfaction, would hold no real significance. Instead, it could put him in a disadvantageous situation. Even if Baldy died, Zhou Jin could easilye up with other schemes. There was logic to a thief fearing every day, but no logic to expecting someone to guard every day. Explore stories at empire


    Besides, in all the skirmishes with Baldy and Zhou Jin, they were always the ones to suffer losses, while Suming didn''t suffer even the slightest. There was absolutely no need for ''getting even.''


    It would be better to use Baldy for something else. He had deliberately arranged for the dogs to scare him first, and then discuss other matters. He didn''t expect Baldy to break down so quickly, which left him at a loss for words as all the threats and bribes he''d prepared were left unsaid, and he just watched Baldy cry.


    The guy was usually tough, but once he started crying, he was like a woman, sobbing while mumbling incessantly.


    "Mr. Su, to tell you the truth, I really didn''t want to oppose you... it''s all that bastard Zhou Jin forcing me..."


    "I feel miserable, so wronged... I''ve been stung by wasps until I''m barely recognizable... My butt still has a row of cuts from ss... wuwu..."


    "That bastard Zhou Jin... Despite me risking my life for him, he doesn''t have a single word of praise..."


    Baldy was sobbing and babbling, which left Suming at a loss for words too. If it were a woman crying, he might have had some way to handle it, but with a man, and an ex-gangster who had been an enemy no less, crying like this in front of him, it was totally awkward.


    "Should I offer him a tissue or something?" Suming thought about it and decided against it, finding the thought too dreadful to contemte. It was just too creepy!


    After waiting a while longer, with Baldy still sobbing non-stop, Suming finally couldn''t stand it anymore and pped him on the forehead, "Damn it, if you keep wailing like this, I''ll bury you today!"


    And believe it or not, that worked. Baldy stopped crying immediately.


    He looked at the dogs around him, then at Suming, and finally deted like a punctured ball, "Ah, Mr. Su, at this point, there''s nothing I can''t say. I realizedst time that you''re no ordinary person! I''ve long since wanted to stop causing you trouble, it''s all that bastard Zhou Jin..."


    "Get to the point!" Suming said.


    "Here''s the thing..." The bald man spilled the beans and narrated everything about the situation.


    ...


    "Damn it, I knew this bald-headed guy was unreliable, can''t even manage to steal a couple of fish properly!"


    The next afternoon, Zhou Jin was furiously berating everyone. The bald man had vanished sincest night, and by now, nearly twenty hourster, he still hadn''t returned. Not only was he physically absent, but he also wasn''t answering calls or replying to text messages, as if he had disappeared from the face of the Earth.


    "Mr. Zhou, could it be that the bald brother got caught by the zoo and was sent to the police station?" one of the underlings wondered.


    "Who''s talking nonsense out there!" Suddenly, the bald man''s voice came from outside the door, swiftly followed by the door being flung open. The bald man entered, sopping wet and carrying arge snakeskin bag, which he dropped heavily on the floor.


    He red at the person who had spoken before turning to Zhou Jin with his head held high, "Mr. Zhou, I''ve got the fish back!"


    "What took you so long?" Zhou Jin asked, frowning, his gazending on the thick bandage around the bald man''s palm.


    "Mr. Zhou, you have no idea, I almost didn''t make it back. It was so bizarre, luckily I was smart and prepared! Last night, while I was catching fish, guess what I ran into?"


    "Cut to the chase, stop beating around the bush!" Zhou Jin said impatiently.


    "You remember that alligator snapping turtle, the one that was reported before, right? It''s in Shuijun Lake! I got bitten by the damn turtle, and my phone fell into the water too. So I went to the hospital first to get a couple of drips to prevent infection beforeing back here," the bald man exined.


    Zhou Jin didn''t care whether the bald man had caught an infection or not and asked, "You didn''t get caught by the zoo staff, did you?"


    "No chance, I took the route you told me, going through the back mountain. It''s really safe there, not a soul in sight."n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Alright, enough talk. Get those fish out; I need to have them checked to see if there''s anything wrong with them!"


    Not long after, a small car drove out of the vi, with Zhou Jin and the seven or eight fish ''stolen'' by the bald man leaving Huating Reservoir, heading towards the city''s animal quarantine agency.


    The bald man and a few other underlings stayed behind at the vi, with nothing to do. The bald man fired up theputer to y online cards, but before he had yed many hands, he mmed the mouse down on the table and cursed, "What the hell is with this shitty inte connection, can''t even y a game of Fight the Landlord without itgging!"


    A fellow underling who was in charge of managing thepany''sputers snickered and said, "Bald brother, it''s probably because you''ve downloaded too many videos, must''ve got a virus."


    "Fuck!" the bald man stood up, annoyed, and said, "Hurry up and fix this damnputer. What''s the password for Mr. Zhou''s officeputer, I''ll go use his to y?"


    The underling hesitated for a moment but then said, "123456."


    "Fuck, how do you manageputers with that kind of password, it''s as good as having none!" the bald man cursed and then went upstairs into Zhou Jin''s office.

 Chapter 182 This is Far from Enough

    "Interesting," Suming watched hisputer screen, his eyes whirling around.


    It was tough on Zhou Jin, a guy nearing fifty years old, with no more than a middle school education, actually knowing to utilize the inte to drum up support.


    "But, if it''s just that, it''s still far from enough," Suming said, grinning mischievously as he stroked his chin.


    ng! The door was pushed open heavily from the outside.


    "Who''s that, barging into the leader''s office without knocking?!" Suming rolled his eyes.


    "Knock your head!" Nangong Yan stomped in wearing her high boots, saying as she did and actually knocked on Suming''s forehead quite painfully.


    "Ouch!" Suming clutched his forehead, wincing in pain, "Are you sick?! I''m a leader here, dare toy hands on me again, and believe it or not, I will deal with you on the spot!"


    "You think you can? Bring it on!" Nangong Yan stood with her hands on her hips and her chest out, tilting her chin up in a challenging manner.


    "Forget it, it''s not a good look during the day," Suming said as he went over to close the office door. "What brings you here?"


    Suming felt quite frustrated. In the past months, he had changed a lot, and so had Nangong Yan. Even though she used to be a stubborn miss, she was quite shy when it came to matters between men and women and used to try to be gentle around him; but now, she waspletely the bossy CEO type, resorting to the violence approach... This wasn''t a good development.


    "What brings you here all of a sudden?"


    "Have you been on Yangchuan forumstely? The inte is going crazy over the issue of hormones in food," Nangong Yan said with an unusually serious tone, staring at Suming, "Your fish grow so fast, you haven''t been using hormones, have you!"


    "How could I! Big sister, you forgot, I eat them myself!" Suming said.


    That reminded Nangong Yan. She sometimes visited Whisperwind Pavilion, iming to help Suming cook and do chores, but in reality, she came to mooch food and drink. It was mostly Suming who cooked, while sheid on a little rocking chair on the Fengshui Pavilion tform, holding a cat and sunbathing like andlord''s wife. Some of those meals had indeed been fish.


    "Hmph, you''ve got some conscience at least! I''m telling you, if you dare to make unscrupulous money, I''ll have nothing to do with you in the future!" Nangong Yan grumbled, then sat down on the sofa opposite Suming.


    "Big sister, am I that kind of person? Obviously not!" The weather was freezing, and Nangong Yan''s little face was as red as a persimmon. Suming poured her a cup of hot tea and asked, "What''s the rush? What made youe running here?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Nangong Yan wrapped her hands around the cup of tea to warm them and sniffled twice before saying, "The hormone issue has been making a lot of noisetely. The TV station might make a special program on it, and they want me to host it. I came today to get things straight first, in case there''s a problem with your fish..."


    "Hehe, after all, you still care about me," Suming said with a chuckling smile. She hade all the way in the cold just to give him a heads up, telling him that the TV station was starting to pay attention to the hormone issue. Yangchuan City TV Station was the mouthpiece of Yangchuan City Government, and the station''s involvement meant the government''s shadow loomed in the background.


    "Give me a break!" Nangong Yan snorted. "Well, since your fish are fine, I should ept it then."


    "No, don''t! You really shouldn''t!" Suming quickly shook his head. "You mustn''t take on that program!"


    Nangong Yan found it very strange and opened her eyes wide in confusion, "Why? Don''t you know that these kind of social issue programs are very popr? In the TV station, there are several female hosts like me who all want to present this special program. Everyone''s been fighting over it behind the scenes. Others are dying for the chance, so why won''t you let me do it?"


    Nangong Yan also had her regr job to do, and in the TV station''spetitive environment, it wasmon for hosts to engage in overt and covert battles. She had been rising quicklytely, which inevitably drew the envy of some other hosts. The programs most likely to yield sess and fame were those covering social issues and entertainment. Like the previous food programs, one might work on them forever without gaining recognition, but with these hot-topic programs, just a few episodes might make you an overnight sensation. So, naturally, there waspetition among the hosts.


    "Not letting you do the program is for your own good." Suming hummed with a coldugh, "This isn''t as simple as it looks on the surface. Better steer clear for now. Who knows, getting involved might just bring bad luck to whoever touches it."


    Hearing Suming say this, Nangong Yan took his face in her hands, studying him for a while and pouting, "Fess up, are you the one messing things up behind the scenes!" Your next read awaits at empire


    "Hehehe, all I''ll say is, bad people won''te to a good end." Suming grinned, "Come on, give me a kiss first."


    "Stop it." Nangong Yan dodged swiftly and tapped Suming on the forehead before speaking seriously again, "But right now, the station only has this n and might not necessarily go through with the program. We''ll have to see the ultimate impact of the issue. You know how the inte is nowadays, with new news popping up every few days, this might just cool down after a while."


    "That won''t do!" Suming spoke earnestly, "How could we pass up such a big social event? It''s sure to happen!"


    "Cut it out, you''re not the station manager to be so sure," Nangong Yan said.


    Sumingughed, "Although I''m not your station manager, I can assure you that this matter won''t just end here. Just wait and see, it''s going to get bigger and bigger."


    ...


    While Suming and Nangong Yan were goofing around in the office, there was also a bustling scene of activity in the small vi of Huating Fisheries Company.


    The vi''s first-floor hall looked like an inte caf¨¦, with seven or eightputers set up. Cables stretched across the floor like a dense spider web, as a bald man and his gang were all focused on theirputers online.


    In just a couple of days, a group of thugs had been trained by Zhou Jin to act as a cyber troop. They scoured the inte for all sorts of posts about food hormones, spreading them on Yangchuan forums, and creating numerous sock puppet ounts toment and add fuel to the fire.


    It wasn''t just them; Zhou Jin also mobilized some other friends from society and, on the bald man''s suggestion, secretly hired some professional cyber troops to make a big noise. This rapidly turned the hormone issue into a hot topic within just a few days.


    The strategy of creating momentum was actually inspired by Suming, which Zhou Jin picked up from him.


    As the saying goes, ''Know the enemy and know yourself, and you will never be defeated.'' Zhou Jin and all other grassroots heroes, who may not have had much formal education, were well-versed in epics like the ''Three Kingdoms'' and ''Water Margin'' and drew many strategic and tactical inspirations from them.


    Zhou Jin had carefully studied Suming and found that the keyponent in all of Suming''s recent sesses: creating momentum. Before doing anything, Suming would first use the inte, television, and other media to build up ''momentum'' to the fullest, then strike like lightning, achieving maximum impact.


    Thus, in Zhou Jin''s n, creating momentum was a focus of substantial effort.


    "Very good, but this is far from enough!" Zhou Jin stood on the second-floor corridor, like a hero, full of vigour, and gestured vigorously towards the floor below!

 Chapter 184 Industry Self-Inspection

    Yangchuan Fisheries Association is a non-governmental organization formed spontaneously by breeders and does not yet have a real chairman. Severalrge breeders act as vice-chairmen and discuss matters together when necessary.


    "Oh? What proposal?" Wang Jian She was slightly taken aback and somewhat surprised as he took the proposal from Mr. Sun''s hands. It seemed that Mr. Sun had specificallye to discuss the feasibility of this proposal with him today.


    The content of the proposal wasn''t long, less than three pages, and Wang Jian She quickly read through it.


    "Do you think it''s feasible?" Mr. Sun asked.


    After a moment of contemtion, Wang Jian She said, "If we''re looking at the proposal itself, I think it''s feasible. Having the industry itself take the lead in self-inspection is probably the best approach."


    Mr. Sun nodded in agreement, "We''re on the same page here."


    "However, regarding Zhou Jin in this proposal..." Wang Jian She hesitated slightly, half as if seeking guidance and half as if discussing, and said, "I''ve heard his reputation isn''t very good. If he''s in charge of this, might there be unexpected adverse effects, causing unnecessaryplications?"


    Mr. Sun grunted in acknowledgment, paced around the office twice with his hands behind his back, and finally said, "Wang, let''s just worry about the present. Besides, Zhou Jin does have some prestige in the Fisheries Association."


    "All right, I agree with this proposal. If there''s anything you need my side to coordinate with, you can tell him toe directly to me," Wang Jian She said.


    "I hope this issue can be resolved smoothly, so we both can give a good ount of ourselves to those above us. I''ll have my secretary give Zhou Jin a heads up. If he handles this well, the municipalmittee will remember his contribution," said Mr. Sun, his words carrying an implicit meaning. If handled well, it naturally meant promotion and wealth; but if Zhou Jin took the initiative to solve the hormones issue and messed it up, he might have to bear the brunt of the me.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    To put it in a rather clich¨¦d way, this was both an opportunity and a challenge.


    After all, the reason Mr. Sun and Wang Jian She had agreed to the proposal after discussing it for half a day was not because of its excellence, but because, at times when the government couldn''te forward, there was someone willing to "share the government''s worries" without implicating the government. This allowed the government to always stay behind the scenes, retaining the initiative, able to advance or retreat as necessary.


    ...


    "Dear citizens and viewers, hello, this is Yangchuan City TV Station''s special program on food safety. I''m the host, Shen Meng. Recently, the issue of hormones in food has gone viral online, causing some panic among the popce. Today, we have invited the vice-chairman of Yangchuan City United Fisheries Association and the leader of Huating Fisheries Company, Zhou Jin, as our guest,"


    After the charming hostess with slightly narrow and sharp eyes finished speaking, the camera shifted to a neatly dressed middle-aged man sitting diagonally across from her, Zhou Jin himself.


    "Hello everyone." Zhou Jin sat upright with the demeanour of an honorable man, nodding slightly towards the camera, and said, "As the host has mentioned, food safety issues concern everyone''s health and cannot be taken lightly."


    "So, as the vice-chairman of Yangchuan Fisheries Association, what is your view on this matter?" the host, Yang Meng, asked.


    Nangong Yan was also sitting in Suming''s office watching the television, grumbling discontentedly, "Seeing Yang Meng''s face just annoys me. She''s psychologically twisted, always making life difficult for neers. When I first started at the TV station, I had to put up with so much from her! What, just because she''s got an affair with a station leader..."


    "When I make it big one day and buy your TV station, that''s when, if you have an affair with me, you can then give her hell!" Suming joked.


    On the TV, Zhou Jin continued, "I personally run an aquaculturepany, so I am extremely concerned about this issue. After the incident, I immediately sought out relevant experts, and I want to start by debunking a myth for everyone here, the issue with hormones generally doesn''t exist in nts, so everyone can rest assured when consuming nt products."


    Continue reading at empire


    "What about animals?" the host asked knowingly.


    "Right, animals can definitely be affected by hormones. Fish, in particr, can be influenced by even a small amount of hormones in the water, which means from a cost perspective, fish farming is actually the most likely to use hormones. I think that''s one of the reasons why the host invited me here today, haha."


    The host smiled and nodded, "That''s exactly right. This hormone scandal has not only caused panic among citizens but has also had a huge impact on you and the entire aquaculture market of Yangchuan City. As the vice president of the Yangchuan Fisheries Association, and with your Huating Reservoir being thergest freshwater fish farm in Yangchuan City, do you have any strategies in ce?"


    "Oh, just a few days ago, on behalf of the entire Yangchuan Fisheries Association, I proposed a motion suggesting that the Yangchuan Fisheries Association take the lead in conducting aprehensive inspection of all fish farmers within Yangchuan City who are above a certain scale. Also, to reassure the public, the entire process of the inspection will be made public, broadcasting live on-site so that the citizens can see the truth in real-time! Just before I came to the studio, the association had already had a meeting to develop the inspection process and n, and we have invited scientists from both provincial and city levels to form an expert group, with full apaniment and coordination by the association, and the live broadcast will be carried out by Yangchuan City TV Station!"


    "That is great news! If safety can be assured at the source, then citizens will surely feel much more at ease when making purchases," the host said with a smile. "Now there are over a dozen fish farms in Yangchuan City, where do you n to start?"


    "As a socially responsible entrepreneur, I would suggest starting with my Huating Reservoir," Zhou Jin said.


    "Good, let''s give Mr. Zhou a round of apuse for his selflessness! Finally, I have one more question, if any issues are found at a fish farm during the inspections, what kind of penalties will there be?"


    "Firstly, the Fisheries Association will impose the strictest economic penalties and expose those involved, adding them to the supplier cklist. At the same time, we will make the evidence public and hand it over tow enforcement agencies, and for those suspected of illegal activities, the government departments will initiate legal proceedings."


    Zhou Jin''s statements on TV quickly spread through various channels.


    In the past, when simr issues arose, the TV station would sometimes conduct undercover investigations, such as the annual March 15th consumer rights day programs, but never once did they use a live broadcast format!


    That meant everything urring during the investigations, every word of each participant, every detail, would be presented to the audience just as it was.


    There are no secrets under the sun, and the audience is not foolish; as long as the inspection is broadcast live, it will be very difficult to y any tricks, or at least the difficulty of ying tricks will increase substantially, especially when the hormone issue has already been fervently highlighted in the public eye, nobody would take the enormous risk for one or two fish farms.


    Furthermore, in front of countless viewers, once any issue is found at a fish farm, no matter what the identity or background of the owner, they will inevitably face the most severe penalties.


    As soon as the news of live broadcasting came out, it signified that the administrators were serious, undoubtedly rejuvenating spirits and quickly attracting a significant amount of attention. It wasn''t only the residents of Yangchuan City but also the whole province and even the entire country that turned their focus to the small Yangchuan City TV Station.


    Although the live broadcast hadn''t started yet, the ratings of various shows on Yangchuan City TV Station had evidently increased a lot over thest few days.

 Chapter 186 Buying a Ticket to Enter

    "I also don''t think you''re that kind of person,"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Mr. Song, the animal park director, paced back and forth in his office, hands sped behind his back, and said with suspicion, "This hormone scandal came too suddenly. I always feel like there''s someone scheming behind this. Now all the me is being pointed at you. Have you offended someone recently?"


    It must be said that Mr. Song, despite his age, had been through many trials and his senses were still sharp. Suming didn''t hide anything and nodded, saying, "Someone wants to screw me over."


    "What a bastard!" Mr. Song was furious, mming his hand on the desk. He definitely wasn''t calling Suming a bastard. Now Suming was being groomed by Mr. Song as his sessor, the park''s future hope. To target Suming was to target the park, to disrupt Suming''s life was to cut off the park''s future.


    Moreover, the park was already being dragged into this: Shuijun Lake was the property of the park, and if something really was amiss with theke, the park surely wouldn''t escape me. At this critical juncture of restructuring, if it turns out that theke was stocked with hormone-fed fish, that would be troublesome.


    "Don''t worry, leader, there won''t be any problems. I may like money, but I haven''t stooped low enough to earn the kind that weighs on my conscience," Suming reassured him before the corner of his mouth turned up with a cold smile, "It''s time to put an end to this matter. Some people are just like flies, buzzing around incessantly, truly bothersome."


    Hearing Suming''s intense tone, Mr. Song tensed up and said seriously, "Su, don''t do anything foolish. You can''t bemitting crimes!"


    "Rest assured, leader, I''m aw-abiding citizen, and a Party member at that. How could Imit a crime!" Suming said. Experience new stories on empire


    ...


    The day of the inspection at Shuijun Lake finally arrived. Early in the morning, before the gates of the animal park had even opened, the entrance was already swarming with people. Journalists from all over had arrived early, and the scene wasparable to a press conference.


    Unexpectedly, the park''s security blocked the gate, preventing entry, and a conflict arose between the inspection team and the park''s security. Mr. Dong, the head of security, had ordered all eight of the security guards on duty to form a line at the gate like guardian deities; stomachs protruding, chests puffed out, security belts tightly fastened, and electric batons in hand, they blocked the gate, refusing entry.


    The presenter, Yang Meng, timely spoke into the camera, "Dear viewers, this is Yang Meng, reporting live from the scene. The inspection team''s attempt to enter Shuijun Lake is being met with barbaric obstruction by the animal park''s security. ording to the information we''ve received, Suming, the leaseholder of Shuijun Lake, has gone from a university graduate who couldn''t even find a job to the park''s second-inmand, with a worth of millions. He can even order the park''s security to resist the inspection team. This certainly raises suspicions and makes one wonder whether there could be deeper, darker secrets involved. Let''s wait and see!"


    Her report clearly vited the principle of objectivity, heavilyced with subjective spection and expressed with strong personal emotions. If a regr person made suchments, it wouldn''t be an issue, but for a presenter to say this in front of a live camera was highly improper.


    However, at this point, nobody was paying attention to that. In any industry, the victor is hailed as a hero, and the vanquished is condemned as a viin. If it turns out that Shuijun Lake is contaminated with hormones, Yang Meng''sments would be seen as righteous, and she might even be hailed as the ''conscience of the journalism industry.''


    "It''s toote to show fear now!" Zhou Jin, impatient, waved his hand and said to Mr. Dong, "Where''s Suming? Have hime to see me."


    Old Dong crossed his arms and looked at Zhou Jin expressionlessly. After a while, he uttered one sentence, "Buy a ticket to enter the park."


    Zhou Jin never expected Old Dong to say such a thing and was taken aback, "What are you talking about! The inspection team is here to inspect Shuijun Lake, tell these guards to stand aside! Otherwise..."


    At that moment, Suming strolled out of the park, each hand holding arge wolfhound half as tall as a man, followed by a towering young giant, looking every bit the part of a domineeringndlord.


    "Or what?" Suming''s voice was even louder than Zhou Jin''s, nearly shouting in his face, "I''m asking you, who gave you the authority to inspect? Do you represent the police, or the courts?"


    With thatment, Zhou Jin was momentarily at a loss for words. Indeed, while he was the vice-chairman of the Fisheries Association, the association was not an enforcement agency and, in theory, had no right to forcibly inspect the properties of other entities!


    Yang Meng opportunistically passed the microphone and asked in a bizarre tone, "Mr. Su, your refusal to let the inspection go through, does that imply that Shuijun Lake harbors secrets not fit for the public eye?"


    Suming rolled his eyes, "Are you saying anyone can just hop into bed with their superiors willy-nilly?"


    Questioned like this on live television, Yang Meng''s face went white with anger, "Don''t nder people!"


    Suming shrugged his shoulders, "Oh, so it''s not like that. Does that mean, because you don''t let your superiors in, there''s a ''secret not fit for the public eye'' on your bed?" Suming specifically emphasized the phrase ''secret not fit for the public eye'', returning the distastefulment back to Yang Meng.


    After speaking, he turned to the camera and said calmly, "I support hormone inspection, but there arews governing the country and rules governing the home. Ordinary people buy tickets to enter the animal park, and so must the inspection team. Mr. Dong, keep a tight watch here. If anyone tries to force their way in without a ticket, call the police immediately!"


    With that said, he walked back into the park with the two dogs at a leisurely pace.


    The notion that everyone has to buy a ticket to enter resonated with many, a thought countless people have but cannot express. And the previous confrontation with Yang Meng about the bed was particrly provocative and risqu¨¦. It instantly raised Suming''s standing among the viewers, casting him in the light of a straightforward, principled young man. It became difficult for a time to associate him with unscrupulous breeders.


    With Zhou Jin blocked at the entrance and considering the hassle of seeking government assistance at that time, he eventually bought a ticket and entered the park honestly.


    "What a twist!" Zhao Yun sat in front of the TV and chuckled to himself, no wonder online tforms are so popr now¡ªthe excitement of live broadcasts, with unexpected developments at any turn.


    There were many viewers who shared Zhao Yun''s thoughts, and perhaps even more exciting events were yet to unfold.

 Chapter 188 Happy or Not (First Update)

    The inspection was over, and the scene became very awkward. Prior to this, almost everyone was certain there was a problem with Shuijun Lake. They were all primed to denounce and use after the inspection, but now that vigor waspletely wasted, like punching cotton.


    "Does anyone have anything to say?" Suming, leading the sniffer dog, walked into the crowd with a smile and said, "Why so quiet all of a sudden? Don''t hold it in until you hurt yourself, okay?"


    "Impossible! This can''t be!" Zhou Jin was the first to break the silence. His hoarse voice carried a hint of desperation. He swiftly walked over to the fish that had been tested, randomly flipped them over a few times, then grabbed one of the inspectors as if clinging to a lifeline, and said excitedly, "Could it be that the instruments are broken, or did you make a mistake?"


    The expert, a respected figure in the industry, a scientist from the province and an associate professor, was questioned about his professional expertise by Zhou Jin during the live broadcast. His face darkened instantly and, without a word, he shook off Zhou Jin''s hand and said coldly, "If you think there''s a problem with my skills, you''re wee to seek someone else."


    Another expert also said, "Our inspections all followed scientific procedures, Mr. Zhou. If you think something is wrong, you''ll have to figure it out on your own."


    After that, the two began to pack up their testing equipment and didn''t even nce at Zhou Jin.


    Zhou Jin stood there awkwardly, while Suming cheerfully approached the camera and said to the somewhat dazed host Yang Meng, "Now, it seems you should announce the results."


    It was only then that Yang Meng snapped out of it. She took a deep breath to calm herself and reluctantly managed a stiff smile towards the camera, saying, "Dear viewers, as of today, the inspection team has checked all freshwater fish breeders in Yangchuan City, including Shuijun Lake, and has not found any hormone-fed fish!"


    With every word Yang Meng uttered, Zhou Jin couldn''t help twitching the corners of his eyes, feeling increasingly suffocated in his chest.


    He simply couldn''t understand. The fish stolen from Shuijun Lake by the bald man that day all contained high levels of hormones. Why couldn''t they be detected today?


    From the inception of the hormone incident to today, it had been only a little more than a week. Even if Suming had been on guard, it was impossible for him to have reced all the fish in Shuijun Lake!


    Moreover, Zhou Jin had long anticipated this move. Before the inspection team arrived, the Fisheries Association had already sent people to monitor all fish breeders to prevent them from getting wind of the inspection and secretly dealing with the problematic fish, swapping them out.


    He thought he had it all under control, but now that nothing could be detected, hadn''t all his efforts and the money he spent been in vain?! Find adventures at empire


    No, it wasn''t just a waste of effort! The current situation was that not only had he failed to cause any negative impact on Shuijun Lake and Suming, but he had inadvertently promoted them: the data on the testing equipment was just too perfect.


    *********


    The author''s Weibo: Yins¨¨ J¨¬ni¨¤nb¨¬521


    Zhou Jin suddenly remembered what the foreigner said on thest Yangchuan gourmet show, "I''m just a gourmet, not a scientist. The nutritional value of fish must be scientifically tested." Now, in front of a national audience, it had been scientifically proven with instruments that the fish from Shuijun Lake had extremely high nutritional value.


    Dammit, all the trouble I went through was just to prove that Suming''s fish were top-notch?!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    What on earth is going on!


    "Mr. Zhou, what are you thinking about?" Just as Zhou Jin was morosely considering vomiting blood, Suming cheerfully came over, took Zhou Jin by the arm, and walked him towards the camera, loudly saying, "Mr. Zhou, as the chairman of the Fisheries Association, you should be happy that there are no problems. Why the long face?"


    Zhou Jin red at Suming with intense hatred, his chest aching with anger and his hands trembling, wishing he could smack his palm across Suming''s smiling face.


    However, in front of so many reporters and live cameras, Zhou Jin couldn''t lose his temper, so he had to squeeze out a very stiff smile, almost gritting his teeth as he said, "Yes, very good, very good."


    Suming relentlessly asked, "So, Mr. Zhou, are you happy or not, pleased or not? Say a few words to everyone."


    The audience in front of the TV almost burst intoughter at Suming''s question¡ªnobody speaks so freely on live broadcasts, making it seem like a situationedy.


    Only Zhou Jin himself knew the agony he felt, his lungs were about to explode with rage, but he couldn''t show it and had to force a smiling face. As the initiator of this inspection and the chairman of the Fisheries Association, Zhou Jin had to make a concluding statement.


    "With such inspection results, I... I am very happy, finally the citizens of the entire city can have... can have peace of mind when eating fish..."


    With every word Zhou Jin uttered, he felt as if his heart was bleeding, and before he could finish speaking, a hot surge burst uncontrobly from his chest, with a buzzing noise ringing in his ears.


    Then everything went dark, and he couldn''t hear anything anymore, copsing to the ground.


    The scene instantly turned chaotic, as the crowd only saw Zhou Jin''s face looking quite wrong, frighteningly pale, as he spoke before suddenly vomiting arge mouthful of blood and fainting.


    "Quick, call 120, Mr. Zhou is so happy that he vomited blood and passed out!" Suming shouted with immense concern.


    Soon, the ambnce arrived at the zoo, and the medical staff awkwardly lifted Zhou Jin into the vehicle.


    It has to be said, sometimes reporters are like flies, with incredibly sensitive noses. The mboyant inspection concluded abruptly, Zhou Jin spewing blood¡ªeverything seemed to give off an unusual scent.


    So they immediately found a new lead and went after Suming, wanting to dig out some insider information from him.


    But Suming had long since disappeared, and not just Suming, all the zoo''s staff, as if they had agreed beforehand, turned into sealed gourds, refusing to express any opinion on the incident, no matter how the reporters questioned them.


    Ultimately, the reporters also dispersed in disappointment.


    The inspection of the aquatic products in Yangchuan City finally came to a close.


    But this was not the end of the matter, Suming''s retaliation was just beginning.


    The grudge between Zhou Jin and Suming had be tooplicated to tell right from wrong¡ªZhou Jin was a street tyrant and a gangster, and Suming did not consider himself a paragon of virtue either, it was merely thew of nature. When a tiger invades another tiger''s territory, even if they can coexist peacefully, it is only temporary. Given any slight chance, both parties would try their best to kill each other. Since things had progressed to this point, there was no need to hesitate; it was time for aplete resolution.


    The speed of media dissemination is astonishing. After the inspection of Shuijun Lake waspleted, major news and online media outlets quickly made the news public.


    On the surface, it seemed like a cause for universal celebration.

 Chapter 189 The Internet is Not a Lawless Place (Second Update)

    For the ordinary people, this was absolutely great news; the party leadership of Yangchuan City wasmended by the provincial authorities for their decisive actions and effective measures in the face of mass panic during a crisis, especially Wang Jian She who had conducted the inspections behind the scenes and was named and praised at the provincial conference.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Yangchuan City''s fish market began to regain its vitality and the number of people buying fish picked up, and those few restaurants also started to reserve fish in small quantities from Shuijun Lake. But overall, the blow was still tremendous, and it would be quite difficult to return to the original prosperity anytime soon.


    Zhou Jin was hospitalized once again, and after being resuscitated, he survived, but he had to be monitored in the intensive care unit, unable to leave his bed, with various tubes inserted all over his body.


    Thest time he was hit hard by a finless porpoise, the doctor explicitly told him that it would be best to rest in bed for a few months, and to avoid getting angry. But he stubbornly did not listen; just over a monthter, he forced himself to take part in the model worker award ceremony andter went through the hospital discharge procedures, continuing to fight the illness and Suming. Now, his old wounds and new injuries had red up simultaneously, and he had all but lost half of his life.


    Just when everyone was jubnt, another problem quietly surfaced.


    If steroids had indeed been found in the fish, then even if the previous articles and posts were somewhat exaggerated, they were notpletely groundless.


    But in fact, no such steroids in fish were detected. Not only in Yangchuan City, but nearby cities also conducted substantial random inspections and found nothing.


    Then the question arose, why did there suddenly appear so many posts about steroid fish overnight, and how did they spread so quickly within a few days?


    Your next chapter awaits on empire


    Had it been just a few posts, it would have been one thing, but these posts undeniably caused an extremely negative impact!


    The most direct result was that the fisheries markets in Yangchuan City and its surrounding areas experienced arge-scale contraction in a short time, and the economy slid to a certain extent; moreover, with the Spring Festival approaching, it caused considerable panic among the people and gave rise to many unstable social factors.


    Perhaps the ordinary people did not think too deeply; for them, as long as the fish were safe, it was fortunate. But for the government, it was not as simple as that.


    Wang Jian She received a call from Mr. Sun''s secretary early in the morning and rushed to his office. As soon as he entered, Mr. Sun said with a stern expression, "The partymittee had a meeting this morning specifically to discuss this matter! We must thoroughly investigate who is spreading the rumors and causing public panic!"


    "It''s just too much!" Wang Jian She was also furious, if there had been any factual basis and someone messed around online, it might have been excusable, but to create such amotion over a groundless issue, known nationwide no less, was simply smearing the face of Yangchuan City.


    "Wang, you will still be in charge of the follow-up investigation. The partymittee has already spoken to therades from the online affairs office, and they will cooperate with you. The inte is not awless zone, and for those who spread rumors and create trouble, we will deal with them severely ording to thew!" Mr. Sun said.


    Wang Jian She knew a bit about the intews; with 5000 views or 500 shares, one could be sentenced, and over the past two years, national leaders have emphasized the issue of the inte more than once. Offices managing online affairs were established in various ces, equipped with cyber police, putting substantial effort into inte management.


    The influence of this inte rumor incident was too malign; it left themon people in a state of anxiety and rose to a level that could be called "as clear as daylight to the authorities".


    "Moreover, you should be aware that such rumors, ostensibly created for so-called click rates, for personal gain, actually attack the government!"


    This statement from Mr. Sun set a ''tone'', conveying the directive of the partymittee. To put it inly, it called for a crackdown in the most severe terms possible.


    ...


    In an office of a deputy director at Yangchuan City TV Station, the big screen repeated the day''s interview at Shuijun Lake, with host Yang Meng''s words deliberately targeting Shuijun Lake echoing over and over in the office.


    Many viewerments scrolled back and forth beneath therge screen.


    "Does this host have a grudge against Shuijun Lake or what?"


    "It''s like she knew in advance there was something wrong with the fish in Shuijun Lake? Now she''s pped her own face!"


    "So unprofessional, she might really be sleeping with the boss, that''s how she climbed up to the host position..."


    ...


    The deputy director''s face darkened as he picked up the remote and turned off the big screen. Annoyed, he turned to Yang Meng sitting opposite him and said:


    "This is ridiculous, you''re professionally trained, how could you say those things on live broadcast! Did a dog eat your professionalism?"


    Yang Meng had none of the pride and flourish she had when she started the show, looking very haggard. If Shuijun Lake had indeed turned out to have problems, her usations would have been the words of justice, the conscience of journalism; now that nothing was found, they turned into harsh and unprofessional criticism.


    "How was I to know it would turn out like this, Shuijun Lake was the only one left, I thought for sure there was a problem there!" Yang Meng was quite frustrated and took a cautious nce at the deputy director before speaking in a somewhat coquettish tone, "You have to help me with this, you just have to."


    The deputy director frowned and thought for a moment before saying, "You should stay out of this matter for now. Keep a low profile on the show for the time being. Hmm, it''s best to take a leave of absence, stay off the show for a while!"


    "How can that be!" Yang Meng screamed as if she were a cat whose tail had been stepped on: "You know as well as I do how cutthroat thepetition is right now, just missing a few shows and others will easily rece me!"


    "Foolish woman!" The deputy director mmed the desk hard: "What do you know, I''m protecting you! I''m telling you, it''s not over yet. The city government is furious and wants to investigate the rumor-mongers thoroughly. You''ve been involved from the beginning and added fuel to the mes, you could easily get dragged into it."


    "Me, but it''s really not my fault, I didn''t spread the rumors..." Yang Meng''s momentum faltered; she hadn''t expected things to get this serious. Regardless of hermanding presence on TV, acting the part of a tough woman, she knew very well that she was just a local station host, and any citymittee leader could end her career with a single expression of dissatisfaction, leading to her being cklisted and put on ice.


    "That''s why I''m suggesting you take a leave for a while, don''t appear in public media for now, wait until the attention dies down, and then you can continue working," the deputy director said.


    Yang Meng left the office feeling dispirited. The deputy director opened hisputer and received a mass-sent email on the internalwork.


    "To all departments: Following discussions by the partymittee of the TV station, in order to cooperate with the city''s propaganda department and the city inte office in the special operation to rectify online rumors, our station has established a special program team, specifically led by News Department Nangong Yan, who will handle the reporting and interview work. All departments are expected to provide full support. Hereby notified."


    **********


    PS: The previous postunch acknowledgement was sent incorrectly, ending up in the VIP chapter. I apologize to friends who subscribed for the acknowledgement!

 Chapter 190 Closing the Net (Three More)

    Suming refused to ept media interviews that day, and he had his reasons. Because the struggle toe was more covert, it was better for him to not show his face. When Wang Jian She told him about the city''s decision to investigate online rumors, he secretly informed the bald man.


    Surrender yourself!


    "Leader, since I''m surrendering voluntarily, can I be given a lenient treatment?" Continue your adventure with empire


    In the interview office of thework management department, the bald man sat nervously on one side of therge table, while a row of government officials sat on the other. Wang Jian She sat at the center, nked by seven or eight colleagues from thework office and the city bureau.


    This morning, thework office received an anonymous tip-off letter, using Zhou Jin, the general manager of Huating Reservoir, of using the inte to spread rumors about hormone-treated fish to undermine hispetitors.


    The whistleblower, Xu Aiguo, oh, that is, the bald man, was fully involved in Zhou Jin''s rumor-mongering and now, driven by his guilty conscience and the immense pressure from the people''s government, is willing toe forward and expose Zhou Jin.


    Todays'' governance demands openness and transparency, particrly in matters involving the inte. Any slight mishandling may raise suspicions of a cover-up. Therefore, while Wang Jian She conducted the interview with the bald man, he specifically invited the television station''s special team to be present, recording the entire process and conducting interviews as well.


    Wang Jian Sheughed and said, "Rest assured on that front. You are just an employee of Zhou Jin, acting on his orders. At most, you would be considered an aplice. Moreover, since you''re turning yourself in voluntarily, if the evidence you provide significantly aids our investigation, we could exempt you from punishment. Of course, the colleagues from thework office will conduct ideological education with you afterward¡ªyou must never again spread or start rumors."


    "I understand, I appreciate your generosity, leader."


    After a series of intense spiritual and physical blows, the bald man no longer wanted to oppose Suming. After that night when he was reduced to tears by a dog, he hadpletely given up on confronting Suming. Thinking back on Zhou Jin''s despicable attitude toward him, the bald man outright defected and switched sides to join Suming, exposing all of Zhou Jin''s ns to Suming before Suming sent him back to Zhou Jin''s side as a top-level mole.


    The fish he brought back were indeed fished out of Shuijun Lake, but Suming had injected each fish with arge amount of hormones, aiming for Zhou Jin to be caught in wrongdoing and then inciting Zhou Jin to escte the issue step by step, eventually leading him to fall into his own trap.


    The bald man quickly confessed everything, omitting only one detail¡ªhe didn''t mention that Suming had caught him stealing fish from Shuijun Lake. Instead, he imed he had beenzy and randomly bought a few fish, injected them with hormones to hand over to Zhou Jin, not expecting Zhou Jin to make such a fuss over it.


    "What a lesson, Comrade Xu! Although you are not directly responsible, if it weren''t for your negligence, Zhou Jin wouldn''t have taken this criminal step," Wang Jian She said earnestly.


    "Yes, yes, I will certainly work diligently and live an honest life from now on!" the bald man said hastily.


    "Besides your testimony, do you have any other evidence?" a police officer from the city bureau asked.


    "Yes, yes, Zhu Chenggui is also willing to testify, and several other employees can too. Oh, theputers used for the postings are still in thepany''s vi..."


    That very afternoon, the investigation team split into two groups. One went to the hospital to interview Zhou Jin, who was there for treatment, and the other searched the small vi of Huating Fisheries Company. Inside, they found seven or eightputers used for the crime. They controlled the employees of Huating Fisheries and discovered extensive evidence of rumor-mongering on their phones.


    Additionally, thepany''sputers contained more than one terabyte of pirated and pornographic videos, which were turned over to the office for the elimination of pornography and illegal publications...


    A person may take ten or twenty years to rise from nothing, facing countless trials and tribtions; but to destroy someone, often only one thing is needed.


    Almost overnight, Huating Fisheries Company, which once had unrivaled prominence in the Yangchuan City fisheries market, found itself on the brink of copse.


    Faced with overwhelming concrete evidence, Zhou Jin had no room for sophistry and could only honestly admit to his crimes.


    "Dear viewers, remember not long ago, Zhou Jin sat in this very studio, dering that he would investigate the hormone fish incident thoroughly. At the time, none of us could have imagined that the very instigator was him. For personal gain and through unfairpetition, he caused enormous panic in society and incalcble economic losses.


    ording to the relevant legal provisions, the cyber affairs department and the Public Security Bureau filed the case, and the Procuratorate initiated the prosecution. Based on thetest news we''ve received, Zhou Jin was sentenced to three and a half years in prison for spreading rumors and endangering public security, organizing and disseminating illegal obscene materials, among other charges. Considering he is currently hospitalized and immobile, the sentence is suspended for one year until he recovers, after which he will be taken to prison to serve his sentence.


    Dear viewers, I hope we can all learn from this event to keep our eyes open and arm ourselves with scientific knowledge, so we aren''t easily deceived by rumors. Also, trust that our government, our party, has the capability to create a peaceful, stable, and safe living environment for us. That''s all for today''s program; I am Nangong Yan, thank you everyone for watching."


    "Suspended for a year?" Suming turned off the television and chuckled as he stroked his chin.


    Zhou Jin was a capable fellow after all. Like a tough worm that wouldn''t die, how had he managed to secure a suspended sentence under such adverse circumstances?


    Baldy has already been exposed and couldn''t find any news about Zhou Jin. But this kind of thing didn''t need any probing; anyone could guess that Zhou Jin must have spent a hefty sum to grease palms, and given his genuine poor health, that''s why he got the suspension.


    Although it''s only suspended for a year, his total sentence is three and a half years. If he earns some merits during the suspension and behaves well, he might get a reduced sentence. Perhaps in the end, Zhou Jin won''t need to serve time at all and could continue being the boss of his fisheriespany.


    "Wishful thinking! Now that our mask has been fully torn off, if I don''tpletely ruin you and devastate your reputation and family, how will I ever sleep peacefully?"


    Suming dialed Zhao Yun''s number: "Mr. Zhao, do you know any formidablewyers? I want to file awsuit."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Spread out on the table in front of Suming were a pile of business cards from the aquaculturists who had been inspected during the hormone incident. Due to the incident, these farmers, including Suming, had all lost a lot of money recently.


    "Really formidable ones? Whether awyer is formidable or not depends on how solid their rtionship is with the court. I do know a few who were judges before they went into private practice aswyers," Zhao Yun said from the other end of the phone.


    "That would be the best."


    "What are you up to now, kid? The hormone fish business has caused quite a stirtely. It''s not you behind it, is it?" Zhao Yun said with an I-knew-you-were-up-to-no-good tone.


    "Hehehe, knowing but not telling is what good friends do. Mr. Zhao, I''m a fish farmer. I''ve invested so much, and now it''s time to bring in thes," Suming said with a sly smile.

 Chapter 191 Huge Compensation (Four Updates)

    In the intensive care unit of Yangchuan City First People''s Hospital, Zhou Jin, with several tubes inserted into his arm,y despondently on the hospital bed, his eyes listlessly staring at the ceiling.


    The hospital did not treat Zhou Jin harshly because he was a criminal; on the contrary, the conditions in the room were very good. The heating was turned up high, and outside the window was a scenic garden area. The few nurses responsible for the ward were, to say the least, quite attractive¡ªscoring at least eighty points. If he wasn''t seriously ill, living here would be almost like recuperation¡ªrefreshing and invigorating.


    But Zhou Jin had no interest in any of these things; his heart felt ice cold.


    At first, he could not understand at all why a wless n that could have led to Suming''s demise had ended so abruptly, as if his opponent had known everything in advance!


    He even felt that all his ns had been seen through by the other party, as if he had been under the impression that he held the initiative from the beginning to the end, yet it was all just following the opponent''s rhythm.


    Looking back, it was as if he had dug a pit for himself and buried himself in it.


    When the investigation team brought the "tainted witness," the bald man, to his room for an interview, he immediately understood everything.


    His most trusted confidant, the bald man, had betrayed him!


    With the bald man turning traitor, there were no secrets left at his end! Every single move was crystal clear to Suming, who observed everything calmly, waiting until the most critical moment to let the bald mane forward and report, delivering a fatal blow to him.


    "I''m just a joke, eh!" Zhou Jin''s mouth was filled with a bitter taste. He had been strategizing extensively, only to end up a clown on the stage.


    Though he was in pain and anger, he had not given up hope.


    Having faced numerous challenges in half a lifetime in society, Zhou Jin had his exceptional strengths that had brought him to his current position!


    He had spent a huge sum of money, nearly all his earnings from recent years, to finally get a postponed sentence for a year. No matter what, he still had control over the Huating Reservoir, and the foundations of the fisheriespany were still intact. As long as he could get out of the hospital smoothly and continue to run the fisheriespany, there would always be a day for aeback.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    This is an age of forgetfulness. How many shocking news stories appear on the inte every day? Yet in no time at all, they are gradually forgotten. As long as he remains resolute and continues running thepany, once the storm passes, a resurgence is not impossible!


    "One day I will let everyone know that what I''ve lost, I will personally take back!" Suddenly, Zhou Jin thought of a line from the movie "A Better Tomorrow," and it could not be more appropriate for this moment.


    Just then, the door of the ward was pushed open, and two court officers in uniform walked in.


    "Comrade Zhou Jin, on behalf of Yangchuan City Intermediate People''s Court, I am notifying you that a civil dispute will be heard in court the day after tomorrow. Eleven breeders from Yangchuan City have jointly sued you for unfairpetition, causing them tremendous economic losses. This is the court summons. The hearing will be in the second courtroom in two days, and we hope that you can¡­" The court official nced at the various tubes in Zhou Jin''s arm and shook his head, continuing, "It''s alright if you can''t attend. The court will appoint a defense attorney for you. I''ll leave the summons here."


    After speaking, the official ced a court summons at the head of Zhou Jin''s bed and left, leaving Zhou Jin lying on the bed, dumbfounded and speechless.


    ¡­


    ```


    Two dayster, the second tribunal of the Yangchuan City Intermediate People''s Court opened a session to hear the ''civil dispute'' in absence of the defendant, Zhou Jin, who was ill and unable to attend.


    The intiffs, a group of eleven breeders mainly from Shuijun Lake, sued Zhou Jin for using unfairpetition means to spread rumors, which directly led to a depressed fishery market in Yangchuan City. Just Suming''s household alone lost almost 600,000 yuan in orders during the rtively short period of the rumors, and the other householdsbined suffered a direct loss of more than 2 million yuan.


    This was just the visible direct loss. In thewsuit, the intiffs also added ims for mental and reputationalpensation. Zhou Jin''s actions amounted to a collective mockery, greatly damaging the reputation of all Yangchuan City breeders.


    The intiff''swyer believed that, although investigationster proved the intiff''s innocence, the malevolent impact was difficult to fully reverse. Especially since Zhou Jin, as the vice-chairman of the Fisheries Association, was secretly spreading rumors and suppressing local breeders, the fishery market in Yangchuan City would face a difficult situation for a long period, losing a significant portion of the public''s trust.


    Therefore, Zhou Jin shouldpensate not only for the direct losses but also be responsible for future indirect losses.


    As for the evidence, the government''s investigative group had already looked into it thoroughly, reaching a conclusion with no room for doubt.


    As for the defendant, or Zhou Jin''swyer, they couldn''te up with any substantial rebuttal. The entire court session from beginning to end was just a formality, with only a symbolic mention of the defendant''s poor health at the time of closing, hoping the court would take a humanitarian approach and consider mitigating the sentence.


    "Now announcing the judgment of case number 2014180, Yangzi Civil, all rise."


    Everyone in the courtroom stood up as the chief judge read the judgment dispassionately, "The defendant, Zhou Jin, for viting..."


    "Compensate the eleven breeding households a total of 4.6 million Huaxia currency exactly. This judgment is delivered to both intiff and defendant, effective from the date of issuance."


    After the trial, Suming exchanged a few words with the other breeders and then went forward to shake hands with Zhang Si Ming, thewyer introduced by Zhao Yun.


    "Mr. Zhang, we''ll need your attention for the matters toe."


    It''s not to say that as soon as the court orderspensation, the money will be surely received. In fact, in many cases, the judgment has little effect; if the defendant simply refuses to pay, there''s nothing that can be done, and they can even abstain from attending the court sessions.


    This is how many defiant debtors are made, having the money but just dragging their feet about paying, leaving the intiff winning the case but not only failing to get a penny but also having to pay various expenses¡ªa ssic case of winning the trial but losing money.


    Thus, the follow-uppensation matters still require apetentwyer, someone with good rtionships on all sides, to break through various barriers and ensure thepensation is smoothly received.


    On the police side, the Nangong family has connections as her father is a leader in the municipal criminal police team. As for the court, that''s where professionals likewyer Zhang Si Minge into y.


    Continue your adventure at empire


    "Rest assured, you''re a friend of Zhao''s, and I will certainly take good care of the matter he''s entrusted to me," said Zhang Si Ming with a smile.


    "However, I''ve heard that Huating Fisheries Company''s ounts don''t have much money left, hardly enough to cover thepensation. It might evene to asset liquidation," Suming learned from Baldy that Zhou Jin had been spending money like water over thest six months, leaving less than one million yuan in liquid funds in thepany ounts.


    Lawyer Zhang Si Ming sensed that there was more to Suming''s words, and nced around. Seeing that there was no one nearby, he pulled Suming into a corner of the corridor and whispered, "What would you like to do?"


    ```

 Chapter 196 Vice President (Nine Updates)

    The banquet ended several days ago, and Suming was still feeling the pinch.


    That day, when he settled the bill, it totaled 136,000! The bulk of it was alcohol, and at least half of that was guzzled down by Su Meng himself!


    Even for a five-star hotel, even for a high-ss ce, that meal was ridiculously expensive!


    Zhao Yun even got wind of it and called specially to tease him, saying something about thanking Mr. Su for donating to the hotel and how he should send a "Good Samaritan" que to Mr. Su when he had time.


    "Why must brothers make things difficult for each other!"


    But on second thought, having gotten all those big and small bosses utterly drunk, even though it cost a hefty sum in alcohol, he had saved on the expense of taking them to nightclubs for a happy time... After a few out-of-town bosses woke up, none of them mentioned drinking again, presumably, no one would dare challenge Suming to a drinking contest in the future.


    "Looking at it this way, I''ve actually reversed a bad practice in the business world!"


    "Mr. Su, your cousin is too much, even the professional drinkingpanions can''t match his tolerance, he''s definitely talented. With that capacity for liquor, he could easilynd a job paying two or three hundred thousand a year."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Zhang Siming half-joked and then handed a pile ofpany certificates to Suming.


    "There''s also the matter of hiring some clerical staff. Especially an ountant," Zhang Siming reminded.


    Currently, Taoyuan Fisheries Company was nothing but a shell, with Suming as the boss and a bald man as the sole person handling specific tasks. Physicalbor aside, which could be taken care of with temporary hires, a dedicated ountant was a must.


    Over the past few days, Zhang Siming had helped with the ounting, and once the fish produce from Shuijun Lake and the reservoir were all sold, the total revenue had already approached ten million! Managing such arge sum required ounting and tax payments, and Suming still needed to prepare for investing in a distillery, next year''s fish fry and feed for Shuijun Lake and the reservoir...


    Without realizing it, Suming was no longer the small business owner who lived off a tour boat business, scraping together a few hundred thousand a year, but a genuine medium-sized fisheriespany boss. Even in the business circles of Yangchuan City, he had be a notable figure.


    "Yeah, I know. I''ve got someone in mind for the ountant position, but it''s going to take some time. In the meantime, since the money hasn''t been fully ounted for yet, yourw firm can manage it for me. Oh, and Mr. Zhang, now that mypany is officially established, your consultancy fee will also be paid from thepany ounts. We need to ensure everything about ourpany''s operations is legal," Suming said.


    "You can count on that."


    Zhang Siming was hired as the legal advisor for the fisheriespany, with an annual sry of 300,000. All thepany''s legal matters were his responsibility.


    No wonder he gave up his post as a deputy chief judge and resigned to go into business. In the court, his official annual ie was less than a hundred thousand, and even with some extra unofficial ie, honestly, it wasn''t all peaceful money. Furthermore, it wasn''t as much as outsiders might imagine.


    Now, just from taking cases, he could make three or four hundred thousand a year, all above board, and with Suming''s payment, he was closing in on a million a year. He had freedom, no longer subject to the system''s restrictions, and was much morefortable than before.


    After chatting with Zhang Siming for a while, Suming''s head started spinning with all the business affairs, so he simply made a call to Liang Shi, "Are you graduating next year, have you found a job?"


    Liang Shi was probably observing river dolphins, and the line was quiet. When Suming asked this, Liang Shi was taken aback and said, "Not yet."


    "Come work with me. Be the deputy manager at my fisheriespany. I''ll pay you three hundred thousand a year plus a year-end bonus," Suming offered directly.


    Three hundred thousand a year was an astronomical sum for a recent graduate, especially in the niche field of fisheries. Liang Shi had gotten along well with Suming over a few months, and he agreed without hesitation, albeit with a bit of indecision, "I can do breeding, but I''m probably not fit for sales."


    "That''s why you''re the deputy manager! You don''t need to worry about sales. Just ensure the fish are well-taken care of. If you have ssmates with the same specialty, you can also recruit them to thepany. Come now, and work out the breeding details for next year with Mr. Zhang," Sumingughed heartily, slipping into the role of a hands-off boss.


    A boss should focus on the strategic direction of thepany, stepping in to solve issues that arise but can''t be expected to manage every single detail. Even Zhuge Liang would be exhausted to death if he tried to do everything himself.


    So, having set the general tone, Suming left all the minor details to Liang Shi, and then made a video call to Zhao Yun.


    There was Zhao Yun, still wearing that utterly out-of-ce pajama set with lots of bear patterns, speaking seriously about the preliminary n for the distillery. He said if Suming wanted a major share, the investment had to exceed six million.


    "I just... " Suming pped his forehead. Just a few minutes earlier, he had been a millionaire, but now, after all the ins and outs, the avable funds in hand were still the two million left from selling Monkey Wine.


    "Money, oh money, the more I earn, the less it seems! Anyway, Su Meng, let''s go for a walk in the garden."


    Strolling leisurely in the zoo with his hands sped behind his back and Su Meng in tow.


    These days, the wolf-dog brothers spent most of the week in the back mountains ying like crazy with Huiya and the other dogs. ording to various signs and information, the pack had gradually adapted to living in the wild, with some dogs even starting to eat raw meat.


    Huiya hadpletely turned into a wild child, barely distinguishable from wild wolves, except it usually wouldn''t harm humans¡ªprobably because of spending so much time with Suming.


    However, the wolf-dog brothers were stressed about one thing!


    In a wolf pack, only the alpha has the right to mate. Now that the dog pack was much like a wolf pack, Huiya transformed from a sweet baby into a dominating leader and became the alpha, with the wolf-dog brothers just below it. They had the prestige, but when it came to rtionships, they couldn''t solve their problems and felt quite pitiful.


    Farther away, the bee army of Hundred Flowers Valley was already fully reorganized...


    To be honest, Suming didn''t know how the two Queen Bees had managed the reorganization, and he couldn''t be bothered to find out. As long as the pair didn''t cause trouble, that was good enough. The supply of Big Blue Honey was more than plentiful, enough to bathe in even during the cold days, not exaggerating.


    The stock of Monkey Wine was almost gone, down to just one mineral water bottle. In a few days, he nned to take the Monkey King to the back mountains to find a secluded spot to start brewing Monkey Wine and get the recipe.


    "Wow, it''s been a while since I''ve been this rxed."

 Chapter 199 A Bunch of Junk? (Second Update)

    ```


    In these days, Huiya and the others spent their days frolicking in the hills behind the house, mainly honing their hunting skills. They often brought their catch to Suming. Sometimes it was a small wild rabbit, sometimes half arge field mouse, and even wild fruits.


    These things weren''t of much use, though they were pretty good for barbecuing, so Suming had been eating game frequently and was starting to get a bit tired of it.


    The copper piece before him was dirty and looked like a piece of junk, inedible and unseble. He had no idea where the pack of dogs had found it.


    Suming took the copper piece into the pavilion, turned on the tap to wash off the mud, and under the light, he could see that it was an arc-shaped object, covered in rust with some indistinct patterns on it. It looked like a fragment, possibly a small part of a vessel.


    "Did you pick this up from the back hill?" Suming chuckled and asked Wang Cai.


    Wang Cai, with his tongue out, nodded his head, and Suming muttered, "It''s not an antique, is it?" before casually cing the fragment on a table.


    How many antiques could there be in the world, that a few dogs could just stumble upon them? Besides, there are plenty of counterfeits around these days, and even modern furniture often imitates ancient styles. Finding a piece of what looks like ancient bronze in the mountains isn''t all that rare.


    After ying some online games, he went straight to bed.


    Early the next day, just as dawn began to break, he heard scratching noises on the door panels, followed by creaking sounds. Suming rubbed his eyes and got out of bed, opening the pavilion''s door.


    "I''m going, did you guys move the junkyard over here?"


    Suming was startled by the sight. Piled in front of the pavilion''s door were mounds of mud-stained broken porcin bowls and rotten copper vessels, with the wolf dog brothers holding a tattered cloth-like item in their mouths, standing guard in front of this pile of junk, wagging their tails vigorously at Suming.


    It was then that Suming felt something was off.


    There were no households in the hills behind the house, so where had they found so much rubbish that seemed to be everyday items? On closer inspection, the ''tattered cloth'' the wolf dog brothers were holding looked like a piece of clothing.


    Suming took the tattered cloth from the mouths of the wolf dog brothers. A putrid smell hit his nose immediately, along with a foul stench. He held his nose, shook it out in the wind a couple of times, and unfolded it to find that it indeed looked like an ancient robe, with strange embroidery patterns on it. However, the garment was severely decayed and its original appearance was indiscernible.


    Seeing this item, Suming suddenly became a little unsettled. Luckily, the zoo was not open yet, and there wasn''t a soul near the pavilion. He hurriedly moved the broken dishes and pots, along with the tattered clothes, into the pavilion.


    If it had been just one or two pieces of porcin, or a few broken copper pieces, it wouldn''t have been surprising. But a pile as big as this was quite abnormal. Especially since they all obviously had been dug out from the ground, which was suspicious!


    It should be noted that the hills behind his house were a branch of the Qinling Mountains.


    The Qinling Mountains are considered one of the cradles of the Huaxia nation, the "greatest dragon vein." Since ancient times, numerous ancient cities have been established around the Qinling Mountains, with many emperors and generals choosing to locate their tombs within them.


    Even if not belonging to emperors and generals, the countlessrge and small towns built along the mountains meant that there were many ancient tombs in the Qinling, and due to the rugged terrain, most areas have remained untouched and rarely visited by man to this day. So, the appearance of mysterious items would not be unusual.


    ```


    Wildman Su Meng was discovered in the Qinling Mountains.


    Suming''s heart suddenly skipped a beat, fearing that this group of dogs might have desecrated someone''s tomb!


    At his age, he had seen plenty of novels and movies about tomb robbing and immediately thought of tomb exploration adventures.


    However, the act of tomb robbing, as thrilling as it sounds, is actually not as interesting as it is depicted in the novels.


    The more he interacted with Zhao Yun, the more Suming understood that so-called ''tomb robbing'' was in fact a dangerous and rather dull activity. Not only was there a significant safety risk, but it wasn''t as profitable as one might imagine.


    Firstly, the majority of tombs were buried underground, and after several hundred years, the apanying burial items would have been mostly damaged beyond recognition. The appearance of antiques is very important; for example, items from the Ming Xuande period, aplete piece and a damaged or even shattered one, would have a price difference as vast as the heavens and the earth. Take this pile of ''junk'' for example, almost entirely in fragments, such quality items wouldn''t fetch more than a few pennies, even if they were antiques.


    Secondly, tombs of lower status didn''t contain many valuable items, and those few high-ss tombs, belonging to emperors and high-ranking officials, might contain some quality items, even so-called ''divine national treasures'' like the Simuwu Ding or gold-threaded jade clothes.


    But such items are priceless; their true value is impossible to estimate. Yet, if you try to sell them surreptitiously, it''s hard to find buyers. In the end, you might only get a few million, all the while risking execution. Experience exclusive tales on empire


    Those auction-level items like the twelve zodiac animal heads can sell for billions, but they''re mostly driven by spection.


    Once, Zhao Yun told him about a group of professional tomb robbers who had unearthed several tombs from the Ming and Qing Dynasty times. The apanying burial items were rtively abundant, adding up to dozens of pieces, but they only made one or two million at most. Eventually, they were caught and sentenced to over fifteen years each.


    Suming, even by simply staying safe and doing nothing, could earn tens of millions a year; it simply wasn''t worth it for him to deal with relics for a few millions and risk going against the entire nation and losing his head.


    Zhao Yun was the best example. He managed a museum and could easily sell off national treasures if he wanted, but Zhao Yun would never do such a thing. The simple reason was that he could make far more money through legitimate business than through crooked means.


    Looking back at the pile of items, Suming was also unclear about what exactly they were. The so-called antiques were just his guess, and they could very well be a bunch of useless modern replicas.


    "Let''s go, take me to the ce where these items were found and let''s have a look."


    Suming was preparing to follow the wolf-dog brothers to the back mountain when his phone rang. It was Zhao Yun, who said there was some business with the distillery that he wanted to discuss with him and asked if he had time toe over.


    After thinking it over, Suming reasoned that if there really was an ancient tomb, he had no experience and going there recklessly would be too dangerous. Moreover, his current prospects were bright, and he had neither the need to rely on selling relics for money nor the desire tomit a crime for a few ''cultural relics.'' His greatest wish was merely to go on an adventure for fun if an ancient tomb was indeed discovered.


    So he simply took a bag of ''trash'' and drove to see Zhao Yun, deciding to leave further actions pending until after the appraisal.


    *************n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    PS: There''s more toe!

 Chapter 200 Appraisal (Third Update)

    After arriving at Zhao Yun''s home, Zhao Yun was sitting in the living room reading the newspaper. Suming changed his shoes and entered the house, but he didn''t bring up "antique appraisal" first; instead, he discussed the distillery with Zhao Yun. At the moment, this was the priority.


    Zhao Yun had already found professional engineers and budget personnel, drafted a n for establishing the distillery, and taken care of the rted approval processes. Suming had also already transferred four million from the Taoyuan Fisheries Company''s ounts through Zhang Siming''sw firm, plus the two million he dug into his own pockets for, making a total of six million.


    Once that money was spent, Suming became utterly penniless. If not for the small sry he still received monthly from the zoo and the continuing boat tour business, he wouldn''t even be able to afford gas for the Wrangler. The fisheriespany''s ounts werepletely drained; they could only wait to slowly recoup the money from selling fish.


    He had originally nned to tour several indkes in the Yangtze River Basin before the Chinese New Year, looking for freshwater fish with higher economic value to breed. Now, due to financial constraints, the n had been temporarily shelved.


    Zhao Yun had invested five million himself. With both of their contributions, the total investment was eleven million, which was actually a very, very small scale for a distillery.


    The funds were in ce, but there were two problems, neither too big nor too small.


    "The first is the form. You need to hurry up with the training of the monkeys you mentionedst time," Zhao Yun said.


    Suming nodded, "I''ve already begun handling it." He had ordered several tons of various fruits from the zoo''s warehousest week, not knowing exactly which fruits the Monkey King would use for brewing; it was better to have a surplus just in case.


    The form was key to the distillery, directly affecting whether it would be profitable. Suming was confident that the Monkey King would provide the form, but to create a buzz, he was also considering getting a few more monkeys involved, using the excuse of "releasing them into the wild" to have them learn the craft of making Monkey Wine from the Monkey King in the hills behind the zoo. In the future, these wine-making monkeys could "work" at the distillery.


    As long as these gimmicks were established, he dared not im that the distillery could growrge enough to go public, but making money was absolutely assured. Plus, it seemed the monkeys actually enjoyed brewing, probably because it meant they got to eat lots of fruit.


    "Then there''s the issue ofnd for the factory," Zhao Yun continued, his expression showing a hint of difficulty.


    He had selected a few sites, but none were ideally located; they were merely backup options. If they really couldn''t find anything better, they would have to make do with one of those.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "ording to the city''s regtions, all plots ofnd must go through public bidding and auction. For slightly better locations, we can only buy throughpetitive bidding. If ites to that, our investment will only be enough to purchasend. I''ve thought of a solution, whether we could rent a piece ofnd from behind your zoo. After all, the distillery''s remote location wouldn''t matter; there''s no need for it to be in the bustling city center," Zhao Yun suggested.


    "I''ll have to think of a way," Suming said, also feeling a bit troubled.


    Having rights to use thend behind the zoo meant it wouldn''t be difficult for him, with his current status at the zoo, to set aside a plot for a different purpose. However, there was a condition: the hillside existed under the guise of an ''animal sanctuary.'' If they were to engage in farming pollution-free crops, that could be justifiable, but modern industrial activities like building a factory or distillery would undoubtedly bring some pollution, which was a policy issue.


    Find more to read on empire


    "What about finding a piece ofnd near the reservoir?" Suming pondered and asked, "It''s close to a water source, and transportation is rtively convenient nearby. Building a factory near the reservoir would be better than in the hills."


    "There are indeed several ready-to-auction plots around the reservoir, but as far as I know, the city currently intends to zone these plots for residential rather than industrial use," Zhao Yun exined.


    ording to the government''s nning, different plots ofnd are designated for different purposes. Industrialnd and residentialnd are, as the names suggest, for building factories and housingplexes respectively. After purchasing a plot, construction must adhere to the n¡ªyou can''t buy industrialnd and build residential buildings on it, and vice versa; that would be illegal.


    Though there is only a two-character difference between the two, the prices for residentialnd and industrialnd are worlds apart; residentialnd can cost several times more than industrialnd.


    A significant portion of the government''s fiscal revenue nowes from auctioning state-ownednd. The prices of residentialnd are skyrocketing each year, with new record-setting bids for building plots and floors continually emerging. This is a major reason why housing prices remain high. Every year the government says it wants to control housing prices, but when the cost of thend ounts for more than half of the construction costs, along with dozens of various types of taxes, how can housing prices possibly drop if neithernd prices nor taxes are reduced?


    Getting back to the main point, the area around Huating Reservoir, far from the noisy city center and with its pleasant scenery and serene environment, is perfect for constructing vimunities. It''s understandable that the government wants to rezone the surrounding plots as residentialnd, to sell at higher prices and increase fiscal revenue.


    With Zhao Yun''s current status, he definitely had influential connections within the government¡ªSuming guessed that his background was probably much more significant than his own. However, changing thend use around the reservoir from residential to industrial involved the financial lifeline of Yangchuan City Government¡ªit was a matter of vital and principled interest. Even if Zhao Yun stepped in, Suming doubted he could make it happen.


    Zhao Yun probably knew this as well and ultimately just shook his head,ughing, "If it really doesn''t work out, we can buy a plot somewhere else. There''s plenty of constructionnd in the nearby counties and towns. As long as you have the money, buyingnd won''t be a problem. It just means the transportation of raw materials will be a bit more troublesome."


    "After I go back, I''ll also think of some ways. If possible, it would be best to stay near the reservoir or the back mountain," Suming still hoped to have the distillery close by for convenient management. Besides, if he could build the distillery in either of those two ces, he could even cultivate various fruits on arge scale in the back mountains to directly supply the distillery, making the process more convenient and making good use of the mountains¡ªa win-win situation.


    The two chatted for a while longer. As parents, their conversations would inevitably turn to their children, and Zhao Yun was no different. Before long, he was talking about Chengcheng.


    Suming was taken aback by the conversation; kids these days matured so early. There was a little boy in Chengcheng''s ss who had written her a love letter!


    Zhao Yun didn''t seem to care much. It was natural for children to have those misty feelings for each other. It wasn''t just the kids nowadays; even when Suming and his peers were in elementary school, it wasmon to hear about who had a crush on whom. Zhaoqian, on the other hand, was incredibly worried, nagging Zhao Yun every day about how puppy love could distract from studies and affect one''s outlook on life, and so on.


    "Don''t worry, Mr. Zhao, leave it to me! Beating up and intimidating the little kids, helping with homework, pretending to be a parent at parent-teacher conferences, that''s my expertise, only fifty bucks a pop!" Suming pat his chest with a resounding thump.


    "Forget about it, Chengcheng isn''t interested in those kids anyway. She says they''re too immature, always ying League of Legends or something, not mature at all," Zhao Yun said casually.


    Suming was at a loss for words, thinking to himself that he yed too, not only League, but sometimes even CrossFire...


    After some idle chit-chat, and seeing that Zhao Yun had no other business to discuss, Suming took out some pieces of broken porcin and chunks of copper from his bag, piled them on the table, and said, "Mr. Zhao, can you take a look and tell me what these are?"


    ********


    PS: Another chaptering in fifteen minutes!

 Chapter 201 Digging Graves with a Permit (Four Updates)

    Zhao Yun and Suming sat on opposite sides of therge table. As Suming poured out a hodgepodge of items from his bag, Zhao Yun initially nced over them nonchntly, but his eyebrows quickly furrowed, and his expression became serious. He dragged a chair over to sit next to Suming and began to examine the small fragments one by one carefully.


    Seeing Zhao Yun''s expression, Suming knew that these things were probably not ordinary, at least not modern imitations. He asked, "Mr. Zhao..."


    Zhao Yun, however, cut him off with a question, "Where did you find these things? Wait,e up to my study on the second floor!"


    Without further discussion, Zhao Yun packed the items, carried the bundle, and hurried up to the second floor, with Suming following. They entered the study, and Zhao Yun casually locked the door behind them.


    "Mr. Zhao, even if it is a genuine antique, there''s no need for such a fuss, acting like we''remitting theft." Suming joked. With no one else at home, Chengcheng and Zhaoqian were out, was it really necessary to lock the door?


    "I''m doing this for your own good. You think I can''t tell? These all came from the ground. If word gets out, you''d be in big trouble."


    Zhao Yun red at Suming irritably, "Don''t get carried away with those novels about tomb raiding. I''m telling you, the state has specialized personnel dealing with such matters. If the items are worth anything, you''ll be under surveince as soon as you try to deal with them."


    "Is there really a Dragon Group?" Suming suddenly got excited at the thought. If there was a Dragon Group, I, as a person with special abilities, would join them!


    "Dragon Group? What''s that?" Zhao Yun, being of an older generation, clearly had no idea what ''Dragon Group'' meant. He didn''t dwell on it but instead repeated his warning to Suming not to sell any antiques privately. The state had people covertly managing these issues. If it were an ordinary antique, it would be one thing, but if it were a national treasure, with Suming''s current connections, he would be apprehended before he could even sell it abroad.


    "As mysterious as you make it sound, it might not even be an antique." Suming was indifferent, since he had no intention of making money from it.


    Zhao Yun turned on a white incandescentmp in the corner of the study and pulled out a magnifying ss. Under the bright light, he inspected the rubbish Suming had brought, then opened a drawer and took out a palm-sized bottle. With a small brush, he dipped it into the bottle containing an unknown liquid and brushed it over a copper piece several times, examining it carefully under the light.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "How is it?" Although Suming didn''t count on making money from it, his curiosity was piqued, and he asked somewhat nervously.


    "If this isn''t an antique, then there are no antiques in the world," Zhao Yun replied, putting down the copper piece and tapping on it, "It should be from the early to mid-Ming Dynasty. Tell me the truth, how did you get this?" Your journey continues on empire


    Suming didn''t hide anything, spilling the details to Zhao Yun like pouring beans from a bamboo tube.


    After listening, Zhao Yun pondered for a while and then said, "Based on what you''ve told me, there should be a tomb in the back hill. However, judging by the patterns on these fragments, the tomb''s owner was likely just an ordinary person, at most slightly wealthy. It''s a good thing you didn''t actively dig up the tomb; otherwise, the nature of the issue would be different. I''ll tell you, such tombs do have archaeological value, but they really don''t have much economic value. If you dug up something worth a few hundred thousand, it would be quite remarkable."


    "Looking at how you''re talking, having been influenced by you all these days, my heart is like a bright sun, never once did I think of raiding tombs," Sumingughed, "You won''t believe it, but I even thought, if the tomb''s owner was unearthed, as a good deed, I would bury him back."


    "Heh, I''ll just pretend to believe you. Anyway, no one knows what treasures might be inside the tomb right now."


    "Mr. Zhao, you get me!" Suming said with a yful grin.


    If there really was something uniquely rare and valuable, given Suming''s character, he definitely wouldn''t end up on the losing side. And Suming was well aware that Zhao Yun was a businessman, and all businessmen have an innate desire to profit. Ultimately, this middle-aged, handsome man wasn''t the type to selflessly dedicate himself to the interests of the Party-State.


    Zhao Yun thought for a moment, then said, "Well, first take me to that ce for a look, and we''ll talk about the rest after we find the tomb."


    "Talk about the rest?" Suming, with his sharp senses, caught a hint of something unusual in Zhao Yun''s words and deliberately asked, "What ''rest''?"


    Zhao Yun blinked and asked, "Don''t you want to see the ancient tomb for yourself before the state excavates it? You should know that once the state starts its excavation, many primary sources will be top-secret files, and even I might not get a chance to see them."


    "Mr. Zhao, you''re tempting me to be a tomb raider," Suming chuckled.


    Zhao Yun''s expression turned serious, and he said earnestly, "Nonsense, if you go digging up graves, that''s called tomb raiding! But if I take you to dig, that''s called protective excavation! I have a license!"


    Suming was close to crying from frustration, truly envious. Zhao Yun actually did have a ''license''. It was something called a ''National Cultural Relics Excavation Protection Qualification Certificate''.


    With this thing, one could legally dig up graves. Of course, stealing the relics inside the tomb was not allowed, but if it was just him and Suming going into the tomb first, who would know what they did inside?


    Zhao Yun, after all, was a bit moreposed than Suming, still a professional. Before they set off, he made a phone call, and had someone deliver tworge backpacks filled with equipment and tools. The guy who delivered the stuff seemed to be one of Zhao Yun''s confidants; he didn''t say anything when he arrived, didn''t ask any questions, just dropped off the goods and left.


    Carrying these things, the duo left Zhao''s vi, drove back to the zoo to pick up Su Meng, and followed the guidance of two shepherd dogs to the back mountain. After threading through the deep woods for hours, the leading shepherd brothers finally stopped in a small stream in the mountains, barking at a slope nearby.


    Their current location was right at the top of a mountain owned by the zoo, situated between another peak used by the zoo but not part of its property. The two mountain tops formed a ''V'' shape, and Suming and the others were now at the bottom of the ''V''.


    To put it more vividly, they were in the cleavage of a ''career line''.


    There were no paths around, the terrain on both sides was fairly steep, with at least a forty-degree incline. The slope was dotted with trees and rocks, and from a distance, they could see arge patch of bare earth exposed by andslide caused by mountain floods, standing out awkwardly like a bald spot in the midst of greenery.


    From this distance, several small ck dots that looked like dogs were on that bare patch, roaring at the ground.


    ************


    PS: That''s all for today, continued tomorrow

 Chapter 202 Attack

    "What is it?" Suming squinted at the distance, but it was too far to see clearly what the dogs were barking at.


    Zhao Yun simply said, "Go up the mountain and take a look, and we''ll know."


    Thus, the two of them climbed up the slope using hands and feet together. The slope must have been about forty degrees, almost requiring hands and feet to get up. Suming and Zhao Yun handed over their backpacks and equipment to Su Meng, who climbed up like arge ape, zipping up swiftly. Zhao Yun and Suming followed behind, and after climbing for nearly half an hour, they finally reached the elevated area of the slope, a few dozen meters high.


    Strangely, there were no ancient tombs or the like in sight, only a nted hole about the size of a water vat on the ground. A few dogs surrounded the hole, slightly bending their bodies as if facing a great enemy, staring at the entrance as if there was something very dangerous inside.


    Scattered around the slope near the hole, there were some ancient vessels half-buried in the soil. It looked like the scraps that the wolf dogs had given to Suming had been picked up nearby...


    Zhao Yun and Suming looked at each other, a bit surprised, and the same thought crossed their minds at the same time: could this hole be a robber''s tunnel?


    Seeing Suming approaching, Huiya turned its head and bared its sharp fangs at Suming, a gesture of affection that startled Zhao Yun. At first, he hadn''t noticed that among these dogs was an actual wolf!


    "It''s alright, it''s mine," Suming said, patting Huiya''s head with a smile.


    Zhao Yun, seeing that Huiya wasn''t biting, was reassured and walked up to the hole to look down. Suming also walked cautiously to the entrance and bravely peered inside.


    The sun could shine in from this position, and with its help, he could see down into the darkness. It seemed very deep with bursts of cool air hitting his face. It looked like there might be water at the bottom.


    Zhao Yun casually picked up a fist-sized stone and threw it into the hole. A ''plop'' was heard soon after, indicating the stone hitting water. By the sound of it, the water was not very deep.


    Suming was a bit scared, but even more curious. He couldn''t help but ask Zhao Yun, "Shall we go down and have a look?"


    Zhao Yun, well, he might seem like a mature, sessful businessman on the outside, but deep down, he did notck the adventurous spirit of a man. Additionally, he had a background in antique research and spent his youth wandering all over the ce fiercely and wildly. It was only after he had a family and took on the responsibilities of a father and husband that he gradually settled down.


    Faced with therge hole before them, Zhao Yun also felt an itch in his heart as if a cat''s paw was scratching him. The two were in immediate agreement and decided to go down and explore.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Zhao Yun prepared various tools on one side while Suming hugged Huiya and whispered a few words to it.


    "You''re not nning to take the wolf down with you, are you?" Zhao Yun asked, a bit perplexed as he put on a miner''s hat with a searchlight.


    "That''s actually a good idea," thought Suming, realizing the reason in Zhao Yun''s remark. Wild animals naturally have a keen instinct for danger, and with Huiya''s night-vision, it might be more useful in the dark environment than a person would be.


    However, Suming had instructed Huiya to do something else, and soon Huiya ran off swiftly with a few dogs.


    Suming, worried that Zhao Yun might not be able to ept what was toe, intentionally gave a heads-up, "Mr. Zhao, you don''t think there could be zombies or something like that inside, do you? Should we prepare some weapons?"


    "You''ve watched too many movies. There''s no such thing. If there is indeed a tomb below, the real dangers are mechanisms and air quality, or at most a fewrge rats." Zhao Yun carelessly tossed a shlight over a foot long to Suming.


    It felt quite heavy, suitable as a bludgeon, but Suming still looked unconvinced, saying, "I''d rather prepare some weapons."


    "Suit yourself," Zhao Yun said indifferently. He had seen many first-time tomb raiders like Suming, whose heads were filled with all kinds of strange fantasies, acting as if they were going to war in Iraq, fully armed for a tomb expedition.


    In reality, in a tomb, weapons are far less crucial than experience.


    After a while, Huiya returned with the dogs, carrying tworge waterproof bags and dropping them in front of Suming.


    Suming opened the bags and Zhao Yun nced casually, then was stunned, eximing, "The weapons you talked about... are these?!"


    Indeed, the bags contained real weapons: two pistols, two rifles, and two tightly packed boxes of bullets.


    These were seized from a poaching gangst time and had been hidden in arge cave ever since. Huiya knew the way and had brought a portion over with the dogs.


    "Heh heh heh..." Suming chuckled mysteriously, shouldering a rifle and tucking a pistol at his waist, then tossed the bag to Zhao Yun.


    An ordinary person would undoubtedly ask a lot of questions at this point, but Zhao Yun had seen these things in his younger days. He and Suming also had an understanding, rarely prying into each other''s secrets under normal circumstances.


    Picking up a rifle casually, he expertly pulled the bolt twice and aimed it as if targeting something.


    "Not bad, but it''s best not to shoot. If there is indeed a tomb below, stray bullets could easily harm us," he said.


    Zhao Yun slung the rifle over his back and tugged at the climbing rope around his waist, handing the other end to Suming, getting ready to go down and check the depth of the water in the hole.


    But before he could descend, Huiya had already taken the lead, leaping directly into the hole.


    With a ssh, a sound of water followed by swimming noises came up. Suming hurriedlyy down at the entrance and shone the shlight downwards.


    In the circle of light from his shlight, Huiya pped and swam swiftly through the water, quickly vanishing into the depths of the cave, followed by the soft sounds of fur shaking and Huiya''s bark signaling everything was safe.


    "Down!" Zhao Yun said without hesitation, grabbing the climbing rope and sliding into the cave, while Suming illuminated the descent with his shlight. Zhao Yun sank just two or three meters before touching the water surface, and as his body slowly submerged, the water reaching about his chest, he finally stopped sinking and gestured an OK sign to Suming.


    Suming hammered the end of the climbing rope firmly into the ground with a peg, then slid down the rope himself, his feet gradually disappearing into the water.


    It might have been in his head, but even through the waterproof suit, he could feel the water in the cave was bone-chillingly cold.


    Soon, feeling solid ground beneath his feet, he realized he had reached the bottom. Suming and Zhao Yun were of simr height, around 1.77 meters, and the water in the cave came just up to their chests.


    Finally, Su Meng jumped down directly, like a human bomb, causing arge ssh as he hit the water.


    The cave was pitch dark, and for Suming, who was in such a ce for the first time, his heart was aflutter. Clutching his gun firmly in one hand above the water, he turned his head to look around. Suddenly, about twenty or thirty meters ahead, he saw two ghostly lights floating in mid-air.


    "Shit!" Suming got a fright, nearly yelling out loud.


    But the ghostly lights made a sound first. After Zhao Yun waved his shlight, it turned out to be Huiya. The shore was just twenty meters ahead. Huiya had already climbed ashore, listlessly yawning, sticking out its tongue to lick its mouth, stretching luxuriously, and then lying down, waiting for Suming and the others.


    Those two ''ghost lights'' were its eyes.


    Suming also quickly turned on his shlight, sweeping it around. Overhead was a cave that sloped upward; there wasn''t much space to either side or the back¡ªonly about seven or eight meters from the cave walls. Only straight ahead was the area spacious, a reasonably sized body of water followed by the shore.


    The space on the shore seemedrge, and moving the shlight, he could glimpse the ruins of buildings in the distance, but they were too far away to make out what they were.


    "Let''s go ashore and take a look," Zhao Yun signaled and led the way through the chest-high water, with Su Meng bringing up the rear and Suming, the most cautious, sticking safely in the middle.


    The three of them moved slowly through the water, the soft babbling sound echoing in the cave. Ripples radiated around them as they advanced, and the cave echoed with their sshing.


    The water wasn''t deep, but since there were only two beams from their shlights, the rest of the water looked ominously dark, too calm¡ªas if a creature could leap out at any moment.


    Perhaps because of the stagnant water umted over many years, and because the cave wasn''t well-ventted, the air was always tinged with a rotting smell, making it very ufortable to breathe.


    Fortunately, Huiya remained lyingzily on the shore, showing no sign of sensing danger.


    The floor beneath the water was sloped, and the closer they moved toward Huiya, the shallower the water became. Before long, the water only reached halfway up the body of Zhao Yun, who was leading, and up to the thighs of Suming.


    Just as they were about to reach the shore, suddenly, on the other side of the pool, a faint ssh sounded as if something had slipped into the water.


    At the same moment, Huiya, which had been lying down, jerked to its feet, its fur bristling on its neck, howling fiercely behind Suming and the others!


    The water''s surface split unexpectedly to both sides, spraying droplets everywhere, as something seemed to rush rapidly towards them from beneath!


    In the blink of an eye, before Suming and hispanions could react, the ''thing'' underwater had reached Suming, about to collide with his waist!


    "Get down!"


    With a roar, Su Meng reacted instantly, stretching out his arms, grabbing Suming with one hand, Zhao Yun with the other, and hoisted them high out of the water, before powerfully thrusting them forward.


    Experience tales at empire


    Suming and Zhao Yun felt themselves flying through the air, then with two sshes, theynded on the shore in agony.


    Su Meng was about to charge onto the shore when, taking one step, he was suddenly yanked back as if bitten by something from behind, violently dragged backward, and plunged into the water.


    **********


    PS: You don''t have to worry about the word count for this segment.


    Let me exin the update schedule after going live: as always, there will be updates every day at 10 a.m. and 8 p.m., not less than 6,000 words a day. Of course, there will often be more. There''s no set rule for bonus updates; I will do my best to write them.


    Also, at midnight today, the average subscriptions for this book just broke a thousand!


    This is a great encouragement for a neer.


    Here, I''d like to be honest with everyone. Because I didn''t get rmendations for a while, I was a bit distracted while writing, so some of the plotlines were not very satisfying. Starting now, as my backlog is almost depleted, I will treat this book with a more serious attitude and will not let you down!


    No more rambling; there will be an extra update today! Two chapters in the morning and two chapters in the evening, 3,000 words each, a total of 12,000 words!


    Let''s work together, aiming for an average of 1,500 subscriptions next!

 Chapter 203 Alien vs. Predator (Second Update)

    Suming and Zhao Yun were thrown onto the shore, and Suming felt a sudden dread in his heart, bearing the pain, he gritted his teeth and turned back to look.


    In the darkness, a figure flickered and arge burst of spray rose from the surface of the water. Therge figure of Su Meng was dragged from behind by something and violently fell backward, disappearing beneath the water in an instant.


    "Fuck me!" Suming''s eyes were about to split with rage!


    Su Meng, though a wild man picked up from the wilds, was simple and honest in nature, and had practically lived and shared meals with Suming; their rtionship was no less than that of real brothers! Moreover, Su Meng was ambushed from behind by the creature in the water because he had just saved Suming and Zhao Yun.


    It was unclear whether Su Meng was unconscious or dead; after being dragged into the water, there was no sign of struggle or resistance, and the water surface immediately calmed down. With the help of the shlight, only a faint ripple could be seen extending towards the depths of the pool, as if the monster underwater had dragged Su Meng down with it.


    Huiya howled, its body tensed for a spring into the water, but Zhao Yun quickly stepped in front of it. Onnd, Huiya might have a fighting chance, but in the water, it wouldn''t even be able to protect itself.


    Suming, now with a gun, dared not use it for fear of identally shooting Su Meng in the chaos. He hastily cast his spiritual power into the water.


    The water was cold and dark, with no signs of any other living creature''s activity. Fortunately, Suming''s spiritual power was now strong enough that he quickly locked onto Su Meng and that underwater creature in the farthest corner.


    Purely through spiritual power, it was impossible to make out exactly what the thing was, only that it was veryrge, almost the size of a baby doll fish.


    Upon the slightest contact with the spiritual power, the underwater beast immediately perceived it as a great provocation, fiercely retaliating with a savage burst of consciousness.


    Given Suming''s current strength of spiritual power, he could control even a fierce tiger. However, the sudden counterattack from the creature in the water shook him so violently that he became dizzy and staggered before falling onto his backside!


    There were only three possibilities for this to happen: either the creature in the water had high intelligence, close to that of humans; or the creature was much older than its normal kind. As the saying goes, with agees wisdom, and older animals often have a spiritual nature, offering strong resistance to spiritual power!


    The third possibility, a target of astonishing size like a giant whale or an elephant, was unlikely given the creature was not small but clearly not as big as a whale. That possibility could be ruled out.


    But now Suming had no time to think about all this; saving Su Meng was the top priority. A brief contact with Su Meng had revealed that he was still alive, just temporarily unconscious, possibly due to hitting his head on an underwater rock when he fell.


    Without any hesitation, Suming clenched his teeth and condensed all his spiritual power, unleashing it all at once.


    Suming''s spiritual power had grown immenselypared to before, nurtured daily by the Big Blue Bee''s honey and Monkey Wine, stronger by the day. His full-powered blow, an invisible and intangible force like a little cannonball, fiercely bombarded that underwater beast.


    This kind of spiritual strike was not a physical injury, but a direct projection into the depths of consciousness. If it had been an ordinary beast like a bear or lion, it might have been turned into an idiot by Suming''s attack. The underwater creature, although ferocious, could not endure it and instantly released Su Meng, thrashing wildly in apparent agony.


    After releasing this spiritual force, Suming felt utterly drained, almost copsing, supporting himself on the ground while gasping for air.


    Meanwhile, Zhao Yun was not idle. He quickly rigged a grappling tool resembling a hand onto one end of the climbing rope and, eyeballing the ce where the water churned, he threw with force.


    The grappling hand, carrying the climbing rope, skidded across the surface of the water andnded right where the water was sshing, sinking into the depths.


    This grappling hand appeared to be in the shape of a ''hand'', very much like the ancient grappling hooks used for scaling walls. However, it was ingeniously designed. Its ws were curved in a 360-degree fashion, so if touched by this device, one would be immediately snagged, and even slippery fish couldn''t escape.


    Zhao Yun''s aim was clear: it didn''t matter if the grappling hook caught the creature or Su Meng, or both¡ªif he could just pull them to shore, the rest would be easy!


    The metal hook sank quickly into the water, and Zhao Yun pulled back with both hands, the climbing rope snapping taut, indicating that something was caught. He hurriedly pulled backward while Huiya, too, followed, biting the climbing rope, its legs taut, scrabbling on the ground to help pull.


    The rope clearly had caught something heavy, but whatever was in the water didn''t struggle, so it must have hooked onto Su Meng. Suming also recovered a bit of strength and crawled over to help pull, and soon Su Meng''srge figure emerged from the water.


    All thismotion woke Su Meng, who had likely inhaled a lot of water and choked while submerged. Hey in the water coughing violently, shaking the entire cave as if it were trembling.


    Before Su Meng was fully ashore, the creature in the water had recovered from the psychic shock and was chasing after him. In its element, it moved incredibly fast, reaching Su Meng''s side in the blink of an eye and then surfacing with half its body.


    With the shlight''s beam, Suming finally saw the true face of the beast!


    The creature was covered in scales and armor, angr and rugged, with a long, t mouth full of crisscrossing sharp teeth. It had four stout legs like iron pirs, and its back sported mountain-like ridges that extended down itsrge tail.


    "Fuck, a crocodile!" Suming''s mind reeled.


    In the eyes of most people, including Suming, an animal lover, crocodiles ranked among the most terrifying and ferocious of animals, even far surpassing tigers and lions. Thus, in both the animal kingdom and human society, looks were indeed a significant issue.


    Take crocodiles, for example. Even a juvenile crocodile with little killing power looks so ugly and terrifying at first nce. A giant panda, though, with biting strength second only to a Pr Bear and a sprinting speed that can surpass Liu Xiang''s top speed on t ground, can climb trees over twenty meters high and use three or four wolves as cushions for y. Despite being a powerhouse, it manages to make a living by acting cute.


    Zhao Yun didn''t even think before quickly drawing his pistol. Without appearing to take aim, he lifted his hand and hurriedly fired a clean shot.


    "Bang!" A sh of fire burst from the muzzle, and the gunshot echoed through the cave.


    Sure enough, the introverted middle-aged hunk was unexpectedly a whiz with a handgun¡ªno one had imagined that the usually refined Zhao Yun could shoot so well!


    The bullet whizzed between Su Meng''s legs and struck the crocodile in the spine, taking a small chunk of flesh with it!


    The croc took the bullet without showing any sign of injury; instead, it was enraged, its wide mouth forcefully snapping towards the nearby Su Meng!


    Caught off guard, Su Meng had suffered a setback and was probably feeling quite sullen. Seeing the crocodile lunge at him, Su Meng''s movements were surprisingly nimble for his size as he suddenly drew his belly back, causing the crocodile to miss and snap its jaws shut with a loud p.


    What happened next was utterly astonishing!


    Rather than retreating to the shore, Su Meng let out a roar and threw a punch straight down, hitting the crocodile right on its closed upper jaw.


    Boom! The ground beneath them seemed to tremble, and the front half of the crocodile waspletely submerged in water while the other half was flung up high like a seesaw.


    Suming gasped in a breath of cold air wincing painfully just watching.


    Such a ferocious punch would usually leave other animals, even an average crocodile, either dead or severely dazed. But this beast, able to withstand Suming''s spiritual power, used the force of Su Meng''s punch to twist its waist, its tailshing like a steel whip at Su Meng''s waist. The massive impact sent Su Meng stumbling back,nding with a ssh in the water.


    "Get to the shore!" Zhao Yun called out, already holding his rifle at the ready. Since Su Meng was unharmed, once he made it to drynd, between his and Suming''s powerful rifles¡ªand with Su Meng, the human tank on their side¡ªthe croc wouldn''t stand a chance.


    Suming too, mustered a bit of spiritual power into Su Meng''s body, noticing a set of bloody gashes on his leg probably from the croc''s bite. It was only him, anyone else would likely have lost a leg.


    But Su Meng ignored Zhao Yunpletely, and the influx of spiritual power from Suming invigorated his spirit. Instead of retreating, he roared and plunged back towards the crocodile in the water.


    If that crocodile had any sense, it would have been baffled seeing Su Meng like this. Many are fierce, but none so reckless; many throw away their lives, but none quite this crazed.


    With another ng, Su Meng struck again, sending the crocodile flying into deeper water. Su Meng, being a swimmer, dove after it determined to pursue the croc!


    Zhao Yun''s jaw almost dropped as he yelled at Suming, "Tell your brother to get up here; is he trying to get killed?!"N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Even the strongest person is at a disadvantage fighting in water, with only half their strength; the reverse is true for crocodiles, which can exert full power in their element.


    Yet now, Suming was not so worried. He knew Su Meng well¡ªpossessing beast-like instincts and survival skills, Su Meng''s judgment of the situation was often much more urate than a human''s. Without considerable confidence, Su Meng wouldn''t have rashly pursued the beast.


    Take for instance lions and tigers. When hunting, they won''t make a move without confidence, even if their prey looks weak, like a mere gazelle. They won''t act rashly or put themselves in danger¡ªa lesson in animal instinct that humans could hardly learn, no matter how clever they are.


    After Su Meng entered the water, the pond turned into a maelstrom. The deep area only came to just above his waist, and he fought like a sea demon, standing to rain punches on asion, or submerging to create violent waves with his thrashing.


    "Awooo, awooo!" Huiya howled from the shore, seemingly cheering him on.


    At the noise, several ''things'' suddenly sshed down from the mouth of the cave above the pond.


    It turned out that two Huskies and a Labrador, watching from outside the cave, had leapt down hoping to lend a hand.


    "Get back up, get back up!" Suming called out urgently; this was no job for them.


    The Huskies, Suming saw through them long ago, didn''t need his prompting¡ªthey yelped and scrambled to the shore at the first sign of trouble,plete cowards. The smaller Labrador, on the other hand, swam around Su Meng, looking for an opening to join the fray. But Suming used his spiritual power to force it out of the water. A fight at this level was not for the Labrador to interfere.


    "Hahaha..." The Huskies took to the shore with eyes wide, cocking their heads while staring at the water, the expression on their faces screaming, "You scared me to death!"


    ...


    PS: Two more chapters tonight. The essence quota is all used up this week, I''ll add more for everyone next week!

 Chapter 204 Ancient Architectural Complex (Three More Updates)

    "Dogs are all the same, yet the difference is too big."


    Suming scornfully nced at the two Huskies. If Wang Cai''s luck were here, he might actually have been able to help, even a Chihuahua could be considered ''ferocious''pared to these two Huskies.


    The people on the shore felt like time was passing slowly, but in reality, the fight in the water had ended in less than half a minute. Su Meng walked back ashore, dragging the crocodile by its tail, as if he was dragging a dead dog.


    As soon as the crocodile left the water, it tried to bite back at Su Meng. Su Meng let out a thunderous roar, as if he had struck a muffled thunder in a cave, then swung with one hand and spun the crocodile in the air, before mming it hard on the ground.


    There was a dull thud, and a crocodile-shaped pit appeared in the muddy ground. The crocodile nowy there, unable to resist any longer, its limbs syed out, twitching its ws as if it had epilepsy.


    "It didn''t get smashed into an idiot, did it?" Suming couldn''t help but swallow his saliva.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Zhao Yun had his eyes opened today; hearing those stories about Li Yuanba having the strength of a thousand jun, he thought they were just brags, but the man before him was a true living Overlord. If he had been in ancient times, he would have been a fierce general capable of taking on ten thousand enemies.


    But he had to maintain hisposure after all, and after a brief moment of shock, he quickly took out a roll of ck duct tape from his backpack and had Su Meng press down on the crocodile''s mouth while he wrapped the tape around it,yer byyer.


    The crocodile''s biting strength was formidable, but it didn''t have much strength to open its mouth, so even a giant crocodile seven to eight meters long couldn''t bite if an adult held its snout shut. Thus, after capturing a crocodile, the first thing to do was to tie its mouth, not the limbs, like when capturing a person.


    Of course, just to be safe, Suming still secured the crocodile firmly with a piece of high-strength climbing rope.


    Three dogs and a wolf curiously gathered around the crocodile, asionally wing at its tough back scales. The Huskies probably also realized there was no danger and simply climbed onto the crocodile''s back and sat down, howling upwards at the sky with a not-so-authentic wolf howl, their eyes exuding the smug expression of a conqueror.


    "You few, get down. Don''t kill it. This guy is a national treasure!"


    Stay updated with empire


    After observing for a while, Suming and Zhao Yun recognized that this slightly over two-meter crocodile was the nationally protected Yangtze Alligator, known as a living fossil from the same era as the dinosaurs.


    In terms of numbers, the Yangtze Alligators might even be rarer than the Yangtze River dolphins, with possibly only dozens left in the wild, their status in Huaxia''s animal kingdom nearly on par with that of the giant panda. But as always, in this age where appearances are everything, the adorable giant panda certainly enjoys more poprity and attention than the fierce-looking crocodile.


    The Qinling Mountains and the Yangtze River Basin have been the habitats of the Yangtze Alligator since ancient times. When Sumingst went to rescue the dolphins and arrived at the abandonedke''s reed marshes, he was even worried whether there might be Yangtze Alligators there.


    Yangtze Alligators are actually quite docile by nature and typically don''t attack humans. Even if they do, it''s rare for them to kill their prey.


    Su Meng was lucky; he encountered a Yangtze Alligator, so he didn''t suffer severe injuries. When crocodiles hunt, they bite their prey and fiercely roll their bodies to shred it, but the Yangtze Alligator isn''t that violent. Its hunting method is somewhat humorous: after biting its prey, if it''s and animal, it drags it into the water to drown it; if it''s an aquatic animal, it throws it onto shore to wait for it to die of asphyxiation.


    That''s why the Yangtze Alligator was trying to drag Su Meng into the water.


    And although the Yangtze Alligator has seemingly sharp teeth, they are actually socketed teeth, incapable of cutting or chewing, only able to mp onto prey likerge pincers. Sometimes, if the prey is toorge and the alligator can''t swallow it, it has to wait helplessly beside the prey for it to dpose... All in all, if there were a ranking for the most dim-witted among crocodiles, the Yangtze Alligator would definitely be a contender.


    Suming measured it with a tape measure; this Yangtze Alligator was about two meters three in length, making it quite massivepared to the generally smaller Yangtze Alligators. It also seemed to be quite an old fellow.


    Being a Cretaceous species with nearly ten thousand years of history, the Yangtze Alligator could be considered a ''pseudo-mythical beast'', having almost reached a perfect form in millions of years of evolution, hence its strong spiritual power resistance. The bloodline of the big baby fish from before was even more ancient than that of the Yangtze Alligator, but it was more opportunistic.


    The stronger the individual''s abilities, the fiercer their temper, and the same goes for animals. The big baby fish had submitted to Suming not only because it wasn''t as fierce as the Yangtze Alligator, but also because it had misjudged the situation.


    "It must have fallen from that hole up there." Zhao Yun pointed to a hole above the water surface not far away, as when they had walked out of the water, they hadn''t found any other fish in the pond. This pool was just a puddle with no food to satisfy a Yangtze Alligator, so it couldn''t have been living in the cave all along.


    An unfortunate crocodile.


    "Not necessarily." Suming turned his head to look back into the depths of the dark cave.


    After getting ashore, they discovered that the space behind the cave was veryrge, much more spacious than the karst cave Su Meng had lived in. The Wolf Fang shlight couldn''t reach the end at all. It was possible that some animals might be lurking in there, possibly even bing prey for the Yangtze crocodile.


    They just didn''t know what kind of strange and unusual creatures might appear in this dark cave.


    "Let''s first dress Su Meng''s wounds," Zhao Yun said. He seemed to know a bit of everything. His skill in applying medicine and bandaging surpassed that of the junior nurses at the zoo''s medical station by far. He applied medicine to Su Meng''s injured lower leg to prevent inmmation and then swiftly bandaged it with gauze.


    Meanwhile, Suming took this opportunity to use his shlight to observe the ''cave'' on shore.


    He had already seen what appeared to be numerous structures on shore, but it was only from a closer distance that he could see clearly that they were houses.


    Houses, many houses!


    Near the water''s edge, there were rotting pieces of wood of various sizes scattered on the ground, along with some oddly shaped stones. The nearest few houses hadpletely copsed, leaving only foundations, while others had one wall or half of them copsed, as if something had smashed them down from the sky with great force.


    Further away, there were three rows of houses, about dozens in total, stretching into the distance. From the exterior, most of the structures seemed intact, and judging from the architectural style, with flying eaves and intricate carvings, arranged in neat parallel rows, they were likely from the Ming and Qing dynasties, in the style of Huizhou architecture.


    The three rows of houses were spaced several meters apart, forming two natural underground streets.


    After dressing Su Meng''s wounds, Zhao Yun also shone his shlight inside. After getting a clearer idea of the situation, he inhaled sharply.


    "Mr. Zhao, don''t scare me, please," Suming rolled his eyes. The cave was already eerie, and seeing all the structures like something out of a zombie movie, Suming was actually feeling quite on edge. Zhao Yun''s sharp intake of breath was sudden and sharp, like slurping porridge, and hissed ''whoosh'' in the cave, startling Suming.


    "No, I''m just astonished. I didn''t expect to find an ancient architecturalplex here!"


    "So what?" Suming asked nervously, pointing to the row of Huizhou style houses in front of them, "Do you think, when we walk past, a bunch of zombies might suddenly jump out of the houses on both sides of the street?"


    "If this were a movie studio, that might be possible," Zhao Yun replied with a smile, then exined, "You don''t study antiques, so you don''t understand the value of thisplex of buildings. There might not be any particrly valuable artifacts here, but thisplex itself is a microcosm of an era, a vige¡ªit''s a massive cultural treasure!"


    "Stop lecturing me, Mr. Zhao. Don''t worry, I surely won''t demolish these houses to sell them off," Suming said.


    Zhao Yun oscited the shlight a few more times and, after pondering for a moment, said, "I think I''ve figured it out. This ce isn''t any sort of ancient tomb. It must have originally been a vige or a small town built on the mid-slopes of a mountain, which got submerged by a mountain flood. It''s very likely that part of the town was swept down the mountain years ago, and what we see now is the part that survived the disaster. When we go in, you have to be very careful, try not to touch any of the structures inside the town. Since it''s been washed over by a mountain flood and has been underground for so many years, these buildings are quite unstable. A little external force could easily cause them to copse."


    Zhao Yun seemed drawn to this rare underground architectural site, eager to explore deeper.


    Su Meng was in slightly better condition, having an injury on the leg but still able to move. Huiya could be of some help, the Labrador was not big but was naturally a hunting dog and could lead the way. As for the two Huskies, forget it, it was better to keep them close by, just to prevent them from causing any trouble.


    Suming checked on the old Yangtze crocodile using his spiritual power. The beast was beaten half to death and barely hanging on, unable to resist. It seemed it wouldn''t die for the time being, so they bound it up and left it there, nning to figure out how to bring it back to the zooter. The aquarium was short on animals, so upon returning, they could make it neighbors with finless porpoises and paddlefish.


    Thus, the three men, three dogs, and one wolf slowly walked into the architecturalplex along the street to the left.


    Hearing Zhao Yun say it wasn''t an ancient tomb but a mountain vige made Suming feel even more in danger! A tomb, at most, might contain one or two people, but if a vige was torn down by a mountain flood, how many dead would be inside?


    There was even a movie called ''The Old Corpse of the Mountain Vige''!


    Zhao Yun was speechless and said, "Why can''t you young people be a bit more materialistic? Did you waste all those Marxism political science sses? Do you have to find some zombies or monsters before you''ll be satisfied?"


    "Because monsters are valuable!" Suming gave an exnation that even Zhao Yun found quite reasonable.

 Chapter 205 A Big Tank of Hot Manure! (Fourth Update)

    Suming had visited the Terracotta Army before, and if one were topare the scale, the Terracotta Army was definitely muchrger than this underground town surrounding them, and more awe-inspiring, too. After all, the Terracotta Army was the burial apaniment for Qin Shi Huang and could be considered one of Huaxia''s most luxurious and high-ss tombs.


    However, visiting the Terracotta Army and personally walking in this yet-to-be-discovered undergroundplex were twopletely different experiences. The surroundings were pitch-ck, quiet enough to make one feel like suffocating, with eerie ancient houses from the Ming and Qing dynasties on both sides.


    In such an environment, there wasn''t a trace of humanistic art; instead, it made one''s skin crawl, as if behind every door, every wall, lurked some horrifying entity, staring at them coldly from the entrance.


    "Can you not scare yourself? You''re starting to freak me out a bit," Zhao Yun said, shining the shlight on Suming''s face with a flick, speaking irritably.


    He was standing in front of a house, engrossed in studying a mottled copper wind chime hanging under the eaves with his shlight, while Suming kept talking about ghosts and goblins from behind him, turning quite agitated.


    Given Zhao Yun''s experience, he was well aware that such ces were unlikely to have any ghosts, at most they might find a few mummies. But frightening each other could scare someone to death, especially in such a dark underground setting, and Zhao Yun could not stand Suming''s incessant babbling.


    "It really is scary. Look around; you wouldn''t even need makeup to shoot a ghost movie here," Suming said, waving the shlight around as he spoke.


    As the shlight''s beam crossed a house opposite them, Suming thought he saw something inside. He instinctively moved the shlight back and aimed it at the house''s main door.


    It was nothing important until he looked, and then his scalp buzzed as if it would explode!


    The door had copsed, and the shlight''s light shone inside, revealing a silhouette standing behind a screen facing the door! Your next read is at empire


    The figure had its arms stretched out rigidly on both sides, standing unmoving behind the screen, but it had no head.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    If it weren''t for the fact that he had just relieved himself by the water, Suming would have nearly wet himself in fear. His legs went weak, and he clung to Zhao Yun, hanging on him like a ko, and with a crestfallen face, said, "Is there a ghost behind the screen?!"


    Zhao Yun picked up Suming effortlessly and, without a word, crossed the street littered with broken stones and chunks of mud to the opposite house''s doorway. Standing at the threshold, he paused briefly to ensure the room was rtively stable before entering directly, then disappeared behind the screen.


    Seeing Zhao Yun disappear into the darkness without saying a word from beginning to end made Suming''s heart thump wildly, "Damn, could this old guy be a ghost?"


    Thinking this, he sent a burst of spiritual power to Huiya, instructing it to follow and take a look behind the screen. Even if there were ghosts, they wouldn''t eat a wolf, should they?


    Huiya was not scared at all and was about to enter the house when another silhouette flickered out from behind the screen¡ªit was Zhao Yun.


    Zhao Yun had the shlight in his mouth and was holding a robe in his hands. He came out and unfurled it in front of Suming, asking somewhat incoherently, "Is this what you saw?"


    The robe was old and ragged, but it did resemble the shadow he had seen on the screen. Suming was speechless and shone the shlight back at the screen. Sure enough, the ''figure'' was gone.


    What Suming had seen as a ''silhouette'' was merely this robe hanging on the screen.


    "I''ve told you before, don''t be superstitious. Where has your Party member''s consciousness gone?" saying this lightly, Zhao Yun carefully spread out the robe on the ground, afraid that any rash movement would damage the already decaying ancient garment.


    "This is mid-Qing Dynasty clothing. It looks like this small vige has been around for several hundred years," Zhao Yun said while taking out several small gs with fluorescent stripes from his backpack and cing them around the garment on the ground as a simple protective measure, to prevent someone from identally stepping on the garment in the darkness.


    "The person living in this room must have been a woman!" said Suming in a huff, pointing at the house opposite them.


    "Hmm? How do you figure that?" asked Zhao Yun, curious.


    "Only a woman would hang her clothes up so neatly!" said Suming.


    After giving it some thought, Zhao Yun nodded, "There is reason in your words."


    After doing all that, Zhao Yun returned to the front of the mansion where he had been standing before, put on gloves, and carefully pushed open the front door. With a creaking sound, the door slowly swung open, and a foul smell wafted out from behind it.


    "Let''s go, take a look inside this house. It seems to be thergest one here; maybe it belonged to the n leader or the vige head. There might be some valuable things inside. Keep your steps light and don''t touch anything carelessly."


    Zhao Yun cautioned them a few times, then stealthily entered through the gate. Suming also crouched down and followed him in. Even though there was not a single ghostly shadow in the mansion, the two of them moved as if they were thieves, causing Su Meng, following behind them, to imitate their actions and tiptoe inside.


    Behind the door was another screen, but this one was made of stone. After bypassing the screen, a courtyard the size of the waterside pavilion appeared. Shining the shlight around, there was arge urn in the center of the yard. Ancient wealthy families used to ce these wealth-gathering urns in the front courtyard, raising fish inside to attract wealth and ensure safety.


    Suming leaned in for a closer look and saw the urn''s water had long dried up, but it was filled with something dark and murky, the nature of which was unclear.


    Zhao Yun pulled out what looked like a long-handled spoon from his backpack and stirred it around in the urn, instantly unleashing a pungent stench that also carried a sharp, offensive odor.


    Suming covered his nose and frowned as he said, "This couldn''t be a urinal, could it?"


    Zhao Yun, standing closest and feeling dizzy from the sudden onught of the foul smell, instinctively took a big step back and retched twice before saying, "How could that be? Does your family put the piss pot out in the yard for all the guests to smell as theye and go?"


    "Maybe the homeowner wanted to grow vegetables in the yard and used this big urn to collect human manure. If that''s the case, Mr. Zhao, you might have just stirred a hundred-year collection of shit and piss with that stick!" Suming said disdainfully, pointing at the ''long-handled spoon'' in Zhao Yun''s hand.


    Zhao Yun, disgusted by his words, hurriedly rubbed the spoon on the ground a couple of times and wondered aloud, "What on earth is this stuff? It smells terrible. It does resemble the smell of feces, but who woulde here to fill up an entire water urn?"


    Even if the former owner of the house had an odd penchant for defecating in the courtyard urn, after decades or even centuries had passed, any excrement should have dried out. It couldn''t possibly emit such a foul stink, nor could it still be wet.


    But now, in front of themy an urn full of fresh, steaming dung!


    "Mr. Zhao, don''t scare me like that!" With his vivid imagination, Suming was instantly frightened and recoiled, instinctively turning his head to look around.


    It seemed as if, at any moment, someone could rush out from one of the dark rooms inside, pants down, and jump over the urn to relieve themselves.


    This was far too eerie!


    "It might not necessarily be excrement; it could be dposed leaves and branches or something. It''s normal for the underground environment to be damp and have moisture," the materialist Zhao Yun offered another seemingly reasonable exnation.


    But Suming was still uneasy. If it wasn''t feces, then it was somewhat tolerable, but if it was, the problem was grave. They were currently underground, in an ancient town buried centuries ago. If the urn indeed contained fresh excrement, then there was only one conclusion: someone was living here!


    Who would live in such a ce? Even a wild man like Su Meng wouldn''t. Moreover, as they had approached the ruins of the ancient town, they had not seen any signs of human habitation.


    Zhao Yun also realized the seriousness of the situation. Meeting zombies or wild men wouldn''t necessarily scare him; but the thought of encountering tomb raiders was different: in such a ce, it would lead to a life-or-death struggle.


    With heightened alertness, both men had their guns ready. Zhao Yun pointed towards the hall within the courtyard and said, "Let''s check out the house in the back first."


    After he finished speaking, he suddenly added, "If we do encounter trouble, don''t hesitate and don''t babble. Just shoot! It''s better they die than us."


    "Wow, Mr. Zhao, you''ve really taken a page out of the inte novel protagonists'' ybook," Suming said with genuine admiration.


    Zhao Yun: "..."


    ********


    This chapter is a bit shorter, just 2500 words. Please forgive me; I really couldn''t do more.

 Chapter 206 Footsteps (One more)

    The courtyard was nked by mottled walls, and at the other end, as you walked in, was arge room, the hall of the mansion.


    The roof was almostpletely devoid of tiles, exposing the inteced beams, beneath which was a row of half-open wooden doors, their paper windows long rotted and tattered, hanging in the window frames. It was a good thing there was no wind on the ground, otherwise the blowing would have surely produced a very scary whistling sound. Now both Suming and Zhao Yun''s hearts were in their throats, and even a slight stir of grass or leaves made them extremely nervous.


    Only Su Meng seemed oblivious to the word "fear" and showed no curiosity about the surroundings, almost as if he wereing home.


    "You really kill the mood. Do you know how hard it was for me to create a bit of a horror atmosphere?" Suming said helplessly as he looked at him.


    The three of them stealthily made their way to the bottom of the great house, tiptoeing. They first listened carefully through the door; hearing nothing inside, Zhao Yun then signaled with a gesture and gently pushed one of the wooden doors with his gloved hand.


    The door creaked open with a grating sound that made one''s ears ache, slowly opening inwards as twin beams of shlight followed, piercing the pitch-ck room.


    The shlight swept through the room, revealing a hall with a square table in the center, nked on both sides by empty Taishi Chairs. Lined up on the table were three four-legged dishes, as if for offerings, only they were empty as well.


    In front of the table, two rows of chairs stood parallel, like the meeting hall of arge family n. From the design of these chairs, one could imagine that the town, though remote when it existed, was a ce of educated people, perhaps even a locally prominent family.


    The room was divided into front and back sections by a screen wall that connected to the winter melon beams on the roof. Seeing the round, bulging beams confirmed the previous judgment. These types of beams, which are quiteborious to construct and are carved from whole pieces of high-quality wood, are resistant to pests, and could endure for hundreds of years, indicating they were not something an average farmer could afford.


    The square table and Taishi Chairs were under the screen wall, while at the very top of the wall hung a que full of dust, almost covering the original writing.


    Suming could barely make out the four characters on the que but couldn''t discern the content. On either side of the que, at the edges of the screen wall, the round columns were carved with a pair of couplets, which weren''t as dusty, so the characters were readable. However, they were written in a cursive style, almost like grass script, and the lighting was dim; Suming nced at them but hardly recognized anything.


    While Suming couldn''t recognize them, Zhao Yun was a specialist in this area. He walked softly into the room, aiming the shlight at the que and the couplets, slowly moving it along while murmuring the words under his breath.


    "It seems the owner of this house wasn''t an ordinarymoner. He should have been a military officer from the Ming Dynasty," Zhao Yun said with a fair degree of certainty.


    A military officer? Suming, puzzled, asked, "Wasn''t this ce all civilian dwellings?" The ''relics'' he had taken to Zhao Yun for appraisal earlier were said by Zhao Yun to have patterns used bymoners. Since arriving at this undergroundplex, all the houses they had seen along the way, judging by their standards, belonged tomoners, not nobility. At most, they represented a somewhat wealthier family.


    In ancient times, the ss hierarchy was strict. No matter how wealthy amoner might be, they couldn''t use items reserved for nobility withoutmitting an offense that, at its most severe, could warrant the death penalty. The bigger the family, the more they would be aware of this, with no one willing to risk making such a mistake and ruin the entire family.


    Zhao Yun pondered a moment and said, "Perhaps he was a retired official who returned to his hometown to live out his days, or someone who had been deprived of his rank and exiled back to his hometown due to some offense. Anyway, from these couplets, the master of this house must have been on the battlefield and earned military merits. It isn''t that they used the standards of nobility."


    Not quite understanding these things, Suming just listened to what Zhao Yun said. Military officer or civil official, as long as there were no zombies or monsters, he wasn''t afraid.


    Just as he scanned the surroundings, from behind the screen wall came a rustling sound, as if something were dragging itself along the ground.


    The sound wasn''t loud, but the room was so quiet that itnded distinctly in the ears of both Zhao Yun and Suming. They almost thought they had misheard and exchanged nces, but the surprise they saw in each other''s eyes confirmed they were not mistaken.


    Almost simultaneously, Huiya arched its back and let out a low growl toward whatever was behind the screen wall!


    Under normal circumstances, Zhao Yun and Suming would chat and joke, even making nonsensical quips. But at critical moments, they both reacted almost identically and immediately!


    Startled, they both sprang into action, each taking a side, darted past therge screen wall, and made their way to the room behind.


    Behind the screen wall was a half-empty room filled with shelves, pots, and the like, along with several pots of long-withered flowers. One side led to a door to the back courtyard, and the other side to a room from which the sound emanated.


    Once the shlight shone, the dust-covered ground disyed a long drag mark leading towards that door.


    In the blink of an eye, Suming and Zhao Yun took a deep breath and simultaneously rushed into the room.


    As the shlight beam swept across, surprisingly, a bedroom appeared with arge copper mirror standing beside a big bed, so rusted it couldn''t even reflect the shlight''s glow.


    During the brief sweep of the shlight, something seemed to sh by. Suming instinctively moved the shlight to the side.


    There stood a tall, slender figure with its back to them!


    The figure wore a dark red robe, facing the direction of therge bed and mirror, as if it was admiring its own reflection.


    Suming''s heart pounded wildly, thinking he had mistaken hanging clothes for a person again. Since it was a bedroom, it wasn''t odd for there to be clothes hanging on a rack, so he subconsciously reached out to grab the red robe.


    Just as he extended his hand, Zhao Yun suddenly bellowed, "Withdraw your hand!"


    From Zhao Yun''s perspective, he saw it clearly, this time it wasn''t just clothes¡ªit was indeed a person!


    The person''s head had two tall hair buns, making the back of their head look extremely elongated, resembling a hat-wearing ghost with their shoulders slightly shuddering as though they were silently sobbing.


    This wasn''t a scene from "A Chinese Ghost Story"; a weeping woman in red suddenly appearing in an ancient underground house was never a good omen. In movies, such scenarios usually followed with the woman turning her face to reveal a horrifyingly pale and ghastly countenance.


    ***********


    PS: This section won''t count toward the paid word count.


    Today, I noticed two more patrons, and I was prepared to add more chapters. But then I suddenly saw ament saying, "updating ten chapters for a reward of fifty thousand..."


    My heart raced at the mention ofmemorative coins. Fifty thousand starting coins were one thing, but more importantly, I felt incredibly inspired by everyone''s enthusiasm!


    It shows that as long as I work hard, everyone is supportive enough! Effort does pay off!


    But ten chapters... heavens, where would I find ten chapters? After posting on Sunday, I wrote for a whole day and currently have a backlog of ten thousand words. I was nning to save some just in case and wait until the subscription hits 1500 before releasing ten chapters in a burst.


    But seeing everyone so passionate, I''m quite excited about thememorative coins...


    So here''s the deal, I''ll push myself, and we''ll do as we did on the first day of VIP¡ªwith a minimum of two thousand words per chapter. I''ll try to write some more tonight and see if I can find some time tomorrow to add a bit more. Including the current backlog, it would be best if I could reach ten chapters. But if I really can''t make it, don''t be disappointed, everyone!n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    After writing, I will set up a timed release, starting from seven in the morning, with a chapter every fifteen minutes.


    I''m all in!


    Lastly, I still plead for a legitimate subscription, rmendations, and monthly tickets. If the performance is good, perhaps I could score a great rmendation on the client application¡ªit all depends on you all!

 Chapter 208 What on Earth Is It? (Three Updates)

    Suming and Zhao Yun werepletely dumbfounded, their scalps numb with terror.


    From the sounds of it, those red-clothed women¡ªor whatever they were¡ªalmostpletely surrounded the courtyard they were in, likely numbering over a hundred, perhaps even several hundred.


    "I told you, there might be lots and lots of little monsters jumping out in this damn ce, and yet, Mr. Zhao, you scorned me!" Suming said irritably.


    "I..." Zhao Yun was also frustrated. He could never have imagined that amon Ming and Qing dynasty architecturalplex could house so many ghostly entities. It was beyond any rational exnation. "All right, all right, I was wrong. Damn these dog-things, what the hell are these creatures?"


    In his desperation, even the usually refined and cultured Zhao Yun let slip a crude swear word that was quite offensive, clearly showing how rattled he was. Regardless of how muchbat strength those ghost women possessed, their overwhelming numbers were the problem. Dozens or hundreds of them swarming together could bite the two men to death, each taking just one bite.


    The surrounding screams were intermittent, each one more tragic and piercing than thest, not at all sounds that animals could make. They were nearly identical to the synthesized screams from horror films, jarring and terrifying. Suming took a deep breath and said, "Mr. Zhao, if things get really bad, we''ll have to break through and get back to the surface!"


    They were surrounded on all sides andpletely trapped in this room. Escaping would not be easy, but they had no other choice. Zhao Yun clipped the shlight to his hat, held the rifle in both hands, and said, "Okay, I''ll lead the charge. Su Meng and the wolf follow you, the dog follows me, and then we split up and run. We''ll regroup at the tunnel entrance!"


    Having said this, he prepared to head outside.


    Before Zhao Yun could take a single step out of the front door, Huiya, leading three dogs, suddenly rushed out of the yard first, roaring and pouncing in the opposite direction of the loudest screams, diving into the ancient houses on both sides of the street.


    "What now!" Zhao Yun was so anxious he was about to sweat. He knew that Suming was deeply attached to these animals and likely wouldn''t abandon them to save himself.


    Suming initially wanted to curse, but a sudden insight stopped him from doing so and he blocked Zhao Yun, "Maybe they''ve found something. Let''s wait and see." With that, the two men raised their guns, backing against a wall that was still rtively sturdy, warily watching both sides of the door.


    After Huiya and the dogs charged out, the screams in the darkness grew even more pitiful. Mixed in were the sounds of wolves and dogs howling, and in several houses, furniture was being knocked over, suggesting a fierce battle was taking ce.


    Shadows continuously darted out of the houses, moving so nimbly across rooftops with such an eerie grace as if gravity did not apply to them.


    The battle, though intense,sted only a few minutes before it ended. The howling in the dark gradually diminished, and the asional sounds that did arise were much farther away, as though the creatures had been frightened off by Huiya and the dogs.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Not long after, a few small points of light appeared in the darkness, and Huiya and the dogs trotted back, seemingly holding something long and flowing in their mouths.


    "Did they catch one?" Suming looked from afar, thinking it was one of the red-clothed women.


    It was only when it came closer that he saw a wolf and three dogs lined up side by side, each gripping the head, waist, and legs of the red-clothed woman, respectively. Her body was limp as if boneless, with most of it dragging on the ground.


    They said it was a person, but once Suming shone the shlight, he had an epiphany!


    It was actually just a piece of clothing,pletely devoid of a body, with only a head¡ªwhich exined why Zhao Yun''s shot had no effect.


    Huiya opened its mouth and tossed the woman''s ''head'' in front of Suming. The ''head'' tried to flee, but Suming grabbed the two ''buns'' on top of the head and lifted it up.


    With the light of the shlight, he saw not a head, but a somewhat cute creature!


    The creature was only slightly smaller than Huiya, about the size of a cat, furry all over, with a long mouth and a few whiskers at the sides. Its small, pitch-ck eyes squinted into slits under the light, making it lookzy.


    What Suming was holding weren''t ''buns'' at all, but tworge ears that resembled cattail leaves, simr to rabbit ears, long and pointed. If they were not being held but fully spread out, they would look likerge banana leaves, even bigger than the little fellow''s entire body.


    "Oh, I get it now, you little rascal, sneaking into the red clothes and standing on the bed to scare us, right? That big jar of hot poop in the yard is clearly your, oh, your masterpiece!"


    Suming chuckled, realizing that everything he''d seen had been this little one''s mischief. It must have wriggled into the red clothes and then stood on the bed, showing only its head. From behind, it would indeed look like a standing person! In fact, except for the head on the neck, the clothes were empty.


    Suming had been quite frightened earlier, and now that he had caught the culprit, he shook the little thing by its ears a few times in retaliation. Clearly irritated, the creature''s mouth suddenly gaped open as if it was about to yelp, but Suming quickly pinched its mouth shut with his other hand, turning the cry into a muffled ''owow woof''.


    Eerie wails still echoed around them asionally, but now Zhao Yun and Suming could finally rx. It turned out to be just arge group of small animals living underground, harmless, and they wouldn''t even have to lift a finger themselves¡ªHuiya and the others could take care of them all.


    Especially for Suming, who was even less concerned; he was a friend to animals. He might turn tail and run if faced with a zombie or two, but these big-eared little creatures, even a thousand of them, would be no threat.


    The little creature wasn''t dumb; after being captured and realizing it stood no chance against this ''big fellow,'' it ceased its struggles immediately. Its ck eyes rolled around, and, astonishingly, it put its front paws together, bowing repeatedly to Suming as if it were paying respects like a human.


    Its gaze suddenly became pitiful, and its fluffy tail hung down beneath its body, sweeping back and forth as if begging Suming for mercy.


    "You were so bold just now, and now you start acting cute! You''re really cunning!" Suming sneered at the little one.


    "What on earth is this creature?" Zhao Yun also leaned in, filled with curiosity.


    The little creature looked like a fox, but with ears even longer than those of a rabbit. It didn''t have the sly appearance of a typical fox; at first nce, it almost seemed like a big squirrel.


    As Zhao Yun spoke, he reached out a finger and scratched the little creature''s belly, which made it wriggle with ticklish delight.

 Chapter 209 Love is a Must! (Four more)

    "This guy is a fox, seems like it''s called the long-eared fox, right? But originally, it''s from the Americas, how did it end up here?"


    Suming spoke while holding and shaking its long ears. The long-eared fox seemed to have given up resisting, helplessly drooping its head and limbs, disheartenly shaking a few times with Suming''s movements, its long tail dragging below it like a pendulum, swinging back and forth.


    The long-eared fox, also known as the fennec fox, is the smallest canid in the world ¨C in other words, the smallest fox ¨C with particrly long ears as its characteristic feature. It''s not an extremely rare species but, due to its cute appearance, it can be kept as a pet, mainly inhabiting Africa and the Americas. That''s why Suming found it odd why so many long-eared foxes would pop up in this undergroundplex.


    "Hard to say; in the middle tote Ming Dynasty, there was already trade with the West ¨C it might have spread from there," Zhao Yun couldn''t provide an exact exnation and could only specte roughly.


    Because one of theirpanions had been captured, the long-eared foxes that had already been scared off gradually began to gather around again, their cries bing even more piercing, heart-wrenchingly intive. There must have been hundreds of them ¨C no wonder the Yangtze alligator could survive in the pool ahead, the long-eared fox poption in the nearby ancient town was probably its food source.


    Huiya and the three dogs barked back defiantly into the darkness, but their number was simply too small. Up against hundreds, their voices werepletely drowned out by the others.


    "Mr. Zhao, don''t be scared," Suming suddenly said something inexplicable, then took a deep breath. Zhao Yun was taken aback, "What am I afraid of?"


    Immediately after, Suming''s mouth opened wide, his eyes round with shock as he roared deeply into the darkness, the sound so simr to a tiger''s roar.


    The tiger, the king of beasts,mands respect, not through mere promation ¨C the tiger''s roar in the forest submits all animals to its will. The foxes around were startled into silence by this roar, and the surroundings suddenly became quiet.


    "Good job, kid; you''ve got it down pat!" Zhao Yun gave a thumbs up.


    If the Bengal tiger from the zoo were here, it would tearfully rejoice ¨C it had coached Suming to roar like a tiger until its voice went hoarse, and now Suming had finally grasped two or three points of truth. Although far from a real tiger''s roar, it was enough to frighten the little foxes.


    Huiya and the three dogs weren''t scared by this copycat tiger''s roar; they tensed, ready to charge into the dark again when Suming quickly stopped them. Don''t be ridiculous, there were so many foxes, they couldn''t possibly catch them one by one until New Year''s Eve.


    "I''m going to put you down, don''t run off, okay?"


    Suming shook the long-eared fox a little before setting it down on the ground. The fox didn''t dare to walk away, lifting its head and gazing at Suming with round, puzzled eyes. Suming took a piece of beef jerky out of his pocket and offered it. The fox''s eyes whirled, cautiously moving closer to sniff it before grabbing the jerky in its mouth, pressing it to the ground with its small paws, and munching with relish.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The two Huskies,pletely devoid of a hunter''s dominance, sat on either side of the long-eared fox, tongues out in a ttering manner ¨C they were almost licking boots, staring eagerly at the fox, as if they wished they could say, "Give me some, give me some."


    "Have some dignity, will you!" Suming t out took out severalrger pieces of beef jerky and distributed them to the Huskies and the Labrador. Huiya seemed less interested in the beef jerky ¨C after a sniff it turned away andy down to the side, eyeing the long-eared fox''s long ears with an unfriendly gaze.


    Those ears looked very appetizing, probably quite chewy.


    The long-eared fox seemed to sense the danger too, its ears swooshing t against its back as it raised its head, two small eyes warily watching Huiya. Unintimidated, it bared its teeth at Huiya, revealing two rows of sharp little teeth.


    Even so, the long-eared fox didn''t forget to protect the half-eaten piece of beef jerky with its paws, holding onto it tightly.


    "You better not bite it, we''re all on the same side now!" Suming silently sent a telepathic message to Huiya, because without a warning, there was a chance Huiya might make a meal out of the long-eared fox someday. After all, their rtionship was quite straightforward¡ªprey and predator. Of course, the one with the long ears was the prey.


    Once the long-eared fox had almost finished eating, Suming sent it a telepathic message. The fox was incredibly clever, or rather, incredibly cunning, and didn''t need much guidance from Suming to get the message.


    It began by digging a small hole in the ground, burying thest bit of beef jerky before covering it up thoroughly with dirt. Only then did it turn and scamper off into the darkness to find itspanions.


    In this day and age, the biggest fear was ''traitors.'' With a guide amongst them, no fortress was impregnable.


    It wasn''t long before the surrounding cries gradually died down. A few minutester, in the dark street ahead, a huge swath of lights suddenly twinkled. Led by the same long-eared fox from before, arge group of long-eared foxes came rushing over like a flood.


    The two Huskies that were gnawing on the beef jerky were startled, jumping a good half meter high on the spot with a whoop. Huiya and the Labrador swiftly got up and stood in front of Suming, eyes fiercely fixed on therge group of long-eared foxes that had reached them.


    Despite their small size, these long-eared foxes were still wild animals and now held an absolute advantage in numbers. They were not to be trifled with, baring their sharp teeth at Huiya and the Labrador in a show of aggression.


    "Don''t shoot! We''re all friends here!" Suming quickly swept a broad wave of spiritual power across the area, like an invisible, enveloping arge group, slightly brainwashing all the long-eared foxes to let them know he meant no harm.


    Now Suming''s spiritual power was formidable, especially against weak but clever creatures like the long-eared foxes, making it an effortless endeavor. Affected by the spiritual power, the expressions of the long-eared foxes instantly changed, their wariness fading away gradually, as they started to squint happily, looking endearingly naive. The bolder ones even wagged their tails and inched closer to Suming''s feet.


    Zhao Yun stared in disbelief, as if having seen a ghost, fixing his gaze on Suming: "How... how did you do that?"


    "The key is love! You need to let go of your racial prejudices, embrace them, and let them feel that you love them. Then, they will love you too!" Suming said, his face looking like that of a chatan.


    "Forget it..." Zhao Yun knew this was Suming''s ''family'' method of taming beasts and did not probe further. Shrugging his shoulders somewhat jokingly, he said, "I love them, but if I tried that, Mrs. Zhao would have my life."


    *****


    PS: Give me strength!

 Chapter 210 The Flatterers Inscription (Five Updates)

    ```


    Thisrge group of foxes, after a rough count, seemed to be close to two hundred. Suming simply couldn''t understand why foxes, which usually have no more than a dozen or so in a group, would have such an enormous family. Could it be that they had lived for several generations in this underground town, proliferating into a huge n?


    But that didn''t seem to make sense either. If they had lived underground all this time, some animal characteristics would inevitably have degenerated. However, the foxes in front of him looked quite normal.


    Perhaps it was an unsolvable mystery.


    Suming was toozy to think about it and bent down to pick up the long-eared fox in the red outfit that he had found first. He held it by the ears, brought it to his chest, and tapped its moist little nose with his thumb, saying, "From now on, you''re their leader. I''ll give you a name. Seeing as your ears are long and you seem intelligent, with a rather sneaky look to you, I''ll call you ''Big-eared Thief.''"


    The long-eared fox didn''t understand what ''Big-eared Thief'' meant; it just listened as Suming called it that, squealed twice with its eyes squinted, as if to agree.


    When the little guy wasn''t screaming on purpose, its voice was quite pleasant, damn it. But when it let out those terrifying screams like before, it was absolutely horrifying. Even Suming had almost peed himself the first time he heard such a scream.


    Zhao Yun, unable to make heads or tails of what he was seeing, chuckled and said, "What are you doing with so many foxes, taking them home to stew?


    "To raise them in the zoo, or let them roam in the back mountain with the dogs. This ancient site will definitely have to be ''handed over to the country'' in the future. Suming has no use for keeping it; once protective excavations begin, these foxes definitely won''t be able to stay here any longer. It''s best to bring them to the back mountain for now, since that ce is also a wild environment."


    Suming rubbed Big-eared Thief''srge ears and remarked, "If Chengcheng likes them, I''ll give her a couple to take home as pets."


    "She would definitely be thrilled, just afraid her mother wouldn''t agree. Zhaoqian is timid and scared of these furry things," Zhao Yunughed. "But if her mother sees these foxes, whether she decides to raise them or not, she''ll definitely start moring to buy a fox-fur coat again."


    "That''s not very environmentally friendly. Next time I go to the zoo, I''ll pluck some feathers from a peacock to make Mrs. Zhao a peacock feather coat."


    The two of them cracked a few jokes and felt much more rxed now that there didn''t seem to be anything particrly dangerous left in this undergroundplex.


    Suming and Zhao Yun, following the pack of foxes, investigated severalrge houses, but didn''t find anything of particr value. Most of the furniture was decayed beyond repair, though there were a few vases and pots from the Ming and Qing dynasties.


    As Zhao Yun had said earlier, this undergroundplex might have been a residential area from a hundred years ago. Overall, it represented a tremendous cultural treasure and could be studied for insights into Ming and Qing culture, but it didn''t have any particrly valuable individual artifacts. Even if they took whatever they wanted, they probably could only make a few hundred thousand at most, which wasn''t very significant.


    As a party member, Suming was now quite aware. Nowadays, to make money, have a future, and livefortably, there''s a six-word mantra: listen to the party, follow the party! He would never do anything to offend the party or the state.


    Besides these, in some of the houses, they found several skeletons. It was impossible to tell if they were male or female, young or old.


    Suming felt a slight stirring in his heart, emptied his backpack, and packed the bones into it before returning to the edge of the pool.


    The Yangtze alligator was still lying obediently in the pit. The group of foxes that had apanied them were particrly envious when they saw this enemy of the alligators, scratching and wing at it incessantly.


    The alligator''s skin was thick and hard, difficult to prate even with bullets, let alone the ws of a few small foxes. While it couldn''t be injured, it was very annoyed by the scratching. Unfortunately, its big mouth was tightly bound by tape, and it couldn''t move, so it just closed its eyes in frustration, pretending nothing was happening and taking on the approach of ''out of sight, out of mind'' as it yed the shrinking turtle.


    ```


    Suming dug a big pit in the ground, poured all the bones from his backpack into it, and then covered them with dirt. He put his hands together and gave a bow. No matter who these skeletons were in life, now that they were dead, Suming did not wish for them to be disyed like exhibition items for people to gawk at. He decided to let dust return to dust, soil to soil, and buried them in a pit. It was, after all, a fateful encounter, even if centuries apart. As for whether they would be dug up by "experts"ter, that was no longer his concern. It was enough that he had shown his respects; he didn''t need to insist on anything more.


    Over there, Zhao Yun had also nearly finished exploring. Two streets, a total of more than sixty Ming and Qing buildings, most of which were fairly intact, but would definitely need protective repairs, otherwise, it might not be long before arge-scale copse of the houses here would ur, which would truly be a shame.


    The three of them were ready to leave the cave, having Su Meng climb out first along the climbing rope, and then nned to hoist up the crocodile, the fox, and the like.


    As he was "packing" the crocodile, Big-eared Thief zipped out of Suming''s arms, bit his pant leg, and started pulling him towards the street. A whole bunch of foxes were also running in the direction they came from.


    "What''s the matter? Don''t want to go with me?" Suming asked with his spiritual power, and it seemed like Big-eared Thief wanted to make a trip back ''home'' first.


    With so many foxes living here, there was definitely a den somewhere. What Big-eared Thief referred to as ''home'' was actually just a fox hole. Suming chuckled to himself, thinking it''s not like they were humans moving houses, needing to take furniture along; it''s just a fox hole, could there be anything worth holding onto? Probably just some food.


    "Alright, alright, let''s go home first." Since Suming was not in a hurry, he followed Big-eared Thief down the street.


    After walking about several dozen meters, he saw a stone stele more than a meter high standing between two households. The foxes skirted around the stele and then vanished from sight. Suming followed and found behind the stele a hole about forty to fifty centimeters in diameter, which the foxes had used to slip into their den.


    Zhao Yun followed and was surprised, "Huh, how did I miss this hole just now?"n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    With no light here, relying only on shlights, and the hole being behind the stele, it certainly was not easy to find. Plus, as an archaeologist, Zhao Yun''s first instinct upon seeing a stele was to study the inscription, not to consider that there might be arge hole behind it.


    "What''s written on the stele?" asked Suming, who was semi-illiterate in this regard, pointing at the traditional characters on the stele that didn''t have any punctuation marks.


    "It seems to be about the battle of Poyang Lake, the glorious deeds of Emperor Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang defeating Chen Youliang''s six hundred thousand navy." Zhao Yun said.


    Sumingughed, "It seems the tradition of ttering the leaders in our country has a long history. Even a small vige would erect a stele to suck up to the emperor. Is it worth it? It''d be more practical to tter the county magistrate."


    While saying this, Big-eared Thief popped its head out of the hole with something in its mouth. Aftering out of the hole, it spit the object out, held it up with its front paws, stood up on its hind legs, and presented it to Suming as if offering a treasure.


    Suming reached out to take it, but Big-eared Thief hugged it to its chest and refused to hand it over, staring at Suming with its dark, shiny eyes.


    Suming was stunned for several seconds before he burst outughing. Out of beef jerky, he offered an Oreo sandwich cookie instead, which Big-eared Thief grabbed with its mouth before finally handing over the object it had been holding to Suming.


    Suming took it and saw it was a round, mud-covered object. After wiping it with his sleeve, it turned out to be a pearl the size of a thumb!


    ********


    PS: Huff, huff, huff, and here we go again!

 Chapter 211 A Not-so-serious Ancient Tomb (Sixth Update)

    The pearl itself was not so rare, and one the size of a thumb, even of excellent quality, wouldn''t be worth much, at least not to Suming at that time; its value was not too high.


    But if ced hundreds of years ago, in a small vige of just a few dozen families, it would have been a treasure!


    Suming and Zhao Yun looked at each other and had the same thought: Could these foxes be thieves, stealing valuable things from the vige and hiding them in their dens?n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    No wonder thisrge vige didn''t have a single valuable item left¡ªit turns out the Big-eared Thieves had stolen everything!


    This was truly a case of the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Sumingughed heartily and gave the Big-eared Thief a big kiss, while Zhao Yun, excited, had already climbed down and was shining a shlight into the hole, peeking in from the entrance.


    "See anything?" Suming had just peeked into the hole when he was hit by the pungent stench of fox, forcing both men to cover their noses and frown.


    Just then, another long-eared fox emerged from the hole, this time with something t in its mouth.


    Suming felt his pockets, "Shoot, nothing to eat left," and Zhao Yun volunteered a box of chewing gum... but then thought better of it and broke off a small piece of instant noodles to give to the newly emerged fox, trading it for what it was carrying in its mouth.


    A copper coin. Zhao Yun quickly spat on it, rubbing it vigorously, and then under the light, pulled out a magnifying ss to examine it closely, mumbling as he looked, "Da... Yi... Tong Bao..."


    The characters on the coin were the reign title of the emperor who had the coins made, such as Yongle Tongbao and Qianlong Tongbao. Hearing Zhao Yun say this, Suming couldn''t help butugh and said, "Da Yi Tong Bao? Mr. Zhao, are you sure you''re not seeing things? There was no such reign title called Da Yi during the Ming Dynasty, right? Or during the Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, or Qing Dynasties for that matter. The Da Yi Emperor, that''s a new one on me."


    Zhao Yun lifted his head, carefully pulled out a seble bag, ced the copper coin inside, sealed the bag, and ced it reverently in his backpack.


    After this, he finally said, "That''s because you''re uncultured. Just because you haven''t heard of it doesn''t mean it doesn''t exist."


    "There really was a Da Yi Emperor?" Suming was skeptical, pouting, "It couldn''t be one of those rebel leaders who crowned themselves emperor, right? The name of that reign sounds like one picked by a makeshift emperor."


    "This time you''re half right. This emperor did indeed proim himself, but he was no ordinary rebel leader."


    Zhao Yun pointed to a nearby stone stele and said, "You know who Chen Youliang is, right?"


    "Yeah, the eighth generation disciple of the Beggars'' Sect, Cheng Kun''s student, who almost killed Zhang Wuji... Okay, okay, Mr. Zhao, please don''t look at me like I''m illiterate. Chen Youliang, the one who nearly destroyed Zhu Yuanzhang. At that time, thend was divided between three: one part to him, one to Zhu Yuanzhang, and one to Zhang Shicheng. Chen Youliang had the greatest power and established the Great Han, but what does that have to do with this Da Yi thing?"


    "Da Yi was Chen Youliang''s first reign title, and it was during a time when his forces were at their strongest, and he was at the height of his power," exined Zhao Yun, pointing towards the fox den. "I''m going to go down there and take a look. Stay at the entrance and back me up."


    "No, no, no, let''s go down together. Su Meng, you stay at the entrance and back us up. Anyway, with your size, you won''t fit down there."


    Suming couldn''t miss out on such an exciting adventure, and since the den was already a foxir, all the foxes inside were ''friendly,'' so there wasn''t any danger.


    So the two men put on simple gas masks¡ªnot because they feared ack of oxygen; if foxes could survive inside, it meant there would be enough oxygen below.


    The main issue was that the fox den smelled so awful, one whiff at the entrance and you could be knocked half dead; without a gas mask, I reckon you''d vomit outright.


    After preparing themselves, the two hooked their shlights onto the miner''s helmets they wore on their heads, muttered a dull ''OK'', and then crawled into the hole one after the other.


    The entrance of the fox den was like a twisty, nting slide, leading steeply downward. The cave was so narrow that there was no question of standing, you couldn''t even sit up straight. Zhao Yun was in front, sitting on the ground with most of his body lying in the hole, holding a gun pointed downward at an angle, inching himself further down, with Suming following right behind him.


    About seven or eight meterster, Zhao Yun called out that they had arrived. His feet touched ground, and he straightened his body and climbed out of the hole to stand up, followed closely by Suming.


    Uponnding, Suming felt something was off.


    Ever since arriving in this undergroundplex, all the floors were made of dirt. In an ancient vige, there was no money to pave the streets with tiles, and even most of the house floors were justpacted earth.


    But now, there was a hard sensation underfoot, clearly indicating the presence of floor tiles!


    A few swings of the shlight beam allowed them to get a rough look at the surroundings, leaving Suming and Zhao Yun stunned!


    Before them was a stone chamber of about a dozen square meters, floored with fish and dragon patterned tiles. The floor was rather clean, not at all like the mess of fox feces they had imagined.


    In the center of the stone room was a stone tform about a meter high, and on that tform sat a small three-legged bronze tripod.


    The tripod, about half a meter tall, appeared quite ''miniature'' and seemed out of ce.


    It was as if a poor man wanted to pass for rich but didn''t have the money, so he skimped on materials and ended up with this tiny tripod instead.


    "This is too unserious, burial is a significant event in one''s life, how can it be treated so carelessly?" Suming couldn''t help but criticize internally.


    Looking to both sides, there were two small side rooms that one could see the end of with just a nce, inside which were various vessels piled up. A slight shine with the light revealed that most of them were already broken, probably smashed by foxes ying around here.


    Directly in front of the stone chamber was an arched corridor, about three meters tall and two meters wide!


    The corridor seemed to be seven or eight meters long. The light from the Wolf''s Fang shlight pierced through the passage, revealing another room inside. The full picture was indistinct, but merely peering through the corridor, directly opposite the entrance, stood a coffin!


    "Damn, it''s really an ancient tomb!"


    Suming immediately got excited. His initial goal for this trip was to explore an ancient tomb. It was only after descending that he realized it was just a cluster of ancient dwellings, and his enthusiasm had waned significantly. If it hadn''t been for thatrge group of foxes and the Yangtze alligators stirring things up, this trip would have been toockluster.


    He never would have thought that beneath this cluster of dwellingsy an actual tomb! Although that little tripod wasn''t very serious andpletely disrupted the solemn atmosphere of the ancient tomb, at the end of the day, it was still a tomb.

 Chapter 213 Attach Soul (Eight Updates)

    As I was saying, it happened in the blink of an eye. The force had barely entered my body when the blood-red stripes on the Luminous Pearl quickly faded away without a trace, as if they had never been there.


    Zhao Yun carefully ced Chen Youliang''s hole-pierced head back in the coffin. He then turned his head to see Suming holding a piece of the Luminous Pearl in a daze and gave him a nudge, "Possessed by something?"


    "Oh. No, no." Suming nced down at the Luminous Pearl in his hand, noting the dark red stripes were now gone. He held up the Luminous Pearl and asked Zhao Yun, "Mr. Zhao, what''s this? Looks like a Luminous Pearl, but it''s not lighting up, eh?"


    "Luminous Pearl? Many ancient Luminous Pearls were made of fluorite, not very valuable. It''s normal for them to exhaust their light after a few hundred years," Zhao Yun took the ''Luminous Pearl'' and examined it, "Yes, this is fluorite."


    Suming had seen fluorite before. Next to the Naval Lake Zoo, the Whisperwind Pavilion used to sell souvenirs, including two ''Luminous Pearls'', or fluorite, the size of ping-pong balls priced at five thousand. They had been there for over three years without a single buyer.


    But ordinary fluorite didn''t contain the energy that this Luminous Pearl had! After thinking for a bit, Suming straightforwardly said, "Mr. Zhao, I''d like to keep this stone."


    Zhao Yun looked at Suming and chuckled, "Just a reminder, things from the dead are not lucky. Besides, it''s not worth much.


    Suming replied, "Just keeping it for fun."


    Zhao Yun was not the kind of person who was oblivious to feelings and social customs. Besides, if Suming had not informed him and he hade to excavate this underground relic alone, he would have taken whatever he wanted from it anyway.


    With this in mind, Zhao Yun casually turned away, pretending to study the patterns on the coffin, talking to himself, "I didn''t see any Luminous Pearl here."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suming smiled too, pocketing the Luminous Pearl. The energy inside had already been absorbed, and for Suming, the greatest value of this unlit Luminous Pearl no longer existed.


    He wanted to keep this jade not to sell it but because the energy within was unique!


    After absorbing it, he realized that this energy did not enhance spiritual power but added a new function to his Friend of Animals ability, based on spiritual power.


    It allowed him to attach his spiritual power to animals, personally experiencing what the animals saw and heard. When using it, it would consume a certain amount of spiritual power over time. The more animals he attached to and the farther away they were, the greater the spiritual power consumption.


    It wasn''t clear why, but as soon as the energy from the jade entered his body, he distinctly realized its function.


    Suming spected that perhaps the original Friend of Animals ability was notplete, merely a basic version. Therefore, even though the energy in the Luminous Pearl had been absorbed, he still wanted to keep it to further study it.


    While Zhao Yun was upied studying the coffin, Suming subtly attached a strand of his spiritual power to a long-eared fox.


    "Holy moly!"


    The entire world waspletely different. He saw two giants before him; weren''t they himself and Zhao Yun? From those big ears, faint and varied strange sounds could be heard. The ground beneath his feet seemed to be teeming with ants moving around.


    Huh? Suddenly, there was a strong craving for ants, and despite the embarrassment of the thought of eating ants, he couldn''t help but want to dig for them with his ''hand''. His ''hand'' had be strange too, furry and fleshy, with several sharp little ws hidden in the paw.


    Meanwhile, there was also the consciousness of a little fox itself that existed, creating a very strange sensation.


    "It''s me." Suming quickly sent a message to the consciousness of the long-eared fox itself, knowing the little creature wouldn''t ponder about things like ego, self, or spiritual power. Once it confirmed it was Suming, the fox obediently started digging with its tiny paws.


    After a few scrapes, it indeed found some ants. Suming swallowed and extended its tender little tongue to lick them up.


    "These are really tasty." Both Suming and the fox''s consciousness felt a sense of satisfaction but also an immense shame at the same time. Thesepletely different feelings gave him a momentary conflict of emotions.


    Just then, Zhao Yun nudged Suming''s arm and a voice came to his ears, "What are you daydreaming about now? It''s about time we head out."


    This feeling was too eerie, as if he had acquired a doppelganger. His own body and the spiritual power attached to the little fox both had awareness and sensation.


    Suming quickly retracted his spiritual power from the little fox and pretended as if nothing had happened.


    So, the two of them left the tomb chamber, climbed back out the fox hole the way they came in, and then gathered the long-eared foxes that had ''moved house'' before, instructing them to put all the copper coins, pearls, and such that they had removed from the grave back into ce, as these items weren''t valuable and of no use to the foxes.


    When they got back to the first pool, Suming couldn''t resist testing the ability on a Chinese alligator.


    "Can''t see a thing." Suming''s vision immediately blurred significantly, and a few dogs that were close by in real life appeared as several shadows moving about. However, looking up towards the opening of the cave, it was already light outside, and he could see birds flying at hundreds of meters high with absolute rity, even making out each feather in detail.


    It then dawned on Suming that alligators'' vision is different from humans. They are nearsighted underwater and far-sighted onnd.


    However, his hearing was quite clear, seemingly even stronger than that of the big-eared long-eared foxes.


    Given the characteristics of this ability, Suming named it ''Soul Attachment.''


    Zhao Yun was right beside him, so Suming didn''t dare to experiment any further, fearing he might give the game away. He retrieved his spiritual power from the alligator, had Su Meng climb up first using the rope, followed by Zhao Yun. He stayed in the cavest, squatting in front of the Chinese alligator and sending a message with his spiritual power, asking, "Old Gator, do you want to stick around in the mountains on your own, ore back with me?"


    The Chinese alligator was injured all over, probably with its pride hurt the most. It couldn''t move recklessly as before but resisted in silence: it ignored Suming.


    "Come back with me to get your injuries treated first. You are alone like a solitary fish. Besides, with the foxes gone, there''s nothing for you to eat here, and you''ll starve sooner orter. Stay in the zoo for a while, and if you want to leaveter, I''ll find an excuse to release you into the back mountains."


    As he talked, Suming wrapped the climbing rope around the old gator a few times, then whistled to the cave opening. Su Meng stood above and pulled on the rope, slowly drawing the Chinese alligator out through the hole.


    The opening was only about forty to fifty centimeters in diameter, and it was fortunate that the Chinese alligator was rtively small. Had it been a Nile crocodile, it might well have gotten stuck at the entrance.


    *****


    Two more updates, let''s keep up the energy!!

 Chapter 214 Settling Down (Nine Updates)

    After the Yangtze alligators exited, it was the foxes'' turn. Suming asked Zhao Yun to empty both his and Suming''srge backpacks, and then in one go, he stuffed four or five foxes into each bag to be hoisted up.


    The little foxes huddled together, their fluffy fur crowding therge bags. Theyy on the edges of the bags, curiously surveying their surroundings as they rose upwards, seemingly unable to understand why they were suddenly ''floating''. Some of the little ones even grinned, revealing their tiny sharp teeth with the corners of their mouths turned upward, looking as if they were smiling, which was quite amusing.


    After more than an hour of work, all the foxes were finally lifted up. Suming was exhausted like a dog and asked Zhao Yun to toss down a Snickers bar. After eating a few bites, he regained some energy. He then secured the climbing rope around his waist, gave a thumbs up to those above, and was pulled up slowly by Su Meng.


    "My God, I finally made it out!" It wasn''t noticeable inside the cave, but once outside, he immediately exhaled a breath of stale air, and the surrounding air became incredibly fresh.


    Outside the cave, a dense crowd of foxes looked up at Suming.


    "Big-eared Thief, take your minions and follow me," he said. The "home" of the long-eared fox would soon be excavated for national protection, and they had nowhere else to go for the time being. They might as well stay with the dogs in the Houshan Nature Reserve for now. After all, there was plenty of space on those several mountain tops for a few hundred foxes.


    With a grand wave of his hand, the fox army poured down the hillside like mercury in full flow. As for the old alligator, it was still a dangerous creature and shouldn''t be unrestrained; only the ropes tied around its limbs were removed, and its mouth was still wrapped inyers of tape. Su Meng carried it over his shoulder as if he was hauling a big sack.


    The procession of people and animals made their majestic exit from the deep forest. When they were nearly out of the mountains, Suming stopped and said to Zhao Yun, "Mr. Zhao, I''m going to settle the foxes first and won''t return with you."


    "Alright, after I go back, I''ll report the findings of the tomb and the underground architecturalplex to the relevant authorities," smiled Zhao Yun, patting Suming''s shoulder. "You''ve made a contribution again, and you''ll probably have to do more interviews. You now appear on TV more often than our mayor."


    "Mr. Zhao, I was just going to tell you, when you report this to the higher-ups, it''s best not to talk too much about me. Even if you must mention me, try to downy my presence."


    Zhao Yun expressed his surprise, "Why is that? You are a hero. Thisrge-scale architecturalplex, along with Chen Youliang''s tomb, is a major discovery in the field of archaeology. Reporting your involvement will certainly bring rewards, and with a little publicity, fame and fortune wille your way."


    "Hehe, if there''s a cash reward, you can keep it. Consider it a New Year''s gift for Chengcheng from me. I just don''t want the fame," Suming shook his head and said calmly, "I''ve been in the limelight too much in the past six months, just like you said, appearing on TV and in newspapers every now and then. I already have enough fame; now, I want toy low for a while. Being too conspicuous at my age is actually not a good thing."


    After hearing his words, Zhao Yun initially looked astonished, but then he nodded in agreement, patting Suming''s shoulder approvingly and saying, "So young, yet you know the value of keeping a low profile. Rare indeed. That''s good. Well, leave the rest to me; I''ll handle it. Your contributions will be known to the leaders, but when ites to publicity, we''ll try not to mention you. This way, you''ll get the credit without attracting too much attention."


    Zhao Yun was almost twenty years older than Suming, but the two were able to be friends,rgely because Suming, despite his youth and asional nonsense, usually showed greater maturity than his peers when it was time for serious business or critical moments. Overall, there was a small generation gap.


    In him, Zhao Yun saw a younger version of himself.


    "Hehe, Mr. Zhao, I can rest easy with you in charge," Suming chuckled. Entrusting this matter to Zhao Yun, he was perfectly reassured. The charming older man was all but perfect ¡ª in family, career, social engagement, and personal rtionships, there was nothing he couldn''t handle well.


    After parting ways with Zhao Yun at an intersection, Suming led the Huiya foxes towards the small slope where he had first built kennels for the dogs.


    As he walked, he couldn''t help but project his spiritual power onto a Husky.


    Suddenly he felt overwhelmingly happy; inexplicably ecstatic, every little thing brought joy, whether it was small stones, birds flying, flowers blooming, or the foxes... Everything seemed fun from the Husky''s perspective.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The only slightly unbearable part was his nose; the keen sense of smell could detect the poop of some unknown animal from tens of meters away.


    What''s even more terrifying is the urge to run over and have a taste! Damn it...


    He tried with Huiya again.


    "Is this what Ximen Chuixue feels like?" The instant he possessed Huiya, he felt as if he''d be arrogantly aloof, with a scorn for everything except Suming, looking down upon all creatures with the air of those overbearing novel protagonists from ten years ago.


    It seemed like Su Meng was immune to this ability, after all, he was human, not an animal. However, Suming considered that it might also be possible that his spiritual power wasn''t strong enough yet, or perhaps the Animal Companion ability had other undiscovered ''patches''. Maybe one day he would be able to control humans too. After all,municating with Su Meng using spiritual power, although not as effective as with animals, still had some effect.


    He continued to y and experiment with the ability as he walked, and Suming gradually became familiar with the soul possession ability. Using it consumed a bit of spiritual power, and more so over long distances, but the consumption was still manageable for his current level of spiritual power.


    At the same time, he knew better than to use this power too often. It could easily lead to a split personality if he wasn''t careful. Imagine dealing with people but identally thinking he''s a dog or a crocodile¡ªthat would be hriously disastrous. Like talking to Hu or the Liao nurses from the medical facility, and suddenly rubbing up against them...


    "No, this is terrible¡ªI''m bing more beastly. Is Animal Companion meant to turn a pure and kind-hearted good guy like me into a monster?!"


    However, it was indeed fun and incredibly practical. Previously, when sending animals like Er Gouzi on errands or to keep watch, their limited intelligence only allowed them to describe events simply. But with soul possession, he could see and hear everything firsthand, which was much more urate than any message ryed by an animal.


    Before long, he reached his destination. On the neat hillside stood dozens of dog kennels, bothrge and small. Even though the dogs scarcely stayed here anymore, just asionally making visits, Mr. Lin still regrly brought some food and looked after the ce.


    Now it seemed that keeping these uncle and nephew around was the right decision. They were both honest folks. After the animals were moved to the zoo and Houshan was left under their care, Suming didn''t visit often. But they still diligently manned their posts every day without any shirking orziness.


    Lin was on duty today, and he greeted Suming from afar as he saw him approaching.


    "Mr. Su, where did you capture all these rabbits? If you''re free, how about we roast some?" Lin probably hadn''t seen a fox with such big ears before and mistook it for a rabbit, grabbing Big-eared Thief by the ears and shaking it, he said curiously, "Eh, this is a fox?"


    "Let go, let go, it hurts..." Suming suddenly screamed. He was currently possessing Big-eared Thief and could feel everything the animal felt.


    Of course, he wouldn''t suffer any actual harm; if an animal he possessed got injured or even died, his own body wouldn''t sustain the same injuries, but the sensations would still be transmitted back to him. Lin was pulling on Big-eared Thief''s ears and he felt the pain too.


    Lin held Big-eared Thief''s ears and looked at Suming with a bewildered expression.


    Suming withdrew his spiritual power and took Big-eared Thief from Lin''s hand. Hugging it close, Big-eared Thief was obviously shaken by the encounter, its ears trembling. Suming chuckled, petting its head, "There, there, no scare in a touch."


    Then he told Lin, "These foxes are the ones I''ve rescued. They''ll be staying on this hill for the time being. Go back and let Mr. Lin know."


    In folk tales, foxes, hedgehogs, and weasels are all considered to be creatures with a mystical aura, and if you encounter them at home, you should never offend them. Hearing what Suming had to say, Lin expressed his surprise, "Mr. Su, keeping so many foxes, that''s not going to bring good fortune."


    **************


    PS: How was that, how was that? Was it powerful, did it have spirit?


    My eyes are starting to blur, damn it, I''ve gotten this far, so I have to pump out the tenth update no matter what!

 Chapter 217 Preparing to Go Home

    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 pany". 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 filmpaniesing 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 ustomed to your presence."


    "Me too! So it''s time for you to pay the bill," retorted Nangong Yan, swinging an Herm¨¨s 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 inte? Herm¨¨s is so out. Anyone still buying Herm¨¨s is just showing off."


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


    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 inter.


    "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-regted 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¡ªtoo dangerous; but to set aside arge protected area for just three Baiji also wasn''t feasible.


    Even the reservoir wasn''t safe; althoughrge 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 thempany, it would be much better.


    The two young Baiji stood upright on the water surface, waving at Suming with their fins and circling in ce; 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 Baijipany 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 amotion 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 ss.


    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 simr, the Yangtze alligator looked fiercer, and being new, it drew all the attention of the visitors in the aquarium. The zoo even ced arge 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!


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


    Inparison to other alligators, the Yangtze alligator was rtively mild-mannered, but that was rtive to other alligators. Now provoked by such a fleshy giant, it could not bear it, violently pping its tail against the reinforced ss 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 ss, it was emboldened, and its daring grew even more.


    Both were old and stubborn old men with quite bad tempers, bing neighbors and taking turns annoying each other daily. When Suming arrived, he saw the big axolotl spraying water through the ss at the old alligator, a sign of contempt.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    "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 ss 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 outssed 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 rtively 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 y 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 Ie back and find the ss 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. Theirbined 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 asrge 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 nces and then eachy 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 toe 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 y 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: arge barrel of top-quality royal jelly.


    It wasn''t a small bucket; it was the kind used for oil, arge 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. Sumingughed 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 gpoles.


    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 toorge to squeeze through the underwater passage, so Suming carried Datou in his arms while sitting astride the wide, t 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 be toozy 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 wille 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 y 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 asional nces 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," Sumingughed heartily.


    Finally, on the 28th of thest 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, apanied 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 ck 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 moring at Suming from the neighboring cage.


    "You two can''te with me, but don''t worry, I''ve already prepared some nice treats for you," Suming said as he pulled out severalrge bags of various nuts from his backpack, including plenty of pistachios and walnuts, and ced 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¡ªa 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.

 Chapter 219 Everyday Family Talk

    Suming quickly exined, "He''s a homeless man I met while working. He had no ce to call home and seemed so pitiful, so I found him a job at the zoo. He doesn''t have a family, and had nowhere to go for the New Year, so I brought him home with me."


    "You and your dad were cut from the same cloth when he was young, always nosing into other people''s business!" Mrs. Su said a bit worriedly.


    Any parent who hears that their son has taken in a vagrant will not first think to praise him for his kindness and willingness to help, but rather worry about safety issues.


    Only those who have no stake in the matter would openly praise Suming for his kind heart and such.


    "Don''t worry, the man is really good, earnest and honest. He''s also strong and has even acted as my bodyguard on asion," Suming chuckled and said, "There''s just one thing, he didn''t have a household registration, so I pulled some strings and registered him as my distant cousin, calling him Su Meng. If anyone asks, you mustn''t slip up."


    "Got it, I always keep my mouth shut. And you, inviting someone to our home and making him wait outside? That''s not how you treat guests. Call him in, quick," Mrs. Su said.


    Suming shouted outside and with a whoosh, the van door slid open, and Su Meng hopped out like a bag peddler, carrying tworge duffel bags, one on his back, hanging another in front of his chest, and hefting one more on his shoulder,den with bags big and small as he entered the house.


    "Child, you should have helped him with some of those. Why are you treating him like a pack mule!" Mrs. Su, an educated and reasonable woman, gave Suming a stern look, then went to help Su Meng with the bags,ughing while saying, "Come on, put them down. My goodness, you''re such a strapping young man!"


    After setting the bags aside, Su Meng gave a boomingugh, which caused Mrs. Su tough along, "What a simpled. Go wash your hands and then have dinner with your brother."


    The rich and hearty country dishes were to Su Meng''s taste; after the meal, severalrge bowl-like dishes were all emptied, along with half a pot of rice.


    After dinner, Mrs. Su brewed a pot of tea, turned on the lights in the hall, and the three of them sat in the hall chatting. A mother''s heart is always with her son. Despite Mrs. Su''s usual refrain from expressing her worries and always telling Suming over the phone not to worry about home, her heart was forever fixed on her son.


    Elderly parents simply hope their children live a safe, uneventful life, not seeking wealth or grandeur, but just wishing for steady, healthy living. Yet young people do not wish to settle for mediocrity and have dreams for the future, willing to wager their youth to strive for it.


    Suming had been careful not to worry his mother these past six months, rarely mentioning business matters to her, only saying that he worked at the zoo and sometimes dabbled in small business on the side. Now face-to-face with his mother, he finally had the chance to tell her about recent events, like chartering boats, Shuijun Lake, the reservoir, and the future n to establish a distillery. He just omitted some key details, such as Animal Friends and Zhou Jin.


    Initially, Mrs. Su was happy for Suming, but as she listened, her eyes suddenly reddened. Stroking Suming''s head, she said with a choked voice, "My son, how much hardship have you endured in these half a year to get to this point?"


    Only a real mother could say such a thing! Mrs. Su''s first thought was not that her son had made a fortune and brought honor to his ancestors, but about how difficult it must have been for Suming, an outsider with no connections, to strive in Yangchuan City.


    "Who says so? I haven''t suffered at all. It''s like I''ve been living in a honey jar every day, even bathing in honey," Suming said, scratching his head with a sheepish grin. He wasn''t joking; the amount of honey delivered from Hundred Flowers Valley was so vast that he couldn''t use it all himself and had to give it away as gifts.


    Speaking of which, he had brought a jar of royal jelly for his mother. He asked Su Meng to bring out the big jar of royal jelly, saying, "Mom, you should dissolve a small cup of this in warm water and drink it every morning and evening. Over time, it will help with detox and keep your skin youthful."


    "Wasting money again! Why buy so much? This must weigh over a hundred pounds; how long will it take me to finish all this?" said Mrs. Su as she looked at the meter-tall barrel.


    "Your son is rich now; I can provide for you to live a long life. Besides, it''s made from our own bees, so it didn''t cost a thing," Suming said.


    "You still don''t need this much. Tomorrow, we''ll send some to your uncles and aunts."


    The ''uncles and aunts'' Mrs. Su mentioned were not Suming''s blood-rted uncles and aunts. Sun Town was formed long ago by arge n with the same surname, and the residents all had intertwined familial ties. The town had a simple and sinceremunity spirit, and while Suming was absent these years, the family greatly appreciated the care from these distant rtives and neighbors.


    "Don''t worry, Mom, I''ve bought a whole van of gifts. Tomorrow, I''ll go door-to-door to give them away," Suming said.


    "Even then, we can''t drink that much. Don''t let it go to waste. I''ll keep a small bottle, and the rest you can save for your future girlfriend. Speaking of which, I almost forgot, you''re of age now; it''s about time you seriously start looking for a girlfriend," said Mrs. Su.


    Smacking his forehead, Suming knew it would only be a matter of time before this topic came up at home. He hadn''t told his mother about Nangong Yan because things between them weren''t settled yet.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Telling her wouldn''t help; a mother''s worry is endless. If he didn''t say anything, she''d urge him to find a girlfriend; if he did, she''d press for a prompt engagement; once engaged, she''d worry about the wedding; after the wedding, she''d be eager to babysit grandchildren¡­


    Poor are the hearts of parents; as long as they live, they worry for their children every day. Only when their eyes close for thest time can they stop worrying.


    "Your son is now a model worker, a Party member, a young entrepreneur, and even a leading cadre! You think I''ll have trouble finding a wife? In the future, countless girls will be throwing themselves at me. You just make sure not to get dazzled by the choice," Suming said with augh.


    "You, my boy, talking about countless girls! You''re just like your father," Mrs. Suughed as she heard Suming say this.


    "I have something serious to talk to you about. After the New Year,e back to Yangchuan City with me. I''ll buy an apartment in the city, or we could just move into the zoo. I''ll find you a quiet ce where we can take good care of each other,"


    Suming''s most important reason foring back this time was to bring his mom to live in Yangchuan City. In the past, his career was unstable, filled with unknowns, and there was Zhou Jin always targeting him. Suming didn''t want to cause his mother any worry. Now, it was time for his mother to enjoy some blessings in Yangchuan City with him.


    He had even considered, under the guise of establishing apany in the future, building a small vi right next to the zoo for his mom to live in.


    To his surprise, Mrs. Su didn''t even think about it before shaking her head and saying, "I won''t go. You just stay well in the city. I''ll stay in the town."


    "The town is both poor and remote¡ªnowhere asfortable as a big city. Besides, with such a distance between us, I can''t have peace of mind about you," Suming said with a look of grievance as he sat on a stool.


    "You child," said Mrs. Su, gently rubbing Suming''s head in a soothing manner, showing a calm smile, "Don''t forget, your mom lived in a vi in big Shanghai when she was young. How could I not know the benefits of a big city?"


    "Then you won''te with me to Yangchuan City. Or, we could go to big Shanghai," Suming thought, ready to go all out¡ªnext year, after earning money from the reservoir, he''d buy her an apartment in Shanghai!


    Mrs. Suughed and said, "You young people, you all like bustling cities. Mom was the same when she was young. But now that I''m older, I actually prefer the peaceful life here, growing my own vegetables, keeping my limbs moving, enjoying the fresh mountain air, which is so much morefortable than enduring the pollution in a big city."


    Suming was always a bit uneasy about his mom living alone in the town. Sensing her son''s concern without needing him to speak, Mrs. Su continued, "As long as you''re doing well out there, Mom''s happy. I raised you since you were little; I''m not even fifty, and I can take care of myself. Besides, I have the monthly money you give me plus my pension, which is even higher than the town chief''s sry, enough for all my needs."


    In a secluded ce like Sun Town, there really wasn''t much to spend money on. Many of the local elderly didn''t have any ie; they lived simply by farming and receiving subsistence allowances. Even in a county town, more than a thousand yuan a month was enough for an elderly person''s expenses.


    "Oh, I almost forgot, it''s not just over a thousand anymore¡ªin the future, there''ll be almost five thousand yuan a month." Suming had scraped together another 1.5 million and, along with the previous 500,000, had taken out amercial insurance policy at the insurancepany, so the monthly interest would be close to 5,000, more than enough for his mother''s expenses.


    A person who doesn''t worry about the future will have troubles close at hand. Every time he earned a sum of money, he would set aside a small part for thismercial insurance. If something unexpected ever happened to him, this money would be sufficient for his mother''stter half of life.


    "I also brought back a hundred thousand yuan this time," said Suming as he took a small bag from Su Meng and opened it, revealing stacks of bright red cash inside.


    Seeing so much cash, Mrs. Su quickly closed the bag, handed it back to Suming, and said, "I don''t need that much money by myself! You''re starting a business, and finances are tight. The family can''t support you much, but at the very least, we shouldn''t hold you back. Take this money with you when you go back."


    This time Suming was adamant, refusing to take it. Seeing that Suming was unwavering, Mrs. Su gave in and locked the money away in a small cab. Then she said to Suming, "I don''t spend much, so if you really want to help, figure out a way to help the people of the town. Ever since your father left, the townsfolk have done a lot for our family, and arge part of your college tuition was gathered through donations by the town chief and the townsfolk. One should remember one''s roots; now that you have a career, you should give back to your hometown."


    "I understand, Mom. I''ll keep it in mind. Don''t worry too much; I''ll think of something," Suming nodded.


    Truly, with his current financial situation, repaying the entire Sun Town wasn''t practical. But he could see it was his mother''s wish, and as a son, he had to try his best to fulfill it, if only to make his mother happy.


    People often talk about repaying their parents and being filial. When ites down to acting on those words, filial piety is about acquiescence. Even if it means making some sacrifices, as long as it can bring peace and joy to one''s parents, that''s true filial piety.


    Mrs. Su was right¡ªthe people of Sun Town had been kind to their family, and it was even fair to say that they owed them a debt of gratitude. Without the townspeople''s donations, Suming would not have had his college fees paid. With his mother living as a single woman in the town and managing quite well, it was definitely thanks to the help from their neighbors.


    But how to repay them was something Suming needed to ponder. Giving someone a fish is not as good as teaching them to fish. Just handing out money couldn''t work. Firstly, Suming didn''t have that much money right now; secondly, giving money directly sometimes does not help people and might even cause them to bezy and ultimately do harm instead of good.


    After chatting for a while longer, Suming specifically brought up the matter of the family''s ancient jade. His mother didn''t know much about it either, only that it had been passed down in his father''s family from generation to generation. He also brought out the Luminous Pearl for his mother to take a look, but nothing new was discovered.


    Moreover, regarding Su Meng, both he and Zhao Yun felt that he looked familiar. Suming asked his mother if she found Su Meng to seem familiar, to which she decisively responded that she had no sense of recognition whatsoever.


    It was soon after 9 p.m. His mother used to sleep early because she lived in the mountains. Seeing that she was getting sleepy, Suming didn''t say much and helped his mother upstairs to her bedroom.


    Knowing that Suming was used to city life and did not go to bed early, Mrs. Su still took the time to warn him before going to sleep, "If you want to go out, just stay in the town. Don''t go out into the mountains in this winter weather. You never know when a wild boar mighte out and hurt someone."


    "Don''t worry, Mom," Suming smiled, thinking to himself that if he really encountered a wild boar, it was unclear who would harm who.


    ********


    PS: I can''t believe there are 48 votes urging for updates~~ Don''t y like this, guys. With the subscriptions getting close to 1500, I need to prepare for a big burst~~

 Chapter 220 Going into Labor? (Start of the first update)

    Mother knows best. After Suming returned to his bedroom, he indeed tossed and turned in bed for ages without a hint of sleepiness. With no inte connection in the mountains, he couldn''t go online to pass the time either. Su Meng also couldn''t sleep, lying in bed staring at the ceiling with hollow eyes.


    So he sat up, closed his eyes, and sent out a stream of spiritual power. Since entering the mountain, Haidong Qing had always been flying not far from Suming''s home in the surrounding hills. Sometimes Suming would attach his spirit to it momentarily to see what the creature was up to, and most of the time, he found it hunting.


    Despite it being the dead of winter, Haidong Qing managed to catch several hibernating snakes, including a highly venomous species known as the "iron triangle," which people often call "dead in five steps." Oddly enough, snakes usually hide in their burrows during hibernation and don''t show themselves, so it was a mystery how Haidong Qing even found them.


    No matter how good the conditions in the zoo, they wouldn''t normally feed it venomous snakes. The same animal, raised in captivity or in the wild, are entirely different concepts. Thus, leaving the zoo with Suming was a rare privilege for any animal; even if Suming did nothing, it would still be a treat for the animals. Haidong Qing, having been out for just one day, had already enjoyed a grand feast.


    Responding to Suming''s call, Haidong Qing let out an eagle cry in the sky, made a swanky sharp turn, abruptly stopping its nosedive and turned its head like an arrow, flying towards Suming''s two-story house.


    Suming saw a small ck dot in the moonlight quickly approaching from afar, and knew it was Haidong Qing arriving. With a thought, he used his ability to attach his spirit, extending his spiritual power to it from afar.


    "Holy shit! This is so thrilling!"


    In an instant, Suming felt as though he was on a super Cloud Soaring Roller Coaster, hurtling down from the sky at high speed. The nighttime scenery whisked past on both sides and the ground approached rapidly, and his own figure standing on the small balcony of the second floor became more and more distinct.


    He could even see a small pimple emerging on his own chin from Haidong Qing''s perspective.


    Just when it seemed they would crash, Haidong Qing fluttered its wings, creating an invisible current of air. Its form halted in mid-air, performed a smooth turn, and in the blink of an eye, with the momentum of thunder, it gentlynded on Suming''s arm as light as a feather.


    His arm sank slightly as one of Haidong Qing''s talons rested on his arm, while the other clutched something sticky and handed it over to Suming.


    A strong stench hit his nostrils; it was a small snake gall, dark green and slightly ckened.


    "Hehe, thinking of me even while you eat?" Suming chuckled. Snake gall is a treasure, good for vision and dispelling heat. He didn''t stand on ceremony with Haidong Qing and washed it with water, found a bottle of white liquor at home, soaked it briefly, and swallowed both the liquor and the gall together.


    A bitter taste spread in his mouth, and the bitterer the gall, the better its effects. He rinsed his mouth with water. After a while, guessing that Mrs. Su must be asleep by now, he quietly opened the door, took Haidong Qing and Su Meng with him, and silently left the house, following a narrow winding path toward the mountain behind.


    After meandering for about half a kilometer, they had left Sun Town and arrived at the hillside, where a vast array of graves appeared before them.


    He passed numerous tomb mounds and stopped in front of a modestly sized one, where several yellow papers were held down by a brick at the head of the grave, surrounded by blooms that suggested frequent care.


    Carelessly, Suming sat cross-legged in front of the grave, lit a cigarette, and stuck it upside down on the head of the grave.


    A father is like a mountain, the pir of a family and the greatest reliance in a child''s heart. When a family loses the father, a son like Suming has to take on the father''s role.


    "Dad, don''t worry, I''m now capable of taking care of mom and myself," Suming thought silently as he looked at his father''s grave.


    Under the moonlight, the barren hill with its withered graves, a young man, a wild man, and an eagle.


    ...


    Early the next morning, New Year''s Eve.


    Vige New Year''s traditions are numerous. On New Year''s Eve, the first thing to do upon opening the door is setting off firecrackers to ward off evil spirits. As the only male in the family and the pir of the household, this task fell to Suming.


    Before dawn, all of Sun Town was already in an uproar, filling the air with a thick scent of sulfur and saltpeter as soon as he stepped outside. The streets were enshrouded in blue smoke, and the not-so-wide streets wereyered with thick red scraps of firecracker paper. The cracking sounds were deafening, just like a battlefield!


    Suming and Su Meng, each holding a roll of ten-thousand firecrackers,id them out in two lines on the ground, took a lighter in hand, stood at one end, and shouted, "Happy New Year!"


    "Crackle, crackle, crackle..."


    It seemed to be Su Meng''s first time seeing firecrackers; heughed heartily like a child, curious and a bit scared, jumping around the firecrackers like arge monkey.


    After setting off the firecrackers, they immediately moved on to pasting couplets.


    Before the liberation, couplets served not just for festivity but also had a practical purpose. As long as red couplets were posted on the door, creditors seeing them could note to collect debts, and all matters had to wait until the end of the New Year celebrations. Landlords and bullies like Huang Shiren, who even on New Year''s Eve would lead people to demand debts and force families to sell their children, were utterly despised and rare even during the feudal society.


    The couplet pasting also followed a tradition of "leaving marks everywhere." It wasn''t just the front and back doors that needed couplets, but every corner that could be pasted shouldn''t be overlooked. The grain storeroom would have "bumper harvest," the bicycle "travel thousands of miles by day, eight thousand by night," and even for the Buick business car that Suming drove back, they prepared "safe travels."


    On New Year''s Eve, people typically didn''t visit rtives. Although doors were kept open, everybody was busy with their own families. By noon, they just had a casual meal. Downstairs, Suming and Su Meng enjoyedrge pieces of meat with their bread, while Mrs. Su made some rice soup to feed the pregnant cat, Xiaobai.


    After the white cat arrived home, it stayed in a small room at the back, to avoid being frightened by the loud firecrackers. A little nest was made, and with its belly swollen, the white caty therezily and refused to move. Mrs. Su ced half a bowl of rice soup beside Xiaobai''s nest, and it would tilt its head to lick a few sips whenever it felt like eating; if not, it just continued sleeping.


    It seemed that the birth of the kittens would happen in the next few days; perhaps by the time Suming returned to Yangchuan City again, he could bring a few little cat cubs with him.


    At noon after lunch, ording to tradition, they went up the hill behind their house to visit the graves of their rtives and at the same time invite the ancestors toe home for the New Year.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    By the time Suming and his mother arrived, several families had already gathered there. Suming was the first person from Sun Town to be admitted to a university, which had created quite a stir in the whole town. Seeing Suming return, the vigers couldn''t help but ask him a few more questions.


    "Hey, isn''t that Suming? When did youe back? Come over to our ce for New Year''s," said an older man with a beaming smile.


    "Suming, how long are you nning to stay this time?"


    "You''re making a name for yourself out there, don''t forget to take care of your mom; she had a hard time raising you all by herself."


    "Mrs. Su, your son has made something of himself. I saw him driving back in such a big car; you must be living the good life now," said an olderdy with augh.


    After a few words of small talk, with questions about where Suming was working now, whether he had a girlfriend, and how much money he was making per month, the discussion was nothing more than casual chitchat. Suming didn''t mention that he owned apany, as it wasn''t something he could easily exin in just a sentence or two, so he simply said he was running errands for the zoo director.


    "That''s like being the leader''s secretary, eh? Very promising! No wonder you can drive such a nice car!"


    Mrs. Su was pulled aside by Auntie Three from next door. The two women were whispering quietly to each other, asionally looking over at Suming withughter.


    Seeing their expressions, Suming could guess what they were talking about, but he didn''t want to burst their bubble. He took his mother by the arm and greeted everyone cheerfully before they made their way to his father''s grave.


    "Su, another year has gone by. Today, your son hase back to visit you with me," Mrs. Su said as she knelt in front of the grave to burn paper offerings. Su was long deceased, and his wife had grown ustomed to living alone. She did not wail or cry, but instead talked to the deceased as if she were chatting about family matters.


    "Rest assured, your son is doing fine outside, with a stable job and earning money..."


    "It''s just that I worry about his marriage. In our town, boys his age all have partners; some are even married..."


    "Our son is very filial. Don''t worry down there. I''m doing just fine¡ªhealthy and in good spirits..."


    "You need to watch over your son, ensure everything goes smoothly and peacefully for him. I don''t ask for him to be wealthy, as long as he lives a healthy and happy life."


    These words, rather than being spoken for the deceased to hear, were more for Suming to listen to.


    After visiting the graves, they returned home and brought all the outdoor items inside¡ªeven the broom and dustpan couldn''t be left out¡ªthen they closed the front door. This signified that the year hade to an end as of now, and if there had been any misfortune, it would end today as well.


    Tomorrow, on the first day of the New Year, when they opened the door again, they would wee a brand-new year!


    It was barely past three in the afternoon, and there were few people in Suming''s family, so they didn''t need to prepare an extravagant New Year''s Eve dinner. Having shut the door and finding themselves with nothing much to do, Suming casually brought out a deck of ying cards and suggested, "Since we''re free anyway, why don''t we y some cards?"


    While they were talking, they suddenly heard a "meow, meow, meow..." from the back room¡ªnot the usualzy or coquettish sounds, but outright screams!


    "Could it be time for her to give birth?" Mrs. Su put down her cards and, while speaking, walked toward the back, with Suming and Su Meng following.


    Upon entering the room, they saw Xiaobai leaning pitifully in the nest, her belly heaving, panting heavily. With each breath, she would look down at her swollen belly with an almost human expression of bewilderment.


    Seeing Suming and the otherse in, Xiaobai seemed to have found her saviors, and she lifted her head energetically, meowing at them for help.


    *********


    PS: Outbursts alwayse when you least expect it.


    The average subscription has finally reached its target, thanks to everyone''s support, and I''ve kept my promise: ten chapters in a go!


    But as I have been writing 3,000 words per chapter, I won''t be dividing them¡ªpreviously, ten chapters were 2,000 words each, totaling 20,000 words. This time, seven chapters averaging 3,000 words each will surely exceed 20,000 words.

 Chapter 221 Difficult Birth! (Second update, please subscribe)

    About the matter of giving birth, Suming and Su Meng had no experience whatsoever. Not to mention giving birth themselves, they had never even seen anyone else do it.


    But even those without experience could guess with high uracy that Xiaobai the cat was about to give birth. Maybe it''s simr to humans, with contractions andbor pains...


    Animal childbirth can sometimes be simr to humans. Mrs. Su took a small stool and sat by the nest, gently rubbing the white cat''s belly. As she massaged, she also spoke to the white cat, murmuringforting words like "be good," "don''t be afraid," and "rx," treating the small cat as if it were a little person.


    "Should we prepare scissors, hot water or something?" Suming was clearly nervous.


    This would be the first time an animal in the zoo is having offspring. Last time the she-wolf gave birth to Huiya didn''t count because he wasn''t present then; he arrived only after she had given birth. Watching an animal give birth was apletely different feeling. Every time the white cat cried out, Suming couldn''t help but feel a tug at his heart.


    It must hurt so much! Suming looked at the white cat''s hugely swollen belly, then down at his own. He only underwent surgery for appendicitis once in his life, and he almost couldn''t handle it even with anesthesia. He presumed giving birth was even more painful.


    However, that''s a pain he would likely never experience in his lifetime.


    "It''s still early, it''s probably going to take several more hours," Mrs. Su said with a smile as she continued to rub the cat''s belly. "You think giving birth is that easy? She''s going to be in pain for several hours before she gives birth."


    Suming was still a bit uneasy, so hemunicated with Xiaobai using his spiritual power. But the white cat was in so much pain it was nearly delirious, how could itmunicate with Suming? All it could do was desperately cry out for help,pletely forgoing its usualziness. It even had convulsions asionally, and it was unclear whether this was due to pain or some other reason.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Suming felt like time had never passed so slowly. After waiting for ages, he checked his phone and realized only a few minutes had passed. Su Meng was also there, awkwardly rubbing hisrge hands together, wanting to help but unable to.


    Mrs. Su looked at them and said with mild amusement: "If you two don''t have anything to do, go y elsewhere. The cat is birthing kittens, what are you two big men doing watching this?"


    "I''m not busy anyway, so I might as well stay here," Suming insisted on staying concerned, simply took a small stool, sat down to wait, and sent Su Meng away. He could possibly be of help by staying, but Su Meng certainly couldn''t¡ªbetter to keep him away from the bloody scene, knowing how violent he could be.


    Time trickled by, and the sky outside gradually darkened. By the time it was past ten at night, the Spring Festival G had already been on for a while, and the white cat''s voice had be hoarse, its cries sounding like scraping iron. Yet there was still no sign of movement in its belly, andmunication through spiritual power was ineffective.


    After another half-hour of patient waiting, finally, there was some movement. A little bit of red appeared behind the white cat''s rear, looking like a clump of flesh.


    "It''sing, it''sing, the head is showing!"


    Just as Suming breathed a sigh of relief, the white cat suddenly let out a piercing scream of agony. The small clump of fleshy tissue retracted back in, and then it started rolling around the nest, kicking its own belly desperately with its hind legs, like a rabbit.


    "What''s happening!" Suming eximed in shock.


    Could it be that Xiaobai, resenting the cat''s father for being too responsible and not being present at the birth, was going to induce its own miscarriage in a fit of rage?


    That''s too cruel! Suming shuddered at the thought, making a mental note to himself that when his wife gave birth, he would be there no matter what, even if the sky were falling.


    Mrs. Su''s expression turned grave. She quickly held down Xiaobai to prevent further kicking and gently massaged along its nk. Without looking up, she said to Suming, "This doesn''t look good, it might be a difficultbor!"


    "Mom, stop joking, how could a cat have a difficultbor!" Suming was genuinely startled.


    "Cats are animals, too, why can''t they have difficultbors! People can die from childbirth, so it''s possible for other animals as well," Mrs. Su said.


    She turned to Suming and asked, "Have you been feeding them any strange things while taking care of the cats?"


    "No, not at all!" Suming shook his head. If even the imported cat food costing several hundred per bag was considered junk, then does that mean I''ve been eating like a pig?


    These cats lived well and slept soundly in the zoo, without any nutritional deficiencies. Though they asionally worked at the tourist boats, that was within the range of normal activity, and no one was ill-treating them. Instead, they would often bully other animals, relying on the fact that they were his earliest underlings ¨C even the wolf-dogs had been gang-beaten by them. Thus, it was unlikely that they were in a bad mood or suffering from prenatal depression.


    These little guys were extremely clever and would never carelessly eat rubbish food given by tourists.


    Originally a gang of street cats, their quality of life had significantly improved aftering to the zoo, so how could they end up having a difficultbor?


    "The reason is hard to say. It''s simr to people, some are due to physical constitution, others because of incorrect fetal position. Oh, look at how big its belly is, it''s very likely that there are too many kittens and it''s too thin to give birth. I can''t be sure either." Mrs. Su hadn''t given up her efforts and continued to gently massage the cat''s belly while speaking.


    Another half an hour passed, and there was still no birth. At first, Xiaobai tried hard to deliver, and asionally a part of a kitten would appear, but as time went on, Xiaobai couldn''t even muster a cry. asionally its tail and limbs would twitch, and its eyes were half-open.


    Suming could even feel that it had no strength left in its body.


    "Should I go find a vet? Is cesarean section possible?" Suming asked uncertainly.


    "Where are you going to find a vet? There''s none in town, and while there is one at the county breeding station, everyone has gone home for the Spring Festival. By the time you drive to the county and find someone, this cat will definitely be dead!" Mrs. Su shook her head.


    Even if they found a vet in the county, it wasn''t certain they could treat the cat. Maoxi County was very poor; they couldn''t even take care of people, let alone pets like cats and dogs. The veterinarian at the breeding station mainly dealt withrger livestock like cattle and sheep, and might not be skilled in treating cats.


    As for returning to the city now, that would definitely be toote, not to mention Yangchuan City. The nearest city still required a six or seven hours drive, and with the first day of the new year, with people either on holiday or heading home, even in the city it might not be possible to find someone. This hassle could even hasten Xiaobai''s death.


    "So what do we do?" Suming asked.


    Mrs. Su sighed, stroked Xiaobai''s head with pity, and said, "Leave it to fate, if this little thing is lucky, it might just pull through on its own."


    On hearing this, Suming''s face turned green. This was gambling with a life. Seeing Xiaobai like this, already exhausted and incessantly assaulted by pain, it had no strength to go on; it was merely a matter of dying the inevitable.


    "Don''t feel too bad. Childbirth is like passing through Ghost Gate Pass. In the past when medical conditions were not so advanced, many women died during childbirth, and this cat is too weak. Childbirth is inherently dangerous; you can''t me yourself," Mrs. Su consoled Suming.


    Of course, it wasn''t Suming''s fault, but that didn''t mean Suming could just watch Xiaobai die from difficultbor. Had it been an animal Suming didn''t know, its death wouldn''t matter much. But Xiaobai had been with him for half a year, living and eating at the waterside pavilion, and they had developed a deep bond. His rtionship with them was no longer simply that of an owner and a pet, it was more like a patriarch to the small children of a family.


    Besides, if something did happen, how would he exin it to Hei, to Miao Er, to Miao San? Would he say, sorry your wife kicked the bucket, why not find another one?


    Suming quickly checked with his spiritual power, and Xiaobai''s vital signs were still normal, but her life force was trickling away. He hurriedly continued to pour his spiritual power into her, trying his best to sustain her life.


    But this wasn''t a long-term solution. The energy consumed by giving birth was massive, and it couldn''t go on like this forever. Spiritual power wasn''t omnipotent; it could heal injuries, but giving birth wasn''t an injury. It still depended on Xiaobai''s own efforts. Even with Suming''s strong spiritual power, he couldn''t help deliver the kittens; he could only make sure she held on for the time being.


    Judging from the feelings transmitted by the spiritual power, Xiaobai was not only close to copsing, but her consciousness was also bing unclear, probably due to the severe pain.


    "You mustn''t pass out!" Suming urgently increased the intensity of his spiritual power! As long as Xiaobai remained conscious, there was always a glimmer of hope, but if she fainted, it would bepletely over; brace for a corpse and multiple deaths!


    Stimted by the spiritual power, Xiaobai seemed to regain a bit of consciousness and, with a meow, used thest of her strength to make another attempt.


    The result was no different from before, the kittens were still in the belly, refusing toe out. Not only did the birth not happen, the spiritual power Suming had provided was alsopletely drained.


    After such a prolonged difficultbor, Xiaobai''s physical and mental stamina had both reached their limits. Even with the aid of spiritual power, she was at the end of her rope.


    This was like a person copsing on the ground unable to move after running a hundred kilometers. Even if given a bowl of thousand-year ginseng soup, at best it would ensure they didn''t die, but they wouldn''t suddenly be energetic because their body''s capacity had reached its limit.


    "It seems the kittens cannot be saved, if it reallyes down to it, focus on saving the mother," Mrs. Su suggested to Suming. Insisting on birth might result in stillborn kittens, and ultimately Xiaobai might not even survive. If the embryos were ''terminated,'' perhaps the mother''s life could still be saved.


    "No, I have an idea!" Suming suddenly thought of a possibility!


    "What idea?" Mrs. Su asked, puzzled.


    Suming''s ''idea'' was something he absolutely couldn''t say aloud, so he told Mrs. Su,"I have a vet friend, I''ll call and ask him."


    After that, he went to the outer room and made a show of making a phone call, then came back in and said, "My friend taught me some obstetrics techniques, I''ll give it a try."


    Obstetrics techniques? Mrs. Su was taken aback.

 Chapter 222 Octuplets (three updates)

    Suming pulled up a stool and sat beside the mother cat, taking Mrs. Su''s ce. With one hand, he pretended to scratch its belly while covertly using his Soul Attachment Ability to attach his spiritual power to the white cat.


    No sooner had he employed The Soul Attachment Ability than Suming''splexion underwent a drastic change. He felt as though an immense hand had seized his intestines and yanked them down hard. Not only a tug but also a vicious twist followed, and after the twist, another pull...


    This sensation was overwhelmingly intense, beyond what words could articte. Suming uttered an "oh," his mouth agape in an oval shape, legs trembling, a chill striking at his rectum, nearly tumbling off the stool.


    "What weird thing are you up to now?" Mrs. Su,pletely oblivious to the agony Suming was enduring, asked curiously.


    Suming, eyes rolling back in pain, bit down on his teeth and squeezed out a faint smile, "I... I''m ying with the cat..."


    "ying with the cat? Cut it out. This little one is in pain right now. Don''t scare it..."


    Mrs. Su was speaking when she suddenly noticed that the white cat''s cry had changed significantly from before!


    The white cat had almost passed out earlier, lying motionless, only spasming asionally. But after Suming scratched and made a ''funny face,'' the white cat''s previously tense body had visibly rxed, opened its eyes, meowed softly, and even managed enough strength to flick its tail at Suming.


    "Eh? Is this actually working?" Mrs. Su, exceedingly surprised, nced between the grimacing Suming and Xiaobai, thinking that the veterinarian from the city''s zoo really had some tricks up their sleeve.


    Mrs. Su looked puzzled at Suming. If he was making a funny face, that could still be understandable, but was his funny face really that hideous? It was like he was being tortured.


    "Mom... My friend said... It''s all about acupressure massage... You have to press along the cat''s belly like this..."


    As Suming spoke through gritted teeth, he continued the "massage" on the white cat''s belly in a bizarre way that nobody couldprehend, pretending to perform a so-called aiding birth technique.


    It suddenly urred to him that spiritual power was bidirectionally connected. The Soul Attachment Ability was based on spiritual power, and since it could feel an animal''s sensations, might it also be possible to ''share'' those sensations, in other words, share the animal''s pain?


    The white cat''s biggest problem at the moment was a difficult birth due to an unknown cause. As his mother had put it, perhaps because of an excessive number of fetuses, itcked the strength for childbirth. If it could ''make it through,'' it would be fine, but if not, it might not survive.


    Suming didn''t know much about obstetrics, butmon sense suggested that ''making it through'' meant relying on physical and willpower. If he could share some of the pain from childbirth, reducing it to the level of a smooth delivery, or even lower than a normal one, perhaps the white cat''s willpower could solve the problem.


    The facts now seemed to prove that Suming''s guess was correct! After the Soul Attachment Ability was activated, the pain that the white cat felt significantly decreased, and some of it transferred to Suming.


    Of course, there might be many other factors involved in dystocia that couldn''t simply be resolved by lessening the pain.


    But this was the only method at present, to help the white cat endure a certain amount of pain, to focus its strength and spirit to bravely attempt again, and to forcibly deliver the babies in her womb. Animals are different from humans; humans have willpower and can bear pain, but animals do not possess such willpower. Although Xiaobai, who was frequently exposed to spiritual power, had somewhat stronger willpower than the average wild or domestic cat, it was still an animal and couldn''t bepared to humans.


    Since its willpower couldn''t quickly be increased, the solution was to reduce the sensation of pain.


    The method was quite effective, but Suming paid a heavy price.


    "I really shouldn''t speak thoughtlessly in the future," Sumingmented, his face a picture of misery. He had just said he would never experience the pain of childbirth in his life, and now here it was, instant karma!


    A grown man, without any ce in his belly for a baby, felt the pain transferred to his organs, mainly his intestines, feeling as though they were being yanked out, with a most embarrassing sensationing from his rectum...


    After enduring several minutes of excruciating pain, Xiaobai indeed seemed much better, slowly regaining her strength and starting a new attempt!


    This was the most painful moment!


    It is said that the maximum pain a person can endure is 45 units of pain, with the pain of childbirth amounting to 57 units, equivalent to 16 broken ribs at once.


    From a man''s perspective, the most intense pain one can feel is testicr trauma, roughly 200 units.


    So, as Suming suffered through the delightful equivalent of breaking 16 ribs, he encouraged himself that this was still far from a man''s limit; he had to endure it!


    Mrs. Su had no idea about Suming''s bittersweet ordeal. Seeing him contorting his face, she wanted to reproach him, but in reality, after Suming''s improvised birthing techniquebined with his grimacing, Xiaobai did show signs of recovery. Her belly was pulsing rhythmically, far from the deathly stillness from before. Even flipping over and crawling out of her nest, she began to try more actively.


    Just as the kitten, still wrapped in its amniotic sac, started to emerge again, the pain that Suming shared was nearing its breaking point. If this continued, Suming feared he might faint from pain before the kitten was even born, which would be disastrous!


    Suming pped his forehead hard, chiding himself for his foolishness. He had forgotten one of the key traits of the Soul Attachment Ability!


    This power wasn''t limited to a single animal; it could be used on multiple targets!


    ```


    Why go through the silly ordeal of enduring the suffering of the white cat''sbor alone?


    Thinking of this, Suming grinned mischievously and spread his spiritual power out like radar, searching for any animal within a few dozen meters.


    ...


    Huang, with a name like that, you''d know he''s a dog.


    Having hung around Sun Town for several years, everyone in town recognized him. He had never been hit, and people often gave him their leftover food. Full, he''d lounge under the eaves basking in the sun, and after waking up, he''d leisurely stroll around, asionally acting as a guard dog, helping the townsfolk drive away wild boars from the mountains.


    As a stray dog, Huang''s life was quitefortable except for his single status, without any substantial regrets.


    Today, many people in the town were setting off firecrackers which, ording to experience, meant that tomorrow he''d surely get plenty of delicious food, maybe even meat! With hopeful dreams of a better tomorrow, Huang found a grassy nest and nestled into a fragrant sleep.


    While in the middle of his sleep, Huang suddenly felt a chilly breeze behind his butt, and his tail shot up high as he awoke in a panic, looking back in terror.


    ...


    In fact, Cui Hua was a rooster. As an elder among his kind, he intuitively knew that he''d managed to live so long without being killed because he''d crowed every morning without fail since he was young.


    So, he developed a good habit: as soon as it got dark, he''d dutifully return to his nest to sleep.


    Early to bed, early to rise, makes a rooster crow in time! Daily crowing is the key to survival!


    He''d barely slept when Cui Hua suddenly felt a weightiness in his abdomen, and his pointed rear end shot up, waking him from his dreams with a bizarre sensation.


    Could it be he wasying an egg?!N?v(el)B\\jnn


    ...


    Deep under the ground, more than a meter down, an earthworm was busily digging tunnels as usual. It didn''t know why it spent every day burrowing through soil, but from the moment its life began, digging had be an instinct.


    As it burrowed, the earthworm jolted as a sensation called ''pain'' spread throughout its body.


    I''m broken! Without hesitation, the earthworm used its special ability; its rear half detached from the front, and both halves continued to burrow in opposite directions with determination.


    ...


    Almost simultaneously, the abdomens of all the animals within a dozen meters of Suming''s house began to feel odd sensations, and before Suming''s eyes, a multiview monitor seemed to appear, showing dozens of different scenes: chicken nests, grass shacks, dog kennels, pitch-ck ones, and even a couple in the midst of lovemaking...


    "Oh, mom, I didn''t mean to ¨C sorry, carry on!" With basic decency still intact, Suming quickly withdrew the soul attachment from the animal in someone''s bedroom.


    As he deployed the Soul Attachment Ability, his spiritual power drained away rapidly, like a receding tide. Correspondingly, the pain that had been borne by Suming alone was now shared by dozens of animals. The burden on Suming''s body instantly lifted, and the excruciating pain in his abdomen eased to just a slight difort, akin to an upset stomach.


    For Xiaobai, things were even more rxed, and before long, the first kitten was finally born with ease!


    The newborn was about the size of a palm, with sparse white fur and no hair on its tiny legs. It was covered in mucus and couldn''t even open its eyes.


    The cat mother extended her tongue and licked the viscous liquid off the little one. The kitten wriggled a bit and, with eyes closed, mewed softly at Suming.


    "Don''t touch the kitten, if it smells like humans, the cat mother won''t recognize it and might kill it," warned Mrs. Su quickly, pping away Suming''s hand as he reached to touch the kitten, and cautioned him concernedly.


    Actually, not just cats, but most animals have this trait. However, Suming''s animals did not have this problem after being exposed to spiritual power. Pretending to wear a glove, he cradled the kitten and lightly tapped its damp nose with a finger.


    The kitten, unable to open its eyes,tched onto Suming''s finger guided by the scent. Its teeth hadn''t yete in, so nibbling on Suming''s finger felt ticklish.


    After that, one kitten after another was born with ease.


    When the clock struck twelve, the white cat had sessfullypleted the birthing process. Experience more tales on empire


    A total of eight kittens, four ck and four white. A first litter of eight was umonlyrge, no wonder there wereplications.


    ```

 Chapter 224 Wild Boar Enters the Village (Fifth Update, Please Subscribe)

    "In our town," he said, "those who are young and strong are all working in the county city. The better ones can earn more than two thousand a month, and even the less skilled ones make seven or eight hundred, which is much better than farming here in town. There was a time we had investment attraction projects, but in the end, none of them took off."


    Suming was somewhat familiar with the ''investment attraction'' initiatives the uncle mentioned.


    The government''s efforts to alleviate poverty were significant. If a businessman was willing to invest in impoverished areas, the government would offer very favorable policies and even provide various subsidies.


    What should have been a positive initiative led to a scam where subsidies were fraudulently imed. Some unscrupulous businessmen were not really interested in investing; they simply targeted the subsidies and benefits offered by the government, took the money, and left, abandoning a mess in the localmunities.


    Suming still remembered an incident that happened a few years ago in the county: an out-of-town boss imed to want to build arge chemical nt that would employ a thousand people. He convinced the county government to grant him arge parcel ofnd for the nt at no cost, and then the county government helped to mortgage thisnd to a bank for a loan of forty million...


    But as soon as the boss got his hands on the loan, he vanished without a trace. To this day there is no sign of that factory, only a vast, unfinished building to show for it. Essentially, the county government used its ownnd to secure a multimillion loan from the bank, the money was taken away by the boss, and now, not only is thend mortgaged to the bank, but the remaining debt is also on the county government to repay.


    Maoxi County was already impoverished, with very low fiscal revenues. After several such incidents, it was burdened with a heavy economic load, making further development even harder. From the county''s leadership to the viges, there was also a wary attitude toward outside investors, resulting in an investment environment far worse than before.


    This created a vicious cycle: the more the county tried to attract investments, the more it needed to invest upfront. Much of that investment ended up being wasted, leaving the county poorer, and the number of businessmen willing to invest grew fewer. Naturally, this meant that the local residents couldn''t make any money.


    For now, Suming couldn''t concern himself with the whole county''s affairs, and frankly, he neither had the responsibility nor the ability to alleviate poverty. He was simply trying to figure out how to make life a little better for the people of Sun Town; after all, this was where he''d grown up, and its people were his friends and family.


    "Uncle, would you be willing to go work elsewhere, like in the city, for instance? Even though it''s not much, you could make three or four thousand a month, which is a lot more than what you''d get in the county city," Suming asked.


    The uncle nodded. "Going to the city would certainly be good, but I''m worried about wage arrears. I had two workmates whobored for a year in the provincial city, and guess what, it turned out to be all for nothing; they weren''t paid. The boss said, ''Sue me if you can!'' We''re uneducated andck connections; how could we ever win awsuit? I''ve also heard of bosses who find all sorts of excuses to cut back on wages when they make payments so that the sum you get in the end is less than half of what was initially promised. It''s still better than working in the county."


    Listening to their conversation, Second Uncle interjected, "Suming, you know many people in the city. If there are trustworthy bosses, introduce one to your uncle. He can work hard. If he earns more money, he can support Er Ya to continue schooling. If she could go to college like you, it would give her something to strive for in life."


    Mrs. Su probably knew what Suming was thinking, but she didn''t say much. She understood the difficulties of doing business, and if she made too many promises now, it would be like setting a tight noose around Suming''s neck. If he couldn''t deliverter, it would be even harder for him to face his hometown folks.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Alright, I understand. If there''s any job opportunity, I''ll definitely prioritize people from our Sun Town first," he said.


    After chatting for a while longer, Suming and his family said their goodbyes. They left the house and after a short walk, arrived at the eastern side, at Mr. Gu''s ce.


    Mr. and Mrs. Gu had opened up more than ten acres on a hillside and, following advice from county experts, specialized in greenhouse cultivation, regrly producing off-season vegetables and fruits. He was a well-known good samaritan in town; he''d often give away his harvest to anyone who needed it, as long as it wasn''t excessive. A small portion of the tomatoes that Mrs. Su ate during winter was actually gifted by Mr. Gu.


    Perhaps as a reward for his good deeds, Mr. Gu had two sons. His eldest, Gu Baoxian, got into a technical secondary school in the county a few years ago, making him one of the more promising young men in town; his other son, Gu Baojun, was also doing well academically, serving as a ss representative in a county school.


    As they entered, the Gu family was gathered together, listening to a mboyantly dressed woman exuberantly describing something.


    "San Sheng, you''re really quite diligent, attending to matchmaking duties on the first day of the new year."


    Suming found this auntie rather amusing, the widow San Shengzi, who lost her husband at twenty-five and has been professionally matchmaking for thirty years since then. In over a dozen towns and viges under Maoxi County, there wasn''t a soul who didn''t know her. One could say that if she earned a bit of merit for every marriage she arranged, she''d have enough to qualify as some sort of minor Bodhisattva by now.


    Upon seeing Suming and the others arrive, everyone at the table stood up, exchanged warm New Year''s greetings with a smile, and then San Shengzi pointed to a young man sitting at the edge of the table, wearing sses, and said, "Mr. Gu''s son, Bao Xian, is already neen this year. We''re looking to arrange a marriage for him, so when he''s of age, he can get married and ease Mr. Gu''s mind."


    This demure young man was Gu Baoxian, and beside him, slightly younger and with two bars on his sleeve, was his brother Gu Baojun.


    "Found anyone you like?" Suming asked Gu Baoxian with a grin, looking at arge assortment of photos on the table.


    He smiled shyly and said, "My dad will decide."


    Old Gu seemed to have started on the wine early today, his face flushed as he said, "I''ve found a girl for the boy; she''s pretty, and her family is good. We just need to sell the vegetables and fruits from the mountain next year, and we''ll have the money for the bride price."


    "Oh, then congrattions are in order!" Suming said with a fist salute.


    "Dad, I''d like to find a job first," Bao Xian said.


    "You just focus on finding your job; it won''t interfere with the arranged marriage," Mr. Gu reassured.


    San Shengzi also smiled and chimed in, "Bao Xian, you should learn from your Su Ming. Just look at him, driving a big Buick now. If you also find a good job in the future, you could lift your brother up too. When the timees, I''ll arrange another marriage for your brother."


    "San Shengzi, don''t drag me into this," Sumingughed heartily, simultaneously pulling out two thick red envelopes and handing them to the brothers, saying, "This is from my mom; keep it."


    The subject hadn''te up yet, but once Suming mentioned it, San Shengzi quickly gathered the photos on the table and pulled out a few more from her bosom, handing them all to Mrs. Su, "Your Suming is of marrying age too. Look if there''s a girl to your liking. Given Suming''s prospects, and considering thed himself, I guarantee that no girl in our county would refuse him. If you don''t fancy any of these, I can look further, even if it''s the mayor''s daughter, I''ll speak for Suming."


    Mrs. Su looked meaningfully at Suming and said, "San Shengzi, I''m afraid this kid might have found someone in the city..."


    "Oh oh, right, right, look at my head!" San Shengzi pped her forehead and said to Suming, "But Suming, don''t underestimate those city girls with fancy dress and shy looks; they''re all spoiled to the heavens. A wife from town would surely be better at managing a household."


    Suming chuckled to himself, thinking that no matter how spoiled, they were just like Nangong Yan¡ªquite nice actually.


    After chatting for a while, Suming and his mother took their leave, visited a few more rtives and friends, had lunch outside, and by the time they got home, it was nearly dark.


    Shortly after entering the house and just about to sit down for dinner, they suddenly heard the sound of gongs and drums outside, followed bymotion and someone shouting loudly, "The wild boars are ravaging the crops!"

 Chapter 225 Porcupine (Sixth Update, Please Subscribe)

    "Wild boars areing down from the mountains! Wild boars areing down from the mountains!"


    "Everyone be careful!"


    It started with just a few people shouting, running around on the streets. Since it was dinner time, most town folks were at home, but soon the whole of Sun Town was abuzz. Burly men rushed out of their homes, holding shlights, leading dogs, carrying poles and other farming tools, heading towards the mountains in the back.


    "Wild boars?" Suming almost burst outughing. He just felt a bit nd in the mouth, craving some game to spice up his meal, and here was some being delivered right to his door?


    If it had been any other animal, even something like a venomous snake or a crocodile, Suming might have taken it in stride, perhaps even taken it under his wing if things went well. But it just had to be wild boars that caused him immense psychological trauma from a young age!


    That year, his father had just passed away, and Suming was still a young boy. Seeing his mother struggle to support them by working two jobs in the county, he wanted to lighten her burden. So, he spent half a month clearing nearly an acre of slopingnd for farming.


    For a little kid who found even carrying a hoe strenuous, to manage to cultivate an acre ofnd was incredibly hard. His mother cried secretly when she found out. Later, she taught him farming hands-on. That small acre ofnd held not only Suming''s sweat but also many of his fond memories.


    Just when he was about to harvest the crops, one afternoon, two wild boars appeared before him. In front of him, they ravaged that acre ofnd, turning it upside down, ruining everything!


    Suming charged at them, biting and hitting, but how could he overpower wild boars? He was knocked down on the spot and got trampled over several rounds, a punching bag for the boars. Luckily, the wild boars weren''t big, only about thirty or forty pounds each. His uncle arrived just in time with others and saved his life.


    Ever since then, Suming had an itching urge for revenge whenever he saw wild boars. Even the ones kept in the zoo, he didn''t care much for.


    In Suming''s eyes, if tigers were sovereigns, wolves were swordsmen, and crocodiles were assassins, then wild boars were nothing but tyrants, bullies who preyed on the good people!


    It wasn''t just Suming ¨C there wasn''t a household in the town that didn''t hate wild boars. These creatures were devastating to crops, not only eating them but also turning whole fields topsy-turvy. Wherever they went, they trampled all the crops in the vicinity to death. One wild boar could easily destroy arge patch of field in a single night.


    "Uncle Gu, what happened, where did the wild boarse from? Did anyone get hurt?" Mrs. Su was also rmed and came out, stopping Uncle Gu as he passed by.


    Uncle Gu holding a hoe more than a meter long, said in a rush, "Trouble at Gu''s ce, no time to exin. Suming, don''t just stand there,e with Uncle Gu and help!"


    "Sure thing!" Suming agreed without a second thought, ready to go with Su Meng.


    The men of the small town all felt a duty to protect their homes. Mrs. Su didn''t stop him but handed Suming a hoe from behind the door saying, "Take this with you, you two be careful!"


    "Got it, Mom, just lock the door and stay safe at home," Suming took the hoe and rushed off with Uncle Gu, following the crowd towards the direction of the farnd up in the mountains.


    While running, Uncle Gu kept shouting to both sides, "Wild boars areing, all the men from the housese out to help; women stay at home, lock everything up tight. Watch out for wild boarsing into the town and hurting people!"


    More and more people were running towards the fields, continuously joined by others¡ªa good few dozens. Almost all of the town''s grown men were there, along with about a dozen dogs.


    The stray dog Huang also joined the pack. Its rear end had been mysteriously sore all night on New Year''s Eve, but today, being the first day of the New Year, it had scavenged lots of good food from different households and was full of energy.


    Despite therge number of people and the dogs, everyone heading out to fight the wild boars looked tense.


    Wild boars are an entirely different creature from domestic pigs. Domestic pigs are docile andzy, with bodies full of fat; wild boars are aggressive and fierce, their bodies packed with powerful tendons, immensely strong, with tough, thick hides. They often wallow in the mud, creating a protective shell on their already rough skin. Their short tusks are as sharp as des and formidable weapons as well.


    Even tigers sometimes hunt wild boars, but truthfully, a 300-pound wild boar can often knock a tiger to death, while a tiger''s fangs and ws often struggle against a boar.


    A wild boar is like a toned-down version of a rhino. If youe across several frenzied wild boars at once, even tigers, lions, and bears would give way. There''s an old saying in the mountains: ''Courage for hunting tigers, a board for hunting boars.'' And by ''board,'' they mean a coffin nk.


    Tigers might be fierce, but deep down, they fear humans. Boars, on the other hand, are fearless. Even a newborn wild piglet will attack humans on sight when not the least bit hungry, making hunting wild boars dangerously life-threatening.


    On the way, Suming only learned the details from Uncle Gu.


    Gu had vegetable greenhouses on the hillside, nning to sell the produce next year for his son Bao Xian''s marriage betrothal. He cherished the crops like treasures, inspecting them every day, just fearing wild animals might spoil them.


    Especially in winter, when the mountain animals were short on food, Gu simply set up a shelter in the field and stayed overnight on the mountain with his dog.


    Today, Auntie Three went to his house to discuss a marriage proposal, and Mr. Gu was so pleased that he drank a few extra cups and took a nap at home. Once the effects of the alcohol had worn off and he returned to the mountain, he saw more than a dozenrge and small silhouettes in the fields that looked like wild boars, tearing the greenhouses to shreds.


    It wasn''t just Mr. Gu''s greenhouses that were destroyed; Widow Auntie Three''s lettuce and cauliflower, and Mr. Cheng''s cabbages and radishes, all suffered damage as well.


    Mr. Gu was petrified on the spot. If it were just one or two small wild boars, he might have been able to chase them away, but with so many wild boars, which could be aggressive while feeding, he feared for his life. So he rushed down the mountain to Sun Town to report the news, which led to the scene we just witnessed.


    "Eh, Second Uncle, I remember that every winter, the town used to give out guns to the farmers to hunt wild boars," Suming said curiously.


    "It''s all because of some national regtion, a conservationw, which says that wild boars are protected animals. Starting this year, we''re not allowed to hunt them anymore!" Second Uncle said indignantly. "Damn it, people have nothing to eat, yet they protect pigs!"


    Suming chuckled at his words. Ironically, wild boars are such formidable creatures, able to fight, reproduce, and with exceptional abilities to adapt to their environment. A group of wild boars together almost has no natural predators, not even tigers can do much to them.


    Yet when confronted with humans, they were almost driven to extinction in just two or three decades, eventually bing a nationally protected species.


    As Suming ran, he sent out a stream of spiritual power into the Haidong Qing soaring above in the sky. His gaze focused, looking toward the distant fields, he saw indeed a number ofrge and small silhouettes scattered across the hillside.


    In one of the central fields, several greenhouses had been so thoroughly wrecked they were beyond recognition, with their sparse remains scattered about, and the nts insidepletely ravaged. Nearby fields had also suffered heavily, with cabbages, radishes, and cauliflower dug up from the ground and trampled beyond recognition.


    Seven or eight small wild boars, as if injected with adrenaline, were butting their heads and charging around the fields like bulldozers, seemingly unsure whether they were ying or doing something else.


    "My goodness, the second eldest boar hase out!"


    Suming was almost startled into eximing when he saw thatrgest of the wild boars, especially the biggest one.


    Small wild boars were still bearable, being roughly the size of dogs.


    But there were four adult wild boars, each of a frightening size, with thergest one weighing at least six or seven hundred pounds! From Haidong Qing''s point of view, it looked like Zhu Bajie from "Journey to the West" had revealed his true form!


    You should know that wild boars grow very slowly. A domestic pig easily grows a couple hundred pounds in a year, but wild boars take two to three years to reach that size. Suming had never even heard of a wild boar that weighed six or seven hundred pounds; such arge wild boar was as rare as a Northeast tiger and would only appear in the deep untouched forests.


    The other three adult wild boars were also extremelyrge, likely around three to four hundred pounds each. Normally, a two hundred pound wild boar would be considered big.


    While talking, it wasn''t long before arge group of vigers emerged and reached the fields on the hillside.


    The families who had suffered losses had been waiting halfway up the hill. They hadn''t dared try to drive away the wild boars by themselves before the rest of the townspeople had arrived. Seeing peopleing, Widow Auntie Three sat down with a thud on the ground, beating her chest and crying loudly, "What are we going to do, I rely on this little bit ofnd as a widow to get by, how will we manage next year?"


    Her work as a matchmaker and pulling barges was just a ''hobby'' for a little extra money. Her real source of ie was still farming.


    "Aba, aba... ah, ah, ahh... aba..." Mr. Chen, unable to speak, pounded his chest and stomped his feet frantically, gesticting wildly with his hands, his eyes red with anxiety. He was a single man and a mute, relying on the crops to save some money for living.


    Mr. Gu squatted on the ground with a dry tobo pipe, sighing, "Why did I have to drink those extra cups? If I hade just two hours earlier, I could have saved some of the harvest... Ah, it''s all because of my gluttonous mouth..." As he spoke, he began to p his own face.


    Gu Baoxian squatted nearby, trying to console him, "Dad, don''t be like this, who could have expected these wild boars toe out during the holidays..."


    "Ah, what about the money for your engagement? And your little brother has to go to school next year... What''s going to happen now?" Mr. Gu was so upset he was close to crying.


    "Dad rest assured, I won''t get engaged, I''ll go out to work and earn money, no matter what, I have to support my little brother''s education!" Gu Baoxian said with determination.


    It might seem like a long time had passed, but in fact, it was just a matter of a few sentences. Second Uncle had considerable authority in the town. Holding a hoe, he directed the vigers, "Quick, quick, quick, surround them, don''t let these damned beasts escape!"


    About dozens of people rushed forward, surrounding therge swath of fields like a metal barrel, with dozens of shlights shining chaotically into the fields and at least ten dogs barking furiously.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Such a formidable lineup had already startled the wild boars in the field. Therge and small wild boars stopped their feeding and turned to face the surrounding crowd, wheezing loudly, ready to go berserk at any moment.


    "Don''t surround them, spread out!" Suming suddenly shouted.

 Chapter 227 Money and Reason

    ```


    The mountains were dark and chilly, not a ce for talking. The second elder left a few strong young men in the watchtowers of the fields to guard against the boars causing more trouble, and the rest of the people hustled down the mountain to discuss thepensation details back in the town.


    Article 14 of the "Huaxia Wildlife Protection Law" clearly stiptes that for losses caused by the protection of national and local key protected wild animals, the local government shall providepensation. The methods for suchpensation shall be determined by the governments of the provinces, autonomous regions, and municipalities directly under the central government.


    Thisw had been in ce for many years, yet few people knew about it. On the one hand, who would bother studying a wildlife protectionw for no reason? Suming only became somewhat familiar with it after working at the zoo and needing it for work. Many farmers in Sun Town hadn''t had much schooling, let alone studying thew.


    Moreover, in backward ces like Sun Town, which were rtionship-oriented societies, people trusted solving problems through "connections" rather than thew. Especially for the lower-ss farmers, they were somewhat fearful of thew and didn''t want to get involved in wsuits''.


    Ultimately, it was up to the government to pay, and less trouble is better than more. The county was so poor, it was practically in tatters; of course, they wouldn''t take the initiative to advertise this regtion.


    As far as Suming knew, the province did have apensation n. In other words, if their crops were destroyed by a second-ss protected animal like wild boars, the farmers could rightfully demand governmentpensation, which the government was obliged to provide.


    Of course, that was the theory. In practice, how much topensate, and how long it would take to receive thepensation, depended on having capable people to manage the process.


    By the time they got back to the town, it was nearly dawn. Arge group of people, sleepless, all poured into Suming''s house.


    The originally empty hall of the Su Family''s house suddenly teemed with people; there weren''t enough stools for everyone to sit on, many just squatting on the ground and the threshold, looking at Suming expectantly, waiting for him to exin the details about thepensation.


    Every family in Sun Town owned fields in the surrounding mountains; ifpensation could be implemented, they wouldn''t have to live in constant fear.


    Mrs. Su saw so many peopleing over, she quickly started boiling water for tea, offered the seeds and snacks usually reserved for guests during the New Year, and after asking the second elder about the situation, she pulled Suming aside and whispered, "It''s about a few thousand yuan for the dozen or so acres of crops. If it reallyes to it, you can pay it. Didn''t you just give me a hundred thousand yuan the other day? I don''t need that money..."


    The second elder heard everything loud and clear as he was nearby and, before Suming could speak, he got upset and said loudly in front of everyone, "Auntie, that''s not the way to put it. One thing at a time, Suming has made something of himself, but his money didn''te from a gust of wind! We''ve suffered a disaster, to take the government''s subsidy, that is what the state stiptes, and we are entitled to it! To ask Su to pay, what kind of approach is that? Would that not be charity? We can''t start this precedent. We can''t expect little Su to foot the bill for every disaster in the town!"


    The second elder wasn''t well-educated, but his point was made with convincing force. Many people in the town might have been uneducated, but they understood the basic principles of how to behave; nodding their heads in agreement upon hearing him.


    The second aunt, wiping away tears, said, "The second elder is right, Suming, I can''t let you pay for this! You''re educated and worldly, we just ask you to help our three families, to find out about the government subsidy, and that''ll be enough."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    "Oh, I was just worried that Gu and the others were getting anxious!" Mrs. Suughed too and said to Suming, "Since everyone believes in you, you must take this seriously. Make sure thepensation is settled before you go back to the city."


    "Don''t worry. Every province has a differentpensation n. Let me call a friend first to see how exactly it''s done in our province," he said.


    ```


    ```


    Unable to ess the inte in the vige, Suming simply gave Liang Shi a call. Liang Shi was a research student at the Agricultural Academy, and the experts from the Academy were often involved in formting agricultural regtions andws for the province, so Liang Shi should have a good understanding of these matters.


    Noisy sounds came through from the other end of the line; it seemed like Liang Shi was at a KTV. Suming hadn''t expected the usually reserved Liang Shi to have a wild side. He chuckled and said, "Happy New Year! Are you out having fun?"


    Liang Shi moved to a quieter spot, chuckled shyly, and said, "They''re my ssmates. They heard I made some money raising fish with you, and now they''re robbing me blind at the bar." Then with a hint of nervousness, he asked, "Mr. Su, I was about to call you. Drinks here are so expensive; a bottle of beer costs over fifty yuan, am I getting ripped off?"


    Suming couldn''t help butugh; his own reaction the first time he went to a bar with Wang Hao was much like Liang Shi''s.


    "Everything''s overpriced in ces like that. Don''t worry, just get a receipt, and we''ll reimburse you through thepany hospitality expenses when you''re back. But remember, no uwful behavior, and if you want to pick up girls, that''s out of your own pocket."


    Suming started with a joke before getting down to business, "Perfect, since they are your ssmates from the Provincial Agricultural Academy, you could help me inquire aboutpensation for crops damaged by wild animals in our province. I was just talking about this because during the New Year''s visit home, some of the vigers'' fields were damaged by wild boars!"


    He was making the call from the main hall, and the other vigers were watching him eagerly. When Suming mentioned ''Provincial Agricultural Academy,'' many vigers'' eyes lit up, their expressions filled with respect. In the eyes of these farmers, the experts at the Agricultural Academy held a status even higher than county leaders, let alone those from the provincial level.


    After a brief conversation, Suming hung up the phone and told everyone, "What a coincidence, my friend has ssmates who are currently interning at the relevant provincial departments, dealing with this exact issue. He''ll ask around and call me backter!"


    "Let''s have some tea and cigarettes while we wait," Mrs. Su said, arranging tea and tobo for everyone.


    Uncle Er lit a cigarette and patted Suming''s shoulder heavily, jokingly saying to the others, "See that? The Su kid really made something of himself. We''d have to run to the township head over anything, but he just makes a phone call and gets through to provincial leaders!"


    A p from Uncle Er''s iron palm made Suming''s eyes roll, thinking to himself, if the old man kept pping like that, he''d tten him out!


    Meanwhile, Mr. Gu was puffing on his pipe, lecturing his two sons, "Look at your Mr. Su. Now you understand why your father insists on sending you to school despite hardships! Without an education, without seeing the world, you''ll never amount to anything!"


    After Suming''s call, the atmosphere had clearly be much more rxed. Auntie Er resumed her role, chatting to Mrs. Su on the side in whispers, gossiping about the county leader''s daughter, the township leader''s cousin, and such¡ªmaking it sound as if all the unmarried women in the county were lining up to be selected by Suming as consorts.


    Soon, Liang Shi called back.


    On the policy front, the province stiptes apensation of 50%-80% based onst year''s market price.


    "Such arge range?" Suming didn''t quite understand and asked.


    ```

 Chapter 230 228

    If thepensation is only 50%, that would be far too low.


    Liang Shi exined that this fluctuating range mainly targets two aspects. First, the initial distribution focuses on efficiency, while the secondary distribution emphasizes fairness; therefore, the poorer areas receive more subsidies; in ces with better economic conditions, farmers have higher ies, and the small amount of money from thend does not ount for much, so they get less subsidy.


    Because of poverty, Sun Town even got an advantage in this.


    The second reason is the value of the ''damaged goods'' itself. Some agricultural and livestock products have high added value, and their market prices fluctuate greatly. For example, rabbit farmers in other regions were affected by a wolf disaster, but the long-eared rabbits could be sold not just for meat but also for their fur, and the prices are heavily influenced by market fluctuations. Therefore, it''s difficult to calcte their specific value, leaving a floating range to give the government flexibility in management.


    The damaged crops in Sun Town are not so particr; their prices are rtively stable and are calcted based onst year''s market price unanimously.


    After asking Liang Shi about the specific process for applying forpensation, Suming finally hung up the phone and detailed the information to the vigers.


    "Mr. Gu, the mute, Third Auntie, you all should quickly tally up the damage you''ve suffered. Then, everyone can help by pressing a handprint to verify it was caused by wild boars. Submit the documentation to the town office. My friend''s ssmate is going to visit various rural areas after the New Year, and Sun Town is the first stop in our county. I''ll ask him to try to aim for 80% subsidy, and strive to have thepensation distributed within two months," Suming said.


    "Does that mean if our crops are damaged in the future, we can also manage it like this, looking to the government for subsidies andpensation?" Xiaohuzi, who lives in the next street, asked.


    "Of course!" Suming nodded, "The government protects wildlife, but humans are still the priority, aren''t they? It''s not like we''re going to protect animals when people can''t even get by. After you go back, also spread the word to rtives and friends. The government has regtions; they won''t let everyone suffer losses."


    "Ah, it''d be great if they couldpensate everything in full,"mented Second Elder regretfully.


    Suming chuckled quietly and said in a lowered voice, "How much was lost is up to what the vigers themselves report, right? Mr. Gu, you three families don''t do anything else these few days. Open up a few more acres of farnd. You don''t need to nt anything... You get what I''m saying, don''t you?"


    Only a fool wouldn''t understand! Suming''s words were almost too clear; although they could only bepensated for up to 80%, you could certainly im a bit more damage than what actually urred. For instance, if ten acres were originally affected, now you could till two more acres of wastnd, report twelve acres of damage, and after the calctions, it would equate to essentially 100%pensation.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    The witnesses are all from our ownmunity, the investigator is Liang Shi''s ssmate, and the reported amount isn''t much higher¡ªyou can''t find a reason why it wouldn''t go through.


    Of course, if someone is too greedy, iming a loss of thirty or forty acres, or even seventy or eighty acres when they only suffered damage on ten, trying to get rich by defraudingpensation, Suming certainly wouldn''t help.


    A major catastrophe was now easily resolved, at least in theory, and the mood of the people shifted from deep sorrow to great joy in an instant, especially with the New Year around the corner. Everyone was excited, forgoing sleep; they simply brought over tables and chairs from various homes and started a few rounds of mahjong and poker in the main hall of the Su Family''s house.


    Gambling over cards during the New Year''s holiday is a traditional custom in the countryside. Many avid gamblers would lose everything they earned from half a year''s work during these few festive days, which is not umon.


    This is tradition, and Suming didn''t interfere. Despite it being well into the night, the Su Family''s main hall was bustling with activity. Only now did the true festive spirit of the New Year be apparent.


    Suming, however, didn''t join in the card-ying. Ever since he gained the power to attach his soul, he always had the impulse to use it, and ying cards with this ability felt like cheating, as he could see everyone else''s hand perfectly clear. So instead, he just sat behind his mother, grinning as he watched her y. His mother was having a run of good luck; she swept the board in just one round, winning two games.


    "Suming, your uncle has a favor to ask of you." Mr. Gu tugged at Suming''s sleeve from behind, and the two walked to a secluded spot in the backyard before Suming said, "Uncle, there''s no need for formalities. Just tell me what you need, and I''ll help if I can. If I can''t, I won''t string you along."


    "Well, it''s not a big deal. I know you have wide connections in the city. You see, Bao Xian is about to graduate, and since they don''t have sses in thest half of the final term of the year, I was hoping you could help him find a job in the city," Mr. Gu said.


    Actually, Suming had been approached by more than one person asking for help finding a job. His uncle had mentioned it before. Suming had been nning this for a while and had arrangements in mind, which he could have disclosed today.


    But after observing the situation in Sun Town over the past few days, he decided to hold off on mentioning his ns, just in case. It might be overcautious, but being a bit extra cautious never hurt.


    "Uncle, don''t worry about this matter. I''ll work something out. I can''t say exactly how right now, but you can be assured that, in the end, I''ll make sure the vigers all have something lined up," Suming said.


    "You''re reliable, and I trust you." Mr. Gu was reassured by Suming''s words, even though Suming hadn''t made a definite promise, as it was clear Suming genuinely wanted to help.


    While they were talking, someone from the main hall called out, "You all must be hungry by now, don''t go to sleep yet! The wild boar meat is cooking, and it will be ready by dawn. Everyone who helped gets a share of the wild boar meat to take home..."


    The voice belonged to the town butcher, and Suming was startled at first, then pped his forehead, realizing he hadpletely forgotten about the two small wild boars. Though called small, together they nearly weighed a hundred pounds. The butcher was efficient and had ughtered the boars soon after returning.


    Butcher Sun, carrying a yoke with two baskets filled with pale wild boar meat, was showing off his butchering skills in the main hall. Spotting Suminging out, he picked out arge piece of pork stomach and said, "Suming, this pork stomach is nourishing. I brought it especially for you to make soup for your mother to replenish her health."


    Indeed, the meat of a wild boar is of better quality than that of a domestic pig, but if not prepared well, it can be gamey and not particrly tasty. The same old principle applies to humans, too: You''ve got to be principled first. For familiar animals, like the white cat, you''d even endure the pain ofbor to help them; for unfamiliar ones, let nature take its course in the food chain.


    To protect animals doesn''t mean indiscriminately using superpowers to keep all animals alive; that would be disrupting the food chain. As long as there''s no overhunting or mistreatment, that''s good enough.


    Taking the wild boar stomach from Butcher Sun, Suming was startled to see several small lumps on it, resembling boils.


    "What''s this? The wild boar didn''t have stomach cancer, did it?"


    The second elder leaned in for a look, "Ah, what a treasure! Suming, cook this up for your mother right away. It''s really nourishing!"

 Chapter 231 Boar Whistle

    Wu gave a slight smile, knowing that Mr. Hong was about to talk terms. He nodded, "Mr. Hong, we will definitely do our utmost to support whatever we can from the government''s side!"


    As the head of Sun Town, Wu naturally had his experience and astuteness, especially since the county had been duped more than once by so-called "investment attraction" schemes; everyone up and down had be vignt. So before attracting investment, Wu had deliberately investigated this young Mr. Hong.


    In the provincial capital, Mr. Hong owned a cateringpany, with two sizable restaurants under his name, as well as some other industries, quite well-known in the sector.


    Having a solid industrial foundation was the main reason Wu was willing to cooperate with Mr. Hong.


    Especially the two restaurants, Wu had personally inspected them, and although they were somewhat old, they were still doing well. The location and the interior decoration were first-rate. Even if Mr. Hong had some trickery up his sleeve and decided to run, those restaurants under his name couldn''t possibly run away.


    Businessmen definitely aim to make a profit; if Sun Town couldn''t offer Mr. Hong particrly favorable policy treatment, why would he invest here? So, hearing Mr. Hong start to talk terms, Mr. Wu wasn''t in a hurry at all, just listened with a chuckle as Mr. Hong prepared to make his demands.


    "Mr. Wu, I''m going to cut the pleasantries. It''s impossible for me to invest arge amount without seeing the profit first," Mr. Hong said inly.


    Listening to Mr. Hong speak, he seemed like a straightforward man. Mr. Wu nodded and gestured for him to continue. Mr. Hong went straight to the point, "I only have three requirements..."


    Mr. Wu listened quietly, beginning to hesitate.


    The three requirements Mr. Hong proposed were as follows: the first seemed reasonable¡ªleasing thend for the breeding farm for twenty years, with the first two years being free of charge. Those were just the nearby forestnds, which originally weren''t costly to lease and key was that no one woulde here to lease them anyway.


    The second condition was a bit much. The workers at the breeding farm, although all from Sun Town, would have their wages deferred for half a year, to be paid in full after six months. Supposedly, this was because Mr. Hong needed arge stock of goods for his restaurant after the New Year''s celebration, causing a shortage in his working capital.


    That was still bearable, but the third condition made Mr. Wu vignt. Mr. Hong hoped the town government would co-sign for a bank loan using the breeding farm as security, with the loan being used to build the breeding farm.


    Land approval, loans, and utilizing loans for operations before repaying them, this was indeed amon business practice. Using borrowed chickens toy eggs didn''t necessarily mean Mr. Hong was a swindler. Some bosses have indeed started from nothing and made it big this way, while others copsedpletely because one link in the chain broke.


    Because the county had encountered several such scams before, Wu couldn''t help but be extra cautious.


    "Mr. Hong, let''s be clear before we be friends. Your requirements are not impossible, but I have a condition too. You must mortgage one of your restaurants to us. Otherwise, if you ran away in the end, where would Sun Town find the money to repay the bank?" Mr. Wu said with a chuckle.


    Unexpectedly, Mr. Hong didn''t object at all, agreeing directly, "That''s only fair! We can go to the county notary office today and do the mortgage notarization! Mr. Wu, you''re being too cautious, my family''s business isrge, and so are the financial turnovers. It''s just after the New Year, the best time for my restaurant business when I need to spend a lot of money on stock. Give it half a year, and once my liquid funds are free, everything will be fine."


    Seeing Mr. Hong agree so readily, Mr. Wu finally felt at ease.


    "Mr. Wu, why don''t we sign the contract today and then go do the mortgage notarization together?" Mr. Hong tentatively asked.


    Mr. Wu was about to agree, but then thought that such a major decision should not be made so hastily. So, with a smile, he said, "Mr. Hong, how about this, you go stay at the county guesthouse for a couple of days first. We''ll have a small meeting here in the town to prepare some preliminary work. In three days, we''ll sign the contract. How does that sound?"


    Mr. Hong sighed slightly in disappointment, "Ah, I''ll do whatever you leaders say. But Mr. Wu, please hurry it up. I have too much to handle at my restaurant and can''t spare much time."


    "Rest assured, rest assured..."


    After seeing off Mr. Hong, Mr. Wu picked up the office phone and called each of the town''s ''cadres'' one by one, summoning them to discuss the breeding farm matters.


    With the scale of Sun Town, it should have been downgraded to a vige by now, but it had been dragging on without resolution. The so-called ''town cadres'' were just a handful,ically so, like Uncle Li the head of the civil defense, Auntie Wang in charge of the office and virtually an organizationalmittee member, even Suming''s mother held a token title of women''smittee member...


    ...


    Suming said goodbye to his mom and then, together with Su Meng, followed the trail the wild boar had taken into the mountains yesterday. This ''trail'' was actually a small mountain stream that had dried up in the winter. After following the riverbed lined with pebbles for about four or five miles, they werepletely out of path.


    Haidong Qing circled in the sky for a while, indicating that the wild boar was still far away.


    The mountains around Sun Town were not like those behind a zoo; these were real towering ranges. Many areas were sheer cliffs or cliffs tens of meters high, or they were steep slopes with gradients over sixty or seventy degrees¨C impossible for people to climb.


    Suming''s soul attached to Haidong Qing and took to the skies to survey the area before finally choosing a rtively easy route. By rtively easy, it meant that it was just barely passable for a person. They were lucky to have Haidong Qing and the soul attachment ability, otherwise, there''s no telling how much more they would have had to detour.


    Even with an observation of the surroundings in advance, the journey was tough, as they had to push through bushes and wade through waters. As the sky darkened, they were finally approaching thest known location of the wild boars.


    Suming hadn''t expected the path to be so treacherous. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he thought to himself that his mom must be worried sick by now, probably not expecting them back until the next morning.


    "Slow down, stop here," Suming gestured, signaling to Su Meng not to go any further.


    The two found a ce to hide downwind. Su Meng, agile as a monkey, quickly scrambled up a tree.


    Suming, helpless below, pped his forehead and whispered, "Big bro, get me up there first..."


    Su Meng grinned and slid back down the tree. Then, like carrying a ko on his back, he quickly hoisted Suming up into a tree several meters off the ground.


    From Haidong Qing''s perspective, they could clearly see arge mud pit covered with dry leaves about a hundred meters ahead, the leaves concealing filthy water underneath.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The fewrge wild boars they had seen the day before were frolicking in the mud pit, looking utterly carefree and showing no signs of grief over losing their offspring.


    In the forest nearby, seven or eight piglets were grunting as they rooted around in the dirt with their noses, likely searching for something to eat.


    Thergest boar, Second Brother, leaned against a tree wide enough to require two people to wrap their arms around it. It acted as if it had epilepsy, grunting while rubbing its back against the old tree, scraping off arge patch of bark.


    Not far away, there was a pile of pig dung nearly a meter high! It was baffling why they piled their dung so high; were they trying to prove they had a talent for architecture?


    With such arge group of wild boars gathered together, it wasn''t easy to make a move. However, Suming hade prepared this time and had a well-thought-out attack n.


    He took out a small whistle-like object from his chest; it was something old hunters used when hunting wild boar. He put it in his mouth and blew hard.


    "Eey... eey eey..." The whistle made a strange noise, resembling the cry of a female wild boar in heat.


    Upon hearing the ''female wild boar''s'' calls, several boars on the other side indeed stopped all activity, their small ears twitching as they looked over curiously in this direction.


    Hearing the call of a female wild boar but not smelling her scent, the boars seemed puzzled.


    But, this wasn''t a problem. They would find out if they went over to investigate. For a male wild boar, eating was the top priority, mating came second. As long as their life was filled with food and sex, a pig''s life was blissful; they had not lived in vain!

 Chapter 232 Lingzhi and the Five-Paced Snake

    Several male wild boars, upon hearing the whistle, were just about to take action when Second Senior Brother wouldn''t have it!


    He got up from under the tree, staggered in front of the other wild boars, lowered his head, and let out a "huff, huff, huff..." as if threatening them with his growls.


    Like most social animals, the hierarchy in a boar herd was strict. As the boar king, Second Senior Brother always ate the best food first, yed with the best toys first, and got the prettiest sows first... He was used to being overbearing!


    Intimidated by Second Senior Brother''s roar, the other male wild boars grunted their discontent, shook their little tails, turned around, and went off to find something to eat. Only one fellow, weighing probably around four hundred pounds and not much smaller than Second Senior Brother, confronted him for a while. However, when Second Senior Brother bared his tusks, even that guy chickened out and slinked away with his tail between his legs.


    Suming had anticipated this oue. Working at the zoo, his greatest gain was understanding the habits of many animals. With the help of spiritual power, this understanding was extremely important.


    His n was to first lure Second Senior Brother over, then quickly subdue him with Su Meng''s help, aided by spiritual power!


    Weighing six or seven hundred pounds, Second Senior Brother was like a small mountain, the most difficult one in the herd. In a one-on-one, Su Meng might not be his match, but with spiritual power to aid him, it shouldn''t be a problem.


    As long as Second Senior Brother was taken care of, the rest would be a piece of cake!


    Quickly, Second Senior Brother began waddling over, shaking his big belly and wobbling his head as he left the herd and walked this way.


    "Get ready!" Suming signalled to Su Meng with a look. Last night, Su Meng had suffered because Second Senior Brother had used momentum to his advantage. Today they would give him a taste of his own medicine. They''d have Su Meng jump down from the tree in a free fall, aiming to daze Second Senior Brother with the impact!


    Since wild boars have poor eyesight but a keen sense of smell, Suming had borrowed the tiger''s method of hunting wild boars and hid downwind. Second Senior Brother, swaying with every step and panting heavily, approached, full of anticipation to cause havoc, wholly unaware of the danger.


    Just as he was about to get close, Second Senior Brother suddenly stopped. Cocking his head, he snorted "huff, huff, huff" towards the back left.


    "What''s going on?!" Suming was startled and instinctively looked in that direction.


    Not a single hair in sight. In the broad-leaved forest, there were only dead leaves on the ground, a few trees, and rocks of various sizes.


    But through Second Senior Brother''s ''eyes,'' it wasn''t the same.


    Clearly attracted by something on the left, he didn''t hesitate at all and turned to trot in that direction, not even caring about the pretty sows anymore.


    "It must have found something tasty to eat," Suming thought.


    For animals, eating and reproducing are top priorities, and it''s food thates first. It''s the same for humans; filled stomachs lead to wandering thoughts, except for perverts who wouldn''t masturbate on an empty stomach... Anyway, Suming wouldn''t.


    Wild boars have an extraordinary sense of smell; they can detect things buried one to two meters underground, so he must have smelled something delicious!


    Second Senior Brother didn''t walk far before stopping under a tree. With its head lowered, its long snout dug chaotically beneath the tree, quickly pushing aside the thickyer of fallen leaves to reveal arge hole big enough to bury its head in.


    Curious, Suming wondered what delicacy the wild boar had found. Since he couldn''t see clearly from the tree, he sent Haidong Qing down to perch on the treetop where the boar was digging. He projected his spirit into Haidong Qing, looking down from above.


    Pulling back the view, he saw that the boar had uncovered arge area of dead leaves, revealing a Lingzhi mushroom growing beneath that tree!


    The Lingzhi wasn''t very big, just slightlyrger than the palm of an adult man, light purple and somewhat whitish.


    Suming wasn''t well-versed in nts and couldn''t determine the exact grade or value of this Lingzhi.


    Lingzhi mushrooms are often considered treasures in legends, but most Lingzhi are hyped up. Depending on their appearance, variety, and age, their value can vary greatly, with the most expensive being astronomically priced, while the cheaper ones can be bought for just tens or a hundred yuan and are not considered rare treasures at all.


    Second Brother was clearly attracted to this particr Lingzhi, his small ears pping excitedly back and forth as he approached it, his snout pouted, snorting as he began to gnaw.


    Gnaw gnaw gnaw... In just a few bites, the Lingzhi waspletely devoured.


    Such a small Lingzhi would hardly be enough to fill a dog, let alone Second Brother with hisrge frame. He clearly wasn''t satisfied, and after finishing off the top, he wanted to eat the bottom...


    To ''eat the bottom'' meant that Second Brother began to dig at the ground with his mouth and teeth, trying to unearth the roots of the Lingzhi.


    Kerch kerch, after digging just a few times, Second Brother suddenly "whooshed" backwards several steps, his two glossy ck eyes alertly watching the ground.


    Suming was taken aback, had he discovered something good?


    At the base of the Lingzhi, there was a fist-sized hole. From above, it appeared quite deep, pitch-ck, and nothing inside could be seen.


    Haidong Qing, upon seeing this hole, couldn''t help but flutter his wings, ready to fly. Suming quickly asked him to wait, not wanting to scare Second Brother away.


    Second Brother stared at the hole for a while, then suddenly stuck his long, pointed beak into it and started to huff and puff, as if he was blowing air into the hole.


    Suming almostughed at the sight, what was he doing? Blowing up a balloon, a big balloon?N?v(el)B\\jnn


    After a few blows, Second Brother retracted his snout, stepped back two paces, still staring intently at the hole.


    From within the hole, a triangr head slowly emerged, followed by a grey-brown neck. At a nce, it looked almost like a dried leaf, and if it weren''t for Haidong Qing''s excellent vision, Suming might have had trouble seeing it clearly.


    It was a five-step snake!


    Suming suddenly realized why Second Brother was blowing air. The five-step snake was probably hibernating, and by blowing warm air into the hole, Second Brother was trying to wake it up to eat it!


    Haidong Qing had fluttered his wings suddenly, wanting to fly, because he too had spotted the snake hole.


    Just judging by its head, this five-step snake was not small, and it was uncertain whether Second Brother could handle it.


    Faced with such an interesting situation, Suming wasn''t in a hurry to deal with Second Brother anymore and was perched in the tree, eagerly observing the confrontation.


    After the five-step snake showed its head, it seemed to be unaware of what was happening and hissed a few times, as if testing the environment around it.


    With agility thatpletely belied his size, Second Brother rushed over with a boom, his fangs hooking onto the snake''s neck, then with a forceful shake of his head!


    Crash! It was like a mischievous child tugging on a yarn roll, Second Brother dragged the entire body of the five-step snake out of the hole, which was at least one and a half meters long!


    "Hiss!" The five-step snake was not one to be trifled with either, and it lunged to bite Second Brother''s nose. If it got a hold of him, even if First Brother came, he''d be out of luck.


    Second Brother shook his head, and before the snake could bite him, it was flung away,nding among the withered grass.

 Chapter 234 A Brave Mans Decision (Four chapters asking for subscription)

    Suming''s small bag was filled with many red, pointy nts.


    Every farmer in Sun Town feared wild boars, except for one household.


    Because what they grew were hot peppers!


    There was one time wild boars came down the mountain to ravage the crops, and a few clueless ones rushed into their chili field. After a fierce munching... there was no "after." Those boars took a few bites of the peppers and cried all the way home¡­


    Ironically, Suming happened to be someone who loved spicy food. In his school days, he was too poor to afford dishes in the cafeteria, often eating his rice just with dried chili peppers.


    Suming transferred his soul-attaching ability to his second senior brother, who first red ferociously at Suming before seeing him pull out a bright red chili pepper to stuff into his mouth.


    "Eating dry hot peppers in this freezing weather is so exhrating!" Suming chewed on a handful of dried chilies as though they were snacks, and even waved at Su Meng, "You want some? So fragrant!"


    He even prepared a tube of spicy strips, in case the peppers didn''t do the trick. But it looked like he wouldn''t need the spicy strips after all. Just as Suming took a bite, the second senior brother below suddenly stood frozen in ce as if hit by a paralysis spell.


    The next second, second senior brother let out a pig-ughter-like howl, rushing toward a nearby pond with Su Meng on his back, and dove in, gulping down water.


    The burning sensation came from Suming''s mouth, not from the second senior brother itself, so drinking more water was pointless.


    The only effect was that it made Suming feel as if he was drinking water too.N?v(el)B\\jnn


    Having eaten so many hot peppers, Suming also felt a bit thirsty, but with the sensation of drinking, he suddenly felt refreshed all over, grabbing more chili peppers to stuff into his mouth while mumbling indistinctly that it would be nice to have a little drink.


    Huffing and puffing... second senior brother drank a belly full of water, but the spiciness in his mouth intensified, until he could no longer drink and struggled to crawl onto the shore.


    Tears fell in big drops from the corners of second senior brother''s eyes.


    "Spicy?" Suming asked.


    Second senior brother nodded vigorously, gasping for air with his mouth wide open.


    "Can we talk now?" Suming asked again.


    Second senior brother nodded his head again with force.


    ...


    After second senior brother became submissive, the rest of the wild boars surrendered with little effort. Only the one that weighed nearly four hundred pounds, just slightly smaller than second senior brother, probably the second-inmand in the boar hierarchy, was still a bit resistant, wanting to have a showdown with Suming.


    It turned out that the second-inmand was no match for the leader! With just a few peppers, Mr. Second fell in linepletely.


    "Look at you guys, there are so many delicacies in the mountains: Lingzhi mushrooms, spring water, willow herb shoots, zhe mashis, and even poisonous snakes. The mountains offer an endless feast; why must you go and cause trouble in people''s crops?"


    After the beatdown came the ideological education. They needed the hard approach, but also the soft touch. It''s like educating a child; when they make a mistake, they must be punished, but after the punishment, a lesson needs to be taught.


    Suming sat on the back of second senior brother, talking to a group of wild boars of various sizes.


    Haidong Qing settled on the head of Mr. Second like a ck crow, embodying the saying "a crow perched on a pig''s back¡­"


    The wild boars breathed heavily, honest enough not to attack again, but from the looks of it, they didn''t seem to realize their mistake.


    "That''s true, in your eyes, crops are nts, food for you as well! But stealing cropses with risking your lives; is it really necessary?"


    In the beginning, Suming thought that the mountains were devoid of food, which was why these creatures came down to forage. But it seemed there was plenty to eat and drink on the mountain. In the short time he''d been here, he''d seen second senior brother devour arge snake and a Lingzhi mushroom, and the other wild boars had found plenty to eat and drink as well.


    Under these circumstances, why would they still take the risk toe down the mountain? Animal instinct should keep them away from humans, unless it was¡­


    "Huffing... huff... huff¡­" second senior brother gestured with his mouth toward the distance.


    "Huh? You don''t live here?" Suming asked.


    Piggy No. 2 stepped out of the ranks, sheepishly lifted its hind leg, revealing its undercarriage.


    "Are you bored or what? I''m asking you a serious question, and you show me your balls, what''s that supposed to mean?" Suming felt baffled, could Piggy No. 2 possibly be trying to seduce him with its ''beauty''?


    But with one nce, he saw that between Piggy No. 2''s legs, there was only one testicle left, lonely suspended there... The other had been bitten off by something.


    "Oh my goodness, that must hurt so much!" Suming and Su Meng, both male animals, instinctively clenched their legs together, but couldn''t help the shivery feeling in between.


    In the future, one really mustn''t speak or think carelessly!


    Just that day he''d been talking about childbirth, experiencing it firsthand; he was also wondering how much pain measured in whatever unit a smashed testicle would be... and lo and behold, today he encountered a smashed one.


    Brother Two, on the side, used his simple logic to roughly exin the situation to Suming.


    Suming got goosebumps listening, because it was too gruesome! It was so brutal that one couldn''t help but burst intoughter, yet one felt embarrassed tough.


    Because Piggy No. 2''s testicle wasn''t bitten off by someone else, but by Brother Two! It turned out that one day, Piggy No. 2 was bitten by a poisonous snake in that area, and to save hisrade, Brother Two bravely bit where the snake had bitten, a true hero shedding a testicle, and bit off the poisoned one from Piggy No. 2!


    "Alright, alright, let''s stop talking about this¡­," if they continued, Suming feared he would have nightmares in the future.


    Overall, the situation was like this: the wild boar herd''s original habitat was a very nice ce, with plenty of good food and drink, things like Lingzhi mushrooms and mountain springs, but it was upied by a group of poisonous snakes.


    Although wild boars are natural predators of snakes, if there are too many snakes, the wild boars can''t do anything except flee in a panic.


    This group of wild boars was temporarily homeless, so they wandered everywhere, settling wherever they ended up, and they ventured into human territory.


    "Should I help you, or not? You know, I''m not fond of wild boars," Suming pondered, stroking his chin.


    ¡­


    When Suming left Sun Town, it was probably a little before one in the afternoon, telling his mom he''d go out and y for a while. Who would have known that his outing wouldst until eight or nine in the evening without him having returned.


    "Would you believe this kid, grown so big and still making people worry. His car isn''t gone, where could he be?" Mrs. Su was really getting anxious. The countryside around the vige isn''t as safe as the city, especially at night. Not to mention the threat of various wild animals, even getting lost could lead to big trouble!


    Mr. Wu, the town chief, was also at home and tried to reassure her: "Hey, a young man going into the mountains isn''t a big deal."


    Suming went to the mountains, and since there''s no cell phone signal out there, he left his phone at home. Mrs. Su nodded while flipping through the phone,ing across Mr. Song''s number.


    In the days after Suming came back, he talked a lot about Mr. Song. Knowing that her son had a good rtionship with this leader, Mrs. Su couldn''t resist and made a call to Mr. Song, wary of leaving a bad impression on the leader, so she didn''t directly mention Suming''s ''disappearance.'' Instead, she delicately inquired if the zoo had assigned any tasks to Su Min that required going up the mountains.


    Mr. Song, hearing this, guessed most of it right away andughed, saying, "Is that kid missing again?"


    "Yes, that''s right, he went into the mountains, and we can''t find him!" Hearing Mr. Song speaking the truth, Mrs. Su didn''t hide it.


    But she still paused a moment, wondering why he said ''again.''


    "Hey, don''t worry, Mrs. Su. Suming is not doing this for the first time. He frequently ys disappearing acts around here. Rest assured, as far as I know, there''s nothing in the wild he can''t handle. Maybe when hees back, he''ll bring some surprises with him," Mr. Song said on the phone.


    "What surprises? Coming back safe and sound is the biggest surprise," said Mrs. Su after a few words of pleasantries, feeling a bit more at ease and hanging up the phone.


    Mr. Wu continued to console: "Auntie, don''t be too anxious. If he doesn''t return by the end of the night, tomorrow at dawn, I''ll have people go up the mountains to search."


    ¡­


    PS: Tragic...

 Chapter 236 Incurring Public Wrath

    Legend has it that animals like snakes possess a kind of spirituality, instinctively guarding "heaven-sent treasures" such as thousand-year-old ginseng or top-quality Lingzhi mushrooms, around which there are often animals ''protecting'' them.


    In in terms, animals discover valuable nts before they''ve fully matured and stake out the area, waiting to devour them upon full maturation.


    In thisrge patch of wild morel mushrooms, a few particrlyrge ones stand out. If the guess is correct, it must be these delicious and nutritious morel mushrooms that attracted the nearby snakes!


    "Hehe, could it be that these snakes are all males in need of virility, so they''re after the morel mushrooms for that extra boost?" Suming spected, not without malice. After all, like ck truffles, the greatest nutritional value of morel mushrooms lies in their potency and kidney supplementation.


    Napoleon was remarkably potent, conquering countless enemies on the battlefield as well as countless noblewomen in bed. However, it''s said that in his youth, Napoleon was actually not so capable and had just average ability at best. One of his generals, however, was quite formidable and had more than a dozen children. Learning that this general''s vigor was due to eating several ck truffle stewed chickens daily, Napoleon also adopted this method¡ªconsuming arge quantity of ck truffles¡ªand, indeed, his ability dramatically improved, and he fathered a son that year.


    Whether this legend is true or not, the effectiveness of ck truffles in improving male vitality is well-known. At one auction, Dr. He from Macau once bid nearly 3 million yuan for a ck truffle king, celebrating his 86th birthday. Dr. He had read countless women in his life, taken three wives, and had many descendants. Yet even in his 80s, he would still purchase the truffle king, indicative of its profound secrets.


    The effects of morel mushrooms are not inferior to those of ck truffles.


    Not only were the snakes tempted, but even Suming couldn''t help but drool over these morel mushrooms!


    It wasn''t that he needed kidney support at such a young age, but rather he was thinking of the vast expanses of emptynd behind the zoo!


    He had long been considering what to nt on the hills behind the zoo to utilize the emptynd and create some economic benefit.


    But cultivating ordinary nts was just too low in cost-efficiency; expending a lot of effort for just a few hundred thousand yuan a year didn''t mean much.


    It would be different with morel mushrooms, though.


    It was previously thought that morel mushrooms could only survive in high-altitude areas, but now evidence showed that they could thrive in the woonds below the altitude of a kilometer surrounding Sun Town, so transntation to the hill behind the zoo should work as well.


    In the domestic market, even cultivated morel mushrooms could fetch four to five hundred yuan per jin, and the prices would be even higher on the international market. Moreover, the environment on the hill was far superior to artificial conditions, almost a semi-wild state.


    Furthermore, the growth of any nt is inseparable from a water source; water is one of the most important elements for nt growth. Now that theke water soaked by Tai Sui not only supports fish farming and the future establishment of a distillery but also has plenty to spare. It wouldn''t be enough to irrigate an entire forest, but for just a small patch of morels, it wouldn''t pose a problem. Cultivating ten or more acres of top-quality morel mushrooms would require little effort yet yield a substantial ie.


    Even if the yield were smaller, setting aside economic value, eating them would be extremely beneficial. No amount of money is more important than good health.


    With that in mind, Suming pondered how to acquire that patch of morel mushrooms among the thousands of snakes.


    "Should I use the method I did with the bees, first controlling a portion of the snakes, making them fight amongst themselves? Or perhaps get the wild boars to form a charge formation and directly storm in, scattering the snakes?"


    Suming stroked his chin, thought of several methods, and weighed which one would be better.


    There were many eying the morel mushrooms, not just Suming. As the saying goes, "The quick ones get the meat; the slow ones get none." While he was pondering strategy and tactics over here, someone else was too impatient to wait!


    The giant python, five to six meters long, slowly swam into the wend, twisting its body nimbly among the aquatic nts and heading towards the center where the morel mushrooms grew.


    Being thergest among the group of snakes, its movement immediately rmed the other snakes. A few Chifeng Jin Snakes and Red-Dotted Jin Snakes that were blocking its path scattered in all directions as they saw the giant pythoning their way.


    Most pythons, including the giant python, are immune to many snake venoms and are not afraid of those venomous snakes. In its view, those "little guys" that are a fraction of its size were insignificant.


    Suming''s eyes lit up. Catch the king first to capture his subjects, since the other snakes all fear this giant python, wouldn''t it be okay if I just controlled the giant python? What''s this called? "Using the emperor tomand the princes!"


    "Hehehe, big brother, how about after I dig up the morel mushrooms, I take you back with me too? You could hang out in the hills behind my house. You could help me guard the morel mushrooms, how about it?" Suming grinned and was just about to release his spiritual power.


    But suddenly, the situation unexpectedly changed!


    When the giant python entered the wend, it initially faced no resistance¡ªall the small snakes fled from its path. But as it approached the cluster of morel mushrooms in the center, the little snakes stopped fleeing!


    Not only did they not flee, but some of the fiercer ones, like the Red Chain Snakes, evenunched an attack on the giant python themselves. A Red Chain Snake and a ck-Striped Snake shot out, snapping viciously onto the body of the giant python.


    The giant python''s scales were like armor, thick and hard. Even a handgun might not pose a threat at a distance, much less two small snakes. The attacks of the Red Chain Snake and the ck-Striped snake didn''t harm the giant python at all, not even breaking a scale.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    The giant python, when attacked, casually twisted its body and flung the Red Chain Snake, which was less than a meter long, through the air. Then it opened its mouth wide and bit the ck-Striped Snake, swallowing it whole without even chewing.


    The ck-Striped Snake and the Red Chain Snake paid with their lives, yet they couldn''t stop the giant python''s advance, causing only a negligible ''inconvenience.''


    Two small snakes were not enough to stop the giant python; but what if there were more?


    As the giant python continued toward the center of the wend, aiming for the morel mushrooms, not only did the snakes that were in front stop fleeing and attack it, but many other types of snakes that were lurking around also left their own little territories, swimming from all directions towards the giant python!


    The thousands of small snakes, scattered throughout, saw the giant python attempting to ''monopolize'' the morel mushrooms and became mon enemies''. In less than half a minute, they all swarmed into the wend, surrounding the giant python tightly,yer uponyer.


    Realizing this, Suming suddenly understood. All these snakes gathered together maintained a delicate bnce, all because of therge patch of morel mushrooms. The giant python, relying on its sheer size and strength, wanted to monopolize them, and consequently incurred the wrath of the masses.


    "Eh? So, you''re saying they would fight a deadly battle without me even lifting a finger?"


    *******


    PS: Two chapters for now, three moreing tonight.

 Chapter 237 Fearing that the World is Not Chaotic Enough (Three Updates)

    ```


    As the saying goes, a clumsy fighter may defeat a skilled one, and the python sure is fierce. In a one-on-one battle, no snake present, not even the most venomous ones, could pose a real threat; they''d simply be delivering themselves up for defeat.


    But there were simply too many snakes. Around the python, at least two to three thousand of various venomous kinds had gathered, the smallest being about forty to fifty centimeters and thergest around one to two meters. Some would raise their heads high in the water, sticking out their tongues as if threatening the python, while others lurked beneath the surface, ready to strike at any moment.


    However, these snakes were not foolish enough to attack immediately upon encircling the python.


    They probably knew that under the current circumstances, whoever struck first would die first. The instinctive desire for survival allowed them to urately gauge the strength of their opponent.


    And the python was no fool either. While animals may not be highly intelligent, they possess a keen intuition and can make quite urate judgments about situations, especiallyrge creatures like the python that aren''t prone to take risks foolishly.


    After seeing the thousands of snakes swarm toward it, the python wisened up and stopped moving forward. It coiled its body in the wend and didn''t rush to advance any further. Its triangr eyes coldly observed the surroundings.


    "Eh, the way that big snake is coiled up, it kind of looks like a huge pile of poop! No, no, I''m getting distracted again..."


    Suming pped his own cheek and pulled his thoughts away from the utter nonsense, focusing instead on the movements of the python.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    This guy, coiled up like poop, nced around with his triangr eyes for a while, then turned his head toward the direction from which he''de, evidence of a retreat, as if he had given up.


    "That won''t do, if you retreat, do you expect me to handle these venomous snakes alone? Too dangerous!" As the saying goes, the emperor isn''t in a hurry but his eunuchs are. The mighty python itself was ready to give up, but Suming wouldn''t have it.


    This wasn''t like the small fish and shrimp before, nor was it like bees; when using group control over those animals, even if Suming had apse, the problem wouldn''t be too big, as, at worst, one or two might escape his control.


    But in front of him was arge group of snakes, at least one to two thousand of them venomous. If he had to rely on himself alone, using spiritual power to control them, one bite would spell his doom.


    He had to create chaos to fish in troubled waters and seize his opportunities from the fire.


    With this in mind, Suming didn''t hesitate to release all his spiritual power, pouring it all into the python!


    If it had been earlier when the python was attacking with high fighting spirit, Suming might not have been able to control it instantaneously, but now the python was prepared to retreat. It was like an army being forced to withdraw due to insufficient strength; even without having suffered a fatal blow, their morale was definitely affected.


    That was precisely the state of the python, somewhat disheartened. So when Suming''s overwhelming spiritual power came flooding in, it was immediately controlled by Suming without any prior indication.


    "Brother, charge for me!" Suming roared inwardly, shouting out a line like a reactionary officer might, andmanded the python to barrel into the mass of snakes!


    This really stirred up the ho''s nest!


    With a few thousand snakes gathered within just tens of square meters, the density was, needless to say, akin to snakes piled thick upon one another, reminiscent of a mass of writhing maggots¡ªthose who have used squat toilets before would likely have witnessed such a scene...


    Suming himself had seen it as a child, not only seen but also thrown stones at it. Sometimes when he was bored squatting, he would even light a piece of paper on fire and drop it in...


    The current situation was much like that, the big snake, like a stirring stick, recklessly stormed into the throng of snakes, its long and strong body wildly thrashing and colliding without any order in the surrounding mass of snakes.


    The python had already been ready to pull back, and the surrounding snakes had also rxed their guard, preparing to leave. But then, the python suddenlyunched a surprise attack. The snakes were caught off guard in an instant, water sshed all over the wend, and amidst the fric dashing of golden snakes, smaller snakes were sent flying in clumps by the body and tail of the python, whilerger ones were thrown intoplete disarray!


    ```


    In this instant, the overlord python unleashed its might, using its size advantage and the element of surprise topletely dominate the battle.


    "Huff... huff..."


    Suming was quite happy to see this turn of events, but his second senior brother made disgruntled snuffling noises, seemingly very displeased with the overlord python stealing the limelight.


    "Hmm? Don''t tell me you''ve suffered at its hands before?" Suming couldn''t help but nce at his second senior brother, thinking to himself what a coward you are, unable to even defeat a juvenile overlord python.


    There, the overlord python had the upper hand, but it was only for a moment, as the situation quickly reversed again!


    If it truly could rely on its size to take on thousands, it wouldn''t have needed Suming making mischief from the sidelines earlier; it would have chosen to charge instead of retreat.


    After suffering minor setbacks, the various snakes around quickly regrouped and swarmed the overlord python. In the blink of an eye, countless small snakes enveloped the python, making it look swollen as it became sluggish in movement.


    Some of the rtively fearsome venomous snakes coiled around the overlord python and fiercely bit down with their gaping mouths.


    Suming hurriedly withdrew his spiritual power.


    On one hand, the overlord python was now deep within enemy ranks, with no escape and no way out; the only path to survival was a bloody battle, so there was no longer a need for mind control; second, in terms ofbat skill, Suming was definitely inferior to the overlord python itself. Continued control with spiritual power would not only fail to help but could also create chaos, so it was better to let the overlord python fight on its own.


    As expected, once the spiritual power was withdrawn, the overlord python managed to regain some ground, fiercely rolling its body in the wends, its lengthy body striking wildly in all directions.


    Continuously, small snakes were eaten or flung away, but even more rushed forward, only to be thrown again, and the cycle repeated...


    The most tragic were those aggressive venomous snakes. Some had the strength to pierce their fangs into the overlord python''s scales, but as the python rolled, they met with misfortune. Their thin fangs stuck in the scales, snapping off with crisp sounds.


    If human teeth were broken while alive, it would mostly be agonizingly painful; but it''s different for venomous snakes. With broken fangs, their survival was unlikely. Even if they didn''t die immediately, they wouldter starve to death because they couldn''t hunt without teeth... And they couldn''t just eat pur¨¦es or drink porridge.


    The overlord python was also at the height of frustration. Ever since it discovered those morel mushrooms, it had crawled out of the deep mountains and guarded them here for about seven or eight days. During this time, it had tried more than once to stealthily devour the morels alone, but every time it made a move, the other snakes would immediately attack it.


    No matter what, with its huge body and a bit of cunning, it could at least have retreated unscathed without getting the morels. But today, inexplicably, just as it was preparing to leave, "a heat of the moment" impulse emerged, as if it were a hot-blooded youth, prompting it to fight against this bunch of annoying small snakes.


    You should know, as a cold-blooded animal, the overlord python had never felt such an impulsive rush in its life!


    Not just it, but its parents, its grandparents, and its ancestors for eighteen generations, have never felt such an impulse in thousands of years!


    Little did it know, the impulse wasn''t its own, but rather the work of a troublemaker named Suming, dozens of meters downwind from it.


    Impulsiveness is the devil, and ites with a price!


    The battle raged on for a full twenty minutes, almost half an hour, and finally began to wind down gradually.

 Chapter 239 The Wild Boar Hero (Five Updates)

    With fewer snakes, Suming was more confident in using his spiritual power to make them obey. He didn''t have any tools on hand, so he couldn''t take all the morel mushrooms with him. Leaving these snakes behind would help him keep watch for the time being. Once he returned to Sun Town and had cell signal, he could make a call to the zoo, asking them to send a vehicle to collect both the snakes and the morels.


    The zoo was indeed short of a herpetarium, so much so that standard reptiles like the Chinese alligator and the Chinese giant smander had no choice but to masquerade as "aquatic creatures" and live in the aquarium, resulting in a rather disorganized disy. Those in the know said the zoo''s resources were limited; others who didn''t, thought the zoocked even basic professional knowledge, significantly downgrading its ss.


    With this batch of snakes, they might even be able to apply for funding to build a reptile house or establish an open-air snake park before undergoing reforms. These hundred plus snakes were not randomly chosen by Suming; instead, he had deliberately picked them. Some were rtively rare species, others were of a size muchrger than their peers, and some were highly venomous. In short, each and every one had its unique characteristics.


    Snakes are different from other wild animals; there''s actually an abundance of them in the wild, so there''s no necessity to release them. Wild snakes and those bred in zoos are really no different. Stay connected with empire


    "Big snake, there''s a saying among us humans, ''No fight, no acquaintance...''"


    Suming squatted in front of the king python, treating its wounds with spiritual power and talking to himself.


    After spending so much time dealing with animals, Su Meng, the guy, still couldn''t speak, so Suming had developed a habit of talking to himself. As he spoke, he felt his words were not quite appropriate¡ªit didn''t seem like a situation of ''no fight, no acquaintance''. So, with a chuckle, he turned to the king python and said, "Hey, thatst bit made me seem insincere. I''ll just be upfront. In this world, it pays to follow a good leader. Would you have any issue following me from now on?"


    Obviously, the king python couldn''t understand humannguage, but Sumingmunicated the message directly through spiritual power. This creature had lived alone in the wild from a young age, with nothing much to hold onto, so it didn''t matter where it lived its life. Moreover, due to the spiritual power and the healing of its wounds, it didn''t resist.


    Cold-blooded animals have this particr trait¡ªthey are neither particrly affectionate nor extremely hostile; they are indifferent to everything, belonging to the category of ''three-no animals'': not active, not rejecting, and not responsible.


    After treating the king python, Suming carefully dug out the biggest morel mushroom, roots and all, with arge clump of soil still clinging to it. Then, to be on the safe side, he scattered the rest of the cinnabar powder among the mushrooms to prevent any snakes from sumbing to temptation and stealthily eating them.


    One or two morels wouldn''t be an issue, but it would be troublesome if they destroyed the hard-won harmonious rtionships that had been established. It had taken several dozen snakes and quite a bit of bloodshed to build these rtionships¡ªthey had note about easily.


    Looking at the time on his phone, he saw it was already noon the next day, and Suming dared not dy any longer. If he didn''t return home soon, he couldn''t imagine how worried his family would be.


    "Piggy Two, Brother Second, stop your feasting and take us back first! The rest of you wild pigs, do whatever you want; just stop ravaging the human crops."


    ...


    As Suming had predicted, despite Mr. Song''s reassurances that nothing could have happened to Suming, Mrs. Su, having waited all night without her son''s return, finally became too restless to sit still. The next morning, as soon as Mr. Wu, the town leader, heard that Suming hadn''t returned, he didn''t hesitate to gather a dozen strong young men with experience in the mountains to search for Suming.


    The head of the armed forces, Mr. Chen, leading the team and carrying an old-fashioned firearm, said to the group of men in front of him with a booming voice, "I''m telling you, little Su is the most promising young man in our town. No matter what''s happened, you must find him for me, alive or dead..."


    Upon hearing this, Mr. Wu rolled his eyes internally, thinking to himself, ''Mr. Chen, at your age, can''t you think before you speak? He''s been missing for less than 24 hours; strictly speaking, even the police wouldn''t file a report on this. Why are you already talking about ''seeing a corpse''?


    Mrs. Su was anxious indeed, but she didn''t really think something terrible had happened to Suming. After all, her son had grown up in Sun Town and ventured into the mountains many times before. It was just one night that he hadn''te home, not several days of disappearance.


    The mountains nearby didn''t harbor any fierce wild animals, so it should still be safe. But as a mother, she was bound to worry. Thus, hearing Second Uncle bluntly talk about finding a body made her a bit angry, thinking to herself that he was cursing her Suming.


    Second Uncle meant well, although his words were inappropriate, his actions were decisive. In no time, he had assigned tasks to those heading out for the search.


    Just as the search party was about to set off into the mountains to find Suming, Mr. Chen suddenly ran over from afar, pointing toward the mountain behind them with an incredibly odd expression on his face, "Aba aba... ababa aba..." He was gesticting wildly as if he had seen a ghost.


    "Mr. Chen, don''t cause a fuss!" Mr. Wu waved him off, "We''re off to look for Suming. Whatever you need, it can wait until Suming returns."


    "Baba baba... aba..." Mr. Chen, bing increasingly agitated, tugged Mr. Wu''s sleeve and started running toward the outskirts of town. After a few steps, he realized his mistake and turned around to grab Mrs. Su''s sleeve.


    Second Uncle smacked him on the head, "Mr. Chen, are you looking for trouble?"


    "Aba..." Before Mr. Chen could exin anything, the town had already be bustling with excitement.


    Many people rushed out from their homes, pointing and gesturing toward the hillside not far from the outskirts of town.


    The town was situated at the base of the mountain, and in broad daylight, it was easy to see what was happening up on the slope.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


    There was Suming and Su Meng, each riding a massive wild boar, thundering down from the mountain. While charging down, they were waving at them from afar and shouting loudly, "I''m back!"


    Everyone stood there dumbfounded, mouths agape, heads tilted up at a thirty-degree angle, staring straight at Suming and Su Meng as they descended the slope.


    It took a good long while, until Suming and the others had already reached the base of the mountain and the houses of the town had blocked the view so that they were no longer visible, that Second Uncle and the others came back to their senses.


    "My goodness, so thisd went into the mountains to catch wild boars?" Mr. Wu murmured to himself.


    Second Uncle stood stunned for a moment, then burst into heartyughter, giving Mrs. Su a thumbs-up, "Auntie, you sure didn''t raise your son in vain! Seeing the town in distress, he not only thought ofpensation for the vigers but also went into the mountain to take revenge for everyone!"


    As a mother, of course, she was delighted to see her son doing well, willing to hear others praise him. Mrs. Suughed a little embarrassedly and modestly said with a hint of pride, "These two reckless boys, they just don''t know any better. You can''t easily mess with wild boars. Their father in heaven must be watching over them."


    Mr. Chen was on the side, frantically waving his hands. This time, everyone understood. Mr. Chen''s hand motions were to say that Mrs. Su was wrong. After waving his hands, he jumped up and threw a hard punch into the air, simting a few hits. He then posed as if performing the Dragon Subduing Eighteen Palms from the TV drama The Legend of the Condor Heroes, and then he pretended to ride a horse, looking proud and content as he swayed on the spot.


    "Ha ha, Mr. Chen is saying that your sons Suming and Su Meng are just like Guo Jing, able to subdue dragons and tigers, true heroes indeed!" Auntie Two joined in the teasing from the side.

 Chapter 240 The Mute Riding a Pig

    Suming and Su Meng rode tworge wild boars down the mountain and then swaggered into Sun Town.


    From a distance, the two wild boars didn''t seem all that remarkable. But as they entered the town and came up close, their presence was quite shocking.


    The Second Senior Brother weighed six to seven hundred pounds, resembling a small ck mountain, with two tusks over half a foot long, a tuft of hair on its head as hard as steel needles, looking fierce; Pig Junior had a smaller head but was also a rare sight among wild boars. As the two pigs walked down the street, they immediately took up the not-so-wide road, sending people running in all directions.


    This was the first time in over a decade that wild boars had brazenly entered the vige, and the town immediately boiled over with excitement. The townspeople were curious yet a little scared, not daring to approach, standing far away and pointing, chattering nonstop in discussion. Your next journey awaits at empire


    Suming and Su Meng rode the two wild boars through most of Sun Town and stopped about ten meters away from the front door of the Su Family Small Building.


    The young adults who had been preparing to go into the mountains to look for Suming were like a group that had seen a ghost, all swooping into the Su Family home, peeking out from behind the door, clutching their hunting rifles, nervously watching Suming and the others, for fear that the two wild boars would go berserk and hurt someone.


    Mr. Wu, the town mayor, turned pale, and the Second Uncle took Mrs. Su by the arm and stepped back, asking, "Suming, what''s the situation with you two? How did you bring the wild boars back?"


    Mrs. Su, seeing Suming standing right next to the wild boar, feared for his safety and eximed, "What on earth is going on? Step back a bit, be careful you don''t get knocked over by the wild boar!"


    But Suming seemed unconcerned, and instead patted the Second Senior Brother''s head, smiling and saying, "Everyone, rx. These two wild boars are old and have human-like intelligence. I''ve already tamed them; they won''t hurt anyone."


    They had all seen with their own eyes how Suming and Su Meng rode the wild boars all the way back home. Although they had guessed as much, hearing Suming say it himself was still hard to believe. After all, these were tworge wild boars, almost impossible to fully tame even for domestic pigs, let alone naturally ferocious wild boars?


    But facts were more eloquent than speeches, and the scene before their eyes was the best proof. Suming patted the Second Senior Brother''s head, and not only did it not resist, but it actually shook its head and snorted in a coquettish way, pping its small ears, looking quite content.


    "Dad, Second Uncle, Auntie..."


    Gu Baoxian squeezed his way out from behind the crowd and suddenly said, "Su Ming works at the zoo, where he specializes in training animals. The animals there all listen to him, if he tells them to go east, they never go west. The TV station even featured a special report on it. Last time in Xiangjiang, there was a film star''s concert with many animals dancing alongside, all arranged by Su Ming..."


    While he spoke, he took out his phone, showing everyone a video clip. Jacky''s ''Legend of the Hungry Wolf'' yed. Mr. Wu and the Second Uncle leaned over to watch the small phone screen where a pack of wolves on stage could be seen moving in rhythm, performing various actions. The Second Uncle and Mr. Wu, seasoned mountain folk, recognized at a nce that in the video, these were real wolves, not dogs.


    "Huh? You can go online?" Suming was actually taken aback.


    Gu Baoxian scratched his head sheepishly, "It''s not online, I downloaded it to my phone at school. This video is really popr on the inte, and I just found out it was nned by Su Ming."


    Many of the young people nearby, hearing this, looked envious. Several who were fairly familiar with Suming called out from a distance, asking loudly, "Suming, do you know Jacky?"


    "Not only does he know him, Su Ming is good friends with Jacky. The television and newspapers reported it. Jacky even went to the zoo specifically to support Su Ming, and the deputy mayor was there too!" Gu Baojun said with pride.


    The two brothers were young and studied in the county town, they had more contact with the outside world than most. Especially in the field of entertainment news, they were more in the know than those people from the town who never left home, or those who worked away from the vige.


    People immediately began moring, asking Suming to help get Jacky''s autograph or the like.


    Upon seeing this video, the second elder and the others finally convinced themselves of Suming''s ability to train animals. Some of them pped their foreheads in realization, "Look at me, forgetting everything; Suming works at the zoo, of course he knows how to tame animals. Besides, his dad was in this trade, he must have passed down all his skills to him."


    The second elder guessed rightly and spared Suming the need to exin any further. Suming just chuckled, taking it as an admission.


    "Ah ba ah ba..." The first to bring the news, Mr. Chen, puffed out his chest as he walked up to Suming, pointing first at his nose, then at the wild boars, and finally at Suming, with a face full of pride. As if to say, "See, I didn''t lie to you, did I?"


    Suming had further ns for these two wild boars; he must dispel the townspeople''s fear of them, and this was the perfect opportunity.


    So, with augh, he patted Mr. Chen on the shoulder, "Mr. Chen, do you dare to ride a wild boar?"


    "Mr. Chen, ride one!"


    "Mr. Chen, don''t chicken out. You''re always the brave one, aren''t you?"


    "Ride one, and who knows, maybe some girl will fancy you for it. Mr. Chen, ride!"


    Although everyone now knew the wild boars were tamed, having tworge wild boars in front of them still made the people somewhat nervous because these animals could do some serious damage if they went berserk. It wouldn''t be hard for them to mow down a few people. Their goading of Mr. Chen to ride the wild boar was somewhat with the intention of having him ''trip the mine''¡ªif even Mr. Chen was safe on top, then it would prove the wild boars were indeedpletely tamed and posed no threat.


    Mr. Chen''s eyes rolled hesitantly; he did want to show off, but he was also afraid the wild boar wouldn''t "recognize" him and would go mad and hurt him.


    Suming gave Su Meng a look, and understanding the cue, Su Meng suddenly lifted Mr. Chen onto the back of the Second Brother boar and then with a smack on its rump, the Second Brother began trotting ahead, head low on its short legs.


    "Ah ba ah ba ba..." Mr. Chen got a huge fright and immediatelyy t on the back of the Second Brother, hugging him tightly for fear of being thrown off.


    They hadn''t gone far before Mr. Chen realized that therge boar beneath him had no intention of hurting or throwing him off, and was actually running quite steadily. His courage grew, his face brightened, and he sat up straight, waving energetically at the people on either side of him, calling out triumphantly "ah ba ba," his face beaming with the look of a general who had won a battle.


    Without having gone too far, Suming whistled from behind, and the boar turned around, carrying Mr. Chen back. Mr. Chen jumped down from the Second Brother''s back, his face flushed with excitement, and beamed proudly, pointing to his nose and showing off.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Seeing that Mr. Chen was fine after riding, many bold and eager townspeople also wanted to ride. This was exactly what Suming intended. He sent twomands of spiritual power to the Second Brother and the Second Pig, instructing them to give the townspeople a bit of fun, and asked Su Meng to watch over them so nothing would go wrong. Then he went home.


    While the second elder stayed at the door to watch the excitement, Mr. Wu followed in, looking as though he had something to say to Suming.


    Mrs. Su got there first, "Please sit for a while, Mr. Mayor, I''m just taking Suming upstairs for a drink of water." Having said that, she gave Suming a look and pulled him upstairs.


    ...


    PS: Three more chapters in the morning, shall we have another three in the evening???