Super Zoo

Time flew by, and with the tireless efforts of the shrimp soldiers and crab generals, the passage beneath Shuijun Lake and Shuixie Lake was finally opened and connected. Taishui still honestly sprawled at the bottom of the Shuixie Lake, taking baths daily. Suming had tested it several times, but this guy hadn't changed at all since the beginning, and Suming had no idea when it might actually turn into an 'animal' and communicate with him.

The weather had turned a bit colder, and the fish-riding business was not doing so well. Actually, there were still visitors, but Suming didn't feel comfortable letting them into the cold water, risking them to catch a cold or a fever, so he planned to suspend the fish-riding activity in a week or two.

In just three months, several big fish had earned Suming nearly half a million in profits. It was about time to give them a rest so they could fatten up for the next season.

Liang Shi naturally became the aquarium's manager, spending half his time in the aquarium taking care of the Yangtze finless porpoise and writing his thesis, and the other half on Shuijun Lake, looking after Suming's fish.

"It's amazing, it completely overturns my common sense!"

Wearing one-piece rubber suits, Liang Shi and Suming stood in the shallow water area with the water reaching their waists. Liang Shi held a crucian carp weighing about five or six liang in his hand and said to Suming, "It hasn't been even half a year, and the fish have grown so much!"

Raising fish has a fixed cycle, and the four major domestic fish are economically important breeds that grow relatively quickly. However, the growth rate of the fish in Suming's Shuijun Lake still far exceeded Liang Shi's expectations and general knowledge.

Every so often, he would select various fish samples from the lake for observation and found that the growth rate of Shuijun Lake's fish was about one to four times faster than in other environments. Therefore, over the course of three or four months, most of the earlier fingerlings had grown into adult fish.

The silver carps and bigheads mostly exceeded two kilograms, and the largest black carps and grass carps had gone over three kilograms. Even the relatively small crucian carps generally weighed more than half a jin, all reaching the standard size for sale.

"And look..."

He continued, pointing excitedly at the struggling crucian carp in his hand, "They have fat on them, but their strength is great, which proves that it's not just the result of being fattened up with feed!"

"So why is that?" Suming pretended not to understand and asked. It would indeed be weird if the fish in the lake, often in contact with spiritual power, did not grow fast. The bighead catfish now weighed more than ten jin. when Suming first saw it, the creature was less than one jin, looking like a mutated tadpole. In such a short time, its weight had increased by more than tenfold. The growth of the other fish was considered slow compared to that.

When it came to scholarly pursuits, Liang Shi was always a bit straightforward. He shook his head solemnly and said, "To tell the truth, I don't know why! However, I have a few guesses. On one hand, it could be because the feed and cultivation methods you're using are suitable. On the other hand, the many tourists at Shuijun Lake could also be making the fish more active. And maybe... it's because the water quality here is better. But it's still hard to understand, really baffling, what exactly is the reason?"

While talking, Liang Shi even showed a little bashful 'embarrassed' expression, as if he felt that Suming had entrusted him with such a big responsibility and yet he couldn't figure out why the fish were growing quickly and well, thereby failing Suming's trust.

Suming felt a bit sorry to fool such an honest person and held back his laughter, saying, "Anyway, it's a good thing! You can stay here and continue your research, who knows, you might even make a Nobel-worthy discovery."

"You're joking, Mr. Su, I'm not that capable. However, you can start to look for buyers now. Except for keeping a portion for breeding, the rest can be sold," said Liang Shi.

"Just wait a bit, I have to go on a trip soon. Once I'm back, I'll immediately get in touch with the buyers," Suming said.

Last time when he ate with Zhao Yun, they discussed Zhao Yun recommending a few restaurants to try selling the fish, to see how it goes.

Zhao Yun was not in Yangchuan recently. According to Zhaoqian, he had gone to South Africa for some gold mining conference and had not been back for more than a month.

Mom's spaghet, did he own a gold mine in South Africa? Suming couldn't help but purse his lips, after making an international long-distance call, he found out that it was just a gathering for collectors from around the world, after all. The so-called gold mine was just a charming façade, having nothing to do with actual gold. He couldn't return for over a week.

It just so happened, the city had assigned a task to the zoo, and Mr. Song directly handed over the responsibility to Suming, who needed to make a trip to the neighboring Changping County.

After making some preparations at Whisperwind Pavilion, he gathered all the animals, big and small, and instructed them not to cause any trouble during his absence. The next morning, Suming hopped into his Wrangler and left the zoo, heading towards Changping.

Once he finally squeezed out of the city, Suming took to the provincial road, put on a pair of windproof goggles for the wolf-dog brothers, then floored it, sending the Wrangler surging to a hundred kilometers per hour!

Su Meng sat in the passenger seat. The wild man, though possessing incredible fighting power, had never ridden in a vehicle this fast, which terrified him as he tightly clutched the handle, his face turning a bit pale. The wolf-dog brothers, bold as thieves, had no idea what fear was. Rising to sit halfway, they propped their front paws on the back of Suming's seat, with goggles on, their tongues wildly lashing in the wind, drool and spit flying everywhere, as their head and neck fur danced furiously!

"I'm bringing you two to get some education, so you learn to appreciate the good life you have!" Suming shouted loudly.

This business trip was all about dogs!

"Dog meat boils three times, even immortals can't sit still," goes the saying. Many places in Huaxia had the tradition of eating dog meat, especially during May and June when lychees were ripe. Dog meat paired with lychees and yellow wine is considered a delicacy and a great health tonic.

A few years ago, there were reports that a large dog meat festival was held every May and June in a southern city, where thousands of dogs were slaughtered for consumption.

This caught the attention of dog lovers, who would flock to the city during the dog meat festivals and try to rescue dogs in various ways.

This year was no exception. Months ago, a group of dog enthusiasts, upon receiving a tip, discovered a large truck filled with dogs of unidentified origins. They spontaneously organized and engaged in a car chase on the expressway, eventually stopping the truck in Changping County and demanding that the driver hand over the dogs. Naturally, the trucker refused. He was simply transporting goods, and losing the cargo meant he would have to compensate the owner, essentially working for nothing for half a year.

The confrontation escalated, and blood was allegedly shed. When the police arrived and investigated, they found that indeed the dogs lacked quarantine certificates and their origins could not be accounted for. As a result, the dogs were confiscated, and the truck driver swallowed the bitter pill with much frustration.

Then came the problem: what to do with so many dogs? Changping County was just a small town with no zoo, and there was no way to manage the feeding and excretion of so many dogs, let alone their medical care and treatment.

The police were quite astute, passing the problem onto the animal lovers. The dogs have been saved; now it's up to you to figure out what to do next.

It's one thing for dog lovers to rescue dogs, but when it comes to adopting these dirty, diseased, scrappy, disabled, or sick dogs, nobody seemed willing. They pooled together some money and sent over a hundred dogs to an animal rescue center in the suburbs of Changping County.

The rescue center had limited funds and facilities; they simply couldn't care for these dogs indefinitely. Therefore, the higher authorities arranged for someone from the nearby Yangchuan City Zoo to investigate the situation on-site and find a way to resolve the issue.

Logically speaking, Changping County falls under the jurisdiction of the provincial capital, and the problem should be theirs to solve. However, perhaps because of the previous unpleasantness with the finless porpoises, the burden was passed directly to Yangchuan City, implying, "Doesn't your zoo have capable people? Then you handle it."

So the capable Mr. Su was entrusted with the expectations of the organization, embarking on a mission to rescue dogs.