Chapter 25

Wang Ling was hearing such a strange question from an interviewer for the first time.

She couldn’t help but furrow her brow, looking at the interviewer with a puzzled expression.

This expression was enough to convey her confusion. Kong Bi, without changing her expression, said, “I’m sorry, perhaps it’s because the zoo’s location is a bit remote. Among the applicants we’ve had before, there were fugitives who were trying to find temporary refuge by working here, so I need to confirm.”

Wang Ling paused for a moment, then nodded to indicate she understood, and said, “I see.”

Although Wang Ling didn’t entirely believe those words, she knew that working at Peacock Mountain Zoo would definitely involve some danger. After all, the Shiwan Mountains were right behind them, and the rich wildlife resources would always tempt some people to take risks. It’s no exaggeration to say that every year, among the police’s news of apprehending criminals, there would invariably be one case originating from the Shiwan Mountains, whether it was poachers or fugitives attempting to escape to other places through the Shiwan Mountains. It’s said that this had secretly become an industry chain.

If Wang Ling hadn’t been an orphan, a family with parents living nearby who had heard the rumors would never have allowed their child to come here.

Seeing that the other person wasn’t an undocumented individual, Kong Bi relaxed and asked, “Your resume is very impressive. Why did you choose to come here?”

Anyone looking for a serious job would probably hesitate and back away after seeing this kind of environment at the zoo. Especially women, who have to consider safety. A place this remote with such low foot traffic can only be reassuring to someone who’s a bit naive.

At least, Wang Ling didn’t catch the underlying meaning in Kong Bi’s words. She spread her hands and said, ‘The doctoral advisor I wanted to study under retired this year, and the other advisor I had in mind was already fully booked. I didn’t want to go to the remaining ones, so I came out to look for a job. I didn’t really want to work at a pet hospital, and I’m also a traditional Chinese veterinary medicine practitioner. Considering everything, I decided to give this place a try.”

Kong Bi nodded with an expression of understanding, but in her heart, she thought it was probably the system’s doing. Although traditional Chinese veterinary medicine is indeed a bit harder to find employment in than regular veterinary medicine, someone with an excellent resume from a prestigious university wouldn’t possibly take a liking to a place like this, at least not at the moment.

And she’s an orphan, so there’s no risk of parents coming to cause trouble.

She put down the resume and extended her hand, saying, “Welcome to Peacock Mountain Zoo! We’ll be relying on you for the animals’ health from now on.”

Wang Ling shook hands with Kong Bi, and couldn’t help but smile, “Thank you, I believe I’m capable of this job.”

Kong Bi thought to herself, “You probably won’t be able to get your hands on anything for a while, it’s all been taken care of by a group of experts.”

After briefly introducing Wang Ling to the responsibilities, benefits, and accommodation for the zoo’s veterinarian, and telling her to let her know if she needed anything, Wang Ling added Kong Bi’s contact information, told Kong Bi that she needed to go back and pack her things, and wouldn’t be able to come until tomorrow, and then left.

A moment later, there was another knock on the door: “Hello, I’m here for the operations manager interview!”

“Come in.”

This was a recruitment that Kong Bi added later, specifically because she realized while editing videos that professional tasks really need to be handled by professionals. However, since there are only a few animals in the zoo at the moment, Kong Bi didn’t want to hire too many people. Therefore, the operations manager would have to wear many hats, ideally including editing and photography. To that end, Kong Bi generously offered a very competitive salary, as it’s only fair for those who work more to earn more.

The operations manager’s name was Li Da, and he was originally a member of a social media influencer studio, but left due to differing philosophies.

Through Kong Bi’s subtle inquiries, she learned that Li Da’s parents had long since divorced and both formed new families, and his connection with them was not close. His grandmother was currently hospitalized, and the high medical expenses prompted him to come here.

Next came a cook, an aunt who had worked in a school cafeteria for over a decade. She came here because she was pushed out due to Parkinson’s disease affecting her ability to serve food. Coincidentally, Kong Bi’s offered salary was relatively high, so she applied. Her husband had passed away, and her son worked in another province, so she didn’t mind living in the employee dormitory.

The programmer had retired from a large company to focus on his health. Due to the high-pressure work he had previously endured, his health had deteriorated. Being a bachelor with enough savings for retirement, and having loved animals since childhood, he decided to retire at the zoo.

Then there were the zookeepers and security guards. Kong Bi chose to recruit a group of veterans. In the world of demons, strength is revered, so rather than experienced zookeepers, Kong Bi preferred to hire a group with sufficient strength. This way, when the demons fought, they could at least intervene to try and break it up. As for anything else, they could be taught gradually, and if they weren’t suitable, they could be replaced.

For the zookeepers, the main considerations were love for animals and meticulousness. If they had professional experience in this area, that would be even better, but it wasn’t a requirement.

With that, the staff was considered fully recruited. One zookeeper and three security guards indicated they could start work today. Kong Bi, as usual, subtly inquired about their backgrounds and learned that they had come either because their elders were no longer around or due to financial pressures. This clarified things: the zoo had likely used some method to find individuals with relatively simple social connections and urgent employment needs, making the job postings visible to them. So, these people weren’t created by the game.

And thankfully so, because if a dozen or so undocumented individuals suddenly appeared at the zoo like the green peacocks, she, as the director, would probably be taken into state custody and provided with meals and lodging indefinitely.

After hiring the staff, the preliminary preparations for the zoo were considered complete. Kong Bi then called the renovation company her family usually used to come over. Upon learning that they had experience in this area, she felt even more reassured.

Due to the demolition and relocation of Kong Family Village, every household had a considerable number of houses. As a result, through word of mouth, most residents were won over by the same renovation company, which received 90% positive feedback. It was considered a relatively reliable renovation company in the industry. Of course, it was also possible that the residents of Kong Family Village were generous with their payments, and the company didn’t want to miss out on valuable clients, which led to their attentive service.

Regardless, since it’s a renovation company we’re familiar with, we don’t have to take a gamble. And since the experts are here right now, after the designer creates a plan based on Kong Bi’s drawings, we can get the experts’ free opinions and revise any unsuitable designs. If we miss this opportunity, we won’t get another chance.

After finishing these tasks, Kong Bi went to the peacock garden to pet the peacocks and then cut some beef into thin strips to take to the rescue area to feed Wang Tianba.

Perhaps it had come to terms with reality, because this creature was behaving very docilely. It seemed to be extremely hungry, devouring the beef in no time. Even after Kong Bi fed it a second time, it still looked at her longingly, clearly not satisfied.

In situations where resources are scarce, an impending evolution for a demon is not a good thing, because they only have two paths: one is to break through, either evolving successfully or dying; the other is to not break through, but the cost is enduring an indescribable hunger for the rest of their lives, suffering greatly.

However, whether for humans or animals, enduring hunger for a day or two might be tolerable, but a lifetime?

It would be better to die.