Chapter 12

Generally speaking, animals that come to a new zoo for the first time are not immediately displayed in the exhibition area. They are temporarily placed in the animal quarantine area. This is like when you have a pet at home, you always take it to the pet hospital for a health check before taking it home.

However, the green peacocks did not go through this procedure when they arrived. After all, the zoo now only has green peacocks as one type of animal, and there is no veterinarian, so Kong Bi was naturally not in a hurry to do it.

However, if they want to live in the zoo, the check is something that has to be done sooner or later. For animals living in the wild who have never had contact with humans, coming to a human habitat is a test of their health, and of course, it may also be a test of humans.

Some viruses may be harmless to humans, but once animals are infected, they are very likely to be fatal, while others are the opposite. Therefore, a thorough check is undoubtedly necessary.

However, it is very difficult to get animals to cooperate with the check. Sometimes they have to be anesthetized to do it. But this is not a problem for Kong Bi at all. The green peacocks, who have never seen the world, don’t know the dangers of the human heart at all. As soon as Kong Bi beckons, they immediately run over happily, without any reluctance.

Under these circumstances, even though Quan Xiangsong didn’t bring many devices with him, the examination went quite smoothly.

Kong Bi skillfully inserted a thermometer into the rectum of a female peacock, pulled it out, and handed it to Quan Xiangsong: “Body temperature normal.”

Because she lacked prior experience as a zoo director, Kong Bi inevitably had oversights in animal care. Therefore, the task of keeping the animal care log was currently assigned to Quan Xiangsong, who would record various data. In the week prior, Kong Bi had thought of this task but was completely unsure how to begin writing.

A proper animal care log records animal behavior, the day’s weather, feeding details, the condition of the animal’s feces… These records, which may seem useless in ordinary times, can quickly help a veterinarian effectively determine the cause of any abnormalities in an animal’s condition.

It’s not just zoos, rangers also keep patrol logs. This is also to facilitate future observation of wild animal populations and other situations. These standardized practices ensure that everything becomes relatively simple and organized when an unexpected event occurs.

However, handwriting is ultimately quite cumbersome. In the game, Kong Bi directly hired programmers to develop a management system specifically for her zoo. This is more standardized, satisfying Kong Bi’s obsessive-compulsive tendencies, and the uploading of photos and videos also allows veterinarians to observe more effectively.

So… should I add a programmer to my job posting?

Kong Bi began to seriously consider it. After all, programs need maintenance, and a programmer would be needed for things like public accounts and online reservations in the future, right? Would it be more cost-effective to hire one in one step?

Before Kong Bi could decide, Quan Xiangsong couldn’t help but ask, “Your examination technique is very professional. What did you major in at university?”

“I studied accounting,” Kong Bi replied, coming back to her senses.

Kong Bi was never very rebellious growing up, so she studied accounting at university according to her family’s wishes. Her family didn’t have high expectations; they just wanted her to manage the family’s money properly. Kong Bi followed the advice and has never made a mistake in collecting rent so far, unlike her father, who consistently loses a few hundred yuan each month.

Quan Xiangsong was surprised, “Then where did you learn all this?”

Kong Bi spread her hands, “I’ve always had a way with animals since I was little. After rescuing animals for a long time, I picked up some simple skills.”

If someone is constantly approached by animals seeking help, it’s hard not to learn some basic medical skills, and it’s impossible not to spend any money. It’s relatively easy when they bring their young to you for help, but there are also those who are determined to survive despite disabilities and find you while giving birth, those who lose fights with humans, dogs, cats, or sparrows and come to you; those whose companions have problems and come to you; those who are taken to the hospital for sterilization and come to you seeking revenge; and those who know you have experience and bring you cats, dogs, birds, and even weasels they’ve found…

In terms of skill, Kong Bi felt she was probably at the level of a semi-barefoot doctor.

She continued, “I can’t guarantee anything else, but I can definitely help with raising peacocks. I take care of my chickens, ducks, and geese from birth to the dinner table. If we get pandas or wild boars, I can feed them too.”

Quan Xiangsong was stunned, wondering if he had misheard, ‘Pandas?’

Had he been in the wild for too long? Can ordinary people keep pandas now?

Kong Bi nodded, “The environment in my hometown is pretty good. If I’m lucky, I can run into them seven times a week.”

Quan Xiangsong thought to himself, ‘Seven times a week? That’s not just lucky; the pandas have basically settled in your hometown!’

He couldn’t help but ask, “Do you often feed them?”

If that weren’t the case, Quan Xiangsong couldn’t understand why pandas would run towards populated areas. After all, wild pandas aren’t exactly docile and might attack people. If they didn’t know they could get full meals by following humans, why would they come every day?

“Of course not,” Kong Bi laughed. ‘The animals that people in our village feed are all raised to be eaten. But in the past, people often followed pandas to dig bamboo shoots. They’re very picky eaters, and the bamboo shoots you find by following them are delicious. So, during famines, they were even worshiped as mountain gods. People in our village are very pragmatic.”

Quan Xiangsong was dumbfounded. He knew how tough people used to be, with village feuds comparable to wars that could shake the foundations of some small countries. But people generally fear wild beasts and snakes. To be this bold was truly astonishing.

He slowed down, and his eyes changed when he looked at Kong Bi. He felt that the other party was like a master who walked out of a secluded village. He couldn’t suppress his curiosity at all: “What about now?”

“It has become a protected area,” Kong Bi said, “The compensation was a lot, so no one cut bamboo to make a living. Now they worship them as the God of Wealth and even built a temple.”

Quan Xiangsong: “…………”

The Kong family village had lived off the nearby bamboo forests for generations. However, because pandas became national treasures, their original land and the bamboo forests became nature reserves, and the villagers had to relocate. Then, the newly allocated houses were demolished due to scenic area development. After that, the village elders decided to buy houses in the city together, and luckily, they encountered another round of demolition.

In short, after these few moves, the people of Kong family village lived quite comfortably. Kong Bi’s family didn’t have much business acumen, so they followed the advice of respected elders in the village and bought more houses. As long as they didn’t have any crazy ideas about starting a business, they could live very comfortably.

However, now that she has this zoo, Kong Bi felt that her life might not be so comfortable in the future. After all, running a zoo is essentially no different from running a company, right? You have to pour a lot of money into it.