Super Zoo

A spur-of-the-moment trip required some arrangements before departure.

Suming, whose well-being connected to hundreds of residents... okay, not millions, but certainly hundreds, caused a stir in the entire zoo upon learning that he really planned to go to the war-torn Middle East to "buy animals".

Everybody knew the Middle East was riddled with flying bullets. The world's bombers visited relentlessly, dropping bombs over there. Even the notoriously tough Americans were at their wit's end with the Middle East, and even the United Nations' peacekeeping forces couldn't guarantee their own safety.

Every other day, the television broadcast news of yet another international victim bombed by Middle Easterners. Middle Eastern terrorists, armed with machine guns and strapped with bombs, wreaked havoc somewhere again; someone else became a hostage decapitated by terrorists; some village slaughtered, the men shot, the women enslaved.

Right! There were also a few widely circulated video clips online of terrorists beheading hostages, too horrific to bear watching!

The younger employees, while shocked, were more envious and admiring. The envy was self-evident, as most people, even if they could afford international travel, would never have the chance to visit the Middle East, especially a war-ridden one—an undoubtedly unforgettable experience in a lifetime. The admiration was for Suming's courage, for not just anybody with the means would dare to go.

"Who do you think our Mr. Su is? Let me tell you! He can tug a tiger's tail on the mountain and ride a crocodile swimming in the water. Can any of you compare with his bravery?" A young security guard at the zoo boasted with pride to several visitors.

But the older and more mature employees were filled with anxiety.

Mrs. Tong regretted her thoughtless words—just an offhand suggestion to Mr. Su, spoken in a moment of lightheartedness, not knowing he would actually dare to go. If anything happened to him, she would become the villain of the entire zoo!

Oh no! Not just the zoo's villain, but also the villain of the brewery, the reservoir, and an impediment to the economic development of Yangchuan City... perhaps even the people of Xiangjiang would despise her! This could be interpreted as sabotaging the unity and stability of society...

It's all because she didn't keep her mouth shut, why ask for trouble!

So what if the zoo has fewer animals or doesn't get rated as 4A? What matters is that the zoo director is safe and well. Wasn't the zoo just the same, developing at an amazing rate even when it wasn't rated 3A?

The more Mrs. Tong thought about it, the less pleasant she felt. Due to her psychological state, she felt colleagues were giving her reproachful looks wherever she went, and she couldn't even sleep well.

"Big sister, please don't think like that. I have my reasons for going to Baghdad," Suming reassured her.

"Brother-in-law, you don't have an illegitimate child there, do you?" Nangong Huang asked with a gossipy expression.

"Get out of here, go play," Suming replied, at a loss for words.

Mrs. Tong also glared at Nangong Huang before saying to Suming with great regret, "Director, what's so good about that place? No water, no electricity, I heard they use one hand for both eating and going to the bathroom. How is that a place for people to stay? Wouldn't it be better to stay in the zoo?"@@novelbin@@

"Don't worry, big sister. The dangerous places they talk about are under the control of terrorists in the Islamic Country. I'm going to Baghdad, which is very safe. The conditions might be poor, but I'll be staying in a big hotel. You know Baghdad, right..."

"I know, it's the Great Food Kingdom from 'Xuanyuan Sword: Cloud and Mountain Beyond'..." Nangong Huang interjected again.

"If you interrupt again, I'm going to smack you!" Suming was so annoyed that he waved his hand and continued to Mrs. Tong, "Big sister, that's the capital of Iraq. If even the leaders of the country live there, surrounded by heavily armed forces, it's definitely safe. It'll be just one week, or at most half a month, and then I'll be back. During this time, you'll take charge of the zoo's affairs."

Seeing Suming's determination, Mrs. Tong knew she couldn't stop him and could only nod.

Compared to Mrs. Tong's reaction, others varied significantly.

Liang Shi, a bit of an airhead, reacted to Suming going to Iraq almost as if he were just going to a local food stall, adjusting his glasses and saying, 'Oh, I got it, don't worry about the reservoir.'

Wang Hao had already gone to the capital for a network live broadcasting meeting. He left the company's affairs in Shen Yan's hands for the time being, who, upon hearing the news, clearly hesitated for a moment before insisting that safety must be the priority and assuring him that the company's matters were in good hands.

Wang Jian She's reaction was the most sensible of all. Discover hidden tales at My Virtual Library Empire

"Baghdad, after all, is the capital. It's under government control, and there are a lot of peacekeeping forces and government troops from various countries in the city; it's relatively safe. If you really run into trouble, go find the Huaxia Embassy in Iraq. You might not feel it domestically, but once you're in a war-torn foreign country, the nation becomes your greatest support. Even if you cause a huge problem, just seek asylum in the embassy and then slowly figure things out."

Suming chuckled. Wang's words made it sound like I'm going to Iraq to cause trouble.

After calling Wang Hao, who was in the capital for a meeting and wished he had wings to fly back and join Suming in Baghdad, Wang Hao complained about his reluctance to attend that 'damn meeting,' realizing there was such exciting business to attend to. He said that the government oversight experts at the meeting had stern faces and their suggestions were utterly preposterous.

Wang Hao shared an incident about someone in the capital who embezzled over a million to gift a female anchor, leading to a suggestion by a serious expert at the meeting to limit the gift amount viewers could send, not exceeding fifty yuan at a time or a thousand yuan a month.

"You represent my stance. Just say that when the government holds down housing and land prices, our Taoyuan Company will correspond to their call for limiting gift-giving. Our attitude must be just as tough; walking out and slamming the table if necessary is no problem," Suming said with a laugh.

"That assertive? That seems a bit unreasonable," Wang Hao wondered.

"Did you think I sent you there to be reasonable?" Suming laughed heartily. Everyone has a brain; if they can bring such absurd proposals to the table for discussion, it's obviously a test of the live broadcasting platforms' limits. At a time like this, you absolutely cannot back down.

After the call with Wang Hao, Suming drove to see Zhao Yun.

The candidates for the trip to Iraq currently included just Suming and Su Meng, who were at the city's live ammunition training ground these days. Su Meng was learning about the usage of common firearms under Dong's guidance.

Visiting Zhao Yun was to both hand over the winery's business and, since Zhao Yun was mature and capable of holding down a situation, allow others to seek his help in resolving any major issues that might arise in his absence.

Suming also harbored a small hope that if Zhao Yun were willing to go to Iraq, he would be very welcome. This uncle might seem refined, but during the incident at Chen Youliang's tomb, he handled a gun no worse than a professional, and his movements were very agile. Plus, the guy was pretty interesting, knowledgeable, and would add entertainment to the journey.

As soon as he entered, Suming was taken aback.

Zhaoqian and Chengcheng, with their hair all over the place, were jumping on the couch, each wielding a meter-long rubber sword, furiously beating a human-sized doll.

"Beat you to death, beat you to death! Let's see if you still don't take me out to play!"

"Beat you to death, beat you to death! Let's see if you still smoke in the house! Let's see if you dare to not wash the dishes after eating! Let's see if you still get into bed without washing your feet!"