Super Zoo

Suming returned safely, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief. He was harshly criticized by Nangong Yan and only managed to gloss over his mistake by writing a self-critique of five hundred words. Mrs. Tong finally stopped blaming herself as well and threw herself back into her work.

The zoo's most pressing task at the moment was to make arrangements for the newly acquired animals, even pushing the martial arts competition later.

Luckily, the martial arts competition had become standardized and didn't require too much worry; it could be handled step by step.

Mrs. Tong put together a spreadsheet outlining the current status of the zoo's animals and reported it to Suming.
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With the additional animals brought back from Iraq, Yangchuan City Zoo now housed a total of 3,500 animals, doubling the previous variety, including over thirty types that are rarely seen in the country.

The situation was very favorable. If an application for a 4A scenic area was submitted now, there would definitely be no problem, and even a 5A rating could be considered.

However, the problem lay in housing so many animals; the zoo had exceeded its carrying capacity, and new enclosures had to be built.

Some animals could be sorted and squeezed in with their own kind. For example, platypuses could be housed with wild ducks, peacocks with pheasants, and antelopes with goats.

But this wasn't a viable long-term solution, and there were still many animals that simply had nowhere to live.

For instance, what about those two rhinos? Who could they share space with? And what about the hippos; they certainly couldn't be housed with crocodiles.

Therefore, expanding the zoo became an urgent matter.

Money, money, money!

Everything required money, and Suming once again found that he was short on funds!

The zoo's accounts were separate from those of other companies. As a professional zoo manager, Suming could not subsidize the zoo with the profits from other companies. Since the zoo was not profit-oriented, it was under significant pressure to find a large sum of money for new construction.

Previously unnoticed, the problems left over from the initial reform became evident as both the enterprises and the zoo grew larger.

The delineation of responsibilities and property rights was ambiguous.

The zoo resembled a collective enterprise. As its director, Suming was merely a manager with administrative authority but no ownership rights. The zoo's profits and his income were not closely related; he had a fixed salary and, if the zoo turned a profit, would receive a sizeable bonus;

The distillery, entertainment company, and fisheries, on the other hand, were his private enterprises, where he held the majority share and had both management and ownership rights. Many of these companies' businesses were dependent on the zoo's foundation.

When the enterprises were small, it wasn't noticeable, but as they expanded, there were many constraints, accounting confusion, and financial inefficiencies, making it difficult to operate effectively.

If the zoo were to achieve a 4A or even 5A scenic area rating in the future, all elements, including the zoo, the attractions in the surrounding hills, and the various companies, would inevitably be involved. When that time came, the management of income and investment would become a complicated matter. Suming didn't want to work hard only to benefit others in the end.

If he could fully purchase the zoo and privatize it, this issue could be resolved once and for all.

Even operating in the same manner as Zhao Yun's private museum would work.

Whether or not the government would agree was not a concern for the moment; in principle, it wasn't impossible, just a matter of negotiating the details. But first, Suming had to come up with a large sum of money.

This was not about a few million; it was a matter of hundreds of millions.

The primary profit-generating segments— the distillery, fisheries company, and entertainment company—could not cover the costs with their combined annual net profits, and the subsequent real estate and restaurant businesses still needed time to grow.

Actually, after purchasing the animals, He from the tourism bureau had suggested that the zoo immediately apply for a 4A rating.

If it were before, Suming would have agreed without hesitation.

But now, he was thinking more deeply.

Once the zoo was rated 4A or even 5A, operating as a comprehensive scenic area, negotiations with the government for acquisition would then be a completely different matter. The difference between acquiring a scenic area and a zoo would mean that what could be settled with one or two hundred million might later require seven or eight hundred million or even more, and the government might not be willing to sell at all.

He needed to find a way to make money fast.

"Director? Director?" Seeing Suming had drifted off, Mrs. Tong softly reminded him, "About the construction of the enclosures, what should we do?"

"Oh," Suming came back to his senses, furrowed his brows, pondered for a moment, and said, "Like this, the general principle is to avoid large investments whenever possible. Where it's feasible to squeeze things in, let's squeeze things in. Also, can you compile a list detailing which of our animals are high-priority conservation species that must be caged, which are the ones of high danger like tigers and lions that could harm humans, and which ones could be allowed to roam free?"

Upon hearing this, Mrs. Tong immediately understood most of it and asked incredulously, "Director, do you mean to formally implement the release program and let some of the animals into the hillside behind the zoo?"

"Pretty much," Suming smiled, "We can say it's a release to the wild, but in reality, we'll just use the hillside as a rudimentary wildlife park."

Suming intended to minimize the current capital investment in the zoo's infrastructure by ostensibly releasing many animals into the wild. In the future, if he were to purchase the zoo, this part could not be included in the zoo's assets, and it would also save a significant amount of liquid funds in the zoo's budget.

To make money, first, you have to invest.

The zoo's release program had been proposed for years and had been happening sporadically. Still, upon hearing Suming's words, Mrs. Tong was taken aback, "Director, we're not talking about just a handful of animals here. According to what you said, we might need to release hundreds of animals in a short period!"

"Yes, that's right," Suming nodded.

"But... how can this work!" Mrs. Tong, realizing Suming was serious, hastily added, "After all, they're accustomed to zoo life. If they're completely released into the wild all at once, many animals won't be able to adapt. Director, a release program needs to be conducted slowly and step by step. Nationwide, releasing animals into the wild is a significant challenge! Even professional wildlife research institutions take months or even years of gradual training to reintroduce a group of animals to the wild. If we release a large number all at once, might it be..."

She paused, choosing her words carefully, "Might it be too risky?"

In the decades since Yangchuan City Zoo was established, the total number of animals successfully released into the wild didn't even add up to thirty! And here was Suming, unexpectedly planning to release hundreds all at once!

Releasing into the wild is certainly not as simple as just putting animals back into nature; it presupposes that the animals can survive in the wild. If one cannot guarantee their safety, releasing them is extremely irresponsible.

If a large number of released animals become sick or die, who would take the responsibility?

No one could take it.

This is also why zoos nationwide are reluctant to undertake release projects; the risks are just too high.