I have a wildlife zoo

"Hey, System, are there any tasks that reward green leaf coins? I'm really running low on them."

Fang Ye communicated with the system in his mind.

He had only asked tentatively, never expecting an actual response.

"Ding, a new task has been released!"

[

Task: School Collaboration Event

Description: Education should start with the young, teaching students about the importance of animals to the natural environment and fostering ecological conservation awareness.

Requirement: Collaborate with a school to organize a visit to the zoo for at least 50 students, the more the better.

Reward: Grant 1000-3000 green leaf coins based on the number and insights of the students.

]

"Well, that's not much of a reward."

Fang Ye complained, considering it was just a drop in the ocean compared to the current shortage of several hundred thousand green leaf coins.

No sooner had he finished complaining than the system "dinged" and issued another task.

[

Task: Construct a Guesthouse

Description: The zoo is vast, and it takes several days to visit properly—how could there not be a guesthouse?

Requirement: Build a guesthouse with beautiful scenery.

Reward: 3000 green leaf coins.

]

Fang Ye was pleased, "Now that's not bad at all."

Building the guesthouse was already in the plans, to be located next to the cherry blossom forest, so this task was basically a freebie.

He thought for a moment and then said, "System, that's pretty weak! Is that all you've got? I could do ten of these tasks!"

System: "..."

After issuing two tasks, it fell silent.

Fang Ye scoffed, "Tch, looks like I can't trick it into giving me more tasks."

He rubbed his chin, thinking for a moment, and then sent a text message!

Last time it rained, he responded to Tang Xiaoxin's call for help at her school to rescue a Eurasian eagle-owl, and he also exchanged phone numbers with her homeroom teacher, Old Bai.

Not sure if Teacher Bai was in class, he didn't make a phone call but sent a text message instead.

"Hello Teacher Bai, this is Fang Ye, the Zoo Director of Linhai Zoo. Our zoo is planning an activity with the school, inviting students to visit the zoo. They work hard on their studies and could use a trip to the zoo to relax and unwind. It's a good way to combine rest with education and cultivate ecological conservation awareness too. Of course, there would be no admission fee. What do you think?"

Not long after sending the message, Fang Ye received a call from Old Bai.

"Hello, hello, Teacher Bai, how are you?"

Old Bai said, "Zoo Director Fang, I just saw your text message. This visit to the zoo to learn about science and nature is indeed meaningful.

The last time our class held an environmental education theme class meeting, Tang Xiaoxin talked a lot about the role of animals like tigers and wolves in the ecosystem, the impact humans have had on them, and how to maintain a balance between nature and humanity. She spoke very well, and much of it was new to me, quite an eye-opener. She often visits your zoo, doesn't she?"

Fang Ye's lips curled into a smile, "Indeed, a good student eager to learn."

The main purpose of a zoo is to spread these seeds of environmental protection.

Every increment of public awareness is one more step towards environmental concern, and with it, one more ounce of hope for the future.

Old Bai changed the subject, somewhat embarrassedly, "That's the thing, she had brought this up to me before, asking if our school could organise an event to visit the zoo. I mentioned it to the principal, but he didn't agree.

One reason is that middle school studies are quite intense, as they lay the foundation for high school. Kids nowadays work much harder than before. Also, if the school organises a trip to the zoo and a student has an accident, the school would be responsible, which is why they generally are reluctant to organise such activities. It's not about fearing the probable but fearing the possible."

"Oh! I see, no problem," Fang Ye said, trying to sound unconcerned, but deep down, he was somewhat disappointed.

He had thought that the green leaf coins would be easy to earn, but it seemed they were not so easily obtained after all.

Old Bai went on, "We can't go out for fun, but if Zoo Director Fang has any ideas, maybe we could do a 'Zoo Comes to School' event, where you come to the school to do environmental education. I think that could work. I'll ask about it later."

Fang Ye expressed his gratitude, "That would be great, thank you so much, Teacher Bai."

After hanging up, he felt a little disheartened.

The task required students to come to the zoo for fun! Going to a school activity wouldn't earn any green leaf coin rewards.

Maybe he should contact an elementary school? Elementary students surely aren't that busy, right?

As for the schools' worries about student accidents, that's a bit of a problem—it depends on the daring of the school's leadership.

After speaking with Teacher Bai, Fang Ye started to contact other zoos about bringing in elephants, which needed early preparation.

However, after making calls for half a day, he realized that elephants were really not that easy to purchase! Money alone was not enough to seal the deal.

Most zoos had very few elephants, and those few were all part of various breeding plans, with no intention of transferring them.

He contacted only one zoo that was willing to transfer an older African elephant.

A director told him that domestically, elephants were mainly in the hands of a few powerful owners, and relationships were essential to acquire them.

One place did have many elephants—they had imported 24 young African elephants all at once a few years back.

Elephants highly value their social and familial bonds, cooperating and staying united as a family. Under normal circumstances, they would never abandon their own. A typical herd would have just a few young elephants. To have so many young ones undoubtedly meant they came from numerous herds.

What had happened behind the scenes was worth contemplating.

Fang Ye was hearing about this for the first time and exclaimed in surprise, "Ah, do they not care about their reputation doing such things?"

"Reputation? What's the use of that? Reputation doesn't make you a cent! Can it earn you a whiff of fragrance? Anyway, tourists don't know where the elephants come from, and they have the means to suppress any sporadic negative news.

Zoo Director Fang, don't take offense at my bluntness, but these waters are too deep for you to navigate!

If you're interested in bringing in Asiatic elephants, you might want to inquire in some Southeast Asian countries. They have elephant tourism there, with elephant rides and performances. The business was booming a few years ago, and some elephant camps even took out loans to buy elephants.

However, with increasing advocacy for animal protection, public acceptance of elephant riding and performances has significantly declined, tempering the fervor for elephant tourism. Many camps are struggling to survive, and they are looking to rehome their elephants."

"That's an option," Fang Ye muttered to himself as he hung up, his mind whirring.

It should be relatively easy to purchase elephants from Southeast Asia, but after undergoing various cruel trainings, they might not be in the best physical or mental health.

Their temperament could be worse than that of typical elephants, with stronger aggressiveness and various stereotypical behaviors.

However, with proper care in a new environment and the help of some tools from the system, Fang Ye was confident that he could gradually improve their condition.