Super Zoo

Setting up a live streaming platform technically isn't difficult. Any random computer network company in Yangchuan City could handle the job. The hardware is readily available, just buy it with cash. Even the streaming software templates are online; just modify them slightly, and you're good to use them.

"Don't worry, leave it to your big brother here, I promise to get it done quickly, beautifully, and cheaply. And I'll definitely take good care of the maintenance afterward,"

The speaker was a dark-faced man who looked well into his thirties. He was not tall but robust, at first glance resembling a foreman moving bricks on a construction site.

Appearances can be deceiving, and this saying couldn't be more true.

The man in question, named Shen Yan, had the appearance of a hard laborer selling his manpower, yet he was actually just a year older than Suming and still under twenty-five. Back in their school days, he was known as the "mad computer whiz," a bona fide tech elite.

After graduating, Shen Yan started his own computer company, which became a proud topic among the school faculty. Teachers often said during classes: "Look at Shen Yan, he became his own boss right after graduation, and what about you guys? You struggle for ages just to write a basic 'helloworld' C++ program..."

And there was another unexpected point: the dark-complexioned Shen Yan, who was only slightly more handsome than Wu Dalang, was quite popular among the girls. Maybe it was because he often went to their homes to fix their computers.

Suming was part of a college group chat. One day, he saw Shen Yan posting a message about expanding his business to include not just software but also hardware, hoping for everyone's support and business referrals. So, Suming reached out to him.

They finished discussing the matter, and Suming and Shen Yan caught up for a bit. They brought a couple of chairs out, sat down on the pavilion platform to bask in the sun and drink tea.

"This huge snake... it... it doesn't bite, does it?" Shen Yan, breaking out in a cold sweat, stammered as he spotted the python coiled up and sunbathing on the platform.

No sooner had he spoken than a flurry of ripples appeared on the surface of the water in front, as a small hill surfaced—a giant turtle extended its large head from the water and carefully peeked into the house.

It had been bullied by the gaggle of cats in the house when it was "younger." Now, though it had grown into a massive creature, it still had a psychological shadow. Each time it poked its head out, it would stealthily check first to see if the cats were around.

"Off you go, go play in the water with the turtle, stop lying around and scaring people. And next time, don't coil up like that, you look like a giant pile of poop..." Suming snapped his fingers at the python.

The python turned its head and looked at Suming indifferently, seeming dissatisfied with Suming's comparison to "poop," and even flicked its tongue out in a show of defiance before finally unfolding itself and sliding slowly from the platform exit into the water.

Shen Yan was stunned by the sight, and after a moment, he sighed, "Man, the life you lead... no wonder when your name comes up in the group, everyone is green with envy."

"You're not doing too bad yourself," Suming said as he rinsed the cups with the first pour of tea, then used tongs to discard the water in the cups before pouring tea into the eight ancient vine teacups on the tray. "Tea is served."

Shen Yan picked up a small cup between two fingers, took a sip, and continued, "I'm not that great, businesses are tough these days. All the hard-earned money goes right to the landlord. Your place here is nice, peaceful like Taoyuan, utterly untroubled."

He set down the cup, pointed at the tea set, and laughed, saying, "Take this for example. I've visited quite a few businesses, and it's common to drink alcohol, but this is the first time I've met a boss of our age who drinks tea. No wonder people say that those who drink tea are richer than those who drink alcohol. When you drink alcohol, you just brag and then go home and sleep off the buzz, but when you drink tea, it's all about reflection."

Suming smiled and didn't respond. Shen Yan wasn't just a technical nerd who could start a company right out of college and run it successfully. He was now working on a zoo project, so some things were better heard and not taken too seriously. These lines about the spirituality of drinking tea and wine weren't really to be believed.

In Sun Town, there was an old man who drank tea all his life and never touched a drop of alcohol, and he still relies on government welfare. How do you explain that?

"Alcohol warms you the more you drink, water chills you the more you drink. I take the middle path, drinking tea, neither cold nor warm," Suming said.

Talking about warmth, Shen Yan seemed to have quite a lot on his mind, "Warmth, the warmth and coldness of human relations, that's all it really comes down to in this world."

"What's up, suddenly feeling so sentimental?" Suming laughed and asked.

"It reminds me of the last class reunion," Shen Yan shrugged. "That's why sometimes I don't feel like going to reunions. Those who are doing better than you flaunt their wealth and show off, and those who aren't as successful as you feel like you're showing off. A perfectly good catch-up meal turns into a grand show where everyone's thinking who knows what. Once you leave and the cold wind blows, all that remains is the warmth and chill of human relations."

"You can't be serious, you're making it sound too gloomy."

"Seriously, people have changed so much after graduation. It's rare to find anyone who is still as genuine as you were in school. It's precious to maintain a pure and simple heart," Shen Yan remarked.

"So big brother, are you complimenting me or scolding me?" Suming laughed heartily, feeling as if Shen Yan's words sounded like he never grew up and was always childlike.

Although Shen Yan was reflective about life, the engineering progress did not dawdle at all.

In just one afternoon, a professional construction team was dispatched by him to install high-definition cameras in various locations specified by Suming in the zoo, and they carried out wiring and a series of other tasks.

At the same time, he personally accompanied the software designers to discuss the live-streaming platform's software requirements with Suming.

The so-called software requirements refer to how the zoo wanted the live-streaming platform to look and what performance and functionality requirements they had, all of which needed to be clearly specified.

Just discussing these requirements took up two whole days.

Suming wouldn't have to worry too much about the following steps, but rather wait for Shen Yan to produce the finalized live-streaming software as quickly as possible.

After the online platform launched, Suming would then be able to take Nangong for a trip.

"May heavens bless us, let there be no more accidents this time!" Suming prayed silently; one always has to face the consequences of their actions.

If he stood Nangong up again, he feared he might not have good days ahead of him.

If they waited any longer, it would be May Day.

In the time before the platform's launch, Suming wasn't idle either.

He made contact with several of the more well-known zoos in the country, such as Capital Zoo and Shanghai Zoo.

Currently, these two represent the peak of domestic zoos and in terms of size, they both surpassed Yangchuan City Zoo.

There were still seven or eight others, such as Shu Zoo and Coastal Zoo, which were on the same scale as Yangchuan City Zoo.

Learning from others to improve oneself was beneficial, and these exchanges and learning experiences among zoos were good practices.

Moreover, even though Suming was the deputy director, he was effectively at the helm of Yangchuan City Zoo, so when he himself reached out to other zoos, it was giving them considerable respect.

Still, the responses from these zoos varied.

Capital Zoo barely paid any attention to Suming; the young person who answered the phone responded indifferently to Suming and lacked even the courtesy of inviting him for an exchange visit before hanging up.

Shanghai Zoo, on the other hand, was quite courteous.

When they heard that Yangchuan City Zoo wanted to establish an online live-streaming platform, the person in charge gave several suggestions.

However, in the end, they advised Suming quite tactfully to be cautious about an online zoo venture because there were risks, suggesting that Shanghai Zoo had suffered losses in this aspect before.

When Suming wanted to delve deeper, they were not willing to discuss it any further.

As for cooperation, that was out of the question.

They were upfront about it, claiming that Shanghai Zoo was too busy with its own operations to engage in collaboration, and they did not rely on online platforms to generate revenue.

Both of these larger zoos had a bit of pride; after all, they did not see themselves on the same level as Yangchuan City Zoo.

Before the restructuring, they were considered part of the same "system," but post-restructuring, the state-owned zoos had a sense of innate superiority over Yangchuan City Zoo.

It was the smaller zoos that were extremely enthusiastic.

Not only did directors of the same level take the initiative to speak with Suming personally, but they also arranged for middle managers to maintain communication with Yangchuan City Zoo, agreeing on future mutual visits and even setting up a group chat.

There weren't many people in the group, fewer than ten, representing each zoo.
Find adventures on empire

Suming shared his idea of starting an online zoo with everyone.

Coastal Zoo, located in a major tourist city with the zoo being one of the famous attractions and having a large visitor flow, had never considered live streaming.

However, Coastal, always at the forefront of reform initiatives, was quite interested in the novelty of live streaming.

Shu Zoo had planned to create an online platform last year and had conducted research, but the plan stalled due to financial issues.

After analysis, other than the giant panda, there didn't seem to be anything particularly worth live streaming.

The situations in the other zoos were similar: an online platform would be beneficial for a zoo and everyone was quite interested, but with unclear revenue prospects, they were hesitant to invest.

It wasn't just a one-time investment; ongoing maintenance and promotion were costly, and if there were no profits, the zoo would have to keep footing the bills.

"We can't compare with you, Yangchuan; after your restructuring, you have financial autonomy, while the rest of us are still dependent on government subsidies, and we dare not engage in such wasteful endeavors," someone in the group half-jokingly said.

Despite the jesting tone, it was apparent that the whole industry was not optimistic about live streaming.

"Last year, we didn't manage to broadcast the whole zoo live, but we did set up a pilot in the panda area," said the person in charge of Shu Zoo.

Someone immediately questioned, "How did it go? Did anyone watch it?"

The question was not about profitability but rather viewership.

Clearly, everyone understood that relying on this for income was unreliable, and drawing some attention was already good enough.

"Who watched it... well, at first, the number of visits increased quickly, reaching hundreds of thousands daily, but within less than two months, interest dwindled, and now... let me check... now we have roughly more than three thousand visits a day..."

"Mr. Su, you have to be cautious!"

"Definitely be cautious! It's not easy to make a profit after restructuring, don't let your efforts go to waste on this!"

The sentiment was well-maintained towards the back of the discussion, with everyone urging Suming to think twice and not to rush into investing in the network platform.