Super Zoo

"I\'m still single myself." Suming didn\'t have much of a solution for this sort of thing; it all came down to luck and fate.

Speaking of being single, that wasn\'t quite accurate for some. A few of the feline residents had been getting cozy with each other, and one of the seven croc-gecko-eels seemed to be pregnant. And the parrot sisters, always cuddling up together to preen each other\'s feathers, made Suming suspect that they might be a couple.

The happiest were surely Mi Hou and Hu Hou; they never lacked male company. With literally thousands in their bee and hornet colonies, they could mate with whomever they pleased, which made Suming quite envious.

The next day was the weekend, and another celebration was held internally at the zoo to honor Suming.

The stage from the previous Guinness event was still up, and Mr. Song stood on it, waving to the crowd below, "Suming, get up here and say a few words! Let\'s give him a round of applause!"

"Clap clap clap clap clap..." The applause was enthusiastic, and Suming was pushed onto the stage by Mr. Peng, Li, and others.

Suming scratched his head, chuckled, and said into the microphone, "What should I say?"

Amidst the friendly laughter below, Mrs. Tong called out loudly from beneath the stage, "Just say whatever you\'ve got to say."

"Well then, I said I\'d treat everyone to a celebration when the boat business kicked off, but never found the opportunity. I\'ll skip the rest, and just say this: after work today, I\'m treating everyone to a feast at Fish Joy Park. Every comrade from our zoo, count yourselves in; food\'s on me, drinks aplenty!"

The applause from below was even warmer. Mr. Song laughed and said, "That\'s a straightforward offer. Dong, have your security department arrange a shuttle service for everyone from the zoo after work."

The upside of working at a zoo is the leisurely pace. After the meeting, most people were already off duty. Aside from a few on call, around thirty people boarded the zoo\'s shuttle. Liang Shi and Mr. Song followed Suming\'s Wrangler, and a large group noisily set out for Fish Joy Park.

"Fish Joy Park" was not an "amusement park" but a restaurant specializing in fish dishes. As Suming expected, Zhao Yun was friends with the owner, so he invited Zhao and his family along too.

Zhao Yun\'s connections were... Seeing Zhao cheerfully greeting the restaurant owner, Suming felt his own accomplishments were still far too modest.

They opened three interconnected banquet rooms. The dozens of guests took their seats and began toasting and passing drinks around. One after another, the zoo staff came to offer Suming drinks. At first he managed to fend them off, but it wasn\'t long before his steps began to wobble, and his tongue started to slur.

Su Meng stepped up, valiantly defending his cousin. Alone, he faced the crowd, downing large cups in one gulp. Drinking liquor as if it were water.

Zhao Yun and Suming sat on a nearby sofa, sipping brewed tea to sober up. Seeing how Su Meng drank, Zhao almost spat out his mouthful of tea, his eyes bulging, "Your cousin is too fierce! Who drinks like that!"

"Mountain folk, they can usually hold their liquor..." Suming let out a full burp, his eyes bleary as he spoke.

"I\'m impressed!" Zhao Yun gave a thumbs up, then said, "I\'ve got something to tell you. Remember Jacky from Xiangjiang we met last time?"

Suming was a bit muddled from the drink and took a while to remember who Jacky was, then chuckled, "Oh, Zhang Tianwang. You could have just said his Chinese name, kept saying \'Jacky\', it took me a minute to catch on."

"Saying the name directly will get the book banned!" Zhao said seriously.

Suming: "..."

"Jacky will be holding a concert tour in the provincial capital in a few days," he said. "He got in touch with me and wanted to invite you over to meet him."

"Meet with me?" Suming was taken aback, then laughed and said, "Such a big star wants me to go all the way to the capital to meet him? If he has something to discuss, he can come directly to Yangchuan. They\'re not that far apart, just a few hours\' drive."

From the perspective of a fan, if Jacky personally invited him, Suming would be willing to go. Plus, comparatively speaking, Jacky\'s time was indeed much more precious than Suming\'s, who spent his days leisurely eating and playing.

However, after their last meeting in Xiangjiang, their relationship should be more appropriately defined as friends. Moreover, Jacky\'s search for him was probably related to Monkey Wine; so asking him to meet and having Zhao Yun convey the message did feel a bit like playing the diva.

Zhao Yun chuckled, waved his hand, and said, "You might be misunderstanding. He\'s not that familiar with you, and afraid you might get the wrong idea, that\'s why he didn\'t approach you directly and had me pass on the message instead. He needs you for something related to his concert tour; he\'s asking for your help."

"Ah? To be a guest performer?!" Suming\'s eyes lit up, thinking to himself, could it be that I\'m going to become a big star in the entertainment industry?!

Zhao Yun looked Suming over, his smile holding a hint of teasing, "Why don\'t you sing a song for us to hear first?"

"Uh... that..."

"You have his personal number, right? Give him a call after dinner, let him tell you the details," Zhao Yun suggested.

...

If you look at the Guinness World Records, Jacky was actually a predecessor of Suming\'s.

Back in 1995, Jacky set a world record for a singer\'s solo concert with his \'You Learn Friends\' 100-show tour;

In 2007, at the age of 45, Jacky challenged himself again by holding the \'Light Years World Tour\' and served as the artistic director of the concert. The tour lasted 12 months, spanned 58 cities, totaled 105 shows, and sold over two million tickets, completing an undisputed world wonder and breaking his own Guinness World Record.

In today\'s world where countless little stars rise rapidly only to dim just as quickly, relying on scandals and controversies to grab attention, such achievements may well be unsurpassed.

Actually, in the golden age of Xiangjiang, each star of Jacky\'s level had a brilliance behind them that would be hard to replicate.

For example, Andy, who is also among the top tier of stars, has stood firm in the entertainment industry for thirty years, winning more than 500 various awards, setting a Guinness World Record for the most awarded entertainer in the world.

When Suming walked out of the airport with Nangong Yan and Su Meng, he saw Jacky\'s assistant with two bodyguards holding signs to welcome them at the exit from afar.

The assistant greeted Suming, then glanced at Nangong Yan, his eyes lighting up. He gave Suming a thumbs up with an exaggerated laugh, "Wow, Su Sheng has such good fortune, such a stunning girlfriend, absolutely gorgeous!"

Nangong Yan\'s face turned red, and Suming laughed, saying, "Just a friend, just a friend..." Before he could finish, he felt a sharp pain in his back, where Nangong Yan had pinched him hard.

The assistant pretended not to see their playful banter and arranged for his subordinates to handle the luggage. He then led Suming and the others to a business van parked at the entrance, and opened the door: "Su Sheng, Miss Nangong, please get in the car, Jacky and the planning team are waiting for you at the hotel."

After getting in the car, the assistant tactfully closed the partition between the driver\'s seat and the back seat. Nangong Yan let out a sigh of relief, dropped her poised facade, and looking incredulous, asked Suming with wide eyes, "You really know Jacky? I thought you were joking the whole way here!"

"Old friends," Suming said with an expression as if struck by lightning.