Chapter 118: What’s Going On with the Director?

“Sister-in-law, what’s the situation? Why the rush?” Master Zhao asked as he followed the two.

“A fight broke out.”

“What? A fight? Who’s fighting whom?”

“I only discovered it this morning. Suddenly, there was a wild pheasant in our chicken coop.”

“That pheasant is quite flashy, clearly not one of the breeds we raise in the mountains.”

“I thought about chasing it away because my husband, Old Zhang, said that wild pheasants can’t be casually harmed—they’re a nationally protected species.”

“So, I found a branch to shoo it away.”

“But who would have thought, by noon, it flew back again.”

“When it quietly returned, Old Zhang and I were outside having lunch and didn’t notice.”

“By the time we realized, it was already surrounded and attacked by a bunch of chickens, ducks, and geese.”

“Even though our chickens, ducks, and geese are still young, they’re quite fierce.”

“The little ones swarmed it, pecking and biting, leaving the pheasant in a terrible state.”

Master Zhao was speechless upon hearing this.

Could this really happen?

He couldn’t have imagined such a scene.

Wait, aren’t pheasants supposed to be able to fly?

And when they do, they fly really high.

With so many chickens, ducks, and geese attacking it, why didn’t it just fly away?

It seems the pheasants in this mountain are quite foolish.

Just as dumb as that previous batch of rabbits.

“Auntie, did any of our mountain’s small animals get hurt?” Lu Qingqiang asked.

“A few lost some feathers, and two were seriously injured, having fallen off the pheasant’s back.”

“Let’s go and take a look.”

When the three reached the chicken coop entrance, they encountered Zhang Haiping, who quickly spoke up.

“Director, thank goodness you’re here.”

“Liu Shufen and I just moved the injured chicks and ducklings to this pen, and the pheasant is in that one.”

“We’ve let the other small animals out to roam freely.”

“Uncle Zhang, don’t worry, let me take a look first.”

After Lu Qingqiang spoke, she went inside and peeked in.

What she saw almost made her laugh.

The pheasant Liu Shufen described as quite pretty now looked disheveled, with its feathers in disarray, lying listlessly in the coop, completely defeated.

Its body was covered in patches, looking particularly pitiful, without any of the grace and poise one would expect from a nationally protected species.

Lu Qingqiang then went to the adjacent pen to check on the injured chicks, ducklings, and goslings.

The situation there was entirely different.

Even though the chicks, ducklings, and goslings were injured, with one chick and one gosling limping and others missing feathers, their spirits seemed high.

The faces of the injured small animals showed no signs of pain or discomfort; they even appeared content and leisurely.

They occasionally pecked at the water trough for a sip or vigorously pecked at the feed trough for nourishment.

Noticing someone coming to check on them, they raised their heads, stretched their necks, and chirped and honked at Lu Qingqiang and the others.

“So, the result of this multi-on-one confrontation is that the pheasant lost, and our mountain-raised chickens, ducks, and geese won?” Lu Qingqiang asked.

“…I suppose so,” Zhang Haiping replied.

He thought that when Director Lu arrived, she would be concerned about the pheasant’s injuries first.

But she wasn’t.

Director Lu was actually interested in the outcome of the fight.

(⊙o⊙)…

“Uncle Zhang, even in wartime, they didn’t mistreat prisoners; captives were fed. Why are you treating the enemy and our side differently?” Lu Qingqiang said.

“Uh, Director, that pheasant is a protected species. Can we just feed it the same feed we give to our small animals?” Zhang Haiping hesitated and asked.

“Why not? Our feed is made from high-quality corn, soybean meal, shell powder, and fish meal in the right proportions.”

“We even mix in some of our own rice and homegrown vegetables from time to time.”

“It’s all-natural and pollution-free. What’s the problem?”

“I even suspect that the reason this pheasant keeps coming back is to compete with the small animals for this food.”

“Uh, really? Can’t be,” Liu Shufen said, full of disbelief.

Pheasants fly around outside all the time; they must have seen plenty of good things.

To specifically fly over here to compete with domestic chickens for food is truly absurd.

As it turns out, Lu Qingqiang might be right.

Because when Zhang Haiping followed her instructions and placed feed and water in the pen with the pheasant…

The previously listless, ragged pheasant suddenly sprang to life, rushing towards the food trough with the speed of the wind.

Then, it dove into the food trough, eating with gusto.

This scene left Zhang Haiping and Liu Shufen dumbfounded.

Even Master Zhao was a bit taken aback.

The small animals born and raised in this mountain are really quite foolish.

First, there were the rabbits waiting by the tree stump¹.

Now, there’s a nationally protected pheasant bravely storming into the chicken coop, single-handedly stealing food.

It’s just too much to watch.

Among everyone, only Lu Qingqiang remained calm and composed.

After all, the secret recipe for feeding small animals was provided to her by the system, which she then shared with the Zhang Haiping Couple.

Not to mention, the feed was mixed with the rice they ate daily and vegetables they grew themselves.

The vegetables were watered with resources containing Spirit Spring Water.

With such high-quality feed, it’s only natural that it would attract pheasants to come and compete for food.

Because the Zhang Haiping Couple are cleanliness enthusiasts and meticulous, they keep the chicken coop, pigsty, and duck shed exceptionally clean.

The taste, well, there’s still a little bit of it.

But for someone staying inside, it wouldn’t be too uncomfortable.

Taking advantage of the moment when the wild chicken was eating, Lu Qingqiang carried a small medical kit from the little bamboo house and entered the coop where the wild chicken was kept.

As soon as the wild chicken sensed a human approaching, it immediately retreated as if facing a great enemy, burrowing straight into the corner.

It didn’t even care about the food it had been craving.

“Don’t be afraid, I’m here to check and treat your injuries.”

While speaking, Lu Qingqiang didn’t forget to pick up a bowl of water with a drop of Spirit Spring Water added and pushed it in front of the chicken.

After pushing it over, she enthusiastically watched it with a beaming face.

“Brother Wild Chicken, come, have a sip~”

“…” Master Zhao and the Zhang Haiping Couple.

What on earth is the director up to with this?

Does she really think the wild chicken can understand her?

Just as they were thinking this, they saw the now-ugly wild chicken tentatively stretch out its foot, leaning its head forward.

Then, with a sudden movement, it plunged its head into the bowl of water and started drinking.

The bowl of water was quickly emptied.

Seeing this, Lu Qingqiang couldn’t help but continue smiling as she spoke, “Brother Wild Chicken, now that you’ve drunk the water I gave you, you must listen to me from now on~”

“…” Zhang Haiping and the other two.

Translator’s Notes