I have a wildlife zoo

There are feathers, the green peafowl might be active nearby!

The woods here had gradually thinned, and they could now see the riverbank and hear the babbling of the water.

Gu Shi slowed his pace a bit, carefully observing the surroundings to avoid startling the green peafowl, and whispered excitedly, "I haven't seen green peafowl in a long time either."

Fang Ye laughed, "We are in luck today!"

After a moment, Gu Shi, with his sharp eyes, noticed something else and pointed at a blackish object on a rock, "Wait a second, this might be green peafowl feces!"

He then crouched down and took a pair of plastic gloves out of his backpack to put on.

Fang Ye knelt down, looking at the stone covered in uneven moss, and the small black spot was very inconspicuous, he couldn't help but exclaim, "Awesome, you even noticed this!"

Gu Shi collected the pile of feces with the plastic glove, and said excitedly, "It's soft and still warm! The green peafowl must not have gone far!"

Fang Ye felt both thrilled and a bit nervous; it seemed like their luck was truly good today!

They had initially come based on a clue from a villager to try their luck, and finding a green peafowl feather was already a huge gain, but now they had found fresh and warm feces! Could they be fortunate enough to see a green peafowl?

Gu Shi walked ahead, parting a clump of vines and quietly peeking toward the direction of the ravine, suddenly pulling his head back swiftly!

His eyes shimmering with excitement, he motioned Fang Ye and Li Shi to hush, and then he lay down, beckoning them to do the same!

At that moment, no one cared about dirtying their clothes, as the group lay side by side on the ground, poking their heads out from the woods.

About several dozen meters away on the river valley's sandy beach was the silhouette of the green peafowl they had longed for!

It was beside a large rock, with its yellow and white cheeks, bending its long green neck, pecking at the sandy ground.

With each peck, the crest of feathers on the top of its head would bob up and down, and its feet also scraped the ground, throwing up scoops of white sand.

Gu Shi took out his camera, zoomed in the lens, and the image of the green peafowl filled his view, clearly showing the layer of golden-green mysterious scales covering its neck, and behind the neck was a layer of gemstone blue, elegant and clear feathers!

The gemstone blue transitioned to a deep and secluded green near its abdomen, revealing a bright orange patch—the feathers of its inner wings.

Behind it was a verdant long tail, its plumes as velvety as gold-green silk, adorned with numerous colorful, eye-catching ocelli.

Unlike the blue peafowl, the green peafowl's tail was not dragged on the ground but lifted up.

Under the sunshine, a beautiful golden-green luminescence shrouded the neck and tail feathers!

Whether it took a step or lowered its head, it moved with elegant strides and graceful posture, with the standing cobalt blue crest evoking noble elegance.

Occasionally, it raised its head, gazing into the distance.

The green peafowl, of which only about two hundred remained!

Li Shi watched the green peafowl intently, a bit excitedly saying, "I've heard about green peafowl in our area since I was a child, but I've never seen them. This is the first time I'm seeing one with my own eyes! The green peafowl's beauty is unbelievable, it's too beautiful! It's truly a sprite of the mountains!"

Fang Ye similarly admired, "It's so beautiful, I think describing it as the phoenix of the valley isn't an exaggeration at all!"

"The distant banks are flat, the sun sets on the homeward path as the twilight glows bright. The peafowl prides itself on its golden-green tail, by the water, recognizing the passerby but not startled."

Gu Shi hummed softly, reflecting, "This is 'Nanxiangzi', a verse I'm very fond of. I hope in the future our children will have the chance to see the green peafowl with their own eyes, rather than just getting to know them through poetry."

They took several photos of the green peafowl and also shot a video!

The group then quietly retreated, having traversed mountains and valleys with great effort; just a glimpse of the green peafowl's beauty was worth it all!

...

After returning, Gu Shi wrote a brief article about his understanding of the green peafowl from his research, his observations and experiences here, and his concerns for the home of the green peafowl.

He paired it with a photo of a hydroelectric power station under construction and a damaged mountaintop, and the elegant green peafowl in the valley, and posted the article on his social circle, which Fang Ye also shared.

Gu Shi asked anxiously, "Zoo Director Fang, is this useful?"

Fang Ye affirmed, "It is useful!"

Before long, a barrage of messages crashed into their WeChat.

"Damn!" Gu Shi cursed, "Big Wolf commented, saying we must protect the green peafowl! Big Wolf shared my article!"

Big Wolf is a well-known wildlife photographer in the country, with significant influence in the animal circles!

Gu Shi wasn't very familiar with him and didn't expect to catch the attention of this big shot this time.

"Danian has commented and shared! Old Ye has commented and shared too!"

Danian is a friend from the raptor rescue center he knew, and Old Ye was a senior colleague in bird research!

In an instant, a string of acquaintances and not so acquaintances sent him messages, and the heads of some environmental organizations also quickly reached out, asking about the green peafowl with concern!

Hearing the ding-dong of message notifications on his phone, Gu Shi was so moved he was close to tears, "The green peafowl have hope!"

Fang Ye smiled and said, "You see! The green peafowl is, after all, one of our country's most precious animals. As long as people are informed about this, how could anyone just watch them go extinct?"

The two of them continued to respond to messages!

Meng Shi left an amazed emoji blowing his nose beneath his friend circle post, "Shocked, Director Fang, did you go to Yunnan in search of the green peafowl?"

Fang Ye only mentioned he was going out, but not what for!

Usually, he spent his time holed up in the zoo and rarely went even to the city unless necessary. The sudden announcement of him going out caused the staff to be curious, speculating whether it was some high-society melodrama.

They never thought he went to engage in the legendary act of saving the green peafowl!

What a Director!

Lin Ying commented, "My heart is heavy, the green peafowl are already in such plight, and now their last habitat is about to be flooded! Is there hope?"

Fang Ye: "There is hope! We are working on it!"

He Yifei: "Looking at the blue peafowl in the park, I sometimes imagine they are all green peafowl. I never thought the green peafowl were on the brink of extinction..."

Fang Ye: "Dreams will come true!"

Lan Li: "Wow, you guys really found the green peafowl! They are so beautiful!"

"I'll call you later to talk about it!" Stay connected through empire

...

In the following days, major environmental organizations sprung into action, seeking communication with the local government and the hydroelectric power station. At the same time, they published articles about the crisis the green peafowl were facing on various platforms. The topic "Save the Green Peafowl" also rose to the top of the Weibo hot search list.

The divine bird, long absent from the public eye, returned in such a manner.

Although the circumstances were grim, at least it was no longer an unnoticed entity.

People argued endlessly under this topic; to protect a few hundred green peafowl, crudely referred to as "a few hundred chickens," was it worth it to halt a 3 billion-investment hydroelectric power station? Would the green peafowl definitely go extinct because of the dam, or would they fly away to a different place?

Between environmental protection and economic development, what should be the right compromise?