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On the operating table, a pool of nitrocellulose, various chemical drugs. A quail, just anesthetized, lay on the table, its grey-brown feathers masking eyes that had lost their luster. A worker wearing gloves was parting the feathers on the bird’s back, preparing to make an incision.
"Our masters here are very skilled. After a good anesthesia, their technique is top-notch, guaranteeing not a single feather will be lost," Skinny Fox, looking at Aisha who seed only seventeen or eighteen years old, couldn’t help but admire her lack of aversion to the process, even though he felt uncertain about her.
"Why opt for a dorsal skinning, with the incision on the back? The quail is small, and now being in autumn, the feathers are starting to fall. A large incision on the back is simply going to ruin this bird," said Aisha, whose appearance closely resembled a high-end departnt store doll displayed under a glass counter, with big curly blonde hair, gemstone-blue eyes, skin white as snow, and lips like a fully blood rose, and who spoke in a very pleasant voice.
The translator hurriedly relayed her words, but the worker, self-proclaid to be skilled, ignored them and his surgical knife was about to cut down.
A scent of perfu wafted to the noses, and everyone was montarily dazzled, as the exquisite-looking Arican Barbie doll had already picked up a scalpel from the side, parted the feathers of the quail with her fingers, and with nails painted in an Arican flag pattern, pinched the bird skin and flipped over the belly skin, exposing the row of bird ribs. She then switched to sharp scissors, cutting the connections between sinew and skin one by one, and with a flick of her wrist, the bird’s bones slipped out as smoothly as grapes without their skin would.
Throughout the process, hardly any blood from the bird was seen, let alone damaged feathers. "The rest of the stuffing process shouldn’t require a demonstration from ," Aisha said, wiping her hands clean with a swab of gauze, a satisfied smile on her face.
Those watching from the sidelines were dazzled by the smile that followed the bloodshed. "My word," even the taxidermy master gasped.
"Don’t underestimate Miss Aisha, she’s a double degree master’s student in zoology and dical science at Cornell University in the United States. Such minor surgery is but a blink of an eye for her," the translator puffed up, eagerly flattering her.
"That’s certainly the case, we really have t an expert. Miss Aisha, you said you wanted specins of Rainbow pheasants and lucky birds, right?" Skinny Fox said, even more certain that Aisha was a big buyer.
"Who said I want specins? I want them alive. The specins you make, I wouldn’t even look at," Aisha said with a stern look in her beautiful eyes, articulating a few words from her rich lips.
"Alive? Miss Aisha, you must be joking. Smuggling specins is already risky enough, let alone live ones. There’s a bottom line for earning money – it’s pointless making money if you don’t have a life to spend it," even the daring Skunk was taken aback by Aisha’s words. Lucky birds and Rainbow pheasants are both national first-class protected animals, and it’s impossible to smuggle them out, whether by water or air. Their usual smuggling thod is to take advantage of the dense forest and river network in the Yun Gui region since the late ’90s, during the border guards’ oversight, to first smuggle specifically commissioned specins to the areas of Vietnam and Laos, then to bribe the local customs and smuggle them across borders. Every step needs to be cautious. A slight mistake could lead to big trouble.
"Well, are you finding the money too hot to handle? I have played with human specins as well, not just animals. Forget it, you people won’t understand. I want three living lucky birds and two Rainbow pheasants. I will give you five thousand for each bird, you just need to capture them alive, no need for you to handle the transportation. In addition, I also want a Golden Monkey and a wild Northeast Tiger, all alive. If you can manage it, I’ll give you an extra hundred thousand," Aisha said mockingly, knowing that desperate tis call for desperate actions, and in an era when the general living standards of the country weren’t high, a deal that could earn a hundred thousand or more was a huge opportunity. These people, who had lost their nature to the allure of money, would surely accept.
Xiao Xian’s arm tightened as he saw Yezi, who had a shocked look on her face, whispering to her softly, "Stay close to later." Yezi was regretting her impulsive decision to co out, but now that she was here, she needed to make sure to bring Xiao Xian back safely.
Upon hearing that there was no need to transport, Skunk’s mind eased, though he asked once more for safety, "Miss Aisha, are you sure you can get them out without any problems?"
"That Cherokee out there was bought directly with a governnt quota by our miss," the translator boasted proudly. Before joining the World Trade Organization, even people with money in China had to beg for a car import quota to buy an imported car. Having money but no quota was a common scenario in China at that ti.
Skunk caught a whiff of sothing fishy. This Miss Aisha from the United States sounded extraordinary wealthy, likely to have governnt connections, as quotas were in the hands of a few officials, weren’t they?
"Miss Aisha, since you’ve made it clear, I’ll speak plainly. Five thousand per bird is no problem. The Yun Gui area is a Golden Monkey reserve, so getting a monkey isn’t an issue. But the Northeast Tiger you asked for is difficult; the price has to be doubled," Skunk calculated clearly. First, he had to connect with people in the northeast, then bring a few trusted n to stay there for ten days to half a month. The round-trip travel and accommodations were significant expenses. Northeast Tigers were rare nationwide; their skins and bones were treasures. It was truly not easy to find one.
It was unclear what the Aricans intended to do with a Chinese tiger – they couldn’t possibly keep it as a big white cat in the garden, could they? But he couldn’t fathom the thoughts of these wealthy individuals.
"As long as you can assure you’ll find them, that’s no problem. Didn’t you say you had so Rainbow pheasants already? Take to see them," Aisha was very straightforward. The chemical slls in the processing workshop were strong, and she didn’t want to stay too long to avoid damaging her skin.
"We’ll have to trouble Miss Aisha to walk further inside, watch your step, those are toxic preservatives," Skunk seed to see a "moving gold mine" walking ahead and cheerfully followed behind.
Xiao Xian and Yezi exchanged glances, preparing to head out.
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Thank you ’Extrely Lazy Fish’ for the reward. Woo-hoo, nine Fan Tickets already, just one Fan Ticket away from an additional Chapter, rolling around in happiness. (To be continued. If you like this work, welco to Qidian (qidian) to cast your recomndation tickets, monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)
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