HLM – Chapter 788 Blue Ducks in the Stream

Wang Bo rubbed the banknote in his hand and asked, “What kind of duck is this?”

Bowen glanced at it and replied, “A New Zealand blue duck. Why?”

Wang Bo smiled faintly, masking his expression. “It seems like some of these ducks have appeared on the ranch.”

As he spoke, he pulled out his phone and showed Bowen a photo — one he had taken from the sandbox model, with a close-up of the blue duck. He wasn’t worried Bowen would ask where it came from; he could just say someone had sent it to him.

Up front, the pilot Charlie turned his head and said, “Blue ducks appeared in town? Come on, let me see — what’s going on?”

Seeing the man twist around and even reach out a hand, Wang Bo nearly jumped out of his seat and yelled, “My god, you’re the pilot! Dude, can you be a bit more professional? Keep your hands on that stick and fly the damn helicopter!”

Charlie burst out laughing. “Hey, Wang Bo, this is the first time I’ve ever seen you so scared. Look at you — your face’s gone completely white!”

“Fly your damn plane!” Wang Bo roared.

Charlie chuckled, “Relax, buddy, don’t worry so much. I won’t crash this bird. The EC-120N has an autopilot system — once the route’s set and the air currents are stable, it can fly itself.”

“Can it really be trusted?”

“Of course! I’ve been playing mobile games for the last half hour,” he said, shaking his phone — on the screen, a gun was aiming at something.

“You damn idiot!”

Irritated, Wang Bo shoved his phone at him. “Here, look at this photo I took.”

Compared to Bowen, who was American, Charlie was a New Zealand native and far more familiar with the country’s wildlife.

One glance and he identified the bird immediately. “Yeah, no doubt about it — that’s a New Zealand blue duck. They mainly live on the South Island. Its English name is ‘Blue Duck,’ but we usually call them Whio…”

“Fee-oh?” Wang Bo mimicked the pronunciation.

Charlie nodded. “That’s right. The male duck’s call sounds exactly like you.”

Wang Bo raised his middle finger at him, while Bowen grinned broadly at the exchange.

Looking at the picture again, Charlie said, “Blue ducks showing up in a ranch stream? Makes sense. They’re a special kind of duck — real clean freaks. They only live by clear rivers and mountain streams, places with pristine water and rich vegetation.”

“Are they rare or something? Why’d they put it on the banknote?” Wang Bo asked.

“They’re very rare. Let me think — how many are left in New Zealand? I remember reading a report last year. According to the Department of Conservation, there are only about 2,500 to 3,000 blue ducks left — even fewer than your country’s giant pandas.”

Hearing that, Wang Bo laughed. “So that means our town just gained another top-notch species for sightseeing, huh?”

“Maybe, maybe not,” Charlie said. “They like clean water, yeah, but they also love fast-flowing rivers — especially those wild mountain rapids. That’s their ideal habitat.”

Wang Bo took a breath. “I’ve got a feeling they’ll stay.”

Then Bowen spoke up suddenly. “But boss, if these ducks really settle here in the river, are you sure that’s a good thing? What about the duzi lungfish?”

Wang Bo froze — oh right, his river already had another rare native species: the New Zealand duzi lungfish.

The lungfish thrived in the spiritual spring — the water was clean, food was abundant, seeds often drifted in, and cattle and sheep sometimes defecated in the water, all of which the lungfish fed on.

But if the blue ducks stayed, they’d surely eat fish — and the duzi lungfish, being the fattest and most delicious in the river, would make a perfect meal. The ducks would love it.

Worse still, ordinary ducks were lazy and sluggish. Blue ducks, however, were like the Sylvester Stallones of the duck world — full of energy and constantly swimming in the current!

Just then, the helicopter jolted twice, and the body suddenly tilted.

Wang Bo’s heart jumped into his throat. He grabbed the handle and shouted, “Watch the damn plane!”

Charlie immediately turned back and yanked the control stick. The helicopter still shook, but soon leveled out, no longer terrifyingly tilted.

“Don’t worry, folks,” Charlie said calmly. “Just some air turbulence. I’ll fly lower.”

Bowen, now visibly nervous, snatched Charlie’s phone and snapped, “Bro, can you please just fly properly? The mayor and deputy mayor of Sunset Town are both sitting behind you!”

Charlie was a seasoned pilot, though. Once the helicopter dropped to a lower altitude, the ride smoothed out, and soon they returned safely to Sunset Town.

They first flew over the gold mine at the mountain’s base. What was once a barren area now had more than a dozen vehicles, with workers loading ore into truck beds.

As soon as they landed, Wang Bo didn’t even wait for the rotor wash to die down — he leapt out immediately. Humans are land creatures, after all; only when your feet touch solid ground does your heart settle.

He handed the mine inspection over to Bowen and walked toward the ranch — he needed to figure out how to handle the conflict between the blue ducks and the duzi lungfish.

The flock of blue ducks had settled in the middle-to-lower stretch of the river. Under the sunlight, their grayish-blue feathers gleamed beautifully, shimmering even brighter when the sun hit them just right.

“Fee-oh! Fee-oh! Fee-oh!”

As Wang Bo approached the stream, the ducks suddenly began calling. Hearing that sound, Wang Bo realized Charlie hadn’t been teasing him — the ducks really did sound exactly like that.

Then, out from the grass by the riverbank, a few ducklings scurried out, waddled quickly to the edge, and with little splashes, dove into the water and swam toward the adult ducks for cover.

Seeing the ducklings, Charlie’s eyes lit up. “Wang Bo, I believe you now. The blue ducks are staying. They’ve brought ducklings — that means they trust this environment.”

“What do you mean?” Wang Bo asked.

“Do you know why blue ducks are so rare? Because they’re extremely difficult to breed. New Zealand scientists and conservationists have been trying for years to get them to reproduce in captivity, and it wasn’t until last year that they succeeded for the first time — in a wildlife park. Do you know how long that project took? Ten years!”

In New Zealand, blue ducks are one of the highest-level protected species. Wild ducks are often hunted by humans and predators alike, and their habitats keep shrinking. Seven species of New Zealand’s endemic ducks have already gone extinct or are on the verge of extinction. That’s why the government pays such close attention to them now.

Wang Bo thought his presence had startled the blue ducks, so he stopped walking — but soon realized that wasn’t the case at all.