Chapter 84: Confrontation

The next day, Chen Long brought a moving truck to Zeng Yi's clinic again, but turned back halfway. He received a call informing him that the residents in that area had gathered again, and the road ahead was already blocked. His superiors required him to immediately bring people to handle the situation.

Chen Long felt a headache. He had just taken office, and his seat was not even warm, yet he encountered such a troublesome matter. He had no choice but to let the moving company go back and drive to the scene himself.

Two to three hundred residents were now gathered in front of an old building, singing the national anthem, shouting slogans, and holding banners to denounce the unscrupulous developers.

Just as the ringleaders like Lao Qi were controlled yesterday, these residents gathered again. What did this mean? It meant that Yuan Wenjie had truly oppressed the people too much. The demands of these ordinary people were not high; they just wanted a place to live and a job to support their families. Yuan Wenjie's actions were equivalent to forcing these families to break apart.

When Chen Long arrived at the scene, he frowned deeply. He knew very well that unless Yuan Wenjie had a change of heart and raised the compensation standards, this issue would be difficult to resolve, and the gatherings would likely continue to occur repeatedly.

There were already a few police officers maintaining order, but they were clearly outnumbered and stood far away, coldly observing the situation.

Seeing Chen Long appear, a police officer ran over, sweating profusely, and said, "Director Chen, this is a tough one to handle!"

Chen Long's face darkened, "What have you been doing? Why are these people gathering again?"

The police officer felt wronged and said, "Director Chen, this isn't my fault! The residents heard that the demolition office was going to issue a forced demolition notice, and they became very agitated, gathering together. We did a lot of work to prevent them from blocking the streets, keeping the situation under control."

Chen Long was furious, "Have you controlled the rumor-mongers?"

The police officer looked embarrassed, "This... no."

"Then what are you standing here for? For such troublemakers who spread rumors and incite unrest, you must not be lenient. Once discovered, they must be dealt with immediately!"

The police officer glanced at the gathered residents and whispered, "This information came from Feilong Construction..."

Chen Long immediately understood. It turned out this wasn't a rumor. If Feilong Construction dared to say this, the forced demolition was likely real. His frown deepened. This was a tough situation to handle. If Yuan Wenjie didn't back down, even if he managed to disperse the crowd today, it would still leave a significant隐患. Once the situation escalated, the police would be in a passive position, essentially being held hostage by Yuan Wenjie. At that point, even if they didn't want to take strong measures, they would have to, or else the police would end up taking the blame for "ineffective handling."

In front of the old building, the residents were confronting the people from Feilong Construction.

"You guys have those dilapidated buildings, not even fit for dogs to sleep in. It's already a great favor to give you compensation. If you want a high price, you must be out of your minds! If you know what's good for you, take the money and get out. Otherwise, wait until your houses collapse on their own, and you won't even get this much money!"

"Phew!" Someone in the crowd shouted, "No one is begging you to buy our houses. Get lost! Even if our houses collapse, we won't sell them to you!"

"Right, we won't sell!" the crowd shouted.

"If you have any sense, think clearly. This area will definitely be demolished, whether today or tomorrow. If you move out today, we can even help you move for free. If you delay, don't blame us for being unfriendly!"

The speaker was the scar-faced man and the short, thin, and dark man who had been dealt with by Zeng Yi a few days ago. They brought a large group of tough guys, standing menacingly in front of the residents, each holding a steel pipe, their eyes full of malice. These were not good people; they were street thugs who often fought and some had even been in and out of prison. When it came to fighting and hurting people, they wouldn't hesitate.

"Move out early, benefit early. Get out of here, and you'll have a way out!"

"Whether you move or not, this area will be demolished. If you delay even a minute, don't blame us for not being careful with our sticks. If you get beaten or crippled, it will be your own fault!"

"Think carefully. Forced demolition is no joke. Once the forced demolition notice is issued, if you gather and resist, you will be opposing the government's wise decision. There will be no good outcome. You might be sent to labor re-education or a mental hospital. By then, it will be too late to regret it..."

"Is money more important than your life? Don't be fooled by some people's incitement. If you end up losing both your money and your life, you'll regret it."

These thugs were not entirely muscle-bound. Some played the bad cop, while others played the good cop, using a mix of threats and persuasion to put on a ugly double act.

However, it seemed to have little effect. Someone in the crowd shouted, "We have all the proper procedures. Why should we be forcibly demolished? Do you even respect the law? We will sue you!"

The scar-faced man spat out his cigarette and pointed at the person, saying, "Law? Do you know what happened to those who caused trouble yesterday? Let me tell you, opposing the law will end up like them. If you don't come to your senses, you'll end up the same way!"

"Don't be naive. A small arm can't resist a big one. Taking the money is better than paying for medical bills!"

"Look around. Even the police are standing far away, afraid to come close. If you know what's good for you, get out of here!"

As they spoke, they clanged their steel pipes, creating a terrifying atmosphere.

Chen Long, standing far away, was furious. Damn, they are too arrogant. If it weren't for the order from his superiors to just maintain order, he would have already dealt with these small-time thugs.

The crowd, intimidated by the show of force, lost some of their momentum. Someone shouted, "If you have the guts, demolish this building too."

"Ha, challenging us, are you?" The scar-faced man looked at the old building surrounded by the residents and said, "Let me tell you, this building will also be demolished. The forced demolition notice will be delivered soon!"

Chen Long, standing far away, thought to himself that Yuan Wenjie was truly arrogant. This building was the former site of the Eighth Route Army's office in Rongcheng, a cultural heritage site. According to the plan, the commercial square being developed did not include this building. He never expected that Yuan Wenjie would dare to demolish a cultural heritage site.

The residents didn't believe it, saying, "If you dare to demolish this building, it's a cultural heritage site, the Eighth Route Army's office!"

"Heritage my ass. In my eyes, it's just a dilapidated building that will collapse on its own!" The scar-faced man said viciously. These people were naive, thinking that gathering here could prevent the forced demolition. The Eighth Route Army was a thing of the past!

The scar-faced man knew that this building would definitely be demolished. It was located right in the center of the area, and if it wasn't demolished, the commercial square would look odd no matter how it was planned. Yuan Wenjie had already smoothed things over with the cultural heritage bureau, and the building had to be demolished.

Once it was demolished, they could claim it was due to long-term neglect and that it collapsed during nearby construction. Since few people visited the building, it didn't benefit the city and