Chapter 608: Jiao the Playboy
Guided by the satellite map, Helen quickly found and entered Eastwind Old Street in Xilin City. But what Shawn and Helen saw left them stumped—a completely different scene appeared before their eyes. Bulldozers and excavators were busy at work, dust swirling everywhere as houses and streets were being torn down. Looking along the street, old houses were being demolished everywhere, turning the whole place into a massive construction site. The original look of Eastwind Old Street shown on the map was nowhere to be found.
For the moment, the two of them had no choice. Shawn got out of the car and stopped a middle-aged woman passing by at the intersection, politely asking, "Ma'am, may I ask, is this Eastwind Old Street in Xilin City?"
"Eastwind Old Street? Oh! It used to be called Eastwind Old Street here. But demolition just started yesterday, and it's being turned into a fancy neighborhood called 'Eastwind Villa Estate' for rich folks! Most of the original residents have already moved out." the middle-aged woman replied.
"Oh? Ma'am, we just arrived from out of town, so we're not familiar with Xilin City. We're here to find a relative at Eastwind Old Street... We hadn't heard anything about it being demolished. What happened? And where did all the original residents go?" Shawn hurriedly continued.
"Where they moved, I'm not sure. But I heard many people didn’t have anywhere to go, so they’re living in temporary sheds on the outskirts of Xilin City. Some even went to the city government to protest, and a few got detained. This all started just a few days ago—the demolition of Eastwind Old Street is part of the city’s old town renovation plan. The government handed the project over to a powerful real estate developer. I heard lots of the old residents aren’t happy with the compensation—less than 2 yuan per square meter! That’s way too low! The money isn’t enough to buy even a small place, not even in the suburbs. But what can ordinary folks do? These days, officials and developers are in cahoots, and houses get torn down just like that. Even if you complain, nobody cares. Those who protest get nowhere. Sigh—life’s tough these days!" The middle-aged woman finished, shaking her head in resignation as she walked on.
'Uh... this is a problem. Maggie Chang lived on Eastwind Old Street, but now everyone’s moved out. It’s going to take a lot more effort to find her and Minnie Wang,' Shawn said with a frown.
"Don’t worry. As long as they’re still in Xilin City, we’ll find them. The place isn’t that big. Unless something unexpected happened, it shouldn’t be too hard to track them down!" Helen reassured him.
'Uh—I’m just worried something bad happened to them!' Shawn said anxiously.
"Oh, according to what that ma'am said, the demolition of Eastwind Old Street started just yesterday. Maggie Chang and Minnie Wang also rushed back to Xilin City yesterday. They called me this morning, so we’ve only lost contact for about four hours. And Xilin City is a small town—it’s not that big. It shouldn’t be too hard to find them," Helen said.
"Hmm—let’s go check out the city housing bureau first and see what’s really going on," Shawn said, getting back into the sports car.
"Sounds good! Let’s go." Helen nodded, spun the car around, and headed straight for Xilin City’s housing bureau using the satellite map.
In less than ten minutes, they arrived at the entrance of Xilin City’s housing bureau. But what struck them as odd was that the entrance was deserted except for a lone security guard. Shawn got out and asked, only to learn that the regular staff had gone to Eastwind Old Street to supervise the demolition, while the bureau’s top leaders were attending a "forum" with the mayor and the developers involved in the renovation project.
However, Shawn did get one useful piece of information from the security guard—the original residents of Dongfeng Old Street were unhappy with the compensation and planned to protest at the city government, but were dispersed by police and told to wait at a temporary relocation site in the southern suburbs of Xilin City for negotiations. The guard didn’t know the details.
However, Shawn did get one useful piece of information from the security guard—the original residents of Eastwind Old Street were unhappy with the compensation and planned to protest at the city government, but were dispersed by police and told to wait at a temporary relocation site in the southern suburbs of Xilin City for negotiations. The guard didn’t know the details.
With this news, Shawn immediately hopped back into the sports car and said to Helen, "Helen, let’s go! We need to head to the southern suburbs of Xilin City right now. If I’m right, Minnie Wang and Maggie Chang should be there!"
Soon, they arrived outside a construction site filled with makeshift sheds. A temporary cement-brick wall surrounded the area, and a big red banner at the entrance read "Temporary Settlement for Old Street Residents of Xilin City." Because the roads inside the site were a mess and construction equipment was everywhere, Helen and Shawn parked the Lamborghini outside and walked in.
As soon as they stepped inside, they saw a big crowd gathered outside the sheds, split into two groups arguing loudly. The larger group looked like ordinary folks, some elderly, while the smaller group wore khaki camouflage uniforms with hard hats—they seemed to be construction workers, many of whom held iron pipes and even chains.
(This chapter isn’t finished yet~.~ Click next page for more!)
Strangest of all, several police cars were parked around the two groups. More than a dozen officers stood guard with riot shields and batons, surrounding the area. Nearby, a chubby middle-aged cop was talking nervously and obsequiously to a young man in a black suit and hard hat at the fence of one of the sheds.
The young man had a cigar clamped between his lips. Next to him was a stunning woman, her figure curvy and alluring, though her face was caked with foundation and her nails painted black. She wore a hard hat too, clinging to his arm. Behind them stood several burly men in black suits and sunglasses—clearly his bodyguards.
Shawn and Helen walked straight over, but saw that the passage into the temporary shed was blocked by the two groups locked in a heated standoff. One look at their angry faces told Shawn and Helen that a fight could break out at any moment—if it weren’t for the chubby cop and his dozen officers keeping order, the two sides would’ve already gone at it.
Shawn and Helen were about to get closer to see if Wang Xiaomin and Chang Meier were in the crowd when the cigar-smoking young man turned his head. The moment he spotted Helen next to Shawn, his eyes lit up. He quickly patted the seductive woman clinging to his arm—like a snake wrapped around him—and whispered in her ear, "Baby—go play somewhere else for now."
"Mmm—no way, I like playing with you!" the seductive woman pouted, her lips shiny and red, teasing him.
Shawn and Helen were about to get closer to see if Minnie Wang and Maggie Chang were in the crowd when the cigar-smoking young man turned his head. The moment he spotted Helen next to Shawn, his eyes lit up. He quickly patted the seductive woman clinging to his arm—like a snake wrapped around him—and whispered in her ear, "Babe—go play somewhere else for now."
"Mmm—no way, I love playing with you!" the bombshell pouted, her lips glossy and red, teasing him with a sultry whine.