Chapter 9
Gu Changan knocked on the door, but there was no answer.
He frowned and waved over a few nearby residents. With the help of his staff and the reluctant nod of a few neighbors, they forced the old wooden door open.
The two-story house was silent—eerily so.
A company staff member and one of the neighbors cautiously stepped inside to look around. A few minutes later, they came back out.
"No one's in there. It's empty," the staff member confirmed.
Just then, the rumble of heavy machinery rolled through the narrow street. An entire demolition team had arrived with excavators lined up like a small army.
Zhang Yue approached, holding a document in one hand. "Boss Gu," he said, motioning to the machines, "the last households have all signed the demolition agreements. This one included. Should we go ahead?"
This house was the final holdout. Once it was torn down, the Shuangguan Bridge demolition project would be complete.
Gu Changan's heart stirred. Every extra day of delay meant bleeding money. If they could wrap things up now, reconstruction could begin immediately. The faster construction started, the faster the profits rolled in.
To a businessman, nothing was more persuasive than numbers.
As if sensing his boss's hesitation, Zhang Yue leaned in and added, "President Zhang from the bank called yesterday. If this demolition isn't completed soon, the loan won't go through."
Gu Changan's jaw clenched. That settled it.
"Do it," he ordered, eyes sharp. "But start with the other houses we just finalized. Leave this one for last."
"Understood."
The ground trembled as the demolitions began. Building after building came down, reduced to rubble in minutes. The noise was deafening, but to Gu Changan, it was music.
He stood there amid the dust, watching the work progress, exhaling slowly. After months of setbacks, protests, negotiations, and delays, they were finally at the finish line. He had paid nearly two million more than budgeted—but the land's value? It would yield ten times that.
He could almost see the future: cranes, foundations, luxury apartments rising like clockwork. The clouds had parted. The moon was finally shining.
"Boss Gu," Zhang Yue called out. "Just this one left."
The last building stood alone amid the flattened wreckage, like a tombstone waiting to fall.
The excavator rolled into position. Its massive arm lifted, metal teeth gleaming in the sunlight. It paused just above the outer wall, poised like a predator ready to strike.
Zhang Yue looked at Gu Changan, eyebrows furrowed. "Boss?"
Gu Changan didn't respond immediately. His gaze was locked on the old building. Something gnawed at him. A strange, uneasy feeling.
He didn't know why, but the sight of that house made his spine crawl.
"Wait," he said, raising a hand.
Zhang Yue blinked. "Boss, we really can't delay this. We've been at this since morning—no lunch, no rest. Everyone's ready. What's the holdup now?"
Gu Changan looked at the dust-covered workers and the growing crowd of onlookers. His team was tired, hungry, and losing momentum. He pushed down the cold knot forming in his chest.
"Start," he said finally. "Tear it down."
The engine roared.
The mechanical arm lunged forward, shovel angled like a blade ready to cleave the house in half—
—just as Gu Xi arrived.
She was breathless, covered in dust and sweat, stumbling over chunks of rubble as she charged toward the site.
Her heart nearly stopped when she saw the excavator poised to strike.
"No!" she screamed, voice hoarse and ragged.
She didn't care about the glass or the nails underfoot. She didn't care about the crowd. She pushed through them, scraping her arms on broken walls, tearing her clothes.
"Stop the machine!"
A voice cried out behind her: "Xixi!"
Another shouted: "What are you doing?!"
But Gu Xi didn't stop.
Her father was still inside that house.