Nominal: Hou Liangping blocking the door? He was slapped away!

The top-floor clubhouse of the Shanshui Group.

Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows is the night view of Jingzhou, brightly lit.

Gao Xiaoqin was lounging in the leather sofa, one leg crossed over the other, her stockinged calves swaying gently, and she was holding a landline receiver in her hand.

The international call signal was poor, and there was a intermittent buzzing sound from the receiver.

"Gao Xiaoqin, when exactly will we be able to acquire the land for Dafeng Factory?"

Zhao Ruilong's voice came through the receiver, filled with an unprecedented impatience.

"The second phase of the Luzhou Food City project needs to be started. The investors need to see the cash flow statement next month, so we can't delay any longer."

Gao Xiaoqin switched the microphone to her other hand and lightly scratched the sofa armrest with her index finger.

"Brother Ruilong, those workers at Dafeng Factory are not easy to deal with. Cai Chenggong has been stirring up trouble inside, making a fuss about protecting the factory."

"I don't care! You talk to Hall Master Qi and ask him to lend a hand too."

Zhao Ruilong slammed his hand on the table, making quite a commotion.

"Three days, at most three days. Demolish it or push it down, let that good-for-nothing Cai Chenggong do whatever he wants, we must get the land. Ding Yizhen is already working on the transfer procedures, and the Land Bureau's stamp can be affixed anytime. We're just missing your step."

"Understood."

"Beep—beep—beep—"

The phone hangs up.

Gao Xiaoqin put the microphone back on the landline, leaned back on the sofa, and stretched out her long legs from under her skirt, crossing them over the edge of the coffee table.

He rubbed his temples, picked up the internal phone on the table, and dialed a three-digit extension number.

"Manager Zhang, come up here."

A few minutes later, the office door was pushed open, and a middle-aged man in a black suit jogged in.

Zhang Tianfeng, Deputy General Manager of Shanshui Group.

"Mr. Gao, what are your instructions?"

"How are the preparations going regarding the Dafeng Factory?"

Zhang Tianfeng took out a small notebook from his pocket, flipped through it, and leaned close to Gao Xiaoqin, speaking in a low voice.

"The team was already assembled. Chang Chenghu's side has over two hundred men, all seasoned veterans who have done heavy work. Three heavy bulldozers and five excavators are all parked in an abandoned brick factory on the outskirts of Jingzhou, ready to be deployed at any time."

Gao Xiaoqin straightened up from the sofa and walked to the French windows to stand.

The city of Jingzhou outside the window was completely covered by a thick layer of clouds, and the moon could not be seen.

"Those workers at Dafeng Factory are tough to deal with. Cai Chenggong has been instigating the factory's protection efforts. I heard they even formed a factory protection team, guarding it in shifts 24 hours a day."

Zhang Tianfeng chuckled and stuffed the notebook into his pocket.

"Mr. Gao, I've seen this kind of thing many times. Those workers are all talk and no action. I plan to go on site at 1 a.m., and the bulldozers can level the factory overnight."

What if the workers start a disturbance?

"What's all this commotion? Over two hundred men standing there with their weapons, who dares to step forward? If anyone's got any guts, give them a couple of whacks on the legs with a stick, and they'll behave."

Gao Xiaoqin didn't reply. She walked back to the coffee table, picked up the landline, and dialed a number.

It rang twice, and then the other end answered.

"Director Qi, what are you doing?"

Qi Tongwei was changing into slippers at home, with one foot on the doormat.

"Xiaoqin, what's wrong so late?"

"Young Master Zhao is pressing us hard for the Dafeng Factory land deal; we plan to make our move tonight. I need the police to provide support from the outside."

Qi Tongwei's other slipper slipped off his hand and fell to the floor with a "thud".

The words Zhao Lichun spoke in his study last night are still fresh in my mind—"The second phase of the Guangming Peak project must be pushed forward," and "Let our achievements speak for themselves."

What kind of cooperation do you need?

"Traffic police and plainclothes officers are stationed at several major intersections within a two-kilometer radius of the Dafeng factory."

Qi Tongwei bent down to pick up the slippers that had fallen to the ground, and held the receiver in his other hand, pondering for a few seconds.

"Okay, I'll have the traffic police brigade handle it, and I'll also get a few plainclothes officers from the special operations team. If anyone tries to run out of Dafeng Factory, just stop them and detain them for half an hour under the pretext of drunk driving. They'll be released after you finish work here."

"Thank you very much, Director Qi."

"Don't mention it. I'll come over another day, and you can thank me properly then."

The phone hangs up.

Qi Tongwei put on his slippers, walked into the living room, picked up a cigar from the table, and lit one.

The vice-governor position promised by Secretary Zhao kept swirling in his mind, while smoke billowed from his nostrils, spreading everywhere.

On the Shanshui Group side.

Zhang Tianfeng left the club, went straight to the parking lot, got into a black Santana, took out a pager from a hidden compartment under the steering wheel, and dialed a number.

Ten minutes later, Chang Chenghu received the signal at the abandoned brick factory on the outskirts of Jingzhou.

He was bald, wore a gold chain around his neck, and his muscular arms stretched his T-shirt taut.

Chang Chenghu popped a peanut into his mouth, chewed it twice, turned around and yelled at the person behind him.

"Brothers! Let's set off at one o'clock tonight, time to get to work!"

In the open space of the brick factory, more than two hundred people were squatting, sitting, or leaning in twos and threes. Some were playing cards, while others were eating steamed buns.

Upon hearing this shout, everyone stood up.

Boxes of yellow safety helmets were unloaded from the bread truck, and bundles of camouflage uniforms were being distributed.

The engines of the three bulldozers were lit one by one, and the roar of the diesel engines rolled muffledly in the night.

The booms of five excavators slowly rose and fell, making final adjustments before departure.

Chang Chenghu carried a steel pipe and walked at the front of the team, checking the equipment one by one.

"Remember, once you're inside, don't waste time talking. Use bulldozers to clear the way, tear down the walls, and get right in. If anyone's blocking your path, just move them aside. Don't hit them in the face; hitting them can leave injuries, and that'll be hard to explain."

Zhang Tianfeng's Santana was parked on a side road two kilometers away from Dafeng Factory. The headlights were off, but the engine was still running at idle, ready to run away at any moment.

There was a car phone on the passenger seat, with its antenna sticking up really high.

The night sky over Jingzhou was gloomy, with low-hanging clouds and not even a breeze, making it so stuffy that it was hard to breathe.

Inside the walls of Dafeng Factory.

Several factory security workers squatted under a tin shed, with a tin bucket in the middle containing a few pieces of wood burning. The flickering flames illuminated their tired faces.

Some people were yawning, while others leaned against the wall and dozed off.

No one knew that more than two hundred people were rushing this way, just two kilometers away.

Unbeknownst to anyone, on the third floor of the unfinished building opposite Dafeng Factory, two people in training uniforms were peering out the window, their infrared telescopes revealing the slow movement of the bulldozers' thermal outlines.

One of them put down his binoculars and pressed the communicator on his chest.

"Eagle's Nest, Eagle's Nest, this is Outpost Number One."

"The enemy's demolition convoy has been deployed."

"Direction—Dafeng Factory."