Chen Lin looked at Lin Yi, somewhat skeptical.
"Are you sure just a phone call will do?"
"Yes, and mention my name."
Thinking about Lin Yi’s past experiences, Chen Lin didn’t hesitate much and picked up her phone to call the construction unit.
"Wang Gong, have they left yet?"
"Left? They’re still blocking us here. A large group of them showed up, at least dozens, and they’re not letting us work."
"Is the person in charge on your side?"
"Yes, they’re here."
"Let me speak to them."
"Okay."
About half a minute later, the voice of the person in charge from the construction side came through the phone.
"The owner wants to talk to you."
Soon, a rough voice came across.
"Hello."
"This is Lin Yi. Let’s both give each other some face and not interfere with our construction."
"Lin Yi?"
The voice on the other side sounded a bit impatient.
"What Lin Yi or Li Yi, don’t mention people to me. It doesn’t work here."
Chen Lin looked at Lin Yi, unsure of what to do for a moment.
Lin Yi gestured for her to hang up the phone, which Chen Lin did, shrugging her shoulders.
"Your reputation doesn’t seem to intimidate these people."
"It’s simple, we’ll just go over there and see."
"Let’s go. I need to go over there anyway."
The two of them headed out together, got in the car, and drove towards Jiuzhou Pavilion.
"Let me tell you, stay calm when we get there, and don’t hit anyone."
"I understand."
More than half an hour later, Lin Yi drove to the construction site.
At this point, the workers engaged in demolition had already stopped and were sitting by the roadside smoking.
A few trucks were parked nearby, idle.
Across the road, around twenty or thirty people were sitting, each looking at ease and unhurried, as if basking in the sun.
"Wang Gong."
After getting out of the car, the two approached a middle-aged man wearing a vest and a yellow hard hat, who was smoking and swearing.
The man’s name was Wang Changkun, primarily responsible for the preliminary clearance and demolition work.
Once the drawings were out, they would continue the construction.
"President Chen, you’re here."
"Have you communicated with them?"
"I’ve talked to them, but they won’t leave. They say we should give them some work," Wang Changkun said, pointing at the opposing group:
"Look at them, do they look like they’re ready to work? If we really give them the job, it’ll surely end up in a mess."
"Did you call the police?"
"Our leader called the police yesterday. After mediation, they left, but they came back today," Wang Changkun said helplessly:
"I’m out of options, which is why I called you. If this continues, there’s no way we can work."
"President Chen, I’m telling you, just by looking at those people, you can tell they’re habitual offenders, not decent people," another middle-aged man stepped forward,
"I’ve encountered this type elsewhere too, just a bunch of hooligans. Whenever there’s a construction site, they swarm over, trying to extort money."
"Don’t worry, keep working. Leave the rest to us," Lin Yi said.
"The problem is, as soon as we start working, they come over to cause trouble, making it impossible to get things done."
"Since we’re here, we’ll handle this. Just focus on your work."
"Hearing that from you puts my mind at ease."
At Lin Yi’s signal, Wang Changkun returned to work with his team.
Seeing this, the group sitting across the road started to move.
They flicked away their cigarette butts and stood up, walking towards Lin Yi’s group.