Chapter 119 Changes
"Don't look." The woman covered the little girl's eyes.
"Ethan, find the demolition contract," Noah said calmly.
"Okay, Noah."
Ethan looked around and noticed a briefcase on the floor next to the table. He picked it up and pulled out a stack of contracts. After looking through them, he confirmed, "Noah, I found the contract!"
"I gave you a chance, Caleb, but you didn't appreciate it," Noah said, looking down at Caleb. "And you have violated the contract with your violent demolitions. Naturally, this contract is now void. Tear it up."
"Okay!"
Ethan quickly tore the contract to shreds.
"From now on, the demolition in this area is not under your control anymore," Noah said calmly.
"You're asking for death!" Caleb looked up, enduring the pain, his eyes bloodshot as he stared at Noah. "You dare to treat me this way? Ryan won't let you off."
"He’s welcome to see find me anytime," Noah said indifferently.
"Did you all see? I tore up the contract!"
Ethan shouted at the group of workers. "From now on, this place does not belong to you for demolition! Take your captain and get out!"
The workers looked at each other angrily, but they dared not speak out after witnessing Noah's ruthless methods. They had carry the injured Caleb with them and leave in frustration.
"Thank you, young man!" The woman held her little girl and expressed gratitude with tears streaming down her face. She was about to kneel in front of Noah. "If it weren't for you, my breakfast shop might have really been demolished today. My daughter would have been left alone in the world."
"Thank you, Sir!" the little girl said softly.
Noah quickly helped the woman up and smiled. "No need to thank me, it's my duty."
"I haven't asked for your name yet," the woman said, standing up and adjusting her hair.
"Noah."
"Noah..." the woman repeated. "I'm Grace."
Noah nodded. During the conversation with Grace, he learned about her difficult background. Her husband had passed away shortly after they got married, leaving her and their daughter Scarlett to live on their own. Grace had no other choice but to take over the breakfast shop her husband had left behind to make a living. The neighborhood they lived in was unsafe, and local gangsters demanded protection money, making their lives even more miserable.
"Grace, regardless of the situation, your breakfast shop will be demolished. How much compensation do you need?" Noah asked after pausing for a moment.
"I don't really have any specific demands for compensation. All I want is fairness," Grace replied.
Grace said, "For other residents, when their houses were demolished, the compensation was around 300,000 dollars per household. But for this area, the compensation Caleb offered was only 100,000 dollars. No one would agree to demolish their houses for that amount!
"If it weren't for you, I would have been in danger today," Grace looked at Noah, filled with gratitude. "You saved my life. I would still accept it even if you gave me just 100,000 dollars as compensation. You can demolish the breakfast shop as you please."
"No, that’s not right," Noah shook his head. "It's 300,000 dollars, and I'll also give you an additional 50,000 dollars out of my own pocket as compensation for the emotional distress caused by the forced demolition. Also, I'll buy Scarlett some food. Of course, once the redevelopment project in the slum area is completed, you will also receive a new house."
Grace hesitated for a moment but still said, "Thank you, Noah."
Grace was not lying; she really needed that money. There would be a lot of expenses in the future for Scarlett's education and other things.
When Noah saw Grace agree, he also breathed a sigh of relief. "Ethan, now that Grace has agreed to the demolition, give her the compensation after signing the contract. And as for the relocation housing, choose a better environment for Grace."
"Okay, Noah!"
Ethan immediately nodded.
"Also, all the residents in this area will receive a compensation of 300,000 dollars as stated in the contract. Once the redevelopment project is completed, new houses will be distributed to everyone according to the regulations. The resident with the broken legs should be immediately sent to the hospital; I'll cover the medical expenses," Noah added.
"Okay!"
"Noah, you’re a wonderful person! We will all be grateful to you!" Grace was full of gratitude and wanted to kneel down to Noah.
Noah quickly supported her and said, "I said it before, this is my duty."
"Thank you, Sir. You’re really kind!" Scarlett happily jumped up and kissed Noah on the cheek.
Noah affectionately patted Scarlett's head.
The residents in this area were excited when they heard the news that the compensation had been increased from 100,000 dollars to 300,000 dollars.
The redevelopment of the slum area was a good thing for them.
Who would want to live in such a dirty and chaotic environment?
Who wouldn't want a better house?
Everyone would agree to the demolition as long as the demolition process wasn't too harsh and didn't take advantage of anyone.
"Now that the first problem is basically solved, what is the second problem?" Noah asked.
"The second problem is about the holdout households," Ethan said. "There’s a resident named Dylan in the slum area. He usually drinks, gambles, and is idle. But his house has a yard."
"After hearing about the demolition in the slum area, he gathered some people together and built two concrete houses in his yard within just three days and started demanding a higher compensation.
"Originally, he was supposed to be compensated with four hundred thousand dollars, according to the size of his yard. Now, he’s built two cement houses and is asking for two million dollars and three sets of houses before agreeing to demolition.
Ethan looked helpless, "And Dylan is an old man in his sixties. We can't do anything to him. If we just touch him a little, he'll probably fall to the ground and pretend to be sick. In short, it's a big problem."
Noah shook his head. There were violent demolitions, and there would also naturally be holdouts against demolition. Different strokes for different folks.
"We can't handle this with force, we should use soft tactics," Noah said. "Cut off his water and electricity for a few days. And we can demolish his new cement houses. It’s not against the law. If all else fails, we can resort to judicial forced demolition."
"That's the only way." Ethan scratched his head.
Noah glanced at the time. It was almost noon, so he prepared to return to Golden Summit Peak.
"Pay close attention to the resettlement and compensation matters, and don't make any more mistakes. Contact me if you have any problems," Noah reminded Ethan.
