Going home for Chinese New Year, I squeezed onto a bus with three energetic young women.

"Illegal construction?"

The landlord was stunned for a moment, then his face turned full of disdain.

"You think it's illegal just because you say so?" He raised his chin, pointing at the bungalow:

"I have official, official documents from above!"

He waved his hand dismissively:

"Now, I order you three to take your junk and get out of my house!"

The landlord pointed menacingly at the door, arrogant and domineering.

"And I won't refund a single penny of the rent! Hahahaha! I'll make you furious, you little bastard!"

He doesn't care about anything anymore.

Right now, all he can think about is the million-yuan relocation compensation that's about to arrive, and the three resettlement houses.

With money, he can live a second life!

Go live a carefree life, find seventeen or eighteen-year-old girls, and live like a king!

Bai Li chuckled:

"You really are a complete scoundrel. I just helped you see your disgusting background, and you turn around and betray me like this."

"It truly embodies the spirit of cheating and swindling when poor, being arrogant when rich, betraying friends when suffering, and scheming against others when in trouble."

Li Jiaxin immediately chimed in:

"Big brother is absolutely right!"

She turned to stare at the landlord, her red lips uttering a mocking sneer:

"You heartless scum, you deserve to be tortured to death, even your ashes should be scattered!"

The landlord completely ignored their sarcasm.

He stood with his hands on his hips, casually shaking his leg.

"Yeah, that's just how I am!"

The landlord grinned, revealing his yellowed teeth; his smile was nauseating.

"I don't even care about that old hag and that mongrel duck, what am I afraid of? What can you do to me?"

He raised his hand, pointing defiantly at Bai Li:

"Come and bite me if you dare!"

Bai Li slightly raised her eyelids and glanced at the landlord's bulging pockets.

"Why don't you check your own phone first?"

Bai Li gently reminded him.

The landlord gave a dismissive sneer.

"What? You think you can get someone to send me an official document? Stop acting all high and mighty!"

Although he was grumbling and cursing, he still took out his phone and said:

"But you've given me a good reminder."

The landlord pulled out his phone, beaming with pride:

"Once the demolition compensation arrives in a few days, I'll put this old phone away..."

Before he could finish speaking, he froze.

His eyes were fixed on the text message interface that lit up on the screen.

There was a new notice posted just a few minutes ago, marked with a bright red official seal.

The few lines of text were glaringly offensive.

[Upon verification, the building under your name located in the old city area is an illegal structure without a legal property ownership certificate. This is a formal notice: the illegal structure will be demolished directly without any compensation. In accordance with relevant urban management regulations, you are also subject to a fine of RMB 20,000, payable within a specified period.]

"this……"

The landlord's lips began to tremble, and his arrogant arrogance vanished without a trace.

Not only will they not give us money?

And they want to fine them 20,000 yuan?!

How could such a thing happen!

"It's fake, right..."

The landlord swallowed hard, his fingers clicking frantically on the screen, trying to find a clue that the text message was sent by a fake base station.

"This is definitely a scam text message! Or you hired someone to do this!"

He raised his head, his eyes bloodshot, and roared through gritted teeth.

Bai Li remained calm and composed, slightly raising his chin and waving it at the broken phone.

"Just call back the number above to confirm, and you'll be all set."

Before the landlord could do anything, his phone vibrated.

The number on the caller ID was the same one that had notified him to prepare the demolition procedures!

The landlord's hands were shaking like a leaf.

He slid down the answer button and respectfully brought the phone to his ear.

"Hey boss... um... I just received a text message..."

His voice was weak, and he couldn't even speak a complete sentence properly.

The voice on the other end of the phone was clearly audible, but devoid of warmth.

"Mr. Zhang, the text message was sent by us. After a joint review by multiple departments, your large courtyard is an illegal structure and has no property rights whatsoever."

"We sincerely apologize for the previous mistake. The notice has taken effect, and the construction team will begin demolition tomorrow. Please settle the NT$20,000 fine as soon as possible, otherwise late fees will be incurred and it will affect your credit score. Goodbye."

beep - beep - beep -

The busy signal echoed in the bungalow.

The landlord looked as if his spine had been removed, and his phone fell to the concrete floor with a thud.

He just stood there, motionless, his shoulders slumped, his breathing faint.

After a long while.

The landlord's chapped lips parted and opened, uttering muffled whispers like a mosquito's buzz.

"That's all..."

His eyes were fixed on the puddle of urine on the ground:

"It's really gone..."

"There's nothing left..."

He clutched his head in his hands, digging his fingers into his hair, and staggered back two steps.

"My son is a bastard, he's been taken advantage of by that old woman... and he's lost the job he finally managed to get..."

He muttered incantations, his voice growing louder and louder, but his tone becoming increasingly eerie:

"My mother is a lecherous old woman... she's the culprit who caused my wife to hang herself..."

The landlord raised his hand and slapped his cheeks haphazardly, laughing and crying at the same time.

"Even I am a bastard child, adopted from who-knows-where!"

"I've lost millions in compensation for the demolition! I've lost three large houses! I don't even have a home anymore, and I still have to pay the government 20,000 yuan in damages!"

"Ha ha……"

"Hahaha……"

The chilling laughter echoed through the room, sending shivers down one's spine.

The landlord was on the verge of a complete mental breakdown.

All his remaining thoughts of living—family, ethics, money—were effortlessly crushed into dust by Bai Li in just half an hour.

"What's the point of my life anymore?"

He looked up at the ceiling.

The old woman was still lying on the ground groaning in pain, while her bastard son, whose head had been urinated on, had already fallen asleep.

The family of three, each in their most tragic state, created this scene of human hell.

Bai Li turned her head and looked at Li Jiaxin beside her.

The little stray cat was covering its nose in disgust, clearly repulsed by the smell in the house.

"let's go."

Bai Li raised his hand and put his arm around Li Jiaxin's shoulder:

"Old Deng's mental state is too unstable; keeping him here is bad luck."

Li Jiaxin nodded obediently.

She turned around, picked up the woven bag full of her grandmother's old clothes, and helped her grandmother, who was still in shock, with her other hand.

"Grandma, let's go. We'll never come back to this wretched place again."

Li Jiaxin coaxed the old man softly, and rolled her eyes as she passed by the landlord.

The old man nodded, sighed, and followed his granddaughter unsteadily toward the door.

The three of them passed through the gate one by one.

Li Jiaxin and her grandmother stepped out of the house, basking in the bright sunshine.

Bai Li walked at the very end.

He paused as one foot crossed the threshold.

His tall, slender figure blocked some of the light entering the room.

Bai Li slowly turned her head.

He looked at the landlord inside the house, who was laughing idiotically, and at the old woman and her bastard son writhing on the floor.

"you……"

"Just struggle and live your life well in this hellish reality."