The Public Reckoning

The basement of the community center smelled of ozone and damp earth, a subterranean tomb for the neighborhood’s secrets. Lin Mei sat at the central desk, the master ledger open before her. Its pages were not merely paper; they were a map of every life tethered to the protection chain. Beside her, Hao worked the terminal, his fingers flying across the keys to bypass the final firewall of the Clearing House’s server.

“They’re not just buying land, Lin Mei,” Hao said, his voice a low, rhythmic rasp. “They’re weaponizing the bylaws your father wrote. Every ‘voluntary’ relocatio

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