The argument started long before the meeting officially began.
By the time Eli arrived at the Briggon Community Hall, the sidewalks outside were already crowded. Groups stood beneath flickering streetlights, phones in hand, voices rising and falling in tense bursts.
The same people who had stood shoulder to shoulder during Block Day now faced each other with folded arms.
A man Eli recognized from the apartment block across the street said loudly, "Look, I get it. Corner Pocket is local. But a hundred million yuan? That's real investment."
A shop owner shot back, "Investment from the same company that tried to lie to us!"
"Yeah, but they apologized."
"They didn't apologize. They rebranded."
Someone else muttered, "Still better than waiting more than a decade for the city council."
"Then vote better" the man shot back
Eli stepped past them quietly and pushed open the doors.
Inside, the hall buzzed with restless energy.
Rows of metal chairs had been set up facing a small stage, but few people were sitting. Most stood in clusters, talking over each other. The air felt thick, like a storm about to break.
Jin was already there, leaning against the back wall beside Uncle Gen.
"Thought you might bail," Jin said when he spotted Eli.
Eli gave a small shrug. "Can't skip the main event."
Uncle Gen snorted. "Main event? Kid, this is a boxing match."
Across the hall, a projector screen glowed with the title:
"Briggon Community Development Discussion."
Below it, smaller text read:
Sponsored by SuperMartX Community Future Initiative
Mr. Duan sat near the front row, shoulders slightly hunched, hands clasped between his knees.
Eli walked over.
"You okay?" he asked.
Mr. Duan looked up slowly.
"I've owned this store twenty-two years," he said quietly. "Never thought I'd see neighbors arguing about whether we deserve to survive."
Eli didn't answer.
Because he understood exactly what Mr. Duan meant.
The microphone on stage squealed suddenly.
A woman in a navy blazer stepped up to it, smiling professionally.
"Good evening, Briggon residents. Thank you all for attending tonight's community discussion."
Her voice was smooth.
Trained.
"We're here to talk about the SuperMartX Community Future Initiative, a one hundred million yuan commitment toward improving neighborhoods like Briggon."
A murmur rippled through the room.
She continued.
"Funding could support new playgrounds, road repairs, youth education programs, and small vendor partnerships."
Someone in the crowd called out, "Does that mean jobs?"
"Yes," she said immediately. "Local hiring will be a priority."
More murmurs.
Hopeful ones.
Another voice shouted, "What about local stores?"
The woman paused.
"Our goal is to strengthen the community as a whole."
A man near the front stood up.
"Look," he said, raising his voice, "I've lived here thirty years. The sidewalks outside my building have been cracked since my kids were in elementary school."
He gestured toward the stage.
"If a company is offering real money to fix things, why are we fighting it?"
A few people clapped.
Others groaned.
From the opposite side of the room, a young woman shot back, "Because they literally ran a fake campaign to destroy a local store!"
"That was marketing," someone muttered.
"That was manipulation!"
The volume rose rapidly.
Mr. Duan stared at the floor.
Then another voice spoke up.
Calm.
Measured.
"May I say something?"
The room turned.
Eli had stood.
The hall quieted slightly as he walked toward the stage.
A few people whispered.
"That's the guy."
"The one from the video."
The woman in the blazer hesitated before handing him the microphone.
Eli faced the crowd.
Neighbors.
Customers.
People who had cheered during Block Day.
People now unsure which side they stood on.
"I'm not here to tell anyone what to choose," Eli began.
"That's not how communities work."
He gestured toward the screen behind him.
"Development matters. Parks matter. Schools matter. If someone is offering to invest in Briggon, that deserves attention."
Several heads nodded.
Eli continued.
"But let's be honest about something."
His voice hardened slightly.
"Companies don't invest one hundred million yuan out of kindness."
The room grew quieter.
"They invest because they expect something bigger in return."
Someone called out, "So what? Businesses make money."
Eli nodded.
"Exactly. That's the point."
He gestured toward the window.
"SuperMartX isn't just building a store here. They're building dominance."
Murmurs spread again.
"When they control suppliers, smaller stores can't stock shelves."
"When they undercut prices long enough, local competitors disappear."
"And when those competitors are gone…"
He paused.
"…who sets the prices then?"
Silence.
People shifted uneasily.
The woman in the blazer spoke up.
"Respectfully, Mr. Eli, our company supports small vendors through partnership programs."
Eli looked at her calmly.
"Did those partnerships exist before you got caught running a fake campaign?"
A few people laughed.
Others didn't.
The woman didn't smile.
From the back of the room, Uncle Gen's voice boomed.
"Kid's got a point!"
But another man stood immediately.
"Yeah, but Corner Pocket can't build parks!"
More voices joined.
"Yeah!"
"We need development!"
"Not just loyalty!"
The argument surged again.
Now louder.
Messier.
People shouting across the room.
Neighbors disagreeing openly.
The unity Briggon once had was cracking down the middle.
Jin watched from the back wall, arms crossed.
"They're splitting," he muttered.
Eli stood on the stage, watching the fracture spread through the crowd.
He realized something then.
SuperMartX didn't need to destroy The Corner Pocket directly.
They only needed to divide the neighborhood.
Because once the community stopped standing together…
The rest would collapse on its own.
Outside the hall, through the windows, the glowing SuperMartX banner swayed gently in the night breeze.
"Building the Future of Briggon Together."
Inside, Briggon was already starting to tear itself apart.