Envision a modest home plopped smack in the path of progress, like a tiny David facing a Goliath-sized train track—except this David is demanding a fortune to budge. In Jiangsu Province, China, a homeowner nicknamed Aunt Zhang turned her “nail house” into a multimillion-dollar standoff, delaying a $5.3 billion high-speed railway for two years. While her neighbors packed up for fair compensation, she hiked her price to absurd levels, forcing builders to construct the bridge around her property. It’s peak pettiness meets infrastructure impasse, proving one person’s greed can derail an entire nation’s commute.
Starting in 2020, the 163.54 km railway linking Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai neared completion by 2024, but Aunt Zhang refused relocation unless paid $14 million for her home—far above the government’s $700,000 offer plus three replacement houses. She demanded up to 200,000 yuan per square meter. After media frenzy and health issues like neurasthenia, she relented in 2025, accepting standard terms. The project, stalled since 2023, can now proceed.
Who knew a house could be a high-stakes poker chip? Aunt Zhang’s two-year holdout against a billion-dollar rail line shows greed’s power to halt progress, until stress and scrutiny force a fold. Click for drone videos of this isolated standoff!
Homeowner Refuses to Relocate, Delays $5.3 Billion Infrastructure Project for 2 Years
