Chapter 64: Christmas Eve

"I found that person, but I won't tell you his identity. I can only tell you that there were no Calendar Killer-related items or clues in his room. After arriving in Gotham, he acquired five guns in total, none of which were. 22 caliber, not even a single. 22."

"And the most important point is that his marksmanship is extremely poor, very poor. He could not possibly have shot and killed five gang members in a matter of seconds."

Indeed, Ma Zhaodi had practiced with a gun for less than half a month in total. He bore no signs of firearm proficiency whatsoever, with only one recorded instance of firing in a firefight, where his sole achievement was knocking down a chandelier. This misled everyone's judgment.

Harvey looked at the shadow in the darkness. He actually wanted to know that person's identity very much, but since Batman did not say, it meant he had his reasons.

"His account matches Harvey's. Gordon, we should trust our old friend."

Gordon frowned, thought for a moment, and finally slowly nodded.

"Alright, at least Harvey donated that money—but you might run into trouble because of it later."

"Interrogation, investigation," Harvey shrugged. "Doesn't matter, I can handle that. As for you, I heard there's a soup kitchen in the slums recently?"

"More than that? The Gotham Police Department has been running back and forth for this matter these past few days."

"I heard the porridge there is quite good? What's it called?"

"Labazhou. It's a festival food from Dongda."

Batman casually chimed in; after returning, he had specifically looked up information on this subject.

"The taste is alright."

"?"

Gordon and Harvey immediately widened their eyes, looking at Batman in the shadows.

What the hell? Are you Batman? Did someone take over your account?

How could Batman say something so casual?

"Ahem, back to business. The Holiday Killer case isn't fully cleared up yet, but I have a lead."

The deep voice swept the previous topic aside.

"He wore a black round hat, a loose trench coat, his face was indistinct, and he wore rough men's gloves. Except for the hat, his entire outfit was gray."

"... Anything else?"

"No, that's all."

"What kind of lead is that..." Harvey and Gordon exchanged glances, then sighed: "That kind of outfit is easy to get; even my house has a set."

"That's true," Gordon agreed. "The uniqueness of this evidence isn't even as strong as that ugly pumpkin."

"There's no need to pursue the ugly pumpkin anymore," Batman shook his head.

"The lead ends here; this thread is broken."

—

It did not snow today.

But it was only today that it didn't snow. In fact, the entire city of Gotham had been covered by days of heavy snow, accumulating a thick layer, with the whole city almost completely dressed in a thick white winter coat.

It was just that this winter coat wasn't very warm.

Ma Zhaodi, stirring the porridge in the big pot, didn't feel cold at all. The Santa Claus cosplay suit from Shangcheng was genuinely warm. He even had to switch to a longer spoon and stand a bit further away from the steaming big pot to avoid sweating.

He admired the children playing in the snow even more.

"Hey! Hey! You brat! I said no wiping your body with snow!"

Chief Gordon's strong voice rang out. These past few days, he occasionally came to the soup kitchen to help maintain order and register the number of homeless children in the East District. Although he didn't say it, Ma Zhaodi could see he was enjoying it.

Perhaps being with these resilient wild children made him feel a bit young again?

The glasses-wearing chief looked serious, taking three steps as two to grab a child who was shirtless and covered in patches of snow: "Little rascal, didn't I tell you that a temporary bathing station has been built here!"

"Sorry, Mr. Chief."

Jason's face immediately turned bitter, his eyes darting around, looking very lively. At this moment, the sorrowful expression from before was completely gone from his face, and his body was much more robust than before.

"But, Mr. Chief, the bathing station is full, and I... I really want to try what it feels like to bathe in snow."

"At your age, trying it would give you a week-long fever! Go! Put your clothes on!"

Jason reluctantly lifted his head, glanced at Ma Zhaodi nearby, saw Ma Zhaodi wearing a Santa hat shrug at him, and had to obediently turn around to get his new clothes.

The winter clothes were also specially made by Wei En Clothing. They roughly estimated the children's sizes and made several categories. Besides prioritizing warmth, they also considered a bit of aesthetics—of course, for children who were half-naked, being able to stay warm was already precious enough.

Watching Jason's state, Ma Zhaodi chuckled inwardly. With food and clothing secured, Jason's originally mischievous nature was unleashed. This personality, which had previously evolved into extreme aggression due to years of life on the streets of Gotham, was now just that of a curious child.

But what amazed him even more was Chief Gordon's personal charm. As the "cops" most hated by street gangs, he won their trust in just a few days. One couldn't help but sigh; this was the top-tier quality of the officer who had once operated from a position of isolation in the Gotham Police Department to become the Gotham Police Commissioner.

As for why Jason thought of wiping his body with snow—it might be because he really felt a bit hot.

"Gotham City's winter"

Status: In Progress (31.592%)

Reward Activated

'Festival' attribute effect activated. Cooking the festival food 'Labazhou' grants the attributes 'Harmonizing Nourishment' and 'Warming Body, Dispelling Cold'.

Harmonizing Nourishment: Mixed grains and porridge, harmonizing and nourishing. Labazhou enhances the nutritional supplementation effect for the consumer.

Warming Stomach, Dispelling Cold: Ingredients are warm in nature, warming the body and dispelling cold. Labazhou enhances the cold resistance effect for the consumer.

Current attribute enhancement obtained: 31.592%

Note: Honestly, maybe make two fewer bowls of porridge. Having such a strong nourishing effect every meal isn't good either."

Thanks to the efficiency of Wei En Logistics and the network of children forming groups who knew each other inside out, Ma Zhaodi, with Jason's help, quickly located the hideouts of the homeless child gangs in Gotham City. The number of these children was astonishing; in a short time, Ma Zhaodi's mission progress reached thirty percent.

With three meals a day without fail, the festival attributes of Labazhou also stacked up to this level. After finishing a bowl of porridge, the consumer gains 30% cold resistance for twelve hours, along with a nutritional supplementation effect.

Judging by the current situation, this effect might be a bit too good.

Even Ma Zhaodi had gained a little muscle recently. Of course, if he didn't start learning to exercise, drinking porridge in the future might cause him to get a nosebleed.

"You have a new gig, please check it."

Ma Zhaodi's heart skipped a beat. He put down the large spoon in his hand, took out his phone to check today's calendar, and sure enough—

"December 24th, Christmas Eve."

Sorry, I got confused; I should have written about Christmas Eve.

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(End of Chapter)