Chapter 77: The Harvest Season Has Arrived

The son most beloved by the Romans, Alberto Falcone, lies buried in the icy depths of Gotham Harbor.

This is absolutely earth-shattering news, the likes of which no one could have anticipated; over the years, the Falcone family has sunk countless bodies into Gotham Harbor, perhaps hundreds, perhaps thousands, yet at that moment, no one could have guessed that the son of the Falcone family's current patriarch would meet the same fate.

Yet if one speaks of karmic retribution, exact and unerring, it seems a bit too cruel for little Alberto; although he had always wanted to participate in the family business, he was kept isolated from it by his own father, meaning he indeed never directly committed any illegal acts—using the death of such a marginal figure as retribution against the Falcones seems rather cruel.

But regardless, everyone could at least recognize the same fact: Gotham City is about to change.

"Search! Find my son! If the body isn't found, it means Alberto isn't dead yet!"

The Godfather unleashed Lei Ting upon the silent crowd; everyone knew he still clung to a sliver of hope in his heart, but everyone also knew that even if the shot Alberto hadn't died immediately, he was unlikely to survive in the icy seawater for long—so much time had already passed, and since Alberto still hadn't been found, he had most likely become fish food.

But after all, what does this tumultuous, world-shaking event have to do with me, Ma Ma Zhaodi?

"Ah! Supervisor! I've missed you to death! During the days you were gone, I thought every day of the peaceful times in the restaurant."

Ma Ma Zhaodi, dressed in winter casual wear, expressed warm goodwill toward the restaurant's supervisor.

Supervisor Philip, leaning on a cane with a cast on his leg, wore a sour expression, looking as if he didn't want to reply at all—this was hardly surprising, because Supervisor Philip really didn't want to take this jinx back.

Bad luck with cars was one thing, but this man was just as cursed; two months ago, he came to work at the Red Dragon Restaurant, and by the end of the month, the restaurant was gone. One month ago, Donald sent him over via internal referral to become a waiter for the Falcone family, only for Alberto, the Romans' most beloved son, to meet his end in the waters of Gotham Harbor on New Year's Eve.

Everyone wasn't exactly suspecting him; after all, the Red Dragon Restaurant was overturned by Batman, and it was mainly targeted at the Falcone family; even without that pumpkin, he would still have come looking for Philip and Donald.

Similarly, the Godfather's son was targeted by the Holiday Killer—everyone knew that the psychotic killer who loved to kill was only willing to deal with people from the Falcone family; since he had already killed one Johnny Viti, why couldn't he kill another Alberto?

But it was still too grating.

The gangs in Gotham City at this time were, in the end, still of an old-school style; while they valued honor, they also believed a little in the mysterious and metaphysical, and combined with the fact that Ma Ma Zhaodi had previously been Alberto's direct subordinate, this matter made people's hearts even more uneasy.

"Every time I see you, I can't help but think of Alberto." These were the words the Godfather said to Ma Ma Zhaodi while patting his shoulder.

"Go, child; you should be able to understand my feelings as a father; return to the Red Dragon."

Ma Ma Zhaodi's mood at the time was complicated; on one hand, his December wages had arrived on schedule—after all, sons and business were two equally important matters in the family, and wages for the brothers still had to be paid—or perhaps, to the Falcones, the son was indeed a bit more important?

In any case, when he received that thirty-thousand-dollar wage, Ma Ma Zhaodi genuinely felt a complex emotion; on one hand, a job that allowed him time to slack off and slip out to cook porridge for the children while still earning such remuneration was hard to find in Gotham even with a lantern; on the other hand, the Godfather had originally planned to go to war with Maroni, and at this critical juncture, his son had died—he found it hard to imagine how intense the war in Gotham would become.

The risk of staying and continuing to work within the Falcone family had increased sharply; perhaps it was better to stay at the Red Dragon.

"I'll say this upfront: no matter what nonsense you pull next, go practice shooting properly—you should know how to shoot a gun by now, right?"

"No problem." Ma Ma Zhaodi patted his chest, looking as if he was giving a guarantee: "Except for accuracy, my marksmanship basically has no flaws now."

The supervisor's face gradually turned red; looking at the smile on Ma Ma Zhaodi's face, the various events of the past gradually surfaced in his mind: the shattered lamp, the gurgling whispers, the infuriating marksmanship, the despair-inducing slacker attitude had returned, all of it had returned.

In the end, a thousand words and ten thousand sentiments were distilled into a single angry curse.

"Get out and change clothes to work!"

"Got it."

Ma Ma Zhaodi slipped into the locker room with the speed of oil on the floor, exchanged greetings with a few colleagues he hadn't seen in a long time; fortunately, some of the injuries sustained by people in the restaurant back then weren't severe, and two months had been enough for them to recover, so Ma Ma Zhaodi also saw some familiar faces; it was just a pity he didn't see Rick, Castro, and the trio; they were probably still in the hospital.

At this moment, the system's notification also began to echo.

【Please note: last month's work hours have been made up.】

【Asset points have been settled, totaling 5,500 points.】

【Current remaining asset points: 119,900 points.】

Originally, there were some fractional points left, but those points were used up in Ma Ma Zhaodi's daily life and while cooking Laba porridge, leaving just a round number by now—as for why the number had become so large, it was mainly because the "Winter in Gotham" mission progress had been pushed to one hundred percent.

【Winter in Gotham

Status: In Progress (100%)

Rewards activated.

'Holiday' attribute effect activated; cooking holiday food 'Laba Porridge' grants attributes 'Harmonizing Nourishment' and 'Warming the Body, Dispelling Cold'.

Harmonizing Nourishment: Mixed grains and porridge, harmonizing and nourishing; Laba Porridge's nutritional supplementation effect on the eater is enhanced.

Warming the Stomach, Dispelling Cold: Ingredients are warm in nature, warming the body and dispelling cold; Laba Porridge's cold resistance effect on the eater is enhanced.

Current attribute enhancement obtained: 100%.

Mission progress has reached 100%; the holiday attribute enhancement cap is unlocked; as the mission continues to advance, holiday attributes will be permanently added to food; this bonus reward will end in mid-January, with a cap of 50%.

Current holiday food 'Laba Porridge' has obtained permanent attribute enhancement: 15.360%.

Note: Perhaps you could consider working in Antarctica in the future—the biggest difference between polar bears and you is that they aren't as cold-resistant as you.】

Looking at the six-figure fortune in the system, Ma Ma Zhaodi felt a sense of confidence for the first time in his life.

I'm thinking, should I fast-forward the timeline directly to the Valentine's Day node in mid-February, or weave a story in between? But if I weave one in, I'll most likely have to go to another universe; do you think fast-forwarding or going to another world is better? If it's another world, please tell me the name of that comic; I need to catch up.

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(End of this chapter)