[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of-":3,"chapter-built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-7":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Starting from Scratch: Batman Shatters My Get-Rich Dreams",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2215975,3926,"Chapter 7: Huh?","built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-7",7,"\u003Cp>Drake acted like a complete novice during the robbery, yet his expression remained calm as he heard gunshots through the phone; he asked, \"Donald, are you busy?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That rough male voice seemed very patient; after listening to Drake, he replied leisurely, \"Not busy now, just wrapping up.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bang!\" Another gunshot rang out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Here's the thing, I have a friend who just arrived in Gotham. Everything he knows are normal human skills, completely useless in Gotham City.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"You want him to work for me?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Don't you have a restaurant? His face is perfect for attracting women to dine. He can't fight, but he isn't too afraid either. Just an ordinary person, but he has good eloquence, is brave, and won't be intimidated.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Good eloquence means his mouth won't stay shut.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bang!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please, don't—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bang!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I guarantee his mouth is absolutely shut—he's just an ordinary person; he wouldn't risk his life just to brag.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Bang! Bang!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>More gunshots echoed from the other end of the line; moments later, that rough male voice spoke again: \"Drake, we're even now.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Of course.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Is that guy with you?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi immediately took the phone: \"I'm here.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Come to work at nine tomorrow morning.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Beep—beep—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Watching the phone hang up and hearing the busy tone, Ma Zhaodi looked at Drake with a completely bewildered expression.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why are you looking at me? He said you should go to work, so that means he agreed.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What's the location? What are the requirements? I don't even know what to wear.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I'll take you there; just remember the route. The waiter's uniform is in the restaurant. As for what to do—just what waiters normally do: greet guests, take orders, serve food, wipe tables, nothing else. Oh, right, you also need to bring a gun. Whether you can use it or not doesn't matter, but you must bring one. I'll leave mine for you.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi chuckled. Damn Gotham, where a gun is standard equipment for a job, and nothing else matters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"By the way, do you have a wallet?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No, I'm used to going out with just my phone. Damn it, I don't even have a phone!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I can give you my wallet, but not my phone. However, Camilla rarely contacts others and socializes little; I'll talk to her and ask her to give you her phone—do you at least have a SIM card?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No problem, I have that.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi accepted Drake's gifts without hesitation because, damn it, they were all rightfully his. Even without mentioning that he had given away a life, simply calculating by asset points, he had directly restored a life originally worth 9,999 dollars.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ten thousand dollars for a wallet, a phone, and a gun, plus a waiter's job in Gotham—truly a premium deal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking of this, he couldn't help but silently praise the system's thoughtfulness; it provided several bank cards from common American banks and SIM cards, saving him a lot of trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drake didn't waste time; he went to find Camilla first. Who knows what they were doing in the room, but only after Ma Zhaodi had spread out a bed on the floor did he bring out a small phone and hand it to Ma Zhaodi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That night, the room of Drake and Camilla was surprisingly quiet, and Ma Zhaodi slept very soundly on the sofa.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The next morning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drake got up early and woke Ma Zhaodi, who was still sleeping.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Let's go, I'll take you to your workplace.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi, eyes half-open, looked at the clock hanging in the living room. The hour and minute hands both pointed to the number seven, leaving him bewildered: \"Why get up so early? Isn't it only seven o'clock?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"We don't have a car.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Huh?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moments later, Ma Zhaodi, looking utterly regretful, hurriedly got up and put on his clothes, then was dragged out the door by Drake. The two jogged all the way to a scarred, hole-ridden iron pole nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Drake, although I understand your desire to prevent me from being late, we should at least have breakfast first.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"No time. We'll eat on the way; any later and we might miss the start time.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While explaining, Drake wrapped a scarf around Ma Zhaodi's neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Oh my god, how far is the place you introduced?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Fort Odis District. It's not close to the East Side, but the route is decent. If we're lucky, we'll arrive in about half an hour.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After finishing with the scarf, Drake took out a hat and placed it on Ma Zhaodi's head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Huh?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi looked completely bewildered: \"What do you mean by 'lucky'—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Screech\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A bus arrived at the stop, the doors opened, Ma Zhaodi's question was cut short, and Drake pulled him onto the bus, finding seats first.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi plopped down into a chair. Just as he was about to ask again, he felt wind blowing fiercely against half his face. The cold air instantly woke him up. He turned his head and saw that all the bus windows were missing. Cold air rushed into the bus through the empty space where the windshield should have been, and everyone around had wrapped their heads tightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before he could recover, he saw Drake sitting beside him pull a gun from his pocket and hold it in his hand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What are you doing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drake didn't answer; instead, he stood up, walked over to the bus driver, and started chatting with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Damn it, you can't disturb—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi was about to pull Drake back, but his gaze fell on Drake's seat, and he suddenly noticed something wrong: why were there holes in Drake's seat?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had wanted to ask when he first boarded: why did the bus have so many welded parts? Dense patches of small iron sheets welded onto the body, looking like a patchwork quilt made of scraps.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wait, are these damn bullet holes?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He originally thought there might be a few thugs, gang members, prostitutes, or addicts inside the bus, but you're telling me there's a shootout inside the bus?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps I should just get off the bus and walk to work; maybe that would be safer?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just then, Drake seemed to have reached some agreement with the driver. He opened his wallet, took out a few colorful bills, and handed them to the driver. The driver gave him a grin, pulled a handgun and several magazines from somewhere, and handed them over.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ah?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Drake returned holding the handgun as if claiming credit, sat beside Ma Zhaodi, and seeing that his mood seemed unstable, asked with concern.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1103,"2026-06-17T10:15:16.905Z",1,"Qwen3.5 122B","99a80745f3b2a212b5055cb1995c1eb781a0e25d8ed2947e5ca8f4430ca79cf0","built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-8","built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-6",10,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarting-from-scratch-batman-shatters-my-get-ric-cover.jpg"]