Chapter 3247: Bloodied New City (Part 7)

It was another morning that was neither warm nor bright. Gordon put down his sixth cup of coffee and rubbed his eyes hard. When he opened them again, they were as red as if they were about to bleed.

The door was knocked. Nightwing, fully armed, walked in. Gordon took another sip of coffee and said, "Your face looks as foul as if you haven't slept for several nights. What's wrong again?"

"A protest against pollution broke out in District X15. Batgirl captured traces of criminal activity in Arkham Asylum. It is preliminarily suspected to be Bane or Killer Croc."

"Did you go investigate?"

"Not yet." Nightwing's brows furrowed deeply. He said, "I came to talk to you about this problem. The GTO has been in arrears for more than a month's salary. What do you intend to do?"

"Stopping protest activities is not within your scope of duty." Gordon shook his head and said, "If there are super-criminals, then wait until they show up before you go. Stop your preaching to others. That's it."

Nightwing, standing at the door, hammered the door panel hard and said, "I'm not preaching. I'm just stating a fact! The city's situation is getting better. Why don't we strike while the iron is hot?"

"Because these things are not as simple as you imagine." Gordon sighed lightly and said, "Batman has protected you too well, so you always find it hard to see the deep-seated roots of problems. If you want to investigate and stop the behavior of super-criminals yourself, I won't stop you, because the equipment on your whole body is worth at least 50,000 dollars, while I have to find a way out for those who aren't so rich."

"You are always compromising." Nightwing said, "Today to this one, tomorrow to that one. Even the Joker can persuade you."

"Please don't forget, the GTO you are in now was established by the person you call the Joker. Abandon your meaningless anger."

After Gordon finished speaking, he put on his trench coat and left the office. Nightwing chased after him and said, "Where are you going?"

"City Hall office building. Someone made an appointment to talk to me about security fees."

"Why are you going to negotiate with that group of vampires?!" Nightwing raised his tone and said, "If it weren't for them deducting our funds under various names, we wouldn't be unable to pay wages."

"Yes, but do you have any other way to stop them? Kill them all?" Gordon turned his head and glanced at Nightwing, saying, "I understand your anger, but you had better understand that I didn't just recognize reality during this incident. Such things have always been happening. Compared with the deep-seated reasons, your anger, the anger of all of you, is not worth mentioning."

"So you are now looking for a solution to the problem? What will they blackmail you for again?"

"I have been struggling on the verge of death." Gordon turned his head back, pushed his glasses, and said, "Just like a patient who has lived in the intensive care unit for more than ten years, can't decades of fighting against death make me understand that the bill I get when I am discharged is not important at all? What else can I lose?"

Nightwing stopped his steps. His fists were clenched tight, but soon he quickly caught up with Gordon and said, "I'll go with you. They will definitely play tricks."

Then his tone softened and he said, "Sorry, Commissioner. I'm not aiming at you. I'm just very angry. I've always been very angry."

"I said, I understand your anger, because I also had a long period like this, getting angry for these people every day."

"Then you aren't angry now?"

"Anger is a good medicine for immune fatigue. When I feel tired, I will let myself vent my anger, and then I feel much better."

"I don't know how to evaluate you, even putting your own anger on the scale for valuation, and then using it cautiously."

"Yes, because to this day, even my own body and my psychology are a very heavy part of the resources I can utilize. Apart from that, there really is nothing."

Nightwing fell silent, looking very sad, and Gordon didn't even look back at him, just adding a sentence when getting into the car.

"The thing I regret most at present is that when Batman beat the Joker, I didn't stand up."

"Did you let go of your anger at that time?"

"I don't know. Actually, I didn't feel anything at the time, only numbness. But this made me have to retreat again and again when negotiating with the Pale Knight."

"It's okay, there's still me." Nightwing said, "I will help you."

On the way the car drove to the municipal building, the street scene was still bleak. The dim yellow light of the morning through the clouds made the whole city return to the Victorian era. The drumbeats played by all the scenery were like the finale.

Gordon and Nightwing got out of the car together. Just stepping into the municipal building, they found some differences. Every employee was a bit flustered, sneaky, and sweating profusely.

Gordon's gaze moved away from a fat man and looked at a lady giving a speech behind the glass wall of the office. He had a slight impression of them, because the last time he came here to find the Pale Knight, these two people had stayed in front of the coffee machine for three and five hours respectively.

Gordon didn't feel that there were so many things to be busy with in City Hall on weekdays. Perhaps something had happened.

He quickened his pace. After getting on the elevator, he hurriedly pressed the button. The ominous premonition in his heart became more and more intense.

Just at this time, Nightwing's phone rang. After answering it and dealing with a few sentences, he hung up and said to Gordon, "Batman called me again. He hopes I can go back, but I really don't have time."

"I know he doesn't support me joining the GTO, but using such tricks to call me back is a bit too childish." Nightwing lowered his eyes and said.

"Although he is not a person who needs company, Alfred just passed away. Perhaps he needs someone to comfort him."

"That person is not me." Nightwing said, "Maybe I'm just a substitute for his first Robin, but he shouldn't think about calling me around."

The two walked out of the elevator together. The receptionist brought them to the door of the mayor's office with a smile. This smile was exceptionally sincere, making Gordon feel that he had taken the wrong medicine.

The police commissioner of Gotham City had never been welcome anywhere. If the commissioner's name was James Gordon, he could even manage not to see a single smiling face for six consecutive months.

The door of the mayor's office was pushed open. Sitting inside was not the Pale Knight, although the person who contacted Gordon was not the Pale Knight either, but he thought he would be there.

If he disappeared at this time, it would look a bit like evasion. The Pale Knight was a person who wouldn't show weakness. Precisely because of this, he looked exceptionally convincing.

"Hello, my name is Schiller Rodriguez. You can just call me Schiller." Schiller walked up and shook hands with Gordon, saying, "Inviting you here today is mainly to talk about the issue of security funding."

"Is Mr. Napier not here?"

"He went to be busy with other things, things much more important than the security funding issue. I am his aide and can fully represent him."

"I don't think there is any problem more important than security." Nightwing said.

"Yes, but what we are going to talk about is just security funding. Although the money issue is also very important, the mayor doesn't have to manage all the details." Schiller smiled and said.

They sat down in the reception area. Schiller sat alone on one side, and Nightwing and Gordon sat on the other.

"The GTO's funding is insufficient." Gordon said very straightforwardly, "The natural disaster fund used to pay for the team's various expenses is running out. We are in arrears with wages and urgently need a sum of money to fill this hole. How much can municipal funds take out?"

Schiller took a sip of water and said, "If I say not all of it, who do you intend to let make up the rest? Batman?"

Gordon immediately became vigilant. Schiller waved his hand and said, "No need to be very surprised. The Pale Knight has already told me Batman's true identity. This is proof that I am trustworthy. We shouldn't tangle on these meaningless questions for too long."

"Yes, that's what I thought." Gordon had to answer, "We can reduce the team's activity frequency, which can save some money. Batman should be able to take out the remaining funds."

"Don't you think there is a problem with this?" Schiller said, "Batman never supported the establishment of this team from beginning to end, yet you want him to pay."

"He doesn't support it just because this team was established by the Joker, but Mr. Napier is no longer the Joker." Nightwing said, "I think he has never turned this corner. He should learn to look at the bad guys of the past and the good guys of the present independently."

"Why do you think Napier is no longer the Joker? Because of these things he is doing now? We certainly admit he did good things, but that doesn't mean he is not the Joker at all."

"Are you Batman's lobbyist?"

"On the contrary, I am the Joker's aide. I point this out just to tell you that Batman's worries are not unreasonable. The Pale Knight's mental state is indeed worrying."

Gordon felt that his heart had been sinking. He said, "Are you the funeral arrangements he wants to explain?"

"It hasn't reached such a severe point yet." Schiller shook his head.

What made Gordon and Nightwing feel confused was that although the news he said was worse than the other, the man in front of them always had a relaxed posture.

"I hope you are clear that whether it is Batman or the Joker, they are not your life-saving straw. It is not that the city will have any improvement by turning from counting on Batman to counting on the Joker."

"But the Pale Knight is indeed..."

"He is indeed doing louder than Batman, but that doesn't mean he is doing better. He just turned over the contradictions that were hidden under the water in the past, but how to solve this contradiction, he has never been able to come up with a trustworthy answer."

"He saved the slums." Nightwing said, "Used charity funds to help many families and gave many children the opportunity to study."

"Yes, this is a good thing, but this is not the answer." Schiller said, "If a country needs to count on a leader who is rare in a hundred years to be kind to have these, then this is precisely the problem itself."

The two people opposite him frowned deeply, seemingly thinking about his words, and Schiller continued.

"Whether it is the former Batman or the current Pale Knight, they saw the contradiction. One chose to remain silent but tried his best to solve it. One chose to put the contradiction on the table so that people could see hope and work hard with him."

"Their ideas and practices are both good, it's just that the methods are problematic."

Gordon leaned his body forward and said, "What brilliant insights do you have?"

"The elite class, that is, those rats who ate up your security funding and natural disaster funds, are not our enemies."

"What crazy talk are you saying?" Nightwing felt a bit unbearable. He said, "So your method is to praise them for doing the right thing and doing well, and then surrender to them?"

"I certainly have to praise them."

"Why?!"

"Because they have money." Schiller looked into Dick's eyes and said, "They have money, and they know how to make money better than anyone else. They are also very willing to spend a lot of money at the right time. Why should I be their enemy?" ===== CHAPTER 3248 =====