Chapter 797: The Killing Joke (Part 21)

In the end, Bruce did not choose to return to the apartment Selina had newly rented with her, because he felt that if he stayed any longer, even if he didn't go into shock from gastroenteritis, he might go into shock from high blood pressure.

When he was dating Selina, Bruce had fantasized several times about what kind of environment she lived in, and what kind of upbringing could shape such a charming personality.

At the time, Bruce didn't have a clear concept of the East End; he felt sympathy for everyone there, and Catwoman was no exception.

But when he arrived here, he discovered that he was the one who needed sympathy; Selina was living quite well here.

She was like a fish swimming in a shallow bay; every single pebble in this small pond could not escape her eyes. Where to rent, how to take transport, how to find work, how to buy things... these matters that Bruce needed to spend time slowly figuring out seemed exceptionally easy to her.

Of course, this was because Bruce had been here for less than two months, while Selina had spent 20 years here. However, men, when facing women—especially their own girlfriends—always have an extra sense of pride.

Moreover, the truths Selina told him made him realize that he had truly been played, but at the same time, it left him feeling lost.

He hadn't heard a single cry for help here, and no one had complained to him about how miserable life was here.

If one were to say that other strangers couldn't show weakness to others, Bruce recalled that Selina, who was very close to him, had also never said a single bad word about the slums.

This was actually quite incredible, because Selina was a lucky girl who had gone from the slums to the upper class. Since she started dating Bruce, she had been to all the high-end restaurants in Cat Getan, and even the entire East Coast. Every trip involved the most high-end hotels, car services, and she was never without servants or security.

She was like a true high-born socialite, having seen the prosperity of a world overflowing with material desires. Bruce had once fantasized about listening to the fragile parts of Selina's heart, her unbearable past, and had also wondered if Selina's distance from him was because she realized the difference in their social classes.

But today, Bruce discovered that Selina had never felt inferior because of his background. After enjoying the most luxurious life in the world, she could still live very well in the slums.

This is actually very strange, isn't it? Bruce thought. People struggle their whole lives just to strive for the top, to create a better living environment for themselves. And it is easy to go from frugality to luxury, but difficult to go from luxury to frugality. After living in Wei En Manor, even the best houses in the "Living Hell" looked like broken shacks.

But Selina didn't dislike this place at all. She had absolutely no intention of letting Bruce Wei En take her away. Bruce even had the illusion that Selina seemed to like life here even more.

What is there to like here?

This question made Bruce feel lost, because his experience here had been very rough, so he felt that the people here should be like they were in hell.

But the fact was, when he regained a slightly more objective mindset and was no longer controlled by his emotions, he discovered that the people here were actually not negative; to a certain extent, they could even be called optimistic and upward-looking.

The smiles they showed might not be bitter smiles, but smiles from the heart.

This once again shook Bruce's views. He felt that he would continue to struggle with this question for a long time, and that he needed to stay here to find a real answer.

But soon, he had new trouble.

Following Constantine, Gordon, Harvey, Alfred, and Selina, someone who should have found this place sooner finally found it: that was Schiller.

It was a night when Bruce was still wandering. Schiller, in his sleep, received a phone call. The person calling was Victor.

Victor's first sentence was: "Schiller, I want to tell you some news, but you must not get angry. Really, stabilize your emotions, absolutely do not get angry..."

At the time, Schiller was just about to fall asleep. Being woken up by a phone call was something that made him a bit angry, but because the caller was Victor, it was tolerable. However, the news Victor told him next made Schiller's temper flare up.

Victor told him that his once-proud student, Bruce Wei En—that is, Batman—had missed class for a month straight after Schiller relaxed his requirements, and had also missed the first round of internships.

I believe anyone who has been a teacher, a parent, or even an older brother or sister understands that what makes one the angriest is when you think this brat has shown some improvement and finally understands a bit of sense, only for them to turn around and cause an even bigger mess for you.

Even at Cat Getan University, missing class for a month straight was a big deal. If any student other than Bruce had missed class for a month, the teacher could almost write their death certificate with their eyes closed. But it just so happened that the one who missed class for a month was Batman.

Although Schiller really wanted to write his death certificate now, his reason told him that it was unlikely Batman was dead, and even if he were dead, he wouldn't be dead for a whole month.

Although Schiller didn't want to admit it, Batman had indeed improved a lot. Besides the combat skills and invention abilities he already had, he had also improved a little bit in his interpersonal dealings and emotional intelligence.

And Cat Getan's external environment had become a bit more peaceful because of Schiller's various meddling. Everyone was busy making money, and no one cared about Batman.

With the right time, place, and people, the possibility of Batman dying was truly too small. Since he wasn't dead, why on earth didn't he go to class?

Carrying this question, Schiller found the incomparably haggard Bruce in the East End.

The moment he saw him, Schiller thought he might have seen wrong, so he specifically had the Gray Fog adjust his visual cells to ensure he wasn't hallucinating.

When Schiller and Bruce met on the street, Bruce was wearing a dusty coat, his pant cuffs were covered in mud spots, his two rain boots were different colors, and the umbrella he was holding had three broken ribs.

Even more peculiar was his current appearance: a face full of stubble, medium-long hair almost touching his shoulders, sunken cheeks, and a large burn scar from his neck to his cheekbone. His entire face was covered in traces of chemical dye corrosion.

Looking at this image, Schiller almost shouted "Joker." It wasn't until he used his Spirit World vision that he confirmed this was Bruce, Bruce Wei En, a man who had been called Batman just over a month ago.

The two looked at each other, silent.

Schiller speculated that Bruce might have done something, but facing a Bruce like this, Schiller still didn't know what to say.

He stood there for at least two minutes before walking up to Bruce. He tapped the ground in front of Bruce's feet with his umbrella and said:

"How about you go back and write your thesis."

Bruce was also stunned. He hadn't expected that after not seeing this professor for less than two months, the first sentence out of his mouth would be this.

Bruce had never dared to hope to hear any good words from Schiller's mouth; this professor hated everyone in the world equally.

His linguistic logic was based on the fact that everyone owed him millions, and his linguistic style was to break the defenses of everyone he spoke to equally; no one could be an exception.

Bruce confirmed that this was the gentlest sentence he had heard since he met Schiller. He didn't even mention skipping class or not handing in assignments.

Schiller sighed and said: "No matter how you got yourself into this state, no matter what you are struggling with now, you can always go back to school to study. It's a good place, for anyone, including you, Batman."

"Thank you, but I don't want to go back." When Bruce said this, he felt like he had tinnitus.

"Then where do you want to go?" Schiller asked with a frown.

"I want to stay here, stay in the slums, and live here."

Schiller looked around at the environment. This was a very chaotic street in the East End. Even now, heads would still poke out from the pitch-black alleys, their greedy eyes targeting every living thing here.

"Why do you want to stay here?" Schiller asked again.

"Because I want to know what it feels like to live in the slums." Bruce answered very straightforwardly again. This style was so concise and precise that it didn't sound like him at all.

"Slum life?" Schiller frowned, showing a puzzled expression, but Bruce took the initiative to speak:

"Professor, have you ever lived in the slums? Do you know what life is like here?"

Schiller paused and began to search inside the archives of his Tower of Thought.

He confirmed that he had never lived in any slum. In his previous life, he studied step-by-step, and after graduation, he never left the big city. Although the overall conditions weren't great at that time, they certainly couldn't be called a slum.

And after coming to these two worlds, the DC world, Schiller had always lived at Cat Getan University, and then bought a manor. These two places were far from what could be called a slum, and the closest he had ever been to a slum was living in Hell's Kitchen in Marvel's New York.

But in fact, that couldn't be considered a slum; it was more like a gang gathering place. It was just that the public security was poor, but the living conditions weren't bad.

Indeed, that had once been the most famous slum in Manhattan, but that was a long time ago. Now, Hell's Kitchen was very close to the Manhattan business district, with a commute of only a few dozen minutes. It could be called a prime location. Even Stark couldn't call that place a slum now.

And now it was 1990. Even on the relatively wealthy East Coast, there were many slums. Cat Getan's slums could even be said to have taken over as the main feature; other cities had normal areas as the majority and slums as attachments, while in Cat Getan, normal areas and wealthy areas were the attachments.

"What are you trying to say?" Schiller asked, looking at Bruce.

"Do you know how hard it is to live in the slums?" Bruce asked. As soon as he finished speaking, he saw a very puzzled expression on the professor's face, and then he heard Schiller ask in a very puzzled tone:

"Is it hard to live in the slums? Where is the difficulty?"

Then, under Schiller's shocked gaze, Bruce showed an extremely stiff smile. Although this smile was shallow and looked like crying, he still smiled.

The somewhat stiff expression flashed and disappeared. Schiller slowly opened his mouth and said: "I'm not worried about the slums; I'm more worried about your mental state right now..."

"But I'm staying here, and I'm not going anywhere." Bruce said: "If you want to treat me, you can only stay here."

Schiller pursed his lips and said: "You mean you don't want to go to class, and you want to drag me along to skip class? Aren't you being a bit excessive? Bruce?"

"Besides, what's so hard about living in the slums? Can it be harder than a thesis? You've almost finished revising your thesis, and you can't handle the slums?"

Bruce looked into Schiller's eyes and said: "Are you planning to try?"

Schiller was genuinely and truly puzzled. He said: "You're not serious, are you? Do you really think living in a place like this is harder than living in the upper class?"

Then, he sighed and said: "Fine, anyway, most of the students have gone to internships, so I'll stay here for a while." ===== CHAPTER 798 =====