Chapter 25: Prepare to Eat Children [VIP]

277.

Tim and Jason had been friends before.

They were in the same school, and for Tim, who was well prepared, it was easy to make friends with them.

Especially since he is very rich, as long as he has the signature and the original document is there, it won't be a problem as long as he has money.

It’s not that Jason can’t get it at Wayne’s house, but when we want to pay attention to more things, Tim, who focuses on one thing, is faster than us.

The main reason was that he had no ill intentions, and his social purpose was as pure as a blank sheet of paper - he just wanted to make friends with Jason.

Xiaojie also thought of Tim first after he ran away from home, and asked him to come out to attract our attention.

Dick and I figured we'd given Jason two days to calm down. All Dick needed to do was tell him he had a thick skin and didn't care about it (Dick: Hey!). We'd talk it over and tell him his family had given him permission to create his own art, and it shouldn't be a big deal.

Why not use my perception? Hey, playing hide-and-seek with family once in a while is so fun! Although Barbara rejected my suggestion and threw me a talisman that blocks my perception.

But it doesn’t matter, she is my sister after all, I will spoil her.

[Side Quest: The brother who ran away from home

Mission Statement:

Jason chose to run away from home because of an incident where "my brother read the fan fiction I wrote about him."

Your mission: to bring Dick and Jason back to their senses before they engage in a "brotherly brawl."

Use your humor, wit and indispensable family care to cleverly resolve the conflicts between them and avoid the outbreak of a family war.

Note: If you allow Dick's mumbling and Jason's crowbar to collide, the mission may end in a lose-lose situation for both parties.

Mission Rewards: Cosmic Fragments x10, Jason's Reluctant Approval x1, Dick's Perfunctory Gratitude x1.

In response to our friendly smiles, Tim raised the white flag.

He was very tactful and immediately told us that Xiaojie would go to the lecture the day after tomorrow, and that if we couldn't find him we should go there and wait for him.

Hahahaha, Xiaojie is so cute.

278.

How could we possibly believe the nonsense he said?

We were all raised by the same parents, so why would he honestly do anything and report it to us? I don't believe it. It's better to believe that I am Wu Zetian, v50 me, and when I am reborn, I will make you a general.

The emperor’s husband is also fine.

279.

Tim's "clue" sounded like a deliberately written script, and his overly calm expression made it seem as if the words "I'm covering for him" were engraved on his face.

"Dick, what do you think?" I turned my head to look at him, trying not to make the sarcastic curve at the corner of my mouth appear too obvious.

"This kid must be lying." Dick said decisively, but the next second he began to doubt himself, "But, would Xiaojie really lie to us? He's so well-behaved..."

Oh~ 800-meter filter.

"It's strange that you believe him." I rolled my eyes. "Have you forgotten that his favorite word in elementary school essays was 'honesty'? And then he turned around and told you after school that Ah Fu didn't make dessert today and ate up your quota?"

Dick was silent for a moment, his face full of complex emotions. "That's right..."

So, we decided to go to the lecture first and see what the situation was like, with an attitude of "don't believe it but go along with it." After all, although Tim was a bit dishonest, the information he provided was somewhat useful.

280.

When I arrived at the lecture, I looked around and instantly confirmed one thing: Xiaojie was not there at all.

Don’t ask, it’s just your sixth sense.

"Maybe he'll be late?" Dick stood aside, trying to make excuses for Jason.

"Or maybe he didn't plan to come at all." I crossed my arms, holding a grape-flavored lollipop in my mouth. "Honestly, Dick, a boy of Jason's age already has his own little secrets. The main reason he ran away from home this time was because you violated his privacy."

Dick's mouth twitched. "I had no idea he'd be so shy about that article... Besides, I was just curious and asked a few questions. I never thought he'd..."

"I asked a few questions out of curiosity." I squinted at him. "What did you ask?"

"I was just... casually asking why Nightwing is so miserable in his writing." Dick defended confidently, "How come I, a serious big brother, became the protagonist of a tragedy in his writing?"

"Ah," I suddenly realized. "So, the core of the problem isn't that he wrote about you, but that he wrote about you so realistically, so realistically that you began to identify with him."

“…” Dick was speechless.

281.

Just as we were complaining to each other, Tim suddenly appeared in the crowd.

"Why is he here again?" Dick frowned. "Is he here to spy on us?"

"That's fine." I shrugged. "That's fine too. Now that we've caught him, let's find out where Xiaojie is."

I walked straight over to him, and Tim froze for a moment, obviously not expecting us to catch him without any detours.

"Hey, little guy." I said, "It seems you are free today too."

“Uh, his eyes were wandering, and he was obviously making up an excuse.

Zuo was surprised. "But since it's such a coincidence, let's talk about it - for example, where is Jason?"

Tim scratched his head, trying to appear calm, "I really don't know, he didn't tell me..."

"Uh-huh," I drawled, giving Dick a look.

Dick immediately followed up, "That's okay. We still have time. Why don't you come with us and look for it? Maybe we can come across some clues."

Tim clearly sensed our "I won't let you go" vibe, and his expression was a bit conflicted. Finally, he could only sigh, "Well... he might have gone to see a friend. I really don't know the details, but he mentioned that friend lives in..."

He gave an address.

Dick and I looked at each other, and we both saw the satisfaction in each other's eyes that "this guy finally confessed."

"Thank you for your cooperation, little guy." I patted his shoulder. "You did a good job."

282.

However, when we arrived at the address Tim gave us, we found that... Jason was indeed not there.

"Tim lied to us?" Dick was a little crazy.

"No, he just gave a rough idea." I sighed. "Besides, didn't you notice? Jason didn't even try to hide. He was testing us..."

"What's the test?"

"It's a test of how badly we want to find him." I rolled my eyes. "Do you think he'd hide himself in some remote place and wait for us to find him? No, he must be somewhere super conspicuous, somewhere we wouldn't even expect."

Dick was stunned for a moment, then suddenly an idea struck him. "Could it be..."

"Yes," I nodded. "He's probably in Wayne Tower."

"Going home, and calling it running away." Dick smiled helplessly, "That's exactly what Jason would do."

We looked at each other and turned back at the same time.

283.

We raced back to Wayne Tower, and I couldn't help but complain.

"He ran away from home and even came back home. This guy is so self-righteous that it's a bit too much."

"Maybe it's because he knows other places aren't safe enough." Dick tried to explain, "After all, Wayne Tower has the most comprehensive security system..."

"Then he moved in and even stole food from the lounge for two days." I interrupted him mercilessly, "Isn't this just a change of residence?"

Dick's mouth twitched. "But at least he's within safe limits, isn't he?"

"Yes, yes, you're right." I rolled my eyes. "But can we hurry up? What if he does something a 'rebellious teenager' would do, like tampering with the company system and changing the Wayne Enterprises website to a picture of Nightwing's butt..."

Dick suddenly quickened his pace, "Don't be such a jinx!"

284.

When we arrived at the top floor of the building, as expected, Jason was comfortably lying on the sofa in Bruce's office, with half a cake and an unfinished cup of cocoa piled next to him.

"Welcome home." I leaned against the door frame, my tone filled with undisguised sarcasm. "Oh no, this place isn't home. You ran away from home and came to the branch of 'home' to have fun."

Jason raised his head, a hint of embarrassment from being caught red-handed, but soon it shifted back to his usual cool, Xiao Jie look. "I'm just hanging out somewhere. I didn't mean to be cool."

"Really? You found the heart of our company out of nowhere?" Dick walked over and pointed at the cocoa in his hand. "Also, does Alfu know you stole his secret cocoa?"

"He put it in the refrigerator himself," Jason retorted stubbornly. "It's in a public area for people to drink."

"Afu's logic is for us 'night watchmen'." I raised an eyebrow, "not for runaway kids."

Jason fell silent, looking back at the cake, trying to pretend we didn't exist.

285.

Dick sighed and pulled up a chair to sit across from him, "Okay, Jake, let's talk."

"What are we talking about?" Jason glanced up at him. "How you read my writing and asked me why it was so terrible?"

"Uh... I'm sorry, I really shouldn't have asked." Dick scratched his head, his expression slightly flattering. "But, your writing is really good. Even though it's a bit sad, I can tell you put a lot of effort into it."

"With all my heart?" Jason sneered. "I wrote you down so miserably, and you're not angry?"

"Why should I be angry?" Dick shrugged. "I just feel... honored to be included in your story."

Jason was stunned for a moment, his lips moved, but he didn't say anything.

"Besides, I don't think there's anything shameful about it." Dick continued with a smile, "You're so good at writing this stuff, you have your own ideas, and you can write characters so vividly... It's really amazing."

Jason's expression visibly softened, but he still lowered his head stubbornly. "Whatever you say, I won't change."

"No one asked you to change it." I walked over and patted his shoulder. "Jason, you have to remember one thing - every word you write represents your thoughts and feelings. No one has the right to ask you to change them."

"Yeah." Jason responded softly, his voice almost inaudible.

286.

We talked for a long time until Jason finally got up from the sofa and went back with us.

"Oh right." Before leaving, I looked back at the remaining half of the cake, "What should I do with this cake? Are you still going to eat it?"

"No." Jason shook his head. "I'll give it to you."

"Don't waste it then." I picked up the cake without saying a word and put it back into my system backpack. "Put it in the freezer of the Batcave refrigerator. After all, it's a souvenir of 'running away from home.'"

Jason stared at the cake in my hand, and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch. "Could you please not summarize my life events so casually?"

"Life event?" I laughed. "Jason, don't be ridiculous. You didn't even leave our property when you ran away from home."

Jason glared at me with a red face, "I can't be bothered with you!"

"Okay, kid." I raised the corner of my mouth, "Welcome home—er, no, welcome back Jason who ran away from home."

He snorted and walked forward without looking back.

This matter has finally come to an end.

287.

Eh, that's not right.

Why didn't my system show the task completion pop-up? Is the system down? Is there a bug? Is the network down?

or……

I stared silently at Jason, who was one step ahead of us.

Is this just fake?

I suddenly patted Jason's shoulder with my hand, which had a little spiritual power.

Then, before Dick could say anything, he saw Jason, who was walking in front of us, disappear like a wave.

Damn, I got fooled!

288.

Let me explain here. In order to avoid favoritism, we also sent Jason to the Wanjian Sect.

He is a... uh, stick cultivator who has also practiced some magic. The elder means that his mind is very active and he has a high affinity for things like spiritual power and magic.

Jason had apparently taken advantage of our lax attitude towards him and managed to escape from us.

But when did he become so proficient in this trick?

I closed my eyes to sense him, but found that he was nowhere to be found on this continent.

No, why did this guy go to Africa?

289.

New clues soon emerged.

By the time I flew on my sword to Ethiopia in a hurry, Bruce had already understood everything.

"It's the Joker."

Oh my god, why is this guy here again? He just gets itchy when he's not causing trouble, right?

"He used Jason's mother, Sheila Haywood, as bait to lure him in," Barbara added.

Oh, it's human nature for a child to want to find his mother. I understand Jason.

Or is the clown too bad! He actually used this to seduce him!

"Why didn't Jason tell us? Every one of us would be happy to help him!" Dick said gloomily.

"He might be afraid that after asking us, he will lose us whether he finds us or not." I quickly figured it all out.

Jason longs for his blood relatives, but he is also afraid of being without a home.

How could he have thought that? The moment he arrived at Wayne Manor, we were his family forever.

I'm going to tell him not to be afraid, we are always behind him.

290.

When I arrived at the battlefield with such a heavy mission, the battlefield was already in ruins.

The mercenaries and people from unknown forces in the camp were all beaten to the ground. Some of them were tied to trees in red and green clothes. It seemed that they were beaten by Jason and cried for their parents.

Jason was standing in front of a woman, the crowbar in his hand still covered in dirt and dust, like a burnt torch.

He stood straight, his expression as hard as a sculpture.

In front of him, Sheila Haywood lowered her head, clasped her hands together, and had a forbearing expression.

The atmosphere in the air was silent, harsh and oppressive.

I could feel Jason's emotions.

His expression was exactly the same as Bruce's before - the expression of someone who wanted to say something but his throat was blocked by mud and he couldn't say anything.

291.

"Don't compare me with him. I think my language communication skills are much better than his." Jason complained to me as if nothing had happened.

So fake.

"Don't point fingers at me here!" Jason got furious. Picking up the crowbar, he turned around and prepared to leave as if nothing had happened.

"Jason," Sheila Haywood called to him. "You're living a better life than I ever imagined."

I saw Jason's expression twisted for a moment, and a lot of anger rose in his eyes in an instant, and then was forced to cool down.

I saw his lips move slightly.

I thought he might have wanted to say something like – “Why”, “What qualifications do you have”, “You are too high and mighty”, “You abandoned me”, “This happened last year”, but he said nothing and did not turn his head.

Sheila Haywood seemed to gain strength from the words just now. Her hands stopped shaking and tears began to fall from her eyes.

"I had no money, no power, and I couldn't afford to support you in Gotham at the time. I went to the hospital twice a week to sell blood, but it still wasn't enough to maintain the most basic living expenses... I threw you into an orphanage, where you at least had a chance of survival, but with me, you had no protection at all." Through Jason's back, Sheila Haywood saw life in Gotham at the time: rampant gangs and a corrupt upper class. She was burdened by a heavy loan, and the life she once held in her arms, once filled with joy, now felt so cold that she could barely stand up.

"I'm not saying this to ask for your forgiveness, nor am I thinking that it's because we left you in the orphanage that you wouldn't have met such a good family. I just want to say that I was born in love," Sheila Haywood whispered.

"I gave birth to you with love and nurtured your growth with love. I regret that I can't be with you, but I'm also happy that you have met your loving family. Jason, you deserve all the love."

I nudged Jason.

"Want to go hug her?"

Jason didn't move, but his tears couldn't lie.

So I turned around and pushed Sheila Haywood to hold him.

At this time, a hug is more touching than any words, isn't it?

292.

While I was flying in the sky with my face propped up and playing with my phone, Xiaojie finally finished talking to his mother from the heart.

"It was just a simple chat." Although Jason's eyes were red, his tone was calm.

"There's no need to say the first half of the sentence."

It's just crying, it's not a big deal. When Dick was a kid, he wanted to bake a cake for Batman, but it turned out badly, so he hid under the covers and cried.

"Really?" Jason said with interest. "You must have a video, right?"

I smiled and winked at him.

"You weren't recording the video just now, were you?" Jason asked me after a while.

I still smiled and winked at him.

He increased the speed of the flying sword and rushed away.

"Hey! Delete it!"

My brother's dark history and other things must be preserved. Upload them to various accounts in real time and save dozens or even hundreds of copies.

293.

After returning home, Jason encountered an unexpected person in the lobby of Wayne Manor.

Tim was sitting stiffly on the middle sofa, with Dick and Barbara on either side of him, Bruce on a separate sofa to the right, and Alfred beside him collecting the empty plates.

He and the little boy on the sofa stared at each other.

"After all, he's your accomplice." His sister put her hand on his shoulder with a smile. "Now that you're home, why don't you confess the truth?"

What a joke! The psychological problem has been solved, but the problem of running away from home hasn't been solved yet! The problem of avoiding all of us hasn't been solved yet! The problem of luring the tiger away from the mountain and fooling the brothers and sisters two or three times hasn't been solved yet!

If we don’t make things clear here today, no one can leave.