25. Gotham: The Keg

33.

"We all hope for a better future for Gotham," he admitted. When those cobalt blue eyes stared directly at him, anyone couldn't help but listen intently. "But there's no denying that the problems Gotham faces are numerous and complex—like a tangled ball of yarn, entangled not only with current problems but also with problems that have accumulated over years and decades."

Bruce Wayne often deliberately acts like a handsome fool, but the gossip about him dating a supermodel who just appeared on a fashion cover today and being photographed by paparazzi with someone else tomorrow can only fool the empty-headed celebrities in the upper class. Those who have truly smelled the blood of fame and fortune don't buy it.

He must maintain a delicate balance between being "shrewd" and "easy to be gullible", neither arousing fear nor being despised - this is better for the development of Gotham.

"Gotham's previous 'master' was Falcone—he embarrassed me in front of many people before," Bruce said helplessly, throwing up his hands. "Thank God he finally fell."

"But even though we now have an award-worthy commissioner like Gordon, Gotham's 'tradition' of collusion between the police department and the courts did not die with Falcone."

"Not to mention the super criminals that appeared later, the Riddler, Poison Ivy, Black Mask, Scarecrow, the Joker..." Every name that appeared in the newspaper would become a nightmare for the people of Gotham for a while. The man snorted coldly when he said this, with a look of disdain on his face: "Ha, they are all gifts brought to Gotham by that weirdo in a bat costume."

Lewis's expression gradually turned pale. From Wayne's description, he quickly imagined a picture of hell: "Then, then I'm afraid I can't..."

“But now you’ve shown up.”

"...This city has had many mayors. Some chose to sit in this position for personal gain, while others were gradually corrupted by power and became accomplices to crime—they all ultimately failed her." Wayne exhaled softly, his brows lowered, his expression silent and complex. Countless wet rainy nights in Gotham melted into that sigh. "But your appearance makes me feel that this is an opportunity given by God to Gotham, a reward for her never giving up on self-salvation."

"What Gotham needs most right now is a good mayor." Bruce Wayne's eyes seemed to hold a captivating charm, and Lewis felt his head spin, about to be sucked in. "You're a good mayor. You've kept things in perfect order during your tenure... Do you know what I was thinking when I read your resume?"

Lewis's brain was completely insufficient, and he unconsciously followed the other party's words and continued: "What?"

Wayne smiled softly: "I was thinking, if only Gotham had met you sooner."

"This way, we can build shelter for orphaned children sooner, and renovate dilapidated industrial residential areas. Gotham's booming construction industry will provide jobs for more unemployed people sooner, giving them hope for the future."

Bruce Wayne is much taller than Lewis. His good posture, broad shoulders and narrow waist make him feel oppressive when he stands in front of anyone. But when he moves and speaks, that kind of intimidation is quickly overshadowed by Wayne's amazing personal charm, allowing others to see a Wayne who truly wants to make Gotham's future better.

"Wayne Group can provide financial support for these, but the appeals we can make are really limited. Gotham still needs you to take charge of the situation."

"So please give Gotham a chance, give Bruce Wayne a chance."

Lewis was completely defeated by Bruce Wayne's powerful punches. He was moved to tears by Bruce Wayne's touching words and looked like he was ready to devote himself to Gotham until his death. "I never thought this city would have such a warm-hearted and generous entrepreneur like you! If everyone was like you, Mr. Wayne, what a wonderful world this would be!"

"Don't worry, I, Lewis, swear on my many years of good reputation that I will do my best to do something for Gotham. At least, I want to make sure that the people who will be hoping for the future of Gotham live a good life before I leave office!"

Seeing that Lewis was about to hold the man's hand and say that he would take care of everything, Aria, who had originally decided to borrow the mayor's office computer to search for relevant entries such as "Who is Bruce Wayne", "Is there any relationship between Wayne Group and JOJA", "How many hours do Wayne Group employees work a day" and so on before deciding whether to participate, raised her hand.

The owner of the blue eyes looked at her: "Ms. Aria?"

"You said you would improve the living conditions of the orphans here so they can have enough to eat every day?"

Her expression was as serious as if she was facing a war, so Bruce Wayne also suppressed the corners of his mouth that had been raised all the time and answered solemnly:

"Yes."

"My parents left me young - they died in Crime Alley."

"People often say that Bruce Wayne is a lucky bastard because he got a pretty generous inheritance and doesn't have to live with bedbugs or join a criminal gang just to make a living." Wayne paused here. These remarks must have followed him for a long time, so that he could recite them by heart.

"…but I know what it's like to be an orphan in a city like Gotham."

Feeling abandoned, lonely, worthless and uncared for, they can only slide into the abyss and fall into the quagmire of crime.

"So just feeding them is far from enough. We need education, a comprehensive social security system, and social care. These are things that should have been accomplished at the very beginning of society, but Gotham is lagging behind..."

"It's okay, it's not too late to do it now!" Admitting he was moved by his words, the farmer, having received his promise, removed the Wayne Group from the blacklist of "suspected JOJA companies," happy to discover someone had already taken a step ahead in his upcoming undertaking. "Before I arrived in Pelican Town, there were a lot of things I needed to change, like the bus breaking down and the former museum director absconding with all the collection..."

Lewis's expression became a little subtle, and Aria stopped talking smoothly and turned in a new direction: "But everything will be fine later, so don't worry too much!"

"I'll help you!"

"I'm afraid we have to get out of the bathroom first." Bruce smiled helplessly. The other party's overly jumpy train of thought was a little overwhelming for him. Fortunately, Aria was still receptive to advice. The three of them immediately moved their positions. Mayor Lewis walked in front, and he and Aria walked behind in the corridor on the third floor.

In order not to affect the work of other staff, Bruce lowered his voice and said, "But if Ms. Aria is free, perhaps we can have lunch together and exchange contact information..."

Seeing she had no energy left to eat lunch, Aria declined the invitation. However, exchanging contact information sounded promising, and she happily spelled her name to the other party: "A-Ra-Ya, or AAA Agricultural Products Distributor, either one will do. Feel free to write to me!"

"Write...a letter?" Wayne looked confused for a moment, but quickly covered it up with a superficial smile. "Perhaps we can try a more timely method of communication, like a cell phone number or something like that?"

Aria was unhappy. The farmer, who was in the early stages of land reclamation and had no money in his pocket, lowered his eyes and almost squeezed out two tears.

Even if you are poor, you still have to be tough.

"I don't need a phone."

However, the understanding Bruce Wayne overcame many obstacles and understood her unspoken intentions.

Fifteen minutes later, the latest model produced by Wayne Group was delivered to her, and now it was the farmer's turn to be confused.

She looked at the courier, then at the obvious Wayne Group logo on the back of the phone and the numbers stored in it, then suspiciously opened the panel to study the favorability level which was still "0".

So is there really an NPC that is rich enough to give a mobile phone to someone who has no favorability at all?

…

The shock of Bruce Wayne's wealth did stimulate Aria a little, making the farmer's desire for the barrels and ancient fruits even greater than before. She was even considering the possibility of filling Smallville and Gotham with barrels.

The NPC's current route is quite chaotic. If you rashly place the brewing barrels everywhere, they will just kick them away. The correct solution is to find a place where there are few people to give the barrels.

But this is all after completing the agreement with Lewis.

In order to give the other party courage, Aria took on the security work for tonight's dinner, which meant that she had a whole afternoon of free time.

The farmer's logic was simple: if Lewis was currently worried about safety, he could just eliminate the potential safety hazards first! Thinking of Douglas, the farmer decided to start with Black Mask. Even if he couldn't completely resolve the hidden danger this afternoon, at least it would have some deterrent effect and stop them from bothering him.

After sneaking into the bar, Aria discovered that meeting Black Mask wasn't that easy, at least for the few hooligans drinking there. They raised their glasses to her with a smile and sang a song: "Jingle bells, bats stink, Robin laid an egg, and someone else wants to be a hero..."

A glass of drink was pushed towards Aria by the bartender, and someone sat down next to her.

His voice sounded very young, with a hint of amusement in it: "You want to cause some trouble for Black Mask?"

The man took a look at Aria's physique, as if assessing whether she was qualified. Perhaps it was the farmer's muscles that made the other party think that she was qualified to give it a try. The man with a bucket pointed at the three or two thugs.

"If you beat them, I'll take you to some Black Mask fun, how about that?"

Aria glanced at the bucket on the man's head and decided that since he was so kind as to bring her into trouble with Black Mask, she would give him a special and exclusive performance with the bucket and pitchfork she was carrying.

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Bruce Wayne, a scary man who can confuse people when he needs to speak sweetly

*Song from Robot Chicken

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