In The DC World With Marvel Chat Group Chapter 74: Gotham 1987 (Part 2)

"The Days of Being a Spiritual Mentor in Meiman"

In the afternoon, as the weather forecast in the newspaper said, Gotham began to drizzle.

Schiller was sitting in the study of the manor, the sound of the rain outside the window was like the best sleeping pill.

On the somewhat messy desk, stacks of books left undulating shadows under the illumination of the wall lamp, the reflection of the ink bottle and the Schiller lens, which looked extraordinarily bright in a somewhat dim room, he was holding a pen , Write invitations in complex and gorgeous cursive English.

The customs are almost the same all over the world. When you move, you always have to inform your relatives and friends to come over. Schiller plans to invite his few friends in Gotham over for dinner this weekend.

The rain outside the window was getting heavier and heavier, and some humid air entered the room through the gap of the window. In the light of the light, you could see the small water vapor slowly falling on the desktop. Soon, the part of the desk near the window sill Many small drops of water condensed, reflecting the firelight of the fireplace behind, like rubies.

The sky was getting darker, and the fog that was colder than the day made a layer of hoarfrost on the glass. Schiller put down his pen, rubbed his wrist, and looked up.

Looking at the whole Gotham from this angle, there is no difference, but Gotham in the rain is not only more gloomy, but also quieter, and even makes people feel a little leisurely.

In any case, the pace of the city in the 1980s was always much slower than that of the later information society. Schiller wrote letters all afternoon, and did not leave the study until the servant came to remind him that it was time for dinner.

After dinner, Schiller got dressed, took an umbrella, and left the house. At this time, the rain that had been raining all afternoon in Gotham had stopped, and all that was left was the cold, moist air sucked into his lungs. pervades the city.

The puddles on the ground are like mercury mirrors in the dark, reflecting the light of the street lamps into golden fragments, like fallen leaves that were not taken away last autumn. Disappeared in slight waves and splashes.

Also like the custom all over the world, when you move house, it is always necessary to visit the neighbors.

The law and order here is not bad, because anyone who can afford to live and maintain such a manor is either rich or expensive, although it is not as prosperous as the rich area in the south, but the declining old city There's a slow, old-school vibe to it, too.

There is an opera house one street away from the manor where Schiller lives, but there are few theater troupes here, so it has become a club for the residents of this area.

Schiller walked to the entrance of the theater. The waiters here were obviously not that professional. When Schiller reached the steps of the gate, they stepped forward to open the gate. Schiller took off his hat and walked in. .

Although it was a cold and rainy night outside, it was warm inside the theater. Schiller's glasses were covered with fog. He took off his glasses, walked to the front desk, and tapped on the table lightly.

The foreman who was dozing off was in a daze for a moment, raised his eyelids, saw someone, sat up straight, and asked, "Do you have an appointment?"

"I'm a new resident who bought the Viscount Manor. All the drinks consumed here today are charged to my account. God bless everyone."

The foreman immediately became enthusiastic and said: "So it's you. I just received the news yesterday that the largest Viscount Manor has a new owner. Your vision is really unique. It is such a luxurious manor. , is worthy of a generous gentleman like you."

"Don't worry, when everyone comes out later, they will all know that you are an easy-going gentleman."

Listening to the compliments coming out of the foreman, Schiller quietly put a roll of dollars under the bell, and the foreman immediately said: "You don't have to care about the appearance of this building, after all, here It is the oldest theater in Gotham, it is normal to be a bit dilapidated, but our service must be the best..."

As Schiller came down the steps of the theater, he glanced back at what may be the oldest theater in Gotham. One after another well-known troupe, there are also countless actors performing here, and I will go on stage after you sing.

But now, it has completely fallen away. The old gate face is like a stone tablet recording the history of Gotham, engraved with traces of wind, frost, rain and snow. It may be more exciting than those fabricated dramas, but not many people are willing to watch it again up.

After Schiller returned to the manor, it was already very late, but he still had some things to write last night.

Thanks to this relatively slow-paced era, Schiller does not need to be wary of any SMS or phone bombardment. He has enough time to read books slowly and find the knowledge he needs from paper materials. Then write them on paper with a pen.

Suddenly there was a soft sound behind him, and Schiller didn't turn his head. He said: "Gordon came to visit, at least he brought a gift. What about you? An uninvited bat?"

The shadow of Batman was cast into multiple shadows by the sconces on the wall, he said: "I will send it in the daytime."

"Gordon is getting married soon, aren't you going to give him a present as this tights freak? He's your partner after all."

"I don't have any presents to give." Batman's tone was always low and calm, making people drowsy in this late-night room.

"So what are you doing here?"

"Come to wish you a new home."

"I think you have gone through all the rooms in this manor earlier than me. If nothing else happens, you should have obtained the architectural design drawings through some means."

Batman didn't answer, he seemed to be acquiescing, and he never shy away from showing his over-premeditated, skeptical character in front of Schiller.

"Did you read today's newspaper? Did you see the news about the Iron Curtain?"

"That's none of my business."

"This is a big event in the world."

"Gotham won't get better, and it won't get worse."

Then both of them fell silent, leaving only the rustle of Schiller's pen on the paper echoing in the quiet room late at night. After a while, Batman said: "The group from Metropolis , should be here to hunt you down."

"Then let them come, or do you think people in Gotham will be afraid of people in Metropolis?"

Batman fell silent again.

"I guess you had a fight with your housekeeper, didn't you?"

Batman didn't answer, but Schiller said to himself: "There used to be a person like this who didn't sleep in the middle of the night and went out to race because he had a fight with his dear 'housekeeper'."

"Why are they fighting?"

"Because that person didn't think about whether to marry his housekeeper."

Batman fell silent again.

"I guess, your housekeeper should feel very distressed about your injury, but he doesn't want to stop you from continuing the career you like, so he can only digest this emotion by himself."

"But you found that he seems to be sad. You don't want to stop your career, and you don't want to make him sad."

"Your extraordinary wisdom and meticulous logic are useless at this time, so you can only run out and race in the middle of the night."

"Let me guess, that new Batmobile you built is parked right in front of my house, and the overheated engine hasn't cooled down until now."

"Is there really mind reading in this world?"

"Stop asking such stupid questions."

"If so, can you tell me what Alfred thinks?"

"You are much more straightforward than that person, but that's right, besides family affection, there is also love that bothers him."

"Love... the most elusive thing, I offered to tell him the answer, but he refused."

Batman's eyes fell on the ring on Schiller's ring finger, and he asked, "Are you married? Didn't your wife come to Gotham with you?"

"It seems that you don't really want that answer."

Schiller said: "Then go, you might as well go to Gordon to take you in and stay with me, you will only get answers you don't want to hear."

Batman said: "This manor is indeed very good. There are 36 rooms in total. If you sleep in the master bedroom on the east side upstairs, there are 35 rooms."

"I will not give you the key."

"I don't need a key."

Schiller put his finger on the center of his brow and said, "But you don't come home at night, what should you do if your housekeeper comes to see me?"

"Why do you seem to be more afraid of him than me?"

"It's hard to explain to you, but I'm really worried that your housekeeper will come to you."

Seeing that Batman still doesn't give up, Schiller can only say helplessly: "Well, if you want to stay here, I need your parents' permission. Go and call him now, I have to hear He agreed to let you spend the night here."

Batman: "..."

"The phone is downstairs, dial or get out."

In the end, Batman relented, always acting like a child when it came to issues related to his butler, just as Stark was with Pepper.

Schiller doesn't mind that Batman stays here. He actually doesn't mind that Batman checks his new home. Anyway, sooner or later, the 18-year-old Batman doesn't check. Wait until he is 28. When he was 38 years old or 38 years old, he would always check. Nothing in Gotham can escape the eyes of bats. Schiller is not a clown, and he doesn't have time to play chase and hide games with Batman every day.

After a while, Schiller finished his dissertation. It was already late at night, and it was already dark outside the window, only the distant lights reflected in the puddles formed by the rainwater.

Soon, the valet reminded him that the phone was ringing, Schiller picked up the receiver, and Batman stood in the darkest corner of the living room, listening to him on the phone.

"Yes, that's right...no trouble, yes, I know, they always do this, and I've seen a lot of them before..."

"Really? It's still quite serious...I have a professional first aid kit here...Oh, really? You are really a conscientious housekeeper..."

"I don't think it's anything to do with it..." Schiller looked up at Batman. For some reason, Batman felt his heart flutter suddenly, as if he was trembling next to him after being called to find his parents. Students who try in vain to infer the level of anger behind the parents from the teacher's words.

"Okay, please don't worry...no problem, then let's do it...tomorrow morning?...I think it will, ok...bye."

Schiller saw Batman open his mouth, as if he wanted to ask something, but in the end he didn't ask anything.

Schiller said: "Your steward said you were injured, but he should have treated you."

After finishing speaking, he glanced at the grandfather clock next to him and said: "It's too late now, your housekeeper said you should go to bed before nine o'clock, it's already more than three hours late, now take the key, hurry up Building bar"

"I don't need a key."

Leave the last sentence, Batman disappeared, Schiller shook his head, and then went upstairs.

Schiller already knew Batman's true identity, so Batman didn't do anything to sleep in that bat suit. When Schiller knocked on his door, Bruce was in his pajamas.

Usually, Batman in a serious state can only see a chin, but now, Bruce's temperament is completely different from his usual, this is a Batman with a full face.

But it was useless. When he heard Schiller telling him that Alfred hoped that he could rush back to have breakfast tomorrow morning, he still showed a rather tangled and complicated expression.

"I advise you to go back. If he comes to your door, I will definitely not help you. You have to know that the teacher will always stand on the same front as the parents."

Seeing that Bruce didn't seem to be happy, Schiller had to further threaten him and said: "If I really see Alfred tomorrow, then I will have to talk to him about your academic situation, this time Although you barely passed the final exam, your ranking is at the bottom of the middle, and more importantly, you missed 6 homework assignments in one semester, and more than half of them did not write enough words.”

"I will keep all the homework you handed in. If you don't want your housekeeper to see your nonsense articles and academic garbage that is useless except to pollute other people's brains, you'd better go to sleep and then Get up early tomorrow morning and go back to your Wayne Manor."

And before Bruce could say anything, Schiller slammed the door of his room shut.

Bruce lay in bed at night, thinking about recent events.

Relying on Schiller's genius and creative industrial chain, the gang has not been popular recently, and Batman's work has also become difficult.

In the daytime, he was busy conducting various investigations in the hospital to unravel the intricate relationship between the gangsters. At night, he had to keep an eye on the scene of various firefights to prevent them from hitting too high and spreading too much.

After the police have heavy weapons, they are much stronger, but this does not mean that the gangsters have no countermeasures at all. If the police use heavy firepower to suppress them, the gangsters will naturally think of using more fierce firepower to resist. , The scale of the war is constantly escalating, which also causes Batman to be involved in some more ferocious firepower conflicts before he has time to upgrade his various equipment.

This also led to the fact that the bat armor, which was originally prepared for some pistol bullets and cold weapons, could not defend against fire and damage caused by machine gun grenades.

A few nights ago, Batman was hit by a bullet from a machine gun. He was hit on the shoulder, and if this shot really hit him firmly, half of his lungs might be completely scrapped.

But it also caused him a very serious injury, arguably the most serious injury he suffered during his Batman career.

When he rushed back to Wayne Manor, he was already unconscious. He was able to consciously return to Wayne Manor because his extraordinary willpower saved his life.

Bruce has known for a long time that he is not sensitive to some analgesics and anesthetics. He often wakes up during anesthesia. This time is the same. In the middle of the operation, he saw Alfred Sitting alone on the edge of the operating table.

It was hard for him to describe the expression of Alfred he saw at that time, the heart that had hardly been beating violently for many years was pulled hard.

He suddenly discovered that Alfred was different from what he remembered. He was much older, and compared to when his parents were still alive, he seemed to be much depressed.

It was only then that he realized a problem. In fact, the death of the Wayne couple did not only cause harm to him.

And perhaps, when Alfred found out that he almost had to suffer the same injury again, he became much older again.

Bruce was lying on the bed, he tossed and turned, his mind was full of the image of Alfred he had seen in a haze.

What makes him even more sad is that when he woke up from the operation, Alfred didn't say anything, he didn't stop Bruce from doing anything, he just still prepared breakfast, just like countless It's the same morning Bruce wakes up from a nightmare.

When sitting at the dining table, Bruce could hardly eat. He is Batman, but he is still a human being. Few people can maintain a calm mind to eat in the face of such intense emotional shocks.

So he just ate two bites hastily, and left Wayne Manor as if fleeing.

In fact, he went to Gordon's place first, but he just caught up with Gordon and drove to Schiller's house.

He followed Gordon all the way, and Batman even saw the whole process of their conversation in the restaurant from the window.

He also saw Schiller sitting in a chair and smoking a whole cigar.

Such a professor makes him feel strange~IndoMTL.com~ He has never seen Schiller like this. He looks very relaxed, but very cold and sharp, although Schiller also It's often serious, but that's totally different.

It was like another person, a stranger.

He thought, maybe the professor he knew before was just a disguise, just like him.

The two lunatics play their respective roles in this crazy city, appearing on the stage with a very ordinary social identity, playing the role of teachers and students who are troubled by trivial daily routines every day.

This may not be a "Pride and Prejudice", but an "Actor's Self-cultivation".

In Gotham, a dilapidated and decaying theater that has been corroded by the years, and on the stage of Gotham University, the first act of this absurd drama seems weird and funny.

The first teacher Batman met on the first day of school, a teacher who looked stern and old-fashioned, and didn’t seem to want to trouble himself at all, gave him a psychological consultation with no motivation. An answer he most wanted.

And after the drama after drama ended, the two actors finally met off the stage.

Aside from their social identities, the story composition of these absurd dramas is by no means a coincidence. Crazy people always attract crazy people, and weird people often meet weird people. This is just another way of presentation that like attracts like.

Bruce was lying on the bed, and drowsiness hit him. He was half asleep and half awake, and he heard the dull sound of the clock pendulum downstairs in the manor, which was pervasive in his dream.

Besides that, on this cold night in Gotham 1987, the only thing that can be heard is the almost inaudible sound of the wind and the continuous burning sound of the fireplace all night.