Capítulo 40: Chinatown
The words that I am now awesome rich pleasantly warmed my heart, now I can easily realize all my projects: build a secret hideout, buy a bunch of gadgets, hire workers to do the game for me, and I will only control the process. In such a situation, you can swing at more global projects, for example, to repeat the popular bestsellers of the old world, but before this is still worth more accurately determine the target audience.
My gaze fell on the night park visible through the window. I could buy the whole island for Ivy if I wanted to, or repaint the city in brighter colors, like green and red, huh, make a little advertisement for the Gotham Hounds... Hmm, I guess I could do without the last item, but the others sounded pretty good.
Stop, Jay, get your shit together, until you have half a billion on your hands there's no point in building a castle.
"So. - I interlocked my fingers, rested my elbows on the table, and tried to model Ikari Gendo, only without the goggles and the giant OCDR on my shoulders. Hmm, another item added to my list of necessary purchases. - Alan, I'm obviously thrilled with this news, but you've distracted me from something very important. Couldn't you have waited?
The man was lucky I'd cooled off by now, otherwise I might well have done something stupid, and taking it out on a man who has your pile of money in his account isn't the wisest idea.
"You can't. Jay, I know I promised you the full amount, but it came out to be a lot. You can only count on 300 million right now, and the rest will come in six months. Although we can try to launder some of it through your newly formed firm.
Hell, to be honest, the news is beyond cool, but still, sex with a mouse looks preferable against this backdrop...
Ah, at least I'll know the ins and outs of handing over the money and finding the treasure.
According to Dershowitz, there are only two things I need to do: buy a piece of land and then start acting active on it, like draining a swamp that's coming up. It would take a day or two, and then a lawyer would come with the right people and they would formalize the "found" treasure.
Unfortunately, such a large-scale event can't go quietly, so you have to prepare morally for the siege of the pen workers.
Before, I managed to avoid unnecessary attention, because my current apartment belonged to Bats, and was not connected to me or Harley. But with a plot of land, heh, or rather a swamp, it won't work, because it has to be properly registered, otherwise the idea of finding the treasure doesn't make sense, which means the appearance of a permanent residence, where I can theoretically be caught.
Oh well, I was going to do an interview after the release anyway, so we can combine it.
After saying goodbye to Alan, I decided to take a little walk around the city at night. There was no point in going back to the library, since Babs and Harley had definitely left the temple of knowledge, so my path lay toward Old Gotham, where our apartment was.
Oh, who am I kidding? I just felt bad about leaving the hot girls behind. That's why I'm looking for adventure on a less popular route.
Oops, Chinatown.
After a few minutes of leisurely walking, I felt like I was in a different world: the gloomy architecture was replaced by brightly colored houses decorated in Asian style, and on almost every corner there was a vending machine of eye-popping colors and selling all sorts of stuff. Despite the late hour on the way I met decent crowds of people standing at the entrances to various nightclubs and bars. Many were dressed in designer miscarriages that even clowns would be embarrassed to wear, and that was putting it mildly.
I knew from the stories of my sweet assistant that this place nominally belonged to the Chinese triad, but it was not very violent, more like a people's militia. Bats occasionally jails them for racketeering, but they're released almost immediately for lack of a crime. I can't blame him for that. As if it didn't sound strange, but according to Harley the city has changed a lot with the beginning of the Dark Knight's activity, it became relatively quieter, though in my opinion it's just that crimes have become bigger and supervillains need time to prepare for them, because of which there are periods of calm for ordinary people. So you have to wonder: is it better to have one large-scale action once a month or thousands of small ones over time?
After wandering around the neighborhood a bit and buying all sorts of groovy goodies, I continued on my way.
"A-a-a-a-a-a-a-gh!" From an alley on the edge of the neighborhood came a shriek that sounded like Wilhelm's. The Moon Knight's job was at hand. Man, I didn't bring my hero costume when I left the library. Ah, whatever, it was a citizen's arrest, and I had my cane with me, as well as a trio of throwing rectangles that I hadn't had a chance to turn into cards yet. The system was silent, but that's no reason to give up the adventure.
Creeping a little closer I heard Chinese speech, and in a second I had a view of a classic gop stop.
In a dark alley surrounded by several Asians with clubs in their hands stood a powerful two-meter tall fully gray-haired man, dressed in an outfit associated with the clothes of a Chinese pimp trying to pose as an American: a dark blue coat with dragons embroidered on it, a hat with a brim, from under which white dreadlocks protruded, blue loose pants, a pile of gold jewelry, a gilded cane and black glasses in stylish frames. Yes, it was nighttime, and you couldn't do without the last accessory.
As if on cue, the armed men attacked the elderly man. I was about to rush to the rescue, pulling out a couple of cards, but instead I froze in surprise.
A Chinese man who tried to kick his victim from the back only had time to touch the old man's coat before he was immediately swept away by a powerful blow to the jaw. The rest of the Asians suffered a similar fate: as soon as they approached the pimp, he sent them flying with a couple of blows, providing them with fractures. His movements had the feel of a good school, working on counterattacks. At times he would freeze in a strange stance, raising his right leg bent at the knee, only to unleash a hail of blows a moment later, attacking the attacking foes. After a couple of minutes of beating, only one enemy remained and tried to escape.
"Sugarcane, go!" The old man shouted loudly, and from behind the nearest trash can a jet potato, resembling a mix of a boxer and a pug, jumped out barking.
– А-а-а-а-а! – Заверещал азиат, которому в штанину вцепился четвероногий друг. But it didn't take long for him to sound the dark alley with his shrieks, because the elderly man was obviously determined, in two steps he reached the last offender, he kicked the support leg of the unlucky robber, almost turning him in the air, and then sent him to the land of dreams.
Looking at all this, I wondered: maybe I should have helped the narrow-minded.
"R-r-r-r-r-r-r-r-r. - The dog growled, looking in my direction.
"Who's there?" The old man moved his head around as if he couldn't see me and gripped his cane more comfortably.
Wait... ... ... ... ... Is he blind?!
I was about to introduce myself, but instead I had to deflect my head sharply to miss a classic uppercut.
"Hah!" Increasing concentration.
He steps forward, touching my leg, and immediately tries to elbow me in the body. The increased speed allows me to shift a little, dodging the blow, but it didn't help me avoid the tackle and the subsequent throw to the ground, which could have stunned me if I hadn't been pumped up and temporarily out of pain.
-Wait, I'm not with them! Fuck!
The fist that should have hit my face crashes into the asphalt, leaving a small dent. The roads here are no better than in Russia, it seems, they steal.
"Why didn't you say so in the first place?" The old man asked in a good-natured tone, as if nothing had happened.
Then he stood up, adjusted his coat, and held out his hand to me.
"You attacked me right away. - I grabbed his palm as soon as I was on my feet. Damn, lifting eighty pounds with one hand and not even breaking a sweat was Bats-level.
"Mm, fair enough. Why are you even here?
"He heard the screams and decided to help.
"Oh, so you're a conscientious citizen? I respect that. - The black man approached the nearest Asian man who had been knocked out and began to go through his pockets. I could see more clearly now that he wasn't using his eyes, keeping his head straight. Well, either he has a serious squint.
"Hmm, doesn't it bother you that since I'm a conscientious citizen, I should try to stop you after this?
"Heh, it's moral compensation. But in general... You're stronger than these weaklings, so you might as well give it a try, because this "fight" can't even be called a warm-up.
I felt that he wasn't lying... I wondered if there were any normal people in Gotham, because everywhere you turn you'll find a superhero, a supervillain, or a man with a mysterious past.
"What are they so mad at you for anyway? A little to the right. - I steered the old man toward the next unlucky man, who crawled a little to the side before passing out from the pain of a broken leg.
"Thank you. It was because I was hitting on their chicks. I mean, who knew they were Chinese? They didn't have accents.
"So you really can't see?
"Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha, of course! Otherwise, why am I walking around like an idiot at night wearing dark glasses?!" He swiped his palm in front of his face.
Holy shit. Almost Daredevil from the Marvel universe, except he's hardly a part-time lawyer given the looting going on. I wonder if he's a metahuman or if he could actually reach that level on his own.
"It doesn't really stop you from fighting. Listen, why don't you train me?" I asked, deciding not to wait. I could see where this was going.
"Huh, you're so sharp, you remind me of me fifty years ago. I can tell you're very young. No, I don't give a shit about students... But I don't mind sparring. I'm getting old and rusty. - This mountain of muscles stood up, leaning on his cane. - How's that sound? In the house where I rent a room, there is a hall, which I rented for a while.
"If there are no fractures, you can try.
"What kind of fractures?! Cracked bones at most, if you're not careful. Leroy Smith. - He introduced himself, holding out his palm.
"Jay Arkham. - I shook his hand, feeling the steel grip and noticing that the man didn't react to my name. Well, he couldn't possibly appreciate my appearance, so he could have mistaken me for his namesake.
"Woof.
"Oh, how could I have forgotten you. - The older man leaned over and stroked the dog's head. - This is Sugar. My faithful companion and guide.
"Nice to meet you.
"Well, then, let's go drink to acquaintance, I know a nice place nearby, because I can't see the local piss, ha-ha-ha, you understand? See, ha-ha-ha. - My new acquaintance laughed at his own joke.
Moving into the next neighborhood, I began looping through the alleys, following my escort.
"Leroy. - I called out to him, mentally calculating my escape route.
Still, it is worthwhile to tell about himself at once, he is though blind, but hardly dumb, so that then do not put two and two together.
"Well.
"Have you heard of the Joker?
"Is that the psychopathic maniac?
"Yeah." I tensed up, preparing for a fight in case of trouble.
"I've heard some things, but I didn't know much about it, because I'm just passing through America. I'll wait for the next tanker and head for home.
"Hmm. I see. Just so there's no misunderstanding, I'm him.
"Tanker? Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha, just kidding. I don't give a shit about you guys, so if you're trying to get me to join the gang, you're going straight to fuck.
"No, I just wanted to give you a heads up so there's no misunderstanding. Besides, I'm officially cleared on all counts. Why don't you watch the news later? Listen to this.
"Pfft, I've got nothing better to do. - The old man dismissed it. - I don't care about the rest of it.
"Oh, that's great. When are you leaving, if it's no secret?" We need to find out right away so we can schedule a meeting.
"Okay. - The man's thinking. - The nearest tanker to China will leave in two weeks, and I'll leave then.
"Uh, China? I don't know, maybe nobody told you this, but you know you're black, right?"
"Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. - Leroy laughed. - I've spent practically my entire adult life there, so I consider it home.
"Why not an airplane?"
"Fuck it, I've already been in a wreck once. I'd rather be on a ship: much better chance to swim to shore."
We just got to the right bar with a nice atmosphere, where we took one of the tables, ordering a beer each, which turned out to be really good, but I couldn't fully appreciate it, as I wasn't a big fan of the foamy drink.
I don't know why, but after a couple of cups, the old man opened up. Leroy turned out to be a very colorful person, and it wasn't about blindness and martial arts, although these facts can't be ignored. For seventy-five years of his life he had traveled all over China, learning the martial art of Wing Chun and participating in underground fights. So surviving an airplane crash didn't look particularly epic against this background.
After agreeing to meet tomorrow at eight o'clock at night, I headed home.
***
It took relatively little time to get home, and within half an hour I was unlocking the front door with my key.
The lights in the apartment were off, hinting that my beloved was already asleep, since her shoes were on the doorstep. Hopefully, she'd managed to calm Barbara down. To be honest, I didn't expect that everything would turn out so well and the girl would fall into my arms, though without Harley this moment would have to wait much longer. Leaving the bought sweets in the kitchen, I headed for the center room.
~Click~
I was blinded by the bright light as I entered the living room, but such nonsense can no longer take me by surprise.
"Ha ha ha!" Laughing, I immediately jump back and roll to the side, noticing that no one is following me.
"Harley?" Turning back I saw a frowning blonde sitting in a chair with a bright flashlight in her hands.
"Was it worth it?
"Eh," I sighed heavily and turned on the overhead light and went inside, starting to undress, "I shouldn't have... at all. How did she react?" I decided not to mention any names, suspecting a wiretap, though Gloomy Mouse should already know that I was not indifferent to the commissioner's daughter.
"She was upset, but I managed to cheer her up a bit by telling her about the fight with Doomsday.
"Damn it, I'd promised to do that for a kiss. - I slapped the wall with force, turning away from my faithful assistant.
"Hey, it's not that bad!" Seeing my condition, the girl came over and hugged me from behind. - You'll definitely tell her everything. I only did it in general terms. Only later, in about five days, when she's out of the woods.
"Hmm... That's good to know. - I abruptly turned around to pick up the squeaked favorite and press her against the wall. - What do you say we get on with it?
"I'm all for it. - Harley kissed me passionately, unbuttoning my pants.
***
The morning began with the traditional bedtime exercise, after which we moved seamlessly into the kitchen.
"Today we should visit the atelier, buy some land, rent equipment to clear the swamp, and then go to the gym. - I summarized our plan for the day.
"Didn't you want Ivy to do it?
"There's been a slight change of plans, I'll tell you on the way. - It's not nice that we can't talk about anything serious at home for fear of Bats' surveillance, but we'll be rid of it soon enough.
On the street I felt more free and calmly recounted to my companion yesterday's conversation with Alan, and complained that we didn't have the same cool jammer.
"So I can make her. - Suddenly the girl said.
"Oh, really?
"Yeah, but I don't know how to create extraneous noise, especially the kind that can't be filtered out programmatically, but blocking a radio signal is easy. You could even try building a spyware detector.
"My good girl!" I picked up my favorite, twirling her in a dance that scared away a few passersby who hurried to the other side of the road. - I didn't even know you could do that.
"Mr. J, you asked me to deal with networks, which are related. By the way, Babs is much better at it and helps me out sometimes.
"Huh, great.
As we talked, I didn't notice how we got to Bill Finger's atelier.
Estado de energía semanal
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