There is no Batman in Gotham City comics.

Chapter 48 Murder and Robbery

Perhaps the light from the fluorescent tube was too dazzling, or perhaps his eyes had been staring for too long, but Oswald felt his eyes were a little dry.

"Mr. Oswald, even if you just stare at me like that, your girlfriend won't be saved. Come on, tell me the answer quickly, preferably before her throat is slit!" Maroni gave a wink, and his subordinate pressed a dagger against Groscia's throat.

The blade pressed against the torn skin, and blood dripped from the tip onto the tiled floor.

Groscia's pupils dilated as his mouth was covered, and a pleading whimper escaped his throat. Oswald felt as if a wildcat had been stuffed into his chest, sharpening its claws against his heart like a tree stump.

Sharp claws ripped open his heart valves, causing him unbearable pain.

What should I do? Of course, I should shut up.

Oswald still remembered what Qin Wei had said.

"If someone could kill you with a flick of their finger, but doesn't immediately, don't doubt it—it's because killing you would be a loss for them. What you need to do then is understand their psychology: the more they want something, the less you should give it to them; that's your last resort!"

The problem is that it's not him who's being threatened now, it's Groscia, his sweetheart.

"Enough! Why are you threatening me? It's not like it's some secret that can't be told!"

Oswald finally broke down and revealed Qin Wei's contact information with Falcone. He was desperate and could only hope that Qin Wei had thought of this, that Qin Wei had never intended to hide it, and that his move wouldn't betray Qin Wei.

"So, Falcone always initiates the call, and your friend just needs to answer 'yes' or 'no,' it's that simple?"

"You can ask him to confirm!"

I admire your honesty.

Maroni slammed his cane heavily on the ground, and with a crisp cracking sound of tiles breaking, a group of bodyguards in black filed in and, amidst Groscia's screams, lifted Oswald up.

Maroni frowned; the nurse's scream annoyed him.

He pointed out the window:

"Shut this woman up."

Seeing Groscia being picked up and pushed out the window, Oswald's head exploded. Dragging his battered body, he struggled to break free of his restraints and headbutted Maroni. But before he could get a step away, the bodyguards swarmed in and pinned him down.

"Sal Maroney, what are you doing!"

When Oswald called Maroni by his first name for the first time, Maroni bared his teeth like a mad dog, his eyes bloodshot. If those eyeballs could be used as weapons, Oswald might have gouged them out without hesitation and hurled them at Maroni.

"Why that expression?! Just because of a woman?"

Maroni squatted down with a detached smile and reached out his cane to rub Oswald's hair.

"There are many more things in this world that you can be angry about, such as you suffering here while your best friend just withdrew ten million dollars from the bank."

"Do you think it's fair? So far, it seems like you've been the only one suffering all the hardships."

He turned around and waved, and the bodyguard put Groscia down.

"I could have killed her, but I want to give her to you as a gift."

……

The beggars crowded together by the car door, waiting for it to open so they could rush out.

Qin Wei and Royce placed two boxes in front of them as cover, preparing for a possible gunfight.

The container door was opened a little more, and the beggars, brainwashed by fear, couldn't wait any longer and swarmed off the truck.

The clown gang, who were in charge of the pick-up, had not expected this situation at all. They had planned to lure the group of temporary workers to the riverbank under the pretext of paying their wages and then kill them to cover their tracks. However, before the box door was fully opened, more than a dozen beggars rushed out and trampled the henchman in charge of opening the box door under their feet.

The clown was helping his underling aim his gun when the tall leader shoved him away.

"Are you crazy? A whole truckload of weapons! Are you trying to send us all to heaven by opening fire now?"

"But……"

"Let them run away. Even though it's an insurance policy, there's nothing we can do about it!" The leader glanced at the beggars who had disappeared into the night, then turned his gaze to the doorman whose intestines had been trampled and ripped open by the beggars.

He stepped forward and, without hesitation, fired, ending the other person's suffering.

"Hmph, you're really unlucky..."

boom!

Just as the leader was about to follow the villain's principles and say some cruel nonsense to his unjustly killed underling, a shotgun blast blew half of his skull off.

A sudden gunshot rang out across the silent field, and the embers of the shotgun briefly illuminated the darkness, as well as the pale face of the gunman standing nearby.

But before he could even raise his gun, Royce leaped out of the carriage and brought it into his sights.

"Time for a photo, smile!"

The flash of the shotgun was as fleeting as a camera shutter. Royce landed, rolled to his feet, and aimed around.

"I thought there was going to be a big battle, but I didn't expect them to send only three people!" He took a cigarette out of the cigarette case, lit the red-hot gun barrel, and took a deep drag of the smoke in the cold night wind.

Qin Wei was a little annoyed that the other party had taken the bait.

It wasn't that he was reluctant to kill, but rather that he was unsure of himself and afraid of accidentally injuring friendly forces as it was his first time using a gun.

Besides, he forgot to ask Royce how to get insurance.

What should I do? Should I ask him now? But it seems so embarrassing to ask now. A seasoned thief who plots murder and robbery can't even turn a gun on safety? Will I be laughed at if I tell him? What should I do? I need help urgently!

"Why aren't you making a move? What if there are a lot of them?"

Reus's blame came quickly.

"Uh...cough! I don't like using guns." Qin Wei coughed deliberately, lightly stroking the shotgun in his hand:

"But I still admire the allure of firearms—their weight, elegant lines, cold, hard texture, and precision. They are a monument to the development of human industry…the killer that ended the era of cold weapons!"

What am I saying?! Can anyone tell me what I'm saying?!

Qin Wei regretted his rambling as soon as it left his mouth, so embarrassed that he felt like he was digging his toes through his shoes.

These words would sound incredibly childish in any normal setting, but when placed in this dark and stormy night of murder, they perfectly matched Qin Wei's mysterious and dangerous aura when they reached Royce's ears.

"I didn't realize you had such strange principles. You don't like guns? No wonder you're in such great shape!"

After taking the last puff, Royce stubbed out the embers on the sole of his shoe and carefully stuffed the cigarette butt into his pocket.

"What should we do next? Should we just drive this car back?"

"That's not appropriate. Such a large shipment is likely to have tracking devices on the truck. We need to find another truck to unload the goods." Qin Wei gestured to Royce, indicating that he was a lone commander and only Royce had any subordinates.

Royce contacted his men, and the two sides agreed to meet in the open space behind Wayne Manor in northeast Gotham County.

The reason they didn't stay put and wait, but instead ran around Gotham City, was mainly because they were afraid that Joker's reinforcements would come knocking.

If the other party really comes looking for him, firstly, a moving truck will not be easy to intercept, and secondly, the other party may be wary of the weapons on the truck and dare not fire indiscriminately. Qin Wei will then have enough time to deal with the pursuers.

As it turned out, Qin Wei's decision was incredibly wise.

Just ten minutes after the truck left the scene of the crime, seven or eight pickup trucks came rushing over aggressively.

Looking at the bloodstains on the ground, the leader, dressed in heavy clown makeup, stubbed out his cigarette with two fingers.

"Has the cargo been located?"

"We've located them! They're on the Brown Bridge, and it looks like they're heading into the city!"

"This shipment is crucial to the leader's plans; we must intercept it no matter where we go, even if it means chasing it to the ends of the earth!"