Chapter 156 Party and Umbrella (Eight)_2

"You're a step too late." Gordon said with his hands on his hips: "Evans has already pleaded guilty."

Before Batman could ask Gordon for further details, Shiller tapped on the metal railings of the hospital bed with his umbrella, causing quite a racket. He raised his voice and said: "I hope you two understand, this is my office. I speak first."

Shiller lifted his umbrella vertically and continued: "Answer my question, then leave, and carry on with your private detection party elsewhere."

"For God's sake! It rains every day in Gotham, my umbrella is broken, and the umbrella maker's dead. How can you be so indifferent, showing no sympathy at all?"

Everyone else remained silent, watching him. Shiller paused, then reluctantly said: "Alright, if you must first settle your issues before answering my question, you actually don't need to ask Evans…"

He put the umbrella down, then tapped the floor tiles with the tip of it and said: "It was me who advised him to do so."

Gordon and Cobblepot's eyes widened simultaneously. Shiller put down his umbrella, sat down behind his desk, and said: "It seems, you need to hear my version of the story all over again."

However, Batman crossed his arms and stood in a corner of the room. His expression seemed to say, "I saw it coming".

Shiller took a sip of water before he began his narrative.

"About a month ago, Evans sought help at the mental health clinic of Gotham University, confiding his troubles to a teacher."

"He had some conflicts with his father. The initial part of his story sounded like the woes of a teenager, but the latter part was less pleasant, because his father was Gotham's godfather."

"We all know that the godfather initially planned to retire. He had handed over a large portion of his empire in the West District to his son for him to manage. Although Evans didn't perform well, the godfather wasn't worried. After all, he's still young."

"But then, Gotham started to reform."

"Apparently, the godfather didn't want to retire simply because he was old. Instead, he was already at the summit and knew that no matter how hard he tried, nothing would change."

"But the reform in Gotham gave him a new sense of hope, made him see the possibility of advancing to the next level. Would he hold onto that same mentality of retiring early?"

Gordon shook his head and said: "I met the godfather recently. Although he is always full of vitality, I felt that he was different in some way."

"Indeed, Falcone has ruled Gotham for forty years. He intended to end his reign and hand over his position to the next generation, not because he was losing his strength, but because he was tired of being at the top, with nothing left to do except groom the next generation."

"But the beginning of the reform changed everything. The Falcone family saw too many new possibilities. The logistics industry needed management, the construction of the town required supervision. The cooperation with Chicago involved many subtle power struggles, and it was the same with the connection to Emperor City. Not to mention the intercity collaboration in the East Coast that was being planned…"

Shiller knocked on the table and said: "If initially, the godfather saw Gotham as a testing ground for his son, he certainly wouldn't act so rashly now."

Batman's voice came from a corner of the room: "A rejuvenated emperor with newly discovered ambition, what then becomes of the prince's position..."

"Exactly, Evans was put in an awkward position. His father had already handed over quite a number of enterprises to him. He had the resources to destabilize the godfather's reign."

"But at this time, his father no longer planned to abdicate and seemed to be plotting to rule Gotham for another forty years."

"So the successor, who had already assumed part of the power, was not just in an awkward position, but in a dangerous one."

"Evans shared these details with me and sought my advice."

Shiller glanced at Gordon and Cobblepot, then said: "You two should understand the godfather better than me."

Cobblepot silently said, after a pause: "He loves his son, but it doesn't mean he would give his successor too much ambition, he won't let anyone else potentially shake his status."

Cobblepot suddenly realized something and looked at Shiller: "What advice did you give young Falcone?"

"Of course, I suggested that he retreat to advance."

Shiller got up and walked leisurely around the table: "As you two must know, although Falcone can be magnanimous in some ways, he didn't rule Gotham for forty years with benevolence and tolerance alone."

"If Evans dared to show any ambition to shake his father's rule, Falcone wouldn't kill him. But confining him until he willingly abdicates is pretty normal."

Gordon was enlightened as well, he stared at Shiller: "So you..."

"The godfather once asked Evans to kill Maroni personally. Evans indeed could have killed him, but I suggested he put the waste to use."

"Of course, what happened later was the work of Evans' own genius and had nothing to do with me."

"Initially, Evans acted very impulsively. While managing the interpersonal relationships in Living Hell, he clashed with all the mob bosses, then he instructed Maroni to enter Living Hell and assassinate the mob bosses, damaging his own reputation…"

Then he looked at Cobblepot. Cobblepot pointed out: "Therefore Maroni and I were birds of a feather…"

"Just like what you said before." Shiller pointed to Gordon: "A successor who first behaves recklessly and is indecisive when dealing, then makes desperate moves and performs assassinations. They really do look foolish and not threatening."

"Not to mention, he contacted the police," Gordon added helplessly.

"More importantly…" Shiller pulled out a medical record from beneath the desk: "As expected, the moment it was heard that young Falcone wanted a regular trial, Gotham's judicial system collapsed. He could skip the processes of bail, trials, judgment, and jail, and fast-forward to being released for medical treatment…"

Gordon's face looked like he'd seen a ghost. He said:" …so he could meet you here, right? You even had the medical records prepared in advance…"

Shiller pointed to the bed beside Cobblepot: "That's his bed."

"Being released for treatment of mental illness, he can stay away from his father for a long time." Batman concluded: "This is good for both of them."

"Alright, the story is over." Shiller turned his gaze back to Cobblepot and said: "You should answer my question now, right?"

All eyes, following Shiller's motion, landed on the umbrella he held up.