Chapter 1525: Farce at the Bat Nest (Part 1)_1

In the study at Gordon Manor, Barbara Gordon was engrossed in her work. After a while, she finally lifted her head and slightly adjusted the glasses on her face. At this moment, Gordon, standing behind her, handed her a cup of hot tea and said with a smile, "How are the finances looking?"

Unable to help herself, Barbara sighed, "The peripheral costs have been calculated and we can place an order with the OEM. However, the venue costs are still being calculated... Are you really planning on making me handle this entire concert entirely by myself?"

"Of course not." Gordon moved to sit by the table and said, "You can command any member of the Gotham mob. As long as the concert goes well, you can have them do anything."

"But they don't know how to do anything!" Barbara said, bordering on despair. "I had a meeting with them yesterday and proposed that we expand our merchandise line. They actually said that metal pins were too 'girly' and proposed selling hand grenades emblazoned with our logo! Have they even considered the costs?!"

She slammed her pen onto the table and said, "The main point of the peripheral industry is to control costs, but they don't seem to understand this basic concept. The mob's financial management system is utter shit..."

Gordon quickly tried to placate her, "Don't be angry. You knew they were all amateurs, didn't you? They've made quite a bit of money recently with their cold-chain industry, and now they're all eager to spend. Just prepare the statements and I'll have Evans review them tomorrow. He'll surely approve."

Barbara held her head in her hands, "It's not just about the finances... The concert's management plan is a chaotic mess. I don't know if we can pull this off..."

While the father and daughter were in the study discussing issues related to the upcoming Gotham Music Festival, a special guest arrived at Gordon Manor. Gordon was somewhat surprised when he opened the door to find Bruce Wayne.

He put away his umbrella and unceremoniously walked into the hallway of Gordon Manor. Taking in his surroundings, he said, "I'm sorry I missed your housewarming banquet, Chief Gordon. I hope it's not too late."

"What brings you here this late?" Gordon took Bruce's umbrella and placed it in a nearby stand. He stepped aside to allow Bruce to enter.

Just then, Barbara walked down from the stairs above. Upon seeing Bruce, she instinctively called, "Batman" only to cough awkwardly and correct herself, "I mean, Bruce. What brings you and James here so late?"

"It's nothing much. I've heard that the planning for the music festival's been rough? " Bruce sat down next to the fireplace.

Barbara nodded, about to vent her frustrations when Gordon interjected, "It's not worth coming over here in the middle of the night for that. What's wrong? Another argument with someone? Surely it's not with your professor again?"

Bruce shook his head, let out a deep sigh, and began reminiscing about the drama that had unfolded at Wayne Manor in the past few days.

After Bruce brought Martha back to Wayne Manor, both Thomas and Alfred were shocked.

Because the Bruce who had infiltrated the Flashpoint Universe hadn't been wearing his Batman outfit, and since Thomas was thoroughly drunk, he hadn't realized it was Bruce who had taken him. When he discovered that his unexpected appearance in the hospital's operating room was actually caused by Bruce to save Martha, he was extremely agitated and threw a punch directly at Bruce.

Without a doubt, Thomas shared Batman's dislike for anesthetics, which was the main reason for his brawl with Bruce.

Alfred, on the other hand, was simply overjoyed. He never thought he would be able to reunite with the Waynes in his lifetime. After being quiet for several years, Wayne Manor was finally lively again.

Being a typical family with a strict father and kind mother, during Bruce's childhood, Thomas was usually busy with business and Martha cared for the whole family. As a result, Bruce depended more on his mother. After Martha's return, he indeed enjoyed a few days of care and love from his mother.

However, their happiness was short-lived. It is perhaps only in TV dramas that a reunited family can immediately return to their harmonious atmosphere. Moreover, the Waynes were absent from each other's lives for a significant portion - Bruce transformed from a child into a youth, while Thomas and Martha aged considerably.

When they met again, they had a sense of strangeness, as if they had been apart for decades. In a family where key life stages were absent from each other, it was hard to immediately discard their hardened defenses and embrace each other unreservedly. So, after the initial excitement of the reunion faded, many problems began to emerge.

First of all, Martha was completely unable to accept the fact that Thomas smoked and drank to the point of almost ruining his health. As a mother from a traditional wealthy family, she dedicated her life to maintaining the health of every family member.

At the same time, when Martha was still a lady of the Kane family, she attended a religious women's school and had relatively conservative views. She believed that parents and elders must lead by example to teach their children well, to keep them away from harmful habits like smoking, drinking, drug abuse, and visiting nightclubs.

She held herself and her husband to these standards. Before their son's tragic accident, the Waynes had maintained a very healthy lifestyle and were admired as a model family in high society.

Upon seeing her husband without the influence of the crazy virus, Martha found that he had turned from a tall, handsome, successful businessman into a decadent alcoholic. How could the former Lady Wayne accept this?

Of course, Martha knew that these issues arose from somewhere, and if anything was to blame, it would be the unfairness of fate. If the past had indeed passed and the family and children have returned, shouldn't these bad habits be cast away to set a strong example for the children?

However, Thomas was caught in a difficult situation. The enormous pressure of running the entirety of Wayne Enterprises weighed heavily upon him, and cigarettes and alcohol were his only means of relieving stress and fatigue. Had he not despised the side effects of hallucinogens, he might've turned to sedative drugs for help.

Quitting smoking and drinking wouldn't be impossible - just impossible right now. His physical and emotional states were on the verge of total collapse. Enduring withdrawal symptoms would render him unable to work at all. But if he didn't work, what would become of the massive Wayne Enterprises?

In the past, his wife's gentle persuasion would usually convince Thomas to take a few days off considering her feelings. However, Thomas well knew of the heavy burden he currently bore, leaving him no room for rest.

On the one hand, the reconstruction of Gotham was continuously draining the lifeblood of Wayne Enterprises. Thomas couldn't just maintain as it was and had to behave like a rookie businessman, continuously seeking favorable investment opportunities and expanding the business, so as to infuse more 'fresh blood' into Gotham.

He and Martha had been doing charity work for so many years, the cumulative results of which may not even equal the progress of the Gotham reconstruction project in a month. Seeing the hope of saving Gotham right before his eyes, how could Thomas possibly want to give up?

On the other hand, considering the many children now in the manor, apart from one or two who had a talent for business and could inherit Wayne Enterprises, the others would have to seek their development. Without abundant capital, how could he pave a way for them in various industries?

Thomas was well aware that overworking himself would displease Martha, but he had to press on. His worries were no different from any other parent's around the world. A period of suffering for himself, once passed, would be well worth it.

So, Martha would advise him daily, Thomas would provide his reasons daily, and the disputed issue would remain unresolved. To prevent their relationship from suffering further, Thomas would stay at the company as much as possible instead of coming home.

Unable to persuade her husband, Martha turned her attention to her son. Naturally, Bruce's marriage was her primary concern.

When she learned that Bruce had a girlfriend, Martha was overjoyed. After witnessing their steady and lasting relationship, even surviving a period of long-distance, her joy deepened.

The only thing that gave Martha pause was that Selina's occupations were a thief and an actress. Both were not well-received by high society.

But luckily, this was Gotham, where it was not out of the question. After all, the darkness of Gotham was unprejudiced, casting equally on every citizen—there was little difference in the likelihood of finding wicked individuals amongst high society or the lower classes.

From the likes of Elliot and Rhomann, it was obvious that Gotham's high society wasn't all it was cracked up to be. Licentious conduct and wild squandering were the bare minimum, and every few years, someone like Little Elliot would emerge, a matricide, patricide, showing false filial piety. Martha hadn't held excessive expectations in the first place.

Yet what baffled Martha the most was that Bruce and Selina had dated for five years, from their freshman year in University until they graduated. Every child in Wayne Manor knew Selina, and Selina's friends knew Bruce, so why hadn't they married?

In Martha's vernacular era, the notion of long-term dating was foreign. Upon the stability of a relationship between a man and a woman, it would naturally progress to marriage. So if their relationship had solidified, why hadn't they married?

From Martha's relatively conservative perspective on emotions, Bruce was certainly the dominant one in their relationship. Considering their significant disparity in social status, their story resembled a Cinderella-like romance. Whether they could marry must be a decision made by Bruce. So why wasn't he marrying her?

Martha had subtly probed this a few times at dinner, but Bruce seemed oblivious. This kept Martha's heart in suspense, and her fear was that her son didn't understand his responsibilities to a relationship and a family.

However, since Thomas showed Martha a load of Bruce's diagnosis reports and prescription lists, Martha felt she couldn't rush this.

This responsible mother gradually resumed her connections with her sisters and elders in the Kane family. She also rekindled her relationships with her schoolmates and close friends, occasionally making Bruce visit his aunts and inviting them over for chats about family matters.

However, Bruce was also busy. He was engaged in various researches at Arkham Mental Hospital, involved in the construction of the space station base. When Pamela who researched botany with him and Diana who often visited the space station base appeared in front of Martha, she grew even more anxious.

An atmosphere of anxiety began to spread among the three of them, with continuous friction in the father-son, mother-son, and husband-wife relationships. This family that had just emerged from hardship and was reuniting after a long absence started to endure the growing pains of adjustment.

Such matters wouldn't usually be significant. After the initial uncomfortable period, someone would realize that communication was the only solution to these problems.

However, the problem was that in these already intricate family relationships, two sets of Robins, small and large, had been crammed in.