Starting from scratch, Batman crushed my dream of getting rich

Chapter 358 Is this reasonable?

"I gave the police information about you, aren't you angry?"

"What's the point? In Central City, I'm the only thief with this level of skill. Even if you don't say anything, the police can find out with a little time."

"So confident?"

"To date, I have committed 23 major cases in Midtown, each involving no less than a million dollars, and I have never been caught—if it weren't for that red figure, today would have been my 24th major case."

"Your record is verifiable, right? Your burger is ready, here you go."

"Thank you, here's fifteen dollars."

"You're welcome." Ma Zhaodi breathed a sigh of relief as he watched him pull his hand out of his trench coat.

He wasn't afraid of a fight, but starting one would attract too much attention.

“I have other things to do—the Kandak dynasty diamond exhibition has probably already started.” Snart waved to him: “I’m in a hurry, I won’t chat with you any longer, see you next time.”

Ma Zhaodi raised an eyebrow.

"You knew I would tell the police, right?"

"Please help yourself."

"I have conditions."

Snart paused in his tracks, turned back to take a closer look at the food truck vendor he had dealt with quite a bit before, and couldn't help but smile.

"That's interesting—what do you want?"

“You said you were the most dangerous criminal in Midtown, the most skilled thief,” Ma Zhaodi replied. “But this morning, an unnecessary injury appeared in your criminal plan, and it turned out to be a police officer.”

"If you are really as capable as you claim, then your plan can be executed perfectly. You wouldn't need to kill anyone to get what you want."

“Not killing is one of my principles—but I am also a criminal, so I don’t need to keep my word, nor do I intend to trap myself in this situation.”

Snart shook his head: "That's not a fair offer. I want to do it myself. It's different from someone forcing me to do it—unless you're strong enough to force me to compromise."

Ma Zhaodi thought to himself, taking a hard line isn't out of the question, but it's unnecessary.

“Then let’s compromise and make a bet—if you can take the diamond without hurting anyone, I’ll lose $300,000 to you; if you can only take the diamond without killing anyone, I’ll lose $100,000 to you.”

Snart paused, a rare look of confusion on his face: "Where did you get so much money?"

"I earned it by setting up a stall."

"?"

In that instant, Snart's mind raced with countless thoughts.
How are seemingly unrelated things like "setting up a street stall" and "three hundred thousand US dollars" connected?

Is this industry really that lucrative? Should I develop a side hustle in the future? Maybe learn to cook or something?
How much does the unassuming Old Ma actually earn every day? He casually spends 300,000 yuan, so how much money is left in his account?

He robbed someone every six months, planning ahead by buying equipment and studying police routes and reaction times. He risked jail time and even being shot during the robbery. Afterwards, he had to split the loot with his accomplices, getting at most 300,000 to 500,000 yuan. He also had to evade the police in the city, not daring to be too conspicuous.
Should I change careers? After a moment, Snart shook his head violently.

What am I thinking? After being a robber for so many years, do you really think I can't make money as efficiently as a street vendor, with my intelligence and wit?

As a supervillain with ambition, ideals, and ability, Snart naturally has his own principles of conduct. He shares a similar core with other criminals in Gotham, and his usual robberies are primarily motivated by a desire to prove himself, rather than simply for money.

This is somewhat similar to some players' simulated robberies in games—they don't actually need the money, but the thrill of the robbery itself, the sense of accomplishment, and the growth of their warehouse assets can make them feel quite satisfied.

“Deal, except for that red figure,” Snart finally said. “I won’t kill him, but he punched me this morning, and I’ll return the favor.”

Don't you ask yourself about the bet you lost?

Snart didn't answer again, he just waved his hand.

"So confident."

Ma Zhaodi pursed his lips. He really didn't care much about the $300,000, because he hardly spent any money on living in the central city. He just randomly chose a cheap house to hide his identity (anyway, he lived in a wallpapered room). He didn't have any expensive hobbies, and the raw materials he used for his stall were all produced by the system.

Even Denton decided that if he won the lawsuit against Steiger, he would give Ma Zhaodi 20% of the shares in the company he would establish in the future based on the patent. After all, this kind boss saved his wife and his own life, and in a sense, he also prevented him from going down the path he ended up on, thus saving his life.

In this universe, the thing Ma Zhaodi will have the least shortage of in the future is probably cash.

So he took out his phone and called Joe directly.

“Officer Joe, Snart just came by and bought three hamburgers. He said he’s going to the Central City Exhibition Hall to pick up the diamond, and he asked me to call the police with this message—I figured I’d call you since I know you better.”

"What? You're in the museum? Well, you'd better watch out."

After making the phone call, Ma Zhaodi continued to set up his stall with peace of mind.

He had enough confidence in Captain Cold, as he was one of Barry's main rivals in Central City and would surely put the Flash in a very tough spot.

The recent supervillains have all been dealt with quite easily. He wasn't sure if this would affect Barry's growth, but anyway, it's always good to have Snart give him a boost. A sapling won't grow straight if it's not pruned, so how can this not be considered a kind of special training?

He didn't rush to see what was happening, but waited quietly. About ten minutes later, a flash of lightning streaked past the food truck, leaving behind US dollars and taking away a chocolate-covered liqueur.

"Barry has made his move, and Snart has probably already taken action."

Ma Zhaodi casually switched to the museum's surveillance footage and, sure enough, saw a figure crackling with electricity fighting Snart, who was wielding a freeze gun—or rather, it wasn't really a fight, but rather Barry being led around by the nose.

It is worth noting that when Snart picked up the gun, a strange, invisible pulse seemed to envelop the entire museum. Barry, who was originally as fast as lightning, seemed to slow down within it. Although he was still far beyond the average person, he was slow enough to be barely visible to the naked eye. Snart was even able to aim at him and fire.

"What the hell is this?!" Ma Zhaodi couldn't help but exclaim, "When did freeze guns get this kind of ability?"

The three-wheeled vehicle replied, "By searching Francisco's experimental logs, it appears that he used a small cyclotron on the freeze gun, which could affect the speed of the speedsters."

"What the heck? Does this make sense?"

(End of this chapter)