I'm doing bidirectional science popularization in American comics

But Lex can't be blamed. After what happened at Arkham Asylum, he couldn't guarantee what kind of trouble Depp might cause.

Therefore, observing and analyzing the surrounding environment and people in advance is definitely a good habit.

Soon, Gordon and Harvey arrived together.

They found a seat at random and immediately started chatting with Depp.

Gordon pointed at Lex and asked, "And this is...?"

Seeing this, Lex extended his hand and introduced himself: "Lex Luther."

“Hello Lex, I’m James Gordon.” Gordon extended his hand and politely shook hands with Lex, saying, “Luthor…you mean that infamous Luthor Corporation?”

Lex nodded and said, "Yes, Lionel Luther is my father."

Harvey had never liked these privileged classes; in his eyes, they and the capitalists were a bunch of vampires.

These guys have always been Harvey's main focus.

So Harvey said irritably, "The Luther Corporation wants to expand its business to Gotham? Then I advise you to abide by the law, otherwise you might see me in the prosecutor's office, and I won't show any mercy then."

Lex glanced at Harvey and said, "You might be disappointed, Your Honor. I'm here on behalf of Lex Luthor, not the Luthor Corporation."

Looking at the two men exuding an aura of tension, Depp coughed lightly and said, "Ahem, I didn't call you here to argue. Harvey, the world isn't black and white, and I think you should understand that."

Harvey snorted upon hearing this, then sat down in his seat.

Depp didn't say anything more; he knew Harvey had some incurable psychological issues.

For Harvey, the world is black and white, and justice is paramount.

But there is also a hidden dark side in his heart.

This is also why he almost became a double agent.

Black and white, justice and evil, prosecutor or double agent—it all depends on Harvey's whim.

Oswald then pushed open the door and entered.

Upon seeing Oswald, Lex greeted him warmly: "Good evening, Mr. Mayor."

Oswald nodded slightly in response.

He then looked around and walked up behind Depp with a smile.

Unfortunately, we arrived too late and there were no seats left next to Depp.

Lex felt a toothache as he watched, thinking to himself, "Damn it, you're the mayor of Gotham City!"

Why does he look more like Depp's lackey now?

Is this even scientific?

Lex couldn't help but think of himself and his father, even though his family's business had reached the top of the nation.

However, whenever I discuss business with those high-ranking individuals, I still have to greet them with a smile, for fear that the negotiations will fall apart.

Now, look at Depp!

The mayor acts like someone else's lackey; no wonder their development is so rapid!

Depp glanced at his watch; it was 10:23.

"It seems that Bruce, the king of timing, won't arrive a second early."

However, like Depp, no one present said much.

After all, the agreed time was 10:30, and it's not time yet.

Of course, if some people are still not all here by 10:30, Lex might have a bad impression of those guys.

But Depp wasn't worried that Bruce would be late; although Bruce would sometimes stand up girls, he had never refused his invitations.

The hands of the old clock on the wall turned slowly, and at the exact moment of 10:30, Bruce pushed open the door and entered.

He glanced at the time and said, “I’m glad I’m not late, gentlemen.”

After saying that, Bruce sat down at the very back corner of the table.

“Looks like we have a new friend this time.” Bruce looked at Lex and said, “Hello, I’m Bruce Wayne from Wayne Enterprises.”

Lex nodded and said, "Lex Luthor, but this time I am only representing myself and have nothing to do with the Luthor Corporation."

"Nice to meet you."

"Me too, I've heard about it for a long time."

Bruce looked at Depp, thinking to himself, "Why did you bring people from the Luther Group here?"

Then, Bruce saw the red masks neatly arranged on the table.

He frowned slightly and asked, "What's the matter with such a big commotion today?"

Upon hearing this, Depp stood up and began introducing Wellen, who was to his left.

"The head of the Depp Group, business genius Wellen Jones."

"Gotham City's most legendary mayor, Oswald Cobert."

"Bruce Wayne, president of Wayne Corporation, Gotham City's richest man and playboy."

"Gotham City Police Chief, the Bright Knight James Gordon."

"Harvey Dent, the incorruptible prosecutor of the Gotham City District Attorney's Office."

"Lex Luthor, the future heir of the Luthor Corporation, a young, promising, and exceptionally intelligent man."

"Joseph Cole, the director of Arkham Asylum."

"And me... an insignificant antique shop owner in Gotham City."

"As you can see, almost every prominent figure in Gotham City has gathered here, including even a future giant like Lex Luthor."

"So the reason I called everyone here today is not just for a simple gathering, but what I want to do is also very simple."

“I am prepared to… reorganize the Court of Owls.”

Depp's words immediately startled everyone.

"Are you kidding me!" Gordon was the first to stand up and slam his hand on the table. "Wait, you're not some escaped member of the Court of Owls, are you, imposter Depp?"

Upon seeing this, Wellen, Joseph, and Oswald all narrowed their eyes.

They wouldn't hold back their killing intent towards anyone who dared to challenge Depp, even if they were teammates in the Justice League.

Bruce restrained the agitated Gordon and said, "There's no doubt he's Depp. I think we need to hear what he has to say and what he's going to do."

Gordon looked at Bruce, his mind racing, as if he had finally figured out Batman's true identity.

Depp thanked Bruce, then picked up the red owl mask from the table and said, "I think we should look further ahead than just punishing evil in this city."

"Punish the wicked and eliminate evil?" Lex asked, puzzled.

Bruce then asked, "What do you mean by 'longer-term'?"

Depp ignored Lex's words and said to Bruce, "We should start working on really changing the structure and philosophy of this city from the ground up."

"The source?" Bruce asked, puzzled. "I think I've done a lot recently, such as improving the city's infrastructure, creating new jobs, and providing relief to the poor."

Bruce clearly hasn't realized just how audacious Depp's goal is, and is still stuck in his own limitations.

Depp paused, then said, "Yes, the real source. And what you're doing now, while making Gotham a lot better, is still just the surface. I... and everyone else from now on, are working to completely change the landscape of this city, and even this country."

Depp's words seemed to touch a nerve with Lex.

Lex's inner ideals and beliefs were beginning to stir.

He had a gut feeling that what Depp wanted to do was pretty much the same as what he himself was thinking.

But Lex remained silent, because he knew that the protagonist today was not him, but the handsome man with thick hair and a monocle who was talking big.

Depp continued, "If the root of the problem in this city, and even this country, isn't changed, then no matter how hard you try, Bruce, you can't really change any of this."

Although it wasn't the first time Bruce had been criticized and lectured by Depp, he was still a little angry. He asked, "So tell me, what should I do?"

Depp stood up, still fiddling with the bright red owl mask in his hand, and said, "It's not about what you should do, but what we should do! Ultimately, this city and this country are nothing more than machines of capital. No matter how much you improve the lives of people in Gotham, Gotham still belongs to the Wayne Enterprises and their financial tycoons, not to the people of Gotham."

"Of course, this also includes the Depp Group."

Bruce retorted, "That's utter nonsense. This city doesn't belong to any one person or company; it belongs to all the people of Gotham!"

Depp chuckled coldly, slowly walked behind Bruce, leaned down, and whispered in Bruce's ear:

"Is that really the case? You build the infrastructure, but every single step of that process is actually handled by companies under the Wayne Group itself."

“You are charitable and provide jobs for people, but in the end, people still have to spend the money they earn, and almost every penny they spend ends up in Wayne Corporation.”

"Now, tell me, to whom does this city really belong?"

Depp's words were like steel needles, piercing deeply into Bruce's brain.

Although it was painful, it also made Bruce realize something.

No matter how much he did, in essence, it was still Wayne Enterprises that was constantly sucking the blood and sweat of the people of Gotham.

The people of Gotham City are essentially just employees of Wayne Enterprises, machines for making money for the company.

This caused Bruce to break down; he suddenly felt like a sinner.

But he was helpless, because although he was the president of Wayne Group, many times the company's decisions were not something he could make alone.

Bruce has the final decision-making power and can reject any decision he deems unfeasible.

However, when making these decisions, he had to consider the interests of all shareholders.

Depp patted Bruce on the shoulder and comforted him, "You don't have to feel guilty about this. You've done better than anyone else, everyone else."

Bruce looked up at Depp with gratitude, waiting for him to continue.

"Now, we need to solve this problem at its root. What we need is not a huge but ruthless business empire."

"On the contrary, what we need is a city where everyone can have enough to eat and wear, where all resources are allocated according to need, and where no one has to worry about making a living."

"Here, private property acquired through excessive exploitation of employees will not be recognized, and everyone will live together as equals, with no class distinctions or differences between the rich and poor."

Bruce frowned slightly upon hearing this and slowly said, "Distribute according to need...but everyone's needs are different. Just like we can't give a tall person and a short person different amounts of food, that's obviously unfair."

"Besides... what you said later is simply impossible to achieve. No one would be willing to give up their current assets! Even if I were willing, the other shareholders of Wayne Group would definitely unite to oppose it."