Laughing American comics, I am becoming more and more like a clown

"Oh, yes, the bat movement," Lucian muttered to himself. These days, he'd seen quite a few people whose lives had been drastically altered by joining the rebellion. "That's a real bad guy."

Zaven was still wondering whether to agree or refute. He felt uncomfortable no matter how he said it, as the person was scolding him in front of him. So he pretended to be mute. Unfortunately, Lucian did not give him the opportunity and asked again:

"What do you think?"

……

How can we see it?

Zaven replied dryly: "He is right."

This was too dry, and he felt a little annoyed after saying it. He had originally thought that he could perform better, at least with reason and evidence.

As expected, Lucian showed a disappointed expression, so Zaven quickly added:

"—He told us about the existence of the court... He told us the truth, but he didn't instigate or organize us to do anything. He's a good man."

Still too pale.

Zaven was still frustrated with his performance and was about to add something when Lucian interrupted him:

"You really think so?"

"Good guy?"

"Why do I feel like he's just a conspirator who can only play with his tongue?"

This is what Zawen was worried about. He had expressed the opposite view to him, so he did not insist on his own point of view and was extremely submissive: "Yes, a conspirator. He only told us what was wrong, but did not explain it clearly, let alone tell us what to do."

Lucien chuckled softly at his fence-sitting behavior.

……

It was Zaven's turn to write down his assets: "...house, food, I don't know how much, it's almost a month's rations."

He concealed the fact that he had eaten both ends.

……

But when the final count was done, someone put a gun to Wilbur's head and said, "The number is wrong!"

Wilbur opened his eyes wide. "The quantity is correct! What's wrong? I gave more than half of it to Jonathan, Crawford, Austin, Tex, and Devin a few days ago..."

These people are the leaders of various small gangs, and it is no wonder that they are willing to let the unknown Wilbur become the boss of the Red Hood Gang - they see it more clearly that the tallest tree catches the most wind, not to mention that food is more important in the current situation.

The person next to him who had already registered without any problems sneered: "Did you forget about our membership fee?!"

"I didn't forget!" Wilbur explained loudly, "I took out half of the remaining half and gave each person their dues - a box of water and a box of bread."

The expression on the face of the down-and-out young master's friend was a little embarrassed. He only got ten bags of bread from his boss... Soon his expression became even stiffer. He remembered that he was also eating from both ends. He quietly withdrew from the crowd and wanted to run, but the truck was blocking the road tightly.

"Bullshit! Membership fee! It's clearly for us to give you a box of water and a box of bread!" someone said.

"What do you mean one box? It's obviously two boxes!" another person said.

Only then did they realize something was wrong and started clamoring to reconcile the accounts - then they learned that many people had to hand over ten boxes of food in order to join the Red Hood Gang.

Wilbur gasped heavily, "I am innocent!"

He shouted, "I didn't ask for any of this! I didn't take any of it!"

……

The shouting became louder and louder, and Lucian and Zaven couldn't help but look sideways.

Zaven listened for a moment and said, "When I joined, they also asked me for ten bags of bread."

"Ten bags?" Lucian raised an eyebrow. "You're lucky you met a greedy and cowardly thief."

With a hint of emotion, he said, "Most of the gangs I've encountered have taken almost all the food. If you voluntarily hand it over, you can join. If you don't, you'll be killed. If you can't get enough, you'll also be killed... Even if you join, you'll just become cannon fodder, standing in the front to grab a stool leg when someone robs others. Even if you're lucky enough to survive, you have to give at least two-thirds of the "reward" as "protection money."

"I don't know if your boss has a conscience or is just stupid...but he took out a portion to feed the greediest group."

After saying this, Lucien threw the unfinished cigarette into the blood to extinguish the flame, then walked up to the person who was doing the statistics and gestured.

This has happened too many times, and the people who are doing the statistics have a lot of experience, but since his boss wants to do this, he didn't object and stood aside obediently.

……

After seeing Lucian, they couldn't help but look back at the blood under the truck, and then thought of Lucian's name these days, and gradually quieted down.

"Come on, ask the people who need things from you how much they have asked for. Don't waste any more time talking nonsense, and start with... you."

Lucian pointed at the unlucky guy who had just been asked to pay ten packets of membership fee.

The unlucky guy came out hesitantly and said

"Ron told me I had to pay ten packets of noodles to join, and I gave them to him."

"Okay, where's Ron?"

"Lame told me the news in advance and told me to do this. I only took two out of ten bags."

"What about the lame leg?"

"This is none of my business! I have even less! I only have one pack, and the information was not given by me, it was Randall!"

"So, Randall."

"..."

"Why don't you speak?"

"...I have my reasons! My child is dying of illness! They insist on me giving them ten packets a day before they'll give me the medicine! I have no choice!"

"Who doesn't have their own difficulties? Now tell me, who did you give it to?"

"Boss."

"Boss? Who?"

"Kake."

"Okay, Keck."

"This is a normal transaction! I don't realize how hard it is to get medicine these days! Especially for children. The more you get older, the more expensive the medicine will be. I already have very little I need!"

This is true. In today's Gotham, exchanging ten bags of bread for medicine is not considered taking advantage of someone's misfortune.

Lucian tapped the paper with his ballpoint pen, not hastily crossing out Keck's name. He then said to the crowd, "So, does anyone else have evidence against Keck?"

Cake looked around with his eyes wide open. This was a threat, but Lucian ignored it and said, "One more thing, don't think you'll just be a team after joining. Most of you will be managed separately - logistics, security, transportation, computing, search, intelligence, medical, and those who come with me to rob others."

"Of course, if there are cases of ganging up or bullying, you can tell me individually. I will often be with you. Slanderers and those who confirm the facts will die."

"Those who oppose me now will also die."

……

After a moment of silence, someone said, "He gave me food laced with belladonna and forced me to take drugs. He used drugs in exchange for food..."

"Me too."

"I also……"

"I."

Lucian looked at Cake, who was pretending to be calm. "Do you have anything to say, Poison Bug?"

"...I, I didn't know the belladonna was spilled! Besides, the price I bought it for them wasn't expensive! It really wasn't expensive!"

"Change your excuse, bad boy."

Under the gaze, dense beads of cold sweat flowed down Kake's forehead, and he finally said: "...I am just an agent, the murderer is Jonathan."

"So where is Jonathan? Have him come over for a confrontation."

"Jonathan?"

……

After calling out several times without any result, Lucian looked around and asked, "Why, you don't dare to admit it?"

"...No, it's not." A weak voice came from behind: "Jonathan just died."

Pointing at the corpse lying with its eyes open under the truck.

"Oh, that's bad." Lucian shrugged and looked at Cake: "There's no way, or is there any other evidence to prove this?"

"I know his home!" Jonathan's death made Cake bolder, and he spilled a lot of information in a row: "I know where he grows his belladonna! I also know his property! His house!"

Lucian was not interested in this. He waved his hand and signaled the person behind him to record this matter, while he started asking the next person.

As luck would have it, Zaven squeezed in, and Lucien didn't intend to skip over: "You go."

"Julian told me. I gave him ten bags of bread."

"Julian?"

The poor young master standing on the periphery almost trembled as he stepped forward, feeling guilty and not daring to look in Zha Wen's direction: "I, I."

"Speak, you cowardly mouse."

"I, I." He looked around, knowing he had to speak out. He simply gave up and lowered his head deeply: "I took what the boss gave to Zaven... and asked him for the same amount."

Then he added: "I see—they all do it!"

"As expected. Then who is your boss? Still Keck?"

"It's German."

This time, Devon came over without waiting for Lucian to call his name. He had been looking at Lucian and knew that it would be his turn sooner or later, so he had prepared himself mentally.

He first admitted his fault: "My fault, my fault... Greed is a disease, I have no conscience, it's all my fault, I'm sorry everyone." A few tears even squeezed out of his sunken eye sockets:

"I have my reasons..."

But before he could say anything, Lucien without warning picked up the pistol on the table and fired, the bullet hitting him right in the forehead.

Devin, just like his name, went limp like a Devin cat.

"What did I say? No need for nonsense."

Those who were originally eager to try and wanted to express dissatisfaction or learn German to delay time suddenly became depressed.

……

Lucian had wanted to kill a few people to establish his authority, but considering that killing them would cut off the clues, he hesitated until now and finally met someone who was the last link.