Days as a Spiritual Mentor in American Comics

The current leader of the Charabang Family isn't particularly talented, but he barely qualifies as a competent steward. Under his management, the industries' revenues have remained stable and over the years, a sizable sum of money has been accumulated. For the upper class, this is a significant amount; for ordinary people, it's astronomical.

Another advantage of an industrial group is that if they want to raise liquid capital, they have assets they can sell without resorting to financial means with long payment periods, allowing them to quickly raise funds. Of course, a fire sale might affect the prices, but they can't afford to care about that now.

At first, they were hoping for some luck, thinking that Gordon, who knew nothing about the chemical industry, wouldn't set a very high price, and Shiller had confidently assured them that he would definitely help them drive the price down.

Little did they know that this was right up Shiller's alley, squeezing a toad until it pees. Forget about plucking a feather from a passing goose—today is Doomsday, and he'd strip the scales clean before leaving.

After some investigation, Shiller had estimated the maximum cash the Charabang could pull together and reported this figure to both Gordon and the Charabang Family at the same time.

Gordon nearly fainted when he saw the string of zeroes after the number.

Just to put it in perspective, the highest offer in the ongoing first round of bidding is merely a fraction of that number.

The people of the Charabang Family were out of temper, thinking that the old police chief had someone capable behind him. The price was exactly on their breaking point, not a dollar more could they withstand.

But they really needed this knife, despite how much this price would hurt them, possibly leaving them weakened for the next decade. If they didn't pay this price, they'd have no future.

And so, the Charabang Family offered Gordon a price he simply could not refuse. It's not that Wayne Enterprises couldn't afford it, but Lucius Fox would be insane to spend so much money on this matter.

Even though Gordon very much wanted Batman to take charge of the GTO, sorry, brother, they really offered too much.

"Don't be nervous, Lady," Shiller said. "I told you I would help you get control of GTO, and then no one can compete with you for the property. But before that, I would still like to talk about my remuneration."

Lady Charabang paused, then smiled and said, "You did indeed do a good job and deserve to be paid. How much do you want?"

Shiller shook his head slightly, then pulled out a document. "I can't take your money privately, after all, I have to consider my safety. This is a management contract. Once you sign this contract, you can pay me a salary."

Lady Charabang took the contract, which had no complicated terms. Basically, it stated that Lady Charabang entrusted Shiller to manage her industry, so she had to pay him a commission.

The amount wasn't much, only a few million, and it was a three-year employment contract.

Lady Charabang raised her eyebrows at Shiller, who said, "This is for the work I've done before. If you want me to do something for you later, you'll have to pay extra."

"Even so, it's not much," Lady Charabang said. "What else do you want to do?"

"You've noticed, clever lady," Shiller said with a smile, palms joined. "It's just a small personal issue of mine that requires the Charabang Family's power to solve."

"Tell me, as long as it's not too difficult, I'll try to handle it." Lady Charabang already saw herself as the future leader of the Charabang Family.

She knew the people of the Charabang Family wouldn't sincerely follow a vagabond like her, so Shiller was the only person she could rely on at this stage. Giving him a little incentive was no issue.

"First we need to deal with the pollution of the Natural Forest."

Upon hearing this, Lady Charabang frowned. Despite having just shaken off her vagabond status, she had no sympathy for the poor. "Why bother with pollution control? We're not affected anyway. If those people die, they die. At worst, we pay a bit more compensation."

"I'm not saying we really go and deal with it, but rather, the Natural Forest Protection Fund established by Mr. Charabang needs to keep running."

"Why?" Lady Charabang instinctively showed disgust. She wanted to eliminate anything related to her brother.

"So I said it's my own little issue. I hope to become this fund's Manager, on behalf of the Charabang Family, once the situation stabilizes."

Lady Charabang immediately understood. As a spoiled young lady in her childhood, she knew a thing or two despite not being studious. Those fund managers were filthy rich due to the massive manipulative liberty of such entities.

It's good to have a golden egg or two, but having the goose that lays golden eggs would be even better.

"I won't lie to you, Lady," Shiller said with a smile. "I have no grand ambitions. I just want to find a place to retire early, and a manager of an environmental fund is quite a nice position—it's the most laid-back job I can find."

Lady Charabang smiled too; she got Shiller's joke. In Gotham, the biggest splash an environmental fund makes is on the day it's founded; it's quieter than a cemetery every other day.

"Okay, I promise you. I won't dissolve the fund and will hire you as the fund's Manager."

Shiller pulled out another contract. Lady Charabang looked it over, finding it quite straightforward with no hidden tricks. She then signed it along with the previous one.

"I am truly grateful." Shiller turned and took a small wooden box out of his briefcase, placed it on the table, and said, "The best way to celebrate our temporary victory is with a drink, don't you think?"

Lady Charabang picked up the wooden box and discovered a bottle of red wine inside, and not just any wine—it was a fine one. As an alcoholic, the sight immediately triggered her cravings.

Just as she was about to call the waiter over to open the wine, Shiller's phone suddenly rang.

"Hello? Director Gordon? What's the matter? ...Okay, I'll be right over, please wait."

After hanging up, Shiller stood up and said, "Something's come up at the police station, related to GTO. I have to take care of it right away. My apologies, this exquisite Dionysium is yours to enjoy alone."

Lady Charabang didn't want to share with anyone to begin with, as she had a habit of doing drugs while drinking. Seeing Shiller about to leave, she didn't stop him, which was exactly what she wanted.

After Shiller left, she took the red wine and hurried back to her new house, took out the expensive drugs she had bought earlier, and prepared to enjoy herself.

She poured the wine into a glass, the allure of the red liquid's aroma filling the air. She lit her drug, took a deep inhale, gulped down a mouthful of wine, and then exhaled with satisfaction.

Then, with a thud, Lady Charabang collapsed to the floor.

Meanwhile, at the police station, Shiller said to Gordon, "My boss just mentioned at the dinner that she will send me an important document in ten minutes, but now I can't reach her. Can you dispatch someone to come with me to find her?"

Gordon, still dumbfounded by the zeroes on the payment from the Charabang Family, jumped up anxiously when he heard Shiller's boss had disappeared, thinking it was the pale knight. "What about the Mayor? Is he missing?"

"No, not the Mayor."

Just as Gordon let out a sigh of relief, he heard Shiller say, "It's Lady Charabang, the heir of the Charabang Family."

Gordon went completely cold. He hurriedly took his men with Shiller to Lady Charabang's house.

Upon entering, they found Lady Charabang unconscious on the living room floor, with white powder scattered around her.

Shiller took in a sharp breath and then said, "My client has a history of drug use; she might have overdosed. Hurry, take her to the hospital!"

The police rushed to carry Lady Charabang out, and Shiller quickly stopped Gordon saying, "Let's not make a spectacle of this. The Charabang Family is already in trouble, and if people see the future leader overdosed and unconscious, we're finished."

Thinking of the big sum of money in the GTO account, Gordon gritted his teeth and said, "Let's go out the back door, don't let anyone see. Take her to the nearest hospital."

Watching their hurried departure, Shiller smiled. He had rented this house for Lady Charabang, and the nearby community hospital had long been bribed by him.

The two million Rose had given him before were almost spent, but no matter, even if Lady Charabang was now unconscious, the contract he had previously signed was still in effect, and soon Shiller would gain control over several million more, and the management of the Natural Forest Protection Fund.

While Gordon was downstairs, Shiller went back to the room to take the bottle of red wine, leaving the rest in the glass untouched.

He wasn't afraid of the police analyzing the wine, because he had tested it—neither Batman nor Rose could detect anything wrong with Nya's wine, so the Gotham Police Department's forensic science unit was even less likely to find anything.

Arriving at the nearest hospital, the doctor's initial assessment was consistent with Shiller's: a coma due to drug overdose. Although she was out of danger after emergency treatment, when she would wake up was unknown.

Shiller didn't bother to look at Lady Charabang again. He had gotten what he wanted, and the Charabang Family was no longer of any use to him.

The hospital was under his control; even if the Charabang Family and journalists found out that Lady Charabang was admitted, they wouldn't be able to get in anytime soon. And in that time, Shiller could take the contract to the Charabang Group's finance department to cash in his salary.

At the same time, he would certificate the entrustment relationship Lady Charabang had given him regarding the Natural Forest Protection Fund, to advance some money into the fund.

The Charabang Group's finance department felt something strange but it also made sense. If Lady Charabang took over the group, she would have to address the pollution problems in the Natural Forest whether she wanted to or not. Even without resolving the pollution, the public relations needed to address it would cost money, which was normal.

Because they had invested in GTO, their cash was not excessive—they only advanced two million cash to Shiller. The head of the finance department might also have felt the amount was a bit short as if to fob off, and could only ask Shiller to explain to the future boss.

Seizing the opportunity, Shiller proposed that if cash was insufficient, then supply some materials instead, even just equipment to make a show at the Natural Forest, at least to quiet down the protesters.

With the coordination from the finance department and the fact that the Charabang Group originated from the chemical industry, they were able to obtain many materials for purifying groundwater and neutralizing soil pollution, and even plenty of household water purification equipment, ready to flaunt in front of the journalists as compensation for the residents, to enhance their own reputation.

Since they did not believe their boss would really use these items, they piled up as much as they could, taking out all their available materials, as a way to curry favor with the new leadership.

Yet, some unscrupulous person leaked this to an environmental organization, and on the very first day the materials were transferred, the environmentalists surrounded the place.