To defeat a madman, you could only be madder than him. Bruce was crazier than even the Joker now.
Cobblepot had never been that crazy to begin with. His mental problems were physiological, placing him at the very bottom of the villain hierarchy. Faced with a Batman who was thoroughly mad, he had to admit defeat.
"Wayne, our contest ends here. I admit it, you won. I don't care what happens to those children you took away in the end. Just looking at your current state, you really did win."
Cobblepot raised both hands and backed away several steps. "If you want to make things difficult for me this way, there's really no need. We're all businesspeople. Don't make this so undignified..."
Bruce merely stared at him with bright, intense eyes. "Why can't you understand what I'm saying? I really did come here to do business with you. I told you, I remembered all the information around Living Hell. I have every piece of information you want. You only need to pay for it..."
Cobblepot wore a helpless expression. He stood where he was, took a deep breath, then walked over to the telephone switchboard behind him and called the Gotham Police Department.
Cobblepot was not asking the police to take Bruce Wayne away. He was asking them to take him away.
If he couldn't afford to provoke him, he could at least hide. At worst, he would spend a few months in prison and take the opportunity to reconnect with the mob bosses he had not seen in a long time.
And so, Cobblepot was taken away by Gordon. Bruce's plan to earn some extra money fell through, and his superhuman memory had nowhere to be put to use.
Watching Cobblepot's retreating back, Bruce felt no joy of victory