Li Jie sat in the police car, watching the dense crowd and flashing media cameras in Civic Plaza.
"He actually pulled it off."
Wilson sat in the passenger seat, holding a freshly printed copy of the Gotham Gazette. A large photograph of Cobblepot dominated the front page. The man who usually looked so meek and cowardly had undergone a remarkable transformation.
His hair was meticulously styled, and a city councilman's badge was pinned to his chest. The headline beneath the photograph read, "From community service to City Hall: Oswald Cobblepot takes the oath of office."
"What was his campaign slogan again?" Wilson shook out the newspaper and flipped to the entertainment section. "A man who truly understands the streets."
"What he understands is how to collect protection money on the streets. He's still got plenty to learn." Li Jie tossed a nut into his mouth. "Still, to be fair, the Community Service Team he organized really did play a big part in this crisis. Want some?"
He raised the bag of nuts, and Wilson firmly shook his head. Li Jie smiled and listened to Cobblepot's inaugural speech drifting over from the plaza. Even from this far away, he could hear the amplified voice echoing through the air:
"...When I was a child, my father told me there was nothing impressive about those people on Wall Street playing building blocks with money. We performed mathematical magic, feeding an entire family on our last ten dollars. Those of us who grew up poor on the streets may have different things on our dinner tables, but the hardships we're served all follow the same recipe."
The crowd erupted in laughter and applause.
"What the hell is he talking about?" Wilson frowned. "Wasn't his father rich? I seem to remember..."
"Out in the world,