Chapter 3678: The Mercury Era (Part 9)

Peter watched Schiller, who was leaning against the side of the refrigerator and smiling at his phone, and shivered. He bent down and leaned into Pikachu's ear and said: "What's wrong with the doctor? Why is he smiling so evilly?"

"When is he not evil?" Pikachu flicked its ears and said, "He must be setting someone up again. I really don't know who is unlucky this time..."

Suddenly, the two of them looked at each other. After Pikachu cursed, it said: "Damn it! I haven't offended him recently!"

"But you woke him up this morning, and you've always wanted to drive that flying car. Maybe he thinks if he gives you something to do, you'll be quiet for a while."

"No way." Pikachu wailed, "I was just thinking about it, I didn't really do it... I think you're in danger too. Schiller once said that he wants to kill everything in this world that can tolerate white people's food, and this must include you."

Peter swallowed, and the two huddled together whispering for a long time, the more they talked, the less confident they felt. Peter had to carefully lean over and glance at Schiller's phone screen, but saw nothing. He could only ask sideways: "Doctor, who are you chatting with?"

"Group chat." Schiller said without looking back, "I'm helping my friend solve a problem."

It would have been better if he didn't say it; once he said it, Peter felt even less confident, and asked very uneasily: "This friend shouldn't be me, right?"

"You? You're already married, what kind of trouble could you have?"

"Ah, right. So this friend is single?"

"Yes, what's wrong?"

Peter had just breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the sound of something falling to the ground behind him. He looked back and saw Pikachu, who had made the noise, gesturing at him with its two short hands.

"Um, then this friend... is he human?" Peter asked, leaning against the refrigerator door.

"What?"

"Is he a human?"

"Should be."

"Should be?"

"Genetically modified humans also count as humans." Schiller said.

"So he is a human, not a mouse?"

Schiller looked at Peter with some surprise, and seeing the expressions of him and Pikachu, he realized what they were worried about. He put down his phone and walked over, saying: "Don't you guys know about Natasha?"

"What? Natasha? What happened to her?"

Schiller briefly recounted what had happened in the past few days, then shook the phone in his hand and said: "I gave Natasha a brilliant idea. I told her..."

Schiller briefly recounted his plan. In short, it was to let Natasha overturn the statement of breaking up peacefully with Bucky and pretend to have a grudge against Bucky. In this case, considering Bucky's safety, Steve might not let them date smoothly.

"Then you really did her a big favor." Peter said.

"No, no, no, this is just a superficial phenomenon." Schiller showed a big smile again, and then said, "I gave Natasha advice in the group, but I specifically pulled Coulson into the rescue team group. He will definitely tell Steve about this."

Peter opened his mouth wide and said: "Then if Steve knows, won't he not intervene? Then Natasha still has to face an embarrassing scene. Doctor, who are you helping?"

"Peter, an excellent psychologist should remain neutral on private emotional issues."

"So you're not helping anyone?"

"I'm helping them both at the same time."

Peter sighed: "Isn't this just fanning the flames?"

Schiller wanted to say something else, but his phone rang; Steve sent him a message.

"Good heavens. Doctor, so the part where Natasha said she had a grudge against Bucky was taught by you?"

Schiller didn't feel surprised at all. Faced with this kind of thing, Steve was more inclined to ask directly. This couldn't be considered betraying Coulson, after all, there was more than one person in the group chat. Nick and Steve could also be considered old friends for many years, and there was also the possibility of leaking information.

"How did you know???" Schiller pretended to be surprised and sent a series of question marks, and then said, "We just wanted to help Natasha. She begged me, and I couldn't just ignore it."

"Alright. I didn't know this caused such great distress to Natasha. But I must say, this was not my advice to Bucky; it was something he wanted to do himself. I tried to persuade him, but you also know he's a bit stubborn."

"So it wasn't you?" Schiller pretended to be surprised again and said, "I thought you were putting yourself in his shoes, wanting Bucky to have a happy old age too."

"I don't know if spending old age with Black Widow can be called happy." Steve replied, "I know Bucky very well. If he sets his mind on something, he won't give up easily. So I'm afraid they two weren't transferred by their superiors back then; that was just a solution they both accepted. Their relationship must have had problems. Problems that couldn't be solved back then might not necessarily be solved now. In the end, it's possible both sides will be hurt."

"What Natasha said might be true." Schiller said, "I just suggested she make up a reason, but the reason she said was quite well-founded. You know, I'm also from that side, and it feels like the possibility of it being true is very high."

"Oh, my God." Steve said, "If this is true, Bucky will be very guilty. He will feel that it was him who pushed Natasha into that fire pit. He will think he has to be responsible for all the misfortunes Natasha suffered afterward. Especially..."

"Especially Natasha being forced to kill all the girls. But was she really forced?"

"No one knows." Steve said, "Perhaps she was just for self-preservation. Perhaps she already felt it didn't matter. But the misfortunes they both encountered were equal. Bucky just broke free from one dead knot, and fell into another. I really don't know when it will end."

"The key lies in what Natasha is thinking. I don't think she would feel that the misfortune back then had anything to do with Bucky. But this will precisely become her reason for refusing Bucky. Isn't it?"

"I think so. If she still hates Bucky, it's still possible for the two of them. But if she had already walked out of it, then they two really have no chance."

"So, in order to alleviate Bucky's guilt, and also to make him feel there is still a little hope, I let Natasha pretend that she still hates him."

Steve sent a series of question marks, but he paused and then sent an exclamation mark. Soon he replied:

"But fake is fake after all. The resentment Natasha showed was just to make us stop the date. If she really let go inside, they still won't have any results. By that time, Bucky might be even more painful."

"I also don't quite understand." Schiller replied, "Humans are not computers; it's not like deleting a program and it's completely gone. If a relationship is let go, can't it be picked up again?"

"It's very difficult." Steve said, "Unless she didn't really let go."

"If Peggy were resurrected, would you still love her?"

Steve didn't reply for a long time, and then he said: "I wouldn't, Doctor."

"If you died and met her in hell?"

Steve was silent for a longer time, but he chose to skip this topic and said: "What do you intend to do?"

"We can't assume Natasha has completely let go. Even I wouldn't dare say she has absolutely no feelings for Bucky. Even she wouldn't dare say that herself. So we must first determine what she is thinking, and also help her determine it herself."

Schiller paused and then replied: "To figure it out, neither side can appear too rational. If you don't talk about feelings, how can you determine your own feelings? Natasha is not an emotional person, but she can pretend she is. This way Bucky can logically talk about feelings with her. Communication is always beneficial, isn't it?"

"I understand." Steve said, "Bucky is sometimes quite aggressive, but he is not the kind of person who is abrupt. If Natasha appears to be keeping people at a distance, then no matter how much pain he has inside, he won't say it. But if Natasha looks like she still has resentment, then Bucky will definitely find a way to open his mouth and explain."

"Exactly. As long as Bucky opens his mouth, you can see Natasha's attitude. If she really doesn't care about what happened back then at all, then she might not be able to listen at all, and there won't be any reaction. But if she cares even a little bit, they two will definitely quarrel."

"You might not believe it, Doctor, but I think quarreling is a good thing." Steve sighed and said, "I think several times when my relationship with Carter warmed up were after quarreling. It really helps to vent emotions and for both sides to grind together."

"Then that's it." Schiller said, "Natasha has already done as I said. Even in front of Bucky, before you guys take action, she has to keep acting this play. Considering her acting skills are not bad, Bucky shouldn't be able to see she's pretending."

"Then do we still need to take action to ruin the date?"

"Depends on the situation. If Natasha still cares, then you don't need to ruin it, they two will break up unhappily. If Natasha doesn't care at all, then you take action, and it can also prevent Bucky from falling into an embarrassing situation."

"Alright, we'll go prepare now." Steve made up his mind and started sending messages in the rescue plan group.

And Natasha was already ready to set off. She adjusted her image one last time and waved at Pepper and Wanda standing by the door. Pepper and Wanda smiled and waved at her from left and right, and then the moment her figure disappeared from sight, they rushed into the room, picked up their phones, and started reporting the situation.

Natasha drove Pepper's car and drove all the way toward the seafood restaurant. She knew that Pepper might be watching her through the car's camera, so she deliberately made an uneasy look and honked the horn wildly when there was a slight traffic jam.

Finally arriving at the restaurant entrance, she took a deep breath, pushed the door open, walked out, said the reservation number, and was led by the waiter to walk upstairs.

After going upstairs, outside the wide floor-to-ceiling windows was a deep blue sea and sky meeting. At this moment, it happened to be the blue hour, and the cold colors outside the window and the warm lights inside the window reflected each other. The low sound of the violin sounded in her ears, and an indescribable atmosphere lingered in the restaurant.

First passing the counter, walking past the screen. Natasha felt a gaze following her. After turning around the screen, she turned her head and saw that familiar yet strange face. Those eyes that were once hidden in the rolling thick fog of the red chimney in Minsk in winter, and had shed tears and blood for her, were looking at her with the same stunning yet bewildered gaze as when they first met.

?? Recently busy with renovation, the old articles might stop updating for a few days.

? (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 3679 =====