Chapter 47: Iron Man Never Retreats

Peter said while eating: "It seems the situation is not optimistic. When I went to the lab to see Mr. Stark yesterday, Colonel Rhodes seemed to have been persuading him."

Peter said: "Although I can't understand these things, I know that if Mr. Stark's mechs fall into the hands of the military, it might not be a good thing."

"Colonel Rhodes, as Mr. Stark's friend, perhaps he is also very embarrassed. After all, he also represents the interests of a group of people," Peter said.

"You are smarter than I thought. I thought you wouldn't be able to see the current situation very well."

Peter shook his head and said: "Actually, I really can't understand, but I know that everyone wants those mechs, because that is really strong."

"No, because that is a kind of weapon."

"If it were just a sweeping robot, even if it could sweep New York clean in an instant, the military wouldn't be so interested in this."

Peter was a little silent and said: "I don't think the mechs should be handed over, but I know Mr. Stark is facing great pressure. Do you think I should... or should I comfort him, or advise him? I can't do nothing, right?"

"I think you should solve your own affairs first. If you can fully control the power of spider mutation, perhaps these things will be small things for you?"

Just as Peter said, the next day, Shiler's psychological clinic welcomed a guest who was expected, that is, James Rhodes, also known as Colonel Rhodes.

He said very directly to Shiler: "The military needs Stark's mech technology, but he seems to have been unclear about his attitude. I just want to come and ask you, what is his plan? Does the Anquan Bureau play any role in it?"

"Actually, you don't want to come either," Shiler said. "I can see it."

Rhodes pulled one side of the corner of his mouth and said: "It seems that the high consultation fee Tony pays you is reasonable."

"Clearly, your superior knows that this question cannot be asked to Stark, otherwise the Anquan Bureau will get the answer faster than you. However, it is useless for you to come and ask me."

"The military needs Stark's mechs, he can give us advantages in many places... can make fewer people die."

"You haven't realized that your reluctant psychology has made your wording extremely dry. Colonel Rhodes, I know you are also very embarrassed. The military repeatedly forced Stark, but he is your friend."

"So you can only make yourself feel better by deceiving yourself. In fact, you know what these battle armors will be used for, but as long as you convince yourself that doing so might be beneficial, you can feel better from the guilt of forcing a friend."

"Obeying orders is the duty of a soldier," Rhodes said.

"Indeed, but Stark? Your friend? Repeatedly going against your friend's wishes, forcing him to sell his interests, using friendship to kidnap him."

"You actually always know how much Tony values you. Stark doesn't have many friends, but you are definitely one of them... perhaps also the most important one."

"You know he is willing to pay these prices for you, willing to do the things he hates most for you - compromise and bow his head."

"You know, Stark will be willing sooner or later. If you are forced to a dead end by your superior, he will definitely save you."

"Stop talking," Rhodes said.

He tightly purs

Shiler pressed the button on his ballpoint pen, and the crisp sound made Luo De suddenly wake up. Shiler said, "Perhaps it is because you possess something he does not that he is willing to do this. My advice to you is that perhaps these are the things you should most strive to keep. Compared to the military, Stark's friendship is more precious, and this is not because he is wealthier—"

"—but because of the qualities a proud genius sees in you, qualities even he lacks, which make him willing to pay this price for you. They are more worth your persistence and pride than those hollow, empty honors, aren't they?"

Luo De fell silent.

The next day, when Shiler went to Stark Tower, he happened to run into Luo De walking out. Behind him followed an adjutant, whose expression was clearly joyful; they seemed to have obtained some of the things they wanted.

But Luo De's expression hadn't improved at all. He kept his face tense, and without looking at Shiler, he walked straight past him.

After going upstairs, Stark was standing in front of his armor again, carefully examining his work.

"It seems you have made your decision. They got what they wanted, didn't they?" Shiler asked.

"Fine." Stark turned around. He first tensed the muscles in his shoulders, then suddenly relaxed, letting them drop, and let out a breath. He said, "I know, I should have stuck to your previous advice; that was the right thing to do."

"But I didn't do it. I knew full well it was right, and I didn't have to pay any price, yet I still didn't do it..."

"I knew early on that it wouldn't succeed." Shiler sat at the table with the medical records, writing in his notebook. He didn't look up, but said with a sigh, "Many people are just willing to pay a huge price to chase after emotional compensation, especially for someone like you who has never lacked material conditions."

"You would rather give up the result of maximizing your interests than bear to see Luo De caught in the middle, feeling troubled. You paid the price to buy back his temporary friendship with you."

"Yes, I know what you want to say. You are friends; that is what you think, and he thinks so too. But friendship cannot continue if it is not equally desired by both sides."

"You keep spending a price to buy it, and sooner or later, there will come a day when you cannot afford it. When you can no longer afford it, perhaps Luo De will understand you, but this world will not."

Finally, Shiler said, "When you have whetted those people's appetites, the price you must pay for emotions will be endless."

Stark said, "It's not that I haven't thought about this problem. I know that once I give in, I will inevitably keep losing."

"They can use Luo De to persuade me to hand over part of the armor technology, so one day, they can force him to persuade me to hand over all the armor, or to build more war machines for them."

"From the moment I knew how many civilians my weapons had actually harmed, I knew that intelligence brings not only wealth but also disaster." Stark said. He pressed his fingers to his eye sockets and said, "I only just figured this problem out recently: the final outcome for a genius is always having nowhere left to retreat."

"When everyone knows you have a brain capable of saving the world, they will simultaneously harbor the ambition to make you destroy it."

After a moment of silence, Shiler stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window. Outside the windows of Stark Tower was the New York sunset. Stark followed his gaze, and the somewhat dazzling light caused a hazy blur of colors to bloom before his eyes. Shiler said, "When you have nowhere left to retreat, what will you do?"

Stark said, "This is my home, and it is also home to Pepper, Jarvis, and... everything that is Stark's."

"In the end, no one can force me to hand this over."

"If they want more..."

Stark's eyes, which always contained a variety of emotions, looked straight at Shiler. His expression was not heavy at all, but calm as he said:

"... Iron Man never retreats."

Shiler looked at him and asked:

"Then, have you ever thought about flipping this absurd and boring negotiation table?"

"You are just like a devil leading people to fall."

"That is much more useful than you praying to God."

"I never pray. I don't count on gods, I don't believe in those strange tricks, those ridiculous rumors and legends..."

As soon as he finished speaking, Stark saw that everything in his laboratory began to tremble slightly.

Then, everything floated up.

In an instant, as if gravity had been lost, everything floated in mid-air: cups, notebooks, computers, wrenches...

The sunset light from outside the window shone on places where these things were not supposed to receive sunlight. Shiler stood in the center of everything, the light behind him casting a long shadow in front of him.

The shadows of all the items overlapped into a giant web. Stark stood in the middle of it all. He reached out his hand, and a drop of water falling from a cup landed on his fingertip. Stark looked up and around; he saw the countless ordinary, mundane sundries in mid-air, and the ordinary ceiling and walls above his head—

He saw it: a door to a new world.