Chapter-46 | Iron Man Never Back's Down...

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Peter said while eating: "It seems that the situation is not optimistic. When I went to see Mr. Stark in the laboratory yesterday, Colonel Rhodes seemed to be trying to persuade him."

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

"As a friend of Mr. Stark, Colonel Rhodes may also be in a difficult situation. After all, he also represents the interests of a group of people." Peter said.

"You're smarter than I thought. I thought you wouldn't understand the current situation."

Peter shook his head and said, "Actually, I really don't understand it, but I know that everyone wants those mechas, because they are really strong."

"No, it's because it's a weapon."

"If it was just a sweeping robot, even if it could sweep New York clean in an instant, the military would not be so interested in it."

Peter was a bit silent. He said: "I don't think the mecha should be handed over, but I know that Mr. Stark is under a lot of pressure. Do you think I should...or I should go to comfort him, or to persuade him What? I can't do nothing, can I?"

"I think you should settle your own affairs first. If you can completely control the power of spider mutation, maybe these things will be trivial to you?"

As Peter said, the next day, Schiller's psychological clinic welcomed an expected guest, James Rhodes, also known as Colonel Rhodes.

He said to Schiller very bluntly: "The military needs Stark's mecha technology, but he seems to have been unclear about it. I just want to ask you, what is his plan? Does SHIELD play a role in it?"

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

Rhodes twitched one corner of his mouth and said, "It seems that it makes sense for Tony to charge you such an expensive consultation fee."

"Obviously, your superior knows that you can't ask Stark this question, otherwise S.H.I.E.L.D. will get the answer faster than you. But it's useless for you to ask me."

"The military needs Stark's mecha. He can give us an advantage in many places...and save a lot of people from dying."

"You didn't realize that your reluctance had made your words extremely dry. Colonel Rhodes, I know you are also very embarrassed. The military has 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 armors will be used for. However, as long as you convince yourself that doing so may be beneficial, you can get over the guilt of persecuting your friends."

"It is the bounden duty of a soldier to obey orders," Rhodes said.

"Indeed, but what about Stark? Where's your friend? Repeatedly against his friend's wishes, forcing him to betray his own interests, kidnapping him with friendship."

"You have always known how much Tony valued you. Stark doesn't have many friends, but you are definitely one of them... maybe the most significant one."

"You know that he is willing to pay these prices for you, and is willing to do for you what he hates to do most—compromise and bow his head."

"You know, Stark will be willing sooner or later. If you are cornered by your boss, he will definitely save you."

"Stop talking." Rhodes said.

He tightly pursed his lips into a line.

Schiller pressed the button of the ballpoint pen, and the crisp sound made Rhodes wake up suddenly. Schiller said: "Maybe he is willing to do this because you have something on you that he doesn't have. My suggestion to you is, maybe these are the things you should keep most. Stark's friendship is more precious than the military, and it's not because he's richer—"

"It's the qualities that a lonely genius sees in you, those qualities that even he doesn't have, that make him willing to pay these prices for you.

It is more worthy of your persistence and pride than those false honors, isn't it? "

Rhodes was silent.

The next day, when Schiller headed to Stark Tower, he ran into Rhodes who had come out. Behind him was an adjutant, and the adjutant's face was obviously very happy. They seemed to have got something they wanted.

But Rhodes' complexion didn't improve at all. He still had a tense face, and he walked over straight without looking at Schiller.

After ascending upstairs, Stark stood in front of his armor again, looking at his work carefully.

"It seems you've made a decision and they got what they wanted, right?" Schiller asked.

"Okay." Stark turned around, he first tensed the muscles of his shoulders, then suddenly relaxed, let his shoulders hang down, and let out a breath, he said: "I know, I should stick to your previous suggestion, then that's right."

"But I didn't do it. I knew it was right. I didn't have to pay any price. I still didn't do it..."

"I knew it would not be successful." Schiller sat down at the table with the case and wrote in his notebook. He didn't look up, but said with a sigh: "Many people are willing to pay a huge price to chase emotions." Compensation, especially for someone like you who has never lacked material conditions."

"You would rather give up the result of maximizing your interests than see Rhodes caught in the middle. You paid the price and bought back the temporary friendship between him and you."

"Yes, I know what you want to say. You are friends. You think so, and so does he. But especially if the two parties are not happy with each other, this friendship cannot last."

"You keep paying the price to buy it. Sooner or later, you can't afford it. When you can't afford it, maybe Rhodes will understand you, but this world won't."

Finally Schiller said: "When you feed those people's appetites, the price you have to pay for your relationship will never end."

Stark said: "It's not that I haven't thought about this issue. I know that once I let go, I will inevitably lose."

"They can use Rhodes to persuade me to hand over part of the mecha technology, and one day, they can force him to persuade me to hand over all the mechas, or build more war machines for them."

"From the moment I knew how many civilians my weapons had hurt, I know that wisdom will not only bring wealth, but also disaster." Stark said, pressing his fingers to the sockets of his eyes, and said, "I just wanted to understand this problem. The final outcome of a genius is always irrevocable."

"When everyone knows that you have brains enough to save the world, they will also have the ambition to let you destroy the world at the same time."

After a moment of silence, Schiller stood up and walked to the floor-to-ceiling windows. Outside the window of the Stark Tower was the sunset of New York. Stark followed his gaze, and his eyes were blurred by hazy colors. Schiller said, "When you have no way to retreat, what will you do?"

Stark said: "This is my home, as well as Pepper, Jarvis, and...."

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

"If they want more..."

Stark looked directly at Schiller with eyes that always contained various emotions. His expression was not heavy at all, but he said calmly:

"... Iron Man will never back down."

Schiller looked at him and asked:

"So, have you ever thought about overturning this ridiculous and boring negotiation table?"

"You're like the devil who can make people fall."

"This is much more useful than praying to God."

"I never pray, I don't count on God, I don't believe in those weird tricks, those ridiculous rumors..."

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 losing gravity, everything floated in mid-air, cups, notebooks, computers, wrenches...

Outside the window, the sunset light shone on things that should not have been exposed to sunlight. Schiller stood in the center of all the things, and the light behind him cast a long shadow in front of him.

The shadows of all objects overlapped into a huge net, Stark stood in the middle of all this, he stretched out his hand, a drop of water from the cup fell on his fingertips, Stark looked up, he saw the countless ordinary sundries in mid-air, and the ordinary ceiling and walls above——

He saw a door to a new world.

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