However.
Coulson could pretend Tony Stark never appeared, but Tony Stark couldn't pretend he had never seen Coulson.
The Playboy immediately fell into deep thought after returning to the luxurious Villa in Marbury.
Why would S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents appear in the Arctic Ocean?
To be precise, they appeared near Captain America's crash site at the critical moment when the diary had just revealed that Captain America was still alive!
This combination of time and place actually pointed to something quite obvious.
It could no longer be simply and crudely explained away as a coincidence, so it was really hard not to make the Playboy's imagination run wild.
"Could it be that I'm not the only one who knows Captain America is still alive?"
Tony Stark was really conflicted. "But the diary clearly said that Captain America wasn't discovered by S.H.I.E.L.D.!"
So, were the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents led by Coulson really not there for Captain America?
The other party was circling near Captain America's crash site, seemingly detecting something, and was indeed carrying out some mission.
Unrelated to Captain America?
And the other party would withdraw on their own after completing the mission, not discovering Captain America from beginning to end?
Still leaving Captain America lying in that boundless ice and snow until he was discovered by that Russian oil team in the future?
Damn it, if that's the case, it really is a bit too much of a coincidence!
"From a probabilistic point of view, it is indeed a low-probability event for S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents to appear at such a special time and place due to coincidence."
"But Sir, you must also understand that low-probability events also have the possibility of happening."
Jarvis, the thoughtful AI butler, spoke, substantiating his view from a scientific perspective.
Tony Stark naturally understood this principle.
And precisely because of this, the Playboy, considering that the diary's information had never been wrong, could only temporarily conclude that the appearance of Coulson and his team was indeed a coincidence.
Although it was an excessive coincidence, the diary really hadn't made any mistakes!
However, if this were the case, Tony Stark's plan to find Captain America would be affected.
Although S.H.I.E.L.D. was an intelligence organization founded by his father, it ultimately had little to do with Tony Stark.
Tony Stark also didn't want to get involved in the missions of such an intelligence agency and cause any unnecessary trouble.
"Forget it!"
"Let Captain America continue to hibernate there for a while longer."
"He's been asleep for so long anyway, a little longer won't hurt."
After a brief period of contemplation, Tony Stark made this decision.
It wouldn't be too late for Tony Stark to make another trip to the Arctic Ocean after Coulson and the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents had withdrawn.
As for now?
It was better to deal with some other matters first.
What matters?
Naturally, it was investigating Ivan Vanko, as revealed in the diary, and investigating whether the Winter Soldier was Bucky Barnes.
Both of these matters were quite important to Tony Stark, or rather, he took them quite seriously.
Especially the latter, which gnawed at Tony Stark and he couldn't let go of it.
Tony Stark had basically put all his energy into this matter, but unfortunately, there had been no effective progress.
After all, Bucky Barnes had been dead for seventy years, and there were simply not many traces left behind.
The same was true for the mysterious ghost, the Winter Soldier.
Apart from some fragmented pieces, no effective clues could be found about this person.
Whoever the mastermind behind him was, they must possess unfathomable power, having erased everything about the Winter Soldier completely.
Making it impossible for Tony Stark to find anything, even with an AI like Jarvis, which was ahead of its time.
But in fact, Tony Stark didn't know that.
The Winter Soldier, apart from executing missions, was usually kept frozen like Captain America.
The traces left behind were originally pitifully few.
Even when he performed missions, he mostly wore a mask.
Situations like the monitoring footage capturing his full face when he killed the Howard couple were extremely rare.
Considering all these circumstances, even for Tony Stark, who had a tech cheat, it was unrealistic to find anything in a short period of time.
The same was true for Ivan Vanko.
Because Ivan Vanko's background in America was much cleaner than the Winter Soldier's.
The Winter Soldier at least had some related fragments that could be retrieved by Jarvis, but Ivan Vanko really had nothing.
In the movie, after he attacked Iron Man and was arrested, the authorities collected his fingerprints but couldn't find anything.
As for Ivan Vanko's father, Anthony Vanko?
He had already kicked the bucket before Tony Stark publicly revealed his Iron Man Armor identity!
Thus.
The possibility of Tony Stark finding Ivan Vanko through Jarvis was even smaller than finding the Winter Soldier.
So, although Tony Stark had urged Jarvis to investigate vigorously, he still faced a very frustrating fact:
As days passed, apart from the Stark Expo being meticulously organized by Pepper Potts and everything progressing smoothly.
He had no other progress.
Of course.
This was only for Tony Stark.
What about for Nick Fury, the intelligence chief?
Things were much, much smoother.
In just one month, Agent Hill had already found Ivan Vanko.
And she had thoroughly investigated his background.
Even the color of his underwear was accurately reported to Nick Fury.
"Anthony Vanko wanted to make money using the Arc Reactor, so he fell out with Howard and was repatriated to the Soviet Union."
"And the Soviet Union, finding Anthony to be of no use, sent him to Siberia."
"Anthony Vanko spent most of his disgraced and impoverished life there."
"And he blamed all of this on Howard Stark; he poured all his hatred onto the Stark family."
"Because of this hatred, Anthony Vanko and his son, Ivan Vanko, secretly snuck back into America, planning to retaliate against Stark."
"Officer, they do possess some technology that seems to be related to the Iron Man Armor; at least the energy source is the same, after all, Anthony also participated in the creation of the Arc Reactor."
"But according to my investigation, they don't seem to have the technology to create the Iron Man Armor, and Ivan Vanko hasn't even completed the miniaturization of the Reactor."
Inside the office.
Agent Hill stood before Nick Fury, reporting all the intelligence regarding Ivan Vanko.
Nick Fury remained calm on the surface, but inwardly, he couldn't help but ponder.
From Hill's report, it seemed that Ivan Vanko was indeed planning to create something to deal with Stark.
This aligned with the diary's description of him as Stark's second archenemy, possessing Stark's technology, which currently seemed consistent!
Nick Fury's trust in the diary had also unconsciously increased by a few points.
Of course, there was no need for Agent Hill to know these things.
Nick Fury quickly composed himself and turned his gaze back to Agent Hill.
"Ivan Vanko is still only at the Reactor stage? Is there any other progress?"
Nick Fury asked seriously.
"Currently, it seems he has only researched the Reactor."
Agent Hill gave this answer.
Is that so?
"Continue to keep an eye on Ivan Vanko, monitor his every move, and for now, don't alert him."
Nick Fury quickly made a decision and issued this order to Hill.
Agent Hill naturally had no superfluous words and immediately took her leave.
Agent Hill could guess her Officer's intentions with her eyes closed.
It was nothing more than waiting in the dark for the day Ivan Vanko's technology matured, and then reaping the rewards.
However, such things probably wouldn't yield results in the short term.
After all, technology and scientific research are unpredictable; not everyone is a genius like Tony Stark.
Nick Fury naturally understood this principle, so he was prepared for a long-term battle.
And indeed, as Nick Fury expected, Ivan Vanko's side had no activity in the next two months.
Instead, Coulson's team in the Arctic Ocean made a significant discovery.
"Officer, I think what we've been looking for is this!"
In a corner of the boundless ice and snow in the Arctic Ocean.
A group of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents surrounded a fighter jet, most of which was covered by ice and snow, with only the "tip of the iceberg" exposed, all showing expressions of surprise and joy.
It wasn't easy.
After being battered by wind and snow in this damn extreme cold for over three months, they finally found something.
"That's right, this is what we're looking for!"
Coulson examined the fighter jet's wing protruding from the ice, quickly made a judgment, and then nodded.
It currently looked like this thing was indeed the same model as the fighter jet Captain America crashed in.
And it was within Captain America's crash range, so it was basically unmistakable.
"We need a large crane, we need cutting tools, I need to get inside here as fast as possible."
"We might also need an emergency team, prepare that for me as well."
"Immediately!"
Coulson wasted no time and immediately began issuing a series of orders.
Soon, all the relevant tools and equipment were in place, and a hole was cut into the fighter jet's exterior.
Coulson personally led two S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, lowered by ropes, into the interior of the fighter jet.
Shush, shush, shush!
The sound of feet crunching on snow echoed, and Coulson began to cautiously scout the inside of the fighter jet.
"Officer, do you really believe Captain America is still alive?"
One S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent couldn't help but speak.
Even now, he found the speculation a bit absurd.
"I hope so."
Coulson gave this answer.
Clearly, the honest man wasn't so confident about this matter either.
"Officer, look!"
And very soon.
A S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent's eyes lit up; he had already found something.
Coulson and the others quickly gathered around and saw half of a familiar shield lying quietly there, covered by snow.
It was none other than Captain America's shield, known to everyone in America.
"Quick, search carefully!"
Coulson's spirits lifted, and he immediately joined the other S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents in a meticulous search of the surroundings.
And they truly found something.
Not far from the shield, they successfully dug out a person from under the snow.
It was a soldier with golden hair, wearing a familiar star-spangled uniform.
Especially his chest muscles, which were almost bursting out of his clothes.
Who else could it be but Captain America?
Not only that.
At this moment, Captain America still had an extremely faint breath; he was actually not dead, he was alive!
And after so many years, he showed no signs of aging, still as young as he appeared in the archival footage!
It was as if he had traveled directly from seventy years ago!
"I can't believe it, I really can't believe it."
"It's really Captain America, exactly like on TV!"
"This is incredible!"
Even the S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, who were accustomed to all sorts of extraordinary events, couldn't help but exclaim in low voices.
Captain America, was actually still alive!
"That's great, Captain America is really alive."
Coulson, Captain America's little fanboy, couldn't help but show a heartfelt smile.
"Quick, bring Captain America up, be careful!"
"Be careful not to hurt Captain America."
"And Captain America's shield!"
After immediately ordering Captain America to be transported out, Coulson didn't even wait for himself to go up.
He immediately pulled out his satellite phone and dialed Nick Fury's number.
"Officer, we found Captain America."
"Just as you said, Captain America is still alive."
Captain America was really alive!
Exactly as recorded in the diary!
Nick Fury, on the other end of the line, immediately felt a stir in his heart.
First, the confirmation of Ivan Vanko's identity as Tony Stark's archenemy, and then the precise prediction of the momentous event that Captain America was indeed not dead.
Nick Fury's level of importance placed on that mysterious diary had now risen to the highest.
Setting aside the deviations under the assumption that Tony Stark was also a diary holder, as Natasha said, everything in the diary had been verified.
Without any exception!
And how accurate was the assumption that Tony Stark was also a diary holder, just like him?
If Stan's early capture and "I am the Destroyer" were not enough to explain it.
The Playboy's appearance in the Arctic Ocean was strong corroboration!
So yes.
From all the current clues, the diary seemed... to have truly never been wrong!
Thanks again to 08a for the tip!