The Kent couple were very ordinary farmers in Kansas.
Farmers like them, no matter how well they did, could only maintain a middle-class income level, and it was normal to take out loans to farm before harvest.
In the movie, after Martha successively lost her husband and son, the farm's crops decreased due to a lack of labor.
Later, because the farm's income was insufficient to repay bank loans, she ultimately had to file for bankruptcy protection.
The farm eventually had to be repossessed by the bank to repay debts.
Don't assume that highly mechanized agriculture in the United States makes it easy to earn money; in fact, precisely because of the high degree of mechanization, one person needs to manage a very large area of cultivated land.
So large that Martha alone couldn't handle it, and labor costs were expensive, harvesters also required rent, and time was tight, encountering price changes sometimes meant she couldn't even afford fuel.
If Martha could still keep the farm under such circumstances, she would definitely have Kryptonian blood.
However, now that Clark is still around, their farm work is no problem at all; he can finish it in the blink of an eye, so Martha lives quite comfortably.
This made her look quite well.
"Hello, Mrs. Kent, my name is Dane, and I am Clark's friend. This is my first visit, please accept this small token of my respect."
After speaking formally, Dane presented a bottle of red wine with both hands.
The brand was neither good nor bad, the price neither high nor low, just suitable as a visiting gift.
He had already changed out of his red bodysuit; it was simple, just a small changing magic spell.
Originally, Clark said there was no need for a gift, but Dane insisted on buying one.
The more gifts, the better; this saying also applies in the United States.
Martha, who already had a good impression of Dane because of his appearance, liked the young man even more after seeing the red wine—polite and sensible.
"No need to be so formal, just call me Martha. Come on in quickly."
"Really, Clark, you should have reminded me earlier that we had a guest coming, so I could have prepared."
Martha feigned a complaint, but it was clear from her tone that she was very happy that her son could bring a friend home.
In her memory, Clark had very few friends; even Lana, who he had played with since childhood, rarely invited him to her house.
Clark took Martha's hand, "Mom, Dane is someone I met while traveling. He helped me, and... he's just like me!"
Martha quickly understood what Clark meant by "just like me." She looked at Dane, her eyes still curious.
Dane was happy to satisfy her curiosity; he looked around.
Then he pointed a finger, and an electric arc shot through the air, hitting the phone charging port on the table.
The phone, which had only 12% battery, was instantly fully charged.
"Oh. My. God!"
Martha covered her mouth with both hands, her face filled with shock.
What a simple person; such a small trick completely won her over.
Dane sighed at the purity of people now; in a few years, they would become accustomed to such things.
Clark's face was dark; he knew that the lightning just now was the same thing that had previously struck him, causing him excruciating pain.
Could it also be used to charge a phone?
Wouldn't that be a little disrespectful?
Knowing that Dane was special, just like her son, Martha felt more at ease.
She was very happy and insisted that Dane stay and taste her cooking.
Ignoring Clark's protests, she got into the pickup truck at the door and went grocery shopping.
"Alright, what's your hurry? That spaceship has been under the North Pole ice for 20,000 years; a day or two won't make a difference."
Hearing him say that, Clark's eagerness subsided.
"But before we go, we need to agree: the moment you plug in the key, you'd best have the AI block the spaceship's signal to prevent Zod from finding out prematurely."
This was a given, and Clark nodded. He asked curiously,
"What do you plan to do after this? Stay hidden forever?"
Clark didn't know that Dane's actual age was only fifteen; his physical age had been boosted by the Shazam Force.
He saw Dane's mature appearance, and his speech and actions exuded a sense of experience.
Coupled with Dane's claim of being a "god," he assumed Dane had lived for a very long time.
As for Dane's previous statements about having only recently become a god, he automatically interpreted them as a long-lived species' vague sense of time.
So he subconsciously assumed that Dane, like him, had always been hidden in human society.
Dane nodded, then shook his head.
"It's not time for me to step into the spotlight yet, so I'll probably continue to hide, but I've thought of some things to do."
Dane had just realized something: since Zod's invasion of Earth was a global disaster, why should he choose to fight Superman alone?
No one stipulated that the Justice League had to wait until Steppenwolf arrived to form; he could set up the stage beforehand!
However, the candidates needed to be carefully selected. First, Wonder Woman had to be brought in; her combat power could not be underestimated.
Most importantly, Wonder Woman wouldn't be soft-hearted; she was decisive when it came to killing.
Then there was Batman; he was eight years older than Superman, so this should be his prime.
However, he was naturally suspicious, so an invitation might be difficult.
Aquaman Arthur Curry, if he remembered correctly, Aquaman was only 19 at this time, even more immature than Clark.
Although Zod would probably only arrive around 2013, Arthur's abilities, to be honest, would probably only play a supporting role in the Zod incident, so he was pending.
Flash Barry Allen was too young now, and he wouldn't gain his abilities until 2013. Pushing a child into battle without even time to adapt was something even Dane couldn't do, so he was also pending.
Cyborg Victor Stone was similar to Flash, also pending.
Martian Manhunter, this Martian's thoughts were a bit hard to understand. He could try inviting him; there was no harm in it.
Green Lantern Hal Jordan, hmm… Although the DCEU had kicked him out of the circle, considering this was a real World, Dane had to consider the possibility of bringing Green Lantern into play.
As long as no more than three Green Lantern Corps members gathered together, they were quite reliable.
And if Green Lantern really appeared, then he would be facing Earth's first truly global disaster.
Finally, Superman. Dane didn't even need to ask; if Clark was still the person he remembered, he would definitely agree.
So Dane didn't bother with any pretense; he directly invited Superman.
"Clark, there are actually many people like us in the World."
"I've thought about whether we can gather them all, and when facing major disasters that individual strength cannot solve, we can work together to solve the problems."
"That's a great idea!"
Clark immediately agreed, and the first thing he thought of was Zod's problem.
After hearing Dane's explanation, he knew that Zod also had a group of elite Kryptonian under his command. Even if he and Dane could eventually solve the problem alone, how many innocent civilians would die?
"So, are you willing to join?" Dane asked.
"What are you talking about? Of course, I'll be the first to join!"
Good, the first member was settled.
"Do you have other candidates?"
"Yes, but they might be a bit troublesome to find, and they might not agree."
Clark nodded understandingly. He knew very well that not everyone was willing to use their power for good.
Dane briefly explained the general situation of several future Justice League members to him, and Clark fell into thought after listening.
"Barry Allen and Viktor Stone should be excluded for now; they are still children, and having superpowers might not necessarily be a good thing for them."
On this point, Clark definitely had the right to speak. To hide his abilities, his adoptive father, Jonathan, even prevented him from saving himself.
Dane nodded understandingly: "I thought so too, so I think the first target should be Diana."
"As the first Super Hero in the World, she should understand our philosophy."
Diana had been active in human society, fighting for justice, ever since World War II. That was a daily occurrence.
She even participated in World War II, a true war hero.
She should have been Earth's earliest Super Hero, but after the new millennium, Wonder Woman's activities decreased.
Coupled with her low-key nature, she was quickly forgotten.
Clark had heard about Diana from Dane, and he approved of inviting this lady.
"Batman of Gotham, I think I've heard of this person."
Clark had been traveling all over the World during this time. Although he hadn't been to Gotham yet, he had heard some rumors.
Before meeting Dane, he had originally planned to find a time to visit Gotham.
After all, Batman's deeds sounded very superhuman.
"We can wait on him for now. Batman is naturally suspicious. If you show up so brazenly, I'm afraid he'll be planning how to deal with you the next day."
Dane shook his head, curbing Clark's eagerness.
Just as the two were discussing the organizational structure of the future Justice League, Martha returned from grocery shopping.
Dane and Clark stopped the topic at the appropriate time and got up to help Martha.
Martha had originally intended to let Dane, as a guest, sit, but he and Clark were men with super speed. Washing and picking vegetables were done in the blink of an eye, so she said nothing more.
But Martha's impression of Dane improved even more.
After the three had eaten and drunk their fill, they chatted for a while. Dane tried his best to avoid revealing his true information; it was necessary to play it safe.
Finally, Dane slept in the guest room.