To finish the renovation before Christmas and avoid having to supervise the construction site during the holidays, Shi Xiaolei started the reconstruction of his old residence ahead of schedule.
However, the new house's decoration wasn't finished yet.
The family temporarily lived in a rented apartment, and the old furniture and appliances from the old residence were moved by Shi Xiaolei to the base inside the Ark during his free time.
One reason was that those items were still usable, and it would be a waste to throw them away; secondly, unlike China, where regulations are not yet fully formed, most developed countries have rules against 'randomly discarding large old furniture and appliances,' and it would cost a lot of money to dispose of the items cleared from the old residence; thirdly, the blueprints that came with "Ark: Survival Evolved - The Island" were still somewhat limited, and while they could meet survival needs, they weren't exactly comfortable.
If the old furniture that was being replaced was moved here, it could greatly improve the livability index of the base.
Like ants moving house, after many trips, the originally industrial-looking survival base gained a touch of homey warmth.
Perhaps not as convenient as home, but as a temporary vacation spot, it was more than sufficient.
Carrying Bruce Banner, who was still unconscious, back to the base, Shi Xiaolei settled him in a small wooden cabin by the river—when he played the game, this room was originally used by Shi Xiaolei to store fish meat.
But now, because several aquatic pets had been released into the sea and no longer needed to be kept at home and fed daily, and there was no need to tame new pets... So, after all the fish meat in the warehouse was consumed, this room became idle.
Later, feeling that this room was close to the river and had a good view, very suitable for fishing and leisure, Shi Xiaolei, after visiting once with Connie and 2B, had another idea and set about furnishing it into a private retreat that combined sightseeing and fishing leisure.
There was about a hundred meters distance between it and the main house. The room wasn't big, but it was set up very homelike... Even if Bruce Banner woke up while he was away, in such an environment, there was no need to worry that he would transform into the Hulk due to heightened vigilance and thus cause damage to the base's buildings and facilities.
That's right, Shi Xiaolei never intended to stay in the Ark with Bruce Banner until he woke up.
Who knew how long this guy would sleep; Connie and 2B were waiting at home.
If he delayed too long and didn't return, the two would definitely worry.
Additionally, he also needed to send a message back to Tony Stark in time.
He had personally witnessed himself and the Hulk falling into the water together, and if he didn't show up for too long, that guy might cause some trouble.
If it was just himself going down to search, that would be fine, but if he told 2B and Connie the news... Given their level of concern for him, it was obvious they would abandon their low-key approach and use all their abilities to find his whereabouts.
Imagine 2B summoning her HO-229 multi-purpose single-person aerospace fighter, and Connie revealing her true form, flying around in the skies above New York... What was the commotion caused by the Hulk compared to that? They would definitely be targeted by countless eyes and become objects of covetousness.
As a parent, protecting his family was the top priority.
Even though Connie and 2B were very powerful and not afraid of the threats from various forces on Earth, from Shi Xiaolei's perspective, he still didn't want them to get involved in these messy affairs.
So, after only staying in the Ark for nearly fifteen minutes, Shi Xiaolei returned to the bottom of the Hudson River.
Not daring to surface easily, he identified his direction underwater, held his breath, and swam a considerable distance to the Hell's Kitchen dock area.
He found a restaurant built on the bank, with half of its structure suspended over the water, to use as cover, and after confirming that the patrolling helicopters in the sky couldn't see him surfacing, Shi Xiaolei quietly poked his head out and emerged from the water.
Standing on the riverbank beneath the restaurant, he pulled out a spare set of sportswear from his backpack, changed into it, and then put away his damp clothes... Leisurely walking along the riverbank, Shi Xiaolei's appearance at this moment, no matter who saw it, would not guess that he had just jumped into the river.
He took out his phone, which he had put in his backpack to prevent water damage, found Tony Stark's number, and made a call.
"Thank goodness." Almost without any delay, Stark answered the phone immediately. His tone was full of worry and unease: "Buddy, are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Shi Xiaolei felt a warmth in his heart and unconsciously smiled: "Tony, how are you? Not hurt, are you?"
"Of course not, I'm Iron Man." He habitually boasted, then Tony continued to press: "Where are you now? You haven't been caught by the military, have you?"
"No, I'm in the Hell's Kitchen dock area. Tony, do me a favor, have Jarvis locate my car and tow that thing away, don't let it fall into military hands."
"Your car? Is there anything special in the car?"
"No. I ran into a group of soldiers earlier, and they knew that car was mine..." Describing what had happened earlier, Shi Xiaolei explained: "I'm worried they'll use the car as a clue to find out my identity and eventually find my home.
You know, I hate trouble the most and don't want to deal with them."
"OK, I understand. Jarvis, immediately locate Locke's car and send someone to the scene to tow that thing back to the company."
"Yes, sir."
"Oh, and while you're at it, clear the car's registration information. Also, destroy the footage captured by roadside cameras." After instructing Jarvis, Stark shifted his attention back: "Locke, don't wander around now, find a discreet place, and I'll send someone to pick you up."
"...Shouldn't be necessary, right?" Looking down at his freshly changed clothes, Shi Xiaolei felt that the chances of him being exposed were not high.
"Being careful is always good."
"O... uh." Just as he was about to agree, he suddenly noticed Coulson standing twenty meters away from him.
Unexpectedly, the face-slapping scenario came so quickly, Shi Xiaolei felt truly awkward: "Tony, you don't need to send anyone, I have a solution here."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, Coulson is here, that agent with the receding hairline, remember him?" Looking at Coulson, who was waiting in place, Shi Xiaolei raised his hand to wave and gave him a sheepish smile from afar: "I have a premonition that he's here to help me with the cleanup and aftermath."
"Alright then, if anything happens, call me anytime."
"I know."
Ending the call with Stark, Shi Xiaolei put away his phone and walked up to Coulson, who had been waiting for a long time.
"Hi."
"Hello, Mr. Locke." Coulson smiled politely and pointed to a car parked not far away: "Do you need a ride?"
"I'd love one. Thanks, Coulson."