"Is he your son?" Hong Fei shook his head. "No. You've met him before—even signed an autograph for him."
Tony smirked. "I know exactly who he is. Hell, I know half his little secrets." He'd originally prepared an Iron Man toy with hidden tech for Hong Fei, but Hong Fei had passed it on to the kid instead.
The boy adored it—slept with it every night, whispered secrets to it like a confidant. It had become one of Tony's unexpected daily amusements. So yeah, Peter's face was plenty familiar.
Peter tugged off his helmet. Gone was the composed kid Tony had first met; now, starstruck awe shone raw on his face.
Tony played dumb, grinning. "Hey there, mini Iron Man."
Peter flushed crimson. "H-hi, Mr. Stark! I'm Peter. Peter Parker."
"I know." Tony shot Hong Fei a sidelong glance. "I even know…" He shrugged. "You two look like father and son. Why not make it official? Adopt the kid."
Peter's eyes darted to Hong Fei, blinking rapidly. Hong Fei just smiled, silent.
"Friends is one thing," Hong Fei said dryly. "Father's a stretch. Besides, I wouldn't want to steal your kid."
Happy cleared his throat. "Sir. We should go."
Tony hummed but didn't budge. "Anything you wanna see, I can arrange a tour. But come back tomorrow—half the good stuff won't even be set up yet."
Hong Fei glanced at Peter. The kid shook his head, thrusting out his helmet. "No need, Mr. Stark! Could you… sign this?"
"Sure." Tony didn't take it—just uncapped a pen and scrawled his name. "Happy, give 'em your card. They need anything, they call you. Within reason, or you'll sulk."
Happy slapped a business card into Hong Fei's palm, face carefully blank—though the irritation practically radiated off him.
As they walked away, Hong Fei spotted a striking woman by Tony's car. Their conversation looked tense. He turned back. "Peter, anything else you wanna hit tonight?"
Peter traced the fresh signature on his helmet, grinning. "Nah. Too crowded. Tonight was already perfect."
Hong Fei nodded. Fighting through the mob again held zero appeal. They drove back in comfortable silence until Hong Fei asked, "Want me to bring you tomorrow?"
"Can't. Made plans with my class. Teacher's got a group thing."
"Good. Just stay safe."
"Yeah!"
After dropping Peter off, Hong Fei rolled down the estate driveway, replaying Tony's demeanor. Outwardly, same old Stark—sharp eyes, sharper tongue. But Telepathy didn't lie: the man's mind was fraying at the edges.
Opportunity knocked. If Fury wanted to play coy, Hong Fei would rip the curtain wide open.
Making some money on the side was also a given. The next day, news broke of Tony's Senate hearing—live footage splashed across every screen. There was that smarmy HYDRA senator, all faux concern. People called Tony arrogant, but the camera caught the fury simmering beneath his restraint.
Perhaps because he was on this land, inherently within the rules, and enjoying the benefits brought by these rules, even sophistry required logic. Taking someone's hand makes you short-handed, eating someone's food makes your mouth soft. This was the fundamental reason why Hong Fei was unwilling to get involved with those people and those statuses.
he was very different from Tony; those people might greet him with a smile today, but the moment they turned around, they might want to peel his skin off. Lessons from the past guide the future. Hong Fei believed that maintaining a pure relationship of robbing and being robbed with them was enough. Of course, another reason might be that he was poisoned.
So he maintained his usual cynical attitude while firmly expressing opposition, letting everyone feel he was in his prime, and also making the other side hesitate to act for fear of causing collateral damage. Hammer Industries took the stage, only to be met with Tony's merciless mockery.
Justin Hammer probably hadn't met Ivan yet, otherwise he wouldn't have rushed to deliver himself to be slapped in the face and mocked. But that was fine too; letting Tony provoke him more would only highlight Ivan's importance. Colonel Rhodes appeared midway as a tool, his will completely crushed by higher-level authority, and he performed his duty well.
The entire hearing ended in a farce; the government gained nothing and even lost face, while only Tony reaped another wave of popularity. In reality, there were no winners. At noon, Samuel ran over excitedly to report that the 12 billion had arrived in the account. Hong Fei didn't even look up: "It arrived, so it arrived. What's there to be excited about? Is that big head of yours just for show?"
Samuel smiled sheepishly and retreated. Hearing the door close, Hong Fei hurriedly got up and went to the computer. When he saw the long string of numbers on the screen, his mouth almost stretched to the back of his head. In the evening, after knocking Jessica unconscious as usual, Hong Fei looked out over New York.
Recently, his physical fitness and energy hadn't increased at all, which caused a trace of urgency to rise in his heart. He couldn't stay idle like this; this wasn't his goal or wish. "Frank, how have things been lately?" "Very good." "I mean, do you need any help?" "No." "I could join forces with you to eradicate the Mafia and create a better future." "Thanks, but I'll pass."
Hong Fei felt a bit uncomfortable: "Why?" Frank paused and said: "I'm afraid you won't be able to resist shelling them. You'll only alert the enemy, and I'm doing very well right now. Besides, last time you said a big shot would die, and you guessed right. The Leader of the Russian Mafia is dead.
They are launching a frantic counterattack, and I think it won't be long before more Mafia members from abroad support New York. A major battle is almost inevitable." Hong Fei: "Then I feel I should step in even more, otherwise..." Frank interrupted immediately: "I said, no. I have a very good handle on things right now; don't come and disrupt my plans. Didn't you make money?
Didn't you suddenly not want to try? Didn't you want to split up? Why not focus your energy on that Dr. Cho and have her bear you a child." With that, Frank hung up the phone without hesitation. Hong Fei: "Is this revenge?" "In that case, I have no choice but to find you... Tony."