“Mr. Stark!”
“Excuse me, Mr. Stark!”
“I’m Christine Everhart, a reporter from Vanity Fair. Can I ask a few questions?”
The female reporter, Christine, was stopped by two tall, burly bodyguards in black suits and sunglasses. Because she used his surname, it was unclear if she was calling out to Tony or Leon.
At least Leon thought she was calling him.
Tony had already gotten into the limousine, while Leon, with a young model in his arms, was standing by the car door, about to get in. Happy glanced at Christine’s figure and appearance, then whispered to the two brothers:
“Quite a looker.”
“Really?” x2
Tony and Leon both became interested, but Leon had the advantage of location and was quicker.
He unhesitatingly shoved the young model, with whom he hadn't yet formally "made friends," into the car, right into Tony's arms.
“Bro, she’s yours.”
“You rascal.”
Tony chuckled, putting his arm around the model's slender waist, and told Happy to drive off first, just in case the reporter wanted to interview him, which would embarrass his younger brother.
Before leaving, Tony didn't forget to instruct, “Just have fun, be safe, and don’t get anyone pregnant. I won’t be coming home tonight; I’ll fly directly.”
Seeing Tony being so understanding, Leon smiled and nodded, indicating he understood.
Watching the car drive away, he turned and called to the bodyguards.
“Alright, let her come over.”
With the boss's order, the two bodyguards immediately let her pass.
“Nice evening, isn't it?”
The female reporter, Christine, walked over. After glancing at Tony's car, a professional smile appeared on her face as she spoke to Leon.
“If Miss Christine has been out in the cold all night just to ask such a boring question, then I don't think we have anything to talk about.”
With that said.
Leon was about to raise his hand to signal the bodyguards to send Christine away.
Christine immediately grew anxious, quickly dropped her flirtatious tone, seized the hard-won opportunity, and began to interview seriously.
“Mr. Leon, some people call your brother the contemporary Da Vinci. What are your thoughts on that?”
“Nonsense, he doesn’t paint.”
“Oh, if Miss Christine is referring to finger painting, then undoubtedly, Tony is a master.”
“However, it’s obvious that I am more deserving of the title ‘Da Vinci’ than him.”
Leon stated the facts with confidence and pride.
“Uh…”
The female reporter, Christine, twitched her lips and continued to ask, “Then what do you think of Mr. Tony’s other nickname, ‘Merchant of Death’?”
“Cool.”
Leon whistled, pinching his chin, and answered briefly, while openly scrutinizing Christine’s figure up and down with an aggressive gaze.
It was unclear if Christine was doing it on purpose or by accident.
Even though it was chilly outside, the top button of her white inner shirt was unbuttoned.
This is a sickness that requires an injection, and Leon has extensive experience in treatment.
“Let me guess, you’re from Brown University?”
“Uh-huh~”
The female reporter, Christine, hummed proudly.
“I knew it. Only Brown University, known for its rebelliousness and freedom, could cultivate such a sharp-tongued Miss Christine.”
Leon’s tone was slightly sarcastic as he continued, “Miss Christine, this World is not perfect, but we have no choice.”
“We can only do our best in our respective positions to turn this imperfect World into what we hope it to be.”
“If one day we no longer need weapons to suppress peace, I promise Tony will change careers and build children’s hospitals.”
“You must have practiced these talking points many times, haven’t you?” Christine exposed him.
“Of course.”
Leon admitted generously, “I practice in front of the mirror every night before going to bed.”
“I can tell.”
Christine agreed without holding back.
“Why don’t you come home with me and see firsthand how I practice at home?”
Facing Leon's direct approach, Christine maintained a reserved yet polite smile: “Can you answer my question seriously?”
“Alright.”
Leon shrugged and answered earnestly, “I once studied in Dragon Country, and even now, I clearly remember one of my Professors saying, ‘Having no sword in hand and having a sword but not using it are two different things,’ and ‘Dignity lies only on the edge of the sword, and truth lies only within the range of a cannon.’ ”
“I deeply respect and agree with his philosophy. Weapons are not manufactured to harm lives, but to demonstrate one's strength, thereby deterring others.”
“Only then can the populace be protected from the suffering of war and chaos.”
“And Stark Industries’ cutting-edge weapons happen to achieve this.”
Christine was clearly not satisfied with Leon's explanation and retorted, “This is just your one-sided boasting, isn’t it?”
“No, no, no, this is a fact.”
“My father helped defeat the Nazis and participated in the Manhattan Project. Many people, including your university Professor, say he is a hero.”
“Many people also say he profited from national calamity,” Christine added.
Leon couldn't help but laugh aloud: “Then why don’t you report on how we saved millions of lives with advanced medical technology, or how we solved the famine problem using intelligent agricultural technology.”
“These projects are all Military-funded, honey.”
“Wow…”
Christine was somewhat speechless after Leon’s retort: “Ultimately, isn’t selling weapons just selling war? You profit from it; don’t you feel too ashamed to sleep at night?”
“Of course not.”
Leon flatly denied it, chuckling, “But I wouldn’t mind losing sleep for you.”
It must be said.
Facing Leon's eyes, which could look deeply at a dog, even though Christine had prepared herself mentally, she still couldn't help but fall for him.
Her Adam's apple bobbed, her tongue lightly touched her lips, everything was left unsaid...
On the way home.
It was as if dry wood had been ignited by a raging Fire.
Leon was still driving, but Christine was already impatient.
Even an experienced driver like Leon found it a bit difficult to keep the steering wheel steady.
If Tony hadn't anticipated this situation and equipped Leon's sports car with a Jarvis sub-system for assisted driving long ago.
Leon would probably have met with a major accident before today.
Jarvis is an AI intelligent butler developed by Tony, named after Howard Stark's old butler when he was alive. With his computing power, driving a car is simple.
They returned home safely, without incident.
A fierce battle that would surely keep Leon awake was, naturally, unavoidable…
…
The next day.
When a radiant Christine woke up, an overly exhausted Leon was still fast asleep.
Her fingertips gently traced Leon's mature and handsome face, and Christine couldn't help but show a satisfied expression, tasting the sweetness as she kissed Leon on the cheek.
After getting out of bed, Christine only wrapped herself in a White bath towel and wandered barefoot through the high-tech Villa built on the Bin Hai cliff.
Here, various high-tech products, rarely seen outside, were piled up as if they were free, making one feel as if they were in a future World.
Inside the spacious Bin Hai Villa.
Christine's exclamations of surprise occasionally echoed.
She wandered all the way to a cylindrical elevator entrance, which seemed to lead to the Underground Room, and tried pressing the down button.
“ERROR!”
“You do not have permission to enter this area, Miss Christine.”
“Oh my goodness, what is this?!”
A mechanical male voice suddenly came from her ear. In an era where the concept of artificial intelligence was not yet widespread, Christine was truly startled.
At this moment.
A gentle female voice came from behind Christine.
“That’s Jarvis; he manages the entire house.”
Christine turned her head at the sound, and what met her eyes was a capable professional woman dressed in a secretary's outfit, with her golden hair tied in a short ponytail.
“I’ve brought your clothes; they’ve all been dry-cleaned and ironed. There’s a car waiting outside at all times; you can go anywhere you want.”
Saying that.
Pepper Potts handed the ironed clothes to Christine.
“You must be Miss Pepper Potts.”
“That’s right.”
“After all these years with Tony and Leon, they still make you do laundry?”
Christine took the clothes and immediately changed in front of Pepper, shamelessly displaying her youth and assets.
In response.
Pepper merely smiled faintly.
“I will do anything Mr. Stark asks because he is my boss, and Leon is like my younger brother, even though I am younger than him.”
“But occasionally dealing with the trash my brother leaves behind at night is also within my scope of work as an older sister.”
“Any other questions, Miss Christine?”
Pepper asked with a “smile.”