The Avengers Initiative (Part 2)
Xia Yu sprang up like a monkey with its tail on fire. Somehow, he struck the opening stance of the Dugu Nine Swords with the chopsticks in his hand and shouted at Nick Fury, "You shameless old bastard, what kind of device did you put on Natasha? A bug, or some kind of camera implanted in her eye?"
Tony Stark fanned the flames from the side. "Xia, although I'm a little hurt that you didn't tell me you had a girlfriend, I have to say, every head of an intelligence agency is a complete bastard. They wish they could spy on everyone in the world, even when they're bathing, sleeping, and eating."
Nick Fury's face turned red, if anyone could have seen it. "I'm starting to regret coming here to persuade you two to join the Avengers Initiative. I never do that kind of thing to my subordinates. Natasha's movements gave her away. Have you forgotten that when you two first met, she was injured and I was the one who sent her to you? I meant for her to take shelter at your workshop, but I didn't expect her to stay in Chinatown for a whole week. Later, you were in Los Angeles, and she came to Los Angeles too. You went to New York, and she went too. Do you take me for an idiot? At the very least, I know where my subordinates have been."
Xia Yu picked up a meatball with his chopsticks and slowly sat down. "Even so, you shouldn't have used her to threaten me into joining S.H.I.E.L.D. You're a senior government official, Nick. How can you be so shameless?"
"You still owe me a refund," Nick Fury said expressionlessly.
"All right, I'll join, but I have conditions. I won't take part in any day-to-day affairs, and I don't want to come work at your place. Just let me know when there's a mission," Xia Yu said.
Tony stared at him in disbelief. "I know you're joining for your girlfriend, but why did you go quiet the moment he mentioned money? Are you short on cash lately? Didn't you con someone out of a hundred million in Afghanistan?"
Xia Yu grew even more embarrassed. He scratched his head and said, "When you went missing last time, I bought stock in your company. When you came back and the stock went up, I sold it. Then you announced you were shutting down the weapons division, and your stock dropped a full fifty-six dollars. I put everything I had into buying it, leaving myself just three thousand dollars. I'm waiting for you to develop a new project and the stock to go up so I can sell."
Xia Yu glanced at Tony, thoroughly embarrassed, and added, "If the company bylaws didn't say we couldn't just pay out dividends whenever we wanted, I'd have taken Herbal medicine's funds to buy Stark stock too."
"Xia, you're becoming more and more of a bastard," Tony Stark concluded.
Nick Fury's trip hadn't been in vain. At least the Avengers had gained a fighter. It was a shame Tony Stark hadn't joined, but Nick Fury had expected that. There was no rush; he could take his time. He had waited many years for this plan, and a little longer wouldn't hurt.
After the meal, Nick Fury left first. Tony Stark and Pepper Potts stayed behind without needing to discuss it.
"Xia, tell us what happened," Pepper Potts asked with a grin. No matter the world, women were always more interested in this kind of gossip than men.
Xia Yu had nothing to hide from the two of them. Nick Fury had already exposed it anyway, so he told them how he and Natasha had met. Pepper Potts thought it was very romantic: a beautiful female agent, and he had even sung to her in Times Square. It was just like a movie.
Tony curled his lip. "You're so lucky, landing a beautiful agent like that. But then again, it makes sense. You even managed to meet me, Tony Stark."
Xia Yu laughed. "Tony, have you no shame? You're the lucky one, aren't you? I just saved your life again today. Meeting me was definitely the most successful deal of your life. Think how many things I can help you with. For example, are you still unwilling to have the shrapnel in your chest removed?"
For once, Tony spoke seriously. "Xia, did you know? I designed my first circuit board at four, designed a V8 engine at six, graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology at seventeen, and took over Stark Industries at twenty-one. I brought the company to its peak. The weapons I made were the best in the world. I believed in my father's Bigger Stick Theory, and I thought I'd built the biggest stick. I kept people safe, but I was wrong. This world doesn't need the old Tony Stark. It needs someone in an Iron Man Armor to step forward and protect them."