The Missing Tony Stark

Saturday, during work hours.

Feeling the pressure, Li Si used the company computer to work at full speed, skipping meals and sleep as he wrote the control program for the Transformers.

Up until lunchtime, he finally let himself relax a little and take an hour off.

In the company cafeteria, he sat across from Gwen as usual.

After a few weeks of getting to know each other, having lunch together at the company had become their routine. Neither needed to invite the other; when the time came, they naturally fell into an unspoken rhythm.

"You look exhausted!"

Gwen laid a newspaper on the table and read as she ate, chatting casually with Li Si.

Li Si shot her a speechless look.

As if that wasn't obvious. Try staying up all night coding and see how you feel—you'd be even more exhausted than I am.

Of course, he kept that to himself and changed the subject, leaning toward the newspaper. "What are you so engrossed in? I didn't know you were the type to read the paper."

"Are you implying I'm old enough to be a grandma?"

Gwen looked up at him, her expression turning hostile.

"..."

Sure enough, all women were the same. They were especially sensitive about age and beauty.

Li Si hurriedly shook his head, denying it so emphatically that it was like a rattle.

"Pfft..."

Gwen burst out laughing at the sight of him, then quickly covered her mouth. After stifling her laughter for a while, she said with a bright smile, "All right, I'll stop teasing you. I was actually reading the news about the Stark Group."

As she spoke, she handed him the newspaper.

Li Si spotted the bold headline on the front page at a glance.

<Stark Group chairman and genius scientist Tony Stark missing; search yields no results after two weeks, presumed dead; company shares plunge 15%>

"Why are you interested in that playboy?"

Li Si was a little underwhelmed. He'd already seen the news, and Tony Stark still had at least a month or two of suffering in Afghanistan ahead of him. The Iron Man storyline was still a long way off.

"I'm just wondering whether I should take advantage of the situation and buy Stark Group shares. If Tony Stark makes it back safely, I could make a fortune."

Gwen looked conflicted as she spoke.

"You should definitely buy, just not now."

Li Si gave her an odd look before answering.

Gwen blinked. "Not now? Then when?"

"When he comes back."

Li Si smiled mysteriously.

"When he comes back? By then, the shares will probably rebound instead of falling, and everyone will rush to buy. Where's the profit in that?"

Gwen tapped her temple helplessly. "Li, maybe you should brush up on economics!"

"No, I'm good at economics..."

Li Si started to protest, but when he saw her doubtful expression, he could only sigh. "Fine. If you want to make a little money, go ahead and buy."

"You're not buying any yourself?"

Gwen took a small sip of her drink before asking.

"I'm thinking about it, but I'm not very good at this sort of thing. I might have to ask you to help me."

Li Si smiled.

The Iron Man storyline was a great opportunity to make money, and he'd been planning to invest too. But he didn't have any spare cash right now. It all depended on how much he brought in tomorrow.

Tomorrow was Sunday, and it would be his last chance to trade with the players before the Spider-Man storyline began. If he had anything left after paying the balance for the Transformers parts, he wouldn't mind making a little money ahead of time.

"Of course. As long as you're not worried I'll run off with your money!"

Gwen cheerfully agreed.

After chatting a little more about amusing office gossip, Gwen suddenly remembered something and stared at Li Si.

"By the way, what happened to that robot toy you designed? You promised to show it to me when it was finished. You haven't forgotten, have you?"

"Of course not."

Li Si pointed to the dark circles under his eyes. "I've been working late on it for the past few days. If all goes well, you might see it in a few days."

"Hahaha, Li, I just noticed—your face looks like a giant panda's!"

Gwen saw his dark circles and eye bags and laughed, clutching her stomach without a shred of decorum.

"..."

"Go ahead and laugh. Let's see if you're still laughing once you see it."

Li Si glared at Gwen, fuming, but there wasn't much he could do.

Gwen seemed to have hit her funny bone and just kept laughing. Li Si's expression grew darker and darker until he finally went blank.

After waiting a minute, he raised his hand and glanced at his watch, his face expressionless.

"Gwen, if I remember right, you're supposed to lead a group of interns on a tour of the cross-species genetics lab this afternoon... and you're already thirty seconds late!"

"Hahaha... ha... uh..."

Gwen's smile froze.

She hurriedly got to her feet and ran out, calling back in frustration as she went, "Li, you promised you'd remind me! You're so petty."

"I did remind you."

Li Si shrugged, then leisurely wiped his mouth, stood up, and followed her.

Today was the day Spider-Man came to the Osborn Corporation and became Spider-Man. There was no way he'd miss such a classic moment.

Besides, Gwen was the heroine of the original Spider-Man story. He'd better keep a close eye on things. It wouldn't do to let Spider-Man steal the girl right from under his nose.

If he and Gwen hadn't already had anything going on, that would be one thing. But things were going well between them. To keep from growing horns, he'd better let Spider-Man go back to his old flame, Mary Jane.

Maybe I could recommend Mary Jane to Spider-Man after he transforms and gets carried away with himself? It'd be such a shame if childhood friends didn't end up together. Ah, I really am a great guy—just look at me, helping another man get the girl.

Li Si thought this with a deep sense of compassion, becoming more and more impressed with himself.

He sauntered up to the third floor. Gwen, who had arrived ahead of him, was already introducing herself to a dozen or so interns.

"Welcome to the Osborn Corporation. My name is Gwen Stacy. I'm a senior at Zhongcheng Technology High School, and I'm Dr. Connors's intern team leader..."

Gwen introduced herself briskly. Standing nearby and paying special attention, Li Si easily spotted Peter Parker sneaking into the back of the group of interns, one hand half-covering his face as if he were feeling guilty.