Although Superman had used his sheer intimidating presence to keep the higher-ups in Congress from openly targeting Tony, they had still been resorting to petty tricks behind the scenes.
For example, major news outlets still smeared Tony and Stark Industries from time to time.
Some of Stark Industries' imported materials had also been detained by customs under the pretext of inspections, delaying their delivery.
Stark Industries had even been hit with all sorts of inexplicable lawsuits, leaving the Legal Department to handle several cases every day.
These petty nuisances kept coming, making it obvious that someone was pulling the strings.
But after S.H.I.E.L.D. put in a word, the unfavorable coverage of Tony and many of those petty nuisances quickly disappeared.
Although ordinary officials knew nothing about S.H.I.E.L.D., the upper echelons of the United States government knew the organization existed.
With its global intelligence network and powerful armed forces, S.H.I.E.L.D. carried considerable clout.
After returning to Stark Tower, Tony called Mark and told him he had joined the Avengers.
Nick Fury had told him to keep it secret and not tell anyone else about the Avengers Initiative.
But Tony clearly trusted Mark far more than he trusted Nick Fury.
Looks like Tony still ended up following the original storyline.
Mark was not particularly surprised. He merely cautioned Tony, "Things inside S.H.I.E.L.D. are complicated. Be careful, and don't trust them too much!"
S.H.I.E.L.D. was a cesspit at this point, with many of its members secretly belonging to Hydra.
Fortunately, the Avengers operated independently of S.H.I.E.L.D. As long as Tony stayed cautious, he did not have to worry too much about being set up.
"Don't worry. I'll be careful."
Tony did not know why Mark had said that, but he took the warning to heart.
After ending his conversation with Mark, Tony began