The Brazil guy on night shift at the Panduolake Hotel was dozing off at his desk when he suddenly heard the glass door open. He groggily looked up and his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.
A man covered in blood, carrying an elderly man in military uniform on his back. The young man was instantly wide awake, frantically scrambling around the front desk to ask in broken Portuguese if they needed an ambulance.
"No need." Lin Xiao's voice was hoarse, but his tone was steady. "My friend drank too much and tripped and fell."
The young man looked at the old man's military uniform and bloodstains on his chest, opened his mouth, then glanced at Lin Xiao's expression that said, "If you dare ask another question, I'll throw you down with me," and swallowed his words.
Hill had already been notified by Lin Xiao and was waiting for Lin Xiao at the elevator entrance. As the elevator doors opened, her gaze slid from Lin Xiao's face to his chest, and then from his chest to the hand carrying Thaddeus Ross on his back. She clenched her hand at her side for a moment, then let go.
"Are you injured?" she finally asked.
"I'm not hurt." Lin Xiao smiled, his voice full of fatigue. "I'm fine, my clothes are just a little dirty. How about Betty? Is she awake?"
Hill opened his mouth, but couldn't say a word. His eyes swept over Lin Xiao, while his fists clenched tighter and tighter.
Upon arriving at the room, Lin Xiao placed Thaddeus Ross on the bed. Betty woke up at that moment. She heard the door open and Lin Xiao's footsteps. Still somewhat groggy, she opened her eyes and saw Lin Xiao standing there covered in blood. She looked as if her soul had been ripped out and rushed towards him barefoot.
" Lin Xiao!" She grabbed his arm, her hands trembling. "What happened to you? Where are you hurt? My dad... what happened to my dad?"
Lin Xiao let her hold him until she calmed down, then he raised his hand and gently pressed her head. He opened his mouth, intending to say, "How could I possibly lose your father?" But looking at her deathly pale face, the words changed, and he only said, "I brought your father back. He just ran into a little trouble."
Betty stared at him for several seconds, then tears streamed down her face. She suddenly threw herself into Lin Xiao's arms, burying her face in his chest. Lin Xiao's clothes were wet, smelled of blood, and had an indescribable burnt odor. But she didn't care. She just wanted to hear his heartbeat and make sure he was alive and well.
"If you do that again, I won't talk to you anymore," Betty said sullenly.
"Okay, okay, I'm really fine. Let's check on your dad first; he's still lying there. Take care of him first." Lin Xiao patted her back, his voice already carrying that familiar hint of frivolity.
Betty's face flushed instantly. Betty went over, unbuttoned Thaddeus Ross's collar, and took a damp towel to wipe Thaddeus Ross's face.
Her movements were very gentle, and her fingers paused when she wiped the blood from Thaddeus Ross's forehead. Thaddeus Ross was unconscious, and his face lacked its usual imposing air; he had lost a lot of weight, as if something had ripped out of him. Betty had never seen her father so vulnerable.
" Lin Xiao, how did he get injured? Was it... Banner... who did it? When will he wake up?" Betty asked in a hoarse, trembling voice.
Lin Xiao opened his mouth, unsure how to begin. Could he say that he created a monster to target Banner, and that monster went on a killing spree? No, he couldn't bring himself to say that. Lin Xiao looked to Hill for help, Hill frowned before speaking.
"You don't need to know this; it's top secret. Just know that he'll wake up by tomorrow at the latest. He lost a lot of blood, but his vital signs have stabilized. Lin Xiao treated his wounds when he brought him back."
Betty didn't ask any more questions. As a scientist, she knew what it meant for someone to survive such an injury and be carried back alive. She turned to look at Lin Xiao. Lin Xiao was leaning against the wall, looking down at his hands. They were covered in mud and blood, and his fingers were trembling. He noticed Betty's gaze and quietly put his hands into his pockets.
The military vehicles arrived at daybreak.
Two armored vehicles, four ambulances, and a helicopter were already waiting on the hospital rooftop. The leader was a colonel who saluted Lin Xiao the moment he saw Thaddeus Ross. Lin Xiao ignored him, simply lifting Thaddeus Ross from the bed and placing him on a stretcher. His movements were so steady that the colonel glanced at him a couple more times.
"Miss Betty, please come with us. The general needs a family member to accompany him after he wakes up."
Betty stood there, watching the stretcher being lifted into the car, then looked back at Lin Xiao, feeling quite reluctant. She bit her lip and said...
"Take good care of yourself, don't let things be like they are today."
"I'm doing just fine," Lin Xiao said, shrugging.
" Lin Xiao." Betty looked at him, her eyes reddening again, but she didn't let the tears fall. "I'll come back to find you once my father has stabilized."
Lin Xiao smiled, walked over, took her hand, and kissed her fingertips. "You need to get past your dad first. I'll come pick you up."
Betty nodded, turned to leave, but stopped. Her gaze passed over Lin Xiao and landed on Hill. Hill was standing at the hotel entrance, leaning against a pillar with her arms crossed. Betty glanced at her, her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she just nodded.
Hill nodded at her.
Betty got into the car. As the door closed, she looked at Lin Xiao through the window. Lin Xiao stood on the steps at the hotel entrance, waving at her with that same smug smile on his face. The car started, the wheels splashing mud as they drove over puddles. Lin Xiao's smile faded slowly after the taillights disappeared. He withdrew his hand and put it back in his pocket.
"Everyone's gone, so stop acting." Hill's voice came from behind.
Lin Xiao turned to look at her, his face completely innocent. "What did I act out?"
"It's okay to act like this." Hill's gaze moved down from his face and settled on his two legs, which were still trembling slightly. "You can barely stand, so if you can't bear it, just say it."
Lin Xiao looked down at his legs, as if only then noticing they were trembling, and grinned. "You noticed that, Deputy Director, you have a sharp eye. Do you want me to help you up? My legs are weak."
Hill ignored him and turned to enter the hotel. Lin Xiao followed behind, his steps appearing relaxed, but only he knew that every step felt like walking on a knife's edge. Once in the lobby, Hill pressed the elevator button and waited for him to enter. The two stood in the elevator, neither speaking. Lin Xiao leaned against the elevator wall, his eyes closed, his breathing shallow.
"And you?" he suddenly asked. "When are you planning to report back to S.H.I.E.L.D..? Or are you going to follow me wherever I go?"
"Procedurally, I should stay by your side, but I have some things to take care of." Hill said, turning her head to give him a half-smile. "But judging from the way you were acting just now, you probably don't want me to leave."
Lin Xiao opened his eyes and met her gaze. The elevator dinged as it arrived. He stepped aside to let Hill out first, then followed behind her, smiling as he said, "Deputy Director, does what you're saying mean I can take it as you volunteering to be my bodyguard?"
Hill didn't answer and walked away without looking back. The light in the corridor cast a long shadow of her. Lin Xiao watched her back and narrowed his eyes.
Fine, Black Baldy, you've played a truly shameless move. You've forced my woman to come to Brazil, and I've suffered such a huge loss, while you sit comfortably in New York. I'll remember this grudge. One day, I'll make you pay with interest and teach you a lesson in "inviting a wolf into the house."
As he thought this, his gaze unconsciously fell on Hill again. As if he had eyes in the back of his head, Hill suddenly stopped, turned around, and caught his gaze that he hadn't had time to look away from. The two were a few steps apart, one grinning like a fox who had stolen a chicken, the other with a cold face like a policeman interrogating a criminal.
" Lin Xiao," Hill said, "If you continue to use me to settle personal scores with Fury, I should consider my colleagues' advice."
"Who gave you that advice?" Lin Xiao asked.
" Natasha." Hill's lips curled slightly as she turned and continued walking. "In the mission briefing she sent me, she added an extra line: Stay away from Lin Xiao, that kid's not behaving himself."
Lin Xiao laughed upon hearing this, quickened his pace to catch up with her, and walked alongside her.
"So, did you listen to her?"
"We'll see," Hill said.
That afternoon, personnel from S.H.I.E.L.D.. and the Brazil military went to the scene together.
The sun had hardened the muddy ground. The military had set up three layers of cordon, but no one who saw the scene could remain calm. The armored vehicles that had been smashed through, the corpses of soldiers lying all over the ground, the charred remains of tents; only half a wall remained of the command post; the huge crater in the center of the camp seemed to tell everyone what had happened there.
Several young Brazil soldiers retched as they took photos. S.H.I.E.L.D.. technicians, dressed in protective suits, carefully collected samples from the muddy water. Coulson, who had come all the way from New York, stood at the edge of the pit, looking down at the shapeless mass at the bottom, remaining silent for a long time.
"Where's Lin Xiao?" he asked Hill, who was standing next to him.
"He's resting at the hotel," Hill said. "He said he was injured and needed to rest."
Coulson turned to look at her, his expression complex. "He said it himself?"
"He said it himself," Hill said calmly.
Coulson sighed and shook his head, "For him to voluntarily ask for a rest, it seems this battle really hurt him."
Panduolake Hotel
Lin Xiao was leaning against the bed in his hotel room, changing channels with the remote in his left hand and popping grapes into his mouth with his right. The news was on: a serious accident occurred during Brazil military exercise; a missile accidentally detonated, killing 175 people and seriously injuring General Ross, who had returned to the United States for treatment. He stared at the TV for a while, then spat the grape seeds into the trash can beside him.
"One hundred and seventy-five," he repeated slowly. Then he turned off the TV and tossed the remote onto the bedside table.
He opened the system panel and began to plan his next move. The military and S.H.I.E.L.D.. were still searching the world for Banner, but he wasn't in a hurry. Banner was like a terrified rabbit; whoever chased him too closely would burrow deeper. Once the heat died down, he would come out on his own. And with the system at his disposal, Lin Xiao could find him before anyone else at any time.
He was thinking about something else: Banner's blood, which was a good thing.
"Ding--Host, what are you planning now?"
"Nothing." Lin Xiao popped a grape into his mouth, chewing it loudly. "I just feel like there are some things I should prepare in advance. Banner's blood can create Abomination, so it can create She-Hulk in the future. Maybe I, Lin, can use it too."
"Ding--A reminder to the host: the compatibility of your body composition with the Hulk Serum is unknown. Using it rashly may have unpredictable consequences."
"I didn't say I was going to give it to myself," Lin Xiao laughed, a sly smile. "Get some first, save it. You never know when you might need it."
Meanwhile, in a small bar in a northwestern slum of São Paulo.
Banner sat in the innermost corner, a half-empty beer in front of him. The television was broadcasting news, showing images of Brazil military camp destroyed by bombing and General Ross being carried on a stretcher. He couldn't hear what the television was saying, but the subtitles jumped line by line, each word like a nail piercing his eyes. He stared at the news for a long time, his fingers unconsciously clenching, making the cheap glass creak.
175. He repeated it to himself again. These people were supposed to be there to arrest him, but in the end, they became the footnote to a "military exercise accident." That man's army set fire to the entire grassland, and now they're calling the fire an accident.
He jumped up, the chair scraping loudly against the tiles. Several locals drinking nearby glanced up at him. Banner pulled his hat brim down, pulled a crumpled bill from his pocket, placed it on the table, and turned to walk towards the door. As he passed the bar, a slightly drunk, overweight man was dabbing his beer finger on the table, muttering, "Standard United States script... blaming the dead for everything, since the dead can't curse you... hiccup."
Banner didn't stop. He pushed open the rusty iron gate and walked into the alley. The alley in the slum was so narrow that only one person could pass at a time, and the sun baked the corrugated iron walls on both sides until they were scorching hot. He walked a long way along the wall until the bar and the images in the news were left behind, and then he slowly loosened his clenched fist.
My palms were already marked with four deep marks from my fingernails, and they were sweaty, painful, and numb.
He didn't know where to go, but the fat man was right, the dead don't curse. But he was still alive. They wanted him to disappear from this world, to become a mute corpse, and then pin all the blame on him.
Banner walked along the dirt road, his pace quickening until it almost became a jog. A woman squatting by the roadside washing clothes glanced up at him, then looked down again. A barefoot child chased after him for a few steps, only to be pulled back by an adult.
Banner ignored everything around him. He was thinking, he's still alive. But he can't keep hiding like this. He knows that thing inside him will come out again sooner or later, and if he can't even hide properly, next time, even more people will die.