The living room downstairs was softly lit, and the amber-colored whiskey swirled gently in the glass. The evening breeze seeped into the room through the gaps in the French windows, dispelling some of the lingering gloom of the war.
Lynn's fingertips remained pressed against the imitation gemstone on his chest, his expression calm as he silently gazed at the neon lights of New York that never ceased burning. He had already pointed out everything that needed to be said and reminded everyone of what needed to be said; the remaining choice and redemption were ultimately left to Tony himself.
Natasha sat quietly to his side, her glass untouched, her slender fingers resting on the rim, maintaining the vigilance unique to agents, silently watching over him, ready to respond to any unexpected situation, yet equally adhering to propriety.
In the penthouse bedroom, as night deepened, the entire Stark Tower fell into complete silence.
The medical treatment was all finished. Yinsen packed up the medical equipment, threw the used supplies into the trash can, and neatly put the instruments into the medical kit. The room was silent except for the low whistling of the wind outside the window. Tony leaned against the headboard, with soft pillows behind him. His wounds had been professionally treated, and the pain had subsided considerably. However, the fatigue from days of hard fighting and prolonged hand-to-hand combat still lingered.
After a long silence, Tony broke the quiet by speaking first. His voice was hoarse from staying up all night and was exceptionally honest.
Even if none of this had happened today, I would have contacted you in a few days anyway.
Yinsen looked up at the person on the bed, his expression gentle, quietly waiting for him to continue.
Tony stared at the ceiling, the arrogance and sharpness in his eyes gone, replaced by a peace born of having faced life and death. "The charity hospital and school I promised you to set up are both completed. Site selection, construction, and final inspection—all the procedures have been finished, and they're ready to open to the public at any time."
He paused, recalling all the preparations he had secretly made during this period, and continued slowly, "I have also completed the recruitment of all the supporting medical staff and school teachers through formal channels, and all their qualifications have been verified. Their salaries and logistical support have also been fully arranged."
Tony turned his head to look at the most important person in his life, his tone earnestly pleading, "Stay, Yinsen. Here, your skills can shine, and there are children and ordinary people you want to protect. This place is more suitable for you than going back to teach children."
He didn't need Yinsen to sacrifice himself for him again; he only hoped that the man who had saved his life could have a peaceful and comfortable life.
Yinsen remained silent for a moment, looking at Tony, whose restlessness had completely subsided, and seeing the genuine plea in his eyes, before slowly raising his eyebrows and nodding gently in response, "Okay, I'll stay."
There was no unnecessary hesitation, nor any deliberate politeness.
The night stretched on, and the two men inside chatted about everything from their Extremis in the Afghanistan caves to the panic of an alien invasion of New York, and then to the present. There were no heated arguments, no calculating schemes, just a quiet and heartfelt conversation between old friends and benefactors that soothed the last vestiges of unease in Tony's heart.
Late at night, Yinsen leaned against the sofa next to him and fell into a light sleep, leaving only the sound of his even, gentle breathing in the bedroom.
Tony, however, was wide awake.
He pulled back the covers, enduring the pain from his still-healing wounds, and slowly sat up on the edge of the bed. He lowered his head and stared intently at the Arc Reactor on his chest, which gleamed with a pale blue, cold light.
Beneath the reactor, the remaining shrapnel was like a ticking time bomb hanging overhead. Lynn's blunt advice echoed in his mind once more.
The inner struggle finally erupted at this moment.
He feared the helplessness of lying on the operating table again, but he also knew that this couldn't continue indefinitely.
Now that Lynn has the ability to provide full supervision and eliminate all unexpected risks, this is his opportunity.
After hesitating for a long time, Tony raised his hand and gently woke up JARVIS, who was on standby, lowering his voice so as not to wake Yinsen, who was fast asleep.
" JARVIS, retrieve all complete information regarding the chest foreign body removal surgery, including preoperative risk assessment, intraoperative emergency plans, postoperative recovery procedures, and the most authoritative doctors in this field. Amplify it all, for my personal viewing only."
The next second, a light blue holographic screen unfolded in mid-air, displaying a dense array of professional and detailed surgical data, anatomical diagrams, and risk contingency plans.
Tony sat motionless on the edge of the bed, silently flipping through the massive amount of surgical data, his heart churning with conflicting emotions. No one knew the struggle and courage he was experiencing alone in the dead of night.
The night passed in the blink of an eye, and dawn broke. The morning sun pierced through the clouds and streamed into the floor-to-ceiling windows of the Stark Tower, dispelling the darkness of the night.
Downstairs in the living room, Lynn remained seated on the sofa, her expression calm and composed despite not having slept all night. She silently sensed Tony's emotional fluctuations upstairs without ever going up to disturb him. Natasha also remained seated to the side, ready to act.
Just then, the elevator at the main entrance announced its arrival, and light, somewhat hurried footsteps led straight to the door of the top-floor bedroom.
Pepper Potts finished dealing with the company's backlog of urgent matters overnight and rushed back to Stark Tower as soon as possible.
She pushed open the bedroom door and immediately saw Tony sitting on the edge of the bed, covered in wounds, his face still pale and haggard. The scrapes from his armor and the bruises from the hand-to-hand combat were still clearly visible on his neck and arms, and had not completely faded even after a night.
In an instant, heartache and long-suppressed anger surged into my heart at the same time.
Pepper hurried to the bedside, her eyes slightly reddening as she looked at his disheveled appearance. Her voice was a mixture of anger and anxiety, revealing her deep concern. " Tony Stark! Once again, you've recklessly risked your life, always ending up battered and bruised, haven't you?"
She worried about Tony time and time again, and watched him get seriously injured time and time again. All the grievances she had accumulated over a long period of time finally erupted at this moment.
Tony looked at the person in front of him, whose eyes were full of worry and anger. He opened his mouth, instinctively wanting to raise his hand to comfort him, but the movement aggravated his wounds, causing him to wince slightly in pain. His usually eloquent mouth was now completely speechless, unable to refute.
He knew he had caused Pepper too much fear and anxiety, and he also knew that everything Lynn had told him last night was true.
The two inside the room were locked in a tense standoff, the atmosphere delicate and strained.
At the corner of the downstairs corridor, Lynn leaned quietly against the wall, taking in the scene at the bedroom door with a calm expression.
He did not intervene in their emotional dispute.
Emotional entanglements and the interference of others are all unnecessary interventions. He only needs to observe silently from the shadows.