"Hey, Tony."
Driving the car that Tony Stark had modified, Shi Xiaolei arrived at the meeting spot on time.
What surprised him slightly was that Tony Stark had actually arrived before him.
"You're here."
Tony Stark, leaning against his car door, removed his sunglasses, straightened up and adjusted his collar, then gave Shi Xiaolei a friendly elbow nudge as he approached.
"Usually others wait for me. I never imagined there'd be a day when I'd be waiting for someone, and that person wouldn't even be a beautiful woman... Man, you must be really important."
"I'm surprised too, Tony. How did you get here so early?"
Shi Xiaolei laughed and returned Tony nudge with a playful punch while asking.
"It's because of that guy."
Pointing to the building behind him, where someone was helping Happy move boxes, Stark explained.
"Rhodes, you've met him before. He called me last night saying he had a rare vacation and wanted to hang out with me for a few days. I figured since we're just having fun anyway, having him along means an extra pair of hands to help, so I brought him along. You don't mind, do you?"
"Of course not."
While raising his hand to greet Rhodes, who had just turned to look in their direction, Shi Xiaolei replied with a smile.
"Actually, I also brought an extra person at the last minute."
"Oh?"
Looking back, Bayonetta had just gotten out of the car.
Shi Xiaolei waved at her and made introductions.
"This is Bayonetta. Bayo, this is Tony Stark, a good friend of mine."
Since this wasn't a formal occasion, there was no need to explain her profession and background.
Well, actually, Shi Xiaolei hadn't yet decided how to introduce Bayonetta to Stark, so he simply skipped that part and didn't mention that Bayo was a witch.
Stark didn't mind either.
There was no helping it—Bayo charm was simply too powerful.
Even Stark, who was accustomed to seeing beautiful women, couldn't quite resist.
Having barely composed himself, he had no spare mental capacity to be curious about Bayo profession or background.
"Hi~."
Half wanting to avoid Bayo soul-capturing gaze, half truly in disbelief.
After greeting Bayo, Stark immediately pulled Shi Xiaolei aside and couldn't help asking.
"Man, you're not joking, right? I mean, how could someone like you, umm... someone so unrefined, have someone like Bayonetta in your social circle?"
Although the two men had moved aside, this didn't mean Bayonetta was ignored.
Pepper, who had been arranging things at the back of the car, walked over and took Stark place.
Somewhat surprised by Bayo presence and amazed by her beauty, Pepper social skills were more than sufficient to handle this small surprise.
In just a few exchanges, she and Bayo were already chatting comfortably.
Glancing over and seeing that Bayo seemed happy, requiring no intervention from him, Shi Xiaolei returned his attention to Stark.
He shrugged and gave Stark a smug look.
"God's arrangement, what can I do?"
"Come on~."
Unable to resist another glance, Stark looked back at Shi Xiaolei, nudged his stomach with his elbow, leaned in closer, and asked in a low voice.
"Buddy, tell me the truth, are you pursuing her? Do you need us to be your wingmen?"
Earlier, when they first met, Shi Xiaolei had already clearly explained one thing to Stark—Sylvia was not his girlfriend, and Kanna was not his daughter.
The relationship between them was that of siblings without blood ties.
In China across the ocean, such family structures might be rare.
But in America, similar situations were quite common.
So Stark didn't find it strange at the time and naturally accepted Shi Xiaolei explanation.
Why didn't Stark worry about Shi Xiaolei bringing Bayonetta, and why didn't he think 2B would be jealous? This was the reason.
In fact, it was precisely because he knew this that he mistakenly thought Shi Xiaolei wanted to pursue Bayonetta, which was why he brought her along for this trip.
"No, nothing like that."
Waving his hand, Shi Xiaolei shook his head with a wry smile.
"That woman is not someone to be trifled with."
"Then why did you..."
Since he had no intention of pursuing her, why insist on bringing her along? Stark couldn't quite understand.
"Well..."
Unable to avoid giving an explanation, Shi Xiaolei scratched his head with some difficulty.
"It's hard to explain clearly right now. Just think of her as someone who comes from the same place as me."
As a super genius in the scientific field, Stark had a strong interest in all things unknown.
In fact, after their first meeting, he had investigated Shi Xiaolei background.
After all, the power Shi Xiaolei displayed when facing Iron Monger had far exceeded the scope of normal humans.
And his "quick-change" ability, as well as those seemingly direct yet powerful skills, couldn't be explained by existing scientific theories.
However, just like SHIELD investigation of Shi Xiaolei, Stark hadn't obtained much information either.
How to answer the questions in his mind? He could only wait until their relationship became closer and more familiar, then ask Shi Xiaolei directly.
And when faced with Stark inquiry, Shi Xiaolei answer was.
"I come from an ancient hidden organization with a long history."
The reason for this response was, firstly, because they weren't as familiar then as they were now, so he didn't dare casually reveal his identity as someone who had crossed over; secondly, due to his insufficient academic knowledge, if he were to drop such a bombshell right away and spark Stark interest, he might not be able to handle the follow-up.
Being somewhat vague, whenever Stark wanted to ask more, Shi Xiaolei would deflect with "the organization has rules, I can't reveal too much."
So, back and forth, Stark was finally misled and accepted the idea that "there is a hidden organization in the world that he had never heard of."
"Is she also a member of that organization?"
Unable to resist looking back again, secretly glancing at Bayonetta who was talking with Pepper, Stark crossed one arm over his chest while supporting his chin with the other, his eyes revealing curiosity.
"So, does that mean she's as good a fighter as you are?"
"We've never fought, so I don't know. But one thing for sure—she definitely a better fighter than you."
Shi Xiaolei shrugged.
"..."
Rolling his eyes, Stark didn't believe it at all.
"Are you still half-asleep? I'm Iron Man, you know."
"Maybe there will be a chance in the future. Anyway, you'll know after you see it."
He couldn't actually call Bayo over and have her spar with Stark.
Shi Xiaolei didn't bother to argue, just smiled faintly and changed the subject.
"Alright, looks like they're about done chatting, let's go over."
"Huh?"
"Come on, if you really want to understand, there'll be plenty of opportunities on the road. After all, this trip will take a week or two."
Shi Xiaolei turned his head, gesturing for Stark to follow.
"But I should warn you, Bayo charm isn't something ordinary people can resist. You need to be careful not to fall for her. Besides, Pepper is here too... you know what I mean."
"You think I'm like you?"
Stark retorted disdainfully.
"I'm Tony Stark, I've seen all kinds of beautiful women."
(T/N: Like the story fellow daoist?you can read 20 chapters ahead on my P@treon [[email protected]/DaoistRongyi] Thanks for your support! 😊)