The next day, at nine o'clock in the morning.
Tony Stark arrived just in time for the Government trial , which was also attended by the Military Committee . He took his seat in the defendant's chair and, despite it being his first time there, showed no signs of nervousness. On the contrary, he looked around, greeted Zhou Yi who was sitting behind him, and winked at Pepper Potts on the other side.
Pepper gave Tony a reproachful look, indicating he should show at least some respect in court . But Tony didn't care; he did as he pleased until the senator presiding over the hearing couldn't take it anymore .
" Mr. Stark , may we continue with the subject we were just discussing? Mr. Stark , please!" The senator above , using extremely serious language, struck his gavel several times.
"Of course, darling . Do you have any instructions?" Tony turned his head and adopted a serious expression. His tone immediately caused a few giggles in the solemn courtroom.
The senator, sitting in the judge's seat , continued speaking seriously, as if he hadn't heard the laughter .
" Mr. Stark , can you answer my question honestly?"
"Of course, darling . Oh, what was the question again!" Tony wouldn't be honest over a single sentence, of course, but he confirmed it verbally.
The senator didn't care about his attitude; no one in his position had the right to question Tony . Stark must have done some research on him beforehand. So he ignored this pointless, humiliating behavior. With a constant smile on his face, he said to him:
" Mr. Stark , do you have any special high-tech weapons?"
"No!" Tony replied emphatically . But the senator immediately shouted loudly.
"Did you say no?"
"Yes. No!" Tony's expression was extremely serious, as if he were in a religious ceremony. "I'm very sure. Of course. It depends on what you define as a weapon."
" Iron Man is a weapon, Mr. Stark !" The senator narrowed his eyes and smiled. He couldn't believe such a firmly established truth could be overturned by Tony's cunning tongue .
Upon hearing this , Tony immediately became a little more serious. He pulled the microphone closer and said very solemnly:
"My invention is not a weapon!"
"It's a weapon, isn't it?" The senator straightened up. "Then how would you describe it, Mr. Stark ?"
"That's the situation, Your Excellency. " "Senator ... if you'd like me to say it, we can only call it a high-tech prosthesis!" Tony's words instantly caused an even louder burst of laughter, but he still spoke to the Senator with a serious expression . "That's the best adjective I can think of. A technological prosthesis, yes. That's it!"
"This is nonsense, Mr. Stark . This is a gun, this is a gun!"
The senator could no longer remain indifferent to Tony's remarks . He interrupted Tony, raised his voice , and offered his own definition.
"If you prioritize the well-being of Americans ..."
Tony naturally couldn't tolerate his invention being described in that way. He was thinking of exactly the words to refute what the senator had said .
But the senator had already interrupted him.
"No, my priority is to deliver the Iron Man weapon to the Americans . "
Tony , who could do little more than engage in brief verbal sparring , was clearly at a disadvantage when debating a professional like the Senator , whose living depended on his oratorical skills .
However, his inability to gain an advantage did not mean he would submit. Therefore, he immediately and rightfully expressed his opinion.
"Don't even think about it. I am Iron Man . I and my Iron Man suit are one. To make him surrender to me is to make myself surrender to myself. So don't even think about it. If you force me to, I may interpret it as forcing me into slavery or prostitution, which, of course, is absolutely illegal depending on the state. But I believe I can use entirely legal means to protect my interests here. In short, Your Excellency Senator , I cannot give in to you."
Tony's mischief instantly transformed the atmosphere into a hilarious talk show. Even the Senator , known for his oratorical skills , couldn't keep talking in this environment. He had no choice but to seek outside help to put his plan into action.
"Look, I'm not an expert on this. I don't know if what you're saying is true. I need a weapons expert who can advise us on whether Iron Man is a weapon or not. Right now , I'm calling on Justin Hammer, the Department of Defense's current principal arms dealer ."
Upon hearing that name , Tony immediately understood who was targeting him. The Department of Defense was certainly involved, but the one instigating the Department of Defense was undoubtedly this shameless Hammer. Only he could have the impulse to target him.
It's important to know that in the past, when Stark was the leader of the arms industry, Hammer Industries always aspired to acquire Stark Industries . However, at that time, Stark's relationship with the Department of Defense was better than Hammer Industries' , making it impossible for Hammer Industries to target Stark . But now the situation is different.
Stark Industries withdrew from the arms market , meaning the market share it left behind would be divided among the remaining giants. However, Osborn was also facing its own problems. Therefore, Hammer Industries seized the opportunity and became the Department of Defense's largest direct supplier .
However, even after becoming the largest arms dealer, Hammer Industries still had a certain gap compared to the old Stark Industries . The most significant gap was in high-tech weapons. Hammer Industries was a company that started with light, small individual weapons and was naturally deficient in this area. Given that the Cult Leader of Stark Enterprises was a genius capable of developing dark technology , the difference between them naturally grew even larger.
This gap meant that Hammer Industries never enjoyed a high reputation . And Hammer Industries itself felt this sense of crisis. It knew it needed a truly high-tech, groundbreaking weapon to maintain its leading position. So Tony's Iron Man suit naturally became its target.
This was considered a groundbreaking weapon. Moreover, Stark had recently transitioned from a military- industrial enterprise to an energy-based one . This situation caused him to lose his greatest political advantage. If he didn't seize this opportunity to pressure Stark Industries , he would never have such a chance again.
When he presented this idea to the Department of Defense , the two sides immediately agreed. The Department of Defense , already in a difficult situation due to the Battle of New York , readily embraced Hammer's proposal as the best way to change the military's image, reverse the current decline, and fill the huge void created after the freezing of the super-soldier program .
Possessing Iron Man's weapons meant they would have countless Superheroes at their disposal. Both public opinion and the future course of the war would begin to turn in their favor. Similarly, Hammer Industries would take a huge step as a collaborator, laying the foundation for its position as a leading military -industrial enterprise . So, what reasons did they have for not doing it?
In return for profit,
No one is immune from hurting anyone. That naturally included Tony Stark .
Tony , anticipating the cause and effect , began to act cautiously. He realized this wasn't a spontaneous event, but a long-planned conspiracy. Therefore, unable to control the situation , Tony decided to launch the first attack.
"Excuse me, gentlemen . I only saw Mr. Justin Hammer enter , not the so-called weapons expert. Is that who you mean, are you kidding? Everyone knows Hammer is just a businessman, not an expert. He probably couldn't even defuse a bomb!"
This was a harsh counter-attack that even sparked debate among the onlookers. However, the impeccably dressed and smiling Justin Hammer remained unfazed. He simply smiled and said into the microphone in front of him:
"You're right. I'm not an expert. You're the expert, Tony . You've always been a genius in this field !"
As soon as he started talking, not only Tony , but even Zhou Yi couldn't help but wipe their faces. This wasn't their first encounter with Justin Hammer . They knew very well what kind of person he was.
This man's verbal abilities were hundreds of times superior to his other talents. According to Tony , if half of his verbal ability were given to Hammer Industries' weapons developers, even he couldn't compete with them. This man was extremely arrogant. Almost everything he said was empty and full of lies. Yet, despite this, he was welcomed by the Ministry of Defence . There's an old saying among arms dealers: Like attracts like.
They underestimated this man's abilities, but now, in this trial based entirely on words, they've had to admit that dealing with him is the most difficult thing.
Just like now, Justin Hammer openly admitted to the accusation Tony made against him . However, he immediately denied the claim.
" Compared to a genius like you , Tony , I have to admit I'm not really a weapons expert. A businessman is a better fit for me."
If Tony Stark was used as a benchmark, then probably very few people in the world could be called a weapons expert . So when he said this, the onlookers naturally accepted the view. Tony's genius , at that moment, became the opponent's weapon.
Not content with defending against Tony's attack , Hammer retaliated. He rose to his feet, walked toward the center of the courtroom, and said to everyone around him:
Your Excellency , Senator , please give me the floor. I may not be an expert, but I know who the real expert is. Tony , that's your father, Howard Stark . He's not only the head of our family, but also the father of our military industry . You're like him; you're both geniuses. You inherited that from your father, especially your talent for weapons development."
"We all know why we're here. For the past six months, Tony..." Stark forged a sharp sword, but insists it's just a shield. He wants us to trust it, to hide behind it, because he says we'll be safe. I'd love to feel truly safe; to be honest, I thought so at first. But after monsters ravaged New York and massive biological events occurred in Europe, I can't think that way anymore. Ultimately, when we thought it could protect us, it didn't. And that's enough."
" I don't want to blame Mr. Stark . After all, we live in a world full of dangers , and Mr. Stark may not have the ability to foresee danger or be there when it comes. So the only thing that comes to mind is that perhaps Mr. Stark has another way of protecting us. Perhaps he could hand over his toy and give it to those who can protect us better. Maybe that would be the right thing to do."
"That's all, everyone. These are my personal opinions. God bless the United States of America , God bless Iron Man !"