Normally, neither Coulson, with his unspeakable profession, nor Tony Stark, the billionaire, would pay any mind to a small-time guy like Old Liu.
But now... out of respect for the host, they had to give Old Liu some face in front of Shi Xiaolei. Plus, he was an ordinary person, and the full version of the serum wasn't something suitable for him to know about. So, his arrival actually gave Tony and Coulson an opportunity to change the subject and save face.
"I didn't even notice just now... Locke, your lamb is excellent, where did you get it?"
Putting aside his jumbled thoughts, taste buds took over, and after eating two more skewers of grilled meat, Stark gradually savored the flavor of the lamb.
As a billionaire, Tony Stark had eaten countless delicacies since childhood. With his discerning palate, only truly good food could pique his curiosity.
"It's good, isn't it? How does it compare to what you've had before?" Shi Xiaolei smiled proudly as he continued to work.
"The seasoning is just average." He pouted, first making a sarcastic remark, then Stark nodded somewhat reluctantly: "The quality of the meat itself is quite good, even a bit more tender than the lamb chops I had in New Zealand last time."
"If you like it, I'll pack a box for you later." With Old Liu present, it wasn't convenient to explain too much, so Shi Xiaolei winked at Stark as he spoke.
Is it from the same place as those other things?
"Thanks." Stark smiled and raised his glass contentedly.
He forgot that the glass contained the baijiu Old Liu had just brought, which was a potent 60 proof. He took a large gulp, just as he would normally drink 40 proof whiskey with ice... "Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough, cough!"
Caught off guard, he choked on the strong liquor and took a while to recover after a fit of coughing.
Raising the glass, he looked at the remaining half-glass of liquor, then at Old Liu, who looked embarrassed but also had a hint of a mischievous grin. Stark, still shaken, blurted out, "Fxxk, what is this stuff, medical alcohol?"
Although he had immigrated to the United States, he had not forgotten his pride and joy as a Chinese person.
Dissatisfied with Stark's evaluation of the fine liquor, Old Liu, for the first time, forgot his timidity and unconsciously displayed the arrogance of a Jiaodong man. As he slowly sipped a small cup of baijiu without changing his expression, he raised an eyebrow at Stark: "This wine needs to be savored slowly. Only uncouth foreigners who haven't had good wine and are greedy would drink it like you."
He instinctively wanted to retort, but then suddenly realized that Old Liu was exuding the aura of a 'master'.
Intrigued, Stark turned to 2B and made a request: "Sylvia, I want one of those small porcelain cups too."
"I offered it to you earlier and you said it was too small, now you're clamoring for it. You're the most particular one." Without waiting for 2B to reply, Shi Xiaolei chuckled and scolded him. Then, he instructed Kanna, the little girl clinging to him: "Kanna, go get Tony a small cup. Do you know where it is?"
"I know." Just now, when she was helping 2B prepare the salad, Kanna had seen Shi Xiaolei casually place the unused cups on the counter. Thinking back now, Kanna nodded vigorously: "On the table in the kitchen!"
"Good, go get one, be careful not to drop it, okay?"
"Oh." She stuffed the unfinished skewer into Shi Xiaolei's hand, adorably admonished him "No peeking!", and then the little girl turned and ran into the house.
After a series of pattering footsteps, Kanna came bouncing towards Stark, holding a small white porcelain cup, and offered it to him on tiptoes: "Here, Uncle Stark, the cup you wanted~."
"The little one is so cute." Watching the little girl return to Shi Xiaolei's side, Happy couldn't help but lean into his boss's ear and whisper.
Even the somewhat simple-minded Happy felt this way.
It went without saying for the meticulous Pepper. Looking at the little girl, who was as cheerful as a little elf and constantly letting out clear laughter, her heart was filled with affection, and her eyes were so warm they seemed to be melting.
"May, May?" Coulson suddenly noticed that his companion's gaze seemed a little off.
"Uh." Waking from her memories, May also showed a meaningful and emotional expression: "Sorry, I zoned out."
She had performed countless field missions and achieved illustrious military feats, which earned her the codename 'Cavalry' from her colleagues. Why would May, with such combat prowess, abandon her role as a field agent and transfer to an internal position that didn't match her personal abilities at all? It was because she had previously participated in an anti-terrorism operation on Bahrain Island.
It was a superhuman incident.
During the operation, May killed countless enemies, single-mindedly wanting to rescue the little girl who was being held hostage by the perpetrators. But when the mission reached its final stage, she suddenly discovered that the little girl was actually the mastermind, that she had abused her superpowers, controlled those adults, and made them into perpetrators who created the vicious incident.
Were those people she killed earlier actually innocent victims under control? The reversal between expectation and reality was too strong, and the moment she confirmed it, it caused a huge psychological impact on May.
Furthermore, the situation at the time was extremely urgent; she had to personally kill the little girl who was charging up a big move to prevent the incident from escalating further and save her comrades' lives... Left with no choice, May had to break her psychological bottom line, taking a life for the first time in her life against a minor.
After the mission, May could never forget that scene in her mind. Just like a veteran with PTSD who cannot reintegrate into normal life, feeling that she had a psychological flaw, May felt she could no longer continue as a field agent. So, she voluntarily submitted a transfer request, stepping down from the front lines of combat and moving to a clerical position in the internal affairs department.
The root of her psychological problem lay with that little girl back then. Therefore, whenever she encountered children, especially cute little girls, May would always unconsciously zone out, and her feelings were far more profound than those of her colleagues.
"I understand." As both a colleague and an old friend, Coulson was one of the few people in the know.
Worried that May was feeling down, and also feeling that with Stark present, it would be impossible to smoothly achieve the goal of 'furthering their relationship with Shi Xiaolei,' Coulson thought for a moment: "I'll go say hello. Wait for me a bit; I'll get the serum and then we'll leave."
"Leaving already?" Shi Xiaolei was a bit surprised.
"I'm sorry to spoil your fun." Coulson smiled apologetically and pointed his finger upwards: "You know, in our line of work, we can receive new assignments at any time. Locke, if you don't mind, can you give me the stuff now?"
"Alright." Nodding in understanding, Shi Xiaolei glanced at Old Liu, who was currently guiding Stark in tasting baijiu, and Pepper, who was chatting with 2B and playing with Kanna. He put down the half-grilled skewers, clapped his hands, and stood up: "It's not very convenient out here, come inside with me."