America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

"These pregnant mice will give birth to pups in about two weeks. Normally, a litter contains six to ten pups, but pregnant mice with fewer pups will give birth later."

"You have to be careful not to get bitten."

"The mice here are a special breed, and they are more aggressive than the mice in other laboratories."

As he spoke, Norman pointed to the spot where he had been bitten, showing Li Qun and the others the location of his bite wound.

Norman felt he had explained enough, so he had Liqun and the others practice the operations he had just taught them one by one.

The enclosure quieted down. Apart from the sounds of the mice, Liqun could hear the gentle, even airflow from the ventilation system and the rustling of clothes.

"You must keep your hand steady and not make any sudden noises. You must not cause any stress reaction in the pregnant rats."

Harry felt he had found the reason why his father Norman spoke so calmly.

Because of the pregnant white mouse nearby, the elderly father Norman could not scold Harry as loudly as he did at home.

"Excellent! Very well done!!"

"Continue, we still have 6 more terrariums to prepare."

When they finished their work and came out of the 24-degree Celsius breeding room, after taking off their sterile suits and latex gloves, everyone was covered in sweat.

"There's hot water in the bathroom 24 hours a day, remember to shower frequently, and don't come into the pens smelling of sweat." Norman emphasized once again the content of the training he had already covered.

"I'll post your schedule later. You have to go in pairs every time you enter the nursery. Don't go in alone, understand?"

The four high school students nodded vigorously.

"Okay, let's go get something to eat!"

Norman led the four of them back to the living quarters next to the laboratory.

Next to the kitchen is the snack area. If they don't want to eat snacks, Li Qun and the others can also make their own food. The double-door refrigerator in the kitchen is full of ingredients. Norman and Dr. Storm also usually make food in this kitchen.

When conducting experiments in the lab, it's often difficult to distinguish between day and night outside. By the time you realize you're starting to feel unsteady, you may have already been working for a day or two without eating.

Li Qun took a can of iced cola from the refrigerator and sat down at the bar to drink it. Harry sat at the bar next to him, and Peter sat one seat away from him.

"Uncle Norman, besides the white mice, are there any other laboratory animals here?" Li Qun turned to Norman and asked.

"Only white mice."

"Current research is only being conducted on mice," Norman said, mixing himself a cocktail.

He's not working today, so he's mixing himself a drink to relax.

“Before we came, we even discussed that we might take care of dogs, rabbits, and snakes,” Gwen said.

“There are snakes, though.” Norman smiled.

"However, snakes are too dangerous, so we can't let you interns take care of them."

Li Qun breathed a sigh of relief when he didn't hear Norman mention spiders.

Li Qun didn't even dare to imagine what terrible things would happen if Peter were bitten by a spider in the Osborn Industrial Park and turned into Spider-Man.

Osborne Industrial Park is located in the suburbs of New York City, and they can't drive home every day, so they have to live in Osborne Industrial Park for their summer internships.

The family asked Peter, Gwen, and Liqun to call home every day to let them know they were safe.

……

For the first three days after they arrived, Norman would appear in front of Li Qun and the others every day to guide their work. But after seeing that they had adapted to their internship in the park in just three days, he disappeared.

Peter has always been particular about his bed since he was a child, and he always sleeps very lightly in new environments.

In the middle of the night, Peter, who was suffering from insomnia, went to the kitchen to get a glass of water and accidentally ran into Norman Osborn, whom he hadn't seen for almost a week.

Norman Osborne and Dr. Storm appeared in the kitchen in the middle of the night and ate the half pot of tomato stewed beef that Li Qun and the other three had left over from the daytime, along with bread, leaving not a drop of soup.

“Don’t tell Harry…” Norman Osborn put his index finger to his lips in a shushing gesture.

Peter nodded blankly, then took his water glass and went back to his room.

After daybreak, the four of them got up one after another, and their main activity area was in the spacious open kitchen.

"Whose turn is it to cook today?" Gwen asked.

“It’s Harry’s turn,” Peter said.

“Simple. I just need to take the half pot of tomato stewed beef brisket we had left over from yesterday, add some potatoes and tomatoes, and we can eat it for another day.” Harry laughed easily.

“There aren’t any left,” Peter said quietly.

“Peter, what are you saying? Your voice is too soft, I can’t hear you.” Harry looked at Peter.

“We’ve finished eating. Yesterday’s tomato stewed beef brisket.” Peter’s voice rose a little.

"Finished eating? Impossible! Who ate it?" Harry's suspicious gaze swept over the other three.

“…I got up in the middle of the night last night and ate it.” Peter told Harry a little lie.

"Ok."

"Then we'll just have to eat some white food that Liqun dislikes today," Harry said nonchalantly.

Chapter 132 This fish drowned.

"Bernard, could you come visit us in the park?"

"Young Master, working in the Master's laboratory must be very tiring, right?"

"It's just a bit of work. Could you help us buy some things to bring over? We'd also like you to take some things back for Peter, Liqun, and Gwen's families."

Harry was on the balcony of the recreation room making a phone call, while Lillian and Peter were playing a video game, and Gwen was watching them play.

"Of course, young master Harry, what would you like me to bring?"

Bernard, the butler, held the telephone receiver in one hand and took out his notebook with the other to start taking notes.

"...I see, you can only buy it at an Asian supermarket, right?"

"I'll bring the things over tomorrow."

After Bernard, the butler, hung up the phone, Harry looked out from the balcony at the bustling Osborne Industrial Park and breathed a sigh of relief.

Last night before bed, Harry and Peter went to the breeding house to check on the pregnant mice and found that one of them had suddenly died. Since the experimental mouse had died unexpectedly, they called Norman to the breeding house according to protocol.

Norman meticulously investigated the cause of death of the pregnant rat, a process that kept Harry and Peter awake all night.

Close your eyes, and you can almost see pink baby mice wriggling inside the pregnant mouse's belly.

The enhanced serum tested on pregnant mice significantly increased the viability of the pups in the uterus. Even when the pregnant mouse had been dead for some time, the pups still showed signs of life.

Norman wasn't entirely sure what caused the pregnant rats to die, but he had a few guesses in mind. However, he didn't tell Harry and Peter, but instead doubled their patrol duties and instructed them to notify him immediately if they found any more pregnant rats that had died suddenly.

Harry put his phone away and plopped down on the empty sofa.

“Peter, what do you think my dad’s research is about? Why are all the mice we’re taking care of pregnant?” Harry asked, his voice heavy.

“We feed them and change their water every day. If we were going to experiment on a new drug, we would have known long ago,” Peter said.

“These mice may have been carrying a disease, possibly a congenital genetic defect,” Gwen said.

“Harry, your personality isn’t suited for medical research. You don’t need to force yourself,” Li Qun said.

Harry nodded silently.

Upon meeting his father Norman Osborn, who was engaged in scientific research, Harry felt that he had discovered another side of his father.

It has a cold and ruthless side, capable of breaking down a living life into cold research data.

Harry also met Dr. Storm, the chief scientist at Osborne Industries, who seemed gentler with laboratory animals than his father, Norman.

Dr. Storm also provided guidance to the four of them during their internships, but it was instructing them on how to properly dispose of dead laboratory animals.

Other laboratory animals also experience stress reactions when they see their own kind die. Dr. Storm's "gentleness" was to instruct Liqun and the others not to let other pregnant mice discover that their kind had died.

"Peter, Harry, are you temporarily not allowed to accept any other meat besides sausages?" Li Qun asked, putting down the game controller.

“Pink and white meat are not allowed,” Harry replied stiffly.

"Would you like some fish?" Li Qun asked.

“The flesh of the fish is white,” Harry said.

"Harry, you've probably only ever seen what fish looks like in Chinese restaurants on TV, right?"

"During the Lunar New Year, we serve a whole fish on the table, symbolizing a complete and prosperous year," Li Qun said.

“Liqun, are you going to cook us fish? But I’ve already called Bernard, and we can’t get a whole fish in the park.” Gwen looked at Liqun.

“I will get them, but don’t ask me how I got the fish,” Li Qun said.

……

Around 7 p.m., Harry and Peter returned from checking on the pregnant mice in the nursery and found a large, plump fish in the kitchen sink.

The two looked at each other. Li Qun had said he would get a fish that morning, and unexpectedly, it happened that very evening.

The two searched for Li Qun and found him working out in the gym, where Gwen was also there.

"Liqun, did you secretly go fishing?"

Where did you catch the fish?

Why don't you ask how to eat this fish?

“It was a live fish!” Harry exclaimed in shock.

If they want to eat that fish, they have to kill it.

Unlike the pregnant rats he and Peter discovered that died suddenly, which were accidental deaths, killing fish was a homicide, meaning there was a perpetrator.

"Do you know Confucius? The school of thought founded by Confucius is called Confucianism. Confucianism believes that people with a benevolent heart are born with compassion and will feel pity when they see animals being slaughtered in the kitchen. Therefore, benevolent people will stay away from the kitchen."

"Does that mean we should all stay far away when you're killing the fish?" Harry and Peter were both completely confused.

"Let me finish," Li Qun said.

“The saying ‘A virtuous person will stay away from the kitchen’ comes from a dialogue between a Confucian sage and a monarch. The Confucian sage told the monarch that his compassion for the slaughter of cattle was an expression of benevolence, and that this benevolence should not be limited to the slaughtered cattle, but should also extend to the people of the country. The monarch should practice benevolent governance.”

"I'm done talking."

"But I am not a monarch."