America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

“What a coincidence, Stephanie,” Peter said casually as he turned around.

“I didn’t expect you to look so well-behaved in school.” Stephanie laughed, recalling Peter’s attire when he was Aunt May’s bodyguard, a stark contrast to his appearance in school.

Peter turned around; the teacher had entered the classroom.

The first day of school ended with teachers and students chatting; there were no lectures, only the sharing of holiday stories.

Some students haven't even bought their textbooks yet, so having the teacher lecture would only make things difficult for those who haven't bought textbooks.

"Peter, you look unhappy?" The teacher called out to Peter as he passed by the podium at the end of get out of class.

Peter had been participating in high school quizzes and was already well-known among his teachers; every teacher knew of a good student named Peter Parker.

“I didn’t sleep well last night,” Peter replied.

"If you're feeling unwell, you can see the school's psychologist," the teacher said to Peter with concern.

"Thank you, Mr. David."

David is still in charge of the 12th grade history class, and the classroom is still the same history classroom that was used in the 11th grade last year.

After class, Peter and Harry met in the hallway.

“I didn’t see Mary Jane. Did she take the day off?” Harry asked Peter.

“Mary Jane transferred schools,” Peter replied casually.

"What? Wow!"

Harry gasped, looked Peter up and down, and suddenly realized why Peter was in a bad mood.

“Isn’t Mary Jane your neighbor? Did she move?” Harry asked.

"It's a long story, and we don't have enough time to chat during our free time," Li Qun said from the side.

“Let’s talk at noon,” Harry said.

Harry's mood soured as well, and he had a bad feeling as he looked at Peter and Liqun's facial expressions.

Peter chatted during the four morning classes, and in the later classes, he sat expressionless in a corner seat. The teacher was very observant of the students' emotions and did not let Peter share his stories from his three-month vacation.

At lunchtime in the school cafeteria, Harry took their usual table early, and Li Qun, as usual, started setting up their table and they ate lunch together.

"Tell me quickly, what happened?" Harry asked anxiously.

"May I sit next to you?" Stephanie asked, holding a stainless steel school lunch tray at the table.

“Please make yourself at home,” Harry said to Stephanie.

Chapter 157 The conditions for joining the circle are...

Stephanie sent a request to join Peter's small circle of four.

It's not easy for a new transfer student to integrate into a new environment. If they are not accepted by their classmates, they will quickly fall to the bottom of the school and become a pitiful person that everyone dares to bully.

Harry's act of striking up a conversation with Stephanie, who had just transferred to the school, was seen by Stephanie as an invitation to join their little circle, suggesting that it might be a good start.

“Your lunch looks delicious! I didn’t see a Chinese food window in the school cafeteria,” Stephanie asked as she sat down.

“Liqun’s uncle owns a Chinese restaurant. We gave all the money for lunch to Liqun’s uncle, and he’s in charge of our lunch,” Gwen explained to Stephanie.

A table can seat four people. Two tables are placed side by side, and Stephanie sat at the other table next to her.

“Harry, I think we should talk in the library after our afternoon classes,” Peter said to Harry.

“The library isn’t a good place to chat; we might get kicked out,” Harry said.

“Let me put it simply, Harry, Peter is currently suffering from the aftereffects of a breakup,” Li Qun said.

"Peter and Mary Jane are dating?" Harry stared at Peter in shock.

"How many days did you date? Breaking up so quickly is really hurtful," Harry said.

“They were almost there. If Mary Jane hadn’t gone to live with her aunt in New Jersey, they would probably be together when the semester started,” Li Qun said.

"Mary Jane moved to New Jersey?" Harry was surprised again.

“Mary Jane’s mother died, and her Aunt Anna was worried about Mary Jane living with her father, so her aunt took Mary Jane away,” Peter told Harry.

"So that's how it is. It's really sad."

"My only memories of my mother are of her in photographs."

As Harry spoke, he looked at Peter, Gwen, and Lillian, all of whom were children without mothers.

My good mood for today has to come to an end.

“Oh…” Stephanie’s expression also fell, and Peter turned to look at Stephanie.

“Stephanie, I didn’t mean to offend you, but I remember your family moved to New York City because Mr. Walter needed treatment for his cancer,” Peter said to Stephanie.

“Yes.” Stephanie took a bite of the beans from the school cafeteria; they tasted like nothing at all.

“How should I put it, cancer, why do people get cancer? Does New York City have the best cancer hospitals in the world? Is cancer incurable?” Harry said.

"That may be the case for now, but we should be full of expectations for the future," Li Qun said.

“Stephanie, if I may ask, has your father been diagnosed with cancer?” Harry asked Stephanie.

“…Uh, he’s a chemistry teacher who used to work in a lab. He said it might be because he was exposed to too many hazardous chemicals while working in the lab,” Stephanie said.

Harry took a deep breath.

"What's wrong?" Stephanie asked Harry.

“My father works in the lab all the time. He’s very thin and always seems to be in a bad mood. I’m worried he might be experiencing something similar,” Harry said anxiously.

“Harry, you’re overthinking it,” Peter said.

“Yes, last year you even suspected your father of starting another family behind your back,” Li Qun said.

“Uncle Norman may have some kind of illness, but it’s most likely anxiety disorder. Anyone would be upset if they put a lot of effort into a project but the progress was slow,” Gwen said.

“I hope his research project will be successful soon,” Harry said.

"What are you researching?" Stephanie asked.

“Some kind of new drug, I’m not quite sure about it either,” Harry replied.

“This is confidential information, isn’t it? I asked something I shouldn’t have,” Stephanie suddenly realized and said to Harry.

“A few of us went to my father’s lab during the summer vacation, but we were there to be caretakers for the mice. The new drug was already being tested on the mice. When they called us over, they didn’t emphasize that there was anything that needed to be kept secret,” Harry said.

“That’s because we don’t have access to the key information, so we don’t have any requirements,” Gwen told Harry.

"Let's not talk about this anymore, it reminds me of those lab rats," Li Qun said.

"Then let's not talk about it anymore, we still need to eat." Harry shut his mouth.

Stephanie ate her unappetizing school meal and was incredibly envious of Peter and his two friends' lunch.

After finishing lunch, Stephanie hesitated for a moment and asked Li Qun if she could also order lunch prepared by his uncle.

“I’m sorry, this is all I can bring to school. It’s difficult to add another person’s portion. The lunches provided by the school cafeteria are really not good. My suggestion is that you can make your own lunch and bring it to school, then reheat it in the microwave at noon,” Li Qun said to Stephanie.

“I can’t cook,” Stephanie said.

"Since I can't cook, I can only buy lunch from the school cafeteria," Li Qun said.

"I'll give it a try."

“Cooking requires experience. If you can handle all kinds of chemistry experiments, then cooking will be very easy for you. Cooking is also a wonderful chemistry experiment,” Li Qun said.

“You’re absolutely right. My father is a brilliant chemist, so I should be able to learn to cook too,” Stephanie encouraged herself.

After lunch, there were no classes in the afternoon; instead, we shared holiday stories with the teachers. The teachers from different subjects focused on different aspects of their holiday stories, so no one felt bored.

After afternoon classes ended, Harry pulled Peter and Liqun to sit on a bench on campus to discuss something.

“A club? Have you forgotten? It’s our last year, we’re going to start a club,” Harry said to Peter and Liqun.

"A kung fu club? Are you really going to do this?" Li Qun looked at Harry.

“Liqun, it’s not fair that only Peter is learning kung fu from you.”

“There are regulations for starting a new club at the school. You need to have a certain number of members and an instructor. How many people can we get?” Li Qun asked.

“There are four of us, and if we call Stephanie, there will be five. Isn’t that guy named Reed always eager to learn kung fu from you? If we call him too, there will be six of us.”

“Liz can lend her name, and if you don’t mind, you can also bring Frye over.”

Harry started calling out names, and soon the number exceeded ten.

“There are actually a lot of hidden kung fu fans in our school. As long as you, Liqun, raise your arms and call out, they will immediately stand behind you and follow you to learn kung fu!” Harry said.

Chapter 158 Dr. Banner is watching

"Peter Parker, what are you up to at night instead of sleeping?"

According to Li Qun's observation, Peter Parker's behavior was no different from that of someone who had just broken up with their boyfriend.

Li Qun therefore intensified its monitoring of Peter during the nighttime hours.

During the day, Li Qun and Peter attend classes together, leading a peaceful academic life; but at night, after Uncle Ben and Aunt May have gone to sleep, "Spider-Man" Peter sneaks out. He either sits alone on the Brooklyn Bridge watching the cars go by, or sits atop a building in Manhattan admiring the New York night view and contemplating life.

Peter the Spider's nighttime activities gradually expanded, from Queens and Brooklyn all the way to Manhattan, and urban legends about the street hero "Red Hood" gradually increased.

Peter, who travels at night, never hesitates to stop any crime he witnesses.

His movements were so swift, like Batman turning and disappearing in an instant; those who witnessed it firsthand only remember the red balaclava hat Peter was wearing.

"You mean this acrobatic kid is your good friend Peter?"

Li Qun, along with Bruce Banner, observes Peter Parker at the New York Sanctuary.

Catching up with Peter Parker, the "Spider-Man," among the skyscrapers of Manhattan was a difficult task. After several days of effort, Li Qun finally had to rely on Dr. Banner's crystal ball magic to track Peter's location in time.

“Tell me, how did he become like this?” Bruce Banner asked.

“It’s incredible. After our internship at Osborne Industries, we visited the Columbia University science fair together. In Columbia’s genetics lab, Peter was bitten by a genetically engineered spider, which gave him spider-like superpowers,” Li Qun said.

"How could this be? This is unbelievable, even more unbelievable than my situation."

Bruce Banner moved closer to the crystal ball, carefully observing Peter as he spun spider silk from his wrist and swung through the air.