America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

"What did you forget to tell me?"

"The true identity of Johnny the Wanderer, whose real name is Steve, is the prototype of the superhero that the U.S. military has been dreaming of."

"Are you kidding me?" Wade looked at Li Qun.

"Initially, I deduced Steve's identity, but later Dr. Banner personally verified it. Steve is indeed the Primarch of Super Soldier."

"What does 'original body' mean? Don't tell me it's a technical term only you guys use, okay?" Wade said, puzzled.

"It means that Johnny was the world's first super soldier, and all current super soldier projects are based on the technology he used to modify."

"The mutations of Dr. Banner and Hulk were an accident that occurred when Dr. Banner was experimenting on himself with a new round of super soldier modification technology," Li Qun explained to Wade.

"...Is nobody doing anything about him?" Wade asked.

“As the prototype of the super soldier, Steve’s physical superpowers are not particularly impressive. Theoretically speaking, Steve’s physical attributes are equivalent to Batman’s, with every ability being at the limits of human potential,” Li Qun said.

"Isn't Batman amazing?" Wade pondered Batman's superpowers, though he didn't know much about Batman.

“Batman’s greatest strengths are his technological equipment, his intelligence, and his money,” Li Qun told Wade.

"Steve appears to have suffered severe brain damage. For a time, he lived a muddled life on the streets. What sets him apart from other homeless people is that he is a homeless person with an overflowing sense of justice."

"That's why he gives himself that nickname when he competes," Wade said.

"Is he short of money?" Wade asked with concern.

"The fog in Steve's head gradually cleared, his thinking returned, he found a job and a girlfriend, and he plans to marry her in the future. Marriage will require a lot of money," Li Qun said.

"Is that the reason? Then he won't give up easily." Wade crossed his arms, feeling troubled.

"Now I know why Peter was so quick to quit."

“Peter knows about this, right?” Wade asked Li Qun.

“Yes, Peter knows that Johnny is Steve, the Primarch of Super Soldier,” Li Qun said.

"Um……"

"Give it a try."

“I won’t feel ashamed to have lost to the original super soldiers,” Wade laughed.

“I am pleased by your candor,” Li Qun said.

“I am also happy with my composure,” Wade said, mimicking Li Qun.

"That sounds weird," Wade laughed.

“There are many ancient books like this in the Kamar-Taj library.”

"You've been secretly learning magic? I remember Dr. Banner said that minors are prohibited from learning magic."

"I'm a prep student, Wade. Do you know what a prep student is?"

“I learned about magic in advance, but I was only allowed to memorize it and not to practice it,” Li Qun explained.

"My future will definitely be to become a sorcerer of Kamar-Taj, a sorcerer who protects the Sanctuary. I don't aspire to be the successor of the Archmage, but protecting the Earth is already a responsibility I will have to take on in the future."

"Is this just my stereotype? You Aurora people always have this strange sense of responsibility. Is Earth really like your Earth?" Wade remarked.

"If no one takes responsibility for the future of the planet, then the planet will have no future."

“On this earth, the people of Aurora simply behave more normally than others,” Li Qun said.

“I will also behave more normally,” Wade said.

"I'll wait and see."

……

The next morning, Saturday, Wade had breakfast at his dad's place.

Wade's father skipped lunch and made sure he had a full breakfast.

“Wade, Dad rarely cooks, especially breakfast.” Li Qun ate the breakfast he bought from outside, not expecting that his father would cook breakfast himself this morning.

“Liqun, Wade is renting a place here with me. He pays my rent and works for me. According to tradition, I should feed him,” the old man said.

"Are the traditions still upheld?" Wade asked his father.

“The tradition has been broken, now it depends on my mood,” the old man said.

"Dad, do you use lard too?" Wade asked, holding his bowl and eating with relish.

"Wade, how do you know about lard?" It was Dad's turn to be surprised.

“I saw it at John’s house; his wife, Helen, also used lard when she cooked,” Wade replied.

"That's not surprising."

“It was Li Qun who taught him,” the old man said.

"Is it easy to extract fat from pigs?" Wade asked Li Qun.

“It’s very simple. There’s no simpler process than rendering lard,” Li Qun replied.

Chapter 238 Children Need Heroes

The white Mazda slowly pulled up to the side of the road, and Li Qun, in the driver's seat, took out his phone and made a call to Peter.

Peter left his house with his phone in his hand and got into the car as quickly as possible.

“Why make things so complicated?” Li Qun said to Peter.

"Liqun, your phone is the one that requires the least amount of money to pay for calls."

“I’m avoiding my neighbor; Jane’s father seems overly concerned about me,” Peter told Li Qun.

"Isn't this good?"

“When you marry Mary Jane, you won’t have to worry about how to get along with your father-in-law,” Li Qun joked.

"He gave me his house key and told me to come over and visit whenever I wanted. He also said that if he drank himself to death, I should be the one to collect his body."

Li Qun was driving, and they were on their way to the Fisker Building. Old Man, Dr. Banner, and Wade had probably already arrived.

Don't overthink it.

“I feel that in Mr. Philip’s eyes, you and Mary Jane are children he watched grow up, and he knows you as well as he knows his own daughter.”

“Mary Jane was essentially driven away by him, and you became the person in his heart who replaced his daughter Mary Jane.”

Peter listened attentively to Li Qun's psychological analysis and felt that there was some truth to it.

"Peter, you're the kind of kid everyone admires."

"Other people's children? What does that mean?"

"You can never find your own child right; they're full of flaws. But other people's children are perfect no matter what they do; they're exactly what parents want them to be."

“Like my cousin and me, my aunt always demands that my cousin do things like me, even though my cousin is already doing a much better job,” Li Qun said.

“I think I understand,” Peter said.

"However, I feel that Mr. Philip has some misunderstanding about me. He thinks that I hate Mary Jane as much as he does."

"What? How could you give him that kind of impression?" Li Qun frowned.

"Probably because I was always afraid to be with Mary Jane, I went to school by myself after starting middle school. I didn't take the school bus with Mary Jane, and we rarely had classes together at school."

“Hearing you say that, I also feel that your relationship with Mary Jane isn’t very good.” Li Qun laughed.

"This is a problem of cognition."

"The reason why there are so many contradictions in this world, and why wars occur between countries, is because everyone perceives things differently."

“It’s just my humble opinion,” Li Qun emphasized to Peter.

“I’ve also thought about this issue, and I feel that as long as people communicate sincerely, conflicts can be resolved,” Peter said.

"Sincerity alone is not enough."

"Life in this world needs material support."

"You're right."

Peter looked at the traffic and fell into the confusion that everyone experiences during adolescence.

He didn't know what to do.

I went to university because everyone told me I needed to. They believed that if I went to university, I could find a job after graduation; with a job, I could have a stable life; and a stable life was closely linked to marriage, where I would become a husband, a father, and eventually a grandfather in a few decades.

"What are you thinking about? Why did you suddenly fall silent?" Li Qun glanced at Peter.

“I’m wondering, what is the value of my life?” Peter asked Liqun.

"You might as well ask us what we're having for dinner," Li Qun said.

“Yes, what do you want to eat?” Peter repeated.

“My friend, sometimes you need to understand that we are just Homo sapiens who need to find two thousand calories of energy every day.”

"Our peak performance is designed for us to be around thirty years old. After thirty, everything starts to decline."

“Hmm.” Peter nodded.

Peter wondered to himself, "Is this true for ordinary people, but also for him?"

He may be able to maintain his peak physical condition for many years.

How long will his life last?

Perhaps he will die young due to a genetic mutation?

Li Qun secretly watched Peter's changing expression.

Perhaps, if Uncle Ben and Aunt May had lived longer, Peter would never have become "that Spider-Man".

What difference does it make if New York gets another "Spider-Man"?

Spider-Man's abilities are limited. Can Spider-Man intervene in the future development of human society? Can he bring the world into an era of peace?

Li Qun habitually thinks in a macro-level perspective.

Peter Parker's intelligence, rather than Spider-Man's strength, is more capable of changing the future of the world than Spider-Man.