America: A Prodigy of Stereotypes

“He’s dressed like a robber right now,” Dr. Banner shook his head.

Peter wandered around, and the greater his expectations, the greater his disappointment.

Two hours passed, and Peter still hadn't found anyone.

Peter's gaze lingered on the park.

A group of homeless people gathered in the park, huddled around a gasoline drum, using the flames from the burning drum to keep warm on the cold night.

A feeling told Peter that he should go over and give some gift cards to the homeless.

Peter came down from the top of the building and walked towards the park.

In New York at night, no one dares to walk into the park alone; it belongs to the homeless.

Peter barged in, and the homeless men nervously watched him as he wore a red mask.

"I have something, do you need it?"

Peter slowly pulled a gift card from his pocket, noticing that some of the homeless men were carrying guns.

“I have a few gift cards here with $75 pre-loaded on them, you can have them,” Peter said.

“We don’t want it,” one of the homeless men said.

"Why not?" Peter asked, puzzled.

“If we try to buy things with your gift cards, they won’t sell them to us. They’ll call the police,” the homeless man said.

"Get lost!"

"Stop pretending to be a good person!!"

"If you don't get out of here, we'll bury you here!"

Peter slowly backed away, leaving the park with mixed feelings.

Wade shook his head at Peter's behavior on TV.

Li Qun pulled Wade off the bed as well, and the two of them accompanied Dr. Banner to observe Peter.

“The clever Peter never gives up easily, and he quickly came up with a new idea…” Wade used a broadcasting voice to pretend to be a “narrator” and explain Peter’s inner thoughts.

Peter removed his mask and entered a 24-hour convenience store owned by Koreans. On the glass door of the store, Peter confirmed that the store accepted VISA payments.

Peter bought a lot of things, mostly food and drinks.

Peter mentally calculated the price of each item he picked up, making sure he could pay for it all with his gift card.

Peter filled two baskets to the brim, and the Korean owner of the convenience store seemed a little nervous when he went to pay at the checkout.

The convenience store owner was still intimidated by Peter's attire; a trench coat is standard equipment for robbers.

When Peter pulled out a gift card to pay, the convenience store owner looked embarrassed but didn't dare say anything to Peter.

Peter walked out of the convenience store with his full plastic shopping bags and headed towards the park.

Almost an hour later, Peter noticed that the homeless people in the park were arguing about something.

"Hi……"

Peter walked over and put down the plastic shopping bag he was carrying.

"He's here again, Red Hood."

"Have you heard of the Red Hood?" Peter asked.

“Who among the street dwellers hasn’t heard of this name?” one of the homeless men said.

What happened here?

Martin is dead.

The homeless people made room for Peter to see Martin, who was sleeping on the bench.

"Why did he die?" Peter's mind went blank for a moment.

“People live, and they die. You will die too,” one of the homeless men said calmly to Peter.

"More people will die in a few days."

Peter instinctively took a deep breath.

Is this the first time you've seen someone die?

Peter did not respond.

He turned and walked away from the firelight in the park. He started jogging and, as he approached the tall building, launched spider silk from his hands and swung away.

Peter wandered among the skyscrapers like an urban savage, finally stopping on the top of a building and tearing off the red hood from his head.

Peter's mind kept replaying the image of Martin, the homeless man who had died on the park bench. Martin's eyes were open, his mouth was half-open, but his breathing had already stopped.

Peter recalled that when he first entered the park that evening, Martin was already lying on a bench, his life hanging by a thread.

"I have no power..."

Peter knelt down, clenching his right fist and pounding it, leaving several cracks on the top of the building.

In front of the television, Li Qun turned to look at Dr. Banner.

“Dr. Banner, can you analyze Peter’s current psychological state? Does he need psychological counseling?” Li Qun asked.

"It is very necessary."

“Peter is not as mature as you are, Liqun.”

“You need to help get Peter through this,” Dr. Banner said.

"Is Li Qun okay?" Wade looked at Li Qun and asked Dr. Banner.

“I think I can do it,” Wade said.

“Tell me your plan,” Dr. Banner said, looking at Wade.

"Have a party, get Peter drunk, and open his heart. Let Peter understand that death is a cool summer night, a time for peaceful sleep."

Chapter 265 Waking Up in Spring

During class, Peter kept looking out the window.

The weather isn't very good today; the sky is overcast and it's drizzling outside.

Peter wasn't paying attention in class.

He wondered where the homeless would hide in this kind of weather.

Li Qun glanced at Peter, who was staring blankly out the window. Peter's inattentiveness in class made Li Qun's mind wander as well. However, Li Qun was good at pretending that he was still paying attention to the lesson and didn't get caught by the teacher.

Li Qun wrote the three Chinese characters for "Christmas" on a draft paper.

Li Qun has a strange stereotype about Christmas: it's not a warm and cozy holiday. This stereotype comes from Kamen Rider.

As Christmas approaches, Li Qun's observation of Peter's performance reminds him of the Christmas experiences of the Kamen Riders.

Peter had a very strong capacity for empathy; he simply saw the homeless man Martin die in the winter night, and his mind automatically filled in the blanks with Martin's tragic fate.

Wade said that throwing a wild party would make Peter forget about it. Peter wouldn't forget; it would only intensify his guilt.

Dr. Banner said that Peter felt guilty.

Peter developed a stronger sense of responsibility because he had gained power that others could not.

This sense of responsibility was hidden deep within Peter's heart, not something he was consciously aware of.

If Peter becomes aware of the sense of responsibility he has developed, he will awaken.

Liqun asked Dr. Banner what Peter would awaken.

Dr. Banner replied that a responsible and good person no longer hides the power he has gained.

The bell rang, and the students packed up and left the classroom. Peter followed behind Li Qun, carrying his textbooks.

"Is there any homework?" Peter asked Li Qun.

"Gwen, is there any homework?" Li Qun asked Gwen.

“No,” Gwen said.

"What are you two doing? Who's bewitched you?" Gwen turned around and glanced at Peter and Li Qun.

“It’s winter now, so maybe the hibernation genes in my body have been activated,” Li Qun said to Gwen.

“Peter, are you one too?” Gwen looked at Peter.

“If only people could hibernate,” Peter said.

“What if people could really hibernate?” Gwen asked.

“Wake up in the spring,” Peter replied.

"Hehe, what a lame joke."

"Does it mean it will wake up in the summer?" Li Qun asked rhetorically.

Gwen yawned.

The heating in the teaching building was on full blast. When Gwen realized that the indoor temperature was perfect for sleeping, she fell asleep during class and was woken up by Li Qun when get out of class ended.

"Dinner's ready," Li Qun whispered to Gwen, who immediately perked up.

In the school cafeteria, Gwen and Peter looked at their lunch with great surprise.

"Why is the food so good today?" Gwen asked eagerly, taking out the cutlery.

"You guys are eating so well!" Harry was incredibly envious again.

"What I mean by 'good' is that I just made the few dishes you all like to eat the most," Li Qun said calmly.

“Indeed, these are all our favorite foods.” Gwen happily started eating.

Peter also picked up his chopsticks and rewarded himself with a braised lion's head meatball.

Dr. Banner also said last night that most sudden psychological problems are actually caused by not eating enough or well. A large part of the reason why many people in the United States suffer from mental illness is that they don't get their emotional needs met during meals.

Peter ate a few more pieces of braised pork, and his whole demeanor visibly improved.