Marvel Salted Fish Kryptonian

"You've met Happy Hogan, who's from Brooklyn. He used to be a boxer, but he didn't achieve much. He saved me from a test drive accident and is now the head of my security team. Most of his men were hired by him."

"Do you trust such a person?" Henry asked curiously.

"To me, that kind of person is more trustworthy than someone with a clean resume."

"So that's why you came to me, someone with unknown origins?"

"At least you have proved that you are not someone who can be easily bribed. Since you were able to reject me and the Mellon family, I don't think you will easily become someone else's. And among my bargaining chips, Stark Films is the most attractive one," Tony said confidently.

Chapter 268: Trouble Under the Table

"Catherine." Tony Stark looked at someone seriously for once and simply called out her name.

They say that old people become wise. After just a glance, Catherine stood up and said nonchalantly, "Ah, I've rested long enough. I'm going to go chat with those old friends. You young people, continue." With that, she walked out of the lounge.

Henry didn't necessarily want to follow. He noticed Tony winking at him with amusement. After Catherine left, he asked, "Who do you distrust? Is it really necessary to clear the area like this? Or should I leave too?"

"If we want to rob a bank and don't want to drag someone into it, it's right not to tell that person. It has nothing to do with trust. Even if we tell them, they'd probably rather not hear it."

"So, you want me to rob a bank with you? You're Tony Stark. So your target should be at least on the level of the Federal Reserve, right? Fine, I'm on board! 50/50, not too much, right?"

"No, the target may be worse." Tony Stark took out a small pen-shaped instrument from his custom-made suit.

The thing was thicker than a pen. He pressed the cap of the pen, and instantly it emitted a high-frequency noise that was difficult for ordinary ears to hear!

Of course, ordinary people couldn't hear it, but that wasn't the case for Henry. He was so disturbed by the sudden noise that he almost lost control of his expression.

But it didn't cause him any physical discomfort. Henry pretended not to know and asked, "What is this?"

"A little gadget to prevent eavesdropping and recording." Tony said.

"The equipment you're wearing is almost like that of a secret agent."

"I took it from the old man's inventory. He invented it twenty years ago. I haven't had time to improve it yet, so I'm using it for the time being."

Seeing that Henry was still trying to change the subject, Tony had to interrupt him and said, "That's enough. This old thing from twenty years ago is very power-consuming. We don't have much time to waste.

"To make a long story short, do you remember the gunfight we had in a villa? I plan to investigate the people behind the gunmen.

"I'm personally watching over the East Coast, and I need people on the West Coast as well. That's why I stayed at Stark Films, because Hollywood is the closest place to that group of people.

"These words are not suitable for Catherine to hear. This is not for her own good, but these things should not be known to too many unrelated people. Even for you, I will only tell you more if you agree to join."

"Haha." Henry continued to smile and said, "Since I know this is a trouble, why would I jump into it? So you'd better not say anything."

"What if I can help you deal with the trouble with the FBI? Is this exchange enough to get your help?" Tony Stark said in a mysterious tone.

"Trouble with the FBI? How come I didn't know I was being targeted by the FBI?"

"I didn't notice the reason. I just noticed you were on a list. There are many lists, not just the FBI's. But for you, I think this is the most threatening one."

Well, that's very Stark. Henry helplessly spread his hands and said, "Let's not talk about my business for now. I just want to ask, it's been a few years since that incident, why are you so persistent and insistent on getting to the bottom of it?"

Tony Stark pondered for a moment and then said, "Do you remember the cause of the old man's and my mother's death?"

"Car accident. Any questions?"

Nodding, Tony said, "The public statement is that the car's braking system was defective, causing an accident while driving, leading to the accident that resulted in the death of the driver and passenger."

"So, you sued the brake company?"

"No, I bought them."

Tony's answer surprised Henry. The proud young master continued, "I told them that if they don't sell it to me, the exorbitant compensation I'll demand will make them go bankrupt.

"I ended up buying the company for half its price, fixing the flaw in the brake system, and then selling the entire company for about three times its market value. Part of my estate tax was financed by this company."

Henry clapped his hands and said, "Very good, very impressive. You said this because you want me to praise you."

"Shut up! That's not the point." Angry Tony took a few deep breaths to calm himself down, then continued, "What I want to say is that the old man can fly a plane and has also driven a racing car on the track.

"The brake system of the car he was driving that day was flawed, no doubt. But given his driving skills, such a serious accident wouldn't have occurred."

"So, you suspect..." Henry said in a reserved tone very cooperatively.

Tony said seriously, "I hadn't noticed it before. Since becoming the CEO of Stark Industries, things that have happened around me have forced me to re-examine some things. Including the old man's car accident."

"Did you find any evidence?"

In response to Henry's question, Tony simply shook his head and said, "No, the autopsy and the accident investigation were flawless. However, the brake system revisions brought to my attention a problem."

"what is the problem?"

"Regarding my parents' autopsies, I didn't personally verify them. I just read other people's reports and confirmed whether they were my parents."

What the eldest young master meant was that he couldn't rule out the possibility of tampering.

Although it was difficult to directly reveal the 'truth' in his memory, after all, Henry couldn't guarantee that it was indeed the truth of this world. However, he still offered some advice: "Have you checked the road surveillance footage? Who do you think the target might be?"

"There's no surveillance footage at the scene of the accident, at least that's what the agency I'm working with told me. As for who might have done it, I can only say that 1% of Americans have a chance."

"Could it be... that 1%?" Henry pointed to the sky, referring to the true power holders of the United States, the people who controlled 99% of the country's wealth.

"That 1%." Tony nodded. He added, "But that only means they have a motive. It doesn't necessarily mean they actually did it, or that I can find evidence of them doing it."

"It seems that you have had an exciting life in the past two years. You even hired a lot of bodyguards." Henry said with a sneer.

"You've met Happy Hogan, who's from Brooklyn. He used to be a boxer, but he didn't achieve much. He saved me from a test drive accident and is now the head of my security team. Most of his men were hired by him."

"Do you trust such a person?" Henry asked curiously.

"To me, that kind of person is more trustworthy than someone with a clean resume."

"So that's why you came to me, someone with unknown origins?"

"At least you have proved that you are not someone who can be easily bribed. Since you were able to reject me and the Mellon family, I don't think you will easily become someone else's. And among my bargaining chips, Stark Films is the most attractive one," Tony said confidently.

Chapter 269 Stark Films

Henry didn't know how to comment on Tony Stark's mysterious confidence. He just watched him talk nonchalantly, expressing his thoughts.

"Wall Street on the East Coast and Hollywood on the West Coast are the two tentacles most easily accessible to that level. I'll personally monitor the East Coast. Here on the West Coast, I also need someone I can trust to keep an eye on it.

"The main reason they came after you is because you're not afraid of them sending out people to clean it up. Unless you're telling me that your turtle shell can be broken through with a single RPG.

"Of course, this isn't a reason for you to be careless. I believe you wouldn't be so foolish as to arouse the vigilance of those people and make them determined to eliminate you.

"But the place I want you to stare at is invisible unless you reach a certain height. Therefore, making you the CEO of Stark Films is both the condition I offer you and the price you must pay for achieving this."

Henry said nonchalantly, "So, my CEO position is just a figurehead."

"Of course not," Tony said generously. "Stark Films is one of the few companies I still fully control. Since I've appointed you as CEO, you will have every bit of authority you deserve.

"I don't need you to distribute profits every year as dividends. Just don't let the losses reach the point where the company has to go bankrupt. Currently, the company's main business is the rental and sale of equipment, and we also have departments for equipment research and development, manufacturing, and maintenance.

"If you have some free time, please help me see if there are any improvements to the equipment. Based on the level of your ability to make that little gadget,—"

Tony nodded his ear, pointing to the small Bluetooth headset Henry had made for Audrey Hepburn when he saw it at a fund-raising banquet in New York.

"—I believe you will have many ideas for the machinery and equipment. The company will not take this part of the achievement for nothing; it will issue bonuses according to the technician reward standards.

"If you have your own patents to apply for, you can also use the company's legal team, which should greatly avoid the situation you mentioned.

"Stark Industries should be thankful that we don't steal others' achievements in this regard. No one can take away our patents unless we voluntarily give them up.

"Besides the machinery and patents, if you want to restart the company's film production division, that's fine too. You can use the funds freely. The same requirement applies: don't drive the company into bankruptcy. How about these terms?"

"Wow. This is really..." Henry didn't know how to describe it. He asked, "Will the people at Stark Films accept you just parachuting in a CEO like that?"

Tony said, "The CEO of Stark Films has always been held by the old man himself. After his death, the position has been vacant, and I haven't appointed anyone else.

"However, the company's main business now is related to machinery and equipment. Even the R&D department has a fixed allocation, and no film production investment requires special approval.

"So, the managers of each department are carrying out their daily business according to the old practices. After all, after 50 years, the old man's mind has not been on this aspect, and most of the time he has just let it go.

"Whoever I appoint as CEO, no matter what others think, they'll just have to accept it. At most, they might privately refuse to cooperate. This is a minor issue you can't resolve, so why don't you ask me to help you?"

Looking back at the list of publicly listed companies on Wall Street, there's indeed no 'Stark Pictures'. Henry asked curiously, "Do you own the company entirely? No other shareholders?"

Tony replied, "In the early days, the old man did have some partners. But due to the company's business transformation, most shareholders were not optimistic about it, or even looked down on making such a small profit. At that time, a lot of it was recovered."

"Some of them were old, and the old man used his right of first refusal to buy back their shares, so they didn't become their inheritance. By the time I got them, it had become a wholly private company."

Henry continued, "I heard you sold off a lot of valuable assets when you were raising money for inheritance taxes. You were even called a spendthrift at first. No Hollywood film company is interested in Stark Films?"

"How is that possible?" Tony said proudly. "All the powerful film companies on the scene had expressed interest in acquiring us at the time. We even had people from outside the industry approach us, hoping to enter Hollywood through Stark Films.

"But one of the requirements for everyone is that I must be the head of the equipment R&D department. Otherwise, I must provide certain equipment improvement results every year to maintain the equipment's advantages.

"Those old men thought I was young and easy to manipulate. They wanted me, a man worth hundreds of billions, to work for them. It was a dream. They wouldn't budge, and I wouldn't agree, so the matter dragged on.

"Once I've resolved the tax issue, there will be no reason to sell Stark Films. Also, because of business negotiations, Stark Films missed out on my move to list all of my subsidiaries publicly.

"Today, Stark Films is one of the few wholly private companies still in my hands, and it's profitable. It's not one of those junky things that loses money every year and no one wants even if you give it away for free."

"Is that so?" Henry thought to himself.

From Tony Stark's perspective, if Stark Industries, which has transformed into a military-industrial complex, is a global limited edition super luxury car, then Stark Pictures is a children's toy-level Matchbox car.

This was also one of the main reasons why he dared to give Stark Films to himself to play with. Even if it really went bankrupt and liquidated, it would not matter to him at all, he would just lose a base on the West Coast.

And judging by his attitude, if he says he's delegating power, then he really is delegating power! Just don't let it interfere with his life of luxury.

Think about Stark Industries, Obadiah Stane and Virginia Pepper Potts, two generations of tools, which one of them is not exhausted.

So one of them rebelled, while the other directly turned the tables and became the wife of the Stark family. If she hadn't become Mrs. Stark, would Pepper Potts have chopped Tony Stark off one day and followed in the footsteps of O'Neal?

Henry's thoughtful expression, however, gave Tony the wrong impression, suggesting he was still hesitating. Remembering the conditions he hadn't yet mentioned, he added, "If you're still worried about the FBI and being on certain lists, I can tell you, don't worry."

"As long as you become my employee and step into this circle, those people will know to hold back. Unless you run into the police or FBI agents and kill someone today and get caught red-handed, no one will easily touch you."

After thinking it over, Henry decided to say, "Then do you know that I am working for the Continental Hotel now?"

Chapter 270 No matter how high you stand, there are still blind spots

"What!" Tony showed a shocked expression for the first time today, and then became serious.

Henry didn't answer directly, but smiled and said, "Look, you think you can have a wider view by standing at a higher place. In fact, there are still blind spots in your vision. You didn't notice what happened to me. Right?"

"So, you're a killer now?" Tony crossed his legs and placed his hands on his knees, his alert attitude quite obvious.

Henry shook his head and said, "No, no, no. The Continental Hotel is a system with many jobs. Not everyone will become a gunman and take on murder missions."

"Don't tell me they're also responsible for finding puppies and rescuing kittens."

"As far as I know, if you are willing to offer a reward of 100,000, it's not impossible." Henry said honestly.

Tony thought about it and decided to ask for clarification. "What's going on? Tell me everything you can."

Henry replied, "The Continental Hotel is an intermediary platform. In addition to contract gunmen, there are also a series of service projects derived from this work.

"If someone is injured and they can't be taken directly to the hospital, of course medical personnel are needed to treat them. After the work is completed, someone needs to clean up the environment and destroy evidence and bodies to avoid being harassed by the police. This also needs to be done by professionals.

"If someone witnesses an incident or calls the police, and the situation threatens to escalate, someone needs to step in to control public opinion. Of course, there's also intelligence gathering about the target, as well as people selling guns and custom-making body armor.

"In short, there are many aspects to working at a Continental Hotel. It's not just about running up to someone with a gun and taking their life, which may or may not be innocent."

Tony's expression softened slightly, and he asked, "So you're the one who cleans up afterward?"

"I'm the kind of person who helps stop the bleeding and dig out the bullet when someone gets shot," Henry said honestly.

It seemed that as long as Tony didn't shoot and kill people himself, he could still be saved. He complained, "Why did you join that place instead of finding a proper job?"

"I was tricked by the FBI." Henry recounted how he was sent to State Senator Mike Horton by the FBI, and how gunmen from the Continental Hotel attacked and he was captured.

Henry added, "Anyway, Congressman Halton's entire family is dead, even his bodyguards are gone, and I'm the only survivor. It's easy to imagine how the police will target me."

"Besides running away, running to a place where no one can catch me. If I still want to live a normal life, I have to find a way to deal with the FBI's problems. The easiest way is to find a backer they will be wary of."

Tony said dissatisfiedly: "Have you ever thought of asking me for help?"

Henry spread his hands and said, "I don't want to sell myself, so I don't have enough bargaining chips to come to you. The Continental Hotel became my option because they accepted the deal.

"Perhaps in the eyes of some, this isn't necessarily fair. For example, in my case, I've done quite a bit of work, but I'm still on the FBI's radar, rather than just being removed from the list.

"At least in my daily life, I don't have to be targeted by those well-dressed guys in suits. I don't have to be followed around by the police every day, or have to deal with them all the time."

Lifting his chin, Tony said proudly, "Now that I'm here, you can give up your work at the Continental Hotel and come work for me. I can guarantee that your FBI file will be clean the next day."

"Haha." Henry sneered and said, "This is what I want to emphasize. You think you have everything under control, but in fact there are still things you don't know.

"What you want me to do is not easy, except that finding a second immortal person is not so easy. I believe that with your energy, there must be a replacement for that position.