When Gwen mentioned Mei's name, Spider-Man's body stiffened again. He cleared his throat, trying to hide his panic.
"It's not impossible for me to help," Spider-Man tried to make his voice sound calm, but the slight tremor in his tone betrayed his inner turmoil. "What do you need me to do?"
Gwen smiled as she looked at the tense Spider-Man, an unreadable light in her eyes, and said gently, "I need you to help me find some people."
Spider-Man leaned forward slightly, his eyes under the webbed mask curious: "Find who? It wouldn't be some heinous criminals you want me to get rid of, would it?"
Hearing Spider-Man's words, Gwen smiled and waved her hand: "Of course not."
After a brief recollection, Gwen began to call out names one by one.
"Dr. Curt Connors, Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius, Miles Warren, Quentin Beck, Spencer Smythe, and his son Alistair Smythe." She paused intentionally here. "The first two are more important, especially Dr. Otto. His research is unique. As for the others, it's fine if you can't find them, but it's still best to put in more effort."
Spider-Man frowned slightly at these names.
He wasn't too familiar with some of them, but he knew Dr. Curt Connors very well.
The Lizard Dr. was the first villain with abilities beyond ordinary people that he had faced since his debut, and also his Professor, which left a deep impression on him.
This also made Spider-Man a little wary. What exactly was Gwen trying to do?
"What do you need them for?"
Gwen spread her hands, a helpless expression on her face: "We're short on people. Our company is in urgent need of scientific research talent. So after you find them, remember to ask if they need money. If they do, invite them to join our company for scientific research. With ample funding and equipment, they might be able to create results that benefit society."
Ethan, who was standing by, frowned tightly at this.
He had only vaguely heard of Curt Connors, but he had been paying attention to Dr. Otto Gunther Octavius's research.
Before he was captured, he had seen news on an academic forum that Dr. Otto was dedicated to developing prosthetic limbs, aiming to help people with disabilities regain mobility and grip. This project alone required massive financial investment and sophisticated experimental equipment.
And if the research directions of the other few also required the same level of financial and equipment support as Dr. Otto, the funds needed behind this would be immeasurable.
Ethan, who had already adopted the role of an employee, hesitated for a moment before asking, "Is the company's startup capital enough? Dr. Otto's prosthetic limb project alone will burn through a lot of money in early research, not to mention that you want to recruit so many similar talents."
Gwen raised an eyebrow, a confident curve on her lips, and turned to pull out her suitcase, which she used to store money, from the shadows.
The metal wheels scraped against the ground, making a harsh sound. She knelt on one knee, her slender fingers skillfully flicking the switch. With a click, the moment the lid sprang open, Ethan and Spider-Man's pupils contracted sharply—a suitcase full of neatly stacked U.S. dollar bills, the distinctive green of the hundred-dollar notes almost blinding him.
However, after being surprised by this suitcase of U.S. dollars, Ethan frowned and shook his head.
"Although I'm not an expert in this area, the precision instruments Dr. Otto needs are worth tens of millions. This money is a lot, but it's still not enough."
Gwen naturally knew that the suitcase contained at most 3 million U.S. dollars, which was certainly not enough for the scientists to burn through.
As for why she knew without counting... *cough*, in the first few years after she transmigrated to DC as a rich young lady, she hadn't seen much of the World and particularly loved counting money.
Sorry, that was embarrassing.
However, facing Ethan's question, Gwen still smiled.
"Of course I know this much money isn't enough for those Dr.s. But this money is a seed, to make money multiply."
"How does money multiply?"
The three people present, who were either Dr.s now or would be in the future, all looked at her curiously, but Gwen suddenly stood up, the suitcase casually closed with a dull thud.
She brushed a stray strand of hair from her ear, a cunning light flashing in her eyes, and played coy: "Not so fast. Let me ask you, do you remember there's still a Mr. Stark in the Base?"
Spider-Man and Ethan tilted their heads in confusion when they heard this.
One was a superhero who, driven by passion, rushed to Afghanistan to rescue a billionaire, and the other was a friend who had a life-or-death friendship with this billionaire. This question was clearly poorly phrased.
How could the two of them not know him?
Watching the two of them nod in unison, Gwen still wore that smile, but her expression became a little more serious.
"Ethan, you spent time with Tony. What was his expression like when he saw those boxes with Stark markings in the Base?"
Ethan was slightly stunned, his thoughts instantly pulled back to the smoky and desperate Base. He subconsciously clenched his fists, his Adam's apple bobbing.
"Tony... he was in a lot of pain." Recalling Tony's pale face and red eyes at the time, Ethan's voice unconsciously deepened. "He always thought Stark Industries' weapons were a shield for peace, but he saw with his own eyes those weapons become executioners of civilians."
At this point, Ethan sighed, shook his head, and did not continue.
"With that kind of mood, such a proud man, after fighting his way out of here, what do you think would be the first thing he would do when he returned to New York?"
Gwen deliberately drew out the end of her sentence as she spoke, her fingertips lightly tapping the metal box beside her, making a rhythmic "tap-tap" sound.
The Base fell into a brief silence. Everyone present was intelligent.
Except for the contradictory Dr. who was just watching with interest, Spider-Man and Ethan, after a brief thought, almost exclaimed in unison: "Close the weapon manufacturing department?!"
"Bingo!" Gwen snapped her fingers, a approving smile on her face. "As expected of smart people."
She crossed her arms, took two steps, and then posed a new question.
"Then think again, what impact would closing the weapon manufacturing department have on Stark Industries, which started as a weapons dealer?"
Ethan frowned, bit his lower lip, and pondered for a moment before speaking first: "The stock market would plummet."
"Stark Industries has always been known for weapon manufacturing. Suddenly closing its core business would inevitably cause panic among shareholders and investors, leading to a large sell-off of shares, and the stock price would definitely plummet."
"Alright, we can stop talking about that issue here." Gwen smiled, clapped her hands, interrupting everyone's thoughts, and brought up another topic. "Then tell me, if Tony went back, would he make a better, more advanced, and superior suit of armor to protect himself?"
Ethan didn't think too much, and after a moment of contemplation, he asserted: "Most likely, he would. After experiencing something like this, with his personality, he would definitely arm himself to the teeth."
"Would such a show-off truly be satisfied with just using armor to protect himself?" Gwen's lips curved into a meaningful smile. "Not everyone dares to say 'I'm pushing the World forward' with a straight face."
Ethan knew this, thought of Tony Stark, and smiled.
"Indeed, that's something he would say."
"Wait a minute, what are you talking about..." The completely out-of-the-loop Little Spider was about to ask for clarification when he heard a violent explosion in the distance.
Little Spider turned his head towards the Base and saw black smoke and Fire rising from that direction.
He widened his eyes, and Gwen even felt that the White lenses on his mask's eye-portions had expanded: "Did Mr. Stark do this?"
"Show some respect, Little Spider." Gwen, relying on her good acting, said in a tone of lecturing a junior, "You should now call him Iron Man."