Tony Seeks Cooperation

Chen Mu did not fall for Nick Fury’s routine. He directly had Xu Jia see him out. He was usually very busy; where would he find the time to chat nonsense with Nick Fury here?

Although many things had changed, Nick Fury still brought up his Avengers Initiative.

And just as he had said, the Security Council had approved his plan. However, lacking suitable candidates, Nick Fury had selected these people.

Crossbones, Abomination, and Whiplash had all recently joined S.H.I.E.L.D. Because they were quite powerful, Nick Fury had temporarily added them to the Avengers.

Aside from those three, Hawkeye Barton and Black Widow Natasha were both Nick Fury’s loyal subordinates. With the Kirin Armor, their strength was also guaranteed.

Then there was Tony Stark. Though he had not explicitly agreed to join the Avengers, he had promised Nick Fury that he would help if something happened.

Besides them, Nick Fury had one secret weapon: Captain America.

Captain America’s strength was beyond doubt. During World War II, he had rendered great service to America. As a product of America’s Super Soldier Program, Nick Fury trusted him greatly.

However, Captain America had only just awakened. He was still undergoing adaptive training and, more importantly, needed to adjust to the current era. After all, for anyone who had slept for seventy years, everything outside was completely different from what they remembered.

Chen Mu showed little interest in Nick Fury’s Avengers Initiative.

Relying on those so-called Avengers to protect Earth was simply a fantasy to Chen Mu.

There had never been Super Heroes descending from the heavens in this world, only ordinary people stepping forward.

That had always been the creed Chen Mu believed in.

"Nick Fury just left, and now you’ve come looking for me? So, what is it?"

In the reception room, Chen Mu looked at the man across from him with a smile.

Tony Stark.

"Heh, I came to discuss cooperation."

Tony casually opened the refrigerator, took out a bottle of cola, and sat down on the sofa opposite him with a smile.

"Cooperation? Haven’t we always been cooperating?"

Chen Mu smiled. "Xiao Mu Phone’s global sales share has basically reached fifty percent by now, right? That product alone has made both our companies a lot of money."

"We have indeed made quite a bit."

Tony shrugged and said irritably, "But sometimes, quality being too good is also a problem. If quality control stays this strict and the phones are so hard to break, our new generation of phones will have a hard time replacing the previous one."

Xiao Mu Phone had already reached its third generation. What frustrated Tony was that the thing was just too well-made. First- and second-generation phones could still run smoothly even now, so many people saw no need to upgrade. This dealt a severe blow to third-generation phone sales.

"…"

Chen Mu was speechless.

That really was a problem he had never considered.

However, Chen Mu did not care much about money. To him now, money truly held little appeal.

At present, he had devoted nearly all his energy to space development, so he did not really understand what Tony meant.

After all, Tony was a businessman. The issues he considered mainly concerned his own interests.

"You can handle that yourself."

To be honest, Chen Mu did not know much about Xiao Mu Phone’s current products. He had handed everything over to his subordinates. He had merely provided the initial exterior design and design concept, before shifting all his attention to the military industry.

"Fine, but that’s not what I came to discuss today."

Tony smiled, then looked seriously at Chen Mu. "I hope to participate in China’s lunar development project!"

Chen Mu raised an eyebrow and looked at him curiously, waiting for him to continue.

"By chance, I learned about some of your plans."

Tony looked serious. He took out his phone and pulled up a proposal, which was actually a plan for lunar development.

It was not the proposal for the Guanghan Palace Project, but one from a subordinate agency concerning lunar development, such as gathering certain resources.

"A month ago, China’s Tiangong Space Station launched a lunar probe rocket. But it reportedly lost contact afterward, and people once believed the mission had failed. I don’t think so."

Tony looked seriously at Chen Mu and continued, "Ever since you used visible teleportation technology to bring Dr. Banner back to China, I knew you must have mastered that technology. If it could be used between Earth and the Moon, then every resource on the Moon would be yours."

The Moon belonged to all humanity…

That was what people said, but it was only for others to hear. As long as one had the ability to develop the Moon and possessed sufficient strength, they could simply do it. What could anyone else say?

So, in Tony’s view, that was bullshit. It was enough to listen to it. If China had the ability to develop the Moon, then it could strive to do so. What means would other countries have besides protesting?

Therefore, after learning of this proposal, Tony could no longer sit still.

He wanted a share.

China’s military strength was now unmatched on Earth. Even America, once the dominant power, no longer dared cause trouble in the seas near China.

In Tony’s view, humanity’s future definitely lay in outer space, not in being trapped on this tiny Earth.

Americans had never possessed much sense of national identity. The United States of America’s definition of a so-called "nation" was completely different from China’s definition of one.

In their view, a nation was merely a collective of interests. If the interests of America’s states ever diverged, that would be the day their country split apart.

"Humanity’s future lies in space. China is now at the forefront of the world, and I want to cooperate with you."

Tony had spotted a business opportunity. He understood very clearly that since China could already develop the Moon so easily, the next hundred years would belong to China. America’s era had already come to an end.