Brand Master [Comprehensive Yingmei]

Leaving Wayne Manor, returning to Washington, returning to her bedroom where she had been away for a long time, and sleeping on her own bed... Vera was obviously very happy.

The specific manifestation of this kind of joy is that she added an extra plate of pasta to her lunch, and obediently drank the milk that she never touched in the past, which made Mrs. Wigner very happy.

Not to mention her, even Jason was obviously much happier. He even learned to take the initiative to say hello to Mrs. Wigner, Clark and other "outsiders". Very sensible.

"..."

The corner of Clark's mouth twitched slightly, deciding not to break Mrs. Wigner's fantasy.

How can you be sensible... This little cunning Jason has lived in Wayne Manor for so long, and compared the two, he knows Mrs. Wigner and Clark Kent's "soft and harmless". Of course he is happy Stay at Mrs. Wigner's.

The biggest achievement of Jason's trip to Wayne Manor was probably making friends with the big brother Dick. After lunch, he couldn't wait to pick up his mobile phone and chat with Dick who was far away in Wayne Manor.

On the other side, unlike the relaxed children, with Vera's return, Mary and Clark immediately began to be directed around by the jerk boss.

Mary was fine, she was just assigned a bunch of messy jobs by Vera; Clark was worse... After two months of relief, he faced Vera's professional assessment again.

"Take out the proposal you made in the past two months."

After lunch, the big devil who returned upstairs sent Mary away, raised his hand and knocked on the table, and said softly to Clark who was on the first floor, "Don't pretend, I know you can hear me, take the materials and go upstairs Come see me."

——As the teacher who personally brought Clark into the advertising industry, Vera felt that she had the responsibility to evaluate the work of this Kryptonian.

Clark, who thought he had escaped, said, "..."

Ten minutes later, a helpless man walked into Vera's studio with a dozen documents in his arms, just like a student who failed a course into a teacher's office.

Willa thought that Clark spent these few minutes as a temporary cramming, but she didn't expect that when this man walked in, he easily held the heavy documents that ordinary people need to carry in one hand, and gently held a glass of warm water in the other. .

He placed the materials neatly on the coffee table, first handed warm water to Vera, and then quietly took out a box of stomach medicine to promote digestion from his pocket.

"Take the medicine first and I will report to you."

Clark looked helplessly at Vera, who was sitting upright and covering her stomach with one hand, "Even if you want to make Mrs. Wigner happy, you can't abuse your stomach like this."

—Of course he could see that Vera ate so much at lunch just to reassure Mrs. Wigner.

But the problem is, she ate milk, pasta, and boiled corn all afternoon. She was obviously overeating, and it was strange if her stomach could digest it.

Never mentioning that he just spent some effort to go out to buy medicine, Clark added solemnly:

"Miss Mary asked me before she left."

Sure enough, as soon as she heard Mary's name, Vera immediately accepted the kindness with peace of mind. She swallowed the stomach medicine with warm water, puffed her cheeks, and went to get the thickest book on the coffee table.

"You don't need to read this,"

Clark opened his mouth suddenly, and he took out a few thin sheets of paper from the row of information closest to Vera and handed them over, smiling and saying,

"There are too many complicated contents in this original document. I have summarized this one—you can just read this summary report."

Vera paused suddenly.

With a slight movement of her fingertips, she took the information handed over by Clark, and finally raised her eyes to seriously examine the Kryptonian in front of her.

Still the familiar pair of black-rimmed glasses.

Or a very cheap, simple casual dress.

The most basic beige sweater has no patterns or pendants at all. It looks like it was bought casually from a UNIQLO store. The dark blue casual pants are even simpler, and they are the most basic and popular style.

With this outfit and the ridiculous rear glasses, on the surface it looks the same as the rural boy a year ago, but as long as you look at it a little, you can immediately notice the huge change.

A year ago, Clark had just arrived in Washington, and when he appeared in front of Vera, he really looked like he was out of place, outdated, and stuttering.

Although it is not ruled out that he is deliberately pretending to be mean, but the immature stubbornness and sincerity he showed in the workplace and when facing some unfair personnel matters, anyone can see that this is a fledgling young man. newcomer.

And today, a year later, when Clark stood in front of Vera again, although he was still dressed in the same unappealing attire, his youthful and reckless aura had long since disappeared.

Facing the same assessment and Vera's scrutiny, Clark in the past would be nervous, blushing, and stammering.

But now, he seemed to have expected it a long time ago. He not only sorted each document and report, but also considered that Vera would definitely review these in the future examination school, so he worked tirelessly to summarize the abbreviated version. , which is convenient for the big devil to read.

At this moment, even in the face of Vera's stern gaze, he was not in a hurry.

Not only is he not stage fright at all, but he is frank and frank, with the appearance of a gentle, serious, patient and generous old man.

. . . he has become steady and sophisticated.

The advertising company really trains (destroys) people. Clark Kent has only been in Sterling Cooper for more than half a year, and he has been reborn and grown a lot.

When Vera finally lowered her head and carefully read the summary report made by Clark, she had to admit even though she was picky:

Almost all the proposals made by the Kryptonian in front of him are excellent. Although they still can't catch up with her, they can basically catch up with Campbell. You know, he has only worked at Sterling Cooper for half a year.

Vera closed the report and said meaningfully:

"It seems that you have adapted well in the company."

"……thank you?"

Clark was flattered, his original calm and heavy appearance disappeared in an instant, his eyes narrowed slightly, and he smiled with shyness and surprise, like a big silly dog.

But even though he was overwhelmed by Vera's compliment, he still said politely:

"...Actually, many of the key points here were perfected with the help of Team Leader Brown."

The Brown team leader he was talking about was an old employee under Vera's command. He was an honest person with a straightforward personality, serious and responsible work, and was in charge of the planning team.

"Oh? You have a good relationship with your colleagues in the group?"

When Vera heard this, she turned her head and looked at the big boy in front of her with some interest.

"..."

Clark heard this, but didn't speak. He raised his eyebrows at Vera, showing an innocent and somewhat helpless smile, as if saying:

"If you want to think so, so be it."

Seeing Clark's response, the corners of Vera's mouth curled up, and it was rare for her to nod sincerely to Clark's response:

"not bad."

Others don't know what's going on inside Sterling Cooper's company, but Vera herself is well aware of the sinister atmosphere in the company.

In Sterling Cooper Company, almost every employee is ambitious, and all they want is to climb up as much as possible, strive for a higher position, and gain the right to speak.

Such a place where the competition in the workplace is very cruel, with racism, sexism and other stinking chains of contempt, everyone is eyeing the position above, facing Clark Kent, a "relationship household" who came by air, the relationship is very good It's strange to wake up.

Even with Mary and Brown watching from above, various "accidents" (framed) that Clark encountered would never be less.

Of course, Vera knew what the consequences would be if she just pushed Clark, her relationship partner... She did this on purpose, in order to let Clark Kent put aside his identity as a superman and truly experience the hardships of being a social animal.

Here's what she planned from the start:

After experiencing these disgusting little methods in the company, when Superman faces the equally disgusting Walker government, the large arms group, and all kinds of villains, he will probably be mentally prepared and will not It was as easy as before.

Never expected that the workplace atmosphere of Sterling Cooper Company is so bloody and cruel...the former honest and impulsive rural "boy" has been transformed into a personable, mature and stable "man" in the workplace.

only……

Vera frowned, her expression slightly strange.

Like, what's wrong?

During the conversation between the two, in just half an hour, Clark's cell phone rang four times in a row.

The first time was a call from Team Leader Brown. He answered the call as soon as he saw his name, and walked outside the door very politely, talking in a low voice with the person on the other end of the phone.

Through the crack of the door, Vera could clearly sense the respect and sincerity in his conversation with Brown.

The second time was a call from an intern in the same group, and a certain Kryptonian couldn't help showing helplessness when he saw it.

He obviously learned badly, and actually learned to pretend that he didn't hear the ringtone of the call, selectively ignore the caller, and waited more than ten minutes before sending back an apology message pretendingly.

He didn't shy away from Vera when he sent the message, so Vera immediately noticed the ardent love she poured out for Clark from the conversation between the girl and Clark.

She clicked her tongue twice, her eyes teasing.

Clark: "..."

Clark rested his forehead and looked up at the sky, hesitating to speak.

Of course, he wouldn't speak ill of a lady behind her back, so he had no choice but to swallow the Neptune's behavior that the lady intern most likely regarded the workplace as a stage for palace fights and raised him like a fish.

On this side, Clark felt aggrieved and wanted to explain but couldn't.

On the other side, the weird emotions in Vera's heart disappeared instantly. She looked at Clark lazily and smiled at the corner of her mouth, basically fully understanding.

Seeing Clark's tone, demeanor and coping methods in the two phone calls, she immediately felt relieved.

On the one hand, facing the elders who love the professor sincerely and knowing how to repay, facing the lady who has other plans but still unwilling to gossip behind people's backs, would rather be misunderstood than violate the principle of a gentleman, it is the original Clark. Kent.

On the other hand, after experiencing all kinds of traps and conspiracies in the workplace, he could obviously choose to complain to her, and he could complain that he was tortured miserably, but he didn't speak a word, his eyes were firm, and he obviously planned to solve it independently.

Not only that, when he faced a female intern who wanted to take a shortcut, his first reaction was to reject all unreasonable demands from the other party. He neither took advantage of others nor was he willing to be taken advantage of by them. .

This is different from the old good guy "Clark Kent" who should say anything and doesn't know how to reject others.

In general... this cub hasn't grown crooked at all after being released, and has become more and more responsible, like a mature man.

Vera was very relieved, the joy of successfully raising a cub reached its peak when the third phone call came.

The call was from Trevor, to Superman's cell phone.

The purpose of his call to Superman was for a recent cooperation between the Justice League and the military.

In the past, such entertainment and planning were usually done by Vera.

But this time, with Vera's approval, Clark answered the phone without thinking, and dealt with it lightly in a tone of dealing with (fooling) Party A.

Although his method of dealing with Trevor was relatively immature, judging from the way he messed up the water, he was really in the same line as Vera, and he had almost learned [-]% of the teacher's essence.

It has to be said that with such adaptability and such a sophisticated way of communication—if Clark is allowed to go live on TV at this moment, Vera really doesn't need to work hard to conceive a thick speech in advance.

In this way, the reality show that she had discussed with several TV stations under Worthington... There is no problem at all.

Just when Vera put down the summary report and was about to talk to Clark about this "reality show" TV show, the fourth call came again.

This time, the name on the caller ID on the phone screen was "Batman."

Clark and Vera looked at each other, and immediately connected the phone.

It was less than half a day before Vera left Wayne Manor. Both of them thought that Bruce was chasing after him to remind Vera, but they didn't expect that the other party would bring them explosive news as soon as they answered the phone.

"Tony Stark disappeared in Afghanistan," he said.

……

……

After a few days, Vera returned to Zhenglian's secret base, and was taken into the meeting room before she even had time to greet everyone.

"Tony Stark left the United States for Afghanistan half a week ago for the test of a certain military weapon. The local US military cooperated with him in the secret test."

Batman stood in the middle and explained with the secret information on the screen:

"According to the plan, after the successful test, he should have signed a new contract with the U.S. military and returned to the U.S. in the next two to three days—but just this morning, the military jeep that Tony Stark was riding in encountered an explosion .”

"According to the corpses and car wreckage left at the scene, there was a fierce battle there. The enemy used weapons from Stark Industries and used some means to take Tony Stark away from the US military—— Stark's body was not found at the scene, but there was a lot of blood left, and I speculate that Stark is now seriously injured."

"I have not received any relevant information."

Superman's face was a bit ugly, "I just talked to Trevor, and he didn't inform me about it."

"It's normal. There are factions within the military, and not everyone is on Colonel Trevor's side."

Batman said calmly, and he called up the military's follow-up countermeasures:

"Or—the military deliberately blocked this matter, and they joined forces with Stark Industries to try to hide this matter."

The board of directors of Stark Industries made such a decision. It can be considered that the stock price of Stark Industries will drop due to the fear of news leaks. However, it is intriguing for the military to make such an action.

...United Trevor was still discussing the cooperation between Zhenglian and the military in Canada, and Clark's face changed slightly for a while.

He sighed: "...still played by the military."

Tony Stark's accident took place in Afghanistan, but as soon as this incident happened, the military will have a cooperative operation with Chaoying in Canada in the next second, and they specially asked Trevor to come over to inform them...

It is simply to make it clear that he does not want Zhenglian to notice and pay attention to this matter.

"Tony Stark openly opposed the entire Arms Capital Group and demanded that all forces under his banner stop targeting Zhenglian. Coupled with the incident at the celebration banquet, it is not surprising that he was targeted."

Vera, who had been silent all this time, spoke now, her tone was light, with an indescribable sarcasm.

Tony Stark is the most outstanding weapons businessman of our time and the largest supplier to the U.S. military. Of course, the military will not let Stark go. baby.

Because of this, the military can't tolerate Zhenglian's rescue of Tony Stark... This is no longer breaking the balance, it is completely overturning the negotiating table.

Zhenglian is already unstoppable, coupled with Tony Stark, who is invincible and has unlimited potential, the cooperation between these two will be the biggest disaster.

"If the Justice League really makes a move at this moment, the follow-up troubles will only be endless-this so-called cooperative action is probably a warning from the military."

Vera crossed her arms, looked at the messy scene in the photo and the large blood stains beside the corpse, closed her eyes, and twitched her mouth.

"If I were the decision-making officer of the military, I would rather smash this big treasure to pieces than Zhenglian to take over."

"There's another question."

Bruce suddenly said, "Based on the confidentiality of Tony Stark's itinerary, the enemy can accurately locate his location—unless someone leaks his schedule and coordinates in advance."

In other words, the military, or within the Stark Group, must have enemy spies.

"I think it's within the Stark Group."

Cyborg, who had been collecting data with his eyes closed all the time, suddenly opened his eyes, and transmitted the latest developments of Stark Industries that he had obtained to everyone:

"Since Tony Stark disappeared, everyone in Stark Industries' board of directors has taken action. Some people are secretly selling shares in Stark Group, and some people are eagerly buying shares."

At present, the person who makes the biggest moves and acquires shares the most frequently is Obadiah Stanislav.

Almost the moment he received the news of Tony's disappearance, he started his own actions. First, the joint board of directors concealed the news of Tony Stark's disappearance, and then persuaded the board of directors to regain the executive power of the group. He also suspended Stark's original assistant, Pepper, and a series of actions were extremely eye-catching.

Completely taking advantage of the fire.

It's almost like... being urged by something to carry out some plan.

What is even more doubtful is that these actions of Obadiah were carried out behind the scenes. On the surface, he is still a good uncle who is concerned about the safety of his nephew. Pepper et al take the seal treatment.

"..."

Vera and Bruce looked at each other, and both saw the regret in each other's eyes.

...should have leaked the word to Stark earlier and reminded him to be careful about Obadiah.

After such an analysis by the steel bone, the most critical question comes:

The disappearance of Tony Stark was obviously caused by an extremely chaotic internal strife, and the military and arms groups involved in it were the last thing Zhenglian wanted to mess with.

Once a shot is taken, even if Tony Stark is rescued, it will cause some forces to counterattack wildly, and there is even the threat of the so-called cooperative action of the military here, what should be done?

——Is there even a need to ask?

In the next second, without hesitation, Superman interrupted Batman's analysis with a loud voice:

"save."

Why complicate matters?

An unarmed American citizen disappeared in Afghanistan. They went to rescue them based on intelligence. It was as simple as that. What's more, this "American citizen" personally helped them a lot not long ago.

No matter whether he is Tony Stark or someone else, no matter whether he is targeting the Justice League or supporting the Justice League, as long as he is in difficulty and danger, Zhenglian will choose to save him.

As for what happened after saving people... let's talk about it after Stark is rescued!

No matter what risks you take, reckless will be done!

"I did agree to the Canadian joint military operation requested by Trevor, but I didn't say that all members of the Zhenglian would participate."

The cunning in Superman's eyes flashed, "What's more, the Justice League is originally a team of seven people. If any member in the middle takes personal actions, the Justice League has no responsibility to control it."

——Anyway, they went to the rescue in the name of individuals. If they have the ability, the military will hold Zhenglian to account for their brave actions!

Hearing this, everyone's expressions were subtle, and they all looked sideways.

...Why do you think that Superman's acting style is more and more similar to that of the Great Demon King Vera? ?

After making a decision, Clark turned his head to look at Bruce, and began to discuss the specific plan with him, completely indifferent to the weird attention of everyone - he noticed it, but he didn't want to pay attention to it.

On the contrary, Vera herself took everyone's scrutiny into her eyes, and her eyes on Clark became deeper and deeper.

As early as when Batman received the news, he had already prepared the relevant rescue plan. Therefore, it didn't take much time for everyone to arrange the specific rescue plan. Those who should go to rescue the little Prince Stark rushed to the rescue immediately. Going to Afghanistan, we should go to Canada as scheduled to fool the military to divert attention.

As the best man of the Justice League (no), Clark of course went to Canada according to the previous agreement with Trevor, and Bruce and Cyborg, as the core sources of intelligence, were of course responsible for leading the team to Afghanistan for rescue.

Everyone divided tasks. Shazam and Diana followed Superman to Canada, while Barry, who was the fastest and most suitable for rescue work, and Hal, who was most suitable for support work, followed Bruce to Afghanistan as a matter of course.

Vera looked at the Canadian team: "..."

Forget about Clark himself, Shazam and Diana... It's okay to let the two of them go to the battlefield, to deal with the military personnel, to delay time?

... No matter how you look at it, it feels a bit unreliable.

She held her forehead and said with a headache, "I'll go to Canada with you."

This remark fell right into the arms of Diana and Shazam. The princesses and underage children of Paradise Island were worried about such diplomatic issues. Their eyes lit up when they heard the words, and they all spoke together:

"Of course it's the best!"

"You can live with me—

"--no."

On the other side, Clark, who had just finished talking with Bruce, immediately turned his head and interrupted Diana, who was obviously about to move.

Immediately afterwards, he looked at Vera, and persuaded with a gentle tone of disapproval:

"It's December now, and the average daily temperature of the station we're going to is minus [-] degrees Celsius. Your injuries have just healed, your immunity is still low, and you will suffer from frostbite."

Vera was originally a Frenchman, and had never experienced such severe cold at all.

This eldest lady has always been pampered, fragile, and willful. She dares to go out barefoot in winter wearing any blanket. If she really wants to follow them all the way to Canada...he can't bear it.

As soon as these words came out, the four members of the Afghan team who were already preparing to leave froze in unison. The six people present turned their heads to look at Clark at the same time, their gazes were gloomy, scrutinizing and suspicious.

They suspect that Superman is a fake, or that they are still in a dream.

When did Superman dare to be so tough and manly in front of the big devil?

Since a year ago, facing the assignment and orders of the Great Demon King Vera, this guy dared not say no at all. Now who dares to say "no" in front of Vera, and who is still interfering with her actions?who is it? ?

Anyway, it is absolutely impossible to be Clark Kent!

Diana, who reacted the most, had already put her hands on the mantra lasso, and she gave Batman and Shazam a look from the air, which seemed to take down the counterfeit Superman in front of her in one fell swoop.

Clark, who sensed the sinister atmosphere around him: "..."

With a strong mentality, he ignored the crazy pig teammates around him, but stared intently at Vera's thin face, and said seriously:

"I can lead the team well, and I can handle the military well."

He is not the Clark Kent he was a year ago.

After a whole year of experience, from the Washington War to the establishment of Zhenglian, from job hunting to becoming an official employee of Sterling Cooper Company, he has experienced enough.

The malice of the Walker government, the blindness of public opinion, the sinisterness of his career, and the principles of dealing with people—he just never considered these before, but once contacted and learned, Clark Kent, who has super brain power, accepted it faster than anyone else.

He is not as sophisticated and stable as Batman, and he is not as good at planning as Batman, and he always makes Vera worry.

But...he's learning.

The tall and handsome man lowered his head docilely, his magnetic voice was as gentle as ever.

He said, "...learn to trust me, Vera."