"Xu, you just got here, right? Once you get comfortable with the workspace, we can go have lunch in the cafeteria together, and then proceed to logistics to get your uniform and work badge," Steve's voice was always steady, giving a strong sense of security. His expression was always warm and friendly, a beacon of light amidst the grim and fierce Agents.
Even if Steve wasn't so gentle, Xu Shang-Chi would have already been captivated by him.
"Let's go. We will first take a shuttle. Your workplace is at another base of S.H.I.E.L.D., but it's not far from here. We can take a special military shuttle to get there. And then... Xu, Xu, are you listening?"
"Oh, yes I am." Xu Shang-Chi cleared his throat, but he couldn't help focusing his gaze on Steve again, he asked with some confusion, "Why aren't you wearing your uniform?"
Indeed, the Steve in front of him was holding a shield that signified his identity as Captain America, but he was not in uniform. Instead, he was wearing a tracksuit that made him look like a mountaineer.
Steve was a bit surprised at this question, responding, "Who can wear their uniform all the time? This isn't a combat mission, so of course, I'm in casual clothes."
"Ah..." Xu Shang-Chi responded as he finally realized. Indeed, he had just arrived in this world, and he wasn't reading a comic or watching a movie. None of the superheroes were ever in their uniforms 24/7.
Besides, Xu knew he wasn't that important. Why would Captain America need to be suited up to meet him?
Being an ordinary person in the Marvel World? It sounded rather mundane. After all, due to the frequent battles among these superheroes, people died in New York daily. A passerby could easily be killed by the aftermath of the fight. But if you phrase it differently, being a civil servant in the Marvel World sounded significantly better, right?
Street hero or civil servant?
As a young and energetic young man, Xu's choice was decidedly... a civil servant!
Western civilization and its descendants inherently followed the marine model, they couldn't understand the East's obsession with stability embedded deeply in their territorial culture.
Thus, to them, Eastern people were peculiar, seemingly choosing stability over more exciting life prospects, but, paradoxically, willing to engage in bloodshed for tranquil and predictable lives.
Since ancient times, all kings have sought unity as a pursuit of stable power. The king did this; so did the ordinary people. Xu knew in his heart that if he had the choice between using violent and civil methods to change the Marvel World, he'd opt for the latter.
Then he realized why Shiller chose to be a psychologist in S.H.I.E.L.Dinstead of becoming a superhero.
Perhaps, even with special abilities, he wouldn't do so. It's essentially the difference in thinking between Eastern and Western cultures. the struggles for power in China are actually based on a principle of simultaneously fighting and building, rather than the pirate mentality of seizing and running away.
On the way to the Spy Training College with Steve, Xu Shang-Chi kept wondering: now that he was a civil servant at S.H.I.E.L.D. and SWORD, what should he do to achieve his own pursuit of stability and make the Marvel World more stable?
Xu was wise, or rather, being an Easterner in the Western world, he had the soul dust of ancestral wisdom, which allowed them to find the answer to each question from those historical stories they grew up reciting; because human history is an endless cycle.
From his current perspective, this world seemed futuristic. Xu looked down at the flying shuttle under his feet, he was certain that the technology in the Marvel World depicted in the movies was not yet at this level, at least not for civil use.
But from his previous conversation between Shiller and Zhengxian, Xu learned that not only one or two countries were technologically advanced. It seemed that all countries maintained their original political system, but technology advanced one step. This was actually strange.
The political system Xu envisaged for the human joint development of technology and stepping into the interstellar era should, at the very least, be a Earth Federation. But it seemed that while technology had advanced in this world, political culture had not made much progress. However, this was good, making it easier for him to adapt.
This situation was not without disadvantages. Due to national and international politics, each event carried a lot of political considerations, and many technologies couldn't smoothly collaborate. Doesn't this waste the latecomer dividend from stepping into the interstellar era?
At that point, Xu Shang-Chi had an epiphany. In fact, his position was vital as he bridged two superpowers. Although he was just an intern, this internship was unique. He was not as insignificant as he first thought.
Based on the conversation between Zhengxian and Shiller earlier, they seemed to plan on collaborative efforts in developing Dreamworld technology. Their designated place for discussions was within the dreamscape, suggesting that they might have difficulties meeting in the real world. It seemed like there were barriers to this technological cooperation.
Xu Shang-Chi was deep in thought, contemplating what he could do to let his compatriots, who were thousands of miles away, continue to roll in the Dreamworld. What were the obstacles? And what were the breakthrough points?