"Now, allow me to welcome the Senator from New York, the Senator from Illinois, and the rest of my colleagues from the Military Committee to this meeting."
Stern clapped while nodding to his two colleagues, though anyone with a keen eye could see that his smile was somewhat forced.
"Can we continue now, Mr. Osborn?"
With this interruption, the broadcast returned to normal, and Osborn's media team soon arrived at the scene.
"You don't need to ask me, Senator. I'm just a law-abiding taxpayer. It's just that I recall the last time you held a hearing, you called in a weapons expert to help you make a judgment. Is that not necessary this time?"
"No, that won't be necessary. Thank you for the reminder, but we all know that the Osborn Group has been supplying the United States with high-lethality weapons, even ones that can rival Iron Man."
"No, no, no, Mr. Senator. I must remind you that Iron Man is not a weapon; he is a piece of high-tech prosthetic limb. Have you forgotten? Perhaps you should find a weapons expert to tutor you."
The high-tech prosthetic joke made the audience laugh again. Stern tapped his gavel.
"Regardless of what you say, power armor is strictly regulated and prohibited from being sold to any entity without the qualifications to purchase it. However, at the recent Stark Expo, it was proven that the Osborn Group possessed these weapons and had formed a significant armed force."
"I must remind you, Senator. First, the strict regulation of power armor in service is the responsibility of the Military Committee. Second, the power armor at the Expo was only for display; they were not'sold.' If you think this constitutes a sales transaction, I must question whether your brain was purchased from your mother through an illegal transaction. That would be a serious case of illegal organ trafficking."
"Although the Osborn Group has made some minor achievements in artificial organ technology, we are still unable to create an artificial brain. For that, I apologize."
The audience laughed at Harry's words again, and Harry shrugged.
It was the same scene all over again. Stern recalled the hearing he had prepared for Tony here last time, cursed inwardly, and then forced a smile as he turned on the conference room screen.
"But how do you explain this?"
As expected, the video Stern played was indeed of enemies possessing power armor.
These power armors were almost identical to the Osborn Group's power armor.
This was too much of a coincidence. Yesterday, Rhodes gave him news that the enemy was discovered to have power armor, and today, this Senator ambushed him with a summons.
"The video shows that our enemies possess the Osborn Group's power armor and have caused significant trouble for our troops on the battlefield."
The appearance of the imitation power armor had clearly caught the front lines off guard, but Harry scoffed at this:
The first time, you could say you were caught off guard. If you get beaten up a second time, then that's entirely your own problem.
Just then, Harry's phone rang. It was Tony calling.
"I did you a huge favor. How are you going to thank me?"
"Consider it a debt I owe you."
As he said this, the screen on the television suddenly changed. The image showed Iron Man engaging in a firefight with several enemies in power armor.
Stern's face changed immediately, and he stood up in a panic. He wanted to have someone pull the power cord, but he suddenly remembered that they had pulled the cord last time, and Harry had still managed to play the video!
Soon, the more agile and flight-capable Tony defeated these enemies and dragged them out of their iron shells.
The only thing was that these people had terrified expressions and were shouting, "They're going to explode!"
"Ladies and gentlemen, good afternoon. Now let us reveal the answer—where did they get their hands on this power armor?"
Under the aim of the repulsor cannon, this person quickly blurted out:
"We stole the armor from an abandoned warehouse. There was no one guarding it."
The room was in an uproar.
Harry felt that this certainly wasn't as simple as stealing it, because every suit of power armor was strictly guarded.
He was more inclined to believe that HYDRA had imitated these armors and then placed them in the ruins for them to steal, so that even if the Military discovered that these power armors were produced by someone else, it would be very difficult to trace it back to HYDRA.
It wouldn't be long before Rhodes found out that someone was imitating these things.
But for now, this information was enough.
"I assume you wouldn't say that I put them there, would you, Senator Stern? That would be giving them away for free, and Osborn is in the business of making money."
"Uh, I think Mr. Osborn has proven his point. This issue has been resolved, and the Military Committee will..."
Stern took a tissue out of his pocket and wiped the sweat from his face frantically.
"Senator, Senator." Harry clapped his hands. "I must also say 'you're welcome.' You see, I helped you find the weak points in your security system."
"But what I want to say is, is the tax we pay meant to support people like you?"
"The Osborn Group has paid billions of dollars in taxes to the government over the past year. Now you are trying to shift your responsibility onto me?"
Stern's face turned liver-colored. He had become the Joker of this hearing again. Perhaps the media would give him a nickname—the Joker Senator.
Harry knew it was time for this hearing to end.
"In the past year, the Osborn Group has invented artificial organs, saved thousands of lives, and launched the Biological Era Project, allowing many people born with diseases to find redemption;"
"The power armor has received rave reviews during several terrorist attacks. You should look at what the American people have to say about it, so you can remember that it was the American people who chose you to be a Senator!"
"Not to mention that Osborn achieved controlled nuclear fusion for the first time, giving the United States the most advanced energy technology. This technology will surpass other countries by decades!"
"And now you are trying to shift the Military Committee's failures in strategic equipment management onto me?"
"I have made this country more advanced."
The audience began to applaud. Harry's words were every bit true. Just as they identified with Tony, they also recognized the various outstanding achievements born from the Osborn Group over the past year.
Harry stood up, his face shifting into a rather gentlemanly smile.
"You know, it is Congress that owes me a Medal of Excellence, not me owing you anything."
Perhaps because Stern had cursed last time and been widely reported by the media, he didn't curse this time and could only nod repeatedly with a stiff smile.
"Alright, meeting adjourned, everyone."
Harry turned and walked through the path cleared by the crowd. Many Military bigwigs had arrived at the hearing this time.
Looking at the graying hair on these bigwigs' heads, Harry hugged and shook hands with them warmly.
These Military bigwigs had all used the weakened version of the Osborn Group's vitality enhancer, and they were all looking to get another shot from Harry.
Having experienced the excellent life-extending effects of the vitality enhancer, they had long since become loyal supporters of Osborn. Harry also needed these old guys, at least for the next few years.
It's just a mutual exchange of needs.
[Mission Issued: Power]
[Mission Content: Control more than 50% of the power in the United States]
[Progress Bar: 28%]
The power in the hands of these old men was not insignificant, but to exceed the 50% threshold, he still needed to continue his efforts.
But just as he walked out of the conference hall, Lening and Aiden sent messages one after another.
Someone was hacking into the ctOS server in Manhattan.
-------------------------------
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