I'm working on Marvel's Spider-Man in American comics.

Chapter 796 Hell's Kitchen Renovation Project

The stock crash of Stark Industries led to the bankruptcy of many investors, something Peter was initially unaware of, to the point that he hadn't even considered it.

So Peter started helping out while also asking some of the new faces at the charity banquet, trying to get a better understanding of the situation. He hadn't paid much attention to this matter after he returned.

Tony remained reassured, saying "Don't worry, I'm fine," while Peter, after learning that the collaboration between Osborn Technologies and Stark Industries had temporarily halted further stock market losses, paid little attention to the matter.

He almost forgot how important these things were to New York City.

Peter shook his head as he thought about it, and then went to help. He first checked if there were any problems with the small TVs at the charity event. After arranging them, he went to the front desk and took over from a volunteer who looked extremely busy, and then began to handle the related matters.

Surprisingly, not many of these people were actually looking for work; instead, many were hoping to find affordable housing in New York. These former white-collar workers, who rarely even left their homes, apparently knew nothing about which districts offered affordable housing or where a large Manhattan office building might be just a half-hour walk away.

They used to drive from Brooklyn, Queens, or other New York suburbs to Manhattan for work.

Peter was quite familiar with the entire Manhattan area. He checked the contact numbers of the local properties that Ciyan had listed one by one, and then he realized a problem: Ciyan used to have properties listed by contacting landlords of some apartment buildings and then introducing suitable tenants to the landlords.

Most of these landlords are from the Lower East Side of New York City, or the Old Town in the South, or the Upper East Side, which is relatively far from Midtown and Wall Street, the financial center.

But Peter glanced at the houses in his notebook today and realized they were all apartment buildings in Hell's Kitchen, and none of them had landlords.

"Excuse me, I need to make a phone call."

Peter and the others took over the shift, then ran to the restroom to call Matt. The blind lawyer on the other end seemed quite free, answering the phone immediately and asking with considerable curiosity, "What happened?"

"No, no, I'm just curious how the Mercy Banquet got so many Hell's Kitchen apartments, and how the housing resources are directly in the Mercy Banquet's hands. I couldn't find Martin, so I called you to ask."

Matt was clearly surprised: "How did you know about this? Did you discover the problem and then investigate?"

"No, I'm doing volunteer work at a charity event."

Matt was silent for a few seconds before laughing, and then after a short while told Peter the truth: "I don't know what Fisk's purpose is after being released on bail, but he's right about one thing: he and his gang have abandoned Hell's Kitchen. Now, Fisk Tower in Midtown is what he cares about more. A Hell's Kitchen that is no longer disturbed by any gangs has appeared."

"so?"

"Martin and Daniel have bought a lot of apartments in Hell's Kitchen, and a significant portion of them are under renovation. Hell's Kitchen is now connected to Stark's Arc Reactor for electricity, and the price of electricity has been driven down. We've taken care of the mob and acquired a large number of apartments that we can rent out cheaply or even at a loss. We can almost see the beginnings of Hell's Kitchen's prosperity, except for one problem."

people.

As the saying goes, birds of a feather flock together. Manhattan is a small place with straight roads. Theoretically, there are no mandatory physical barriers between neighborhoods, but in reality, the differences between them are quite significant. Places like Hell's Kitchen have long been inhabited by people who aren't exactly good, and because of this, even if the defenders wanted to renovate Hell's Kitchen, they found themselves at a loss: the residents there are basically rotten to the core.

So they decided to bring in new recruits. Just then, Stark stock plummeted, severely impacting the middle class, and the Defenders seized the opportunity to quickly haul everyone to Hell's Kitchen. These newcomers, no matter what, were certainly far superior to the native inhabitants of Hell's Kitchen.

Peter was speechless after hearing this, so he sighed and left the bathroom, intending to help them by renting out all the cheap apartments in Hell's Kitchen.

On his way, he overheard a discussion between several homeless people living in the Ciyan Banquet.

"Free medical assistance? Is it more like a drug trial?"

“If it were a drug trial, I would go too, they could give you a lot of money each time. But this is different, it’s completely free treatment, they don’t charge any money or give any money, and they say it’s all prescription drugs. You don’t believe me? I’ve been there, it’s true, there’s a doctor working there.”

A rumor circulating on the street caught Peter's attention. He didn't believe it was true, but it was intriguing, so he immediately went over to find out more. The story might match what the person said, but Peter sensed something was amiss.

The homeless men initially looked over warily upon hearing the footsteps, but breathed a sigh of relief when they saw it was Peter: "Parker! Young man! Are you interested in what we have to say?"

"A little bit, after all, as you know, pharmaceutical companies are not allowed to post drug trial advertisements within the Ciyan Banquet organization, so I'm a little..."

"That's the problem with Mr. Li. No matter what, it's still money, and a lot of money at that."

"Moreover, doctors were provided for everyone at the charity banquet."

“Oh yes, I know, Dr. Zhang, and Miss Jane Foster, she’s a really nice person.” A homeless man nodded: “She treats us and gives us medicine, but we need more than just medicine. If we participate in drug trials, we can get money.”

"...The banquet includes food and lodging, so why would you want money if I help you find jobs?"

The two homeless men shut up, chuckled, and started talking to Peter about the free medical care they'd mentioned earlier. In short, a barefoot doctor-like figure had recently appeared in New York, going around treating people, and many had recovered because of him.

“I’ve even heard that some disabled people have received his treatment.”

"His severed arm has regenerated?"

The homeless man shook his head: "No, he made prosthetics for the homeless and fitted them with them for free."

(End of this chapter)