Legendary Captain

Chapter 109 Engine Surge (Please Subscribe!)

In Xu Xian's view, the wings of the aircraft and the edges of the engine air intakes were stained with a layer of light blue flames, like illusory sprites or a thin light enveloping them.

Inside the cockpit, Chen Qi could see a very distinct blue flame at the nose of the aircraft. Because the cockpit's visibility was far superior to the small square windows with rounded edges in the passenger cabin, he could see the so-called Void Fire much more clearly.

The blue flames weren't clinging tightly to the fuselage surface, but rather positioned slightly away, seemingly burning out of thin air, creating an extremely eerie appearance. Moreover, besides the blue flames that appeared to be burning in the air, the entire windshield was also permeated with a faint blue light. Simultaneously, the blue light receded backward, making it seem from the cockpit's perspective that the aircraft was inside a time tunnel, filled with a futuristic and mysterious science fiction atmosphere.

This rare sight was something that even Chen Qi, the pilot, had never seen before, let alone ordinary passengers.

No wonder there was such a huge commotion in economy class; this strange sight must be the reason. Even the security personnel who rushed over were completely captivated by the scene.

This captivating scene drew the attention of almost all the passengers, and the cabin enjoyed a brief moment of peace after the smoke dissipated.

Xu Xian's pupils contracted slightly, and he seemed a little lost in thought.

He muttered to himself, "This is... the fire of St. Elmo!"

An empty lot next to the sales office of a real estate development in Yunnan Province!

"Why are you with Lu Wenguo? Did you know each other before?" Xu Jingyang's eyes were full of ferocity as he questioned Wen Mingyuan sharply.

Wen Mingyuan chuckled, "I think I'm also the chairman of Shenggong Construction, right? What's wrong with talking business with the boss of a special steel company?" "Of course there's a problem!" Xu Jingyang suddenly shouted, "He's bankrupt, what business are you talking about with him?" "Bankrupt? We can rebuild, right? Can't we make a comeback?" Wen Mingyuan laughed.

Xu Jingyang clenched his teeth, making a grinding sound, showing how furious he was: "Don't you know that his Sanshan Special Steel Company is the company that breached my contract?"

Wen Mingyuan raised an eyebrow, a half-smile on his face: "Why bring up old stories? Besides, in the business world, it's all about winning and losing. Don't be a sore loser! Losing your composure is no good!"

"Grandeur? Do you think I can still talk about magnanimity now?" Xu Jingyang gave a bitter smile. "I used to think that wealth and status were predetermined, but today I realized that I haven't let go of them yet!"

Wen Mingyuan's ever-present smile slowly turned cold: "Lu Wenguo paid the penalty according to the contract, he doesn't owe you anything! Are you saying that bankrupt people aren't allowed to be involved in the business world again? Isn't that a bit too domineering?"

Xu Jingyang's face also darkened: "Back then, I knew that the supply of Sanshan Special Steel was extremely important to me, so when we signed the contract, I set the penalty for breach of contract to be very high. But even that exorbitant penalty couldn't stop Lu Wenguo from breaching the contract. I still can't understand why Lu Wenguo would breach the contract. What benefit would breaching the contract bring him? Bankruptcy?"

Wen Mingyuan: "Maybe he was out of his mind at the time?"

"Would that old fox Lu Wenguo have lost his mind? There must be a greater profit that makes him think he's willing to sacrifice his Sanshan Company," Xu Jingyang said coldly.

"Oh? Then I'm very curious about the reason!" Wen Mingyuan said expressionlessly, seemingly not interested at all.

Seeing Wen Mingyuan's expressionless face, Xu Jingyang lowered his voice and said with resentment, "That night when I discussed the engagement banquet between our two families with you, I drank too much. I told you before that I invested all my money in that project. I think that's the reason!"

Wen Mingyuan remained silent, as if he hadn't heard anything.

Seeing this, Xu Jingyang's anger intensified: "Why are you treating my Xu family like this? Isn't Xu Xian your future son-in-law?"

Upon hearing this, Wen Mingyuan burst into laughter, his eyes flashing with a fierce light: "There's more than one good man in the world, but there's only one chance to destroy Tianyu Construction!"

Tianyu Construction was once the pillar industry of the Xu family, and a leading giant in the domestic construction industry. Even Shenggong Construction, under the Wens Group, was slightly inferior. However, no matter how glorious it was, it is now just a thing of the past.

Wen Mingyuan's words were tantamount to admitting that he had stabbed the Xu family in the back. This nearly broke Xu Jingyang, who never imagined that the Xu family's downfall was due to this former prospective in-law.

"Why?" Xu Jingyang asked in a deep voice. Even though he knew it was pointless to ask now, Xu Jingyang still wanted to know why Wen Mingyuan did this.

"Why? Haha! Xu Jingyang, you really aren't suited for business!" Wen Mingyuan laughed heartily. "If you hadn't revealed your family's secrets to me that night, we might actually have become in-laws. But, there are no 'ifs' now! That information was too tempting; if I hadn't seized that opportunity, I wouldn't be Wen Mingyuan."

"Even relatives can turn against each other, and siblings can kill one another, let alone a future in-law? Your current predicament is entirely your own fault. With the tide rising, anyone can rise to prominence, but when the wind stops, those without ability will eventually be eliminated," Wen Mingyuan said.

In Wen Mingyuan's eyes, Xu Jingyang's success was purely due to luck. The Xu family's current situation was where they truly belonged. Xu Jingyang was simply unsuitable to be a businessman; he was too naive.

Perhaps out of smugness, or perhaps because he thought he was about to become in-laws with someone, Xu Jingyang lowered his guard and revealed his financial details after drinking.

A single, decisive victory would bring immense wealth. However, it also means that if someone were to stab you in the back at this crucial moment, you would be utterly defenseless.

Regardless of the reason, Xu Jingyang should have kept such important information to himself. That's why Wen Mingyuan said that everything now is Xu Jingyang's own fault. If we have to pinpoint the problem, it can't be said that there's anything wrong with what Wen Mingyuan said.

Xu Jingyang's chest heaved rapidly. He had always thought he had come to terms with the family's bankruptcy, but when he actually faced it again, he found that he still couldn't let go.

Seeing Xu Jingyang clutching his chest, looking pained, Wen Mingyuan sneered, "Could it be that our CEO Xu's heart problem hasn't fully healed yet? I didn't touch you, so you can't try to extort money from me later!"

Wen Mingyuan knew that Xu Jingyang had some heart problems, and seeing that Xu Jingyang looked like he was in pain, he even added a few sarcastic remarks.

In Wen Mingyuan's mind, Xu Jingyang's current behavior was nothing more than impotent rage. The outcome was already decided; what could Xu Jingyang possibly do?

Moreover, Wen Mingyuan was actually not satisfied with the Xu family, his nouveau riche in-laws. If Wen Jingshu hadn't been so stubborn, how could Wen Mingyuan have agreed to Wen Jingshu's marriage to Xu Xian?

Now that the Xu family is in ruins, the construction industry has lost a major rival, and Shenggong Construction has ushered in a second opportunity for rapid growth. His beloved daughter also doesn't need to marry Xu Xian, truly killing two birds with one stone, and he's incredibly pleased with himself.

As for the Xu family? He helped them deal with several thorny debts, which was more than enough. Even if it wasn't out of kindness, it's still an undeniable fact.

If Xu Jingyang behaves himself, we can all live in peace and never see each other again. If Xu Jingyang dares to harbor any more wicked thoughts, Wen Mingyuan could crush the current Xu Jingyang as easily as crushing an ant.

Xu Jingyang felt as if an invisible hand was gripping his heart tightly, and an unimaginable pain rose in his chest. His limbs gradually turned cold and weak, and he felt as if his legs were filled with lead, making it impossible for him to take a step.

Gradually, Xu Jingyang's vision became darker and darker, and his eyelids felt like they were about to burst. In just a moment, everything went black before his eyes, and he fainted.

Star Travel Airlines, CEO's Office.

Wen Jingshu was listening to her subordinates report on the company's recent operations when Yang Ning rushed in. Upon discovering that there were other people in the office, he asked them to leave.

Wen Jingshu was a little curious. How could Yang Ning, who was always calm and composed, have become so reckless? Could something serious have happened?

After everyone left, Yang Ning immediately said, "Xu Jingyang fainted and was just taken to the hospital."

"What!" Wen Jingshu jumped up, her face full of surprise. "Which hospital? I'll go check!"

Although she hated Xu Jingyang to death, he was, after all, Xu Xian's father, and she couldn't afford to have anything happen to him.

Wen Jingshu was in a hurry to leave when Yang Ning grabbed her arm and whispered to her, "The chairman is here too!"

The chairman Yang Ning mentioned only represents one person, namely Wen Mingyuan, the head of the Wen Group.

"My dad's here too?" Wen Jingshu's mind went blank for a moment. "Is my dad involved in this?"

Regardless of how Wen Mingyuan ended up in Yunnan, she knew perfectly well that her father had always looked down on the Xu family. If it weren't for her insistence, the marriage wouldn't have even had a chance to be discussed. If her father were to meet Xu Xian's father and see Xu Jingyang's current situation, wouldn't a little mockery infuriate Xu Jingyang? Xu Jingyang has a weak heart; if anything were to happen to her, she would definitely be a stranger to Xu Xian for the rest of her life.

"It was the chairman who sent someone to take Xu Jingyang to the hospital," Yang Ning said.

Hearing that her father was indeed involved in the matter, Wen Jingshu became even more agitated: "Let's go to the hospital first."

After Wen Jingshu finished speaking, she rushed out of the office, and Yang Ning immediately chased after her.

"Miss, you must understand your position! You have no connection with the Xu family now. Just take a look and don't cause any trouble," Yang Ning instructed.

Wen Jingshu paused, giving Yang Ning a deep look. If it were anyone else who dared to speak to her like that, she would have made them pack their bags and leave on the spot.

"I know what I'm doing!" Wen Jingshu said, and her pace quickened even more instantly.

Yang Ning felt a headache coming on. The young lady she served usually regarded Xu Xian as her mortal enemy and had caused him a lot of trouble since he joined the company.

For example, the cadet team assistant, Fu Xing, deliberately delayed in notifying Xu Xian of the changed exam time, almost causing Xu Xian to fail. The unheard-of inspection upon disembarking was also directly instructed by the President's Office to be added by Flight Squadron Leader Cao Jinwen at the last minute. Even the subsequent training involving Xu Xian and Lian Shanxue's conversion training also showed the President's Office's involvement.

It can be said that Xu Xian has had a string of bad luck since joining the company, which is largely due to Wen Jingshu.

However, Wen Jingshu, who seemed to harbor deep hatred for Xu Xian, still sided with Xu Xian at crucial moments, which greatly worried Yang Ning.

She doesn't think Xu Xian is a good match for Wen Jingshu right now. She wants Wen Jingshu to adjust her stance, control her thoughts, and draw a clear line between herself and Xu Xian or the Xu family.

However, judging from Wen Jingshu's eagerness just now, her idea seems to be just wishful thinking.

It's a terrible fate!

Yunnan First People's Hospital.

Xu Jingyang lay half-reclined on the hospital bed, his mind already far away. Before he could lose himself in thought for long, someone entered the ward, followed closely by another person.

Xu Jingyang and the others were visibly taken aback when they saw who it was: "Jing Shu?"

"Uncle Xu," Wen Jingshu called out to Xu Jingyang somewhat shyly.

"What brings you here? Is it about work?" Xu Jingyang asked. Xu Jingyang felt that Wen Jingshu would be a very good daughter-in-law. Most importantly, he and Huang Ying could both see that Wen Jingshu genuinely liked Xu Xian, and her family background, upbringing, and appearance were all top-notch; it was truly a pity.

Based on Xu Jingyang's guess, Wen Jingshu should be unaware of what her father, Wen Mingyuan, had done.

Wen Jingshu: "I'm currently working at a branch office here. Then, I heard that my uncle wasn't feeling well, so I came to visit him."

"This branch office?" Xu Jingyang's expression instantly turned strange. "It's not Star Travel Airlines, is it?"

Wen Jingshu's pretty face flushed instantly, and she only gave a soft "hmm" before becoming too embarrassed to continue.

Xu Jingyang knew that Xingyou Airlines belonged to the Wen Group, but he didn't expect Wen Jingshu to come to Xingyou Airlines, a relatively peripheral industry. This didn't make sense, so the only explanation seemed to be his son.

"What a pity, what a pity!" Xu Jingyang said regretfully. "If you could be with Xiao Xian, he wouldn't have to suffer with me."

Upon hearing this, Wen Jingshu's eyes lit up instantly: "Uncle Xu, you don't hold a grudge against my family?"

Xu Jingyang suddenly choked. Could it be that Wen Jingshu knew what his father had done?

"Our family invested all our funds in the construction of the branch hospital, and we really didn't have any extra money to help you." Wen Jingshu was quite amusing; she had previously hated the Xu family father and son to the core. But upon meeting them in person, she immediately surrendered. And this was only Xu Xian's father; if she had met Xu Xian himself, that hatred would have long since vanished.

Even with Wen Jingshu's persona as a powerful CEO, she can't escape her arrogant and haughty personality.

"What are you talking about?" Xu Jingyang breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this. If Wen Jingshu knew about Wen Mingyuan's situation, he would need to re-evaluate her. However, he really couldn't understand what Wen Jingshu was talking about. He had indeed sought help from the Wen family before, but he knew that many companies' cash flow simply couldn't withstand the financial strain of the Xu family's hundreds of millions in debt. Therefore, after Wen Mingyuan expressed his inability to help, Xu Jingyang didn't dwell on it too much. At least on this point, Xu Jingyang didn't blame the Wen family. He didn't understand why Wen Jingshu brought this up specifically; what important significance did it hold?

Xu Jingyang said, "This was originally a matter for the Xu family, so how can we blame the Wen family? Besides, the Xu family was in too much trouble at the time. If we had pinned our hopes on the Wen family's help, we might have dragged them down with us."

Upon hearing Xu Jingyang's words, Wen Jingshu immediately perked up: "Really? I always thought Uncle resented my family because of that incident."

"It's just a misunderstanding," Xu Jingyang said, waving his hand.

"Then..." Wen Jingshu was instantly agitated, but Yang Ning gently tugged at her sleeve from behind, hoping that Wen Jingshu could calm down a bit.

As soon as Xu Jingyang loosened his grip slightly, Wen Jingshu couldn't wait to get back together with Xu Xian. She really put all her heart into Xu Xian.

However, Yang Ning's interruption did not dampen Wen Jingshu's enthusiasm. She felt it was best to clarify things with Xu Xian's father today to prepare for a future reconciliation with Xu Xian. After all, there were no irreconcilable reasons for her separation from Xu Xian.

Just as Wen Jingshu was getting carried away with her words, the ward door opened again, and Wen Mingyuan strode in, shouting, "Wen Jingshu!"

Wen Jingshu turned around abruptly and looked directly at Wen Mingyuan: "Dad!" "You go out first!" Wen Mingyuan said coldly.

Wen Jingshu wanted to say something more, but when her gaze fell on Wen Mingyuan's ashen face, Yang Ning pulled and dragged her out of the ward.

Yang Ning could tell that Wen Mingyuan was truly furious.

After Wen Jingshu and Yang Ning left, Wen Mingyuan said to Xu Jingyang in an icy voice, "What did you say to Jingshu just now?"

At this moment, Wen Mingyuan's somewhat exasperated appearance made Xu Jingyang extremely happy. He chuckled, baring his teeth, "It seems that despite all your scheming, in the end, half of the Wen family's wealth will still end up in the Xu family's possessions!"

A surge of rage erupted from Wen Mingyuan's chest. He instantly understood the meaning behind Xu Jingyang's words. If someone else had said those words, he would have scoffed and thought that person had lost their mind.

But when Xu Jingyang said those words, the meaning changed. Of course, the key issue wasn't Xu Jingyang, but Xu Xian.

However, Wen Mingyuan was not one to easily admit defeat in a verbal exchange, and immediately retorted, "I think you've lost your mind and are spouting nonsense."

"Have you lost your mind?" Xu Jingyang said arrogantly, with the air of a victor. "Don't bury your head in the sand. A daughter is like a tree that cannot be kept at home. You won't have a choice then."

Xu Jingyang directly broke the last barrier, immediately provoking Wen Mingyuan's furious outburst: "You're courting death."

Given the class difference between Wen Mingyuan and Xu Jingyang, it's not impossible that Wen Mingyuan would use some underhanded means to kill Xu Jingyang.

Xu Jingyang knew Wen Mingyuan wasn't the type to be all bark and no bite; he dared to say it, and he dared to do it. However, Xu Jingyang remained unfazed, merely offering a disdainful smile: "Don't you know how I built my fortune?"

Wen Mingyuan was taken aback at first, then his face suddenly darkened.

The fire of St. Elmo originates from the name of an ancient foreign saint and originally referred to the phenomenon of electrical discharge from a mast.

Despite its name, the St. Elmo Fire is not a real fire, but rather electricity!

"Shouldn't the St. Elmo Fire be more common during thunderstorms?" Although Xu Xian saw through the nature of the St. Elmo Fire, he was still somewhat limited. In his mind, the St. Elmo Fire should be more likely to appear during thunderstorms, but the current situation didn't look like thunderstorms at all.

This reveals Xu Xian's limited knowledge. Although St. Elmo's fire is common in thunderstorms, it is not a necessary condition. Xu Xian was being a bit too rigid in his thinking.

When the fire of St. Elmo was first seen, it was extremely beautiful, captivating all who beheld it. However, as time went on, a sense of eeriness began to arise in people's hearts.

Inside the cockpit, Chen Qi had a wider field of vision, taking in the entire blue dazzling light. However, Chen Qi was unaware of the story behind the St. Elmo Fire; he only saw that his entire view through the windshield was confined to a tunnel of blue light. After the initial shock, all that remained in Chen Qi's heart was fear—a chilling, scalp-tingling fear.

In the cockpit, the captain had lost consciousness, which meant that the lives of less than two hundred people on board were in his hands, and unfortunately, his life was among them.

Knowing this, Chen Qi grew increasingly frightened. Although he had never looked down on pilots who had flown their entire lives, at this moment, he desperately hoped that his old instructor hadn't fainted!

He could no longer stay at that altitude; he had to descend immediately and land immediately.

Just as he was about to try contacting the control center again to request a descent, his finger touched the call button, but he didn't press it because he heard a strange sound.

Like the rumbling of a toad's belly, or the intermittent rumble of thunder before a mountain rain, Chen Qi heard a strange sound with low frequency and high vibration.

At first, Chen Qi didn't understand what was happening, but suddenly, he felt a very obvious tremor where his feet were.

The plane is shaking!

Not bumpy

Even if Chen Qi were completely clueless, he could tell that this shaking wasn't caused by turbulence, but by something else, such as the aircraft itself.

A moment later, a terrifying thought flashed through Chen Qi's mind. This low-frequency, high-amplitude phenomenon perfectly matched a type of malfunction he had guessed.

He whirled around, looking at the engine on his side. The faint blue-white light emanating from the edge of the engine's air intake wasn't what he was concerned about. What mattered to him was something else entirely.

Bright lights were flashing intermittently from inside the air intake. These lights did not originate from the turbofan blades, but from further inside, originating from the compressor.

"It's backfired!" Chen Qi felt as if he had been struck by a heavy blow, and even his voice trembled slightly. An indescribable fear, like an inescapable shadow, enveloped his heart.

The engine is shuddering!

(End of this chapter)