Legendary Captain

Chapter 148 Qin Zongyang, the Time Controller!

"Huh? What are you talking about?" Xu Xian was really stunned. For a moment, his mind stopped working. It completely stopped.

Just moments before, father and son were engaged in a profound debate about the meaning of life, their faces flushed with rage. But in the midst of this tense atmosphere, Xu Jingyang's sudden question, "Are you willing to marry Wen Jingshu?" made the whole scene seem somewhat comical.

Xu Jingyang didn't seem to be joking, and he repeated, "If you had corrected your past mistakes and followed the proper course of events, you and Wen Jingshu should already have children!"

For some reason, Xu Jingyang's words sounded somewhat like a sigh, full of regret.

Indeed, if it weren't for Wen Mingyuan's actions, Xu Xian would have naturally ended up with Wen Jingshu. This was predictable, even certain.

That's true, but saying it now seems a bit out of place.

"What exactly are you trying to say?" Xu Xian was completely baffled by Xu Jingyang's thought process, which was extremely peculiar.

Xu Jingyang then asked, "Do you still like Wen Jingshu?"

Although he couldn't figure out what Xu Jingyang was trying to do, Xu Xian decided to address the question directly, as repeating the same pointless questions was pointless.

After a moment's thought, he replied, "I can only say that I don't dislike her!"

Xu Xian had no reason to dislike Wen Jingshu, and even felt guilty towards her.

"Not at all! Then isn't that enough?" Xu Jingyang suddenly laughed. "You don't need to worry about this!"

"But..." Xu Xian was still somewhat unwilling to obey his father.

But at this moment, Xu Jingyang's expression gradually turned cold: "Xu Xian."

Xu Jingyang rarely addressed Xu Xian by his full name, especially not in such a somber tone.

Given this tone, Xu Xian already knew that Xu Jingyang had made up his mind, and even though he was still somewhat dissatisfied, he didn't continue speaking.

"You were the one who proposed breaking off the engagement back then, are you regretting it now?" Xu Xian said.

Xu Jingyang's current behavior is tantamount to slapping himself in the face, something Xu Xian did not expect.

Xu Jingyang shook his head: "I'm just correcting the mistakes I made in the past."

"So what are you planning to do?" Xu Xian asked. "Are you going to see her father?"

"Don't worry!" Xu Jingyang said confidently, "He'll come looking for us!"

Shortly after, Xu Xian's flight schedule check for promotion to first-class co-pilot was completed. The Yunnan-Yunnan-Shangdu route takes off at 7 PM and lands at 12:30 AM, a round-trip late-night flight within the same station.

Since midnight is the peak arrival time at Yunnan Airport, this isn't exactly a great inspection schedule. However, compared to the difficult inspectors, the flight segment inspection itself isn't that important.

After confirming that Wang Lingkun was the inspector, Qin Zongyang did not come to see Xu Xian for several days. Moreover, Xu Xian later checked Qin Zongyang's flight schedule and found that Qin Zongyang had not actually taken any flights in the past few days.

Logically, after the authorities reached a preliminary conclusion on the Xingyou 6777 incident, the company should have lifted the flight suspension on Qin Zongyang and the other two, and Qin Zongyang should have been able to fly again. However, strangely, he hasn't flown a single day in the past few days. Xu Xian wondered what Qin Zongyang had been thinking about these past few days.

The night before Xu Xian's inspection of the air route, Qin Zongyang shamelessly invited Wang Lingkun to dinner.

"Old Qin, what good stuff are you talking about?" Wang Lingkun looked at the bag in Qin Zongyang's hand with great anticipation.

Qin Zongyang reluctantly took a bottle of wine from the bag and placed it on the table. Wang Lingkun, sitting opposite him, stared wide-eyed at the bottle, his mouth agape in a wide grin: "This is it?"

"Otherwise what? Would you call this a good thing?" Qin Zongyang forced a smile and said.

Wang Lingkun nodded repeatedly, his face beaming with joy: "Good stuff, good stuff, of course this is good stuff!"

Wang Lingkun was a heavy drinker, and coincidentally, Qin Zongyang had a bottle of fine wine in his collection, which Wang Lingkun had been eyeing for a long time. However, Qin Zongyang was notoriously stingy and never gave Wang Lingkun a chance to taste it. Today, for reasons unknown, Qin Zongyang actually took the liberty of bringing out the bottle.

"Could it be that you won money this afternoon that made you willing to bring out the wine?" Wang Lingkun said with a grin.

The two had been playing mahjong all afternoon before they ate. During the game, Qin Zongyang's skills really shone, and he won quite a bit. They only came out to eat together after finishing their mahjong game.

Wang Lingkun wasn't initially interested in going out to eat. However, Qin Zongyang's offer of a nice gift for dining together lured Wang Lingkun into agreeing.

As a result, Qin Zongyang mysteriously went to the small room and took out a small bag, deliberately not letting Wang Lingkun see it, making Wang Lingkun extremely eager.

With the fine wine he had long coveted right before his eyes, how could Wang Lingkun possibly resist? However, he hadn't lost his temper yet, and asked Qin Zongyang, "What time is it?"

Qin Zongyang opened his phone and showed the time to Wang Lingkun. Wang Lingkun frowned and said, "Only a little past five?"

He felt it should be more than five o'clock! However, Wang Lingkun didn't think too much about it and simply believed it.

Wang Lingkun played mahjong at Qin Zongyang's house all afternoon, and his phone was long out of battery and was still charging at Qin Zongyang's house! Also, Wang Lingkun doesn't like having anything on his wrist, so he wasn't wearing a watch, and if he wanted to know the time, he would have to ask Qin Zongyang.

The reason he asked about the time was because of the pilots' drinking regulations.

Everyone knows the saying, "Don't drink and drive." If you can't drink and drive, then you definitely can't drink and drive when you're flying.

Drinking alcohol is a strictly forbidden zone for civil aviation pilots; anyone who dares to cross it is committing suicide. Moreover, the regulations on drinking have become increasingly strict over time.

The rule used to be that drinking alcohol was not allowed eight hours before takeoff. After a while, it was changed to ten hours before takeoff, then it was extended to twelve hours, and recently it has been doubled to twenty-four hours before takeoff.

Although Wang Lingkun, a man who loves to drink, thought this crazy extended time requirement was simply insane, he had no choice but to comply, and he had to comply very strictly.

The civil aviation environment is very different now than before. Both the regulatory authorities and airlines have different attitudes towards pilots making mistakes.

For example, if a passenger taxis to the wrong taxiway, in the past, regardless of whether there was a conflict, the passenger would be suspended for three months and fined; some airlines would even downgrade their technical rating. Now it's different. If there is no conflict, the airport doesn't seem inclined to pursue the matter, and airlines usually don't pursue it either, or the penalties are very minor.

However, this high-pressure policy did not improve the civil aviation safety situation. On the contrary, the excessive formalities distracted the pilots, leading to more low-level mistakes that were rare before.

Subsequently, given the prolonged absence of major human-caused safety incidents in domestic civil aviation, and the pilots' extreme resentment towards the intense surveillance and punitive policies, the authorities adjusted the routes, reduced penalties for minor errors, appropriately increased penalties for serious errors, and relaxed monitoring of pilots, giving them more breathing room.

The general understanding in China's civil aviation industry is that even professional pilots are still prone to making minor mistakes, and this is unavoidable, no matter how strict the requirements or how severe the penalties. However, if pilots expend too much energy trying to prevent these insignificant errors, it could lead to serious consequences, which would be a net loss.

If everything is the focus, then there is no focus at all. Pilots can easily end up losing sight of the bigger picture due to trivial matters.

Therefore, appropriately increasing the tolerance for minor mistakes by pilots will prevent them from wasting excessive energy on unnecessary tasks. Conversely, increasing penalties for serious errors will instill a strong sense of red lines in pilots.

Since the authorities and airlines have given pilots a certain degree of freedom, it's to make them understand what's truly important. If you cross some lines, they might let you off the hook, but if you cross other lines, sorry, they'll have to punish you severely.

Take drinking alcohol, for example!

Previously, drinking alcohol was strictly prohibited, but each company had different penalties for exceeding the legal limit, and different levels of penalties were applied depending on the pilot's blood alcohol content.

Nowadays, if a person exceeds the legal limit for alcohol, the suspension period is uniformly two years, and the punishment will no longer vary depending on the alcohol content.

Previously, exceeding the legal limit for alcohol intoxication typically resulted in a six-month or one-year suspension from flying, rarely a two-year suspension. This demonstrates that the penalties for exceeding the legal limit have been significantly increased.

Moreover, for those whose blood alcohol content is off the charts and who are already intoxicated but still fly, the penalties can be severe enough to result in a lifetime ban from flying, which is a significant increase in severity compared to the past.

However, due to the extremely severe penalties, issuing punishments is done with great caution. This is because there are indeed cases where accidental ingestion of certain foods can lead to elevated blood alcohol levels.

Pilots are familiar with things like tiramisu, egg yolk pie, or traditional Chinese medicine like Huoxiang Zhengqi Shui (藿香正气水). However, some things are harder to predict. For example, lychees have an extremely high sugar content, which is digested into ethanol after consumption, sometimes resulting in a positive breathalyzer test.

However, if the elevated blood alcohol level is due to accidental ingestion of something, the pilot needs to provide proof. For example, one pilot ate too many lychees and the breathalyzer went off. He then induced vomiting and sent the food residue to an institution for testing, which confirmed the presence of a large amount of lychee residue. He also had his blood alcohol level tested to prove his innocence.

If an alcohol test result is elevated due to accidental ingestion of certain foods, while there may be some alcohol in the breath, the blood alcohol content is usually not very high. Whether an alcohol test result is excessive is determined by blood alcohol content.

Now there are requirements not only for alcohol content, but also for the timing of drinking.

Even if the pre-flight breathalyzer test shows no abnormalities, if you are caught drinking within 24 hours before takeoff, you will still be subject to the same punishment.

This is the red line!

Even though Wang Lingkun was a heavy drinker, he dared not violate the drinking regulations. Now, anyone who crosses the line, no matter who they are, will be dealt with the same way.

"So, we can only drink for less than two hours?" Wang Lingkun clicked his tongue. Such fine wine needs to be savored slowly; less than two hours is really not enough! However, the alcohol test regulations are there, and he doesn't dare to touch it, so he can only sigh in regret.

"Keep an eye on the time for me! Don't drink past seven o'clock, I have a mission tomorrow night at seven!" Wang Lingkun instructed.

Don't think that just because Wang Lingkun is drinking outside, the company doesn't know. In twenty-odd hours, he can get rid of all the alcohol he drinks. What's there to be afraid of?

There was a pilot who once had this idea, but he was seen drinking by someone from the company who filmed it on the spot, and also filmed the time on the clock in the store. The video was sent to the safety supervision department, and the pilot was punished the next day.

There are too many people with ulterior motives these days. You never know, there might be someone you know at some table in the distance, someone who might not like you, and someone who might have even filmed you. That would be troublesome.

A two-year suspension is a deadly penalty! Who can withstand that? So, it's best to just follow the rules and be conscientious, regardless of whether someone is watching or not.

Qin Zongyang patted his chest and assured him, "It's alright! I'll keep an eye on it for you!"

"Oh dear! What a pity! If only I didn't have to work every day, I could savor it all night!" Wang Lingkun sighed. Such fine wine, to drink it in a madman would be a waste.

Qin Zongyang's eyes lit up: "Then tell the dispatcher that tomorrow's flight won't be taking place!"

"No way, no way! If it were a regular flight tomorrow, that would be fine, but tomorrow is a flight route inspection, we can't change it!" Wang Lingkun said, "We haven't been inspecting others for a while, we need to have our fill tomorrow!"

Qin Zongyang shuddered. Judging from Wang Lingkun's words, he seemed to have ill intentions!

"Hmm? What's wrong? You don't look too good, Lao Qin!" Wang Lingkun said.

Qin Zongyang: "I mean, if you ever inspect me again, you'd better let me off the hook!"

Wang Lingkun laughed heartily: "Trying to bribe me with this bottle of wine? No way! But Lao Qin, don't you know your own skill level? Just play normally, what problem could there be?"

Although Qin Zongyang was obsessed with power, his abilities were genuine. It would be quite difficult for Wang Lingkun to prevent Qin Zongyang from passing the inspection.

"Then I must thank Instructor Wang for the praise!" Qin Zongyang said with a smile as he poured wine for Wang Lingkun, making Wang Lingkun extremely happy.

When an old drunkard encounters fine wine, it's like rain after a long drought. He only took two sips, and his face couldn't help but light up with joy.

After drinking for a while, Wang Lingkun suddenly noticed that Qin Zongyang had stopped drinking, so he asked curiously, "Old Qin, why aren't you drinking anymore? I saw you had a little at the beginning, why are you not drinking anymore now?"

Aside from clinking glasses with Wang Lingkun at the beginning, Qin Zongyang didn't drink a drop of alcohol after that.

Qin Zongyang laughed and said, "I have something to do tomorrow, so I won't be drinking!"

"Anything going on tomorrow? Do you have a shift? No, I don't think so!" Wang Lingkun asked curiously. He had checked Qin Zongyang's schedule, and he hadn't had any flight assignments in the past few days.

Qin Zongyang chuckled and said, "It'll be ready soon!"

"What are you saying!" Wang Lingkun had no idea what Qin Zongyang was talking about. However, he was in the middle of drinking and didn't care about Qin Zongyang at all, only praising the good wine.

After drinking for a while, Wang Lingkun still hadn't forgotten the time, so he asked, "Old Qin, what time is it? Don't forget the time!"

Wang Lingkun felt he had been drinking for about an hour. However, fearing he might be too engrossed in his drink and misjudge the time, he specifically asked for the time to avoid overdoing it.

Qin Zongyang raised an eyebrow, slowly took out his phone, and tapped it a few times, as if he were unlocking a door.

"What's wrong? Did you drink? Forgot your lock code?" Wang Lingkun asked with a smile.

Qin Zongyang chuckled, "Yeah! Getting old! After a few sips of wine, my hands just won't obey me. Wait a minute!"

Wang Lingkun wasn't in a hurry either. He took another sip of wine and waited patiently.

Not long after, Qin Zongyang seemed to have unlocked a lock; his expression suddenly changed, and he slapped his thigh: "How come it's already 7:15?"

(End of this chapter)