Legendary Captain

Chapter 156 The Choice of Daughter-in-Law

It has to be said, Xu Xian is truly a hopeless case of male chauvinism. Just now, Lian Shanxue was discussing the inheritance of family names, though it ultimately boils down to the issue of having children. But to bring it up so bluntly, especially in front of a girl, only suggests that Xu Xian is destined to be single.

Unfortunately, Xu Xian's good looks seemed to grant him a sense of justice.

"Isn't this a very constructive suggestion? If there are two children, it would be easier to persuade the man, and I see that there are still quite a few such cases nowadays," Xu Xian said.

Although times have changed a lot, taking the father's surname remains the mainstream. Of course, taking the mother's surname is also more common than before. For example, Ye Ling, the daughter of Ye Jing, the editor-in-chief of Tianyan Magazine, takes her mother's surname.

The surname Lianshan is indeed very rare, and Xu Xian felt it was necessary to pass it down.

Young people today have more open-minded views. If a child only has one child and takes the mother's surname, there might be some psychological pressure, or it might be difficult to explain to the elders. But if there are two children, things become much easier.

Lian Shanxue's pretty face turned red. Although she knew that Xu Xian's words made sense, she was still a little unaccustomed to such bluntness.

"That's very constructive. It's the first time I've ever heard a guy mention having children in front of me, let alone two," Lian Shanxie said with a smile.

"Oh, heroes and heroines don't concern themselves with such trivialities, do they?" Xu Xian was quite uninhibited: "What do you think? Do you agree?"

Lian Shanxue smiled wryly: "It's hard not to agree!"

"Right!" Xu Xian chuckled, secretly giving himself a thumbs-up for his cleverness.

Suddenly, Lian Shanxue asked, "If you had two children, would you be willing to let one of them take the mother's surname?"

"To be honest, if the first child is a boy, the second child won't be a problem. My family doesn't have a throne to inherit, but I can't help it. My parents are very traditional, and if I don't give them an explanation, they'll drive me crazy." Xu Xian laughed, "However, from a biological point of view, the Y chromosome can be passed down from boy to boy, while the X chromosome is different. Of course, people in ancient times didn't have this kind of thinking; they just wanted to have boys."

Seeing that the conversation was starting to take a strange turn, Lian Shanxue quickly changed the subject: "The day before yesterday, I went to Chimelong's headquarters, and they asked me to cooperate in filming a promotional video for Chen Qi. You know Chen Qi, right? He's the person who handled the Chimelong volcanic ash incident."

"One of them," Xu Xian corrected.

Lian Shanxue laughed and said, "Perhaps that's just giving him too much credit! Right, Xu Xian? You mean that person who helped him is really a great philanthropist, doing good deeds anonymously?"

"Maybe! Maybe he's not just a great philanthropist, but also a handsome and intelligent man," Xu Xian said seriously.

Lian Shanxue's beautiful eyes widened slightly, utterly shocked by Xu Xian's shamelessness: "That's a truly insightful assessment. How did you know?"

"Even if I've never met that handsome, smart, and kind-hearted person, we've been spiritually connected for a long time, so I can naturally make a good judgment." Xu Xian smiled, revealing two rows of white teeth, looking somewhat simple-minded.

Lian Shanxue almost burst out laughing: "That puts my mind at ease."

"What?" Xu Xian was stunned for a moment. He was a little confused about what Lian Shanxue meant. It sounded nonsensical.

"It's nothing!" Lian Shanxue smiled.

"By the way, have you found someone to work on that promotional video for the company's year-end celebration that you mentioned last time?" Xu Xian suddenly asked.

"Hmm?" Lian Shanxue was genuinely puzzled; why the sudden shift to this topic? "What's the problem?"

"I was just thinking that if we really couldn't find anyone, could I help them?" Xu Xian simply wanted to find something to help Lian Shanxue and repay her kindness.

Lian Shanxue was overjoyed: "Great! The marketing director is going crazy because they can't find a suitable person. Xu Xian, if you have no objections, I'll mention it to the marketing director."

Because the video is to be played at the subsidiary's year-end celebration, it's a matter of pride for Star Travel Airlines, and the marketing director is taking it very seriously. Furthermore, Lian Shanxue's opinion must be considered when choosing a coordinator, which is why it's been delayed until now, and there's still no clue what to do.

"By the way! I was recently punished, will that have any impact?" Xu Xian asked. After all, the company's promotional video is of great importance, and he wondered if using someone who had recently been punished would cause any problems.

"Hmm? Is it something serious?" Lian Shanxue asked anxiously. If something serious had happened, she should know, but she hadn't heard anything, so Xu Xian probably wasn't in any serious trouble.

Xu Xian thought about it carefully. Although he had forgotten about the tablet, he had found it in the end, so it shouldn't be a big deal. He replied, "It's not a big deal."

"Oh, that's good. I'll go back and ask." Lian Shanxue nodded.

Xu Xian smiled and said, "Just let me know if you have any news. I'm ready to serve you anytime."

Chimelong Airlines conference room, board meeting.

Wen Mingyuan sat at the head of the table, surveying the assembled board members and senior executives. This wasn't a board meeting; it was a coup!

"President Wen, you must be aware of the current situation. If you could just settle down and be the second largest shareholder, you wouldn't have to worry about Chimelong's affairs anymore; you could just wait for the dividends," Chen Chuan said first.

Things have progressed to this point, and the overall situation is pretty much settled.

Wen Mingyuan did not answer Chen Chuan's question, but looked at several directors who supported Chen Chuan. These were the people who had gone to Chen Chuan's private residence to plot.

He had basically figured out who was on his side and who was Chen Chuan's man.

"Do you really think Chen Chuan can lead Chimelong to achieve a second phase of development?" Wen Mingyuan sneered.

Whether it's increased dividends or stock gains, these are all temporary. What they're really betting on is Chimelong Airlines' second phase of development. In their eyes, Chimelong Airlines' current development path is a dead end. Or at least, it has reached a bottleneck; without change, this is Chimelong's ceiling.

"Chen Qi's incident is a perfect opportunity for Chimelong to enter the low-to-mid-end market. This is a chance given by God, how can we miss it?" a director said.

"You arrogant fools." Wen Mingyuan sneered, "You think you can become the next Qingyuan just because some rich kid stumbled upon success by sheer luck? Wishful thinking!"

"Whether it's wishful thinking or not is no longer Chairman Wen's concern. I may be lucky, so what? Can you take away my luck? Chairman Wen, this is God's will, to make you step down." At this moment, Chen Qi was truly in high spirits.

Wen Mingyuan's face was icy: "Since when has the board of directors become a place where just anyone can walk in? Are you a director? Or a senior executive? How dare a mid-level manager spout nonsense in a board meeting?"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wen! I couldn't wait to come and see what it's like to be in that position someday." The position Chen Qi was referring to was the one Wen Mingyuan was currently in.

His father, Chen Chuan, is going to succeed Wen Mingyuan as chairman of Chimelong Airlines. So it's only natural that he would follow in his father's footsteps and take that position sooner or later.

"But I feel you probably won't get what you want!"

At that moment, the conference room door opened, and Wen Jingshu strode in, pointing directly at Chen Qi: "Don't tell me you think victory is assured?"

Chen Qi shrugged: "It's not that we're certain of victory, it's just that we can't think of any reason to fail."

Wen Jingshu leaned slightly forward and said in a voice only Chen Qi could hear, "A mere thief, how dare you speak so arrogantly! It's just something you obtained by threatening Xu Xian, isn't it? To flaunt something stolen, don't you feel ashamed?"

"Steal? No! You mean Xu..." Chen Qi's expression changed for the first time. He looked around, also lowering his voice, "You know Xu Xian?"

"There's no such thing as a free lunch. Even if it did, it could kill someone," Wen Jingshu said softly. "Since we've lost our initial motivation, is there any point in continuing?"

Without the massive traffic generated by the Chen Qi incident, it would have been impossible to break through the solidified interest structure in the low-to-mid-end market.

In this way, the company's policy shift that the board members wanted would be nothing but a mirage. Why would they go against Wen Mingyuan for a little short-term gain? This is not a profitable deal, at least not in the long run.

Chen Chuan was seated next to her son, Chen Qi. Although Wen Jingshu's voice was very soft, Chen Qi, in his shock, couldn't control his volume and spoke a little louder. The word "Xu" was clearly heard by Chen Chuan next to her.

Chen Chuan knew that Xu Xian was the one who had truly done the hard work, so he was very sensitive to the name Xu Xian. Especially considering Chen Qi's somewhat flustered expression.

There was a feeling, a strong feeling, that something terrible had happened.

"Cancel the press conference, and we'll pretend nothing happened," Wen Jingshu pressed, seizing the opportunity.

It was originally a perfectly logical thing to do. First, they used Xu Xian's name to scare Chen Qi, throwing him into disarray, and then they made threats. This was the whole standard procedure.

However, Wen Jingshu was still a bit too inexperienced.

"Nothing happened?" Upon hearing this, Chen Qi calmed down from his initial panic. Suddenly, his lips curled up slightly, and then his voice grew louder and louder, becoming extremely unrestrained.

All eyes on the board turned to Chen Qi and Wen Jingshu, and Wen Jingshu instantly realized the problem she was facing.

She doesn't seem tough enough! If she had really won over Xu Xian, it would have been tantamount to seizing Chen Chuan and Chen Qi's Achilles' heel, and she would have already been relentlessly pursuing them, at least that's how the Wen family would act.

However, lacking actual help from Xu Xian, Wen Jingshu was inherently somewhat insecure, and even threats and coercion seemed powerless.

It was this very unusual thing that Chen Qi caught on.

"So you haven't won him over yet!" Chen Qi sneered, then turned to his father and said, "Dad, let's go!"

"Huh? They're leaving already?" Chen Chuan was a little confused.

Chen Qi had already stood up: "Let's go, there are more important things to do."

"President Chen, what are you saying?" A group of directors who supported Chen Chuan also felt a little out of control about the development of the situation. After Wen Jingshu appeared, the tone of the board meeting seemed to have become strange.

Seeing her son almost at the door, Chen Chuan was truly in a dilemma. She had finally pushed Wen Mingyuan to this point; if she just missed this board meeting, wouldn't that give Wen Mingyuan a chance to catch his breath?

However, his own son was the key to bringing down Wen Mingyuan. With Chen Qi gone, there was no longer any need for the board of directors to continue.

"Sigh," Chen Chuan sighed inwardly, glanced at Wen Mingyuan sitting at the head of the table, and followed Chen Qi out of the conference room.

What's going on? The board members were all dumbfounded, especially those who supported Chen Chuan. Wasn't today supposed to be the day to transform Chimelong Airlines? And it ended so abruptly? This is far too hasty.

One of the directors who supported Wen Mingyuan noticed the awkward atmosphere and quietly asked Wen Mingyuan, "Chairman, what about now?"

Wen Mingyuan breathed in the air thick with doubt, let out a long sigh, and waved his hand: "Let's call it a day. The main character is gone, it's no longer interesting."

The board members looked at each other, and without anyone knowing who had taken the lead, within a minute or two, only Wen Jingshu and Wen Mingyuan remained in the once-full conference room.

Now that only the Wen family father and daughter remain, they can speak more freely.

"Jing Shu, what did you say to that kid Chen Qi just now?" Wen Mingyuan asked. Although he hadn't heard the conversation between Wen Jing Shu and Chen Qi, he had clearly seen the changes in Chen Qi's expression. Wen Jing Shu must have said something that hit a nerve with Chen Qi, otherwise why would Chen Qi let it go so easily?

Wen Jingshu said, "Dad, I've found that person!"

"That person?" Wen Mingyuan's eyes widened suddenly. "The person who came on as a substitute? Who is he? Where is he?"

No wonder Chen Qi was so flustered; now everything makes sense.

Wen Jingshu hesitated for a moment: "Dad, that person is Xu Xian!"

"Xu Xu Xian!" Wen Mingyuan almost jumped up from his seat, his eyes nearly popping out of their sockets. Very unusually, Wen Mingyuan was even unable to speak coherently.

Is this what they call the cruel twist of fate? Or is it karma and retribution?

How can it be that your own lifeline is in the hands of your enemy?

"Dad, what's wrong with you?" Wen Jingshu asked curiously. The relationship between their family and the Xu family was very strange, but it shouldn't warrant such a strong reaction. Of course, this was based on the premise that Wen Jingshu was unaware of Wen Mingyuan's actions. If Wen Jingshu knew that her father had betrayed the Xu family, Wen Mingyuan's current reaction would be considered relatively restrained.

Wen Mingyuan realized he might have lost his composure in front of his daughter, so he coughed lightly twice to compose himself: "What did that kid Xu Xian say?"

"He doesn't agree to come forward," Wen Jingshu said.

"What?!" Wen Mingyuan slammed his hand on the table, furious. "What does this kid mean by standing by and watching someone die?"

Suddenly, Wen Mingyuan thought of a possibility and asked casually, "Did Xu Xian say anything else?"

"What's wrong?" Wen Jingshu asked curiously.

"Ah? It's nothing, it's nothing!" Seeing that Wen Jingshu didn't seem to have heard anything strange, Wen Mingyuan was slightly relieved.

"Xu Xian himself seems willing to help us, but there seem to be other factors stopping him. I suspect it's because of Uncle Xu, but I can't understand his reasoning." Wen Jingshu frowned and said, "As far as I know, the deal between Chen Qi and Xu Xian involves aid slots at Renxin Hospital. I clearly stated that I could offer a more generous reward, but I still couldn't persuade Xu Xian, or rather, the person behind Xu Xian."

"No need to think about it! It's all because of Xu Jingyang." Wen Mingyuan tapped his knuckles rhythmically on the table. After thinking for a long time, he said to Wen Jingshu, "Jingshu, I'll handle things from now on. You don't need to worry about it."

The issue has now shifted to the grudges of the older generation, and it seems to be no longer Xu Xian's problem.

"Oh? Dad, you want to talk to Xu Xian in person?" Wen Jingshu asked.

Wen Mingyuan said, "What's the point of talking to that kid? Go back, you don't need to worry about this."

Wen Jingshu said "Oh," and then added, "If there's nothing else, I'll head back now."

As Wen Jingshu turned around, Wen Mingyuan suddenly remembered something and quickly called out to her, "Jingshu! Has your brother been behaving well in Yunnan lately?"

Wen Jingshu stopped in her tracks: "Dad, I've been busy with the group's affairs lately, so I haven't been in Dianyun for long. But my brother is quite a grown man; he's a bit hard to manage, but I don't think he'll cause any trouble."

"That's right, all we ask of him is that he doesn't cause any trouble." Wen Mingyuan sighed for some reason: "Jing Shu! Your brother made it clear to me a while ago that he doesn't want to inherit the group, so you'll probably have to worry about it from now on."

Wen Jingshu was silent for a moment, but still replied, "Let's talk about it later."

Outside the conference room, Chen Chuan caught up with Chen Qi, who was on the phone.

"Secretary Yang asked you to check the ticket purchase records of internal staff, right?" Chen Qi asked the marketing department staff.

Each subsidiary within the group has a dedicated person in its marketing department responsible for internal ticket purchases, and Chen Qi can find that person every time.

"Mr. Chen, you're right!"

Chen Qi licked his lips: "Should we investigate someone named Xu Xian?"

"That's right!"

"Okay!" Chen Qi hung up the phone and saw that his father had already caught up. He said, "It seems that Wen Jingshu really knows about Xu Xian."

"What do we do then?" Chen Chuan panicked. "Does that mean this whole thing is going to fall through?"

Chen Qi swallowed hard, his heart clearly not at peace. "No, at least not for now. Although Wen Jingshu knows about Xu Xian's situation, she doesn't seem to have been able to persuade him to help. If Xu Xian isn't willing to help, what can Wen Jingshu do even if she finds out?"

Even if Wen Jingshu releases Xu Xian's information, without his physical appearance, the effect will be greatly diminished. Although it will have some impact on their plans, it shouldn't be fatal.

But if Xu Xian himself were to show up, it would attract almost all the attention, and that would be truly fatal.

"But why is Xu Xian unwilling to help?" Chen Chuan asked a question that struck at the heart of the matter.

Yes! Why wouldn't Xu Xian agree? Could there be some other kind of relationship between him and Chen Qi? Isn't it just a simple transaction? Since it's a transaction, shouldn't the highest bidder win? As things stand now, it seems that the wealthy and powerful Wen family should be able to satisfy Xu Xian's appetite more.

That's really weird!

Chen Qi was also puzzled: "Yes! What could be the reason?"

He never believed in the nonsense about keeping promises; not breaking promises simply meant the benefits weren't enough. Otherwise, he wouldn't have created a reserve position to keep Xu Xian in check.

However, now the Wen family has entered the fray. Compared to Chen Qi, the Wen family is clearly a much more generous player, especially given their life-or-death situation. Xu Xian's unwillingness to help was indeed unexpected for Chen Qi.

Regardless of the reason, whether you understand it or not, as long as Xu Xian hasn't agreed to come forward, there's still a glimmer of hope.

"It seems necessary to speak with Xu Xian in person. We need to keep him on our toes until at least the next board meeting," Chen Qi said.

Yunnan First People's Hospital.

With his days of freeloading at the hospital coming to an end, and especially with the thought of his wife leaving him again, Xu Jingyang has been sighing every day lately, feeling like the world has turned gray.

Xu Xian was curled up on the sofa eating an apple, while Xu Jingyang yawned: "Yesterday I saw on my phone that you were acting tough at Dianyun Airport. You're something else. I didn't realize you had such a temper! Just like you used to be."

Despite his gentle and mild-mannered appearance, Xu Xian was a very opinionated person in the past, before the Xu family fell into decline. He was extremely prone to anger if things did not go according to his wishes.

"Are there any comments below?" Xu Xian asked hurriedly.

Xu Jingyang laughed and said, "No, it's just some peripheral news, don't worry."

With so many people gathered around, anyone could easily film a video and post it online, so Xu Xian didn't expect that absolutely no information would appear online. However, as long as it didn't cause a large-scale discussion, it was acceptable.

"That's good!" Xu Xian breathed a sigh of relief.

"What do you mean, 'that's good'?" Huang Ying suddenly came in, looking at Xu Xian with some confusion.

"Huh? It's nothing! What could be wrong? Mom, I'm going downstairs to buy some drinks, my mouth feels a bit bland." Xu Xian made an excuse and slipped away.

Huang Ying was still calling out from behind, "Xianbao, drink less soda, buy some yogurt instead."

"Okay!" Xu Xian replied perfunctorily, already outside.

However, as soon as I stepped out of the ward, I spotted a familiar figure in the corridor.

"Xia Qing, what are you doing here?" Xu Xian looked at Xia Qing who was walking over, immediately put away his playful demeanor, and pretended to be a serious person.

Xia Qing was also surprised to run into Xu Xian: "My mother fell and needs to be hospitalized for two days for observation."

"Is it serious?" Xu Xian asked quickly.

Xia Qing quickly waved her hand: "It's nothing serious, it's just that I'm getting old. I'll stay in the hospital for a couple of days for observation, just in case."

"Oh, that's good."

"What's wrong with you?"

Xu Xian pointed to the ward behind him: "My dad isn't feeling well, so he'll stay here for a couple of days."

"Is everything alright?"

Xu Xian quickly waved his hand: "It's nothing, I just need to rest."

"I see!" Xia Qing glanced at the ward door, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Should I go say hello?"

They were already at the door, and Xia Qing felt it would be polite to go and greet them. Although she wasn't exactly familiar with Xu Xian, they weren't strangers either; they had some connection.

Before Xu Xian could react, Xia Qing pushed open the door and entered, and Xu Xian quickly followed.

In the ward, Huang Ying, who was peeling an apple for Xu Jingyang, noticed a girl enter. At first, she thought someone had entered the wrong room, but when she saw Xu Xian following behind, she held back.

After Xia Qing entered, she quickly glanced at Xu Jingyang and Huang Ying, and immediately said obediently, "Uncle, Aunt, I am Xia Qing, Xu Xian's colleague."

"Ah? My colleague!" Huang Ying quickly finished peeling the last bit of apple, glanced at Xu Xian who looked flustered behind her, then at Xia Qing who looked obedient, and her eyes gradually filled with a smile: "Xia Qing, right? Come and have an apple!"

The apple, originally intended for Xu Jingyang, was forced into Xia Qing's hand.

Xia Qing found Huang Ying's excessive enthusiasm overwhelming. She had only intended to give a perfunctory greeting and leave, a purely polite exchange, but Huang Ying seemed to see it differently.

"Xu Xian's colleague, is she a flight attendant? Or a female pilot?" Huang Ying pulled Xia Qing to sit down and asked with a smile.

Xia Qing felt a little awkward: "Auntie, I'm a flight attendant."

"So that's a flight attendant. Flight attendant is fine, how old are you today?" Huang Ying started checking her background.

Xu Xian and Xu Jingyang stood by, not daring to say a word. If they dared to interrupt, they would be in for a beating later.

"Huh? Auntie, I'm 27 this year." Xia Qing already felt that the conversation was taking a strange turn.

"If it's 27, then it's two years older. It's alright, it's alright," Huang Ying said to herself.

Xu Xian wished he could disappear into a crack in the ground. He was only twenty-five years old, and Huang Ying's intentions were already crystal clear. It was utterly humiliating.

"By the way, where are you from? Do you have younger siblings?" Huang Ying habitually started digging deeper, but as soon as the words left her mouth, she immediately realized that she seemed a bit abrupt, and quickly brushed it off: "Sorry! I'm getting old, so I like to talk about random things."

"No, no. Auntie, you're joking." Xia Qing thought for a moment and then said, "Auntie, I still need to go see my mother, so I'll head back now."

"Oh! Is your mother feeling unwell? Is it serious?" Huang Ying immediately asked with concern, as if she were already worried about her in-laws' health.

Xia Qing quickly waved her hand: "Auntie, it's alright. It's just two days of observation in the hospital, and I should be able to be discharged tomorrow."

"That's good, that's good!" Huang Ying picked up a fruit basket from the table and handed it to Xia Qing: "Take this to your mother, it's all good fruit."

When Xu Jingyang saw that his fruit had been given away by Huang Ying, he hesitated to speak, but intimidated by Huang Ying's imposing manner, he didn't utter a single word.

"No need," Xia Qing repeatedly declined, "Keep it for Uncle."

"It's alright, it's alright! He's tough, he won't die. It doesn't matter whether he eats fruit or not." Compared to his future daughter-in-law, Xu Jingyang was truly worthless.

Xu Jingyang almost coughed up blood. Why was he the only one who didn't have to eat fruit? He was a patient too!

"This..." Xia Qing was still embarrassed to accept it.

Xu Xian then set the tone: "Let's accept it, otherwise my mother won't give up."

"Oh? Oh, thank you, Auntie." Xia Qing then accepted Huang Ying's fruit basket.

Seeing that Xia Qing obeyed Xu Xian's words, Huang Ying's smile widened. After Xia Qing left the room, Huang Ying still seemed unsatisfied: "Xu Xian, does she have a boyfriend?"

Xu Xian slumped onto the sofa: "As far as I know, there isn't one!"

"Perfect, absolutely perfect!" Huang Ying's smile stretched from ear to ear. "Xianbao! I want this daughter-in-law!"

(End of this chapter)