Legendary Captain

Chapter 184 Praise to Kill

Hanjing City, Tianyan Magazine Editorial Office.

"So it's already the end of the year and they still haven't decided who will be Person of the Year?" Ye Jing rubbed her temples, looking quite helpless.

The editor-in-chief also looked conflicted: "There really wasn't anyone outstanding today. We'd rather have none than have a bad one for our Person of the Year."

Ye Jing tapped the table and suddenly asked, "What do you think of Xu Xian, who made an emergency landing on the Kunyang River?"

"Oh? Isn't he a bad choice?" the editor-in-chief said hesitantly. "The Kunyang River descent incident is too controversial. Won't making him Person of the Year affect our magazine's reputation?"

Building a magazine's reputation is extremely difficult. Although Tianyan Magazine has gained its current influence due to some official backing, its high quality is the most important reason.

Quarterly figures are fine; they don't have much impact, and there are ones every quarter. But annual figures, which are considered "extreme figures" or higher, aren't necessarily chosen every year.

Tianyan Magazine adheres to the principle of "better to have none than to have bad ones." If there is no suitable candidate, it would rather not set an annual person of the year and automatically downgrade the status.

In Tianyan Magazine, the rankings from bottom to top are: Quarterly Person of the Month, Person of the Year, Ten-Year Special Issue Cover Person of the Month, and the highest rank, a standalone special issue interview.

Tianyan Magazine has been established for nearly sixty years, and a special issue is published every ten years at the end of the year, which is a great honor in the industry.

There are few true comparisons of technical skill levels within the aviation community. Pilot skill levels are limited, and even at the top, differences in skill levels still exist. Therefore, the level of an interviewee in Sky Eye Magazine becomes part of one's qualifications.

For example, if I was once named a Person of the Quarter, I can immediately be named a Person of the Year, which is quite prestigious.

Tianyan Magazine is always very cautious in selecting its Person of the Year. If no suitable candidate emerges during the year, the Person of the Year is canceled and relegated to the fourth quarter's Person of the Year.

The same principle applies to the ten-year special issue. If no one is selected within ten years, the ten-year special issue will be canceled and replaced with a regular annual issue.

In the 60-year history of Tianyan Magazine, there have been two instances of canceling ten-year special issues. As for independent supplements, there is no fixed time limit; that is, an independent supplement will be published whenever someone meets the criteria for an independent supplement, and if no one does, it may not be published indefinitely.

The independent supplement to Sky Eye Magazine is the highest honor in the civil aviation industry. Ordinary people wouldn't even dare to dream of it; being featured in a ten-year special issue interview is considered incredibly lucky. Therefore, most pilots only set their sights on being named Sky Eye Magazine's Person of the Year.

Therefore, Tianyan Magazine is very careful even when selecting its Person of the Year, so as not to disappoint the many pilots.

"But the domestic civil aviation industry hasn't had a co-pilot named Person of the Year for twenty years. Isn't Xu Xian's story a great encouragement to co-pilots? Although captains are the backbone of civil aviation, the role of co-pilots cannot be ignored!" Ye Jing said.

"To be precise, apart from Xu Qing, no one else can become Tianyan Magazine's Person of the Year while in the co-pilot position. Your example doesn't hold true!" At this moment, another elderly man in the room spoke up. He was Shi Lanxi, the former editor-in-chief of Tianyan Magazine.

Shi Lanxi continued, "I'm not denying the co-pilot's role, but Tianyan Magazine isn't about fair distribution. If the co-pilot doesn't have the matching ability, they can't be featured in Tianyan Magazine! Xu Xian didn't handle this well enough, and he couldn't silence everyone, so he can't be the Person of the Year. Ye girl, you can't break the rules!"

"Mr. Shi, isn't that too harsh? After all, it's been so long since we've had such a pleasantly surprising co-pilot!" Ye Jing was quite polite when facing Shi Lanxi.

Shi Lanxi pondered for a moment, then suddenly said to the editor-in-chief, "You can go out now!"

The editor-in-chief was already uncomfortable being caught between the former and current editors-in-chief, so he would be more than happy to be able to leave.

When only Shi Lanxi and Ye Jing remained in the editor-in-chief's office, Shi Lanxi, leaning on her cane, suddenly stood up: "Ye girl, isn't your intention to promote that Xu Xian a little too obvious? Be careful not to overpraise him!"

"Mr. Shi, do I look that obvious?" Ye Jing asked with a smile.

Shi Lanxi's cane pounded against the floor again and again, making a dull thud: "Was this at Xu Qing's behest?"

"Yes and no, Xu Qing did mention him to me, suggesting that I give Xu Xian a push if I could. But, Mr. Shi? There's no third person in the domestic civil aviation industry who can support the entire sector right now. Shouldn't we plan ahead for the future of civil aviation?" Ye Jing smiled and said, "Mr. Shi, you don't need to have such a big problem with Xu Xian. He's just a young man who's not afraid of tigers, and he's not exactly ignorant of the rules."

People of the older generation like Shi Lanxi value rules and regulations highly. However, Xu Xian's complete disregard for the captain's authority during the Kunyang River emergency landing incident greatly displeased Shi Lanxi.

Shi Lanxi's rational mind told him that Xu Xian was not wrong. However, his instincts and subconscious could not accept someone like Xu Xian who broke the rules.

From his perspective, Xu Xian may have formidable technical potential, but he is absolutely unfit to be a leader in civil aviation. Only individuals like Xu Qing and Han Qi, whose professional careers are spotless, are worthy of the rank of civil aviation leader.

Of course, this doesn't mean Xu Xian has no chance; it just means he hasn't had the opportunity to prove himself yet. That opportunity might come tomorrow, or it might never come.

"He can only blame himself for having a troublesome captain," Shi Lanxi said.

Xu Qing faced two crucial emergencies: the February 2.19th incident and the MAX outage. In the February 2.19th incident, the captain lost consciousness; in the MAX outage, Captain Chang Jianjun directly handed over control to Xu Qing. In both incidents, Xu Qing was able to demonstrate his abilities without any hindrance.

However, in the Kunyang River emergency landing incident, Xu Xian did encounter a captain who not only couldn't help but actually hindered him.

Perhaps, this is just a difference in luck!

Ye Jing said with some helplessness, "Old Shi, things are different now than before. Your old-fashioned rules are no longer effective in binding people today."

In its early stages, China's civil aviation was under the jurisdiction of the Air Force, but it became independent after some time. Many of the first batch of civil aviation pilots were transferred from the military aviation sector.

Therefore, the older generation of civil aviation personnel have a very obvious military style, with rules being of paramount importance, which is why Shi Lanxi has such a big opinion about Xu Xian.

"Hmph! If this were before, I would have had the company transfer a co-pilot who dared to usurp the captain's authority to the ground." Shi Lanxi was a front-line pilot before becoming the editor-in-chief of Tianyan Magazine.

Shi Lanxi continued, "However, although this kid is a bit arrogant, his skills are truly superb. You listened to that kid Xu Qing's advice and put such a controversial person on the annual cover of Tianyan Magazine. If anything goes wrong later, Xu Xian will suffer a terrible fall."

Xu Xian's current situation is highly contradictory; many people praise him, while many others criticize him. The amount of discussion surrounding such a highly controversial figure is staggering. Therefore, to make Xu Xian the cover figure for Tianyan Magazine this year would undoubtedly be an act of overpraising him at the expense of his career.

Although Shi Lanxi disapproved of Xu Xian's behavior, Xu Xian's astonishing ability to manipulate others was undeniable. Shi Lanxi didn't want Xu Xian to be overly elevated at this stage.

If Xu Xianzhen makes the cover of the year, it will attract a lot of attention. At that point, Xu Xianzhen's next performance will be crucial.

If Xu Xian performs well in the next special operation, he will ride this wave of opportunity and soar to great heights.

But if he doesn't perform well, then this so-called traffic will become a monster that backfires on Xu Xian! Xu Xian will be trampled into nothing without any surprise.

In the last twenty years, Xu Qing and Han Qi have emerged as two unparalleled talents, but the word "unparalleled" already indicates that such people are rare. Only such people can withstand endless praise without fear of falling from grace.

But is Xu Xian one?

Maybe! He has that potential!

But what if his path isn't as smooth as Xu Qing's and Han Qi's? Or what if he doesn't even have the same potential as Xu Qing and Han Qi?

If this year's Person of the Year is given to him, wouldn't that be cutting off Xu Xian's escape route?

If things go smoothly all the way, that's fine; but if something goes wrong, then there's no going back.

"I know! I know! But Xu Qing can't wait! Besides, he has a lot of confidence in Xu Xian!" Ye Jing said.

In fact, it wasn't just Xu Qing who couldn't wait. Ye Jing couldn't wait either.

Once Qingyuan Group's new aircraft development is fully on track in the next few years, Xu Qing will likely no longer be involved in the civil aviation industry. Xu Qing desires fame, but not indefinitely; the X10 series of new aircraft is probably his last remaining concern. Once the new aircraft are settled, Xu Qing will likely no longer be willing to devote himself to civil aviation, and it will be time for him to enjoy his life.

In contrast, Han Qi's intention to leave has long been obvious. However, it seems that Xu Qing has recently dragged him into the promotion of the new X10 model. Perhaps, like Xu Qing, Han Qi is also using the first flight of the new model as his retirement performance.

It's almost predictable that these two dazzling stars will dim their brilliance in the coming years. Once Xu Qing and Han Qi both choose to retire, the domestic civil aviation industry will soon become mediocre, and wouldn't it become stagnant?

Flags play an extremely important role in any industry.

Xu Qing and Han Qi attracted a massive amount of traffic, which they channeled into the civil aviation industry, bringing about unimaginable changes.

Putting aside passenger traffic, just over the past two decades, there has been an abundance of news surrounding civil aviation, including movies and TV series on the subject, as well as the annual emergence of internet-famous pilots and airlines.

This vast industry relies on the two engines, Xu Qing and Han Qi. If these two engines are gone, without the lifeblood, the gradually forming new civil aviation industry will gradually shrink and eventually revert to the mysterious industry that the public is somewhat curious about but doesn't understand much about.

As the leading media outlet in the industry, Tianyan Magazine also needs figures who generate buzz. Even though Tianyan Magazine is geared towards those within the civil aviation industry, it still has a significant readership and subscription rate among laypeople. Without the support of figures like Xu Qing and Han Qi, Tianyan Magazine would undoubtedly remain as niche as it once was.

Therefore, Ye Jing also hopes to quickly promote a group of rising stars to continuously take over from Xu Qing and Han Qi, so that Tianyan Magazine will not have to worry about its audience shrinking.

Of course, whether Xu Xian would be overpraised was not within her consideration.

Ye Jing and Xu Xian had no personal relationship, and she had no reason to consider his feelings.

If Xu Xian can use this opportunity to soar to great heights, Tianyan Magazine will also benefit. If Xu Xian cannot bear the pressure of being at the top and falls into obscurity, Tianyan Magazine will not suffer much loss. At worst, they can just find the next rising star.

That's just how it is. In Ye Jing's eyes, Xu Xian is just a tool to continue the glory of the civil aviation industry. If Xu Xian can't do it, Ye Jing doesn't really care what will happen to him.

"It seems that the person Xu Qing was talking about who will emerge in the future and be able to support the entire civil aviation industry is Xu Xian!" Shi Lanxi said with a wry smile. "He's really something else! Although I'm older than him, I'm not necessarily more insightful than him, so I won't speculate here."

At the previous airline exchange meeting, in front of a group of airline executives, Xu Qing assured them that someone comparable to him and Han Qi would soon emerge as the crew for the inaugural flight. That person would then join Han Qi to form the inaugural crew for the new aircraft model.

At the time, Xu Qing appeared confident and composed, and the attendees were extremely curious about who Xu Qing was referring to. Now it seems that the person Xu Qing had chosen was undoubtedly Xu Xian.

"However, Xu Qing probably has his own ulterior motives too! He's hoping Xu Xian will make a name for himself soon so he can launch his new airplane," Shi Lanxi laughed. "Even someone like Xu Qing isn't immune to such temptations!"

"Is someone without desires or wants even human?" Ye Jing laughed. "After he finishes this matter, he'll probably wash his hands of civil aviation affairs. I reckon he can't wait to retire!"

"Actually, there's something I've always cared about!" Shi Lanxi said.

"Um?"

"Xu Qing waited nearly twenty years for this new model! But why has he been in such a hurry in recent years? Too much of a rush, visibly so. He's even resorting to flattery to the point of ruin, hoping Xu Xian can quickly achieve fame. This isn't like Xu Qing at all! He shouldn't be that kind of person!"

Ye Jing's eyelids twitched: "Elder Shi, are you saying something happened to Xu Qing?"

Ye Jing roughly knew that Xu Xian and Xu Qing had some kind of relationship. Xu Qing's suggestion that Xu Xian be named Tianyan Magazine's Person of the Year was obviously an extreme move. From a probabilistic point of view, this approach did more harm than good. But Xu Qing still did it.

Based on Ye Jing's understanding of Xu Qing, Xu Qing is extremely good to his family and friends. He would never put those around him in an awkward situation because of the new model. In that sense, Xu Qing's actions are indeed a bit strange.

"Who knows! Actually, I hope Xu Qing is just a little too hasty. If something really happens, that would be fatal," Shi Lanxi sighed.

Having said all that, Ye Jing's mood also became irritable.

Whether considering her relationship with Xu Qing or her role as the editor-in-chief of Tianyan Magazine, she absolutely did not want anything to happen to Xu Qing.

"Let's hope so!" Ye Jing finally said, "There's still some time before the end of the year, let's wait and see! I think it's necessary to go and ask Xu Qing."

Ningyue Residential Area, Dianyun City.

After experiencing ear compression on flight 6778 the previous day, Xu Xian didn't go to the hospital. Looking at the time, he figured even if he rushed, the hospital would probably be closed by the time he arrived. Whether the remaining emergency room staff would even accept someone with a minor cold like Xu Xian was another matter entirely.

Seeing that there wasn't much of a rush, Xu Xian decided to go home first and then go to the First People's Hospital for a check-up the next morning.

As a result, Xu Xian ran into an acquaintance when he went out.

"What are you doing here?" Xu Xian asked, squinting at Wen Jingshu as she slowly approached.

Wen Jingshu shrugged: "This is my home, why can't I come?"

"Didn't you say before that you basically don't come to stay?" At least when I went to clean the villa yesterday, Wen Jingshu wasn't there.

When Wen Jingshu asked Xu Xian to look after her villa, Xu Xian specifically asked her if she would come to stay often. Wen Jingshu's answer at the time was that it would be very infrequent.

"I didn't say anything definitively, so what? Is it not allowed?" Wen Jingshu moved closer to Xu Xian and took his arm with one hand, behaving very intimately.

Xu Xian swallowed hard, his body stiffening. "Why are you going out?"

"Me? Uh, just going for a run, getting some exercise." How could Wen Jingshu say she was waiting for Xu Xian?

She arrived last night and, seeing that Xu Xian didn't have a flight the next day, calculated his wake-up time and waited on the first-floor terrace. Xu Xian's schedule was very punctual; if he didn't have a flight, he would get up around 8:00 to 8:30 in the morning, so Wen Jingshu was very good at calculating his time.

Xu Xian glanced at Wen Jingshu: "So you were running in a skirt? Am I out of touch with the times? Is it fashionable to run in long skirts now? And you were wearing makeup? Hmm?"

"Hehe, you actually noticed I was wearing makeup! You would never have been able to tell before," Wen Jingshu laughed.

Xu Xian is a straight man. In the past, when Wen Jingshu wore light makeup, Xu Xian couldn't tell at all, but now he seems to have improved.

Actually, this was all thanks to Lian Shanxue. During the initial period of Lian Shanxue's modification, he spent a lot of time with her and learned a bit about girls, at least his observation skills improved.

Xu Xian grinned at Wen Jingshu, who was being affectionate with him, and said, "Yeah! I'm not that naive little boy anymore, so be careful! What you're doing right now is dangerous, and I won't be responsible for any consequences!"

Xu Xian used to avoid Wen Jingshu because of the annulment of their engagement, but things are different now. He realized that he still had some feelings for Wen Jingshu, but it wasn't to the point where they could get back together.

Unfortunately, Wen Jingshu started pursuing him. This was quite awkward for Xu Xian, who hadn't been with a woman in a long time.

It's said that when a woman pursues a man, there's only a thin veil separating them. Xu Xian doesn't dislike Wen Jingshu, and he's no longer as conflicted as before, but they're far from being lovers. It's important to understand that Xu Xian is a man of principle; he won't get involved with Wen Jingshu just to satisfy his physical needs, even if Wen Jingshu might not refuse. Therefore, the test for Xu Xian is quite painful.

Xu Xian was no saint. With a beautiful woman in his arms, how could he not be tempted? But he really didn't want to give up his last bit of principle.

"You hate me?" Wen Jingshu suddenly distanced herself slightly and asked Xu Xian.

Xu Xian rolled his eyes: "Why would I hate you?"

"Do you like me?" Wen Jingshu pressed.

"Uh, I don't know."

Wen Jingshu smiled and said, "I understand!"

As she spoke, although she was still holding Xu Xian's arm, she slightly increased the distance between them, so they weren't very close. Seeing that Wen Jingshu understood, Xu Xian didn't pull his hand away, and the two walked side by side.

"I didn't expect you to want to be a saint like Liu Xiahui!" Wen Jingshu teased Xu Xian as they walked.

Xu Xian snorted: "So you think it's bad?"

Wen Jingshu's eyes crinkled with laughter: "Okay, you're the best!"

Suddenly, Wen Jingshu's gaze sharpened as she stared at Xu Xian's ear, her expression turning slightly serious: "What happened to your ear?"

"Huh?" Xu Xian was taken aback by Wen Jingshu's expression and subconsciously touched his right ear. "It was a little tight during yesterday's flight, but it shouldn't be... Hmm? What's this?"

When Xu Xian's fingers touched his right ear canal, he felt something slightly wet.

"Is your right ear inflamed?" Wen Jingshu gently pushed Xu Xian's right hand away, stood on tiptoe, and carefully examined Xu Xian's right ear. After a long while, she said, "It looks like there's an inflammation. How could you have otitis media?"

"It's inflamed? I just had a cold and my ear was pressed down yesterday! It shouldn't be inflamed, right?" Xu Xian was a little scared by Wen Jingshu's words. However, after a night's rest, his right ear was still a little sore.

Is the ear pressure severe?

Xu Xian nodded: "At the time, it hurt so much that we had to switch to another person to fly, but after we got off, it didn't hurt as much."

"Let's go! Let's go to the hospital first, in case our eardrums are injured." Wen Jingshu was also a little worried after Xu Xian said this.

"Eardrum injury? No way!" Xu Xian was also startled. Pilots have strict requirements for hearing. If there is a problem with the eardrum, he might have to give up his flying career.

"Why not just go to the hospital? Go directly to Renxin Hospital!"

Xu Xian quickly asked, "Renxin Hospital is a private hospital, right? They can't issue sick leave certificates, can they?"

Wen Jingshu was speechless: "Is your ear more important, or your sick leave certificate? Are you afraid of not having a sick leave certificate?"

"Yes! The aviation medical unit needs it, otherwise it requires approval from our squadron leader."

Wen Jingshu said irritably, "My group's chairman will approve it for you, okay? Go to Renxin Hospital!"

"Huh? Is that okay?"

Wen Jingshu rolled her eyes: "A squad leader can approve it, but my group's chairman can't? Enough nonsense, let's go!"

As he spoke, he pulled Xu Xian toward the underground parking lot.

"It's just blood in the eardrum? Not a ruptured eardrum or a perforated eardrum?" Xu Xian stared at the doctor in front of him with extreme anxiety.

The doctor replied somewhat awkwardly, "Don't worry, there's nothing wrong with that! You still have some inflammation; I'll prescribe some medicine for you to take home later. It's nothing serious for now!"

"What do you mean by 'temporarily'?" Wen Jingshu asked unhappily from the side.

The doctor immediately tensed up and quickly said, "Mr. Wen, for now, he just needs to take his medication and rest for a while. However, this type of barotrauma can recur, and if it recurs repeatedly, a more comprehensive examination will be necessary."

"Then check him! Examine him thoroughly from head to toe, making sure you don't miss a single spot!" Wen Jingshu instructed.

"No need, no need!" Xu Xian quickly stopped him. "If there are any more problems later, I'll come over!"

"Really not necessary?" Wen Jingshu asked, frowning.

"Oh dear, it's just an ear infection, why are you making such a fuss? If any problems arise later, can I come back for a checkup?"

Wen Jingshu gave Xu Xian a light glare: "Then you'd better remember this! Don't treat your body like a game!"

"I know, I know! I'm a pilot, so of course I need to pay attention to my health, you don't need to tell me that!" Xu Xian said, as his phone rang in his bag. Xu Xian took it out and saw it was another unknown number!

"Who is it?" Wen Jingshu asked curiously.

"I don't know!" Xu Xian thought for a moment but still answered the phone: "Hello?"

"Xu Xian, do you have time today?" A woman's voice came from the other end of the phone, and it sounded very familiar. Xu Xian thought for a moment—wasn't that Li Jinyan, the one he'd met yesterday?

"Are you Li Jinyan, whom I met yesterday?" Xu Xian still wanted to confirm the other party's identity first.

"That's right!" Li Jinyan said, "You still haven't remembered who I am, have you?"

"We really do know each other!" Xu Xian turned around and seriously sorted through his memories, but he couldn't remember anything about a girl named Li Jinyan.

Li Jinyan's silvery laughter came from the other end of the phone: "You were too young after all, you don't remember!"

"Um?"

"You don't remember me? Then you should know my dad!"

"Who is your father?" A string in Xu Xian's mind was suddenly plucked.

"My dad! My dad is Li Xianyi! Do you remember me?"

(End of this chapter)