Legendary Captain

Chapter 258 Great-grandson

Xu Xian was still figuring out how to explain things to the safety supervisors when he got back, but when he turned his head, he ran into Gu Kangrong's staring gaze, which gave Xu Xian goosebumps all over.

"Teacher, why are you looking at me like that? Is there something you need?"

Gu Kangrong glanced at Ye Xin and said coldly, "Go out and keep an eye on things."

"Instructor, the oil truck hasn't arrived yet," Ye Xin replied casually.

"How about we go down and do a walk-around inspection?" Gu Kangrong's words already revealed a hint of hostility.

Ye Xin realized that Gu Kangrong probably had something to say to Xu Xian, and that she should avoid him. She immediately picked up her reflective vest and said, "Instructor, I'll go down and do a spin."

"Go."

After sending Ye Xin away, Gu Kangrong coughed lightly twice to ease the awkwardness: "Xu Xian, there's something I want to discuss with you."

"What is it, instructor?" Xu Xian asked curiously.

"Um... how about we just let this route inspection go? After this incident, it's not good to let you pass again." Gu Kangrong said with difficulty, "I know this isn't a problem, but if I let you pass a route with this kind of issue again, it might cause me trouble in the future."

To Gu Kangrong's surprise, Xu Xian was very agreeable. Almost without thinking, he nodded in agreement: "I know the rules, and it's really not easy for me to pass. But, since you've already signed it, it's not hard to change it."

The flight line inspection work order is easy to prepare; you can just get another one from the flight control center. But the information on the promotion record book can't be changed. You can't exactly tear out the page about the fourth-level co-pilot promotion from the promotion record book, can you? The promotion record book isn't a loose-leaf book; it's not easy to replace.

"I see." Gu Kangrong had just come up with a solution: "Although I signed and wrote the comments, I didn't write down the inspection segment and date, right? When we inspect again next time, you can fill in the segment and date from that inspection. After we get back this time, I'll tell Flight Standard that this time it's not considered a failure, but an unexpected situation, and the route inspection is canceled. Keep the route inspection worksheet and transfer book yourself, and don't let Flight Standard's people see that I've already signed them. That way, when we inspect again next time, just fill in the segment and date, and it'll be perfect."

It has to be said that Gu Kangrong is quite cunning; he even came up with this kind of idea.

Unexpected situations can sometimes arise during flight path checks. For example, extreme weather conditions might occur during a check, exceeding the co-pilot's operational capabilities. In such cases, it's impractical to force the co-pilot to land for the sake of the check. However, such objective circumstances preventing the completion of the flight path check cannot be considered a failure; therefore, the check is simply cancelled and rescheduled later.

In this way, Xu Xian wouldn't have to bear the consequences of failing the route check. Even though there's a significant difference between failing the route check and failing the proficiency check, the impact of failing the route check is much smaller. However, this was ultimately caused by Gu Kangrong's unauthorized early signing, and he couldn't let Xu Xian bear the burden of a failed route check. Therefore, portraying it as a failure due to unforeseen circumstances is the best course of action.

"Okay, then I'll have to trouble the instructor to explain the situation to Fei Biao." Xu Xian was understanding and didn't press the matter further.

It is permissible to cancel flight line inspections due to unforeseen circumstances, but the inspector on duty must clearly explain the specific reasons to the aircraft carrier; it cannot be canceled at will.

Gu Kangrong waved his hand: "It's nothing, it's nothing, this was originally my business."

Seeing how easy-going Xu Xian was, Gu Kangrong felt a little embarrassed. Perhaps wanting to thank Xu Xian for his understanding, Gu Kangrong considered for a moment and said to Xu Xian, "Didn't I tell you before that you wanted to switch to the ground? Do you know why I was so sure?"

Xu Xian's interest was piqued: "Instructor, do you have any inside information?"

"I've been flying around Chimelong for so many years, I know a few inside stories," Gu Kangrong said with some regret. "It seems the old man of the Wen family is going to make a comeback. Knowing that old man's personality, do you think you can stay?"

"Old Master Wen?" Xu Xian frowned, then exclaimed in shock, "Wen Changxing!?"

Gu Kangrong chimed in, "Exactly! What kind of style does Old Master Wen have? Wasn't your fate already sealed?"

Xu Xian became somewhat nervous. With Wen Jingshu overseeing the group, he was initially confident he wouldn't be grounded. But if Wen Changxing were to return to the helm, things would be very different.

Wen Changxing, the former chairman of the Wen Group, was the key figure who truly brought the Wen family to prominence. His son, Wen Mingyuan, who is also Wen Jingshu's father, is nothing compared to his father, Wen Changxing; he's just a backstabbing schemer, not even in the same league.

When Wen Changxing was in charge of the Wen family, their main business was Renxin Hospital, which was their ancestral property. But by the time Wen Changxing stepped down, the Wen family had three pillar industries: Renxin Hospital, Shenggong Construction, and Chimelong Airlines, which can be described as a leapfrog development.

Wen Changxing embodies the typical characteristics of a bloodsucker capitalist; he's willing to sacrifice many things for profit. In this insurance company's withdrawal of coverage, Wen Jingshu might consider her past relationship with Xu Xian and try to prevent him from taking the blame. But in Wen Changxing's hands, the possibility of protecting Xu Xian simply doesn't exist.

Even if Xu Xian were not yet his grandson-in-law, it wouldn't be unreasonable to sacrifice his grandson-in-law for the sake of the group's stability.

Given Wen Changxing's highly individualistic style, once he regains control of the Wen Group, the outcome of his handling of the insurance company's withdrawal incident is at least predictable.

"Haven't he been retired for a long time? Why is he back?" Xu Xian was genuinely annoyed. If it were before, if things really got to the point where he had to be grounded, even if it was more troublesome, he could go to Blue Sky Airlines under Xu Qing, since Blue Sky Airlines' headquarters were in Yunnan.

However, because of Lian Shanxue, he is not very willing to leave Xingyou Airlines. At least if he can try, or if there is any possibility, it would be better to stay with Xingyou Airlines.

However, if Wen Changxing really comes back, then based on his understanding of Wen Changxing, he is indeed doomed.

"How would I know that?" Knowing that Wen Changxing intended to regain control of the Wen Group was already the limit of Gu Kangrong's abilities. To want to know why Wen Changxing had returned to power would undoubtedly touch upon a blind spot in Gu Kangrong's knowledge.

Xu Xian realized that he might have been asking too much, so he smiled and said, "I was just asking casually."

"However, there is something I'd like to ask you." Gu Kangrong's face was full of curiosity: "Any normal person knows how to choose when an insurance company cancels an insurance policy, so why has such a simple question been discussed for so long within the group? By the way, don't you have some powerful backer? Tell me, satisfy my curiosity."

One is an insurance business involving the entire group's aviation industry, and the other is an insignificant co-pilot. Isn't the choice between the two obvious? Do you think the shrewd people at the group headquarters can't figure it out?

It's very strange that the group is so slow to make a decision on such a simple issue.

One possibility is that Xu Xian's identity is also extraordinary, making the group's board of directors hesitant to act, otherwise it wouldn't make sense.

Xu Xian suddenly laughed: "Teacher, you guessed right. I do have a powerful backer, and a very powerful one at that."

Gu Kangrong's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh: "I knew it! Who is it? How powerful? What's their rank?"

"If you're looking for a powerful backer, you should definitely choose the biggest and most reliable one. Instructor, who do you think it is?" Xu Xian said with a meaningful smile.

"The biggest and most reliable one?" Gu Kangrong couldn't help but fall into deep thought, but he couldn't figure out who Xu Xian was talking about. Xu Xian's description of his backer was too vague, and he didn't know if Xu Xian was joking.

With another raise of his hand, Gu Kangrong discovered that Xu Xian had already stood up with the reflective vest in his hand.

"Instructor, I'm going down for a walk." Feeling stuffy after being in the cockpit for so long, Xu Xian decided to go down for a walk and get some fresh air.

Gu Kangrong watched Xu Xian leave and called out, "Give me a hint! Are you trying to play a riddle?"

The top-floor conference room at the Wens Group headquarters.

After all the directors left, only Wen Changxing and Wen Jingshu remained in the conference room. Wen Changxing casually pulled up a chair and sat down, while Wen Jingshu, as the chairwoman, stood quietly beside him like a child who had done something wrong, waiting for her elder's reprimand.

"Is this seat comfortable?" Wen Changxing asked Wen Jingshu slowly after settling down.

Wen Jingshu knew what Wen Changxing meant, so she said, "It's not a comfortable place to sit."

Wen Changxing sighed: "You really don't like doing business. I'm sorry to have troubled you."

"Grandpa, I will try my best to do well," Wen Jingshu suddenly said. "Grandpa, please don't interfere with the insurance company's withdrawal of the policy."

"For that kid Xu Xian?" Wen Changxing smiled slightly. "That kid isn't bad."

"Huh?" Wen Jingshu was momentarily confused. "Grandpa, what do you mean?"

Just moments ago, Wen Changxing had Wen Ningyuan instruct Xingyou Airlines to find a pretext to ground Xu Xian, seemingly harboring a strong grudge against him. How come, in the blink of an eye, Wen Changxing is praising Xu Xian instead? Wen Jingshu truly doesn't understand.

"You silly girl, haven't you always liked that Xu Xian? I'm here to make things happen for you two!" Wen Changxing said with a kind smile. "I never realized Xu Xian was such a troublemaker. But if he's to be our Wen family's grandson-in-law, it's not good for him to be causing trouble everywhere. Otherwise, you'll always be worried sick. So, isn't this the best way to get Xu Xian to give up his dream of flying and come back to live with you in peace?"

Wen Jingshu was taken aback. She had never anticipated that her decisive grandfather would have such thoughts. Unlike her father, Wen Mingyuan, who strongly opposed her being with Xu Xian, Wen Changxing's attitude was ambiguous—neither approving nor opposing. Why was he suddenly so concerned about Xu Xian and her?

"Grandpa, I want to know your true thoughts." When it came to her marriage, Wen Jingshu decided to be frank: "When Xu Xian and I were getting engaged before, you weren't this enthusiastic. Why has your attitude changed so much now?"

In fact, Wen Jingshu's words were quite impolite, bordering on accusatory, which was inappropriate for her grandfather.

However, Wen Jingshu couldn't worry about that anymore; Wen Changxing's unusual behavior made her uneasy.

"Do you think I have any calculations?" Wen Changxing smiled. "You know, your second uncle's branch is rotten to the core, and we can't count on them in the future. Our Wen family still needs to be handed over to your branch."

Wen Changxing has two sons: the eldest, Wen Mingyuan, is Wen Jingshu's father, and the second, Wen Ningyuan, is the chairman of the Wen Foundation and Wen Jingshu's second uncle.

Wen Jingshu's second uncle's branch of the family had grown to a certain size, but none of them were useful; they were all good-for-nothings who just loafed around and waited to die. In comparison, the eldest son's branch had a much better family tradition.

Wen Mingyuan's ambition was average, but he was still capable of maintaining the family business. His son, Wen Yiren, displayed extraordinary intelligence from a young age, but unfortunately, he had a prodigal son mentality and had no interest in inheriting the family business. His daughter, Wen Jingshu, while not as intellectually gifted as Wen Yiren, was also a shrewd businesswoman. However, Wen Jingshu wasn't actually passionate about business; she was just too soft-hearted, and even though she didn't want to, she reluctantly took over the family business.

Compared to the eldest brother's group, which is full of talented people, Wen Changxing has abandoned all of Wen Ningyuan's group.

Originally, it would have been best for the Wen family to let Wen Yiren inherit the family business, given his abilities. However, Wen Yiren is not as easy to talk to as Wen Jingshu. If you force him to inherit the family business, he would dare to cross his name off the family tree the very next day.

Although Wen Jingshu was willing to inherit the family business, her true passion lay elsewhere. Forcing someone to do something against their will wouldn't work, and continuing to pressure her might lead to unforeseen problems. Furthermore, Wen Jingshu was too emotional, and in the business world, being overly emotional can be a major disadvantage. Therefore, Wen Jingshu's taking over the Wen family business was merely a temporary measure.

Therefore, Wen Changxing needs to find a suitable successor to train.

"Your father handed the company over to you because he was incompetent. I also know that you don't really want to stay in this position forever, so there has to be a solution," Wen Changxing said.

Wen Changxing knew that Wen Mingyuan had to agree to Xu Jingyang's request to hand over the group to Wen Jingshu ahead of schedule in order to quell the internal strife within the company. In Wen Changxing's eyes, it was utterly shameful for Wen Mingyuan to be forced to this point by Xu Jingyang, who had already lost everything, so he was extremely disappointed in Wen Mingyuan.

Wen Jingshu's eyelids twitched: "What method?"

"Your father isn't capable enough, and neither your brother nor you are very interested in inheriting the family business, so I can only rely on the next generation," Wen Changxing said.

"The next generation!?" Wen Jingshu immediately understood Wen Changxing's meaning, her pretty face turning bright red: "Grandpa, what are you talking about?"

"I'm not joking," Wen Changxing said solemnly. "While I still have some energy, I can help you look after the family business. You and Xu Xian should get married as soon as possible so I can hold my great-grandson. I can't count on you all anymore, so I can only count on my great-grandson."

"I originally thought that Xu family lad was just an ordinary rich kid, but I didn't expect him to be so capable. He's a good match for my granddaughter," Wen Changxing added.

Xu Xian was just a good-looking rich kid, with no particularly noteworthy qualities. So, Wen Changxing wasn't very interested in Xu Xian becoming his granddaughter's husband at the time. As long as Wen Jingshu liked him, he had no objections. However, Xu Xian's behavior at the time didn't warrant much attention from Wen Changxing.

After that, the Xu family went bankrupt, the engagement between Wen Jingshu and Xu Xian was canceled, and the sudden class divide between them made Wen Changxing think that the relationship was over, even though he always knew that Wen Jingshu still liked Xu Xian.

However, unexpectedly, Xu Xian, who seemed to have little ability, has shown remarkable performance in just one or two years. Especially in the recent dangerous goods leak incident on Xingyou 6333 flight, Xu Xian demonstrated outstanding abilities beyond imagination.

Wen Changxing has always believed that no matter what industry you are in, being able to perform beyond what ordinary people can do is a testament to your ability.

Even though Xu Xian’s talent in flying is incompatible with the Wen family’s generations of business atmosphere, capable people are always liked, aren’t they?

At least Wen Changxing was certain that Xu Xian wasn't just a lazy bum. In that case, Wen Changxing thought Xu Xian wouldn't be a bad choice as his granddaughter's husband. After all, Wen Changxing didn't have the outdated idea of ​​gaining benefits through marriage. Even though the Xu family, to which Xu Xian belonged, had fallen on hard times, it wasn't a big deal to Wen Changxing.

Although Wen Changxing is now over seventy, he is still in quite good spirits and can at least provide shelter for the Wen family for a long time to come. However, Wen Changxing knows that no matter how hard he tries, he cannot defy the erosion of time, and cultivating a successor is of paramount importance. At his current age, if Xu Xian and Wen Jingshu marry and have children as soon as possible, he will still have time to raise his great-grandchildren.

Given Xu Xian and Wen Jingshu's genes, their offspring should most likely be quite good.

It must be said that Wen Changxing has truly devoted himself to the Wen family, even putting the matter of raising his great-grandson on the agenda.

Perhaps Wen Changxing's thinking was too abrupt, as Wen Jingshu found it hard to accept at first: "Grandpa, why is this happening in such a rush?"

"What's wrong? Even though your engagement with Xu Xian was called off, you still have a foundation of feelings for each other. Can't you get back together? What's the big deal? Are you disgracing my Wen family as their grandson-in-law?"

Wen Jingshu was immediately embarrassed: "Grandpa, how can matters of the heart be decided according to your own wishes?"

"This is your problem. Anyway, I'll ground Xu Xian first." Xu Xian has already demonstrated his abilities, so Wen Changxing felt that he no longer needed to do those dangerous things outside.

Handling all sorts of emergencies is glamorous, but it's also dangerous. For Wen Jingshu's happiness, Xu Xianfei's hopes must be dashed first; otherwise, if something happens, his granddaughter will become a widow.

Wen Jingshu was speechless, but she knew her grandfather well. He was very stubborn and would not change his mind about what others thought once he had made a decision. He had to figure it out himself.

Wen Changxing is now determined to shut down Xu Xian, which will make things difficult.

In fact, given Wen Changxing's temperament, why would he need to find any pretext? He would have directly contacted Xingyou Airlines to have Xu Xian grounded. What other twists and turns could there be?

However, Xu Xian's situation is different now. After handling several special cases, he has gained some reputation. Forcibly suspending his flights without any reason could provoke public resentment. Moreover, Xu Xian seems to have a certain passion for flying. If he is forcibly suspended from flying, wouldn't he harbor resentment if he later finds out that it was his own doing?

He wasn't afraid of Xu Xian's resentment, but his granddaughter still had to live with Xu Xian, and in the end, it would be Wen Jingshu who got hurt. Therefore, Wen Changxing needed to find a relatively tactful reason to make Xu Xian stop willingly.

Perhaps to reassure Wen Jingshu, Wen Changxing added, "I'll definitely make sure that kid has no grounds for complaint, okay? It won't be your fault. By the way, you don't need to worry about the company's affairs anymore. I'll take over first. You just need to think about giving me a great-grandchild as soon as possible."

Wen Jingshu was completely bewildered. How had things developed to this point?

Seeing Wen Jingshu sighing, Wen Changxing comforted her, "You're just acting on emotion. Why are you fighting with the insurance company over that Xu Xian? Stopping Xu Xian's contract will satisfy the insurance company's demands and he can come back to marry you without worry. It's a win-win situation, isn't it? Besides, haven't you been working on that Kunyang Airport investment project lately? How much of the group's funds have you misappropriated? What if something goes wrong without the insurance company's backing? What if the group's cash flow is disrupted because of this?"

For a large conglomerate, a broken cash flow is a very troublesome matter. The Wens Group has already depleted a significant portion of its cash reserves in preparation for the Kunyang Airport investment project. If another major unforeseen event were to occur, its already limited funds would be severely strained, which would be extremely dangerous.

"But Grandpa, I don't think there's a way to silence him like that!"

Wen Changxing sneered, "What do you mean, 'no'? You just wait and see. By the way, we agreed that your first child must have the surname Wen."

(End of this chapter)