True, the fat man had helped Fang Chenyi drive up the price, but it was really just a transaction. After all, Fang Chenyi had paid him a commission of a full 200 million afterward.

In other words, without that 200 million commission, the fat man would never have opened his mouth. It was precisely that 200 million—an amount comparable to his entire net worth—that made him drive up the price without a second thought.

But now, Fang Chenyi had offered to help the fat man deal with his problems, which, for a moment, had left the man deeply touched.

After exchanging a few more words, Fang Chenyi stood up with Bai Menghan and headed to the special first-class cabin the crew had prepared just for the owner.

Surveying the fully-equipped first-class cabin, Fang Chenyi couldn’t help but marvel. ’I never thought a plane could have a place this luxurious.’

Last night, he had first fulfilled his husbandly duties, and then his "scrap collecting" trip had taken quite a while. After being busy for a whole day on top of that, with nothing else to do now, Fang Chenyi felt a wave of fatigue.

He called over to Bai Menghan, then wrapped his arms around his wife and lay down on the large, soft bed in the first-class cabin, falling asleep.

The plane was flying smoothly. While Fang Chenyi slept, in the cockpit, the middle-aged captain, Lü Dong, glanced at the stable instruments and turned to the co-pilot beside him.

"Heh, Xiaozhou, keep an eye on the instruments. I’m just going to the restroom; I’ll be right back."

The co-pilot, Xiaozhou, chuckled and nodded in response, immediately turning his full attention to the instrument panel before him.

Seeing this, Lü Dong unbuckled his seatbelt, stood up, and started to walk out of the cockpit.

However, just as he opened the door between the cockpit and the cabin, the plane was suddenly rocked by a violent jolt. With his quick reflexes, the captain managed to grab hold of the doorframe, barely steadying himself.

But just as he steadied himself on the doorframe, the turbulence and a sudden lurch downwards caused the open cockpit door to slam shut.

With a dull THUD, Lü Dong suddenly felt his hand go numb.

He hastily pulled his hand back and saw that the four fingers of his right hand had already turned a dark, bruised purple. A moment later, an excruciating pain shot through it.

The plane, however, was still shaking violently. Behind him, the co-pilot, Xiaozhou, anxiously yelled to Lü Dong.

"Captain! This is bad, we have a failure warning for the left engine!"

Lü Dong’s heart sank. Gritting his teeth against the searing pain in his right hand, he used his left to grab the chair and struggle back into the pilot’s seat. He looked at the large engine failure warning on the panel and instinctively reached out to assess the situation. But the moment his fingers brushed against the instruments, an even more intense spike of pain made him cry out.

Seeing this, Xiaozhou asked anxiously, "Captain, your hand is injured!"

Cold sweat beaded on Lü Dong’s forehead from the pain, but he had no time to dwell on it. While buckling his seatbelt with his uninjured left hand and trying to operate the controls, he spoke urgently to Xiaozhou.

"Quick, notify Captain David Mo Xinmofei! Tell him to get here immediately and take over for me!"

’I know how bad this injury is,’ he thought. ’With my right hand out of commission, forget about handling a serious incident—just continuing to fly is a problem.’

’Because this is a long-haul flight, we’re assigned two captains. But my counterpart is a foreigner. His piloting skills are excellent, but there’s one thing I can’t stand about him: that man, David, is a hopeless alcoholic. He drinks even when we’re on the plane.’

’I’ve reported it to management several times, but they always turn a deaf ear. At first, I couldn’t understand why. Then I saw my direct supervisor, Gou Xiong, visiting the red-light district with him, and it all made sense. I finally understood why they kept him on despite knowing about his drinking problem.’

’And sure enough, today is no different. I haven’t seen the guy since we boarded. I don’t even need to guess; he’s definitely snuck off somewhere to drink again.’

「Back with Fang Chenyi.」

In the first-class cabin, the sleeping Fang Chenyi and Bai Menghan were suddenly jolted by violent turbulence. The keenly perceptive Fang Chenyi snapped his eyes open. The expert piloting knowledge in his mind told him this was bad, and his heart sank.

"What’s wrong, Chenyi? Did we hit some turbulence?"

Bai Menghan, who had also opened her eyes, sensed the tension radiating from Fang Chenyi and couldn’t help but ask.

He gently patted Bai Menghan’s head and sat up, his voice tinged with tension. "I don’t think so. Something feels wrong. Menghan, go sit in one of the seats up front and buckle your seatbelt. Also, there should be oxygen masks above you. If anything happens, whatever you do, don’t panic."

Fang Chenyi’s words immediately made Bai Menghan tense up, but she was obedient and did as he said, getting up and moving toward the seats up front. As she went, she said:

"Chenyi, are you going out? Please be careful."

He nodded. After helping Bai Menghan with her seatbelt, Fang Chenyi strode out of the cabin.

He didn’t head for the cockpit up front but instead walked toward the passenger cabin behind them.

His piloting expertise told him that this kind of turbulence was likely caused by a failure in one of the engines. He needed to get to a window with a view of that engine to check on its condition.

As he stepped out of the first-class cabin, a flight attendant’s voice came over the PA system:

"Ladies and gentlemen, the aircraft is passing through a layer of turbulence, which is a normal occurrence. Please remain in your seats and keep your seatbelts fastened."

He shook his head, ignoring the announcement, and strode purposefully into the passenger cabin.

With a single sweep of his gaze, he identified the best spot to get a view of the engine.

But before he could get there, a greasy-looking middle-aged man stopped him and spoke with an annoyed expression.

"Hey, kid! Didn’t you hear the flight attendant’s announcement? She told you not to walk around! What is wrong with you? I remember you, you’re the one who boarded right before takeoff. I don’t care if you’re rich or powerful, get back to your seat right now. It’s one thing if you fall, but what if you fall and hit someone?"

The middle-aged man had already been annoyed seeing the young man board right before takeoff, and seeing him now, he immediately started to berate him.

This guy was also adept at inciting the crowd; in just a few words, he managed to slap three major labels on Fang Chenyi.

The first was that he was rich and powerful, the second was that he had delayed their takeoff, and the third was that he was a maverick who refused to follow the crew’s instructions.

And it worked. As soon as the words were out, everyone began to point fingers and mutter amongst themselves. For a moment, they even forgot their fear of the turbulence.

[To be continued...]

PS: The climax is coming soon~