UAAG CH26

Zurich International Airport, Terminal E.

After taking the escalator up and entering the VIP lounge, Gao Yun finally formally bid farewell to the five UAAG members. Ordinary people sending someone off certainly couldn’t go all the way to the VIP lounge; they had to leave at the security check. But as an EASA senior investigator, Gao Yun used his position to open a back door for himself.

The automatic glass sensor doors slowly closed behind them.

As soon as they entered the lounge, Su Fei rushed off to find something to eat. Old Joseph walked towards the liquor cabinet. Lina confirmed flight information with the flight attendant at the lounge reception desk, while Fu Cheng walked to the window, looking through the tall floor-to-ceiling glass windows at the planes taking off and landing on the runway.

“Have you ever flown a flight to Zurich Airport?”

Fu Cheng turned his head: “No. I was with Donghua Airlines before, usually flying domestic and North American routes.”

Lina smiled: “Zurich Airport is very busy; I used to come here often when I was a child…”

The two started chatting.

Half an hour later, ready to board, Lina walked to the sofa booth and woke Zhuo Huan.

Zhuo Huan squinted slightly, standing up lazily and slowly. Led by ground staff, the five proceeded to the boarding gate. Zhuo Huan always looked like he hadn’t woken up; you never knew what this man did every day. If they hadn’t stayed in the same hotel and known that Zhuo Huan didn’t go out yesterday, Fu Cheng would have almost suspected that Lord Zhuo had snuck out last night and stayed up all night.

Upon boarding the plane, beautiful flight attendants immediately welcomed them with smiles and led them to their respective seats.

The first-class cabin of this plane had four seats per row, with the middle two adjacent. When Fu Cheng walked to his seat, his footsteps paused, his expression calm: “Teacher Zhuo.”

Lord Zhuo, who was already lying down ready to sleep, slowly pulled down the newspaper casually covering his face and glanced at him with listless eyes.

Lina and the other two had already found their seats and sat down.

Fu Cheng sat down in his seat indifferently, not speaking to the man beside him again.

Their tickets were bought by Lina, and check-in seat selection was also arranged by Lina. Fu Cheng didn’t know why Lina arranged for him and Zhuo Huan to sit in adjacent seats, but there were only five people in UAAG, so the probability of him sitting with Zhuo Huan wasn’t low. Perhaps Lina just casually selected seats and didn’t notice who was sitting with Zhuo Huan at all.

“Sir, may I ask what you would like to drink?”

Fu Cheng looked up, his voice gentle: “Hot milk, thank you.”

Flight attendant: “You’re welcome, please wait a moment.”

First-class guests boarded first, followed by business class and economy class. After waiting for more than half an hour, the plane began to enter the taxiway. The flight attendant apologetically woke Zhuo Huan, asking him to straighten his chair and not sleep temporarily, waiting until the plane took off and stabilized before sleeping.

Soon, the plane began to taxi.

After a faint hum, the nose pulled up sharply. The plane took off safely.

After a while, the flight attendants left their safety seats and asked guests what meals they would like to order.

The meals used in first class and business class are completely different from economy class. When Fu Cheng just became an air force pilot, his cousin read a joke online and excitedly pulled him over to look: “Chengcheng, the internet says first class and business class are called enjoying service, while economy class is just a means of transport. Real or fake? What is first class like?”

Nineteen-year-old Fu Cheng didn’t know whether to laugh or cry: “Sis, I’m in the air force, not a civil aviation pilot!”

Memories from years ago surged into his heart, and Fu Cheng was stunned for a moment. The flight attendant called him patiently a few times. He snapped back to reality, only to see the flight attendant squatting halfway looking up at him, with exquisite makeup, a warm smile, and a gentle voice: “Sir, the meals provided today are Western, Chinese, and Japanese. The main course for the Western meal is divided into…”

“Swiss Air’s French cuisine is not bad.”

Fu Cheng turned his head and looked at Zhuo Huan.

Lord Zhuo didn’t even glance at the menu. As soon as they reached a safe altitude, he immediately flattened the seat and lay down again. With slightly lowered eyes, lying down looking at Fu Cheng and the patiently waiting flight attendant beside him, he seemed to recall something: “Its KRUG champagne is also not bad.”

Fu Cheng: “Teacher Zhuo, what are you having?”

Just then, a flight attendant walked to Zhuo Huan’s side. Before she could squat down, Zhuo Huan raised his hand: “Don’t wake me up, don’t remind me to eat.”

The flight attendant was stunned, then she showed a knowing smile of wide experience and said gently: “Okay, sir.”

Following Lord Zhuo’s recommendation, Fu Cheng ordered French cuisine and KRUG champagne. Unlike a certain person beside him, he wasn’t sleepy. Fu Cheng turned on his phone and connected to the high-speed WIFI dedicated to first class.

On the internet, the impact of Martha Flight 123 had not ended; netizens were still discussing this air crash involving a wealthy heir. Suddenly, Fu Cheng received a message.

[Gao Yun: I’ll notify you when there’s news. Heard the Truffaut side has already made a move. Sure enough, being his own son, Mr. Truffaut definitely wouldn’t sit by and watch such a tragedy. I think European aviation law will definitely change this time.]

[Fu Cheng: Okay.]

[Gao Yun: By the way, I also heard Madame Truffaut is preparing a charity fund to help young people with poor family backgrounds but flight dreams. They also sponsored Leon Lorraine’s daughter; all expenses until she graduates from university will be borne by the Truffaut Group.]

Before Fu Cheng’s eyes appeared the little girl in the small town hospital, looking at him timidly with tears in her eyes. The sunshine was warm and beautiful; separated by a door lay the girl’s father who had already left this world…

“Do you snore?”

Fu Cheng: “?!”

The warmth instantly dissipated. Fu Cheng turned his head sharply to look at the man beside him.

Zhuo Huan tilted his head, looking at him very seriously, expressionless, and repeated: “Do you snore?”

Fu Cheng: “…”

Heh.

The next moment, Fu Cheng said indifferently: “Teacher Zhuo, I don’t snore.”

Zhuo Huan raised an eyebrow slightly. He sensed that the young man was suddenly very unhappy and in a bad mood. But he hadn’t said anything wrong. They were sitting very close; if Fu Cheng snored while sleeping, it would definitely wake him up. Was it wrong for him to ask in advance?

Fu Cheng smiled at him, then reached out, swish, and pulled the curtain between them closed.

Zhuo Huan: Hoh?

Taking out his phone, Lord Zhuo propped up his eyelids that were about to stick together and sent a message.

Lina took out her phone and opened it.

[Reid: Why arrange for me and Fu Cheng to sit together?]

Lina smiled slightly and typed.

[Lina: Give poor Fu a chance, Reid.]

[Reid: ?]

[Lina: He has such a crush on you, doesn’t he?]

Zhuo Huan: “Heh.”

“Swish—”

The curtain was suddenly pulled open a small crack. The black-haired young man’s clean and beautiful eyes looked over clearly through the gap.

“Teacher Zhuo, do you like talking in your sleep?”

Zhuo Huan opened his mouth to explain, but Fu Cheng laughed, his tone tolerant: “It doesn’t matter, I brought noise-canceling headphones, feel free.” Then, giving him absolutely no chance to explain, he swiftly pulled the curtain closed.

Zhuo Huan: “…”

Fuck!

After a ten-hour flight, getting off the plane, Lord Zhuo had “strangers keep away” written all over his face, hands in pockets, striding at the front. Su Fei and Old Joseph were confused. After thinking about it, Su Fei asked: “Brother Fu, you sat with RIP. What’s wrong with him? Didn’t sleep well on the plane, woke up on the wrong side of the bed? Why does he look like someone owes him a million?”

Fu Cheng thought for a moment, expression sincere: “Probably because the plane was too noisy, Teacher Zhuo didn’t rest well.”

Lina also felt it was baffling. At this moment, her phone rang. She opened it to look.

[Reid: He has no chance.]

A few seconds passed.

[Reid: No chance in this lifetime!]

Lina suddenly froze; she stopped walking.

Soon, her companions noticed she had fallen behind and stopped one after another to turn and look at her.

Fu Cheng asked in surprise: “Lina?”

Lina’s gaze lingered on Fu Cheng for a few seconds. She shook her head and caught up: “Two months, finally home. I’m in a good mood today, my treat. What do you want to eat? Don’t speak if the per capita is below 1000.”

Su Fei & Old Joseph: “Get ready to swipe your card!”

Entering December, this year was a warm winter.

On Saturday, Fu Cheng went out to pick up a package. While going downstairs, he suddenly received a text message.

[Old Joseph: Hey, Fu, I see you!]

Fu Cheng was stunned and looked around.

[Fu Cheng: Where are you?]

[Old Joseph: Look up, the complex opposite! Su Fei and I are waving at you from the balcony!]

Fu Cheng looked up, squinting at the residential complex across the road. With his excellent eyesight, slowly, he finally saw the two people standing on the balcony looking at him with binoculars and waving at the same time.

[Old Joseph: Dear Fu, want to come to our house for dinner? I made my signature pasta!]

Half an hour later, Fu Cheng rang the doorbell. Old Joseph and Su Fei happily opened the door for him. As soon as he entered, Old Joseph gave him a warm hug.

“Come quickly, we are eating. There are pizza and pasta, and the best whiskey!”

Pizza and pasta—shouldn’t they be followed by red wine?

This sentence flashed quickly through Fu Cheng’s mind, but he smiled, changed shoes, and entered the room.

The apartments UAAG gave to employees were all one hundred square meters, two bedrooms and one living room, but occupied by only one person. This was Old Joseph’s apartment; Su Fei lived opposite him. There wasn’t much furniture in the spacious living room; it was all model room design. If placed in IKEA, it could completely serve as a standard suite.

The only special thing was the projector Old Joseph bought at his own expense.

At this moment, the coffee table in the living room was full of pizza and pasta, and the projection screen showed a plane taking off. The captain and co-pilot were chatting happily. The captain glanced at the shimmering Hudson River outside the window and sighed with emotion: “Today’s Hudson River is truly as beautiful as ever.”

Fu Cheng instantly understood.

Sure enough, the next second, the plane engine encountered a bird strike, and all four engines failed. The experienced captain calmly piloted the plane, rushing towards the Hudson River without looking back…

Successful forced landing.

Fu Cheng took a piece of pizza, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: “Why suddenly think of watching air crash documentaries?”

Su Fei’s eyes widened: “You don’t know?”

Old Joseph was also extremely surprised: “You don’t know?”

Fu Cheng: “…What should I know?”

Su Fei and Old Joseph looked at each other.

“Next week Air Crash Investigation is coming to Shanghai to interview UAAG; they are doing an episode about JAL 917.”

“…”

Why would I know this!

Su Fei was nervous and expectant: “Will they interview me? What clothes should I wear, a suit? Always feels a bit weird.”

Old Joseph: “Hehe, leave this opportunity to you young people. Representing NTSB, I’ve been on Air Crash Investigation several times, and Seconds From Disaster. Found it interesting the first time on the show; after being on it many times, it just feels like that.”

Fu Cheng was surprised: “Old Joseph, you’ve been on the show?”

Su Fei searched directly for the episode list: “Which episode of Air Crash Investigation? Quick, tell us, let’s watch it immediately!”

“Season 17…”

Everyone opened Old Joseph’s episode of Air Crash Investigation. Unfortunately, Old Joseph’s total screen time in each episode didn’t exceed three or four minutes. After watching, they still relished it. Old Joseph said seriously: “I had more hair back then.”

Chatting a bit more about Old Joseph’s glorious history, Fu Cheng picked up a piece of pizza and took two bites.

Old Joseph leaned over: “By the way, Fu, I’ve always been very curious. You are so young, only 26, why retire suddenly? I used to be in the US Air Force too, later transferred to civil aviation when I got older, became a civil aviation pilot. You were already a carrier-based aircraft pilot, with a bright future ahead; why retire suddenly?”

Fu Cheng’s hand stopped in mid-air.

Su Fei also said: “Yeah, flying an aircraft carrier, how awesome. I don’t even submit to RIP, I only submit to you.”

Fu Cheng thought for a moment, put down the pizza, and smiled: “Probably because being in the air force is too tiring? I was in a very bad state for a while, just happened to encounter some family issues, couldn’t carry out high-intensity training, and the training effect wasn’t good. Later, simply transferred to civil aviation to have more time to rest and adjust my mindset.”

Old Joseph: “What a pity; you are an excellent pilot.”

The group didn’t dwell on Fu Cheng’s topic for long.

Old Joseph lowered his voice mysteriously: “Our party today is almost over; there must be an easter egg at the end. My dear friends, secretly telling you, I probably know why Reid is so poor.”

Su Fei’s eyes lit up: “Tell quickly!”

Old Joseph sighed deliberately to create suspense, then dragged out his tone. Only after Su Fei urged impatiently a few times did he say smilingly: “McFly F485, you know it right?”

Su Fei: “Of course I know, one of McFly’s current flagship models, RIP’s masterpiece; the chief designer of this plane is RIP.”

“Then do you know Rogue Airlines 318?”

Su Fei was stunned, thought for a while: “Ah, that plane that fell into the Pacific Ocean four and a half years ago? Oh right, it was a McFly F485.”

Old Joseph clapped his hands: “That’s right! Four and a half years ago, Rogue 318 fell into the Pacific Ocean. Search teams searched for a full three and a half years and didn’t find it. Generally, after an air crash, the country where the accident occurred leads. For example, Rogue 318, the airspace where it crashed belonged to Canada, so this matter should be the responsibility of the Transportation Safety Board of Canada. But there were over 200 American citizens on Rogue 318, so the NTSB also intervened.”

Su Fei: “Then what does this have to do with RIP?”

Old Joseph: “This plane is McFly’s. When an accident happens, McFly also needs to send personnel to assist in the investigation. At that time, I was still at NTSB. Heard that Reid Irvin Patrick personally joined the investigation team; all of us NTSB investigators couldn’t believe it. The chief designer personally joining the investigation team seemed a bit like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut no matter how you looked at it. It was that time I had brief contact and cooperation with Reid. But later I went to investigate other air crashes and didn’t stay in the team.”

Recalling matters from four years ago, Old Joseph couldn’t help showing emotion, and Su Fei nodded repeatedly in curiosity.

They didn’t notice that the moment Old Joseph mentioned Rogue 318, the smile on Fu Cheng’s face vanished instantly. He listened to the two talking with a calm expression, listening only and not speaking, then picked up the glass in front of him.

That was the whiskey Old Joseph poured for him an hour ago, but he hadn’t drunk it. He never liked drinking.

Once, he never smoked either.

Su Fei: “No, you’ve been talking till now, still haven’t explained why RIP is poor? Eh, but is he really poor? Giving a street artist ten thousand euros! I also want to become such a poor person.”

Old Joseph shook his finger: “Yesterday I had the same thought as you; I also wanted to become such a poor person. But today, I changed my mind. My good friend Lawrence at NTSB told me Reid did one thing. A year ago, as the person in charge of the Rogue 318 air crash investigation team, he announced stopping the recovery of the black box and ceased investigation. Hey, Su, don’t look at me like that, I’m not talking nonsense, although you know all these things. I’m getting to the point soon, okay…”

“Why stop the investigation? Because fishing a plane out of the Pacific Ocean is really too difficult; it’s a bottomless pit. Every day, every minute and second, the investigation team is throwing money into it. A day costs at least hundreds of thousands of dollars! Even though the US government later invested another eighty million dollars, they still didn’t find it.”

“However, the day after the official stop of recovery… Reid not only didn’t stop the investigation, he even increased salvage efforts, in a private capacity, contacting three exploration companies simultaneously to salvage Rogue 318’s wreckage together! And this matter, he has been doing quietly for a whole year!”

“Sigh, our friend is truly a persistent person. One exploration company’s daily expense is hundreds of thousands of dollars; salvaging with three companies together, that’s millions of dollars a day! I sincerely admire Reid; he is not a stingy person. I take back all my previous complaints and slander against him.”

Old Joseph blinked and continued to reveal: “Heard from Lawrence that Reid has sold his 27 properties globally and 1 yacht, including that small island in the Atlantic.”

Su Fei listened with his mouth wide open, suddenly not knowing what to say.

Old Joseph sighed long and raised his glass: “To our persistent and great friend.”

“Clink—”

The glass collided with the marble tabletop, making a crisp sound. Old Joseph and Su Fei looked up together, but neither could see Fu Cheng’s expression clearly. The black-haired young man lowered his head, quickly left a sentence “I’m going to the restroom,” and strode away hurriedly.

The bathroom door was slammed shut.

In the living room, Old Joseph and Su Fei looked at each other in dismay.

In the bathroom, somewhat long hair fell in front of his eyes, blocking the mottled and bizarre world.

The sound of car horns downstairs and the wind vibrated the bathroom window together, while indoors, there was only immutable, almost eternal silence.

Fu Cheng supported himself on both sides of the sink with his hands, panting heavily, trying his best to breathe. Suddenly, he jerked his head up, looking at himself in the mirror. His ear tips and cheeks had turned blood-red due to drinking strong liquor for the first time, hot and flushed. But the reddest were those eyes, baptized by alcohol and moist from excitement.

His heart beat fervently in his chest once again.

Heartbeats sounded as if right by his ears.

Fingers were burning, lips were trembling.

With trembling hands, Fu Cheng picked up his phone and found that person’s name. For a moment, thousands of words surged into his heart. However, in the end, when all was silent, only that one phrase remained.

[Fu Cheng: Teacher Zhuo.]

Shanghai, a high-end villa district, second-floor bedroom.

The quilt was messily blocking the waist, just right to cover the parts that should be covered, revealing only lean and beautiful muscles. No one knew Reid Irvin Patrick liked to sleep naked, just as few knew how terrible it would be if he was woken up while sleeping.

The sudden message notification sound broke the silence in the room. The owner of this bedroom was adjusting to jet lag, and obviously, he was a neurasthenic person who was extremely easily awakened. A short phone notification sound made him wake up immediately, grabbing the phone irritably to check the message.

Heh.

[Zhuo Huan: Something up?]

Fu Cheng suddenly didn’t know what to say.

[Zhuo Huan: Sleeping, shut up if nothing.]

Fu Cheng: “…”

In the bedroom, the man threw the phone directly; it landed on the soft wool carpet without making a sound. He was truly exhausted to the extreme, having absolutely no mind to pay attention to outside matters, and fell back into deep sleep in a blink of an eye.

On the other side, inside the bathroom of the UAAG employee apartment.

Fu Cheng looked at the two short lines of words on the phone screen. After a long while, he smiled, clicked on this man’s avatar, and opened the remark.

Remark: Teacher Zhuo.

Stared at it for a while.

Deleted that extremely sarcastic “Teacher Zhuo” and seriously changed it to two words.

—Zhuo Huan.

“Zhuo Huan.”

Author’s Note:

Zhuo Rest-in-Peace: Heh, having a crush on me is useless, you have no chance! Even if I, Zhuo Rest-in-Peace, jump down from here, even if I die, it’s impossible for me to be with you!
Half a year later—
Zhuo Rest-in-Peace: So delicious! (meaning: “I take it back/I love it”)

Fu Chengcheng’s feelings for our Rest-in-Peace are very complicated, but it’s definitely not “like”; before, it was absolutely Rest-in-Peace being presumptuous!
As for Rest-in-Peace’s feelings for Chengcheng, feel it for yourselves 23333

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