The smile vanished from Lin Chen's face as soon as he hung up the phone.
*Two plane malfunctions in just a few months... that's highly unusual.*
Lin Chen thought to himself.
The probability of a plane crash is extremely low.
While the probability of a malfunction is higher than that of a crash, his family experiencing two such incidents in such a short period still far exceeded the normal statistical probability.
*Beep beep!*
Lin Chen dialed Tianlang's number.
"Mr. Lin, what can I do for you?" Tianlang answered quickly.
"Tianlang, are you aware of the malfunction on the plane my in-laws were on? I suspect this incident isn't as simple as it seems."
Tianlang's expression turned grave. "I am aware, Mr. Lin."
"Do you think this might be sabotage?"
"We bought foreign-made aircraft, and nearly all of them have backdoors. Someone could have tampered with it through those backdoors. Can I inspect the plane?"
"If you file a formal request, you should be able to. However, Douyin Corporation likely won't allow you to inspect it alone. You'd be exposed."
"Your chances of exposure are already high, but it's better than the 100% certainty if you come forward with the inspection."
"If this was sabotage, the accident might have been targeting you... Someone within our ranks could be compromised."
Lin Chen pondered for a moment. "Those who know I understand aircraft are either the professors and academicians, or the two men who brought me books."
"The professors and academicians know my capabilities but not my identity; the book-bringers know me but not my capabilities."
Tianlang said solemnly, "Mr. Lin, we'll investigate immediately. If there's any foul play, we'll uncover it."
"Mr. Lin, please refrain from investigating yourself for now."
"We'll get to the bottom of this for you."
"Alright," Lin Chen agreed.
After hanging up, Tianlang swiftly contacted his superiors. If sabotage was confirmed, the matter would be treated with utmost seriousness.
In the Imperial Capital, the plane landed smoothly.
The passengers were completely unaware they had narrowly escaped death.
"What's going on? Police, fire trucks, and ambulances everywhere."
"Must be a plane in distress."
"Good thing it wasn't our flight."
Through the windows, passengers saw a cluster of vehicles parked in the distance, sparking lively speculation. Little did they know, those vehicles had been dispatched because of their very flight.
During the flight, they had heard an unusual sound, but no problems had followed.
After the passengers had disembarked, the plane slowly taxied into the hangar.
A group of experts prepared to board the aircraft. Several of them were foreign specialists.
"Please wait a moment."
Several National Security personnel rushed over.
"Experts, please don't board the plane just yet. Our security department needs to rule out the possibility of a terrorist attack. This is for your own safety."
A foreign expert complained, "It was just an ordinary accident. Why are you dragging terrorism into this?"
"Exactly."
"This seems like overreacting."
The other experts chimed in with similar remarks.
A middle-aged man leading the National Security team replied, "Experts, we understand your eagerness to find out the cause. But we have our own procedures to follow."
"We ask for your understanding as well."
The National Security personnel boarded the plane first, conducting thorough inspections and documentation throughout the aircraft.
Meanwhile, other teams were investigating elsewhere, primarily searching for spies.
Lin Chen's true identity as Lin Yu was almost certainly known to top foreign intelligence agencies. It was natural for such agencies to keep an eye on him.
If they discovered he had been studying numerous aviation books, some might go to extreme lengths to verify this information.
However, Lin Chen considered this scenario unlikely.
The most likely scenario was that one of the professors or academicians he had contacted had been compromised. This person knew how comprehensive his knowledge was.
They didn't know his identity, but once the information was leaked, intelligence agencies would likely suspect him.
Sabotaging the plane his in-laws were on to test his capabilities would make perfect sense.
Even if he hadn't intervened, Lin Chen estimated that someone would have eventually stepped forward to "help" resolve the issue.
*The tree longs for stillness, but the wind never ceases,* Lin Chen muttered to himself.
*Beep beep!*
His phone rang. It was Xu Guofeng.
"Dad, are you and Mom okay?" Lin Chen asked immediately, answering the call.
"We're fine, but now that I think about it, something about this doesn't feel right. Maybe I shouldn't have contacted you—I might have brought you trouble," Xu Guofeng replied.
"Dad, I understand what you mean," Lin Chen said. "But we can't take that gamble. The consequences of losing are too severe."
Now that the situation was resolved, he could see that even if he hadn't acted, someone else would have likely stepped in to "help." But in that moment, he had absolutely not dared to gamble.
The plane carried all the passengers, including his in-laws.
And it was flying to the Imperial Capital!
If this was true, it was a conspiracy disguised as an open plot.
"Lin Chen, you should take the high-speed rail instead," Xu Guofeng said, sounding shaken.
"Okay," Lin Chen replied. He didn't want to risk flying now.
After hanging up, Lin Chen called Xu Mengyao.
"Honey, why are we suddenly switching to the high-speed rail?" Xu Mengyao asked, puzzled.
Switching to the high-speed rail meant they had to leave today. She needed to leave work early, as the Song Family's birthday banquet was at noon tomorrow.
"I want Qianqian to experience it," Lin Chen said.
"Alright... I'll leave work early."
"Liang Ye will take me to the station. We'll meet there."
Xu Mengyao didn't press further.
Lin Chen's answer might have a special reason behind it.
"I'll book the tickets."
"Okay."
Lin Chen quickly booked the high-speed rail tickets.
For ordinary people, flying was safer. But for a high-speed rail traveling 300 kilometers per hour, an accident would have a mortality rate not much different from a plane crash.
While commercial flights have a lower accident rate, Lin Chen felt high-speed rail was safer. If an accident occurred, he could protect himself, Xu Mengyao, and Lin Xiaoqian.
In the evening, Lin Chen and Lin Xiaoqian arrived at the high-speed rail station. They didn't wait long before Xu Mengyao arrived.
"Mommy!" Lin Xiaoqian exclaimed joyfully.
"Husband, have you been waiting long?" Xu Mengyao asked, hugging Lin Xiaoqian.
Lin Chen smiled. "Less than ten minutes. Let's get inside quickly—the train departs in half an hour."
Soon, the group boarded the high-speed rail. Lin Chen had booked business class seats, which were very comfortable. Lin Xiaoqian looked around with wide-eyed curiosity.
She had always traveled long distances by private jet before.
"Daddy, can you fold a train?" Lin Xiaoqian asked in her childish voice.
Lin Chen shook his head. "Daddy doesn't know how to do that. Trains are so long—I don't know how to fold one. If you're bored, Qianqian, I can teach you how to fold an airplane instead?"
"Okay!" Lin Xiaoqian giggled.
Lin Chen had brought a stack of paper for folding airplanes, and Lin Xiaoqian diligently followed his lead, folding them carefully.
Xu Mengyao sat nearby, watching them with a sweet smile.
Five minutes passed, and Lin Chen began accumulating experience in airplane manufacturing.
His airplane manufacturing skill had reached the Grandmaster level.
This was a high level, but it still wasn't enough!
-----------------------
Completed English PDF of this fan-fic on my Patreon shop if you want to support and own the full fan-fic in one go. Just grab the PDF and binge the entire story from start to finish!
Guys, I've uploaded some High Quality english translated fanfic on my Patreon shop! Feel free to check it out-if you're interested, you can grab a copy and support me there.
Here are a few titles of recently uploaded fanfics:
New Addition:
" Dragon Ball: Mr. Satan's Bull-Headed Legend (18+) "
" Chaos Lightning Cultivator "
" After Drugging My Senior Sister, I Can No Longer Hide (18+) "
" The Clueless Girl Gets Fu**ed Every Day (18+) "
" Threatening Heroine at Start—Now the Male Lead Is Wearing the Green Hat (18+) "
" The Succubus Who Just Wants to Slack Off NPH (18+) "
" A Goddess Celebrity Brings Kids My Door, Working Construction Carrying (18+) "
" Houtarou Oreki in the Classroom of the Elite 18+ "
Your support means a lot-thanks in advance, legends!
many more are available 85+
patreon.com/RoyalStories
(End of Chapter