The row of seats behind Ling Tian was occupied by a family of three: a couple and their five or six-year-old son.
This was precisely the age where children are often a nuisance, but this particular child, perhaps spoiled by his family, had been shouting and making a racket since they boarded the plane.
Before takeoff, he had even run around the cabin, and only after the flight attendants had spoken to him several times did the unruly child quiet down a bit.
After takeoff, however, the child was like a live monkey, bouncing on his seat, peering out the window, and most annoyingly, constantly kicking Ling Tian's seat.
Ling Tian was busy discussing matters with Old Zhou and initially paid it no mind. But the child was relentless, kicking the seat with increasing frequency and force, until Ling Tian could bear it no longer.
Ling Tian turned around directly and said to the child's mother, "Madam, could you please manage your child properly and ask him to stop kicking my seat back? Since your child boarded the plane, he has kicked my seat back over twenty times!"
Unexpectedly, the woman rolled her eyes. "Oh, my child is only six years old. Why would you bother with a child?"
"This has nothing to do with age. An airplane is public transportation, and this is a public space. Observing public order is the most basic decency! Furthermore, a six-year-old child is not that young; he should be sensible. Even if the child doesn't understand, you should teach him!" Ling Tian retorted.
The child's father immediately glared. "What? How I raise my child is none of your business! Who are you, some kid who just got out of school, pretending to be sophisticated with your pig's nose stuffed with scallions?"
The man was burly and imposing, clearly someone not to be trifled with.
Ling Tian sneered, "As parents, it is your duty to educate your children properly! If you parents don't teach your children well, then only society and prison will educate them in the future!"
"Oh, young man, you dare speak to me like that? Do you believe I'll kill you!" the man said, enraged.
"Then try and touch me. Come on! Don't say I didn't warn you. This is an airplane. If you dare to lay a hand on me, you'll be detained for 15 days, guaranteed!"
"You... you just wait for me! Don't leave when we get off the plane..."
The man, thankfully, hadn't completely lost his reason. Ling Tian's reminder made him realize the gravity of the situation.
The woman beside him chimed in, "That's right, honey. As soon as we get off the plane, call some people. How dare he talk to us like that? I'll teach him a lesson!"
The couple egged each other on, and their unruly child, emboldened by his parents' support, actually lifted his leg and kicked the back of Ling Tian's seat twice more.
At this point, Zhou Jianguo, who was sitting nearby, couldn't stand it any longer. "Excuse me, you two. This is a public place, and your child has been causing trouble since boarding. You should manage him..."
The man glared. "Old man, what business is it of yours! My child isn't kicking your seat, so why are you interfering? Did your pants come loose and expose you!"
"You..." Zhou Jianguo was so angered by the man that he couldn't speak. Ling Tian stepped forward and patted Zhou Jianguo's shoulder.
"Brother Zhou, don't be angry. It's not worth it to get angry with these people!"
Ling Tian turned his head to look at the unruly child. A smile played on his lips, but his eyes were fixed on the child. Their gazes met.
In that instant, Ling Tian exuded a chilling killing intent. This killing intent was only perceptible to the child. In that moment, the child felt as if the man before him was the most terrifying creature he had ever encountered. All the terrifying creatures he had seen in movies and on television throughout his life seemed to project onto Ling Tian. He couldn't bear it and began to tremble uncontrollably.
Just then, the woman noticed that her son's pants were wet.
"Damn, this kid is really something. Such a big kid, and he peed his pants."
"Exactly. Like father, like son. Look at these parents, they're terrible, so how can their child be any good..."
"Son, son, what's wrong?" the woman asked, shaking her son's body. But the child's face was deathly pale, as if his soul had been snatched away.
Seeing this, the child's father became furious. "What did you do to my son?"
Ling Tian spread his hands and shrugged. "You can't just say things. Everyone saw it, I didn't do anything! Perhaps the child knows he did wrong and feels ashamed of his actions, wanting to repent."
"Yes, yes, we can testify. This young man really did nothing. The child cried on his own."
"Exactly, exactly. Of course, he should repent after doing such a thing..."
The onlookers, enjoying the spectacle, chimed in with agreement.
At this moment, the flight attendants noticed the commotion and rushed over. Seeing that the child had wet himself, they suggested the parents move to empty seats at the back of the plane, where they could help clean him up.
The parents, realizing they had incurred the wrath of everyone, had no choice but to follow the flight attendants to the back seats. The cabin instantly became peaceful.
Zhou Jianguo leaned closer to Ling Tian. "Ling Tian, what did you do to that child? He was scared into peeing himself just like that?"
Ling Tian chuckled. "Brother Zhou, you can't just say things like that. Everyone saw it, I really didn't do anything. Perhaps the child had a change of heart, or maybe he had a bad dream and got scared. Who knows... But a child like that, if his parents don't discipline him properly, he might cause even bigger trouble in the future."
"Yes, you're right!" Old Zhou nodded in agreement.
Several hours later, the plane landed at the Kyoto airport. Ling Tian bid farewell to Old Zhou. Old Zhou left with a worried expression, still preoccupied with how to recover the欠款 for his goods. As for Ling Tian's proposal to collaborate, he hadn't taken it seriously, mainly because Ling Tian was too young.
After disembarking, Ling Tian sent the information about Old Zhou and the Shahe Village Winery to Ling Yin. Soon, Ling Yin sent back a message. The intelligence indicated that the situation Old Zhou described was largely accurate, but they were facing much greater pressure than he had mentioned. Ling Yin also revealed that the boss, Mr. Fang, seemed to be deliberately withholding payment, attempting to force Boss Zhou to sell the winery.