"Mr. Huang He!" the pilot exclaimed, looking at the man before him with disbelief. If there was any face in China most familiar to the world, it would undoubtedly be the face of our Boss Huang.
China's situation and culture differ from many other countries. If you were to ask which face is the most recognizable in China, it would certainly be the faces of a few specific individuals.
However, in countries like the United States, the faces they are most familiar with are not their presidents, but their wealthiest individuals. Similarly, if you ask people in these countries who they fear the most.
The answer from ordinary citizens might be split fifty-fifty, with half fearing their president and the other half fearing those who are richest.
If you were to ask the middle class in these countries, then without a doubt, they fear the wealthy the most. This is because these middle-class elites know very well that presidents are not that scary. Once they step down from their positions, they immediately become ordinary middle-class citizens like themselves.
Perhaps some readers might get excited at this point, thinking this is how power should be. But in reality, it's the opposite. Precisely because these individuals become ordinary middle-class people after leaving office, they have many reservations and concerns about their own future when they are president.
Therefore, they would never dare to truly offend those financial magnates. After all, their power is temporary, but the wealth of those financial magnates is permanent. These financial magnates are the most terrifying people. They hide in the darkness, holding unimaginable wealth. If they were to pluck a single strand of hair from themselves, they could instantly drive countless desperate individuals into a frenzy.
Thus, the pilot immediately recognized the man before him as the world's richest man, Huang He of Jiangnan Group. He instantly stood up in panic, his expression changing like a neon sign, his hands and feet restless, unsure of what to do.
"Sit down, let's continue practicing our spoken English!" Huang He said with a smile. "Weren't we having a pleasant conversation just now? And actually, you don't need to be afraid of me, because you are my benefactor. If you hadn't flown the plane smoothly into Chinese airspace, I would probably be stuck at a European airport like my other employees!"
"Yes... yes... yes..." The pilot stammered, unsure of what to say. This was because he knew very well that the order he had received was to fly the plane directly to the United States. Something had happened midway, which is why they were flying to China according to the original plan.
But who would have known that Huang He would appear on his plane? Thinking of this, the pilot glanced at the coffin. If he wasn't mistaken, the person lying inside was truly dead!
"Well... actually... I didn't exert much effort. There's no one in the cockpit right now, and the plane is actually on autopilot!" the pilot said nervously. "Why don't you let me go back to the cabin? I wouldn't dare let you suffer even the slightest harm!"
"..." Boss Huang was speechless for a moment. The cockpit was empty, and he was having such a lively conversation with the pilot. He truly had a narrow escape.
"Boss, you don't need to worry. Our people have already taken over the entire cockpit. Someone has been in there all along," a burly man sitting next to Boss Huang said promptly.
The pilot was stunned for a moment, then looked towards the cockpit. He clearly remembered leaving the cockpit door open. Now it was closed. This indicated that someone else had entered the cockpit and was now controlling the plane.
If he wasn't mistaken, these people should be from Jiangnan Group. They were probably afraid that the enemy would turn the plane around and fly to another country if they knew the truth. So, they had taken over the entire control of the plane while he and the co-pilot were out of the cockpit, ensuring the aircraft's correct heading.
Seeing the pilot's somewhat flustered appearance, Boss Huang chuckled and said, "Pilot, please don't worry. I've brought experienced pilots with me. The least experienced one has at least 18,000 hours of flight experience. We can land safely!"
"Yes, then I have no worries. I'll continue chatting with you!" the pilot said with a forced smile.
"Good!" The two then continued their conversation, as if practicing spoken English, until a stern-faced man suddenly walked out of the cockpit and whispered a few words into Boss Huang's ear.
"Pilot, you've received a communication!" Huang He said with a smile. "They aren't reacting too slowly. They've specifically come to ask you if I and the deceased are on the plane. What do you say?"
"No, neither of you are on this plane!" the pilot said, shaking his head repeatedly.
"Hahaha, there's no need to be so nervous. We are already in Chinese airspace, and no one can harm us. So you can confidently go to the cockpit and tell them the truth!" Huang He said with a smile. He then accompanied the pilot into the cockpit. During this process, the pilot discovered with a bitter smile that there was a Jiangnan Group staff member beside each crew member. Clearly, the entire crew had been taken control of.
Soon, they entered the cockpit. At the same time, the pilot in the co-pilot's seat handed his headset to the captain.
The pilot put on the headset, and after hearing the inquiries from the person on the other end, he replied in as calm a tone as possible, "Yes, Mr. Huang He is on our plane. I was just chatting with him, so I didn't reply to you immediately!"
The pilot's words clearly caused a long silence on the other end before the voice continued to speak.
"Yes, I understand what you mean, but we are now in Chinese airspace, and the plane's fuel does not support us changing our route. We will land at a Chinese airport according to the original plan. No order can stop our decision."
"Yes, please calm down, and don't make me choose the consequences, because I have no choice!" the pilot said, ending the communication, and looking at Huang He with a bitter expression.
"What, he threatened you?" Boss Huang asked with a smile.
"Yes, he told me to turn the plane around and land at an airport in another country, or else my children would be in trouble!" the pilot said with pain in his voice. From their conversation, it was evident that the pilot loved his children dearly.
"Then why didn't you just tell them that the plane's control is not in your hands, and you can't change the route even if you wanted to?" Boss Huang asked curiously.
"If I said that, they could use this recording to accuse your team of hijacking the flight, which is a serious violation of international aviation safety laws. I cannot say that!" the pilot said, lowering his head.
"You are very smart!" Boss Huang nodded. "Don't worry. Since you've considered me, I won't let you suffer. Furthermore, our previous conversation was very pleasant. I can hire you as a pilot for Jiangnan Airlines, with double the salary of your previous airline."
"As for your children and relatives, our staff in the United States are already by their side, protecting their safety. If you trust us, you can call them now and have them accept our protection. At the same time, we will immediately arrange a plane to send them to other safe countries and then fly them to China."
"Didn't you say your children really like Chinese anime and culture? Coincidentally, I can also arrange for them to study, learn, and live in China. After a few years, when things calm down, you can go wherever you want!" Huang He said with a smile. "Of course, you can also have them make no changes. Our Jiangnan Group staff will all leave them, and you can return to the United States immediately. These are all your rights; you can decide for yourself!"
"..." Hearing this, the pilot gasped. Jiangnan Group's people must have found his wife and children not long ago. They had likely been monitoring his wife and children early on, and as soon as the plane departed, they had "protected" them.
This protection was to ensure he could fly the plane smoothly and safely to China without any problems.
This way, even if Goldman Sachs discovered Huang He was on the private jet immediately, Huang He could firmly control the entire private jet. Is this the terrifying power of financial magnates?
The pilot couldn't help but shiver, then said, "I understand. Please let me speak with my children."
Soon, the satellite phone was connected, and the pilot contacted his frightened wife and children. He then did his best to help his wife and children calm down, telling them to absolutely accept the protection of the Jiangnan Group staff around them, especially to cooperate with them to go to China, because their family would be living in China for the next decade.
While the pilot was arranging his family matters, Professor Parkinson also received relevant intelligence, but he was no longer willing to say anything.
Although after several unsuccessful checks, Professor Parkinson had guessed the truth before the plane landed, the private jet was already in Chinese airspace, and the crew members were clearly under the other party's tight control. He could no longer hope to get both Boss Huang and the specimen.
"Sir, how should we handle the Jiangnan Group's private jet next?" the secretary asked cautiously. "China has already lodged multiple protests, and we haven't found any illegal activities. The European Union is no longer willing to cooperate with us!"
"Let them go!" Professor Parkinson waved his hand wearily. "We still have business to do with Jiangnan Group. It's not good to completely alienate them. Let them go!"