At that moment, Jiang Cheng in the emergency command room hadn't even had time to glance at his phone.
All he heard was the sudden chime of the system alert in his mind.
Zhou Ying: Favorability +5!
Ding! Because Zhou Ying's favorability toward the Host has reached 99, the title Never Part Ways Until Death is unlocked; the Host will receive a special gift pack.
Right now, Jiang Cheng had no time to wonder why Zhou Ying's favorability had soared to 99.
He felt no joy at all, nor had he any time to examine it.
At this instant, Jiang Cheng's only thought was to follow the system's calculation and immediately contact the captains of both aircraft.
"Mr. Jiang, if you take command… this is no small matter. There are nearly four hundred passengers on those two planes…"
Jiang Cheng understood Zhao Qiming's concerns.
He was an outsider; in an emergency like this, it was hardly his place to step in and give orders.
But the system had already provided the solution, and Jiang Cheng had no time to argue.
"Enough crap—get lost."
Seeing that Zhao Qiming dared not hand over command, Jiang Cheng shot a look at Wang Sheng.
Wang Sheng stepped forward at once, shoved Zhao Qiming aside, pulled a special ID from his pocket, flipped it open, and showed it to the staff.
The instant they saw the badge, the controllers scattered.
No one condemned Jiang Cheng's domineering manner; instead, they were grateful.
After all, no one wanted responsibility.
On the B500 aircraft rolling for take-off, the captain spotted a small gray dot moving ahead.
Cold sweat instantly broke out on his back.
From experience, that gray dot was almost certainly another aircraft taxiing.
His own plane carried nearly two hundred passengers.
Following normal schedule, he began accelerating down the runway for take-off.
By strict safety rules, no obstacle may block the runway during take-off.
How could another taxiing aircraft suddenly appear?
In panic, the captain reached for the transponder.
Only then did he realize it wasn't switched on.
He flicked it on and urgently called, "Tower, tower, there's an aircraft on the runway, please respond."
The captain of the other aircraft, still taxiing as planned, heard the sudden transmission.
His face darkened like a heavy storm cloud.
Reflexively, he tightened his grip on the yoke, knuckles whitening as he prepared emergency evasive action.
Everyone knew that with full fuel,
no collision could be risked. Even on the ground,
the slightest contact on the runway would spell disaster.
The instant he hit the brakes, the data on Jiang Cheng's system shifted.
Seeing the two jets about to collide, Jiang Cheng snatched the microphone and shouted, "B500, do not brake—accelerate hard! Follow my orders. In ten seconds, pull up and attempt take-off!"
In this situation, stomping the brakes would only cause a catastrophic loss of control.
He switched channels and called the B320 Zhou Ying was aboard: "B320, keep the aircraft stable and brake as hard as you can to slow the roll."
Both captains, startled by Jiang Cheng's voice, obeyed without hesitation.
In this life-or-death moment, they could only trust the emergency command center.
"B500, roger. Accelerating now. Request countdown…"
"B320, roger. Emergency braking in progress, trying to slow down."
Released from brakes, B500 surged forward.
"B500 at 240 kph, not yet at critical take-off speed; when do we rotate?"
Jiang Cheng could hear the tremor in the captain's voice over the radio.
Calmly, he said, "I'll count—rotate in five seconds."
The B500 captain, startled, obeyed at once.
He hauled back on the yoke; the nose lifted, engines roaring as the jet clawed for altitude.
Nose up, engines thundering, the aircraft struggled to climb.
Meanwhile, B320 braked with all its might.
Metal shrieked and sparks flew; the aircraft shuddered violently.
Passengers were flung about; luggage rained from bins.
Flight Attendants lost their footing and collapsed.
The captain fought to keep the plane straight, sweat pouring off his brow.
"Hold steady—hold steady!" he yelled.
In the command room, Jiang Cheng's heart leapt into his throat.
Seconds later, B500 and B320 flashed past each other with barely five seconds to spare.