After chatting with Yang Tian and Deng Peng for a while, Yang Tian saw that Xu Cang had no interest in sightseeing, so he took him to eat. After walking around, Xu Cang couldn't stand the appearance of the food, so he ended up eating fish and chips.
Although Xu Cang knew that there was a lack of delicious food in the UK, he had a clearer understanding of this statement after experiencing it personally.
It is a food desert, literally.
After returning to the hotel, Xu Cang played in the water in the hotel's swimming pool for a while, then walked around again. When he was tired enough, he fell asleep as soon as he got on the plane.
About two and a half hours before takeoff, Xu Cang was still leisurely ordering food at the hotel. Anyway, it was all on Luo Luo's bill. The hotel was near the airport, and Luo Luo arranged a car to come over, so Xu Cang didn't have to worry at all.
This hotel is of good quality, but not top-notch. It's not that Luo Luo was unwilling to arrange a top-notch hotel for Xu Cang, but it's close to the airport and the test flight airport at the Luo Luo headquarters, and it's the middle point between the two, so it's more convenient for the trip.
Xu Cang packed his luggage in advance and came to the restaurant dragging the suitcase. After eating, he checked out and went to the airport.
“Beef tripe soup.”
Just as Xu Cang ordered the dishes, Jonathan's voice rang out beside him: "This is an Italian dish, it must be served with Milanese risotto."
"Milan... risotto?" Xu Cang didn't even turn around to look at Jonathan. Instead, he flipped through the pages and found the Milan risotto. "I'll have one serving of this, too."
"Two servings!" Jonathan sat down opposite Xu Cang and raised two fingers to the waiter.
"You want to eat here too?" Xu Cang put down the menu: "You order something, you should be more experienced."
Jonathan didn't refuse. He took the menu directly and quickly said a few names of dishes, some of which Xu Cang couldn't understand.
It can be seen that Jonathan is good at eating, at least he is quite good at ordering food.
Closing the menu, Jonathan chuckled and said, "Due to special reasons, I can only eat here casually and make do with it."
"I understand." Xu Cang didn't care. He was easy to talk to. "But, is there any solution over in the Alps?"
Jonathan's expression became a little ugly when he mentioned that. He shook his head and said, "No, the snowstorm has become stronger. EASA has extended the temporary notice of the no-fly zone. It seems that there is really no way out. The feedback from the manor is that some people have been frostbitten. The situation is not optimistic."
"Someone got frostbite already? Don't high-end resorts have warm clothes? Even if there's a food shortage, people won't get frostbite, right?"
"That's not the case. The manor over there has a dedicated central heating system, powered by electricity and with a diesel engine as a backup. Under normal circumstances, the manor can maintain a suitable temperature, so there are not many warm things in the manor. As a result, the circuit of the heating system was frozen , and after so many days, the diesel reserve has also been used up."
Xu Cang was speechless after hearing this. It turned out that he was too confident in his heating system.
"Xu Cang..."
As soon as Jonathan opened his mouth, Xu Cang raised his hand and said, "I told you I can't help you with this."
"I know. I'm talking about something else." Jonathan said, "According to the information we received, there will be a Boeing 7E7 press conference tomorrow in the United States."
"Well, what's wrong?" Xu Cang took a sip of the fruit and vegetable soup and felt that it tasted pretty good.
Jonathan's expression became more serious. "The power system selection for the 7E7 project will be announced at the meeting. It will be GM's GENx and Pratt & Whitney's PW4000-112."
"PW4000-112?" Xu Cang's right hand holding the soup bowl paused in the air: "Isn't this the engine for the early models of the Boeing 777?"
"Yes, that's right. However, I think that in order to adapt to the Boeing 7E7, the engine will have to make some personalized adjustments. After all, the 7E7 is much smaller than the 777, so the engine diameter is not very suitable." Jonathan pondered for a moment and added: "Of course, this should not be a difficult task for Pratt & Whitney."
"I know this is not a difficult task, but the problem is..." Xu Cang remembered that the engines of Boeing 787 should be GENx and Trent 1000, so why was one of them replaced with PW4000-112?
"Also, the Boeing 7E7 project has been officially renamed Boeing 787, which should be the final model name."
Xu Cang was not surprised by this. In fact, even if it was not from the future, people nowadays could basically guess the model of Boeing 787.
Boeing's naming rules started with the Boeing 727 and 737 more than 40 years ago, the Boeing 747 and 757 30 years ago, the Boeing 767 20 years ago, and finally the recent Boeing 777. According to the numerical development sequence, the next new model should be the Boeing 787.
However, Boeing is said to have intended to break the customary naming rules, but unexpectedly it still followed the tradition in the end.
"This Boeing project was not proposed recently. You should have communicated about it before, right?" The development of things now is different from what Xu Cang expected. At least from this incident, it is very likely a collaboration between General Motors and Pratt & Whitney.
This is not a good thing for Xu Cang.
Jonathan nodded: "This project was born out of the previous Sonic Cruiser project. At that time, Boeing wanted to develop a model that could cruise near the speed of sound, but later gave up and turned to this project. At that time, we actually communicated with Boeing, and they showed great interest in our Trent 1000 engine."
"At the time, the Trent 1000 was still in the theoretical stage and even the prototype had not been built. However, the fuel economy depicted in it was very popular with the project team at the time."
Xu Cang quite agrees with this statement, because the "E" in Boeing 7E7 stands for Efficiency and Economical, among which the most critical one is fuel economy.
GENx is GM's most advanced product, and with the GE90 as a benchmark, it is reasonable for Boeing to choose GENx. However, PW4000-112 is inferior in comparison, otherwise it would not have lost in the competition with GE90.
"This Boeing project is still some time away from commercial launch, and it should be more than enough to wait for your Trent 1000. Why did you announce the choice of power system so early?" No matter from which angle, this situation is very abnormal: "Unless someone specifically approached Boeing and successfully convinced Boeing."
"General Dynamics!" Jonathan gritted his teeth. It was almost obvious.
Boeing prefers GE engines for its aircraft, while Pratt & Whitney and Rolls-Royce engines are mainly supplied to Airbus aircraft. This gives GE a great influence on Boeing, and it definitely has the capital to convince Boeing.
Moreover, GM has the motivation to do so. After all, Rolls-Royce suffered a small loss on the A380. The Trent 900, which could have been the exclusive power system for the A380, was forced to share this big order with the GP7200 engine.
Rolls-Royce has not received a big order for a long time, and Boeing's upcoming 787 project was originally something Rolls-Royce attached great importance to. But now, this chance to turn things around has also been snuffed out.
Xu Cang lowered his brows and said, "Your prospects are not very good ."
Two thousand years later, Rolls-Royce got some benefits from the Boeing 777, the A380 got a small share, but the subsequent A320neo and Boeing 737Max didn't get any benefits at all, and now it seems that the Boeing 787 will also be excluded.
This means that for at least the next 15 years, Rolls-Royce can only rely on its past achievements. For a company that has to invest huge amounts of money in research and development, it is very fatal to have only outflows and no income.
"No, we must fight for the Boeing 787 project." Jonathan said in a deep voice.
Models like the A380, A320Neo and B737Max have already announced their final options, and their power systems cannot be changed. Only the Boeing 787 has room for maneuver, although the possibility is not very high.
The press conference for this kind of project is naturally not the kind of press conference before commercial use, and some things can be changed. However, if you want to change it, you need to pay a lot of price, and even a little luck.
Xu Cang did not respond. It was not easy to respond to such words.
After Jonathan finished speaking, he immediately turned his gaze to Xu Cang and just looked at him quietly, making Xu Cang feel very uncomfortable.
"Why are you looking at me?" Xu Cang said helplessly, "Or do you think I can help you on the Boeing 787?"
"Can you?" Jonathan asked. "You can make some requests if you can."
"I really want to, but it's difficult." Xu Cang sighed, "This matter should be settled, if there are no other accidents."
Jonathan pursed his lips, as if he had accepted his fate, but at the end he suddenly said, "Xu Cang, there is an old saying over there, 'If the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold!'"
Xu Cang smiled and said, "You know a lot."
"Isn't it? General Dynamics has invited you, right? The development of GENx is not going smoothly, and this is their reason. I am not belittling myself. The conditions that General Dynamics can offer are definitely more generous than ours, and the development progress of GENx is expected to exceed that of our Trent 1000, which means that the risk of testing GENx is actually lower than that of Trent 1000. But under these conditions, you still chose to cooperate with us." Jonathan's eyes were scorching: "Xu Cang, you are very ambitious, so you don't want a monopoly in the aviation engine market, and you won't allow us to fall."
"Why isn't Trent 1000 enough for you?"
Jonathan's face was filled with worry. "GM and Pratt & Whitney have already begun to consciously unite. Our situation is not optimistic. And the CEO's incident... is also a big trauma for us. If we don't rescue them, we will face great pressure from public opinion in the future."
"That's really heartbreaking news." Xu Cang was not moved at all. He looked past Jonathan and looked at the waiter who brought the appetizers: "It seems that the dishes are served."
Jonathan looked back, sighed slightly, and said quickly: "Xu Cang, if you have a way to deal with the Boeing 787, the engine distribution rights in the Asia-Pacific region can be extended to ten years. At the same time, we can help you build the only officially certified Rolls-Royce engine maintenance factory in East Asia."
Xu Cang had already picked up the spoon, and when he heard Jonathan's conditions, his right hand trembled.
The offer was too generous to describe. The extension of the Rolls-Royce engine dealership was fine, but the engine repair shop was too tempting. This was a highly profitable business, and it could last for a long time.
"You're really making me feel conflicted." Xu Cang was not refusing just now, but he really had no choice. He was not a god and could not do whatever he wanted.
To be honest, Xu Cang was really moved and very envious.
However, Xu Cang finally shook his head and said, "This is a difficult matter. At least I cannot agree to it now. If I have other ideas later, I will contact you again."
Having said that, I have basically come to the end of what I have to say.
Jonathan saw that Xu Cang did not seem to be lying, so there was really nothing he could do, at least for now.
He still had some grace and didn't pester her: "Okay, let's eat."
…
After a not-so-pleasant meal, Jonathan sent Xu Cang to the airport. After the two talked for a few words in the waiting hall, Jonathan returned to Rolls-Royce headquarters.
Originally, the successful test flight of the Trent 1000 was something worth celebrating, but with the Rolls-Royce CEO in danger and the Trent 1000 being excluded from the Boeing 787's power system, Jonathan was not happy at all.
After returning to Rolls-Royce headquarters, Jonathan had no intention of going to the power plant. He went to the dormitory and fell asleep.
When he woke up from his sleep, it was already dark. He looked at the watch and found that he had slept for more than three hours.
I don’t know if it’s because I slept too long, but I feel groggy all over.
Jonathan was actually still a little sleepy, but he decided not to sleep any more, as he would not be able to fall asleep that night.
Scratching his head, Jonathan got up and poured himself a glass of water to wake himself up.
However, not long after getting up, there was a knock on the door.
"Hmm?" Jonathan put down the cup and slowly went to open the door. He found Song Xinyang standing at the door panting: "What's wrong?"
"Qiao, something happened at the manor."
Jonathan was startled: "What?"
About five minutes later, Jonathan and Song Xinyang, who had changed their clothes, walked quickly on the path inside the company, both of them in a hurry.
"You mean to say that the first death has occurred in the manor?"
Song Xinyang's face looked very grim: "There is no doctor over there, so we can't make an accurate assessment, but he has no breathing or pulse, so he should be...dead."
“Frozen to death?”
"It should be."
"Damn it!" Jonathan walked faster and faster: "Have you notified the rescue team?"
"We have been notified. It's not just us who are urging them. Many people are urging them. However, the previous rescue operations have been fruitless and they have encountered dangerous situations. The rescue team is helpless." Song Xinyang followed Jonathan and said, "Qiao, I'm sorry to disturb your rest. But Alandi asked to talk to you."
Jonathan's face was gloomy. The situation had deteriorated to an unimaginable level.
The two walked quickly to the company's communication room, where some people were already waiting. As Jonathan arrived, those people made way to make room for him.
"The signal is forwarded through France, so the sound quality may not be very good." The communicator took off the headset and handed it to Jonathan.
Jonathan took it, put on the headset, and pressed the speak button: "Alandi, this is Joe."
"Qiao, Song told me before that Xu Cang might be able to save us." An anxious and frightened man's voice came from the headset, and it was crackling, and the signal quality was indeed not very good.
Jonathan didn't reply immediately, but turned around and looked at Song Xinyang.
Song Xinyang seemed to know why Jonathan was looking at him. He lowered his head and did not dare to look Jonathan in the eye.
"Yes, he is very powerful." Jonathan retracted his gaze and said in a low voice: "But he has left and returned to his country."
"Then let the plane come back!" Alandi shouted, "Damn it, he is on a British Airways plane, and the president of British Airways is here now. If he wants, the plane can return immediately. If he wants, we can give you an extremely generous reward."
"Ai..." Jonathan was about to say that Xu Cang had clearly refused before, but Alandi said excitedly: "There are 117 wealthy people here. As long as he is willing to send the supplies over, his reward will be unimaginable."
Jonathan was a little helpless: "But he has already refused before."
"Let him come over!" As a result, a hysterical roar came from Alandi's side. The first death had destroyed the last psychological defense of these people, and they could no longer maintain their sanity.
"Alandi, I can't force anyone. He has made his own choice." Jonathan said helplessly, "I'm sorry!"
After hearing Jonathan's words, Alandi's frantic cries rang out in the headphones, with many painful howls in the background. It was obvious that the disappearance of this last bit of hope for survival had made them feel the coldness of despair.
Jonathan took off his headphones and took a deep breath. He turned around and looked at Song Xinyang: "Where is Xu Cang's plane? Contact him and ask him one last time. This is..."
Before Jonathan could finish his words, the door of the room was pushed open with a bang, and everyone's eyes were immediately focused on the door.
Song Xinyang's assistant had a heavy face and was breathing rapidly, and it seemed that he had run over.
Song Xinyang was somewhat annoyed by his assistant's rudeness and recklessness, and frowned: "What's the matter?"
The assistant let out a long sigh: "British Airways Flight 531...something happened."
"Flight 531?" Song Xinyang was startled: "Isn't that... the flight Xu Cang was on?"