"The road to exile is much more treacherous than you think. Imagine a person who has lived comfortably having to trek thousands of miles to a completely unfamiliar place. It’s not just a physical toll; the psychological strain is akin to falling from the heavens to the earth. Exile involves suffering and hardship; there’s no carriage to carry you, nor fine clothes or lavish food. If you’re lucky, you might find shelter at an official inn, but if not, and you can’t keep up the pace, you’ll be left to fend for yourself in the elements. A storm or cold snap could cost you half your life."
Qin Liuxi sat in the carriage, chatting casually with Chen Pi, and said: "Besides these, you also need to guard against being robbed or murdered, which could end it all instantly."
People would do anything to survive. If they collaborate with a constable, then it’s utterly hopeless.
"Master, doesn’t that mean the Old Master and the others are bound to face danger?" Chen Pi exclaimed in shock.
Qin Liuxi replied, "It’s all destiny. The weak will undoubtedly suffer, and whether they will be robbed or harmed depends on their fate."
Chen Pi opened his mouth.
"Want to ask if I plan to help?" Qin Liuxi raised his eyebrows slightly.
Chen Pi grinned sheepishly: "Master, you must have your reasons."
"The Qin family is destined to face this tribulation. If I intervene, it will merely manifest elsewhere, or even rebound onto me. The Qin family owes me for nurturing them, but not to the extent that I should sacrifice my life for them. They couldn’t bear it anyway." Qin Liuxi said, "It may sound naive to appreciate hardship, but only through such an ordeal will the Qin family become as tough as fine iron, and only then will some people be forged into fine iron. Another point, if I were to help, it wouldn’t be now."
"Master, that’s the harsh reality you’ve spoken of before. But I get it, you’re afraid they’ll become too complacent and waste away." Chen Pi chuckled, "I remember the story Master told of the eagle and the eaglet. Master, you are that ruthless eagle, pushing the eaglet even if it falls battered and bruised, letting it learn to fend for itself because protecting it would only make it a caged canary, not a majestic ruler of the skies."
Qin Liuxi shook his finger: "You’re wrong, it’s mainly because your master is lazy, too lazy to find people."
Once he starts seeking help, others would start dictating his actions, perhaps forcing him into laborious issues he’d rather avoid.
That would be contrary to his ideal of not striving for more.
Chen Pi burst out laughing: "If you don’t look for them, they will still come looking."
As he spoke, as if on cue, a harsh cry of an eagle rang out in the sky.
Qi Qian poked his head out from another carriage, looking up at the circling Flying Eagle, squinting.
"Master, it’s an eagle, looks like someone has tamed it." Huo Lang, riding alongside the carriage, reported back.
Before Qi Qian could respond, a peculiar whistle sound responded to the eagle’s shriek.
He abruptly looked over to Qin Liuxi’s carriage and then up, indeed seeing the Flying Eagle immediately dive down upon hearing the whistle, moving so swiftly that Huo Lang and his men instantly surrounded Qi Qian’s carriage with bows drawn in caution.
Qin Liuxi opened the carriage door, extending a hand.
Qi Qian stared at that slender, pale hand in the sunlight, somewhat dazzling, and saw the Flying Eagle, though diving at great speed, land steadily on that pale wrist, pressing down without the slightest sign of burden.
Qi Qian’s breath grew heavier, staring at the androgynous face of Qin Liuxi who had leaned out, scoffing, "Frail physique? Haha."
He had been tricked by this mystic!