Liu Fengying felt a little guilty after hearing Hua Shu's words; she realized that she truly had not treated her as someone important in the past.
More precisely, she had given up her plans to attend university in the capital about a year earlier, both for financial reasons and because she wanted to begin the fight to obtain her mother's inheritance as soon as possible—something that would have been nearly impossible had she left the city. However, even though so much time had passed since then, it had never occurred to her that she should inform Hua Shu of this decision as well.
Of course, it wasn't as if she had wanted to keep this from Hua Shu; she had simply been under too much pressure to have the time to think about anyone else. Liu Fengying thought that she would probably have told Hua Shu about changing her mind regarding studying in the capital if an opportunity had arisen—for example, if Hua Shu had brought up university admissions or the careers they were planning to pursue.
"Um, about that… I've decided in the end that I'll be attending university here in this city as well," Liu Fengying said, interrupting Hua Shu's train of thought, determined to make up for her mistake.
But was it really a good idea to fully confess the change in her future plans? Afraid that Hua Shu might blow things out of proportion and end up believing that Liu Fengying had treated her like a stranger all along or hadn't trusted her, Liu Fengying decided not to dwell on the circumstances that had led to this change, choosing instead to focus on the positive things it would bring.
"Anyway, even if we won't be able to spend as much time together as we do now, we'll still be able to see each other whenever we want. We'll just have to coordinate our free time a bit," she continued in a cheerful tone, as if trying to infect Hua Shu with her good mood.
At first, Hua Shu was happy to hear the news. However, remembering how much Liu Fengying had once wanted to attend that chemistry university in the capital—recently made famous by the scientific breakthroughs of its professors and students—she couldn't help but feel uneasy. If Liu Fengying was staying in the city, didn't that mean she had given up on her dream?
"But the chemistry laboratories at the universities in our city aren't even half as well equipped as the ones at that university in the capital. Won't you regret giving up the chance to study under the best possible conditions?" Hua Shu asked, visibly troubled.
Even though she would have preferred Liu Fengying not to move far away from her, Hua Shu didn't want that to happen at the cost of jeopardizing her future. Thus, she was determined that if she noticed any regret on Liu Fengying's part for giving up her studies in the capital, she would encourage her to return to her original plan. After all, good friends should support each other's dreams.
Seeing Hua Shu's reaction, Liu Fengying was tempted to tease her a little—perhaps by asking something like, "Aren't you happy that your older sister will continue to stay by your side?" However, aware that Hua Shu was worried above all because she wanted her to choose the best option for herself, Liu Fengying thought it would be cruel to keep her in suspense any longer. So in the end, she decided to tell her a bit about her future plans, in order to put her at ease.
"Well, that doesn't really matter, because I'm no longer planning to study chemistry in the future," Liu Fengying began, but amused by the way Hua Shu's mouth fell open at the news, she couldn't help but chuckle softly.
"Anyway, in order to easily put the plans I've made over the past few weeks into practice, I think the best option for me would be to attend a business school. More specifically, what tipped the balance in favor of this choice was the fact that universities in this field not only have fairly flexible schedules, but also offer a wide range of facilities for students who want to start their own businesses," she continued in a relaxed manner; it was quite clear that she was satisfied with this plan for her future.
"But… wasn't chemistry your passion?" Hua Shu asked, finding it hard to believe that Liu Fengying's satisfaction wasn't forced. As Liu Fengying's desk mate, she knew very well how much time she had devoted to deepening her knowledge of the subject; she remembered a period when she saw her reading a chemistry book during every break.
As for Liu Fengying's new choice, Hua Shu didn't really know what to say. Sure, the business field seemed interesting—especially if one believed all the TV series and novels featuring CEOs as main characters—but could studying economic laws and accounting procedures truly be someone's passion? Hua Shu felt she would fall asleep faster reading a book on these subjects than she would counting sheep.
It could be said that Hua Shu's question was far more difficult for Liu Fengying than she had expected, as it made her reflect for a few moments on what chemistry had represented for her before she recovered memories from her previous life.
Had it been her dream to become a great chemist? Liu Fengying believed she could say, without any exaggeration, that it had been, as it was something she had wanted since childhood. However, that was not the same as saying she was in love with chemistry. More precisely, the field she worked in didn't truly matter to her; what mattered was achieving excellence.
It also wasn't true that she enjoyed studying chemistry more than other subjects. Honestly, she thought she could have specialized just as well in physics—she had even been tempted by the idea when she first saw the teacher who taught that subject.
Moreover, it wasn't as if she were an extraordinary, once-in-a-generation talent in chemistry. Her excellent results in the subject were due more to above-average intelligence and the diligent effort she had put in. Therefore, it would have been an exaggeration to claim that chemistry was her true calling.
So why had she chosen to focus on chemistry in the first place? Well, perhaps it was because, in doing so, she wanted to honor her mother's memory—or perhaps because she had been impressed by the success her mother had achieved. She had also thought that, as an expert in chemistry, she could personally lead the family company to new heights, just as her mother had done; Liu Fengying believed that a true leader should stand on the front lines, not merely stay behind and issue orders.
However, these reasons were not enough to sustain her interest in chemistry if a better option were to present itself. Proof of this was the fact that the moment she regained her memories of cultivation, it immediately became her number one interest.
Naturally, cultivation was something that could hardly be compared to any pursuit in the modern world. Was there anything else that could grant such individual power or open the path toward immortality? Cultivation likely held the answers to humanity's deepest dreams.
Moreover, cultivation was a far more fascinating field of study—not only because it offered a much clearer perspective on the laws governing the universe than the sciences of the modern world, but also because of the countless mysteries it contained, many of which had yet to be unraveled. By comparison, chemistry felt almost exhausted as a discipline; perhaps 95 percent of its discoveries had already been made.
But Liu Fengying was convinced that even if, instead of cultivation, she had been presented with a more worldly option—one that could grant her greater influence than even an elite chemist could wield, such as a ministerial position—she would have chosen it without hesitation. Therefore, if she were forced to name her true passion, the only answer she could give would be the pursuit of power.
"Well, I've found something more interesting to study than chemistry…" Liu Fengying finally said, deliberately putting on an air of mystery. It wasn't as if she wanted to tease Hua Shu—at least, that wasn't her main reason. Rather, she wanted to convince Hua Shu that she truly had no regrets about no longer pursuing chemistry, so that she would stop worrying about her.
Besides, she had thought that if she and Hua Shu remained close in the future, she would inevitably tell her about cultivation sooner or later. As such, it was better to give her a few hints now—to let her know she was involved in something significant—so that she wouldn't be upset later for having been kept completely in the dark.
"Huh? What is it?" Hua Shu asked. It wasn't that she didn't believe Liu Fengying, but she genuinely hadn't noticed any hint of a new passion during the day.
She was also truly curious about what field could be so fascinating that it had made Liu Fengying suddenly abandon chemistry, a subject into which she had invested so much effort.
"I'm sorry, Shushu, but unfortunately, I have to keep this a secret for the time being. It's not that I don't trust you—I just think you'll be safer if you're not involved," Liu Fengying said in a deliberately lowered voice, as though she were genuinely afraid of being overheard by a third party.
The problem was that the way she spoke was somewhat theatrical, making it difficult to tell how much truth lay behind her words. Moreover, judging by the satisfied expression lingering on Liu Fengying's face, it was quite clear that she took great pleasure in leaving the situation shrouded in mystery.
'If she didn't want to tell me, then why did she make me curious in the first place?', Hua Shu rolled her eyes. Although she suspected that Liu Fengying had exaggerated the importance of keeping her current activities secret, she believed there was little chance of learning anything more from her. Most likely, continuing to press the issue would only give Liu Fengying another opportunity to tease her.
It wasn't as if Hua Shu was upset, since she figured that Liu Fengying must have had her reasons for wanting to keep what she was doing a secret. Besides, it wasn't as though she herself had confessed every detail of her life to Liu Fengying either, so she had no reason to feel deceived by her. Still, she couldn't help feeling slightly irritated by Liu Fengying's playful attitude—especially given that the matter was a serious one.
"Well then, I suppose all I can do is wish you good luck," Hua Shu said at last, thinking that what truly mattered was that Liu Fengying was happy with what she was going to do.
"But be careful not to do anything dangerous. Honestly, after the transformation you've undergone these past few days, I'm worried you've abandoned alchemy to walk the path of magic," Hua Shu continued, the last part spoken more in jest. More specifically, she was referring to the plot of a book they had studied a few months earlier in world literature class, in which the protagonist—fed up with the limitations of science—begins to study magic, eventually making a pact with the devil to obtain his help.
She thought it wouldn't be difficult for Liu Fengying to understand the reference, since she had joked about the subject before—for example, she once said she would find it rather tempting to sell her soul if it meant gaining the ability to turn Professor Raccoon into an actual raccoon.
"...", Liu Fengying froze for a few moments, unsure how she was supposed to react to Hua Shu's words. Wasn't that a bit too close to the truth? After all, to someone uninitiated in the mysteries of cultivation, some of the things she did could indeed be classified as magical.
In turn, seeing the shock in Liu Fengying's eyes, Hua Shu reacted in much the same way—perhaps even more strongly—as she was left staring with her mouth hanging open.
"Wait a second… it's not possible that I actually hit the mark, is it?", Hua Shu finally worked up the courage to ask. After all, Liu Fengying's reaction had been extremely suspicious.
Caught in a dilemma—unwilling either to lie to Hua Shu or to speak so soon about the so-called "magic" she practiced—Liu Fengying thought of a way to avoid answering directly, namely by tossing the ball back into Hua Shu's court.
"So, does that mean you think magic is real?", she asked, looking genuinely amused.
"Uh, no…" Hua Shu blushed at Liu Fengying's question. After all, she had grown up in a society that promoted a scientific view of the world, and once reason began to overtake imagination in her mind, she realized her reaction wasn't appropriate for someone who had only a few weeks left before becoming an adult.
Liu Fengying was pleased to see that things were unfolding exactly as she had expected.
"Anyway, I assure you that you have no reason to worry that something will happen to me," Liu Fengying said, eager to strike while the iron was hot and close the subject.
"As for what I'm focusing on right now, I'll probably be able to tell you in about a year, once I've achieved some more significant results," she continued, hoping this would prevent Hua Shu from interrogating her further from that point on; not only did she not want to lie to Hua Shu, but doing so would also have been difficult given how sharp her intuition was.
"All right…" Hua Shu nodded, relieved that Liu Fengying hadn't pressed her about the foolish thing she had blurted out. If, for instance, Liu Fengying had asked whether she still believed in the Joong Monster—a fictional creature used to scare children—she probably would have wanted to sink into the ground from embarrassment.
Of course, she was also relieved because Liu Fengying had assured her that her new passion didn't put her in any danger. After all, an activity didn't need to involve supernatural forces to be dangerous—mountaineering was a good example of that.
As for what Liu Fengying's new passion might be, Hua Shu considered several possibilities, but if she had been forced to choose the one most likely to be real, she would have had a hard time deciding.
For instance, the first possibility that occurred to her was modeling, and the reason was obvious: she genuinely thought Liu Fengying was unrealistically beautiful.
Naturally, there were other arguments supporting this idea as well, such as the sudden change in her clothing style and the grace her movements had acquired—things that could have resulted from studying fashion trends and taking runway-walking lessons. Even so, Hua Shu wouldn't have bet on modeling, because she didn't believe Liu Fengying could be satisfied with merely being admired for her beauty, treated much like a panda at the zoo. In other words, such an activity was unworthy of being the main occupation of someone with her intellect.
Still, although her curiosity began to rise again, Hua Shu didn't try to pry any further. If Liu Fengying said she couldn't talk about her new passion yet, then she truly couldn't—there was no reason to doubt that.
Besides, Liu Fengying had said she would come clean about her new occupation in about a year, so it wasn't as though it would remain a mystery forever.
As for the fact that she would have to wait such a long time, Hua Shu found it somewhat irritating—but looked at from another perspective, it could be considered a good thing, since it clearly showed that Liu Fengying intended to maintain a close relationship with her.