Nathaniel was starting to understand what had just happened. "Did you paint something that stunned my mom?"
"It was okay, I guess!" Vera Xavier said after a moment's thought. "After I finished painting, your mother asked if I had ever studied art before. I said no. She asked if I wanted to learn, and I said I didn't like painting. I told her I want to be a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner."
"Then she asked why I was studying literature at Veridia University instead of going to Valeroot University of Medicine if I wanted to practice traditional Chinese medicine. I told her that universities today teach traditional medicine using a Western framework, and learning that way could easily destroy the dialectical mindset essential for it, which is why I didn't go. And then, after I finished my reproduction, she accidentally knocked over the vase and broke it."
The corner of Nathaniel's mouth twitched. Vera asked him, "What? Did I say something wrong?"
