'Well, one could say I was asking for trouble...', Professor Wei thought to herself, not missing the hunger that had flashed through Liu Fengying's eyes.
Of course, she was aware that her recent reactions must have been highly provocative to Liu Fengying; it wasn't as if they had been accidental. Why had she acted this way? Well, largely because she had been influenced by the mature and dominant persona she had adopted; she was tired of always being in a weak position in her interactions with Liu Fengying.
She had also grown increasingly irritated by the composure Liu Fengying continued to display while she herself was worrying so much. Wasn't she the one who had complicated the relationship between them? What made her think she could wash her hands of it so easily? Once someone provoked her, regardless of the front, they had to expect repercussions.
Because of this, instead of the anxiety she had felt the day before when Liu Fengying had looked at her in a similar way, she now felt rather vindicated. It was as if things had finally fallen into place, with her in the leading position. Thinking about the situation they were in, Professor Wei no longer found it inappropriate at all; more precisely, she considered it a perfect illustration of the state of affairs she desired: herself on a throne, without a single care, and Liu Fengying at her feet, looking up at her with adoration.
Furthermore, she did not fear any real danger of being drawn by Liu Fengying into an inappropriate action for their situation. Professor Wei figured that although Liu Fengying's hormones were raging, she wasn't a beast after all; therefore, she was quite sure there was no risk of her jumping her.
So, Liu Fengying could stare at her like a wolf all she wanted. What could a caged wolf do? It had no choice but to settle for the food crumbs thrown its way.
Thus, being in a good mood, Professor Wei, in a gesture of magnanimity, allowed Liu Fengying to serve her: "All right. I don't doubt your good intentions..."
".......", Liu Fengying was left dumbfounded for a moment; was it possible for Professor Wei to trust her so much? Honestly, she hadn't even fully believed herself.
However, noticing Professor Wei's smug expression, how could Liu Fengying not realize that the woman was rather amused by her efforts to control herself? It was as if what she really wanted to say was: "Even though I am aware of your shameless thoughts, let this be your reward, hmph!"
'Well, until now it was just a suspicion, but now it's clear that Professor Wei seems to want to pay me back in my own coin...', Liu Fengying thought to herself, having to finally accept the truth: Professor Wei had actually started flirting with her.
However, following this realization, Liu Fengying became more confused than before; more precisely, she couldn't explain what had broken the ice in her relationship with Professor Wei. While it was true that from the moment of the accident until they entered the office, they had found themselves in all sorts of ambiguous situations, these had occurred with the sword of chastity between them; specifically, they had been dictated solely by medical necessity and had involved no attempts at seduction or flirting whatsoever.
'But... what if Professor Wei is much more attracted to me than I initially suspected?' Liu Fengying suddenly wondered. 'In that case, regardless of the nature of our interactions, she must have been seriously affected. After all, even the simplest contact with the person you like can be devastating, let alone being carried in their arms or embraced...'
The more she thought about this hypothesis, the more it seemed to make sense. The most obvious proof was how deeply Professor Wei had been affected by her flirting the previous day: if some sinful thoughts about her hadn't crossed her mind as well, would she really have been so frightened? After all, it takes two to tango; as long as Professor Wei wasn't afraid that she might yield to her advances, she should have been able to remain completely unbothered.
Furthermore, Professor Wei was known for the coldness with which she treated others; merely having a good impression of someone surely wouldn't affect her at all, probably no more than contact with a speck of dust. Liu Fengying believed that only a crush the size of the asteroid presumed to have caused the extinction of the dinosaurs was capable of throwing her off balance.
Of course, this scenario wasn't absolute; Liu Fengying could see other possibilities as well:
'Or maybe she isn't naturally as cold as she portrayed herself; maybe she just hasn't found anyone worth the effort of getting close to...', she told herself, jokingly thinking that in this case, Professor Wei's standards were truly high—specifically, it took a former "near-immortal" to capture her attention.
Yet, even though she had no way of estimating how deep Professor Wei's feelings for her were, one thing was still quite clear to Liu Fengying: Professor Wei had managed to overcome the moral barriers implied by their teacher-student relationship, being willing to interact with her as two people on equal footing who thought highly of each other.
Honestly, Liu Fengying couldn't tell whether or not it had been difficult for Professor Wei to do this. On one hand, the fact that Professor Wei was someone strict with herself should have complicated things significantly. However, this hypothesis still raised a question: could someone truly strict really allow themselves to be influenced, after just a single day, by an attraction they felt for someone they weren't supposed to feel anything for?
Yet, in Professor Wei's defense, one could argue that she wasn't the "mother hen" type of teacher who acts like a second mother to the students under her care. From the very first weeks Professor Wei had been in charge of her class, Liu Fengying had formed the conviction that the woman didn't view her students much differently from how a watermelon merchant views their produce. Because of this, it could be said that the obstacles to their growing closer were more social than moral.
Furthermore, Liu Fengying was aware that she possessed an aura of someone much more mature than she should be for her apparent age. Even if she didn't try to stand out, some things were impossible to hide—such as the absolute calm with which she acted in critical situations. It wouldn't have seemed strange to her at all if Professor Wei had been unconsciously influenced by this aspect, making it much easier for her to change how she perceived her.
And wasn't that only fair, after all? Liu Fengying didn't understand why two people who thought highly of each other should let the world dictate whether or not they could get close. What's more, both she and Professor Wei were excellent women who almost certainly had a lot in common; if they of all people wouldn't suit each other, then which two people would be a better fit?
Of course, Liu Fengying had no intention of putting Professor Wei in a position to commit an illegal act; there were only a few weeks left until their teacher-student relationship would end, so why would she want to burden Professor Wei with a moral weight when she didn't have to wait long for their relationship to start on the right foot?
Also, Liu Fengying didn't know how far she should aim to take her relationship with Professor Wei; friends with benefits, casual lovers, an official couple? Honestly, this gave her a bit of a headache; on one hand, she didn't want to blow her chances with Professor Wei, but on the other hand, she didn't want to be completely tied down in a relationship so quickly either. After all, now that she had a second chance at life, she wanted to have some fun.
Liu Fengying was aware that she had gotten a little carried away; specifically, it wasn't a great thing that she had provoked Professor Wei before knowing exactly what she wanted. This could also apply to Hua Shu; even though she hadn't expressed her desire as directly to the girl as she had to Professor Wei, she had still gone further with the teasing than she should have between two friends, no matter how close they were.
And what had happened to her resolve to be a clever rabbit that doesn't eat the grass around its own burrow? If she wasn't ready to commit to a lifelong relationship yet and just wanted partners to have fun with, it was advisable that they shouldn't be people with whom she already shared a history; that would imply fewer expectations, making it easier to set clear boundaries from the very beginning.
Instead, turning a friendship or a similar bond into a romantic relationship required serious intentions. And it wasn't necessarily because such a process was irreversible—though the chances of two friends-turned-lovers reverting to their old friendship in the event of a breakup were slim—but rather because, in most cases, a person needed a powerful motivation to change their perception of someone.
However, while these principles could easily be maintained when she was on her own, her mind wandering through the high spheres of cultivation, they seemed impossible to uphold when she had to venture into the so-called "mortal world"—especially since Heaven had placed two people by her side to whom she felt increasingly attracted the more time she spent with them. If she also factored in that she had become much more easily influenced by carnal desires, it truly felt as if she were being tested.
Liu Fengying really did not prefer such complicated situations; if it were up to her, she would choose the simplest solution to resolve the emotional mess she had gotten herself into—one that would satisfy everyone and leave no room for regrets: to enter a relationship with both Professor Wei and Hua Shu, and then refrain from provoking any other young girls. After all, being squeezed between a sexy teacher and a cute tsundere should keep her satisfied, shouldn't it?
Yet, that was easier said than done; or better yet, Liu Fengying saw a higher chance of successfully becoming an immortal with the limited resources available to her in this world before she could ever manage to get Professor Wei and Hua Shu into the same bed at once.
On one hand, she lacked confidence in having the necessary skills for such a feat. Yes, she may have lived for several centuries, but her experience in love was limited to a single relationship, and even that one had ended horribly; she wasn't like those "young heroes" who could convince five or six beauties to share them.
On the other hand, she was now in a world where, although no one reproached anyone regardless of how many people they had fun with, only monogamous relationships were perceived as serious. Thus, convincing two people raised in this spirit to be with her at the same time would undoubtedly require a massive amount of effort. And it wasn't that she was unwilling to try her best, but she feared the effort would consist of all sorts of emotional blackmail or corruption through seduction; Liu Fengying really didn't want a relationship built on that.
On top of that, there was the issue of compatibility between Professor Wei and Hua Shu. If they had been strangers, there might have been a chance for them to accept each other; but since they also shared a teacher-student relationship, there would likely be heavy opposition from both sides. In Professor Wei's case, her limit was almost certainly having, at most, a single former student in her bed. As for Hua Shu, since Professor Wei was the teacher she found most intimidating, she would probably freeze at the mere suggestion of nightly activities involving her.
So what would be the solution? One night with one, and one night with the other? While that might work for a while, in the long run, it could generate all kinds of conflicts. From the theoretical knowledge Liu Fengying possessed about maintaining a healthy harem without fits of jealousy or exaggerated competitiveness, it was vital for love to exist among its members.
It wasn't as if Liu Fengying had worked out all these dilemmas regarding her romantic future in just the few seconds it took to wipe her sweaty palms on her hoodie; more precisely, they had merely flashed through her mind, triggered by the impact of Professor Wei's remark. These were conclusions from the previous evening, when she had spent considerable time evaluating her "exploits" of the day, and now she had simply updated them based on the new parameters.
Was the path ahead clearer to her now? Not by much. If one were to point out the biggest difference from before, now that she realized Professor Wei was starting to reciprocate her advances, it was that it was even harder for her to back down.
Still, for the time being, the situation was manageable: a bit of teasing, an occasional ambiguous gesture—things like that couldn't harm anyone. As for how things would evolve, that remained to be seen; her hope was that as long as she didn't lead anyone on or make promises she couldn't keep, she wouldn't run into trouble.
'And who knows, maybe things will actually work out in the best possible way? The ways of Heaven are mysterious...', Liu Fengying concluded, deciding it was best to maintain an optimistic attitude. After all, both she and her two "targets" were beautiful and intelligent people; why shouldn't they be able to get along well together?
Thus, the moment she shifted her attention back to Professor Wei, Liu Fengying no longer suppressed her desires and spoke in a highly ambiguous tone:
"How could I not wish you well? As I told you, you are my favorite teacher..."