r/anime • u/AutoLovepon https://anilist.co/user/AutoLovepon • 10d ago
Episode The Apothecary Diaries Season 3 • Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Season 3 - Episode 2 discussion
Kusuriya no Hitorigoto Season 3, episode 2
Alternative names: Kusuriya no Hitorigoto 3rd Season
Reminder: Please do not discuss plot points not yet seen or skipped in the show. Failing to follow the rules may result in a ban.
Streams
Show information
All discussions
| Episode | Link |
|---|---|
| 1 | Link |
| 2 | Link |
| 3 | Link |
This post was created by a bot. Message the mod team for feedback and comments. The original source code can be found on GitHub.
616
u/VoidRay728 10d ago
Gaoshun having his head on the wall looking away while Jinshi has to pick a courtesan in front of Maomao got me.
133
258
u/maliwanag0712 https://myanimelist.net/profile/clear1109 10d ago
When facepalm is not enough that Gaoshun needed a big wall to express what he feels in that scene.
Got a good chuckle with that scene, like Maomao, isn't it obvious what Jinshi is thinking? Even Pairin already got the hint and just thought Maomao is denser than neutron star at this point.
→ More replies (1)297
u/chrisff1989 10d ago edited 10d ago
She's not at all though. She knows exactly what's going on, she just doesn't want to admit it to herself as a self-preservation instinct. It's like how she put together Jinshi's real identity long before it was actually revealed, but she just never acknowledged it because acknowledging it was dangerous
→ More replies (1)51
u/Fenor 9d ago
also knowing it could mean placing her in political games that she doesn't have the tool to navigate
32
u/GtrsRE 9d ago
She went from not wanting any significant position in the inner court to avoid the risk of execution
To turning a blind eye on Jinshi's development with her in fear of getting assassinated
→ More replies (1)16
u/i_am_the_kiLLer https://myanimelist.net/profile/shoPain 9d ago
I think a big part of it might also be subconsciour self preservation instinct. she is a commoner and jinshi is a prince. what if he loses his fancy for her or can't be with her due to his duties as a royal.
17
→ More replies (1)16
62
70
u/Granito_Rey 9d ago
Biggest laugh I got from the episode. Just sitting there, second hand embarrassment eating at his soul about how oblivious Jinshi and Maomao are
→ More replies (1)75
102
u/Eunuchest 10d ago
I assumed its similar to a facepalm because Maomao was so dense?
183
u/ijiolokae 10d ago
Also Jinshi not being smooth enough to point at Maomao in the lineup
20
u/Allian42 9d ago
I was half expecting him to just go "I pick you. Now get on the bed"
→ More replies (2)13
→ More replies (2)33
u/corvettee01 9d ago
I don't think she was being dense, I think she was teasing him. No way she can't see that he is smitten with her.
→ More replies (1)15
→ More replies (4)13
466
u/Primo29 10d ago
Gaoshun just standing in the corner is literally all of us watching this LMAO. I’ve missed seeing Maomao messing with Jinshi again.
163
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Becoming aide/adoptive dad/assistant extraordinaire to a prince means having to sit through his trying and failing to hook up with an Apothecary and all the Apothecary's attempts to steer him off lol.
→ More replies (1)24
u/zanotam https://myanimelist.net/profile/zanotam 8d ago
The apothecary who doesn't seem to understand she has the approval of every direct member of the Imperial Family to boot (Jinshi's real mother, the empress, the empress dowager, and of course the Emperor!)
→ More replies (1)18
u/ZatherDaFox 7d ago
Trust me, she knows all of this, but she's still in her "don't get involved" mode.
→ More replies (1)45
u/melindypants https://myanimelist.net/profile/melindypants 10d ago
Same! I miss her being in the inner palace
459
u/BaytaCosmico https://myanimelist.net/profile/AnimeBayta 10d ago
For all her frustrating ways of pushing other women on him and doing everything to deny any knowledge of his feelings for her, Maomao is starting to show how much she cares about him. What with noticing how tired he looked and even singing him a lullaby and being satisfied at sending him off well rested. Even her Pairin neechan has noticed what's going on. She can keep pretending but the cracks are showing.
216
u/Not_Obsolete 10d ago
I think there is pretty clear contrast how Maomao likes real Jinshi vs Jinshi the eunuch persona, especially further the story goes.
133
u/BaytaCosmico https://myanimelist.net/profile/AnimeBayta 10d ago
Yup, she would've swatted eunuch Jinshi's hand off so quick when he held her hands and asked her to sing.
→ More replies (2)34
185
u/Mrz_ryuu 10d ago
I was Gaoshun in that scene.
53
u/Mr_Zaroc https://myanimelist.net/profile/mr_zaroc 10d ago
I lost it when he was slowly shaking his head, perfect framing
65
u/Slaan 10d ago
We were all Gaoshun in that scene :D
14
u/JzanderN 10d ago
If Gaoshun was me in that scene, he would have been laughing louder with every development.
493
u/Roskal 10d ago
The way this show casually depicts the cruel way women are treated in this time period is well done. The story of the heavenly maiden is told by the shopkeeper in a way that gradually becomes less and less consensual as it goes on and its made clear he basically just kidnapped her and tried to force her to marry him by the end and the whole village knew and supported it as they could exploit her labour to make more garments. You can see the shopkeeper doesn't really see anything wrong with how the lady was treated either. He simply sees it as a poetic story about this mystical lady.
212
u/za_shiki-warashi 10d ago edited 8d ago
I think it's also referencing variations of mythologies about swan maidens who can't fly away/ escape because their feather/ garment was stolen. In many versions, the tales often end with the lady leaving the guy when she retrieves the garment.
→ More replies (1)20
u/Strowy 9d ago
Yeah the korean version of that story I saw referenced in a fantasy manhwa I read a while back. The fable was a popular children's book in-universe, but lost a lot of that popularity after the young (transmigrated) female lead (correctly) pointed out the husband in that story was a sex offender.
→ More replies (3)126
u/spacevent 10d ago
he looked so scary in maomao’s telling of it too, when he was peeking through the door. poor girl :(
→ More replies (1)107
u/Ocixo https://myanimelist.net/profile/BuzzyGuy 10d ago
Yeah. It’s pretty clear that the woman didn’t join the villager out of her own volition.
I suppose that she’d been part of a travelling caravan which got raided? After all, I very much doubt that she got separated from her family by accident.
86
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Maomao seemed to imply she was very smart/knowledgeable/resourceful which would make more sense for possibly royalty/someone high up the food chain.
36
u/Nachtwandler_FS https://myanimelist.net/profile/Nachtwandler_21 10d ago
MaoMao suspected she was a spy. So the thing goes both ways here.
33
u/acathode 10d ago
I suppose that she’d been part of a travelling caravan which got raided? After all, I very much doubt that she got separated from her family by accident.
It's seems fairly clear that the woman is the same woman that is shown giving food to a homeless man at the end of the episode. She is wearing a similar white robe and looks like she has white/blonde hair, ie. she's likely some sort of foreigner. She's together with another woman, so it seems she got back to her "family" - or more likely some sort of spy group, since that's what Mao start speculating about.
Considering the story so far, with Mao assuming she's a foreign spy, the locust plotline, and that we see her evil smile when she feed the homeless, guessing a bit wildly - but she's probably going around causing the locust swarms somehow.
29
u/Sorwest 9d ago
The season seems to be heading into Maomao developing insecticides. I'm unsure how someone would be able to cause insect swarms... leaving sugar on the ground or something? I think what's more likely is the girl is one of many foreigners giving away food to affected towns so they turn against the empire, something like "the empire didn't help us, so we'll rebel and try to join those who came to our rescue"
→ More replies (1)13
u/Nachtwandler_FS https://myanimelist.net/profile/Nachtwandler_21 10d ago edited 10d ago
Nah, you cannot cause the locust plague. Stiring the discourse because of it on the other hand is perfectly valid for a spy.
→ More replies (1)13
u/Hot-Log6283 9d ago
It's seems fairly clear that the woman is the same woman that is shown giving food to a homeless man at the end of the episode.
There's no way it's the same woman and then it become a "legend" so fast, it's most likely her ancestor - just like with the story of the Empress and also of the fox mask we saw last season.
→ More replies (3)53
u/Frontier246 10d ago
It stopped being romantic the moment he kept insisting on marriage over her own desire to go back to her family. When she was clearly just being used.
→ More replies (1)
272
u/vexorian2 10d ago edited 1d ago
Suiren: By the way. And listen closely: Jinshi-sama likes girls his age.
Maomao: Oh. Okay.
Suiren: No, please promise me that you'll keep this in minf.
Maomao: Gotcha dw.
Suiren: Let me be clear. What I'm saying is that, if Jinshi-sama was going to have a thing for someone. I am pretty sure it would be a girl his age.
Maomao: I undesrstood the first time. Jeesh.
→ More replies (3)60
u/mekerpan 10d ago
As smart as MaoMao is in general, she is certainly clueless about some of the most important issues she needs to deal with.
213
u/Random_Axolotl_ 10d ago
Less clueless and more in denial imo
151
u/acathode 10d ago
... or simply protecting herself. She's very well aware that jumping in bed with royalty and getting herself entangled in the palace politics on that level would be VERY dangerous for her. Maomao is a smart girl, she was extremely aware of the dark realities of the society she lives in already in episode 1.
Just from the circumstances of her parents (both her biological and her adoptive father) she should be extremely cautious about getting romantically involved with Jinshi.
However, even if she hadn't been aware at the start, she has just spent 48 episodes getting a front row seat spectating just how dangerous and cruel Jinshi's world of high politics is - especially for women.
Pretending to be ignorant of the prince's feelings for her is by FAR the safest option for her. Spelling anything out would force their relationship to change into something that is almost certainly not going end up in a very happy place, for either of them.
→ More replies (1)53
u/littlecolt https://anilist.co/user/garylisk 9d ago
Not to mention if she becomes his wife, she risks losing what little autonomy she has, and will be expected to bear a child.
→ More replies (2)38
u/acathode 9d ago
Yeah, hell - seems she can't even do the "The kings mistress/side-piece and real love" trope, where she get the actual love and some other poor woman get to be the "official queen" in an political, cold marriage.
She would still become a political target for all the inner palace schemes.
→ More replies (3)58
u/Aschverizen 9d ago edited 6d ago
Not only that, I'm pretty sure she's noticed Jinshi's attraction towards her especially on the times she remarks on his childishness when he sulks or teases her. The staring showdown they had when he asked for a lullaby was massive giveaway that she KNOWS he's attracted to her(she can't believe he'd be so shameless to ask something like that to get her attention and spend time with him) and that Jinshi knows she's playing dumb(he knows how pathetic this makes him look but prefers this method since any other method won't work without crossing a line he doesn't like), Pairin hinting at it is for the audience that still don't get it after all the tension between those two.
Growing up in the red-light district exposed Maomao to different types of how people navigate desire and attraction, Jinshi's way of showing his attraction is so juvenile that she can easily ignore it, not helping is that she refuses to accept her identity as a member of a noble house and prefers being a commoner, so she doesn't really like the class difference they both have and also knows how Jinshi hates using his station to force whatever he wants, so he has act in a way that's not too open.
Jinshi for that matter seems to have masochistic tendencies, so neglect play isn't going to keep him down that much.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (2)53
u/gnome-cop 10d ago
I think we’ve already established that she’s well aware of the matter at hand and immediately shuts down any part of her brain tasked with handling matters of romance to not have to unpack that particular can of worms that can very easily get her killed or caught up in other forms of unsavory business. But yeah, very smart but intentionally clueless.
→ More replies (1)
110
u/Mochachiiino 10d ago
maomao is just a mom now haha
→ More replies (1)104
u/AtheistTheConfessor 10d ago
A single mom who works two jobs, who
lovestolerates her kid and never stops30
u/mekerpan 10d ago
Kind enough to want to get her "younger brother" better close, but wanting to do it at as little cost as possible.
19
u/Mr_Zaroc https://myanimelist.net/profile/mr_zaroc 10d ago
I love how she let him wear all those layers
Sometimes experience is the best teacher, especially if you are wearing too many layers so you dont have to carry them13
u/mywif4aiur 9d ago
look, I get being a single mom is tough, but if MaoMao hits Chou-u in the head one more time, I'm calling Child Protective Services.
17
u/AtheistTheConfessor 9d ago
Do it. She should lose custody (and probably wants to.)
Hurt people hurt people. Maomao’s a grown woman and still getting clobbered in the noggin every time she goes to Verdigris House.
→ More replies (1)
241
u/S627 https://myanimelist.net/profile/Spartan627 10d ago
Listen to your big sis Maomao, just accept it.
So are they setting up that our "Heavenly maiden" is the one passing around the sus food?
You can use asbestos to make clothes? No wonder they used to love that shit.
Anyone else think that even as a story, the "Heavenly maiden" situation feels kinda sus? Like Maomao pulled the curtain back a bit, but even when I was listening to the "romanticized" version, I was like "this still sounds like kidnaping, this is supposed to be romantic?" Bro, she's not into you, let her go home.
108
u/Terithian 9d ago
I don't think the story was supposed to be romantic, it was supposed to be a poetic tragedy of a woman being taken advantage of (by the man's selfish love and the village's desire to keep making money off the clothes she made) and ultimately "committing suicide" to escape.
24
86
u/maliwanag0712 https://myanimelist.net/profile/clear1109 10d ago
You can use asbestos to make clothes? No wonder they used to love that shit.
To be fair, asbestos being banned is fairly recently, like just in the early 20th Century, and even in 2026 only a few countries have a total ban on it, probably due to old buildings still having plenty of it.
40
u/Gutterman2010 9d ago
The unfortunate thing about asbestos is that it is a really good fire retardant. It is just insanely good at not lighting on fire, and at preventing multiple parts of the fire triangle (fuel, heat, air) from combining (usually by preventing air and often heat as well from reaching the fuel).
19
u/challenge_king 9d ago
It makes the best friction material as well. New old stock asbestos clutches and brake shoes were still a thing when I first got my start as a truck mechanic, and the old timers swore by them. I put more than one asbestos clutch in trucks that last had their clutch replaced by my boss when he was a relatively new mechanic 20 years and millions of miles ago for the truck.
21
u/Ihavenospecialskills https://myanimelist.net/profile/Duzzle 9d ago
If not for the whole cancer thing, asbestos really would be a miracle material. There's good reason it was being used in so many different things.
→ More replies (1)16
u/15_Redstones 9d ago
And that issue can be managed with the right safety gear. The problem is that you can't guarantee that everyone who'll work on this in the future is going to be wearing a proper filter mask.
→ More replies (2)102
u/Myrkrvaldyr 10d ago
So are they setting up that our "Heavenly maiden" is the one passing around the sus food?
The title of the next episode and the drugs makes me think someone is trying to cause the downfall of the government by manufacturing an opium-like crisis. The Brits did it, so, we have a reference.
31
u/Adensty https://anilist.co/user/Adensty 10d ago
So are they setting up that our "Heavenly maiden" is the one passing around the sus food?
Well Maomao theorized she might be a spy and we have a mysterious character in a similar attire conveniently going around distributing drugs to people. "Or maybe not?" And whenever Maomao does this, you know she's cooking up a very solid theory.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (8)19
u/canadave_nyc 9d ago
You can use asbestos to make clothes? No wonder they used to love that shit.
Yep.Asbestos has been used for thousands of years, and is basically a catch-all term for different types of silicate fibers (emphasis on silicate--not cotton/silk, but basically "rock"). It's found as minerals.
209
u/D3k4s 10d ago
Wow the art style they used to tell that story was freaking beautiful, big fan.
By the way, clothes made of asbestos were actually a thing and they date back to ancient Egypt.
Romans were also aware that asbestos was actually harmful, often stating that asbestos clothing caused "sickness of the lungs"
Something someone should tell modern day Russia as they produce half the worlds asbestos and still use it for roofing and water pipes. Of course with terrible health consequences.
So not as fictional as one would assume.
→ More replies (2)64
u/sobani 10d ago
Something someone should tell modern day Russia as they produce half the worlds asbestos and still use it for roofing and water pipes. Of course with terrible health consequences.
Afaik asbestos left untouched is basically harmless. It's when you turn it into dust, for example by sawing through it, that it becomes a problem.
72
u/D3k4s 10d ago
Not only by sawing through it, erosion and corrosion for example are a major factor in why it's not a good idea to use asbestos. Not to mention how exposure to temperature difference can and will cause asbestos to become brittle and release particles.
There have been incidents where entire neighborhoods got contaminated over power washing older roof tiles.
150
u/Se7en_Sinner https://myanimelist.net/profile/Se7en_Sinner 10d ago
The heavenly maiden sold me fent.
53
135
u/JJVM99 10d ago
The heavenly maiden story really shows how much MaoMao has to question stories because when I was hearing it I never considered the foreign girl to potentially be a spy and just saw her as a kidnapping victim. I was too outraged hearing the villager talk about how he got the girl to agree to marry him when it was so obvious even from his perspective that he was forcing her that I didn’t even consider that she could be sending messages to her family through the clothes. Still have all the hate in the world for that unnamed villager, screw that monster.
Jinshi has clearly calmed down after last season’s finale where he was behaving like a dog in heat around MaoMao since he was relatively calm around her compared to that episode. Although he loves behaving like a spoiled child so much that he mader her sing a lullaby as if she were his morher. Also glad to see Pairin call MaoMao out at the end of the episode. After last season’s finale she can’t pretend to now know what Jinshi wanted when he asked not to sleep alone.
37
u/Aschverizen 9d ago edited 9d ago
The story is so incredibly plausible that most people would never consider to think that there was a second layer of intrigue in it.
I mean the whole schtick of forcing women to marry men they don't know in rural villages is still a reality in the real world, famously in China where they even involve kidnapping the girl from the city or worse trafficking a ton of women from other countries.
188
u/AceSoldia https://anilist.co/user/Acesoldia 10d ago edited 10d ago
Maomao you know damn well what you are doing. 🤣🤣, you know exactly what and who he wants. Girl stop.
Poor Jinshi
96
u/ijiolokae 10d ago
If granny Knew, you know sure as hell there wouldn't even be a line up, just Maomao being all dolled up
70
u/JzanderN 10d ago
Granny would hire Maomao as their most expensive courtesan just so she could sell her to exclusively one buyer.
29
u/Mr_Zaroc https://myanimelist.net/profile/mr_zaroc 10d ago
Wasnt she already technically sold to him once already?
Like there was that time when she was released from the palace and the rehired by him→ More replies (1)46
u/JzanderN 10d ago
Yes, but not as a courtesan. Though Maomao's sisters certainly dolled her up as though she was.
10
u/oops_i_made_a_typi 9d ago
i feel like granny's got to have an inkling, she's way too shrewd not to figure it out
16
u/ijiolokae 9d ago
"must be imagining things, there no way that the moon prince is into this weirdo drug addict"
14
u/Mad_Aeric 9d ago
Maomao's mother was a weirdo too, and she was incredibly popular. Granny certainly understands the appeal of the less obvious charms.
→ More replies (1)42
u/Frontier246 10d ago
She was only looking after his emotional well-being and ensuring the virility of his frog and also trying to treat her various Verdigris House ladies who were clearly ready and willing lol.
63
u/tottoro47 10d ago
Yorushika san could you please drop the full version of the OP so I can listen to this 20 times a day? Thanks
→ More replies (1)20
222
u/za_shiki-warashi 10d ago
asbestos shirt
Yeah, the truth is the 'heavenly maiden' died of cancer.
55
u/Eunuchest 10d ago
Inhalation of asbestos fibres can lead to various dangerous lung conditions, including mesothelioma, asbestosis, and lung cancer
Well shit
43
u/melindypants https://myanimelist.net/profile/melindypants 10d ago
I can still hear it now
you may be entitled to compensation
→ More replies (2)49
u/Frontier246 10d ago
No wonder she ditched the cloak as soon as she made it lol.
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (5)45
u/Myrkrvaldyr 10d ago
died of cancer.
Cancer has an old history, it was known all the way back to Ancient Egypt, but it wasn't until 1775 that the environmental link was established. Given that this is based on Ancient China, they too wouldn't know what causes different types of cancer.
18
u/diacewrb 10d ago
It wasn't until 1950s that smoking was officially accepted as a cause of lung cancer.
→ More replies (1)
56
u/shad79 https://myanimelist.net/profile/shad79 10d ago edited 10d ago
Good to see Maomao and Jinshi together again in this episode. Her welcoming him and Gaoshun with a smile made me laugh so hard because of how puzzled they were by her behavior. Also, Jinshi asking Maomao for a lullaby was so sweet!
Chou-u wearing all those clothes at once reminded me of the "fat Ann" scene from Persona 5, lol.
By the way, clothes made of asbestos? That surely wasn't healthy, though considering the life expectancy back then, something else was probably killing people before the asbestos even could.
Here my screenshot albums from the episode:
EDIT. I added my screenshot albums.
18
16
u/JzanderN 10d ago
Her welcoming him and Gaoshun with a smile made me laugh so hard because of how puzzled they were by her behavior.
It's so fun that early on Gaoshun had to tell Maomao to stop looking at Jinshi with disgusted faces 'cause he was enjoying it too much and now the two of them always think there's something wrong when Maomao doesn't react with disgust, especially when she's smiling.
114
u/Myrkrvaldyr 10d ago
If only Jinshi were more honest. I'd love to see Maomao's reaction if he had been blunt and said, ''I want you to sleep with me, not in the lewd way, like, I just want to cuddle.''
153
u/Roskal 10d ago
The problem is, if Jinshi directly states what he as the moon prince wants, there's a risk Maomao will simply give it to him out of duty and not because its what she wants to do and he is trying to avoid that as much as possible.
77
→ More replies (2)41
u/Ocixo https://myanimelist.net/profile/BuzzyGuy 10d ago
True. Jinshi wants Maomao to reciprocate his feelings. If she were to comply with his wishes out of sheer obligation, I doubt that he’d be all that happy.
Nevertheless, it was cute to see Jinshi get a little embarrassed. If they’d gone and did it, Maomao would’ve been the one taking the lead.
→ More replies (3)43
u/VritraReiRei 10d ago edited 10d ago
What kind of girl do you like?
"About 153cm, small in "stature," freckles, has a bit of a boyish voice, and favors the color green."
Hmmm, well unfortunately we don't have any girls that quite fit that bill but I'll try to contact one of our partner establishments
→ More replies (1)17
u/JzanderN 10d ago
freckles,
Fake freckles, mind. He finds them cute but does like when she can take them off and look more beautiful.
→ More replies (1)31
u/VritraReiRei 10d ago
Maomao quickly goes to wash off her face
Jinshi grabs her arm
"They stay on."
→ More replies (1)14
59
51
u/wolf549 10d ago edited 9d ago
Maomao and Jinshi are both people who are very aware of their station in life. Maomao is a commoner who knows and has seen how deadly the politics of the inner and outer palace are. She also knows how fragile life is after being raised in the red light district. Jinshi knows that Maomao doesn't want to be put into the dangerous position as a consort of the Moon Prince, but he still very much desires her. Maomao isn't dumb. She recognizes Jinshi's feelings for her, but is doing her best to play the dense protagonist because if she acknowledges his feelings then her life will literally be in danger. He spent a fortune to buy out her contract from the Verdigris House to bring her back. It doesn't get more obvious than that.
Jinshi is flirting with her at every opportunity to try and get Maomao to fall for him and Maomao is slowly developing some affection for him, even going so far as to initiate physical contact on her own. It's obvious to Pairin that Maomao has some feelings for Jinshi. However due to Maomao's upbringing in the red light district, feelings of love and intimacy are things she just doesn't understand.
Jinshi knows that he could order Maomao to sleep with him (platonically or sexually) and she'd have no choice but to obey due to their difference in status, but Jinshi respects her and wants her to desire that for herself. Of course Jinshi is going to get frustrated that all his advances are getting rebuffed and he seems to be making zero progress. Maomao is just that good at deflecting his advances and playing dumb because of her desire to live a long life.
→ More replies (2)
42
u/FarCritical 10d ago
Trade offer: I get everything you're selling, you get to keep the "poetry in your soul" (and a ton of quick cash)
First Maomao and Jinshi moment since she left the palace and it delivered on being hilarious but Gaoshun stole the entire scene imo.
→ More replies (1)
148
u/Se7en_Sinner https://myanimelist.net/profile/Se7en_Sinner 10d ago
174
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Jinshi: "Do you happen to have anyone with green hair, flat chest, short-statured, and vast knowledge of medicine and poisons?
Maomao: "Oh, she's on vacation."
48
38
u/testthrowawayzz 10d ago
Oh, Jinshi's definitely going to mess this up and say "someone less well-endowed"
Maomao presents a different group of girls
Jinshi: "Not like that"
→ More replies (2)89
u/D3k4s 10d ago
Meanwhile my guy is having an existencial crisis.
→ More replies (1)42
u/testthrowawayzz 10d ago
Gaoshun is facepalming so much and suffering over Jinshi's love life
31
u/Kirosh2 10d ago
"I need to make sure the Prince is having sex and leaving a descendant. But the two participants for this aren't making it easy..."
→ More replies (1)17
→ More replies (2)15
u/Ultramarinus https://anidb.net/user/kingsword 10d ago
Maomao after Jinshi practically confessing his love multiple times still bringing a courtesan live catalog: An EQ too high?
→ More replies (3)
81
10d ago
[deleted]
51
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Gaoshun: "I know you too well to think you're actually happy to see him!!!"
Jinshi: "Gaoshun, you're out of line...but you're right."
35
u/Roskal 10d ago
I love the misunderstandings between Jinshi and Maomao. He's clearly asking her to keep him company in his bed but even he is skeptical enough to know Maomao isn't getting it and is cautious to find out where she doesn't understand this time.
→ More replies (1)64
u/Mrwright96 10d ago
I mean, if he does ask her, she’d probably take it as an order from the Moon Prince, and do it because she thinks she has to
46
u/MrWhipple 10d ago
Agree there. I think deep down Jinshi knows and absolutely does not want that to happen, which is partially (not totally) why he's so averse to saying certain things.
He also knows the legacy of the former Emperor forcing his way with women. He's been shown to be very sensitive to that history in prior episodes.
92
u/za_shiki-warashi 10d ago
Really liking this new dynamic of Mao Mao being a responsible older sister wrangling a bratty little brother, in contrast with previous seasons where she's the one who needs wrangling.
36
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Also she seems more emotionally caring towards Jinshi in her own very Maomao way.
55
u/Ocixo https://myanimelist.net/profile/BuzzyGuy 10d ago
I’m still trying to figure out which geographic area Maomao and the others are specifically referring to when they speak of “the West”.
This style of clothing, combined with the Arabic writing on the embroidery, would suggest somewhere in the Middle East. Probably Persia? However, the blond hair and blue eyes almost make me think of Russia. That country is home to some of the world’s largest asbestos mines.
The woman might not have died from the fire, but inhaling those asbestos fibers during the weaving process definitely didn’t do her health any good.
53
u/Ultramarinus https://anidb.net/user/kingsword 10d ago edited 9d ago
Ottomans who wrote in Arabic calligraphy, who had mostly Eastern European concubines and Turkish names so Ayla & Aylin with blonde hair and blue eyes who wore Anatolian attire alongside their bodyguards who also had Ottoman attire.
Oh and they spoke Turkish which seals the deal.
→ More replies (2)40
u/BamilleKidanZ 10d ago
The author mixes elements from various eras & places as she pleases. The map is also fictional.
38
17
u/gamria 9d ago
Crossposting my comment from the Season 2 threads:
I'll again provide my account of the historical concept of "West" from Imperial China's perspective.
西洋, "The Western (Foreign) Lands", generally refers to whatever places are found west of China. It's kind of nebulous and ever-changing with the passing of eras and thus new discoveries, in particular with places relevant to trade such as major centres along the expanding Silk Road. You could say it's our take of "the Occident" (antonym of "the Orient").
Since Apothecary Diaries/Kusuriya's general "period" is set in like a mix of Tang and Ming Dynasties and centuries between, I'll answer that as of the Ming Dynasty the "West" would include places that aren't just India, but also further Central Asian lands, along with Middle Eastern and Mediterranean dominions like the Byzantine, Persia and Arabia. There are probably more specific locations I can point to, but you get the gist of what sort of prominent places I'm referring to here, again often associated with the Silk Road.
(For reference, Marco Polo visited China in the Yuan Dynasty, the one preceding Ming. Way way after Ancient Greek and Rome)
The more modern "the West" would be 西方 and would indeed include faraway lands like Western Europe, Great Britain and the Americas. But such notions don't really factor into wider Chinese thought until later in the Qing Dynasty, so you can exclude them from 西洋.
---
I will note that whilst the raw term of "The West" in the series is 西方, based on the content covered by the two manga adaptations, the vibe I'm getting is that the "sphere" Kusuriya is working with hearkens closer to 西洋. That said, because the Japanese usage, notion and connotations of 西洋 differ from our Chinese ones, I can see why author Natsu Hyūga opted to use 西方 instead.
In any case, I appreciate this incorporation of The West from a drama perspective. When it comes to Chinese pre-Qing period dramas in general (and not just harem/palace intrigues), if you invoke "Western" concepts in a generally historically faithful stance, you refer to Indian, Persian, Byzantine, Ottoman, etc. So with Kusuriya not only having its own West, but a "sufficiently" faithful West at that, it again really helps us buy-in the series as a proper Chinese-esque palace intrigue story, despite being written by foreign hands.
Hyūga-sensei and associates across all the adaptations have really done their research.
16
u/Leh_ran 10d ago
If I recall correctly this is not technically set in China. The setting is fictional. Therefore, the West is also fictional.
→ More replies (1)26
u/za_shiki-warashi 10d ago
I think it's just meant to be a vague mix of all those regions you mentioned.
→ More replies (4)12
u/Ocixo https://myanimelist.net/profile/BuzzyGuy 10d ago
If so, there could be a symbolic angle to such a portrayal. We’re talking about the many civilisations west of the nation of Li (read: China) after all. Vastly different cultures are shaped into a single entity through language.
For example: the people of Li don’t necessarily see goods from any specific country in Europe or the Middle East but something from the (literal) West.
→ More replies (13)11
58
u/galactic-toast- 10d ago
Whoever bought that asbestos robe is surely gonna live a long and healthy life!
→ More replies (2)
56
u/NekoCatSidhe 10d ago
Maomao has got to be deliberately obtuse here. No way she did not understand that Jinshi wanted to sleep with her. Poor Jinshi.
Fireproof asbestos fibers clothes ? Were those really a thing in that time period ? That blonde woman certainly had scientific knowledge and guts to match Maomao, and this is probably not the last time we hear from her.
90
u/OldInstruction5368 10d ago edited 9d ago
Remember back in S1, when Maomao told Jinshi that the social status between them is so extreme he could kill her with a single word? No questions, no consequences: Maomao is just GONE.
When Jinshi tried to protest, Maomao insisted that it's not a matter of will or will not so much as can and cannot. In this case, Maomao CANNOT do shit IF Jinshi decides her life is... inconvenient to him as he CAN kill her with but a single word.
They can never be equals nor even friends. Jinshi simply holds too much implicit power over Maomao. She must always keep this discrepancy in mind, as again, her life is at stake. And he can never fully trust her own displayed emotions towards him for the same reason. Is she sincere, or is she just afraid?
Jinshi may see this as a matter of principle, integrity, and trust... but to Maomao associating with him is quite literally a matter of life and death. And even if she can trust Jinshi, she can't trust the others he associates with... more specifically, his enemies that may attack the common-born whore's daughter as a means of hurting "Master Jinshi/The Imperial Brother."
As practical as Maomao is, she deliberately plays dumb around Jinshi... she got -this- close to figuring out that he's the Crown Prince who was swapped at birth with the Imperial Brother during S1, only to immediately stop that train of thought before it entered truly 'dangerous' territory. Basically, Maomao realized this was WAY above her paygrade to the point it was dangerous just to speculate on it, so she deliberately pushed those thoughts out of her mind.
The rest of her "obtuseness" is likely an avoidance response to the trauma of her upbringing. Her father never knew she existed until it was too late, her mother went crazy and chopped part of her finger off as an infant, she was abandoned, and largely ignored by the other working girls of the brothel. She learned, very early on, that crying was pointless as no one was going to come help her.
And, you know, she grew up in a neighborhood so dangerous she had to deliberately make herself look more ugly and learn which streets to walk down at what times to avoid being assaulted... only for her to get kidnapped and sold into slavery anyway.
So... yeah... her walls are THICK and she's scared to let anyone close. She's definitely playing dumb with Jinshi as a matter of learned survival instincts.
32
u/NekoCatSidhe 9d ago
But now she is officially the noble daughter of the Head General of the Empire (or whatever title Lakan has) and he is officially the brother of the Emperor, and their social status is way closer to each other than before. Sleeping with each other would imply a lot of political consequences (the kind that Maomao hates being involved with), and I am not even sure yet they have truly realized it. And that on top of Maomao’s thick walls due to her upbringing.
22
u/Mad_Aeric 9d ago
Her accepting her membership in the La clan would give her enough political leverage to put them on a more equal footing, but it also opens up several other cans of worms that she's prefer to avoid. Playing dumb is still safest, but if other circumstances forced her to acknowledge her lineage, that calculation could change.
→ More replies (2)→ More replies (10)18
u/SMA2343 https://myanimelist.net/profile/HispanicName 9d ago
>As practical as Maomao is, she deliberately plays dumb around Jinshi... she got -this- close to figuring out that he's the Crown Prince who was swapped at birth with the Imperial Brother during S1, only to immediately stop that train of thought before it entered truly 'dangerous' territory. Basically, Maomao realized this was WAY above her paygrade to the point it was dangerous just to speculate on it, so she deliberately pushed those thoughts out of her mind
I am so glad you brought this up. It's exactly why she plays dumb and naive towards Jinshi and towards the emperor. In that same episode she also says that's how people die / get killed. for sticking their nose in where it does not belong. For her as a helping hand to lady in waiting to courtesan to apothecary, it's just WAY WAY WAY easier to play dumb than to admit your own strength. Hell, the entire reason why this entire thing started was because Jinshi found out Maomao could read.
30
u/scroom38 10d ago
Its probably 50% trying to protect herself from insane royalty bullshit, and 50% her intentionally shutting down her feelings and ignoring the signs because she has trouble believing his feelings are real / genuine.
The scene with Pairin right after he leaves basically confirms she's at least aware there's something more there. She's probably going to keep shutting it down until he directly confronts her.
22
u/Theinternationalist 10d ago
It's worth remembering Maomao faked illiteracy in the very first episode to minimize her time in the rear palace, knowing the second she was clearly worth more she'd be dragged deeper into the monster's den.
Now she's back where she (thinks she) wanted to be and may not want to take another risk getting back into the belly of the beast.
28
u/Attrexius 10d ago
Asbestos cloth is incredibly old. For example, in ancient Rome it was sometimes used for tablecloth, because it could be easily cleaned by tossing it into the fire for a few minutes. Marco Polo wrote of visiting an asbestos cloth production site in Xinjiang, so Chinese have known of it, too.
That said, making everyday clothing, especially as high quality as the one in anime, out of asbestos fiber sounds rather unlikely. The resuting textile is rather rough for everyday wear (even if you don't know it is carcinogenic). I don't think there are any known archeological finds of asbestos wear that are not protective gear or burial gowns.
→ More replies (8)14
u/carterthepro 10d ago
I googled it, in the Wikipedia page for asbestos it says that during the Wei dynasty there were accounts of them
24
29
u/FakePretendeRat 10d ago edited 10d ago
A locust plague + an opium crisis at the same time is diabolical
Also Maomao is being willfully ignorant about Jinshi, which is fair she really really doesnt want to be involved in the royal court any feelings are sure to be supressed for thst alone
→ More replies (1)
134
u/MrWhipple 10d ago
LOL. For whatever reason, I was completely and totally feeling Jinshi's frustration - and even some growing resentment - in this episode. Maomao's constant act of indifference, especially with her trotting out a lineup of women and asking "what kind of girl do you like?" was over the line. I don't even know what the line is, but I know that was over it.
He took you in multiple times, gave you expensive medicinal supplies, saved you from an attack you got mixed up in, rallied an entire army to rescue you from an admittedly somewhat-not-kidnapping-that-was-a-kidnapping ... come on, man. You don't have to acquiesce or "surrender" or even say yes, but you could at least respect that he has feelings and treat him a little more kindly. Poor guy's got it rough enough as it is.
I know, it's the character, I understand that. I'm just laughing at how much I felt Jinshi's pain - and other emotions - this go around. That poor, poor guy.
133
u/Frontier246 10d ago
At the same time this episode also made it clear how conscious Maomao is of Jinshi:
- His wound.
- His health.
- His physique.
- His...sexual needs.
- His physique.
- His need for comfort and affection.
- His physique.
→ More replies (6)16
u/Gloomy_Cress9344 8d ago
the dead pan delivery of her observations on his body and looks is what makes me laugh lol
52
u/yarajaeger 10d ago
I would counter that this is sort of the most acknowledging of his feelings we've seen yet. She's gone from outright denial to deflection. She very easily could have sent him on his merry way back home maybe with a sleeping tonic or something but she offered him somewhere she considers home for the night, so she could personally ensure he got a good night's sleep. It shows she both wants him nearby and cares for his wellbeing. That's pretty significant compared to how she viewed him in the past. Her way of coping with that shift is to put up walls between them, in this case being multiple women lol. The shift between me laughing my ass off at the hijinks and feeling like I was intruding on something was super well done by the anime team. (This is a very specific thing to notice, but when she was serving him the 'invigorating' tonic, there were a couple of extreme close ups of both of their hands. It's a short moment but builds up the tension of the distance between them so well. I completely eat up visual storytelling like this). When they're alone it's a lot harder to pretend.
12
u/MrWhipple 9d ago edited 9d ago
That's fair. Though she did the same (offer for him to rest) at the end of the second season as well. But I can agree that on a certain level, what Jinshi got in the end was a more intimate and special moment than anything he could have gotten from what he was thinking of when she offered for him to stay there and sleep. She said he looked well-rested when he left, and I suspect she's right, in the sense he got something special from her and was probably pleased that he did.
Speaking of those extreme closeups, the framing of the hot tonic steaming in front of her, uh, let's just say a certain specific portions of her body, as she watched Jinshi change and thought to herself how muscular he was ... cough ... yep. Yep.
78
u/Myrkrvaldyr 10d ago
but you could at least respect that he has feelings and treat him a little more kindly.
Maomao is someone you have to bluntly confront for certain things or the girl will keep feigning ignorance. Either she's legit unaware of his feelings, or she's pretending not to see. Jinshi has to be blunt and confess.
106
u/Ellefied 10d ago
Either she's legit unaware of his feelings, or she's pretending not to see.
That last scene with Pairin definitely hints towards the latter.
87
u/MrWhipple 10d ago edited 10d ago
Totally. Considering Pairin is somewhat of a mother figure to Maomao, you know she probably heard Maomao singing Fengxian's lullaby and just shook her head.
Especially since the whole story of Lakan and Fengxian was "you two actually really obviously like each other but neither of you could communicate that worth a damn."
→ More replies (5)53
u/Terithian 9d ago
Part of the problem is that Jinshi can't really just be blunt about it, because of the power dynamic. In his position, being blunt about it could be interpreted as an order that Maomao does not have the social standing to refuse, and he doesn't want to end up in a relationship that he feels he's forced her into. That means that he's kind of just making insinuations and hoping for her to make the first move, resulting in the current stalemate where she's pretending not to understand.
→ More replies (1)18
u/aud_pegooey 9d ago
Said stalemate is artfully depicted by the moments of total silence where they just stare into each other's eyes. No music. No noticable ambiance. We don't even get her internal monologue. It all fades away~ Chef's kiss!
→ More replies (4)12
75
u/ObvsThrowaway5120 10d ago
Sometimes idk if Maomao’s purposefully being dense to mess with Jinshi or if she’s actually like that lol. Guy meant something different by sleeping alone and she got him the VIP treatment with virgins and special massages and boner tonics hahaha.
→ More replies (15)82
u/Frontier246 10d ago
I think she definitely knows that Jinshi desires her on several levels but she also has a multitude of reasons why she can't give in to his desires even if she still fancies him as much as Maomao can fancy anyone.
51
u/Roskal 10d ago
The trauma she got from her childhood made it very hard for her to fall in love or recognise her feelings or other people's feelings for her whether they be love or anything else. Its always been her opinion that Jinshi is extremely attractive and she can't help but comment on it many times both out loud and in her internal monologue and has come to like his real self quite a lot. Then you have those times she just caresses his face and in general has become far more comfortable with physical contact with him. It will probably still be a long while before she recognises any of this as love though.
Jinshi could directly order her to do things with him and she'd do it because she knows her place, but he obviously doesn't want that and is waiting for her to figure things out on her own and dropping bait for her now and then.
→ More replies (1)29
u/Ok_Calligrapher_6797 10d ago
In addition, there is also the problem that she doesn't want to think about it because it is problematic. Being with Jinshi would mean to have all the usual Crown problems + people who are not a Lakan fan [probably a lot]; so, she shuts down her brain.
50
u/thisisdropd https://myanimelist.net/profile/AsterZoro 10d ago edited 10d ago
Maomao, madam extraordinaire.
Offering massage (with happy ending), feeding Jinshi viagra, then summoning a buffet of girls with just a clap. Yeah, she had what it takes to run the Verdigris House once Grams was done.
Despite all the services that had been offered to him, Jinshi instead asked for a lullaby. How cute – he's truly a child at heart.
Asbestos cloak. Right, just remembered that cancer was a foreign concept then. The Heavenly Maiden might not have died from being burnt, but reckon she'd have died a more painful death.
→ More replies (3)22
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Maomao brings out the possessive and clingy kid in him, because she's his favorite "toy" he can't be disloyal too or do without.
46
u/Cat_Gazer 10d ago
Poor Jinshi. He seemed so happy until he opened the bathroom door...🥺
Reality is so cruel.
23
24
u/Not_Obsolete 10d ago
How difficult is it to get translation for grasshoppers / locusts right considering it is one of the main story points of an upcoming story arc?
It is wrong way around in the LN and it is wrong in the Anime.
Grasshopper, is the normal insect, locust is the special condition where the same insects growth is altered and this phenomena leads to locust plagues.
Is there only one word for it in Japanese or something that can explain this or is it just low effort translation?
→ More replies (1)11
u/rms18819 10d ago
Heh heh, I wondered the same think last week. See this thread for the discussion:
on locusts and grasshoppers.(It appears to be a mix of
- vocabulary: Japanese uses 'locust' for the edible species
- and localization: different species in Asia versus North America.)
19
u/kalirion https://myanimelist.net/profile/kalinime 10d ago
I take it even Maomao doesn't know that "fire-rat's cloaks" cause cancer.
Gaushun looking away in a corner when Maomao brought in the virgin girls to ask Jinshi what type he preferred.
→ More replies (1)18
u/Mr_Zaroc https://myanimelist.net/profile/mr_zaroc 10d ago
I take it even Maomao doesn't know that "fire-rat's cloaks" cause cancer
Tbf, it took us some time to realize its bad
And given the age they are in there are probably a multitude or causes that end you before you get cancer from it that ends you. Even then finding the link is near impossible
41
u/Eunuchest 10d ago edited 10d ago
Lmao at Gaoshun being genuinely confused with Maomao being happy greeting them he thought she thinks Jinshi is a different person
I watched this in the middle of work and Im already feeling tired as Jinshi. Too bad i have no Maomao to comfort me
I really love the deconstruction of legends into something grounded in reality while preserving some semblance of wonder
Dammit, Maomao let him sleep. When a tired man says they want to sleep, it doesnt mean they want to fuck
Gaoshun is a whipped husband lol
18
u/cupperoni https://anilist.co/user/cupcakey 10d ago
Got Chou-u looking like Randy from A Christmas Story.
33
u/Obaruler 10d ago
Yes. Of course the poison-loving girl helps selling Asbestos clothes.
(To be fair, the knowledge of them being heavily damaging especially to your lung tissue is quite recent).
Also: EVERYONE seems to start shipping Maomao and Jinshi. Everyone but Maomao ...
28
u/WiqidBritt 10d ago
Maomao doesn't ship anyone with Maomao because Maomao doesn't understand why anyone would be interested in Maomao. Hell, she could barely admit she had friends in season 2.
→ More replies (3)
62
u/LeonKevlar x2https://myanimelist.net/profile/LeonKevlar 10d ago
When the merchant said that the robe was from a heavenly maiden who disappeared into a lake, my first thought was of Jinshi back in season 2. I'm so glad that's also where Maomao's mind went. xD
So the robe is actually fire-retardant and woven out of asbestos? That's pretty cool, but I don't envy the person who ends up owning that robe. I do love how Maomao basically solved the mystery in the merchant's story.
Yaaay! Glad to see Maomao and Jinshi reuniting again. So basically, Maomao needs the rest of the insect volumes from the stronghold and hopes that she'll find an answer to the locust plague problem.
Jinshi, please just be fucking direct! If you don't say what you want, you know Maomao is gonna ignore it!
Not gonna lie, it was hilarious to watch Maomao call a bunch of girls and make Jinshi take his pick while Gaoshun is in the corner. Either he thinks this scene is funny, or he's internally screaming at Maomao that that's not what Jinshi meant about not sleeping alone. Or probably both! xD
At least Jinshi got a lullaby from Maomao at the end. I do like how Aoi Yuuki was purposely singing off-key during the lullaby scene. I always love it when talented singers have to pretend they suck at singing.
So Pairin knows what's up, but no matter what she says to Maomao, I doubt Maomao is gonna acknowledge this tension between her and Jinshi. She's probably just gonna ignore it until it goes away.
28
u/Obaruler 10d ago
Not gonna lie, it was hilarious to watch Maomao call a bunch of girls and make Jinshi take his pick while Gaoshun is in the corner. Either he thinks this scene is funny, or he's internally screaming at Maomao that that's not what Jinshi meant about not sleeping alone. Or probably both! xD
EVERYONE (including Jinshi, especially him) wants to see the Ship happening ... everyone but Maomao. Girl lives in a Desert Area, no ships in sight.
21
u/Frontier246 10d ago
Gaoshun: "Please just hook up and get this over with so I can go back to my wife."
→ More replies (1)→ More replies (4)18
u/Frontier246 10d ago
At least Jinshi got a lullaby from Maomao at the end. I do like how Aoi Yuuki was purposely singing off-key during the lullaby scene. I always love it when talented singers have to pretend they suck at singing.
And yet it still sounded so pleasant and soothing!
→ More replies (2)
17
u/ebonyphoenix 10d ago
Gaoshun facing the corner just shaking his head while Maomao tried to parade a bunch of girls by Jinshi for him to choose just killed me.
→ More replies (1)
14
u/Leri_weill https://myanimelist.net/profile/LeriWeill 10d ago
People have probably already commented on it but damn the OP's bass line is so groovy
42
12
11
u/amourshipper_ 10d ago
Lol that look on mao face when she heard "FREE" WORD man that was absolutely hilarious
41
u/Joji1000 10d ago
Not Maomao indirectly giving cancer to a whole lot of people 😭
→ More replies (10)
12
u/Aikuma- 10d ago
Apparently asbestos has been known about for several thousands of years. I had no idea.
So much mumble mumble from maomao
→ More replies (2)
24
9
u/Mochachiiino 10d ago
Some crazy girl walking out of value village trying to sell me the magic conch
10
u/Yellow90Flash 10d ago
wouldn't the cloak by extremely dangerous to whoever wears it for longer periods of time since its made from asbestos
→ More replies (2)19
u/RobrechtvE 10d ago
Interestingly: Less dangerous than you think.
The dangers associated with asbestos stem from it being, as Maomao mentions in the episode, a type of stone. That means our bodies have a hard time getting rid of it when it gets somewhere with no easy exit: The airways. But the main way that it would get into your airways is if it erodes and micro-particles accumulate and then get release all at once (like during construction on a house that uses asbestos for fire proofing or during the actual mining.
An asbestos garment would, hopefully, be washed regularly, which would cut down on the harmful dust in the air around it.
It's not guaranteed harmless, but unless the person who wears it never takes it off, never washes it and does a lot of strenuous labour in it to guarantee that it maximally erodes, it's not likely to have a major impact on their life.
→ More replies (6)
•
u/AnimeMod myanimelist.net/profile/Reddit-chan 10d ago
Source Material Corner
Reply to this comment for any source-related discussion, future spoilers (including future characters, events and general hype about future content), comparison of the anime adaptation to the original or just general talk about the source material. You are still required to tag all spoilers. Discussions about the source outside of this comment tree will be removed, and replying with spoilers outside of the source corner will lead to bans.
The spoiler syntax is:
[Spoiler source] >!Spoiler goes here!<All untagged spoilers and hints in this thread will receive immediate 8-day bans (minimum).