There are times when I’m reading a story and hit a scene that just doesn’t quite make sense. I find myself wondering, Why is this here? It feels disconnected from the overall narrative, or the characters behave in ways that don’t align with how they’ve been portrayed so far.
That kind of confusion came up more than once while reading The Apothecary Diaries novels. Certain scenes felt oddly placed or difficult to grasp at the time. One moment that stands out was when Gaoshun asked Maomao about the pregnant twin. In the novel, I assumed he simply wanted her opinion on a bizarre situation. I mean, who else but Maomao could figure out how a girl under round-the-clock surveillance managed to get pregnant? It never occurred to me that there might be something more to it than that.
But when I watched the anime adaptation of the scene, everything made sense. The twins weren’t the focus—they were a metaphor for the two envoys. When I watched the episode, I remember having a lightbulb go off in my head: Ohhhhhh! That’s what he was really asking.
That kind of delayed realization happened several times for me in this episode.
Take the scene where Maomao goes to the clinic. I never fully understood why she made that choice. After learning that a list of abortifacients had once been posted in the inner palace, it felt like a bit of a narrative jump for her to head straight there. But this episode made it clear: where else could she go but the one place where people who were around twenty years ago might still be working?
And of course Suirei would be at the clinic. She was one of the new eunuchs stationed there, so it wasn’t a stretch for her to reveal herself to Maomao then. What had always bothered me more was Maomao’s lack of suspicion about Shisui being there too—how was she even present to get taken hostage alongside her?
Yes, Maomao has begun to really question Shisui’s identity this episode: Why did she have access to high-quality paper? How did she know how to read and write so well? But it still bugs me that Maomao had yet to stop and ask, Wait—why is Shisui even here right now? I think Maomao does make a comment of how anyone can visit the clinic, so maybe that’s why she doesn’t question it further at this time.
Then again, the previous episode showed just how much Maomao had grown attached to Shisui and Xiaolan. She saw them as friends. She cared about them. So it makes sense that she might overlook something suspicious. After all, she often does the same thing with Jinshi—she has her theories about who he truly is, but she hasn’t fully connected the dots. In her mind, she’s drawn the lines in pencil, but she hasn’t committed to ink yet.
Also—can I just take a moment to say how relieved I was about how Maomao reacted to being kidnapped? I’m so glad they didn’t show Maomao getting overly excited about possibly learning the recipe for the resurrection elixir. This is how she reacts in the manga:
Sure, it’s totally in character for her—this kind of curiosity is totally Maomao. But it doesn’t feel right. A second ago she was worried about her own safety and that of someone she cares about. The elixir can wait.
Then there’s that moment between Lakan and Shisou in the second half of the episode. In the manga (and presumably the novel), Lakan only mentions “red” juice. He’s not shown pouring green juice into a cup—which, let’s be honest, is pretty hard to convey in a black-and-white manga anyway.
It wasn’t until the anime laid it out visually—with that telltale green juice—that I realized: oh, Shisou is colorblind. And colorblindness is a known trait in the Royal Mother’s bloodline. Which means… Shisou has a legitimate claim to the throne.
I also really enjoyed seeing how Lakan’s mind works. Despite being a creepy weirdo to Maomao, he is the Grand Commandant for a reason. The Emperor himself even voiced his hesitance of getting on Lakan’s bad side. Lakan is not one to mess with. We forget since we’ve seen other sides of him. And not long before the juice thing happened, this happens in the manga.
He pulls out a cake from his sleeves when everyone else thought he was going to present something else, maybe even a feifa.
Most of my favorite episodes in this series are ones that bring my most anticipated scenes to life. But this one? It’s become a favorite for a different reason. It clarified so many moments that had puzzled me in the novels. And even though I already know what’s coming next (at least through volume thirteen), that added clarity makes the whole story even more satisfying to watch unfold.
