(CR) Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (The Apothecary Diaries)

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Anyway, everything ended well for this family, save for the poor youngest son who will most likely die of lead poisoning.

IIRC, it wasn't that nice and clean in the LN. The youngest son gets to rediscover their father's secret technique from the clues in the chest because he's hardworking and was already researching it. The two older just... don't.

[Frontier]

I guess it is a compliment if Maomao thinks that Jinshi with his beauty enhanced by makeup would be enough to incite a war...but Jinshi doesn't want to look more beautiful, he wants to transform into a commoner! And Maomao loves a challenge .

Time for the full commoner makeup tutorial! Jinshi is so naturally beautiful they need to go out of their way to make him into a pudgy, chubby, guy with a hoarse voice and a smell to match his "lower station!" I takes a full team of Maomao, Gaoshun, and Suiren to complete .

Maomao finally sees Jinshi's six-pack...and his callused hands from wielding swords...totally stuff you would expect to see from an eunuch right? Maomao can't help but ask these silly questions to herself .

I have so many mixed feelings about Jinshi looking like a woman...then again, he has his moms' genes !

Gaoshun, way to wingman! Jinshi needs a companion and who better than Maomao, especially when she has time off? It even gives them an excuse to dress her up all fancy. And Jinshi, or should we say Jinka, loves playing the part of her attendant !

Oh, and Basen is shadowing them despite his complaints. At least he got some chicken skewers out of it .

Sorry Jinka, Maomao prefers thinking of her dad than trying to strike up conversations with you, but at least she's willing to enjoy chicken skewers with you and give you that winning, Maomao, smile !

Gaoshun and Suiren talking about Jinshi like two parents who have always struggled to keep their kid happy and pacified, and Jinshi doesn't make it easy. Though his current "toy" is very different from all the rest .

Maomao seems a little put off that she thinks Jinshi went to all this trouble just to visit some ladies (especially when it would've been easier just to go to the pleasure district)...not that it is what Jinshi was actually out for .

Jinshi finally finds out about Maomao's dad and how proud she is of him, though he also seems to put two and two together of who her dad really is (especially considering they're connected in a way knowing Jinshi's possible backstory)...but Jinshi also finally asks Maomao about how to lower the value of a courtesan, and Maomao gets probably the most serious she's ever been. Because a high-ranked courtesan valued for her beauty, charms, and skills isn't meant to be bedded, but if she loses that purity...if she ends up with child...she becomes worthless. And this seems kind of personal for Maomao .

[Kanon]

The whole Jinshi make-over scene was fun. Even if she is put off by his personality, Maomao can't deny he is extremely attractive. Apparently enough to start wars over.

Jinshi's question clearly hit a very sore spot for Maomao and all but confirmed Lakan is her father. Just not sure why he didn't end up buying her after lowering her value given that he seemed genuinely in love with her. There's probably more to the story.

[Thor's Hammer]

Originally Posted by Kanon

The whole Jinshi make-over scene was fun. Even if she is put off by his personality, Maomao can't deny he is extremely attractive. Apparently enough to start wars over.

Jinshi's question clearly hit a very sore spot for Maomao and all but confirmed Lakan is her father. Just not sure why he didn't end up buying her after lowering her value given that he seemed genuinely in love with her. There's probably more to the story.

There's probably more to the story as you say. Surely there must be a reason Luomen ended up being Maomao's adoptive father. Was it Lakan's doing or someone else in the palace who set up that arrangement?

[ryllharu]

Originally Posted by Thor's Hammer

There's probably more to the story as you say. Surely there must be a reason Luomen ended up being Maomao's adoptive father. Was it Lakan's doing or someone else in the palace who set up that arrangement?

Presumably the old hag.

Maomao wouldn't have been of age to have been a kamuro. And keeping a child around is bad for business.

[grecefar]

This chapter was the funniest to date but that part at the end really put things serious. I really don't want Lakan to be Maomao' father but things are pointing that way, it sucks.

Still good chapter overall.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Kanon

The whole Jinshi make-over scene was fun. Even if she is put off by his personality, Maomao can't deny he is extremely attractive. Apparently enough to start wars over.

Jinshi's question clearly hit a very sore spot for Maomao and all but confirmed Lakan is her father. Just not sure why he didn't end up buying her after lowering her value given that he seemed genuinely in love with her. There's probably more to the story.

Well, for a given definition of love the way he described it...

[Alchemist007]

Preview implies some drama coming up. Just hope Maomao keeps her pragmatic approach as part of her character by the end of it.

[Frontier]

Jinshi doesn't want to leave things with Maomao like this, but he doesn't have much of a choice. And Maomao for her part is just content she was able to be as emotionless as possible, even if her true feelings still feel paramount in her reaction .

A woman, a baby, and a knife? Jeez, what happened to Maomao !?

Is grams trying to sell Pairin? Seems like she has some offers but Pairin's not budging .

So who is in the annex? A disheveled, practically comatose, woman barley hanging on with her life...a courtesan who brought shame to the Verdigis House when she caught syphilis and could no longer function as a courtesan...someone Maomao's father was too late to do anything more than treat...and one who shares a hair color eerily similar to our leading lady. The only thing that makes her get up is to still consciously play her specialty as a courtesan. It's not a pretty sight .

Okay, so Lakan DEFINITELY wants Maomao and they're doing everything they can to keep him away from her

Does Meimei have a suitor she's interested in having buy her and free her from life as a courtesan? It seems like she's just waiting for him to get enough to buy her, especially as she's at retirement age. Maomao for her part thinks she lost the capacity to truly love someone (at least romantically) from the womb, but at least she's got her busty big sis' to comfort her in the bath .

Things are...still awkward between Maomao and Jinshi, but at least Suiren gave her some good advice! It's all well and good to be mindful of ones' station but you shouldn't let it limit your chance to be happy .

How many times is Maomao going to realize Jinshi is too special to be an eunuch before she admits it to herself ?

Why does Lakan keep visiting Jinshi? It's all been about Maomao, and Jinshi buying her before Lakan could. Because HE'S MAOMAO'S BIOLOGICAL FATHER. And he wants her back. And he knows EXACTly who Jinshi is .

Well, I think Maomao putting the fear of God into Jinshi the moment he mentions Lakan's name should tell you all you need to know about how Maomao feels about him .

What is Suirei's deal? She works around the military barracks, despite being a court lady, and she does some gardening herself...was she somewhat serious about that "reviving the dead" thing? Something seems really off about her .

[Huh...?]

For those who might have missed the scene

Spoiler:

[grecefar]

too much happening at once and we got to know now who are maomao's parents. I does sucks that in the end it's lakan but it is what it is, at least she doesn't want anything to do with him.

and yes I saw that face and was hell of a scare to be honest. Then there is the suirei thing too, man... it's a good thing there are some chapters left. After this I will go straight to the novel or manga or whatever.

[Kanon]

Maomao really hates Lakan. I guess it's no surprise given what happened to her mother because of him. On the other hand, I'm surprised she takes care of her mother given that she attempted to kill her and all. Given the state she's in now, I guess anyone would feel sorry for her.

[*SNIP*]

[Wandering Soul]

I was sure that if Maomao knew about Lakan she would dislike him, but her hatred for him clearly runs deep. Can't blame her considering the state her mom is in and the traumatic memories Maomao seems to have of her.

[Thor's Hammer]

Well, I called it. Lakan is indeed Maomao's biological father, which was obvious given the easiest way to reduce a courtesan's value is to get her pregnant. He gave Maomao's mother syphylis and didn't have the goodwill to have a doctor give her a check-up until maybe Luomen came to the pleasure district after he was dismissed from his role. Something tells me there might have been more to Luomen's dismissal than what has been revealed so far. Maybe Lakan deliberately got Luomen dismissed so that he could send Luomen to the pleasure district. I'm probably overthinking it though 'cause if Lakan had sent Luomen to look after Maomao, he'd probably visit Luomen directly instead of the Verdigris House unless the arrangement with Luomen and the Verdigris House is special and the Verdigris House simply permits Luomen to look after her. Lakan also directly insinuates that Jinshi is the Emperor's son, which confirms Maomao's speculation from earlier.

Most people in this show who dislike Maomao do so because of her commoner background, so I'm assuming this is also the reason Suirei dislikes her. Either that or she dislikes Maomao because Maomao is more famous than she is for her skills.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Kanon

Maomao really hates Lakan. I guess it's no surprise given what happened to her mother because of him. On the other hand, I'm surprised she takes care of her mother given that she attempted to kill her and all. Given the state she's in now, I guess anyone would feel sorry for her.

Also probably feels like it's her duty (either as her daughter, for the Verdigris House, as an apothecary, etc.) to take care of her even though she feels very complicated emotions about her mother.

[BBOvenGuy]

Originally Posted by Huh...?

For those who might have missed the scene

Spoiler:

Haven't seen a jump-scare like that since The Exorcist...

[Anh_Minh]

Originally Posted by Thor's Hammer

Well, I called it. Lakan is indeed Maomao's biological father, which was obvious given the easiest way to reduce a courtesan's value is to get her pregnant. He gave Maomao's mother syphylis and didn't have the goodwill to have a doctor give her a check-up until maybe Luomen came to the pleasure district after he was dismissed from his role. Something tells me there might have been more to Luomen's dismissal than what has been revealed so far. Maybe Lakan deliberately got Luomen dismissed so that he could send Luomen to the pleasure district. I'm probably overthinking it though 'cause if Lakan had sent Luomen to look after Maomao, he'd probably visit Luomen directly instead of the Verdigris House unless the arrangement with Luomen and the Verdigris House is special and the Verdigris House simply permits Luomen to look after her. Lakan also directly insinuates that Jinshi is the Emperor's son, which confirms Maomao's speculation from earlier.

Lakan didn't (directly) give her syphilis. After she was found to be pregnant and had Mao Mao, she was demoted to common prostitute. One of her Johns contaminated her.

[nojay]

It may be worth pointing out that the actual cure for syphilis and most other sexually transmitted diseases is antibiotics which are not really within the scope of this story's apothecary-style concoctions and herbal remedies. There were some treatments in the past that worked to reduce the symptoms but they were often as bad for the patient as the original disease -- some of them involved mercury (cinnabar) for example.

I don't think Luomen or any other apothecary could have saved MaoMao's mother even if he could have treated her soon after she got infected.

[SeijiSensei]

Originally Posted by Anh_Minh

Lakan didn't (directly) give her syphilis. After she was found to be pregnant and had Mao Mao, she was demoted to common prostitute. One of her Johns contaminated her.

Especially since Lakan shows no symptoms of the disease himself.

How did courtesans avoid pregnancy? Wouldn't they have been a relatively common nuisance resolvable by abortion?

[Huh...?]

Originally Posted by nojay

It may be worth pointing out that the actual cure for syphilis and most other sexually transmitted diseases is antibiotics which are not really within the scope of this story's apothecary-style concoctions and herbal remedies. There were some treatments in the past that worked to reduce the symptoms but they were often as bad for the patient as the original disease -- some of them involved mercury (cinnabar) for example.

I don't think Luomen or any other apothecary could have saved MaoMao's mother even if he could have treated her soon after she got infected.

You forget that, Luomen had apparently studied Western Medicine as well.
And if its the same type as our world, then it possible that Luomen might have known about antibiotics.