The Apothecary Diaries episode 10

Rating: B+

Last episode began a narrative shift away from individual mysteries and more towards how certain mysteries may be connected into a bigger picture. This episode continues down that path as Maomao interacts with two of the other four high-ranking concubines: Lishu and Ah-Duo. In the process, we learn a bit more about each and their situations.

Lishu’s case first comes up during a tea party and during a later visit from Maomao, which clarifies how she is being influenced and bullied by her ladies-in-waiting. Interaction with Ah-Duo comes in between when Maomao is sent to help for a couple of days of cleaning at Jinshi’s behest, an assignment which feels very much like Jinshi is using her to fish for information even though he doesn’t say as much. Aside from Maomao getting the gossip from her laundry friend and Jinshi going overboard with a bit of teasing towards Maomao, that’s about all that happens during the episode. However, we learn a lot from these incidents, and that raises further big questions.

All of this is shown under a roughly-uniting theme of honey, which is also the episode’s title. Honey is prominent at Ah-Duo’s Garnet Pavilion because Fenming, her chief lady-in-waiting, is from a honey-producing family. It’s even in the candles they burn, which would be an extravagant luxury in a setting where honey isn’t cheap, and Jinshi is both showing off and teasing Maomao with it later on. So why would Lishu, who’s revealed to probably be allergic to honey as well, furtively in the vicinity of Garnet Pavilion with only her poison-tester in tow? Something is definitely suspicious there. The servant woman who died last episode was from that pavilion, and rumored to have been the poisoner at the garden party, too. That’s only rumor, of course, but if she did do it and was acting on behalf of someone, it probably would be Fenming, who also has the bandages on her arm suggesting that she may have been involved with the treated boards from a few episodes back. Everything points towards something going on here, but are these just red herrings borne of gossip, part of a simple plan to get Lishu out of the picture, or something bigger? The middle option seems most likely, since there is motive: Ah-Duo is going to be leaving the harem soon to be replaced by someone younger, and the presumption is that she might not have to if Lishu (who hasn’t serviced the Emperor at all) went instead.

But that all seems a little too simple. Things get more intriguing when we learn that Ah-Duo still being present in the harem despite her age can be attributed to practically being raised side-by-side with the Emperor, so it seems unlikely that she’d be able to be forced out. Her having a baby around the same time as the current Emperor’s little brother was born is also very highly suspicious, especially if we factor in that Jinshi has been implied to be that brother and bears some striking similarities in appearance to Ah-Duo. (Granted, he doesn’t look like he’s that young, but that’s never stopped anime before.) This reeks of some kind of cover-up, one that Maomao’s adoptive father seems to have been involved in, too; this is what his mysterious comment at the end of episode 7 must have been referring to. But how much, if anything, does that have to do with current events?

Aside from that, the other interesting detail is how different in appearance Ah-Duo is from the others. She has neither Lishu’s youth and innocence, the exotic beauty of Gyokuyou, or the curvaceous figure of Lihua, but is, in fact, a more androgynous beauty, the kind who could have been the prince of an all-girls school as a teenager. She’s essentially the female version of Jinshi. Hmmm. . .

One or more big mysteries are playing out here, and that’s sure to keep this series involving for the foreseeable future.