Volume 10 - Chapter 35

The Apothecary Diaries

Your Name #

The sea breeze feels refreshing.

Maomao walks on the deck while feeling the sea breeze. Leaving Inu-Nishishu behind, a leisurely voyage begins. It’s a ship similar to the one we took on our journey, but with slightly different shapes. This time there are three large ships, and it seems like a trading ship is also tagging along.

The Western Capital has changed drastically over the past few months. There were rumors circulating at one point about the Imperial Prince plotting to assassinate Gyokuo and take over the Western Capital. However, when Gyokuo’s eldest son, Shikyo, entered politics, people’s impressions started to change.

Despite rumors of him being a prodigal son, Shikyo didn’t give a bad impression. Above all, his popularity stemmed from his striking resemblance to his father. Perhaps it’s because Shikyo’s imitation of Gyokuo’s martial demeanor, which seemed somewhat artificial when done by Gyokuo, felt natural when done by Shikyo.

Although there are still issues regarding food shortages, Jinshi, being the Imperial Prince, couldn’t stay in the provinces forever and had to return. It’s tough being left behind, but I hope Lu, the Deputy Minister, will do his best.

(Honestly, it’s easier to maneuver when Jinshi is in the capital.)

Those who were reluctant to provide support won’t be able to refuse when the Imperial Prince approaches. While it’s not something a member of the imperial family should do, I think Jinshi might resort to it.

(It took almost a year to return.)

I wonder how much the capital has changed. I hope everyone is doing well.

(I forgot to buy souvenirs, but I hope they’ll forgive me.)

There’s no time for such leisure. If anything, it’s only for some agarwood. It’s a souvenir from the most troublesome old lady. It’s a relief to have it on hand.

I’d like to relax, but there are people on the return journey who can’t.

“Chuue, Chuue.”

“Yes, what is it, Maomao?”

Chuue seems to be eating dried grapes as if reminiscing about the Western Capital. With her left hand, he skillfully tears them from the bunch and puts them in her mouth.

“Why is that old man here?”

Maomao glances at the eccentric military adviser crouching by the ship’s bow with a half-closed eye.

“Chuue is here to return to the capital, just like Maomao. She was fine until a moment ago, but as soon as the ship set sail, she rushed to the toilet and couldn’t make it in time, scattering what was in her stomach all over the deck.”

“You don’t need to explain in such detail; I understand.”

As vomit sparkles and splashes around, the vice admiral nearby looks pitiful. There’s a pageboy holding a bucket nearby. If I remember correctly, his name is Junjie, a young boy who took care of Maomao when he was in the Western Capital.

“Rakan-sama was originally supposed to board another ship, but this time he threw a tantrum, saying he wanted to board with Maomao, and was on the verge of bringing out gunpowder, so there was no other choice. But, as long as he’s on the ship, he’s quiet, so it’s okay.”

“Where would he get gunpowder in the first place?”

Maomao is exasperated.

“I didn’t expect Junjie to come along too.”

Despite being young, he’s very filial to go out to work for his family.

“Yes. Since Junjie’s name was on the list of those returning to the capital, he was the most surprised. Let’s have Rakan-sama stay with him for a while. They seem to get along well with children relatively.”

Now, these are the ones who can’t relax.

The second is…

“We’ve finished organizing the luggage. What’s the next task?”

A young man with a low waist is holding luggage in both hands.

Maomao stares at him with half-closed eyes.

“Ah, then please clean the area in front of the cabins next. It’s dirty because Rakan-sama vomited there before coming up to the deck. It’s mine and Chuue’s room. Don’t make a mistake.”

“Understood. When I’m done, may I go to serve under the Moon Princess?”

The young man, politely bowing, is named Hulan.

“What are you talking about? Chuue still has work to do. Once you finish cleaning in front of the cabins, next is the deck.”

Chuue points to the eccentric military adviser who’s vomiting.

“Why is this person here?”

Maomao says with a clearly annoyed tone.

“This person is harsh. Feel free to call me Hulan.”

The young man, with the same attitude as usual, smiles warmly.

Maomao ended up fleeing Inu-Nishishu after taking care of Shikyo. But it was Xiaohong who led Maomao to Shikyo, and Xiaohong was guided by Hulan.

It was Hulan who tried to trap Shikyo for the sake of succession.

“Maomao, Maomao.”

“Chuue. I can’t stay calm either.”

“Please try to accept this situation.”

Chuue smiles. She deliberately raises her disabled right hand.

“As you can see, I have no place in the Western Capital. Above all, my mission has changed.”

“I understand you have no place. But what is your mission?”

Maomao asks Hulan with a bleak face.

Hulan blushes slightly and lowers his eyes.

“It is to sacrifice oneself for the master one should serve.”

“I don’t understand.”

Maomao begins to feel nauseous.

“I know you may not like me, Maomao-sama, but please believe me. I have come to fulfill my mission. I will offer myself to the Moon Princess at any time. I exist for her sake.”

(What a strange believer he’s become.)

Maomao looks at Chuue with disbelief.

“Can’t we exchange Xiaohong instead?”

“I thought so too, but she’s still a minor, so it was impossible.”

It seems they’ve already discussed it.

“Xiaohong! You have a good eye. I also thought she was a capable girl from before.”

“Why did you involve that capable girl?”

“Well, if someone says she’s more suitable than me, wouldn’t you be curious and want to interfere? Then, unexpectedly, I ended up bringing Maomao-sama along. I didn’t intend to involve him. Really, please believe me.”

Hulan’s attitude strangely lightens. It seems like something snapped loose.

“Oh, is that so?”

Chuue seems strangely convinced.

Maomao doesn’t know what she’s convinced of, but there’s something else she wants to confirm.

“Then, Hulan-sama, were you testing me all along while in the Western Capital?”

It was Hulan who brought up the food poisoning issue at the distillery and the illness of the foreign dignitary.

“Testing sounds bad. I just thought Maomao-sama might be able to solve it.”

“Even the issue with the distillery’s food poisoning?”

Maomao asks for confirmation.

Hulan just smiles without answering.

“It seems the distillery had a tough time after that.”

Chuue changes the subject. Maomao understands that it means not to push further.

“It seems there were no issues with the taste testing, but it was discovered that they had emptied the top-grade sake. Apparently, they drank too much, even the portion for shipment, and there were cases where they mixed in diluted inferior products.”

“Inferior products?”

It sounds familiar.

“Yes. It seems they managed to cover it up well, especially around the time of the moonshine incident, but they were exposed because of the food poisoning incident.”

Chuue and Hulan smile as if they had planned it. Their faces look nothing alike, but their laughter seemed eerily similar.

“It’s not that it’s impossible, but the work is always rough. We really need to teach you thoroughly in that aspect.”

“Are you going to be Chuue’s subordinate?”

“Yes. I’ll be using you quite a bit, so Maomao, feel free to handle me roughly.”

“Thank you very much.”

Though he’s practically been kicked out of his own house, Hulan seems oddly cheerful.

Maomao exhales softly and turns her back.

There’s the eccentric military adviser creating rainbows by vomiting his stomach contents, and then there’s Hulan, who’s somewhat unpredictable but at least has a leash attached.

Disliking the sight of these two, Maomao wonders if there’s somewhere else she can go.

Eventually, she spots the lookout platform on the mast.

“Excuse me, may I go up there?”

He asks one of the crew.

“What are you going up there for? It’s dangerous for a lady.”

“Just a feeling.”

“Just a feeling? Do folks from the capital like high places or something?”

Though met with a bewildered expression, there’s no helping it. She thought about giving up if it’s dangerous, but the crew brings a rope to Maomao.

“Here, a lifeline. Tie it securely around your body because it’s dangerous.”

“Oh, thank you very much.”

Maomao is taken aback by how readily they agreed.

She ties the rope around her waist.

Climbing up slowly, she reaches the lookout platform in the middle of the mast.

“…!”

As she’s about to step in, she finds someone already there.

“Why did Maomao come here?”

“I’ll return that line right back to you, Jinshi-sama.”

Jinshi was sitting on the lookout platform.

“Well, I just… wanted to get away from something troublesome.”

“Mashen-sama… No, it’s not. It’s Hulan-sama, right?”

Jinshi’s expression darkens. Seems like he hit the mark.

“…And who are you?”

“The weather is nice, so I wanted to be outside, but since the eccentric military adviser is scattering vomit, I came here to find a good spot.”

It was more or less the same reason.

“Well, sit down.”

“It’s cramped.”

“Just bear with it.”

Maomao sits down in a position where their shoulders are touching. It’s cramped, but there’s no helping it.

Perhaps the reason they allowed her to climb up to the lookout platform was because there was already someone there.

“Finally, going home, huh?”

“Going home is just the beginning of the outing.”

“Don’t say that. I’m finally feeling good.”

Jinshi gazes at the sky. He sees white clouds against the blue sky. It’s a casual sight.

“There will be various tasks waiting even after returning to the capital.”

“That’s right. There will be a lot of work piled up in the capital, and above all, supporting Inu-Nishishu from a remote area is tough.”

“However, there was no way he could avoid it,” Jinshi’s expression conveyed. A thin scar remained on his handsome profile. Though it was a scar that would never fade, Maomao recalled how oddly fond Jinshi seemed of it.

(Thinking about the children of the family.)

Jinshi, too, must be reminded of the children of the family every time he looks in the mirror, every time he touches the scar.

Maomao knows that Jinshi has a strong sense of responsibility as a human being. There’s really no need for her to say that he’s not considerate enough, but why does he end up saying such things?

“What would you like to do when you return to the capital?”

Since there was no particular topic, Maomao tried to ask.

“…What I want to do?”

Jinshi hesitates. He groans and twists his body.

(Well, it’s troublesome if he worries too much.)

There’s no deep intention behind Maomao’s question.

“Is it something to worry so much about?”

If it were Maomao, there would be countless things she’d like to do, like gathering herbs, making medicine, or testing the performance of new medicines.

“No, it’s just that I’ve been preparing for things I don’t want to do anyway.”

“Ah. There was talk about potential princess consorts coming, wasn’t there?”

She must have been a foster daughter of Gyokuyou. It’s unavoidable to feel sorry for the daughter sent over now that Gyokuyou is gone.

“Gyokuyo-sama has been handling various matters. She’s probably being manipulated.”

“Manipulated…”

“Don’t you know? Gyokuyo’s knack for manipulation was famous.”

Maomao recalls the days of the inner palace. Come to think of it, she often drank tea with intermediate and junior consorts, drawing them into factions.

“It seems Gyokuyo-sama’s position hasn’t changed.”

Though Maomao had sent letters to the capital, it was quite uncomfortable to send them to someone who had become a queen. She had no idea what the situation was like at all.

“It seems the Crown Prince and the Princess are doing well.”

“That’s good to hear.”

For Maomao, the Princess is more familiar than the Crown Prince. The curious princess must have grown quite a bit.

“When we return, shall we go and greet them?”

“May I go as well? I’ve been scouted by Gyokuyo-sama a few times.”

“It’s fine not to go after all.”

Jinshi replies promptly.

“Things I want to do… Oh, there was something.”

“What is it?”

Jinshi touches Maomao’s left hand with his right hand.

When their palms meet, the difference in size becomes apparent.

“Is this what you want to do?”

“There are other things.”

“I see.”

“But I can’t.”

Jinshi’s gaze is directed softly towards the person scattering vomit on the deck.

“I’m enduring it tremendously. It’s a bit tough.”

Maomao knows Jinshi’s emotions very well, and above all, she knows that he doesn’t need to imitate a eunuch anymore.

So she feels a strange discomfort being so close to Jinshi like this.

But at the same time, it’s not that unpleasant.

“You have various circumstances too, Maomao-san, so it’s important not to let your emotions dictate you. But…”

“Don’t use that as an excuse.”

Maomao remembers Chuue’s words.

Perhaps Maomao’s feelings towards Jinshi were not of a burning passion. Jinshi couldn’t reciprocate the feelings towards Maomao, but at the same time, Maomao was starting to realize that there weren’t many people who could provide him with such relief.

Maomao was beginning to grasp the nature of her own emotions.

And she had come to believe that she should accept them properly.

It’s troubling to think that he’s being advised by that frivolous maid.

(Now, what should I do?)

Maomao’s left hand remained touching Jinshi’s right hand. It was fine that nothing was happening, but he didn’t know when he should let go. So, he absentmindedly gazed downward.

(There are a lot of people on board who weren’t here on the way.)

Not just the eccentric military adviser, but also the peasant comrades brought by Rahan. Maomao felt sorry for them for involving them in this.

And then she noticed something.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t seen Rahan lately.”

“Rahan? Agricultural personnel were supposed to board this ship this time.”

“Come to think of it…”

Maomao remembered.

Did he inform Rahan that he could return to the capital?

(He probably forgot to mention it after seeing Xiao Hong’s drastic change.)

No, that’s strange. Even if Maomao forgot, someone must have informed him.

“But a few days ago, Rahan said he was ‘going to check on the fields in the village,’ right?”

“Well, he’ll come back. Generally, all crew members are confirmed on the roster.”

“That’s right. There’s no way he’d be left behind. Just to be sure, should we check the roster?”

“Good idea. By the way, what’s Rahan’s full name?”

“…”

Maomao felt sweat slowly seeping not only from her own hand but also from Jinshi’s hand.

Later, it was discovered that Rahan wasn’t on the ship, and at the same time, Rahan’s real name was revealed. However, Rahan, who was in a distant land in the west, still hadn’t realized that he had been left behind.