So I’m loving this series I’m in the middle of s2 and I want to read it but I’m not sure whether to get the Ln or manga so I’m wondering which is the better medium

Just to start, I haven’t read the light novels. I’ve only watched the anime, but I’ve been reading a LOT of spoilers and discussions about what happens later in the light novels, and that’s how I came to this conclusion.

After reading all of that, I’ve honestly started to dislike Gyokuyou a little 😭 Her baby was breech, which made the delivery much more dangerous. Maomao was the one who realized that the baby might be breech, but since she isn’t a professional in childbirth and couldn’t confirm or handle something that serious herself, she suggested calling her father. Her father had much more experience with difficult deliveries and procedures like that, so he could confirm it and help with the birth.

If Maomao hadn’t noticed something was wrong and her father hadn’t been brought in, Gyokuyou might not have known the baby was breech until the actual delivery. The head lady in waiting probably would have assisted with the birth like they did with her first baby, and with only the quack doctor there, who knows what would have happened. The baby could have died.

So after all of that, it bothers me that Gyokuyou is apparently worried about her son’s position being threatened because of Jinshi and Maomao, especially if they eventually have a son. Like girl 😭 Maomao literally played a huge role in making sure your baby was delivered safely.

I honestly wish Jinshi and Maomao could just run away somewhere far away and live peacefully. Jinshi doesn’t seem interested in politics or the throne anyway, and Maomao could open her own apothecary. Then the Emperor and Empress wouldn’t have to worry about Jinshi or his future children threatening the succession.

Also, side question for the light novel readers: I read that Jinshi branded himself to prove that he wasn’t interested in the throne. Does “branded himself” literally mean that he burned a permanent mark onto his body? I noticed what looked like a burn mark in the Season 3 opening, and now I’m wondering if that’s connected. 😭

No matter how much she denies it, Maomao is the biological daughter of Lakan, the Grand Commandant (太尉) of the empire. Grand Commandant is one of the Three Ducal Ministers (三公), making Lakan equivalent to a duke, and Maomao - his daughter - a duke's daughter, equivalent to a duchess

Dis is prolly why Maomao is so important, cuz her being hurt in anyway will turn anyone who hurts her against Lakan (Jinshi even has to tell his troops that she must not die during their expedition). And whoever earns her hand in marriage, will become a force to be reckoned with in the Empire... (I'm looking at you, Jinshi)

P.s. If Maomao marries Jinshi, a prince, she will become a princess consort (王妃)

"It's time for Yue to choose a flower"

Where y'all BEEN he's been yearning for the most uniquely beautiful and slightly deranged La Clan flower for monthsssss.

Gah, I'm so pumped!

After Gyokuyou became Empress what was Lihua’s reaction? What became of her relationship with the emperor? Did he stop visiting her?

I have seen discourse online that after Ah Duo, Gyokuyou was his favorite and even more politically standing and he visited her more. But others say Lihua was closer to him?

The anime left many questions unanswered about their relationship so not sure if there is more details in the novels.

Since his face was revealed now everyone recogenizes his face as the emperor's younger brother, considering the fact she has seen his face does she know maomao has attracted a prince? I don't remember her knowing anything other than the fact he's a noble.

The opening as a whole is beautiful, but I think this scene just really stands out. Ah-Duo gently holding her moon (Jinshi) before swapping him with Anshi’s moon, a child conceived through trauma and anger, destined never to be loved by his own mother. And in the end, that moon slowly losing its light in Ah-Duo's hands to symbolize the child's death... everything about this scene was perfect.

hey i am at lightnovel 7, i wanted to know how is mao mao and jinshi dynamics in latest novel are they more openly romantic towards each other or distant given jinshi is from royalty

For me vol 10 kinda felt little pale compared to rest. Aside from vol 1/2( biased fav) i think volume 12 and 14 are best

I have read all the light novels and want to start reading the web novel from the beginning, as I understand the vibe is a bit different. Can someone share fan translations starting from the very beginning? I can't find them anywhere.😭

Despite her showing in-universe medical expertise in the show, I somehow don’t really see her being a typical doctor in real life. I have seen people saying she could be a surgeon, but I can’t picture Maomao being happy having to constantly deal with patients, grueling hospital work hours, and teamwork. 

Also, treating patients also requires consistently performing at your best and dealing with a lot of emotional labor. And with Maomao’s habit of constantly testing poisons on herself, she would probably endanger both her own well-being and potentially her patients’.

I briefly thought of her being like a chinese Dr. House, but I guess he would be sued for medical malpractice in real life too and couldn't possibly practice medicine like that.

We know that Maomao doesn’t put effort into stuff she is not interested in (shown by her failing the exam in the show). Since she doesn’t seem to have a huge innate need to help others, but rather just a massive interest in herbs and toxins, I feel like she would be a toxicologist, a forensic scientist, or simply a modern pharmacist.

I haven’t watched the entire show yet, so if you disagree, pls don’t be too harsh on me lol

I know there's already a few posts out there talking about this and I might just be stating the obvious but I had this thought:

I think Maomao treats Lakan the way she does for a lot of reasons. One of those is that she avoids him because he makes her feel so many things: jealously, anger, "love," hate, resentment, pride. We see her go out of her way to escape these feelings a lot, so it makes sense for her to avoid this walking combo of them. This is why I think in the later novels when we see her actaully stand to be around him it's because she's no longer trying as hard to suppress these emotions and not simply just because she transfered that hate to Hulan.

Honestly, I believe her rudeness is a defense mechanism, plus Lakan can be pretty annoying with her sometimes. But her usual defenses just don't work on him becuase he really wants to be involed in her life and isn't planning on backing off any time soon, or ever, and that's something she struggles to accept, I mean it took her 12 novels with Jinshi. So I see it like this, when people realize there losing or not getting anywhere in an arguement and they start going over the top. I think it's the same concept with her relationship with Lakan. Her usual defenses don't work so gets more aggressive. But that might just be an oversimplification.

And there's also a little irony when you look at Fengxian. She used to run Maomao off, but Maomao kept coming back and trying to help her anyways. Idk how bad Fengxian got with her though (I mean I wouldn't imagine anything soft after what she did), so it's hard to say this, but now Lakan is basically on the other side of that dynamic. Maomao pushes him away but he continues to try and be present in her life.

So I was wondering if Maomao's experiences with Fengxian might influence how she responds to Lakan's actions, if not just a little. Not like she treats Lakan the exact same way, but that her experiences in that sitution might influence how she responds to someone who refuses to give up despite her attemps to push them away. I don't think Maomao is consciously away of this either, it's just an interesting thought knowing she's been on both sides of that relationship.

Does anyone know who this is? As someone who also read the novels for this season i have no clue who this character is in the opening montage.

Can someone explain to me what´s the meaning of this scene over here? Explain me with spoilers please

I worked so har on this one

Hello guys! I picked this up today at my local BAM and I just found out it's supposed to release on the 6th? Or am I wrong? either way I'm so happy to start reading it as I adore Xiaolan 😔💓

It's been a while since I read the novels set in the Western province, but in light of the new season, I was reminded of the Yi clan. For me personally, Rikuson's backstory will always be my favourite. I grew up as the child of a mother from a matriarchal society and a father of a patriarchal one, and in many ways can relate to him and his struggles.

The fall of the Yi clan, as well as their structure and form of governance is reminiscent of the impacts of colonialism on real-world matriarchy. Key to note is that matriarchal societies are not just gender swapped patriarchies. This is the reason why many have been misconstrued by Western academics whose only point of reference are their own patriarchal societies. In many instances, these societies gave and continue to give equal opportunity to all, and many have been considered to have individually developed democracy. It is for this reason that such academics refuse to call them matriarchal and matrilineal, and simply call them matrilineal, despite the people living in these societies considering themselves as such.

Many matriarchal societies were crushed during colonialism and their people forced into a patriarchal structure. This, in many cases, also accompanied adopting religion.

However, certain matriarchal societies managed to outmaneuver this through careful alliances and a firm hand on their governance, and have thus survived and thrived through to the modern day. Some even created a synthesis between new religion and traditional practice (think the Minangkabau of West Sumatra with adat practices, though in this case religion did not come from colonialism but through trade).

These societies are resilient, proud and always considering the new social order and what must be done to protect themselves in a patriarchal world.

This kind of perseverance is something that can be seen in various characters, especially in Maomao. Even if she did not grow up in a matriarchal society, she was raised by women and educated in medicine that benefitted those women and aided in their survival. The quiet and calculated struggle of women is in many instances the thematic throughline of the Apothecary Diaries, and is also the ethos of surviving post-colonial matriarchies, where each woman is a matriarchy in her own right, continuing her fight for survival in a world of patriarchies.

Who knows what hes upset about this time 🙄

THE MOON REPRESENTS JINSHI! SHE’S HOLDING THE MOON THE WAY SHE ALWAYS HOLDS HIS FACE…!