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The Apothecary Diaries

The Apothecary Diaries

This story is a work of fiction. The names of all of the characters, organizations, and so on are imaginary. It also bears no connection to any specific real-life events.

Sandalwood incense...

Master Jinshi's bedroom...

How did I end up here...?

Oh, you're awake.

Don't push yourself.

You had fifteen stitches.

Master Jinshi brought you here, since it's better here than at the infirmary.

Here you go.

Thank you.

I'm sorry to bother you after you just woke up, but can you get dressed?

I want to bring everyone in.

Understood.

What in the world is going on?!

Basen!

Episode 20: Thornapple

I mean, his master's life was at risk.

That said, I don't deserve to be yelled at.

I apologize for my lack of manners.

Don't worry about it.

So, how did you end up there,

and how did you know the pillar was about to fall?

Do explain.

Understood.

That was an accident caused by multiple coincidences converging.

But it's as if the coincidences were drawn together intentionally.

In that sense, it's a conspiracy, not an accident.

The first coincidence is the death of Master Kounen,

a high-ranking official at the Board of Rites, last year.

Next, the fire at a warehouse,

and the theft of some ceremonial tools at a different warehouse.

And the third is the manager of ceremonial tools

falling ill due to food poisoning at around the same time.

Those were all caused intentionally by someone?

Probably.

There's also probably one more important factor.

What is it?

The stolen ceremonial tools.

During the ceremony, the pillar above the altar was pulled up by metal wires,

and fixed on to the floor with metal parts.

If the goal was to make this appear as an accident,

aiming for those metal parts would be effective.

If someone stole those, they'd just make replacements!

Of course they did.

Since they're used in ceremonies, I'm sure the design was elaborate.

I can think of one artisan who might have been tasked with it.

The metalworker who passed away?

Yes. The stolen ceremonial pieces were rebuilt by the metalworker.

So, what if those metal parts were designed to break when heated?

Idiot! What kind of metal would...

Using the late metalworker's secret technique,

the metal could be made to melt just by being near an open fire.

Are you saying the metalworker was part of this conspiracy?

No, I think he didn't know anything,

and just built the metal parts as ordered.

Perhaps he was asked, "Please build one of these, but using that special metal."

But if an accident occurs at a ceremony, of course the metalworker would have doubts.

If the artisan is eliminated before the incident,

both the identity of his commissioner

and the secret of the easily-melting metal vanish with him.

That would have been ideal for the mastermind.

Was he killed?

That I can't tell.

It could be a crime made to look like an accident.

The customer who had the metalworker remake the parts

knew the technique that made that metal possible.

That's all I can say.

Understood.

Anyway, who would have thought Master Jinshi would be at that ceremony?

If that ceremony continued...

Who is this guy?

If he's someone worth trying to kill with such a complicated scheme...

Knowing the truth would just get me in more trouble.

It has nothing to do with me anymore.

Xiaomao.

Yes.

You have a guest.

About that incident. A court lady named Suirei had something to do with it...

Suirei. I knew it.

They found her corpse.

Huh?

When an officer of justice entered her room,

she'd already drunk poison and was collapsed on the floor.

The doctors have already finished examining her, and she's confirmed dead.

What next?

I think they're going to cremate her corpse tomorrow, coffin and all.

Any other co-conspirators?

Nobody. Just Suirei.

She did all of those complicated things by herself?

Anyway, it's solved. See ya.

She poisoned herself and died?

That's really it?

No, more importantly,

was Suirei the type of person to commit suicide?

Was she behaving apathetic and unemotional because she knew she had no future?

But the way she spoke, as if testing me...

I'll be planting some morning glories here.

Resurrection medicine...

I can't leave it as conjecture. I have to know for certain!

Master Jinshi!

I have a request for you!

W-What is it?

I'd like to speak to the doctor who examined the corpse.

At the morgue.

Why are you smiling...?

Curiosity got the best of me.

Master Jinshi, you don't have to go in there with her...

If the apothecary is going, I'm going too.

Understood.

Xiaomao, here.

Thank you.

My apologies for the long wait.

I knew it. This doctor did the examination.

A court lady he seemed close to is dead,

and she's accused of crimes on top of that.

No surprise he seems worn out.

But is that really all?

I'll be blunt.

Did the poison ingested by the court lady include thornapple?

That's...

The small hill near the stable.

Did she not plant thornapple there?

It has a strong poison, but in right amounts, it can work as an anesthetic.

I'm sure the pharmacy stocks plenty.

Thornapple looks like a white morning glory.

I can't say for certain.

It's quite likely, given the symptoms, but I can't say for certain.

Let's confirm with our own eyes, then.

W-What are you doing?!

Just shut up and watch!

S-Stop!

It's open.

That's... not Suirei?!

It can't be...

It was... It really was Suirei...

Are you certain it was Suirei?

There's no way I'd mistake her.

She had no pulse. Her heart wasn't moving.

She was so clean.

In other words, you've been exploited.

You didn't think to cut open her corpse to find out what poison she used.

That's what Suirei expected.

You!

It wasn't just thornapple that Suirei took.

If we investigated the drug stocks at the pharmacy,

we should be able to tell what she used.

I guess the only thing we can fault this doctor for

is not keeping track of the drugs properly.

What do you mean?

That the corpse is wrong.

Even if the coffin was supposed to be burned,

it would be too suspicious if it was empty.

She must have placed a different corpse in a new coffin to replace her.

Then what about Suirei's corpse?

Carrying it out would have caused a scene.

There's no need to carry it out.

What do you mean?

She walked out by herself.

But wasn't she dead?!

There is a certain drug that can make a person appear dead.

Are you aware of it?

I've heard about it, but that's just fantasy.

What is it like?

That drug, which is said to exist in a faraway land,

is able to kill a person, then resurrect them later.

I don't know the details,

but I've heard thornapple and pufferfish are used as ingredients.

Xiaomao?

Master Gaoshun, could you investigate the empty coffins?

Yes.

Fingernail marks.

That must have been the one with the dead Suirei in it.

By the time her rescuer arrived to open it,

she came back to life.

They set up a different coffin with another corpse to replace it,

then disguised her as a vendor to walk out.

They employed such a risky method?

If she got caught, she'd get executed anyway.

I'd take that bet any day.

I think with you, it would be different...

Since there's no corpse here, Suirei must have won her bet.

If the replacement corpse got burned, it would have been a complete victory, but...

Not on my watch.

If she's still alive, I'd like to meet her.

Not to arrest her.

The intellect that allowed her to make so many crimes look like accidents.

The courage she had to pull it all off.

Most of all, the nerves of steel it took to bet her own life to trick us all!

A person like that dying so soon would be such a loss!

Medicine to bring people back to life! She will teach me how to make it!

Pardon me.

W-What is it?!

Can we get my leg stitched up again?

I think the wound reopened.

Say that sooner!

Lady Loulan.

We ended up taking care of the Suirei incident in secret.

Many things remain unclear about the court lady Suirei.

According to the doctor, she was backed by his teacher.

He took note of her talents a few years ago and brought her in as an adopted daughter.

Not much is known about her past before then.

This is going to take a long time.

I helped Xiaomao get home.

Sorry to trouble you, as always.

We can't let her open up her wound again.

Yes.

But it's not just her wound that worries me.

There's also the matter with Lakan, the weirdo.

It's clear that he's her father,

but given the apothecary's attitude, there must be some issues there.

To the rear palace tomorrow, right?

Yes.

There seems to be no problem. It's the same as always.

Meaning it tastes bad.

You don't have to drink it if you don't like it.

It's a responsibility of mine, as a eunuch.

You shouldn't hold your nose like that in public.

It makes you look very young.

I know.

Refined mannerisms, heavenly smiles, and a voice like honey.

The "twenty-four-year-old" man who became a eunuch when the rear palace

became the current emperor's, five years ago.

That's "Jinshi."

From the day I decided to wear this mask,

I've been drinking this medicine to suppress my manhood every day.

It will make you actually impotent one day.

Hey, same with you!

My children are adults now. I even have another grandchild.

A grandchild? From your older son?

Yes. My youngest son is ready to get married too, but...

By youngest, you mean Basen? He's only nineteen.

Yes, nineteen, just like you.

"Jinshi the eunuch" is twenty-four.

Your look is telling me to find a wife and end this work.

I'd like to have time to spend with my grandchild.

I'll do my best.

Greetings, Master Jinshi.

Another wonderful outfit, I see.

Thank you.

Master Jinshi...

The emperor does visit Concubine Loulan often,

but apparently, he doesn't find her very appealing.

Concubine Loulan is very fashionable, changing her hairstyle and makeup often.

Apparently, he can't tell who she is every time he visits her, and gets confused.

Still, he visits her once every ten days.

Concubine Loulan's father is an important high-ranking official

who was the previous empress dowager's favorite.

He needs to be careful around her.

In terms of lacking appeal, Concubine Lishu is similar.

The current emperor despises his predecessor's taste for younger girls.

He doesn't intend to lay a finger on Concubine Lishu.

The empress dowager, who gave birth

to the current emperor when she was just a girl,

also gave birth to another child, some ten-odd years later.

At that time, the doctor spent all his time tending to the empress dowager,

so the birth took place without an issue.

However, Concubine Ah-Duo, who gave birth at around the same time,

received no attention, resulting in the loss of her uterus.

The current emperor's firstborn child was lost soon after.

If that child had survived...

No, it's just a silly delusion.

He just needs to make himself a new prince.

Oh, you're here.

You seem exhausted.

All right, back to work with you all.

Y-Yes.

To be honest...

The rear palace?

Yes. Concubine Gyokuyou's lunar cycle has stopped.

Lunar cycle. In other words, she might be pregnant.

Starting when?

Can you start today?

Yes.

I'm counting on you.

This is a good opportunity for me.

Men aren't allowed in the rear palace.

There's no chance I'd run into that man whose name I can't even stand to hear.

Does this mean Master Jinshi is looking out for me?

At any rate, more tasting for poisons!

Oh, you're in a good mood.

Huh? No, not at all!

It's unfortunate. I thought I'd finally found someone worth cracking the whip on.

Right?

Life at the rear palace is similar to the last time,

tasting for poisons every day.

This is safe.

Besides the pause in her menstrual cycle, there's no definite evidence.

I'd had this thought during the events with Concubine Ah-Duo,

but perhaps he's more than just a lewd middle-aged guy.

With Concubine Ah-Duo gone as a trusted adviser,

and replaced by a quirky girl who could cause political issues, as well...

Someone he can't just ignore, yet would cause trouble if she birthed a child...

It all sounds like a headache.

Verdigris House

Hey, did you hear?

Verdigris House

What? One of the Three Princesses?

Yes! She's getting bought out!

Bought... out?

Next Time

Next time: "How to Buy Out a Contract."

Episode 21: How to Buy Out a Contract