Volume 5, Chapter 17: Consort Riishus Turning Point Former Part (1/2)
You dont know what things are connected in this world.
It was unavoidable that Maomao was bothered about the white woman painted by the popular artist. She looked so much like Lady Pai that she couldnt be anyone else.
(Is my mind playing tricks on me? I want it to be my imagination.)
Lady Pai was pretty much already taken into custody. There was no need for Maomao to be hung up on her anymore after this.
Jinshi and his people had already done various things in regards to the locust issue. They also had hardy plants in the form of sweet potatoes.
It was about time for Maomao to not be worried about anything. It wouldnt be strange for her to be working as an exceptionally normal pharmacist now either.
It was all the more mysterious that problems keep coming up for some reason.
The letter came not even ten days since the artists food poisoning incident, and it wasnt even two months since she came back from the West.
Come on. Take this.
It was a cold Rokushoukan courtesan who had handed it to her. Apparently, some messenger had come around while she was out shopping in town. Though the identity of the sender wasnt written, it was imbued with the scent of incense instead. Those who did that among Maomaos acquaintances were limited.
As expected, Jinshi was the sender, but the contents of the letter couldnt be regarded as refined at all.
Consort Riishu is to be punished.
For him to write something like this out of the blue, Maomaos eyes could only widen in surprise.
The circumstances of the matter were as follows:
Consort Riishu had headed to the West. It had been to fulfil her duty as a consort, but she had left the inner palace for a prolonged period of timethis gave rise to various issues. She may have been kept under close observation, but to say it frankly, the moment she stepped out of the flower garden known as the inner palace, the chance of her mixing with seeds from elsewhere shoots up.
Thus, when Consort Riishu returned to the capital, she wasnt able to return to the inner palace immediately. For a short while, the same ritual she did before she left needed to be performedjust to make sure.
Maidservants like Maomao could enter the inner palace relatively easily, only requiring the minimum etiquette and a check to see if they were pregnant.
For high ranking consorts, however, it was more bothersome. They not only need to perform some ritual, but also seclude themselves in a shrine in a way to freshly purify their bodies. This takes around a month, so it should already be over by now.
Its troubling.
Jinshi made an expression of exhaustion under his mask. It was sweltering to be shut up inside the cramped pharmacy, so she got the madam to prepare a room for them again. Normally it would just be the two of them, but Basen was present in the corner of the room today. He was sitting stiffly with his usual sour-faced look.
(Its kinda easy to do and hard to do.)
If she was alone with Jinshi, its troubling when he would try to touch her weirdly and strangely, but if there was someone watching, Maomao couldnt easily sit however she liked. Jinshi being Jinshi looked at Basen in annoyance, but the other man was sitting silently.
Was Basen watching them so Jinshi doesnt do anything to Maomao?
No, or was it?
It seems it had something to do with Jinshis words of Its troubling.
Her monthly cycle hasnt come, Jinshi said.
I see, Maomao replied.
It was said the reason Consort Riishu couldnt return to the inner palace had to do with her late period.
Maomao understood it from the bottom of her heart. The inner palace was made solely for the emperor. It was the goal of the flowers inside to bear fruit with the emperor.
Amid that, it will be a bit of a problem for a consort who had left the inner palace for a prolonged amount of time to have a late period.
I dont think Consort Riishu would ever be unfaithful, Maomao said.
I know that, but its just in case. At this rate, shell be held under suspicion. Even if that wasnt the case, she wont be able to return to the inner palace, Jinshi replied.
When you consider the structure of the inner palace, the part where it is the high ranking consorts job to give birth to children is important. It may be unfeeling, but the consorts duty wouldnt be accomplished if it wasnt the caseits that kind of place.
Shes still young too. Isnt it normally irregular at her age? Maomao said.
However, it hasnt come for two months already, Jinshi countered.
Maomao and Jinshi continued their discussion.
Basen cast his eyes down and was trembling for some reason.
Since she seems to have bad blood circulation, can you treat it with medicine? If it doesnt work, we can also include massages. It seems her bowel movement has gotten worse too.
Yeah, you know it well. That way is better, but the problem lies with the court physicians. Theres only one of that sort in the inner palace.
If thats the case, I wonder if we can use my adoptive father.
Thats true. That would be the best option.
For no particular reason, Basen looked up in the middle of the conversation. He was biting his lips and his face was flushed pure red. J-Jinshi-sama.
What is it? The beautiful noble, unperturbed, looked at Basen who was as red as a ground tomato.
H-how, can you talk about such things with a straight face?
Talk about what with a straight face? Jinshi tilted his head in puzzlement.
Maomao understood what Basen was trying to say.
Jinshi had been working among women in the inner palace for a long time. In a certain meaning, she could understand that he needed to talk about things only privy to women.
But.
A normal gentleman, wouldnt speak so boldly, about a womans monthly thing, Basen said.
Ah, Jinshi said.
I just saying it incidentally Maomao said.
Since he was talking so boldly about it in such detail
(Its kinda gross.)
What of it if he had somehow slipped his tongue? Certainly, its more helpful to know a bit than nothing at all, but its also troubling if he knew too much. Since he wasnt a court physician.
She couldnt say that out so she shut her mouth, but Jinshi drew closer to Maomao.
Oi, did you say something just now? he asked.
I didnt say anything in particular.
When Maomao turned her face away, Jinshi drew even closer.
Dont lie to me. What did you say?
I didnt say anything.
Tell me honestly!
Hes persistent. Maomao narrowed her eyes.
If he was asking this much, she would have no other choice than to say it.
And since he was so pointlessly close as he was asking her, Maomaos expression also stiffened. She bent down to get away from Jinshi and he was now looking at her from higher above.
Thus, upon the piling of coincidences, it can be said that what Maomao said was an inevitable accident. It was that, but
Its gross, she said.
Jinshi and Basens expression froze.
To say it again, it was an inevitable accident.
Maomao had no malice. It was just an accident since Jinshi was looking down on her, so she narrowed her eyes and uttered those words.
However.
When she looked at the two men who became stone so brittle they could crumble with a push, Maomao wondered if she had done something again.
The next letter she got a few days later was from her adoptive father Ruomen. Looks like Jinshi had promptly made the arrangements to send Ruomen to Consort Riishu.
It appears that despite his hopelessly darkened expression when he went back the other day, he did his work properly.
The letter mentioned that Ruomen got Consort Riishu to drink medicine, but there was nothing else he could do beyond that.
Though the letter was only a summary, it seems the maids allowed him to do palpation since he was a former eunuch.
The maids mentioned here wasnt the head maid but the other haughty maids.
(Its better to bring it to a close as soon as possible.)
The check for her virginity was the quickest. Consort Riishu shouldnt have attended the emperor yet, so she should clear herself of the suspicion of infidelity at least if she proves her virginity.
However, when you consider the method to determine that, it didnt matter if the one checking was a eunuchthere would be resistance.
There was also the means to ask for some midwife, but they were talking about Consort Riishu she would faint.
For the time being, Consort Riishus irregular period should be due to exhaustion from her long journey, so it was believed that if she rested well and improved her blood circulation, she would be cured in no time.