The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 is incoming. The new roles joining makes the original plot hard to understand. Maomao and Jinshi will have more interesting interactions. Because the girls in the palace are all virgins. They usually make mistakes when they sleep with Emperor in episode 1.
Maomao plans to let the maids learn talent so that they won’t suffer unnecessary punishment. She customizes one hundred books for them. But she’s caught by Jinshi.
Maomao and the doctor are making something. Jinshi is interested in it when he comes to look for the girl. Maomao is speechless. But she explains that she’s making essential oil. She found the distillation bottle when she cleaned. She made some essential oils because she had blue roses.
Maomao made alcohol that never appeared in the palace. It can disinfect the little princess’s room. Maomao wonders why Jinshi came to the place. He tries to explain it to her. But someone knocks at the door. Maomao’s package is here. It’s a purple box.
Maomao isn’t calm. She tells Jinshi that the box isn’t special. But he’s interested in it after knowing the box comes from her hometown. She tells a lie to him that it’s her underclothes. She thinks she’s going to make it. But Gaoshun points out that it didn’t need two men to carry if it’s just simple underclothes. He wonders if it’s a special material. She has to confess.
It’s boutique drawings she asked the Madam of Verdigris House to draw. She planned to use it for teaching. Jinshi reads the book. He finds out that the book was beautifully printed. Maomao adds that the place she found using metal to print. It guaranteed that every book is superior.
Sometimes this kind of books were used as wedding present. The people who cannot read can be happy when they look at the drawings. So there is a certain market demand. Maomao bought the books for expanding the market. But she was caught before she began her plan. But Jinshi reads it seriously. He forgets to scold her.
She’s surprised. She wonders if she doesn’t know the man’s real face. Gaoshun whispers in Jinshi’s ear. He wants to keep a book for him. Jinshi is flustered to close the book. But his expression shows everything. He asks Maomao where she bought the book then. She mistakes that he wants to study it alone. She smiles. He claims that he does it just for knowing the printing technology. He takes away the posture books with a reason that the books need to be reviewed.
Jinshi inspects the palace. He finds out that Consort Loulan asked for more maids. It’s nothing, according to the common sense. But he finds out that there’re too many maids. You know other consorts only have a few maids. Jinshi worries that what Consort Loulan did will make other consorts embarrassed.
There’s an art and literature trend. Xiaolan joins the trend. Maomao is surprised. You know Xiaolan is an illiterate. Maomao is told that a novel is popular in the palace. Although Xiaolan cannot read, she asked the maid who can read to read the book for her. There’re many maids like Xiaolan.
Maomao is interested in the novel. She sees familiar seal from the book. It’s the bookstore address she provided to Jinshi. She doesn’t understand why Jinshi gave the bad book to the good consorts. She remembers he wanted to improve literacy. Jinshi used the popular book for making the maids study.
The maids begin to write after Maomao persuaded them. The one who wants to read gets more and more. Xiaolan asks Maomao to teach her to write for reading novels. The maids’ voices are hoarse because they read book for too many people. Although someone transcribed the novel for Xiaolan, Xiaolan cannot read. So she wants to study.
Maomao feels relieved. She begins to teach Xiaolan to read. But Xiaolan wants to learn to write as well. She thinks she needs to get a job if she leaves the palace. Maomao learns that Xiaolan is thinking about her future with her ways. She feels happy for her friend.
Princess Lingli grows up day by day. The space in the palace isn’t enough to her. Maomao worries about Princess Lingli’s health. She suggests Consort Gyokuyou lets the princess go out. Consort Gyokuyou agrees to it. But she wishes Maomao to accompany Princess Lingli. Because Maomao knows animals and plants in the wild well. Consort Gyokuyou thinks Maomao can teach the princess when she’s outside.
Hongniang isn’t calm. She points out that Maomao can only teach useless things. But Consort Gyokuyou disagrees. She mentions Princess Lingli is going to get married after ten years. Nobody can promise that the princess will be popular if she marries to remote area. It’s very important to learn some medical skills. Maomao marvels that Consort Gyokuyou is too shrewd.
Maomao accompanies Princess Lingli showing up on the street. The people have different views to the princess. Although the princess doesn’t know it, she will know the meaning of the eyes one day. It’s a smooth journey. Maomao teaches Princess Lingli on the way.
But the princess pays attention to the mew. She runs to the voice location. But it’s a narrow gap in the wall. Maomao learns that the princess wants to meet with the cat. She gets into the narrow gap. She finds the cat soon. But the cat flees.
Maomao tries to catch the cat. But a girl with purple hair catches the cat. She left after she gave the cat to Maomao.
Maomao has to put the cat in imperial hospital for making Princess Lingli happy. There’re many bacteria on the cat because she has wandered for a long time. She’s weak because she wasn’t taken care of well. Maomao brings the goat milk and the intestine. She combines them. She imitates mother cat and she feeds the cat.
But Emperor decides to raise the cat. He actually favors his daughter. But Maomao is in charge of taking of the cat. The cat is healthy after Maomao took care of her. Jinshi shows up when Maomao cuts nails for the cat. He brings a lot of dried fish.
SEE ALSO: The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 Episode 2 Recap: Caravan
Maomao doesn’t understand why the cat is so popular. She mentions the cat is very cold and she’s clingy when she’s given food. But she doesn’t know Jinshi thinks she’s talking about herself.
The episode ends with the cat showing her talent to catch a rat. Emperor gives her a title “Catching Rat Minister”. Maomao feels speechless because Emperor named the cat Maomao. Maomao hears that there’s a mysterious caravan coming to the palace.