E20 - Thornapple

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(Please feel free to edit the speaker names if incomplete or inaccurate. Names are handled on a best-effort basis depending on the info on the source file. Dialogue is left as is.)
SIGN    The Apothecary Diaries
SIGN    The Apothecary Diaries
SIGN    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.
[01:37] Maomao
    Sandalwood incense...
[01:40] Maomao
    Master Jinshi's bedroom...
[01:43] Maomao
    How did I end up here...?
[01:53] Suiren
    Oh, you're awake.
[01:57] Suiren
    Don't push yourself.
[01:59] Suiren
    You had fifteen stitches.
[02:01] Suiren
    Master Jinshi brought you here,
    since it's better here than at the infirmary.
[02:07] Suiren
    Here you go.
[02:09] Maomao
    Thank you.
[02:15] Suiren
    I'm sorry to bother you after you just
    woke up, but can you get dressed?
[02:19] Suiren
    I want to bring everyone in.
[02:22] Maomao
    Understood.
[02:24] Basen
    What in the world is going on?!
[02:27] Gaoshun
    Basen!
SIGN    Episode 20: Thornapple
[02:29] Maomao
    I mean, his master's life was at risk.
[02:33] Maomao
    That said, I don't deserve to be yelled at.
[02:39] Maomao
    I apologize for my lack of manners.
[02:42] Jinshi
    Don't worry about it.
[02:43] Jinshi
    So, how did you end up there,
[02:47] Jinshi
    and how did you know
    the pillar was about to fall?
[02:50] Jinshi
    Do explain.
[02:54] Maomao
    Understood.
[02:56] Maomao
    That was an accident caused by
    multiple coincidences converging.
[03:00] Maomao
    But it's as if the coincidences
    were drawn together intentionally.
[03:04] Maomao
    In that sense, it's a conspiracy,
    not an accident.
[03:09] Maomao
    The first coincidence is
    the death of Master Kounen,
[03:11] Maomao
    a high-ranking official
    at the Board of Rites, last year.
[03:18] Maomao
    Next, the fire at a warehouse,
[03:21] Maomao
    and the theft of some ceremonial tools
    at a different warehouse.
[03:27] Maomao
    And the third is the manager
    of ceremonial tools
[03:30] Maomao
    falling ill due to food poisoning
    at around the same time.
[03:37] Jinshi
    Those were all caused
     intentionally by someone?
[03:41] Maomao
    Probably.
[03:43] Maomao
    There's also probably
    one more important factor.
[03:46] Jinshi
    What is it?
[03:48] Maomao
    The stolen ceremonial tools.
[03:50] Maomao
    During the ceremony, the pillar above
    the altar was pulled up by metal wires,
[03:54] Maomao
    and fixed on to the floor with metal parts.
[03:58] Maomao
    If the goal was to make this
    appear as an accident,
[04:00] Maomao
    aiming for those metal parts would be effective.
[04:04] Basen
    If someone stole those,
    they'd just make replacements!
[04:07] Maomao
    Of course they did.
[04:11] Maomao
    Since they're used in ceremonies,
    I'm sure the design was elaborate.
[04:15] Maomao
    I can think of one artisan
    who might have been tasked with it.
[04:19] Jinshi
    The metalworker who passed away?
[04:21] Maomao
    Yes. The stolen ceremonial pieces
    were rebuilt by the metalworker.
[04:28] Maomao
    So, what if those metal parts were
    designed to break when heated?
[04:36] Basen
    Idiot! What kind of metal would...
[04:44] Maomao
    Using the late metalworker's secret technique,
[04:48] Maomao
    the metal could be made to melt
    just by being near an open fire.
[04:53] Jinshi
    Are you saying the metalworker
    was part of this conspiracy?
[04:57] Maomao
    No, I think he didn't know anything,
[05:00] Maomao
    and just built the metal parts as ordered.
[05:04] Maomao
    Perhaps he was asked, "Please build one
    of these, but using that special metal."
[05:10] Maomao
    But if an accident occurs at a ceremony,
    of course the metalworker would have doubts.
[05:15] Maomao
    If the artisan is eliminated
     before the incident,
[05:17] Maomao
    both the identity of his commissioner
[05:19] Maomao
    and the secret of the easily-melting
     metal vanish with him.
[05:22] Maomao
    That would have been ideal for the mastermind.
[05:25] Jinshi
    Was he killed?
[05:27] Maomao
    That I can't tell.
[05:30] Maomao
    It could be a crime made
    to look like an accident.
[05:35] Maomao
    The customer who had
    the metalworker remake the parts
[05:39] Maomao
    knew the technique that
    made that metal possible.
[05:43] Maomao
    That's all I can say.
[05:46] Jinshi
    Understood.
[05:48] Maomao
    Anyway, who would have thought Master
    Jinshi would be at that ceremony?
[05:53] Maomao
    If that ceremony continued...
[05:58] Maomao
    Who is this guy?
[06:00] Maomao
    If he's someone worth trying to kill
    with such a complicated scheme...
[06:08] Maomao
    Knowing the truth would
    just get me in more trouble.
[06:17] Maomao
    It has nothing to do with me anymore.
[06:29] Suiren
    Xiaomao.
[06:31] Maomao
    Yes.
[06:33] Suiren
    You have a guest.
[06:37] Lihaku
    About that incident. A court lady named
    Suirei had something to do with it...
[06:42] Maomao
    Suirei. I knew it.
[06:44] Lihaku
    They found her corpse.
[06:47] Maomao
    Huh?
[06:51] Lihaku
    When an officer of justice entered her room,
[06:53] Lihaku
    she'd already drunk poison
    and was collapsed on the floor.
[06:56] Lihaku
    The doctors have already finished
    examining her, and she's confirmed dead.
[07:01] Maomao
    What next?
[07:03] Lihaku
    I think they're going to cremate
    her corpse tomorrow, coffin and all.
[07:07] Maomao
    Any other co-conspirators?
[07:09] Lihaku
    Nobody. Just Suirei.
[07:13] Maomao
    She did all of those
    complicated things by herself?
[07:17] Lihaku
    Anyway, it's solved. See ya.
[07:24] Maomao
    She poisoned herself and died?
[07:27] Maomao
    That's really it?
[07:29] Maomao
    No, more importantly,
[07:32] Maomao
    was Suirei the type of person
    to commit suicide?
[07:36] Maomao
    Was she behaving apathetic and unemotional
    because she knew she had no future?
[07:43] Maomao
    But the way she spoke, as if testing me...
[07:47] (Flashback) Suirei
    I'll be planting some morning glories here.
[07:55] Maomao
    Resurrection medicine...
[08:02] Maomao
    I can't leave it as conjecture.
    I have to know for certain!
[08:06] Maomao
    Master Jinshi!
[08:08] Maomao
    I have a request for you!
[08:10] Jinshi
    W-What is it?
[08:15] Maomao
    I'd like to speak to the doctor
    who examined the corpse.
[08:20] Maomao
    At the morgue.
[08:21] Jinshi
    Why are you smiling...?
[08:24] Maomao
    Curiosity got the best of me.
[08:33] Gaoshun
    Master Jinshi, you don't have
    to go in there with her...
[08:36] Jinshi
    If the apothecary is going, I'm going too.
[08:40] Gaohsun
    Understood.
[08:49] Gaoshun
    Xiaomao, here.
[08:52] Maomao
    Thank you.
[08:54] Doctor
    My apologies for the long wait.
[08:57] Maomao
    I knew it. This doctor did the examination.
[09:00] Maomao
    A court lady he seemed close to is dead,
[09:04] Maomao
    and she's accused of crimes on top of that.
[09:06] Maomao
    No surprise he seems worn out.
[09:08] Maomao
    But is that really all?
[09:11] Maomao
    I'll be blunt.
[09:13] Maomao
    Did the poison ingested by
     the court lady include thornapple?
[09:18] Doctor
    That's...
[09:20] Maomao
    The small hill near the stable.
[09:23] Maomao
    Did she not plant thornapple there?
[09:27] Maomao
    It has a strong poison, but in right
    amounts, it can work as an anesthetic.
[09:32] Maomao
    I'm sure the pharmacy stocks plenty.
[09:36] Maomao
    Thornapple looks like a white morning glory.
[09:41] Doctor
    I can't say for certain.
[09:43] Doctor
    It's quite likely, given the symptoms,
    but I can't say for certain.
[09:48] Maomao
    Let's confirm with our own eyes, then.
[10:03] Doctor
    W-What are you doing?!
[10:06] Maomao
    Just shut up and watch!
[10:08] Doctor
    S-Stop!
[10:12] Maomao
    It's open.
[10:18] Doctor
    That's... not Suirei?!
[10:22] Doctor
    It can't be...
[10:25] Doctor
    It was... It really was Suirei...
[10:29] Maomao
    Are you certain it was Suirei?
[10:32] Doctor
    There's no way I'd mistake her.
[10:37] Doctor
    She had no pulse. Her heart wasn't moving.
[10:41] Doctor
    She was so clean.
[10:43] Maomao
    In other words, you've been exploited.
[10:47] Maomao
    You didn't think to cut open her corpse
    to find out what poison she used.
[10:53] Maomao
    That's what Suirei expected.
[10:55] Doctor
    You!
[10:57] Maomao
    It wasn't just thornapple that Suirei took.
[11:01] Maomao
    If we investigated
    the drug stocks at the pharmacy,
[11:04] Maomao
    we should be able to tell what she used.
[11:07] Maomao
    I guess the only thing
    we can fault this doctor for
[11:09] Maomao
    is not keeping track of the drugs properly.
[11:13] Jinshi
    What do you mean?
[11:15] Jinshi
    That the corpse is wrong.
[11:17] Maomao
    Even if the coffin was supposed to be burned,
[11:19] Maomao
    it would be too suspicious if it was empty.
[11:22] Maomao
    She must have placed a different corpse
    in a new coffin to replace her.
[11:28] Jinshi
    Then what about Suirei's corpse?
[11:30] Jinshi
    Carrying it out would have caused a scene.
[11:32] Maomao
    There's no need to carry it out.
[11:35] Jinshi
    What do you mean?
[11:44] Maomao
    She walked out by herself.
[11:47] Jinshi
    But wasn't she dead?!
[11:50] Maomao
    There is a certain drug that can
    make a person appear dead.
[11:53] Maomao
    Are you aware of it?
[11:54] Doctor
    I've heard about it, but that's just fantasy.
[11:58] Jinshi
    What is it like?
[12:00] Maomao
    That drug, which is said
    to exist in a faraway land,
[12:03] Maoamo
    is able to kill a person,
    then resurrect them later.
[12:08] Maomao
    I don't know the details,
[12:10] Maomao
    but I've heard thornapple and
    pufferfish are used as ingredients.
[12:18] Gaoshun
    Xiaomao?
[12:19] Maomao
    Master Gaoshun, could you
    investigate the empty coffins?
[12:23] Gaoshun
    Yes.
[12:32] Gaoshun
    Fingernail marks.
[12:34] Maomao
    That must have been the one
    with the dead Suirei in it.
[12:38] Maomao
    By the time her rescuer arrived to open it,
[12:43] Maomao
    she came back to life.
[12:45] Maomao
    They set up a different coffin
    with another corpse to replace it,
[12:48] Maomao
    then disguised her as a vendor to walk out.
[12:54] Jinshi
    They employed such a risky method?
[12:58] Maomao
    If she got caught, she'd get executed anyway.
[13:01] Maomao
    I'd take that bet any day.
[13:03] Jinshi
    I think with you, it would be different...
[13:06] Maomao
    Since there's no corpse here,
    Suirei must have won her bet.
[13:11] Maomao
    If the replacement corpse got burned,
    it would have been a complete victory, but...
[13:17] Maomao
    Not on my watch.
[13:21] Maomao
    If she's still alive, I'd like to meet her.
[13:24] Maomao
    Not to arrest her.
[13:26] Maomao
    The intellect that allowed her to make
    so many crimes look like accidents.
[13:29] Maomao
    The courage she had to pull it all off.
[13:32] Maomao
    Most of all, the nerves of steel it took
    to bet her own life to trick us all!
[13:40] Maomao
    A person like that dying so
    soon would be such a loss!
[13:47] Maomao
    Medicine to bring people back to life!
    She will teach me how to make it!
[13:58] Maomao
    Pardon me.
[13:59] Jinshi
    W-What is it?!
[14:02] Maomao
    Can we get my leg stitched up again?
[14:04] Maomao
    I think the wound reopened.
[14:06] Jinshi
    Say that sooner!
[14:15] Lady-in-Waiting
    Lady Loulan.
[14:32] Jinshi
    We ended up taking care of
    the Suirei incident in secret.
[14:37] Jinshi
    Many things remain unclear
    about the court lady Suirei.
[14:42] Jinshi
    According to the doctor,
    she was backed by his teacher.
[14:47] Jinshi
    He took note of her talents a few years ago
    and brought her in as an adopted daughter.
[14:52] Jinshi
    Not much is known about her past before then.
[14:56] Jinshi
    This is going to take a long time.
[15:01] Gaoshun
    I helped Xiaomao get home.
[15:04] Jinshi
    Sorry to trouble you, as always.
[15:06] Gaoshun
    We can't let her open up her wound again.
[15:10] Jinshi
    Yes.
[15:11] Jinshi
    But it's not just her wound that worries me.
[15:15] Jinshi
    There's also the matter with Lakan, the weirdo.
[15:20] Jinshi
    It's clear that he's her father,
[15:23] Jinshi
    but given the apothecary's attitude,
    there must be some issues there.
[15:30] Jinshi
    To the rear palace tomorrow, right?
[15:32] Gaoshun
    Yes.
[15:36] Gaoshun
    There seems to be no problem.
    It's the same as always.
[15:40] Jinshi
    Meaning it tastes bad.
[15:46] Gaoshun
    You don't have to drink it
    if you don't like it.
[15:49] Jinshi
    It's a responsibility of mine, as a eunuch.
[15:52] Gaoshun
    You shouldn't hold your nose
    like that in public.
[15:56] Gaoshun
    It makes you look very young.
[15:58] Jinshi
    I know.
[16:00] Jinshi
    Refined mannerisms, heavenly
    smiles, and a voice like honey.
[16:06] Jinshi
    The "twenty-four-year-old" man who became
    a eunuch when the rear palace
[16:10] Jinshi
    became the current emperor's, five years ago.
[16:12] Jinshi
    That's "Jinshi."
[16:15] Jinshi
    From the day I decided to wear this mask,
[16:18] Jinshi
    I've been drinking this medicine
    to suppress my manhood every day.
[16:22] Gaoshun
    It will make you actually impotent one day.
[16:28] Jinshi
    Hey, same with you!
[16:30] Gaoshun
    My children are adults now.
    I even have another grandchild.
[16:36] Jinshi
    A grandchild? From your older son?
[16:39] Gaoshun
    Yes. My youngest son is ready
     to get married too, but...
[16:44] Jinshi
    By youngest, you mean Basen? He's only nineteen.
[16:48] Gaoshun
    Yes, nineteen, just like you.
[16:53] Jinshi
    "Jinshi the eunuch" is twenty-four.
[16:58] Jinshi
    Your look is telling me to
    find a wife and end this work.
[17:04] Gaoshun
    I'd like to have time to
     spend with my grandchild.
[17:07] Jinshi
    I'll do my best.
[17:22] Loulan
    Greetings, Master Jinshi.
[17:25] Jinshi
    Another wonderful outfit, I see.
[17:28] Loulan
    Thank you.
[17:31] Loulan
    Master Jinshi...
[17:32] Jinshi
    The emperor does visit
    Concubine Loulan often,
[17:34] Jinshi
    but apparently, he doesn't
    find her very appealing.
[17:37] Jinshi
    Concubine Loulan is very fashionable,
    changing her hairstyle and makeup often.
[17:42] Jinshi
    Apparently, he can't tell who she is
    every time he visits her, and gets confused.
[17:48] Jinshi
    Still, he visits her once every ten days.
[17:52] Jinshi
    Concubine Loulan's father is
    an important high-ranking official
[17:55] Jinshi
    who was the previous
    empress dowager's favorite.
[17:57] Jinshi
    He needs to be careful around her.
[18:02] Jinshi
    In terms of lacking appeal,
    Concubine Lishu is similar.
[18:05] Jinshi
    The current emperor despises his
    predecessor's taste for younger girls.
[18:10] Jinshi
    He doesn't intend to lay a finger
    on Concubine Lishu.
[18:13] Jinshi
    The empress dowager, who gave birth
[18:14] Jinshi
    to the current emperor
    when she was just a girl,
[18:16] Jinshi
    also gave birth to another child,
    some ten-odd years later.
[18:21] Jinshi
    At that time, the doctor spent all his time
    tending to the empress dowager,
[18:25] Jinshi
    so the birth took place without an issue.
[18:29] Jinshi
    However, Concubine Ah-Duo,
    who gave birth at around the same time,
[18:35] Jinshi
    received no attention,
    resulting in the loss of her uterus.
[18:39] Jinshi
    The current emperor's firstborn
    child was lost soon after.
[18:44] Jinshi
    If that child had survived...
[18:49] Jinshi
    No, it's just a silly delusion.
[18:55] Jinshi
    He just needs to make himself a new prince.
[19:00] Gyokuyou
    Oh, you're here.
[19:03] Jinshi
    You seem exhausted.
[19:05] Hongniang
    All right, back to work with you all.
[19:08] Yinghua; Guiyuan; Ailan
    Y-Yes.
[19:11] Gyokuyou
    To be honest...
[19:17] Maomao
    The rear palace?
[19:18] Jinshi
    Yes. Concubine Gyokuyou's
    lunar cycle has stopped.
[19:23] Maomao
    Lunar cycle. In other words,
    she might be pregnant.
[19:28] Maomao
    Starting when?
[19:30] Jinshi
    Can you start today?
[19:32] Maomao
    Yes.
[19:33] Jinshi
    I'm counting on you.
[19:36] Maomao
    This is a good opportunity for me.
[19:38] Maomao
    Men aren't allowed in the rear palace.
[19:41] Maomao
    There's no chance I'd run into that man
    whose name I can't even stand to hear.
[19:46] Maomao
    Does this mean Master Jinshi
    is looking out for me?
[19:49] Maomao
    At any rate, more tasting for poisons!
[19:53] Suiren
    Oh, you're in a good mood.
[19:55] Maomao
    Huh? No, not at all!
[19:58] Suiren
    It's unfortunate. I thought I'd finally found
    someone worth cracking the whip on.
[20:03] Suiren
    Right?
[20:08] Maomao
    Life at the rear palace
    is similar to the last time,
[20:12] Maomao
    tasting for poisons every day.
[20:15] Maomao
    This is safe.
[20:17] Maomao
    Besides the pause in her menstrual
    cycle, there's no definite evidence.
[20:25] Maomao
    I'd had this thought during
    the events with Concubine Ah-Duo,
[20:27] Maomao
    but perhaps he's more than just
    a lewd middle-aged guy.
[20:34] Maomao
    With Concubine Ah-Duo gone
    as a trusted adviser,
[20:39] Maomao
    and replaced by a quirky girl who
    could cause political issues, as well...
[20:45] Maomao
    Someone he can't just ignore, yet would
    cause trouble if she birthed a child...
[20:50] Maomao
    It all sounds like a headache.
SIGN    Verdigris House
[20:54] Servant Girl B
    Hey, did you hear?
SIGN    Verdigris House
[20:56] Servant Girl A
    What? One of the Three Princesses?
[20:58] Servant Girl B
    Yes! She's getting bought out!
[21:01] Lihaku
    Bought... out?
SIGN    Next Time
[22:46] Narrator
    Next time: "How to Buy
    Out a Contract."
SIGN    Episode 21: How to Buy Out a Contract