(CR) Kusuriya no Hitorigoto (The Apothecary Diaries)

[Thor's Hammer]

Because Lakan has never once provoked Jinshi in the first place. Yes, he is upset that Jinshi bought out his daughter, but he hasn't done any provoking. He just made it a point to take up some of Jinshi's time to point out that Maomao is his daughter and to give Maomao the pieces needed to solve the Suirei assassination plot on Jinshi.

And, no, if you thought Lakan was annoyed about their being blue roses at the venue, you need to watch the episode again as that didn't happen.

The point of Lakan saying that his provokation failed was to show that Shishou and Loulan are worthy adversaries and wouldn't be defeated by being upstaged by blue roses.

[Tenzen12]

You are one who doesn't watch it properly (and saying he never provoked Jinshi just furhter hammer that point as that's literaly what he does everytime he is at his place) at 16:30 Lakan looks on blue roses surprised and say "How annoying". Him saying his provocation failed came soon after that. But maybe he wasn't annoyed at all and he just lied to noone.

[Thor's Hammer]

What Lakan found annoying was that it was Jinshi presenting the roses to the Emperor rather than Maomao as he had intended for Maomao to get all the credit not knowing that all she would indeed get all the credit, at least from the Emperor, sincdle she had spoken to the Emperor beforehand about the trick. So this is Lakan's second plan in a row that didn't go just as planned with the Suirei murder plot nearly resulting in his daughter being killed and this blue roses plot resulting in Jinshi presenting the roses and Shishou and Loulan not reacting when he thought he'd get an easy win over them.

[Tenzen12]

That's blatantly nonsense. Maomao never had position to make offering to Emperor. She is servant, not even court lady. Pretty much all you offered so far is pure speculation with no actual substance and I will excuse myself either until there is some or there is something new to speak about.

[Huh...?]

I would just say this.
The dialog of Lakan mentioning how he had failed to provoke, was meant towards "Jinshi".

But the reason Lakan said that was because he didn't know who brought the flowers to the Garden Party.

Remember, Lakan can't identify people by their face, as he has Face Blindness/Prosopagnosia.

Lakan usually uses certain methods to identify when certain people appear, which he also uses on Jinshi.

But those methods didn't work, when Jinshi was presenting the Flowers to the Emperor, causing Lakan to not identify him, and mistakenly think that he had failed to provoke him.
There was also the fact that the Manicure color was also causing irritation to his eyes, increasing his difficulty to identify people.

[Thor's Hammer]

Originally Posted by Huh...?

I would just say this.
The dialog of Lakan mentioning how he had failed to provoke, was meant towards "Jinshi".

But the reason Lakan said that was because he didn't know who brought the flowers to the Garden Party.

Remember, Lakan can't identify people by their face, as he has Face Blindness/Prosopagnosia.

Lakan usually uses certain methods to identify when certain people appear, which he also uses on Jinshi.

But those methods didn't work, when Jinshi was presenting the Flowers to the Emperor, causing Lakan to not identify him, and mistakenly think that he had failed to provoke him.
There was also the fact that the Manicure color was also causing irritation to his eyes, increasing his difficulty to identify people.

I'm skeptical of this even if you have read the novels as Lakan was nowhere near anybody with red nail polish at the garden party. I'm going to get the opinion of a former professional translator before I accept your take as fact.

[Frontier]

Maomao's mother isn't in the best state, but while she's barely holding it together and still playing go in her delirium...father and daughter are about to engage in a chess game .

And it's a chess game with a reward...Lakan wins, he gets Maomao to live with him, if Maomao wins, he buys out a certain courtesan. Jinshi is keeping himself out of it even if he doesn't like the idea of Lakan getting Maomao. And of course, with any game with Maomao, there has to be the promise of poison involved .

Obviously Maomao can't beat Lakan in a board game, but she can use his fatherly tenderness to her advantage to make him deliberately lose to avoid her drinking poison...even though the real poison was just alcohol that knocked him out with one gulp. Because the master strategist is a total lightweight. Game, set, Maomao .

Lakan as a young boy couldn't truly see or distinguish people, and that drove his father to abandon him and his mother, so he never really had an example of love in his life...the closest would probably be his uncle who taught him to see people in a way he understands, like the games of go or chess he threw himself into. Games that he was able to apply to his military career and games he was pretty much unmatched in. Until he met the one person who could beat him, Fengxian, Maomao's mother and the one person who he could truly see .

Fengxian was like her daughter in the sense that she was also born in the pleasure quarter and didn't really have a mother, because that's just how it is as a courtesan's daughter, but she had strong pride, stoicism, and a beauty that pierced through even her unapproachable aura. And Lakan found himself drawn to her, and her with him. And one day, during a game, two people who weren't overt in their emotions or experienced in human relationships found their hearts (and bodies) becoming one .

So Meimei was Fengxian's servant girl and has known Lakan since then (he even practiced with her)? That actually explains a lot. She also totally knew what Fengxiang was planning to do in her last game with Lakan .

Wait, Lakan's uncle was actually Maomao's other dad the whole time!? Wow, small world !

It all went wrong when Lakan was sent off on a study trip and expected to be back in six months to see Fengxian. I mean, her offer to get bought out fell through so it's all good right? Well, waiting for him when he returns (THREE YEARS LATER) were letters from Fengxian and her severed finger...as well as their daughters, as Lakan failed to put two and two together for why the offer fell through and unknowingly abandoned Fengxian and their daughter until it was far too late. No wonder grams smacked him with the broom, he would've done it himself .

[Tenzen12]

I don't think it can be considered "small world". That would imply Luomen visited place by accident, but I think he was not just in know, but also that he initially came there for Lakan sake and than adopted Maomao as her relative.

[Kanon]

Lakan did nothing wrong. You can't expect someone as socially impaired as he was to pick up on these clues, no matter how smart he is. The question to me is: would he have disobeyed his father if he had known? I think he would have, since he genuinely loved her, and he clearly loves their daughter.

There are things I'm confused about that the final episode may answer, like when Lakan first met Maomao, why he never bought Fengxian (seemed like the old bag hated him so much for abandoning her she wouldn't let him near her), and whether he was planning to buy Meimei in the present (the rumor Lihaku heard) before Maomao changed his mind.

I'm also confused about the fingers he found. One was apparently a baby's, but Maomao's fingers are all fine.

Originally Posted by Tenzen12

I don't think it can be considered "small world". That would imply Luomen visited place by accident, but I think he was not just in know, but also that he initially came there for Lakan sake and than adopted Maomao as her relative.

Yeah, it's obviously not a coincidence. I think it's kinda nice father and daughter both had the same mentor, though he means much more to Maomao.

[Frontier]

I wonder if casting Houko Kuwashima as Fengxian was in some ways meant to be a nod to Sainkouku Monogatari?

Originally Posted by Tenzen12

I don't think it can be considered "small world". That would imply Luomen visited place by accident, but I think he was not just in know, but also that he initially came there for Lakan sake and than adopted Maomao as her relative.

I was trying to be cute a little .

Originally Posted by Kanon

Lakan did nothing wrong. You can't expect someone as socially impaired as he was to pick up on these clues, no matter how smart he is. The question to me is: would he have disobeyed his father if he had known? I think he would have, since he genuinely loved her, and he clearly loves their daughter.

His father is the real villain in this story if you ask me, even if Luomen's incident is also what got Lakan exiled (though I guess that also extends to the circumstances of the former Emperor).

There are things I'm confused about that the final episode may answer, like when Lakan first met Maomao, why he never bought Fengxian (seemed like the old bag hated him so much for abandoning her she wouldn't let him near her), and whether he was planning to buy Meimei in the present (the rumor Lihaku heard) before Maomao changed his mind.

I wonder if he even knows Fengxian is alive? Grams said she was "gone." I think he was originally planning to buy Maomao before Jinshi got involved.

I'm also confused about the fingers he found. One was apparently a baby's, but Maomao's fingers are all fine.

There have been times when she's looked at her pinky finger .

Yeah, it's obviously not a coincidence. I think it's kinda nice father and daughter both had the same mentor, though he means much more to Maomao.

He's a stellar (great) uncle .

[Wandering Soul]

Despite the unfortunate state of Maomao's family, it's clear that Lakan did nothing malicious to cause it. If anything, he's just a victim of poor timing and bad communication. If the story has a villain, it's Lakan's father. Luomen is a pretty great guy though. First he was there for Lakan growing up when no one else was, and then pretty much adopted Maomao as a daughter.

[deadite]

I find it amusing Maomao is descendant from a brainy family.

[Nachtwandler]

Originally Posted by Kanon

There are things I'm confused about that the final episode may answer, like when Lakan first met Maomao, why he never bought Fengxian (seemed like the old bag hated him so much for abandoning her she wouldn't let him near her)

Let's say, MaoMao is more or less aware about the whole situation and she dislikes him for different reasons.

Originally Posted by Kanon

and whether he was planning to buy Meimei in the present (the rumor Lihaku heard) before Maomao changed his mind.

While reading this part I thought it's actually the opposite. MaoMao hopes he will buy MeiMei considering her relationship with her mother and with Three princesses.

Originally Posted by Kanon

I'm also confused about the fingers he found. One was apparently a baby's, but Maomao's fingers are all fine.

In some cases fingertips can regrow, especially if you are a baby as they have higher capabilities for this. If you pay attention to some scenes, MaoMaos left pinky is a bit disfigured (animators actually bothered to draw it this way in the scenes there she is shown looking on it).

Originally Posted by Frontier

I wonder if casting Houko Kuwashima as Fengxian was in some ways meant to be a nod to Sainkouku Monogatari?

I also found it pretty interesting.

Originally Posted by Frontier

His father is the real villain in this story if you ask me, even if Luomen's incident is also what got Lakan exiled (though I guess that also extends to the circumstances of the former Emperor).

Nah, he just used it as a reason to get rid of Lakan also considering he wanted to make the half-brother his heir.

Originally Posted by deadite

I find it amusing Maomao is descendant from a brainy family.

Funny thing that, as Jinshi pointed out, she is not great in board games despite both of her parents being really good at them.

[Frontier]

Originally Posted by Nachtwandler

Funny thing that, as Jinshi pointed out, she is not great in board games despite both of her parents being really good at them.

She got bit by the poison/herb bug instead .

[Alchemist007]

They really presented this guy as the scummiest of scum and then this is the backstory .

Maybe he thought Feng was dead since the brothel woman said she was 'gone.' But I suppose now it was just a tragedy falsely presented as malicious intent for drama. False narration might be a tool but now I'm suspect for anything and everything.

Someone mentioned that he at least tried to buy out his daughter but that obviously never happened, so not sure what her issue is with him since it's unlikely to be the aforementioned.

[BBOvenGuy]

Just as a by-the-way, "Meimei" is the generic Chinese term for a younger sister, similar to "imouto" in Japanese. So when one of the girls at Verdigris House addressed her as "Meimei onee-san," she was saying "older sister younger sister."

[deadite]

AU of princess La Mao still learning medicine from Grand Uncle Loumen. Also Granny doesn't seem so blameless. She did allow Fenxian to be a streetwalker.

[Kanon]

Originally Posted by Nachtwandler

While reading this part I thought it's actually the opposite. MaoMao hopes he will buy MeiMei considering her relationship with her mother and with Three princesses.

The message she sent him with the withered blue rose is pretty clear.

I'm not entirely sure he initially intended to buy Meimei, but there are a few hints: he's known her for a very long time and taught her to play, it was mentioned she's always the one who distracts/entertains him when he comes by for Maomao, Meimei herself stated she didn't mind spending time with him, and Lihaku heard a rumor about someone wanting to buy one of the three princesses.

If that's the case though, it seems Maomao cockblocked Meimei.

Originally Posted by BBOvenGuy

Just as a by-the-way, "Meimei" is the generic Chinese term for a younger sister, similar to "imouto" in Japanese. So when one of the girls at Verdigris House addressed her as "Meimei onee-san," she was saying "older sister younger sister."

That's pretty funny.

[Nachtwandler]

I actually do not remeber if the rose message was in LNs but it can be interpreted for him to do what he missed to do in past, not specifically buy Fengxian as he is sure she is dead.

[Decel]

I would understand why he would want to buy Meimei, but why would she want to be with him? Wouldn't she have interesting suitors of her own, like Lihaku for Pairin?