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#薬屋のひとりごと

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Princess (Wind Head) 王女様(風頭)

Mao Rescues Mia (猫救助ミーア)

#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries x #TearmoonEmpire

*** Maomao ***

The girl landed with a thump. Maomao noted the unusual, fluffy riding outfit the woman wore. “An excellent choice for a novice rider,” she said to the small #arched stems of the “Yín Yáng Huò” she was examining, its anchor-shaped leaves faintly brushing her #shin. “The question is, did the bulky outfit work?” If the woman had been hurt, helping her would be a lot of trouble; however, didn’t Mao have a duty to help her?

It was a question to consider seriously. Her father had followed his conscience, and look where that got him—the tendons removed from his knee for doing his best to save a baby of imperial birth

She sighed. As much as it pained her, helping was the right thing and probably wouldn’t have such dire consequences. Parin would have to make do with the “Raunchy Goat Medicine”—as Parin called it—the apothecary had already gathered.

Rain pattered around her, its rhythm deepening as she neared the fallen woman. The wind sighed low in the grass. If Mao had been superstitious, she would have thought it said, “You’ll be sorry.

The day had begun badly and was getting worse. First, she’d been called out on mysterious business in the country. Next, the carriage in which she had been riding had thrown a wheel, and now this woman. The rain; however, didn’t bother her. She was hoping to spot Zhu Ling, Fang Feng, or Tu Fu Ling. She preferred to dig them when the soil was soft after a rain. The last of those was always popular at her shop, a sovereign cure for men’s sores of shame.

It might be a profitable day. She had already found some Mu Tong along the road. And yes, she was sure it wasn’t Guan Mu Tong; only a novice would make that mistake.

As the young apothecary approached as the woman sat up. “Are you hurt?” she asked.

The woman paid no mind, looking after her horse. “I can’t believe a horse betrayed me.”

Why the woman wasn’t thrown more often, Mao asked herself. Considering her supine riding posture, she did not seem an experienced rider. Instead of saying that, she asked again, “Are you hurt? If not, I have herbs to gather.”

“I’m fine. But thank you for asking,” the woman replied.

Mao studied her. Her smile was innocent. She was healthy with ample flesh, a surplus even, clearly not poor. One didn’t get that weight on a poverty diet unless you were ill. Her padded clothes were unusual. She resembled a chimera: part human and part sheep. They were well-tailored and had properly protected the woman.

Well, if she was alright, Mao could get on with her herb gathering. As soon as they repaired the carriage, she would need to leave.

Part 1 of 8: To be continued.

Sequel to: "The Norns" pixiv.net/novel/series/14017710

#TootFic #Serial #NMPrompts #NMV366 #NMMP
#薬屋のひとりごと #ApothecaryDiaries
#LightNovel #Manga #Anime #Fantasy #botany #SliceOfLife

pixiv「The Norns (ノルン)」/「NaraMoore ⛩️八尺様」のシリーズ [pixiv]Lost in the woods, Mai Lune Tearmoon has rabbit stew with the Norns.
Continued thread

Sweet Tea (甘茶)

Part 2B: Amacha (あまちゃ)

#Wss366 #Mastoprompt 7/10
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries

The room was a mess, which would’ve riled Madam. She expected things to be neat at all times, just in case someone important stopped by. Hours or no hours, when money was on your doorstep, you didn’t turn it away. If Amacha risked Madam’s wrath like that, the anemia had to be advanced.

“I’ll get to it before customers come.”

Mao cleared a place and sat. While Amacha made tea, Mao fiddled with some tonic herbs to waste time. It wouldn’t do to get kicked out early. As Amacha finished brewing the tea, Mao rolled some makeshift pills using a bit of sticky gum.

She accepted the cup, sipped. “Cheap leaves.” Undoubtedly, Amacha saved her best tea for clients. That was the tea Mao wanted.

“I heard you had some special sweet tea.”

Amacha turned, “Who told you that?! I just have that,” and she pointed at Mao’s cup.

A lie,” Mao thought, “but she wouldn’t waste good leaves on me.

“I was told most specifically you had sweet tea.” The habit of persistence frequently got Mao what she wanted, and in this case, it worked surprisingly well.

Amacha stomped her foot, saying, “I told that little rat not to say anything. You tell him I’m going to wring his neck!”

“Him?” Mao repeated.

Amacha stared, then her eyes got big. “The merchant. I—I don’t know his name.”

Just a little more, and she’ll tell me everything, Mao thought. “There is a girl downstairs with Madam. She protected someone. You can walk that path… or tell me the truth. Which path will it be?”

(Part 2B of 3 parts - to be continued next week.)

#TootFic #NMPrompts #NMV366 #NMMP
#薬屋のひとりごと #ApothecaryDiaries
#LightNovel #Manga #Fantasy #ApothecaryDiaries
@yon @bytebro

Continued thread

Sweet Tea (甘茶)

Part 2A: Amacha (あまちゃ)

#Wss366 #Mastoprompt 7/10
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries

Mao mulled over the situation as she went upstairs. “Best to remember Zulin’s sister’s name, at least until we’ve talked. What was it? A flower. Water element. Bitter-sweet. Right—Amacha. Hydrangea—used to treat water-dampness, though weak. Not something I’d normally use. The characters mean sweet tea. Of course, she picked a name like Sweet Tea. I can remember it.

Tricky. She may not want to see me. She’s probably still mad about that stolen jade business. Not my fault. If you’re going to be stupid, you pay the price. She was lucky to still #live here, not somewhere less reputable. Still, she blames me for Grandma’s punishment. Again, how is that my fault?

I’ll say I came to check on her health. It’s not a lie. Ukyou did tell me about that.

It didn’t take long to reach Amacha’s room. She was glad to hear something #roll behind the door and a woman mutter. People weren’t very cooperative if you woke them.

“Hello,” she called, knocking on the door.

The door opened a crack. “What do ‘you’ want?”

“I was told you weren’t well, bloated, low energy. Mind if we sit a bit?”

“I’m fine, go away.”

Gentle isn’t working,” Mao thought. “Only one thing to do with an uncooperative patient: scare them.

“Saves me time,” she said. “I’ll just tell Madam you didn’t want to see me.”

The door swung open, and Amacha stood there, robe in disarray.

Some bloating, flushed, tired. I’ve found the right person.” Mao silently noted.

“Haven’t you made enough trouble for me?” Amacha asked.

“How long have you been bloated?”

Amacha raked Mao with her eyes, her lip curled, but she answered, “A couple of days; I’m just tired from gathering flowers.”

“Make us some tea while I mix something up for you.”

“Don’t bother. I’ll be fine in a few days.”

The young courtesan still stood blocking the doorway. Mao considered pushing past but rejected the idea. Brute force wouldn’t work here, but threats would.

“I was told to help you, and you know how angry Madam gets if disobeyed.” She was mixing two unrelated facts here. First, Ukyou had asked her to help. Second, the consequences of disobeying Grandma. If Amacha related the two facts, that was her problem.

Amacha backed up, letting Mao in.

“Tea,” Mao said, taking advantage of having the upper hand. She looked around and asked, “Too exhausted to clean?”

(Part 2A of 3 parts - to be continued. Part B in next post.)

#TootFic #NMPrompts #NMV366 #NMMP
#薬屋のひとりごと #ApothecaryDiaries
#LightNovel #Manga #Fantasy #ApothecaryDiaries
@yon @bytebro

Continued thread

#Wss366 #Mastoprompt 7/3
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries

Sweet Tea (甘茶)

Part 1: Licorice 甘草

“I knew there was some here,” Mao mused as she #checked the apothecary stock of Gān Cǎo. She might have used more than expected, but no, she would have remembered buying more.

She pulled another bamboo tube from the shelf, still mulling the question #over in her mind.

“Perhaps Sazen overlooked restocking it,” she thought. “If that’s the case, I’ll give him a talking to.”

Running out of Gān Cǎo would impact the harmonizing of drugs.

At least it’s not Kokuyou. He doesn’t make that kind of mistake. So it’s got to be Sazen. I’ll make his ears sting.

She extracted a root from the tube in her hand. “Humm…” She inspected it, feeling the rough edges with her fingers. Someone had been shaving off large slivers instead of flakes. Pieces that would need to be shaved down later. “Sazen wouldn’t make more work for himself, so who was taking the Gān Cǎo?”

She tapped the tube, pursing her lips.

Still puzzled, she made her way to the Verdigris’s main building. Madam’s voice drifted out from a side room, “… and he broke it, and you didn’t charge…” Mao felt sorry for her victim, but she was right: you break it, you buy it.

Ukyou, their bouncer and Madam’s right-hand man, sat by the door. He raised his eyebrows and nodded toward Madam’s room.

Just the person I’m looking for,” Mao thought. “He knows everything and keeps quiet when it doesn’t matter. No point in Grandma knowing what I’m after.

“Whose grandma got in there?” she asked. Not that she cared. But the conversation would go better if she seemed sympathetic.

“… Of course you’ll pay for it…” Madam’s voice had that cold edge, signaling she was concluding the lecture.

“Suiren, she should have known better, but she let a client bully her.” He held up his hands helplessly. “Now she answers to Madam. Not the wiser path.”

“… twice its value, and…” Madam’s voice dropped, leaving the ultimate punishment in question.

Mao promptly forgot both that and the young courtesan’s name.

“I was wondering,” Mao changed the subject, “if any of the women have been looking ill: bloated, flushed, or unusually tired, like she’s been drinking too much. She might not be taking as many clients, or they’ve been complaining she’s off.”

“I knew you wanted something. Why did you even bother asking about Suiren? I bet you don’t even remember her name.”

Mao shrugged. It was true; she’d already forgotten the name. The unfortunate girl was now just that, “The Unfortunate Girl.”

“Amacha, Zulin’s older sister, is who you’re looking for. Help the girl out before…” He nodded toward the source of “The Unfortunate Girl’s” crying

(Part 1 to be continued.)

#MicroFiction #NMPrompts #NMV366 #NMMP
#薬屋のひとりごと #ApothecaryDiaries
#LightNovel #Manga #Fantasy #ApothecaryDiaries
@yon @bytebro

Continued thread

#wss366 06/19 #shake
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries
*** Pearl Farming ***

Maomao ran her fingers over the gourd’s surface. It felt normal, smooth, slightly irregular, with a mild grain.

She looked up at the man, one of Meimei’s clients, who stood with three broad-shouldered women. They made the room look small. Behind them stood Madam and a few courtesans. Their delicate looks and midday drowsiness stood in sharp contrast to the newcomers, women who worked with their bodies, but in a completely different fashion.

Usually, there was trouble when women showed up at Verdigris House, especially if accompanied by a husband. There had been none today. This was business. Madam was doing a "favor" for a client and had pressed Mao with her special talents into service.

“May I shake it?” Mao asked.

“Yes, of course.” The man sounded nervous. Mao could smell his sweat from where she sat. Meimei said he played a good game of Go but was otherwise innocuous. He didn’t look like the head of the Pearl Divers Guild.

Mao shook the gourd. Rather than the sound of seeds, something more substantial rattled inside.

“And if I prove it’s a scam, I keep the pearls?” she asked, avoiding Madam’s gaze lest she lose her reward.

“Correct,” the little man’s tone lacked decision; he was too meek. He looked like the perfect target for a con. Mao considered asking for more but decided to avoid Madam boxing her ears for impertinence. Why was Madam the only one who could be greedy?

She glanced down at the fragments of another gourd lying on the table, mixed with inferior-quality pearls. Once ground, they would be fine for medicine, so she didn’t mind.

“And he said that unless you paid him, he’d sell the seeds to farmers and ruin your business?” Mao probed. It seemed a rather roundabout way to make money. Why not just grow the gourds yourself?

The man nodded.

She gave the gourd another shake, then ran her fingers across its skin. It felt right… Ah, there it was. One section felt different. Too smooth. She carefully explored and defined the area. It was circular, about the size of her thumb tip.

Turning away, she gathered a few things and mixed an acidic solution, stronger than vinegar but only slightly. Nothing that would cause a burn, but enough to dissolve a cheap varnish.

“It’s okay if I damage this slightly?” she asked.

The man glanced back at a woman with powerful lungs. She was probably his wife and the actual head of the Divers Guild. The woman made an imperceptible nod.

Mao didn’t wait for the man to speak. She had her answer.

She warmed her solution and gently rubbed the gourd’s surface. When satisfied, she dried the gourd and heated the questionable portion using a candle.

As expected, that section browned faster than the rest.

She showed it to the people watching. “It’s a fake. They’re trying to shake you down.”

The man’s wife looked grim. Mao was glad she wasn’t the conman.

#microfiction #NMPrompts #NMV366 #薬屋のひとりごと @yon #Anime #Fantasy #Mystery

#wss366 06/14 #trip
#FanFiction #TheApothecaryDiaries

*** Bitter, Peppery ***

Maomao savored the smell.

The Fúnán dish, a recent import, was supposed to be spicy, mildly so, with a citrusy lean. She closed her eyes and inhaled: turmeric, cumin, cinnamon, and far too much galangal. And something else, just barely there. What was it? Something unfamiliar, she noted, a flicker of pleasant curiosity stirring. Perhaps the evening would not be a complete waste after all.

Someone had been overzealous with the seasoning. The spices would drown out the delicate flavor of the rare mushrooms hidden beneath.

Jinshi did not summon her to taste things often these days. But with a prince visiting from the distant western kingdom of Tiānzhú, her inconvenient expertise had proven useful again. No one quite knew why he made the TRIP to the imperial court, though his appetite for exotic cuisine was no secret.

The clumsy preparation did not bother Maomao. She shoveled a generous portion into her mouth. There it is, she thought. A bitter, peppery note, barely poking through the muddle of stronger flavors.

She reached for a second bite, but Jinshi snatched the bowl away.

“You have had enough,” he said flatly. Then, turning to the guard at his side, “Arrest the one who prepared this dish. Immediately.”

#microfiction #NMPrompts #NMV366 #TheApothecaryDiaries #薬屋のひとりごと #FanFiction @yon #Anime