Kusuriya no Hitorigoto – Episode 41 Review

「狐の里」 (Kitsune no Sato)
“The Fox Village”

Mao Mao has been missing for a day already, and Jinshi is in a panic. In fact, he’s probably the most panicked one there, besides Gyokuyo. I was a little surprised that Luomen wasn’t visibly worried- Mao Mao is his adopted daughter after all. But then when he mentioned how Mao Mao disappeared for a year, his placidity made sense. He’s already so used to it. Though I think if I were a parent, I’d still be sick from worry. He’s also a very practical man- why fret over something he can’t change. Very wise indeed.

This time it’s Luomen’s turn to be the detective, and Jinshi notes “like father, like daughter”. The clue is the cat- apparently cats are attracted to silver vine, which just so happens to be what Mao Mao was carrying with her at the time of disappearance. So, on a cat hunt we go (Gaoshun calling out “meow meow” was a chuckle-worthy highlight), leading us to a very drunk kitty, a stash of silvervine, and an invisible note. As is very fitting for Mao Mao, she had a thing for invisible ink as a child, which she puts to good use here, to send a note about a shrine and jade, that is the same kanji for jade that is in Shisui and Suirei’s names. The “jade” immediately gives Jinshi cause for concern, no doubt he connected it with Suirei. I’ve never seen him look like that before, so we know we’re into deep shit. Furthermore, we learn that there is no such maid as Shisui, shocking Jinshi to the core- though we already suspected as much. I find the whole invisible note thing to be highly contrived. I mean, come on- that Mao Mao just so happened to have been carrying silvervine, blank paper, and alcohol with her at the time?

In order to save Shisui, Mao Mao begrudgingly goes along, where she and Shisui are disguised as villagers sold into slavery. A side note, but I found it interesting that her captors chose an outfit in Mao Mao’s signature green color scheme.

Now, what I find strange is that Suirei allowed Mao Mao to keep Jinshi’s hair stick. If they’re trying to disguise her, wouldn’t a fancy hair stick give her away, or at least be suspicious for a villager girl to have? There is no throw away detail in this series, so it’s obvious that is going to play some role somewhere. But it strikes me as unlikely that Suirei would be so stupid as to overlook something like that, unless she intends for Jinshi to find Mao Mao. Which, given the previous attempt on Jinshi’s life screams TRAP all over it.

I kind of suspected last week that Shisui was involved in this plot, given how extremely convenient it was that she just so happened to show up when she did. Those suspicions proved to be accurate. What I didn’t see coming was that Shisui and Suirei are actually sisters. Though I should have picked up on the connection, given that they both have “jade” in their name. Mao Mao susses them out, throwing a snake in their path to see the reaction- apparently Suirei and Indiana Jones have one thing in common. Shisui comforting Suiren is the (un)dead giveaway.

After a who knows how long journey, the girls end up in the boonies in- a hot spring town. Another unexpected development. I hope they let Mao Mao take a dip- hot springs would sure be one comfort amidst the stress of being kidnapped. It seems that this town is either the sisters’ home town or maybe a vacation home- one of the rich boys in the area knows them quite well. The impudent little brat (or little shit as Mao Mao refers to him lol) knows them quite well. Their visit is quite the surprise to him and he rushes to gather materials so they can celebrate in the upcoming festival. Shisui is quite the wildcard- she has kind side to her, from how she makes the kid thank the servant for her work, and she strikes me as a bit whimsical- she’s not someone I would have initially expected prior to last week to be involved as a spy and (presumably) co-conspirator in a nefarious plan. But that’s the point- it wouldn’t have gone off as well (for the conspirators) if she wasn’t.

I also find it curious (and stupid) for Suirei to kidnap Mao Mao- who she knows is Lakan’s daughter. Lakan cares too much about Mao Mao to ignore the situation when he eventually finds out (as it seems he will next episode). At the same time, he’s too intelligent to be drawn into a hostage situation that puts him at a disadvantage. No doubt, he’ll find some third path- and boy, I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of his anger. What is her purpose in this? Is it to draw out Jinshi? The Western emissary is also involved here- Mao Mao immediately notices the princess and the guards from the Moon Fairy incident. Which is immediately a concern, given the ties between Jinshi’s attempted assassination and the feifas that came from the West. Maybe Jinshi could show up as the moon fairy again, and order Mao Mao to be released, so aweing the princess that she demands Mao Mao be released… Probably not likely.

Preview