In Defense of Gaoshun x Maomao
Nobody asked me to, but you bet I'm gonna step on the barricades and plant my little flag right here...
So I recently received my first “he’s too old” post comparing the GaoMao ship I currently write a lot for with the dynamics and predation of the former emperor. It’s been the first concern openly voiced about the Gaoshun x Maomao pairing, and I want to take a moment to engage with that thoughtfully.
These kinds of conversations matter, especially in a series like Kusuriya no Hitorigoto, which doesn't shy away from portraying uncomfortable truths about power, gender, and consent. That said, I believe it's also important to differentiate between what is predatory and what looks like it at first glance, especially in historical fiction and fan spaces.
Let's start with the obvious: yes, Gaoshun is older than Maomao by a significant margin particularly around their age difference—he's around 36, she's 17. And yes, the series includes explicit criticism of the previous emperor's abuse of young girls—something the text itself frames as morally repugnant. It's valid and necessary to be wary of how age and power dynamics are handled in fiction, especially when they echo real-world harms.
That said, I don't think Gaoshun x Maomao fits that mold—and not just because of age-of-consent arguments or historical context (though those are relevant too). I'd argue that what makes this pairing compelling is the very lack of coercion or boundary-crossing between them. Their bond—at least as I imagine in through fanfiction—is rooted in mutual respect, shared values, and careful attention to agency.
Character Compatibility and Temperament
At the heart of Gaoshun/Maomao is the idea of two pragmatic people who quietly get each other. Maomao isn't a romantic idealist; she's sharp-tongued, observant, and reluctant to trust. Gaoshun is reserved, driven by duty, and skilled at reading people. When they interact, it's not flashy or full of dramatic gestures—it's subtle, thoughtful, laced with a dry wit and an undercurrent of mutual understanding. That compatibility is rare in the world of Kusuriya no Hitorigoto, where so many relationships are defined by imbalance or spectacle.
Unlike Jinshi, who constantly tests Maomao's boundaries by touching, biting, licking, or teasing her into discomfort—often framed as flirtation—Gaoshun does none of that. He doesn't loom over her, doesn't corner her into reacting, doesn't manipulate her reactions for amusement. He watches, listens, and speaks plainly. Their chemistry builds on shared silence, on observation and acknowledgment. That's worth exploring.
Agency, Consent, and Respect
To me, one of the most frustrating parts of the canon pairing (Jinshi x Maomao) is how often Jinshi invades Maomao's space without consent. Her typical reaction—freezing up or grimacing—is often played for laughs or misread as bashful affection. But if we take Maomao seriously as a character, I think we ought to take her displayed discomfort seriously too.
By contrast, Gaoshun never disrespects Maomao's autonomy. He does scheme, once, to have her accompany Jinshi but all in all, if anything, he's one of the few men in the series who consistently treats her as a capable adult, not a curiosity or a challenge to be conquered. He acknowledges her expertise, even if her habits in regard to interactions with poison worry him, he asks for her insights, and doesn't coddle her.
So when I, as a fanfiction writer, imagine a romantic or even explicit relationship between Gaoshun and Maomao, it's often because of that respect. It's not about erasing the age gap—it's about imagining what a slow-burn relationship built on trust and competence might look like. It's about giving Maomao choice, which is something the canon doesn't always offer her in romantic contexts.
Cultural and Historical Context
Kusuriya no Hitorigoto is set in a fictionalized version of imperial China, where the lines around adulthood, marriageability, and social roles differ significantly from modern Western expectations. That doesn't excuse harmful dynamics—but it does inform how we understand them in context. In this world, Maomao at 17 is not a child: she's an accomplished apothecary trusted with the lives of nobles, embedded in court intrigue, and capable of outwitting murder plots and bureaucrats alike. The narrative treats her as competent and self-directing, not as someone being groomed or preyed upon.
Crucially, the series does offer moral commentary on abusive behavior—most obviously in its condemnation of the previous emperor's taste for very young girls and even in its frequent discussion of the ways of the pleasure district Maomao grew up in. It doesn't normalize or gloss over predation. So if the story wanted to paint Gaoshun as predatory, it absolutely could have—and doesn't. That tells us something about how the creators frame his character and lets me go from there.
Fanfiction as Transformative Space
Finally, fanfiction is not a mirror—it's a lens. It allows us to take familiar characters and reimagine their relationships with more depth, more nuance, and often more care than canon affords. Some writers in the Gaoshun/Maomao tag age up the characters, or develop their relationship gradually. Some delay any romantic or sexual content until it is obvious that Maomao is older and has more life experience. Others explore how their bond shifts in alternate settings—modern AUs, role reversals, military intrigue, etc. That's the beauty of fic: it gives us tools to rewrite, refine, and reclaim dynamics that might otherwise feel troubling.
If readers aren't comfortable with the pairing, that's completely fair. No one has to like or endorse every ship. But to dismiss it as inherently pedophilic flattens the conversation and ignores the actual relationship dynamic being explored: one of mutual respect, quiet understanding, and deliberate care.
To me, Gaoshun x Maomao is not about age—it's about fit. Alignment. It's about the way two people, different in years but alike in disposition, can find common ground in a world that feel rigged against them socially--denies them control over their own fates. It's about treating Maomao as a subject with agency, not an object of infatuation.
So yes, critique matters. But so does context—and compassion—and the imaginative freedom fanfiction offers. That's the space I write from.
Thank you.