"three hundred silver would be cheap at the price of this girl"
can i just talk about this specific arc in volume 5 of the apothecary diaries T—T
so this is the part where they’re investigating the village of the quack doctor and i just want to HIGHLIGHT how insane it is how quickly jinshi picks up on whatever maomao is thinking.
to be loved is to be known.
he doesn’t need the full explanation. he doesn’t ask questions. he sees her in action, understands the direction she’s taking, and silently backs her up.
i fully believe jinshi is constantly amazed by maomao’s mind. he’s in AWE of her. her intelligence? her skills? her way of thinking? he watches her work and his eyes practically sparkle. he is the poster boy of “supportive malewife who lets the girlboss thrive.” and the best part?? he’s never once felt threatened by it.
never once has he been insecure about how smart she is. never once did he try to downplay her. never once been dismissive. never once been competitive. in fact, he actually tries to learn from her. remember when maomao was kidnapped and jinshi tried to think like her, to figure out where she might be and how she’d act? THAT’S HIM APPLYING WHAT HE’S LEARNED. that’s him treating her intelligence as something worth listening to, learning from, protecting. this man said “wow she’s incredible, i’m gonna start doing that too.” 😭
also can we talk about how at this point, jinshi is literally jus there to make sure maomao can do whatever she wants 😭😭 he is using his position to create space for maomao to move freely. ane he does it silently, without demanding recognition or credit. like. she has the freedom to act, investigate, speak out—because jinshi has the status and he uses that power so SHE can keep doing what she loves.
he’s not the type to put her in a cage and call it love—he’s the type to open the door wider.
maomao’s a low-born woman in a rigid society, and yet she’s moving through rooms she shouldn’t be allowed in, questioning people way above her rank, throwing herself into danger—and she gets away with it. because jinshi is behind her.
and the beauty of it is he never rubs that in her face. he never says “you can only do this because of me.”
NO. he simply uses his status to create space for her—a safe space where she can be brilliant, reckless, clever, infuriatingly blunt, and still be protected.
we love a supportive malewife who’s just out here empowering his genius goblin girlfriend 😭
he’s not just in love—he respects her.
SEE WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT 😭😭 he just lets her do stuff.
LET PEOPLE ENJOY THEIR INTERESTS!!!!!!! even if it’s borderline unhinged, even if it involves starting a drinking bet with 5 men and other maomao-coded behavior.
jinshi has so much faith in her. he doesn’t hover. he doesn’t interrupt. he just trusts that she knows what she’s doing—even when literally no one else does.
and GOD. may this love find me.
the kind of love that doesn’t try to change you or dim you down.
just watches you go feral in your weird little field of expertise and thinks, “yeah. that’s them. that’s the person I trust.”
jinshi NEVER holds her back. (okay, MAYBE sometimes he takes away her mushrooms and poison samples but THATS BECAUSE SHES INSANE. that’s not control, that’s just him trying to keep her from dying LMAO 😭)
but even then, he never tells her to stop being herself. he just wants her alive long enough to keep being brilliant. like… imagine someone believing in you that much. not just tolerating your interests. not romanticizing them either. but respecting them, supporting them, helping make sure you get the space to keep doing what you love.
and now as the scene progresses, all that “trust her” energy?? YEAH. it’s still there. but he’s also 1000% ready to step in the moment she crosses the line.
because like… let’s be real. maomao?? out of her mind sometimes LMAO 😭 she’ll do unhinged things without flinching. she’ll walk headfirst into danger with zero self-preservation and just go “yeah it’s fine <3” GIRL. STOP.
and jinshi??? he knows this. he respects her intellect, he trusts her judgment— but he also knows she needs someone to pull her back when she goes too far.
so the moment it gets tense? the moment the landlord starts getting pissed?
everyone else is still sitting there stunned, but jinshi’s already up—because if anything happens to her, he’s already decided he won’t just watch.
this is what I love about them so much.
they balance each other perfectly. she pulls him out of his perfect palace persona. he pulls her back from the edge of self-destruction she’s the chaotic gremlin genius with zero self-preservation. he’s the calm, composed, high-ranking disaster with a soft spot the size of the moon, and together they function like one complete human being 😭😭😭
they are the definition of equal and opposite.
not trying to change each other—just naturally falling into place like two puzzle pieces.
he is her stability. she is his clarity. and neither of them asks the other to change.
okay but can we TALK about how maomao literally just accepts pain?? like. “yeah i’m probably gonna get punched but whatever, i need that info.” GIRL. what do you MEAN "its fine" 😭😭 this woman treats her own life like a tool. like a thing she can offer up to science or logic or knowledge or whatever cause she’s chasing at the moment. she was READY to get beat up if it meant getting closer to an answer. and this isn’t even the first time!!!
tested poisons on herself
walked around with reopened stitches like it’s no big deal
been punched in the face and brushed it off
was ABOUT TO CUT OFF HER PINKY
AND SHE THOUGHT THAT WAS FINE. she didn’t flinch. no hesitation. because that’s how little she thinks her body matters. to her, pain is just another step in the process. if she has to bleed for the answer, then so be it.
but Jinshi? Jinshi sees that. and it kills him.
he's the only one who stops her. he’s the one who sees her sacrificing herself over and over and goes “no. not like this.” the way he literally won’t let her hurt herself, even when she’s convinced it’s necessary.
like that one last scene in season 2— she’s about to CUT OFF HER OWN PINKY to test a medicine (she hasn’t seen jinshi in a while, she’s not in the rear palace anymore, she’s fully gone goblin mode with no one to stop her)
and then??? jinshi walks in. and she STOPS.
she doesn’t even argue. she just stops. because he’s there again. and he’s always been the one to keep her grounded.
girlie’s ready to bleed for her answers and this man is out here being like “no you are NOT cutting off your damn pinky, are you INSANE—”
jinshi is the reason maomao doesn’t self-destruct completely.
he takes care of her like she’s breakable—not because he thinks she’s weak, but because he loves her that much.
he treats her like she’s fragile. like she’s precious. like she’s someone who deserves to be protected—even from herself.
he’s the only one who reminds her she’s not disposable. he’s the one keeping her grounded. keeping her alive. she pushes herself too far and he pulls her back every. single. time.
they balance each other in the most painfully beautiful way.
maomao brings out his true self—the silly, unfiltered, messy version of him that no one else gets to see. and jinshi brings out the part of maomao that still wants to be human. to be cared for. to be held.
when he’s stuck being the perfect, composed, unreachable official, she’s the only one who treats him like a human being.
she calls him out. makes him sulk. brings out his bratty, petty, real self.
she gives him space to breathe.
they balance each other in every way.
they are each other's anchors and i am LOSING IT
"three hundred silver would be cheap at the price of this girl" that’s it. that’s the whole thesis. that’s the line.
you can write entire essays about their dynamic but THIS. RIGHT. HERE. is the mic drop.
maomao, who would willingly slice her own finger off in the name of science, who shrugs off bruises and reopened stitches like they’re part of the process, who thinks her value is in what she can do, not who she is.
and then there’s jinshi, saying with his whole chest that even 300 silver would be a bargain. even that wouldn't be enough. like he’s not just protecting her anymore, he’s putting worth on her in front of a whole room of people. redefining her value out loud.
and the way he says it so casually, brushing away the hand of the man holding her, like “don’t touch her. she’s not for you. she’s not for harm.”
that level of possessive protection??? ARE YOU KIDDING???
she risks herself like she doesn’t matter.
he guards her like she’s everything.
HE VALUES HER MORE THAN SHE VALUES HERSELF.
