I've been following the novel for so long (the terrible unofficial translation, and then the much-better official) so I was overjoyed to see that KnH had a manga adaptation too! And it's fantastic. This story translates beautifully to a manga format -- it's really lovely to see this many women drawn so diversely and sensitively. In general I think the tone is tasteful and sophisticated -- what other story can take subjects like rape, sex work, ageing, and childbirth, and NOT insult a woman through it? In fact, KnH takes pains to make sure to emphasise that Maomao's opinion is just her opinion, and that doesn't mean it's right, and that she sits as a small fish in a big sea with some very powerful decision-makers. As a character, she's very aware of what it means to make a judgement, and the implications and outcomes from saying anything, which is why she is always so confident and assured when she makes her move; as a story, the repercussions of making judgements and acting on opinions have a ripple-effect throughout the plot.

This manga is pretty easy reading, which is nice considering how serious some of the subject matter is. I think that shows a lot of respect for the characters/women involved (for example and it gets addressed with appropriate tones of quiet horror but isn't the focal point of her story. She's allowed to be more than what other people did/made of her). Rakan's story is also much stronger here than it is in the novel, which I was pleasantly surprised by. The episodic nature of KnH works really well in keeping the pace up and matches the plot as well as Maomao's "well this isn't my problem" attitude. Lovely, lovely story, and I highly recommend!

... Last updated on August 31st, 2022, 3:31am

I love it. Maomao is simply the best heroine of all time, full stop. Jinshi is great too. One of the few manga that I have purchased. Definitely worth your time to read.

To be frank I did not expect this manga to be what is effectively a series of detective stories layered on top of one another. However, after getting it I was very satisfied.

The crimes or problems posed are all reasonable, and you can often figure things out before the characters due to the information supplied and some prior knowledge. But little is so trivial that its insulting to read through.
Characters are well made, while most are fairly shallow or only have bits and pieces revealed many chapters apart, they're all generally entertaining and fit together well. The main duo, of a tradition pharmacist girl, and a faux-enuch man, are nicely made and information about them is drip fed with good enough pacing to keep you asking for more, and their assumptions or choices in the series are all rational for who they are.

The politics of the Harem and the ministers are kept fairly vague, despite the setting.
Most of it only comes in at important moments and otherwise things are fairly light-hearted and casual. That most of the mysteries aren't that huge in the grand scheme of things helps, but the tone can get dark and heavy fast.

The humor can be very funny when it wants to be.
The character writing is also good, the MC, a young genius girl, is able to tread between juvenile immaturity and lack of forethought and hyper-rational fluidly and without betraying the writing.

A sort of mix of detective short stories, slice of life, court intrigue and medical story mixed in an old Chinese Empire setting. Its a light and easy going comedy.
It's well done for the most part, the story is basically of a young herbalist trying to survive in classic China period where a woman's lot is uncertain and even more so for those living in the red district and in the palace harem. MC is quite interesting, intelligent, knowledgeable, tough and somewhat aloof, and when she explodes its a sight to see, love the character, reminds me a bit or the MC of saving 80.000 gold coins.
On the other hand there are things I find a bit hard to grasp like her views on gender, position in society and so on. She acts, expresses and accepts in a matter of fact way or maybe a resigned to the situation way, how the system of that era works. But her way of thinking is more avant garde for that age, for example, she's not all that polite to her superiors (this might be for comedy's sake actually), she has a very pragmatic view on many things, like not believing in the supernatural, she also has knowledge that is or feels off, the notion of doctor-patient confidentiality which I have no clue if this was something that existed in that era (doubt it) but CPR for sure didn't exist, and so on. I guess it's very hard for an author not to insert some modern ideas or points of view since they are so ingrained in our thinking we don't notice, or maybe it's one of those stories where the MC is transmigrated or has past lives memories and the fact is not told till much later, I read such stories twice before so it's not unheard of, still it's unlikely, posible doesn't mean probable.
I also like how the imperial court is portrayed in a more amiable fashion, there are a few poison events and so on but there isn't a conspiracy or scheme at every turn, something I loath of other court intrigue stories.
Overall, it's an interesting read, the mix of genres go along with each other and the episodic nature of it but plot continuity is also pleasing. Recommended.

I cannot think of anything negative to say about this. Maybe the logic used to explain the mysteries isn't quite as understandable as I would like, but that doesn't bother me too much (it could be a translation issue). I also like that the author uses plot points from past chapters and carries them into future chapters. It shows that the consequences have meaning (for example, we see how friendships start to form and why certain side characters are forced to leave and never be seen again).

I have always loved this kind of story. A story when a girl is indifferent with opposite gender, mentally strong, and smart. Historical background and fluffy storyline (a story without serious, complicated twist or bloody gore) are a plus-plus to me. It is a light and easy manga to read, no headache due to too much thinking. There's political issue, but no worries it's still easy to read. It's almost like a shoujo (which I don't mind).

Character wise, only main female lead is interesting and fully explained than the rest. Well, it's still acceptable cause there's a secrecy happening and I'm guessing they're just 'come and go' characters to help the heroine survive.

My only complaint is.. it was such a let down that the author decided to explained some simple compound things as a topic of her stories in this manga . I know, the manga took a place in hundred years ago.. where simple things are bigger problem for them. But come on, I have seen this type of story with complicated compound (it's a drama though). This is the reason why I said it's an easy manga. It's still in volume 2, maybe along the way it will change.

So far, I have enjoyed till the latest chapter.

There are only 8 chapters, but I can say for certain, I was hooked in the first chapter! The art and story is amazing! The main character Maomao is one of the main reasons. She isn’t indecisive, she uses her past experiences and learns from them. I like how she is daring and risky, to the point it’s pretty funny. When I was reading I was super excited seeing what Maomao would do next! I highly recommend this, and hopefully it will retain its awesomeness in the later chapters.