Description

Homecoming With the events following the garden party, namely the poisoned minister, Maomao had to rest (because she had some of the poison herself) until she gets bored and asks Gyokuyou if she could use the parlor. Gaoshun, on Jinshi's request, came by and brought that same silver bowl containing the poisoned soup, wrapped in cloth, taking care not to hold the bowl itself. Using a similar technique she used in her former workplace, Maomao dusted the bowl for fingerprints using powder, a cotton ball, and a brush. She finds four fingerprints, but sees another set, on the bowl's edge, which belongs to an outsider who may have poisoned the soup. This, adding to the fact about Lishu's clothes clashing with that of Gyokuyou, leads her to think Lishu is the victim of bullying, and by her own ladies-in-waiting, knowing that the rear palace is full of enemies. The poisoned soup was supposed to up the ante, but Lihua's taster swapped her bowl for that of Gyokuyou's, saving her from getting poisoned. Later, Maomao learns from Xiaolan about the significance of the hairpins--as a "ticket" to getting favors. She asks Lihaku, the soldier who gave Maomao a hairpin during the party, for an escort outside. Lihaku, not able to recognize her, is dismissive of Maomao, but he cannot resist her offer of meeting anyone of "The Three Princesses," the best courtesans at the Verdigris House (her former workplace), not to mention seeing that she has two more higher-ranking contacts, so he agrees. Maomao is then able to visit her father, who thinks her being employed at the rear palace is a twist of fate.