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In the mainline The Apothecary Diaries series, the focus is on Maomao and Jinshi. There are a lot of important characters around them. They’re doing things too. But we don’t always see their sides of the stories or influence unless it’s directly tied to what the leads are going through. The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story spin-off manga prioritizes tales tied to the maidservant who showed up around the same time Maomao came to the Rear Palace. While she’s not as brilliant as her friend in some ways, this supplemental series highlights how influential she’s been on major events too.
Editor’s Note: There will be mild spoilers for some situations in volume 1 of The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story manga below.
The events of The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story manga essentially run simultaneously alongside that of the main story, with on exception. Things start a few months before with her origin story. We know from Maomao’s kidnapping and the situation of other young women working in the Rear Palace that there are contracts formed where people receive pay and earned wages could be sent back from the girls working there. However, in Xiaolan’s case, she was from a small farming village where it was known older family members might sell girls in the family. In her case, she doesn’t seem particularly scared or upset, just accepting of the situation and knowing it means her younger siblings and family will get some money out of it.
From there, Natsu Hyuuga starts to tell alternate points of view of events tied to situations Maomao dealt with in The Apothecary Diaries to show what Xiaolan was doing at that time. This means the first chapters deal with the mysterious illness the babies of consorts Gyokuyou and Lihua are suffering from and her passing along the gossip that leads to Maomao realizing the cause and passing notes along to warn people. It’s an interesting enough start, to be sure, as it shows how she acquires information, her cheerful and friendly disposition, and the early connection with Maomao.
While we’re used to Maomao’s strategic plotting and medicinal awareness in The Apothecary Diaries, this Xiaolan side-story highlights how competent and aware she is with her own gifts. For the sake of spoilers, let’s focus on one instance later in the volume. When working on bath duty, when she and the other maids realize how fast firewood is going, it is her that picks up on the smoke and soot. She’s the one who picks up on it being green wood. Most importantly, it’s her who realizes a way to call attention to the problem would be making sure the doctor used it to get the attention of him and Maomao. It highlights how useful and intelligent she can be too.
Other wise touches include Natsu Hyuuga’s decision to use The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story manga to show how her background affected and influenced her skillset. Because she was a social girl from a village, she’s often gathering information without realizing it. Since she didn’t get any schooling due to her poor background during that time period, she’s trying to learn to read while in the Rear Palace and doing favors to do so, as well as believes in things like ghosts and curses. Since she did farm work in a rural area, she knows about proper firewood and practical tasks.
Xiaolan is a fun and lovable supporting cast member in The Apothecary Diaries, and her side-story manga series highlights her unique traits and charms. We learn more about her and her background. It shows what her life is like working in the Rear Palace. This also means we get an opportunity to see how her own social nature and “street smarts” background mean she proves wise and useful in different situations.
Volume 1 of The Apothecary Diaries: Xiaolan’s Story manga is available now, and Square Enix hasn’t shared a release date for volume 2. The company also handles the light novel and manga for the mainline series. Season 3 of the anime adaptation is now streaming on Crunchyroll.
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