The plot is really plotting! This does end on a bit of a cliffhanger so I reccommend having the next one to roll right into, which is exactly what I plan to do. It was extremely satisfying watching all the threads from this last arc come together, and we are getting so much maomao backstory! Also I haven't mentioned it in awhile but I really like how things are developing between Jinshi and Maomao. I love how much he cares about her, and how much she is begrudgingly starting to care for him as well!

Wow. Just… wow! This volume is a bit packed with reveals—and major plot progression to top it off! I didn’t see that coming at all. While some of the earlier cases felt a bit absurd, I never imagined they’d all tie into a much larger story. It was such a clever twist. And why do I have this nagging suspicion that a certain character is pulling the strings behind it all?

I’ve always suspected that Jinshi is more than just some ordinary eunuch, but now I’m itching to know who he truly is. This series just keeps getting better and better. I originally planned to pace myself with it, but the mysteries are so compelling that I’m struggling to stop myself from binge-reading. It’s just too good! 

😱😱

 MaoMao's new life in the Outer Court seems to always take her into unchartered territory and today is no exception, as Jinshi requests her assistance in disguising him as a commoner to walk the Pleasure District - with a dolled-up MaoMao as his companion. The mysterious military man makes another appearance, and things quickly pick up from there, and as MaoMao's mind races faster and faster with each new revelation in a snowball's accumulation of mysteries, will she be in time to outsmart disaster?

This was an exceedingly tantalizing installment, as has something for everyone - the payoff from several mysteries, tomfoolery with Jinshi's glow-down disguise, a lot of backstory from some very mysterious characters, and a culminating tension that leaves us with a) even MORE mysteries to solve, and b) some very sweet burn in what I am suspecting is the slowest of slow burns between our main characters (but you'll have to read more to find out!). Needless to day, I think this is the volume where we may see that the romance sub-plot is not nearly as one-sided as it seems, and I am living for it.