Chapter Text
Several exhausted sighs resounded through Jinshi's office one late evening. The young noble, who was sitting on his "favorite spot", in other words, at his desk, yet again, briefly put down his brush and rubbed his tired eyes with ink-stained fingers. Next, he threw a sour look at the annoying mountain of paperwork that ABSOLUTELY needed to be finished before going to sleep.
"As if someone's going to die, if I let this stuff sit here for another day," he grumbled to himself. Good that Gaoshun wasn't present at the moment and couldn't hear those scandalous words.
Heaving another deep sigh, Jinshi picked up the brush once more, resting his cheek on his free palm. Judging by the huge size of that mountain, he would probably need to sit there at least until midnight, hence he had to pull himself together and avoid taking too many breaks if he still wanted to get enough sleep that night.
Then, a few minutes later, he suddenly heard someone knock on his door and looked up with slight surprise from the document he was currently working on.
"Yes?"
"Master Jinshi? May I enter?"
"Apothecary! But of course! Come in!"
Once the young lord realized who was paying him such a late visit, his face lit up so quickly, as if somebody had used magic on him.
The door opened, and Maomao entered the room, looking as calm as usual and holding a tray with tea and a steaming bowl of food in her hands. She headed directly to Jinshi and placed the tray on his desk.
"Lady Suiren told me that you skipped dinner today because of your work and asked me to bring you this."
"Thank you!"
The sight of the congee in the bowl made Jinshi notice just how empty his stomach actually was, so he happily took the spoon lying next to it on the tray, while Maomao poured him tea into a cup.
"Oh?" he said after taking the first bite and arched an eyebrow, baffled. "It tastes a bit different than usual."
"Yes, sir. This congee was made by Lady Suiren herself, as always, but I added some herbs into it," the apothecary explained with nonchalance.
"You did? Which ones?"
"Sage and rosemary. They're good against fatigue and lack of energy, and the sage's essential ingredients can also help with stress." Maomao's gaze fell on the pile of documents as she spoke.
"I see! My, how thoughtful of you! I can already feel the effects!"
He gave her a big smile, whereupon she responded with a skeptical frown, probably doubting that the herbs could really show their effects in such a short time.
She waited until Jinshi finished eating, which took him only a few minutes due to his hunger, and wanted to take the tray and leave, while he picked up his cup to drink a sip of tea.
"Wait, apothecary."
Maomao stopped and looked at him.
"Do you need anything else, Master Jinshi?"
"Would you please stay a bit longer and drink together with me? I need a little break anyway and don't really want to spend it alone."
Indeed. As it looked like, he had completely given up on his plans to work through everything quickly and then go to bed. And all thanks to Maomao.
She eyed him with a hint of mistrust and furrowed her brows, directing her gaze to the cup in his hand.
Jinshi could already guess what was going through her head.
"I meant this, apothecary." Before she had a chance to open her mouth, the Moon Prince briefly dove under his desk and produced a bottle.
Maomao's eyes widened in excitement when she caught sight of the liquor.
"I'll stick to tea, since I still have to work and also need to get up early tomorrow, so you'd have this entire bottle for yourself. How does that sound? Will you keep me some company?"
"That sounds wonderful! Thank you, sir!"
Her enthusiasm made Jinshi laugh, and he asked her to fetch the cup she was using to taste his alcoholic drinks for poison. He hadn't expected any other answer from her.
Thus, Maomao rushed off to his chambers, so fast, she was almost flying. Meanwhile, Jinshi used the time to stretch a bit and then contemplated the bottle with a smile. He had received it as a gift and had planned to give it to Maomao anyway, since he didn't really like such strong stuff, but knew that she did. And now, the perfect occasion had emerged! Good that he had kept that liquor under his desk, just in case.
After the apothecary had returned with her cup and all the beverages had been poured, Jinshi got up and approached the window with his teacup in hand. The documents on his desk were completely forgotten by now and not dignified with even one single thought anymore.
"Hah, what a beautiful night", he said and took a deep breath, as if inhaling the fresh air outside. "The stars are shining so brightly."
Holding the bottle in one hand and her cup in the other, Maomao stepped next to him shortly after. Jinshi couldn't hold back a grin when he noticed how much she enjoyed the alcohol, downing her cup and pouring herself more.
"A beautiful night? Even though you have to work, Master Jinshi?"
"Yes. Because you're here with me." A faint blush appeared on his cheeks, and his voice almost became a whisper.
Maomao frowned at those words and looked up briefly into his face, however didn't say anything. Well, she had booze, so she couldn't complain. Knowing her quite well by now, the Moon Prince was sure that this was what she was probably thinking right now.
He returned his gaze to the starry sky and brought his own cup to his lips.
"You know, there's a legend that people turn into stars once they die," he spoke once more after another while.
"They don't, sir," Maomao replied matter-of-factly. "They just rot away until only the bones remain."
Jinshi frowned and pouted, starting to pull her cheek.
"Jeez... Don't ruin the moment like that, would you?"
"Forry, fir."
He sighed and finally let go, patting her head with a smile on his lips, earning himself an annoyed glare.
The next few minutes were then spent in silence and watching the night sky while consuming their respective drinks.
"Oh, look! There's an especially bright star!" Jinshi exclaimed all of a sudden.
"Where?"
And before Maomao knew it, her feet had already left the ground: Jinshi had quickly put his cup on the desk and then wrapped his arms around the apothecary from behind, lifting her up.
She opened her mouth, startled. Good that she hadn't been drinking at that moment.
"There it is, at your right!"
"Master Jinshi! Was that really necessary!?" Maomao complained, squirming a bit in his grip.
He pressed her back to his chest.
"But of course. I want to make sure you're seeing everything properly, as short as you are."
Maomao snorted and looked up at the sky once more. As it seemed, she had finally spotted the star he had wanted to show her.
"Alright, I've seen it now, sir. Could you please let me down again?"
But instead of fulfilling her wish, the young lord held her even tighter, pressing his cheek against hers.
"Just a bit more, apothecary. Please let me refill my energy reserves, yes? Your herbs were a huge help, but unfortunately not quite enough," he said quietly, obviously really enjoying their closeness.
Maomao looked like she wanted to glare at him as though he was a mud puddle she had accidentally stepped into while collecting herbs, but since he couldn't see her face anyway, she just sighed and calmly poured herself another cup, her feet still dangling above the ground.