Les Carnets de l'apothicaire — Volumes

Volume 1

At 17, Mao Mao has a complicated life. Trained from a young age by an apothecary in the pleasure district, she is kidnapped and sold as a servant in the imperial palace's women's quarters! Surrounded by high walls, she is cut off from the outside world. To survive in this luxurious prison teeming with conspiracies and low maneuvers, the young girl tries to hide her knowledge to blend in. But when the suspicious deaths of newborn princes stir up the court, her passion for poisons takes over. She observes, investigates... and finds the solution! In trying to do good, she gets noticed... Jinshi, a high official as handsome as he is calculating, senses her talent and promotes her to personal taster for one of the emperor's favorites. In the middle of this nest of vipers, the slightest misstep could be fatal to her!

Volume 2

Now a lady of company and tasteful in the service of Gyokuyo, one of the emperor's favorite concubines, Mao Mao begins a new life! As she has just arrived at the Jade pavilion, she quickly forges a reputation for excellent apothecary, to such an extent that the emperor himself summons her... Now she has to carry out a great mission: to find the cause of the evil that gnaws Lifa, the mother of the deceased little prince. Unfortunately, the task is even more difficult than expected! Indeed, to heal her patient, the young girl will first have to confront the women of the Cristal pavilion...

Volume 3

After successfully saving Lifa, Mao Mao is invited to the winter reception, a grand banquet that gathers the most important figures of the inner court. The young apothecary does not attend merely as a companion, but also as a taster of Gyokuyo... So, before a stunned assembly, Mao Mao tastes a poisoned soup... that was not intended for her mistress! Indeed, it appeared that Lishu, the youngest of the four concubines, was the target. What truth is hidden behind this strange machination?

Volume 4

While Mao Mao is visiting the pleasure quarters to enjoy a well-deserved few days of rest with her father, she is once again drawn into an investigation! Indeed, a courtesan and her client were found poisoned in one of the surrounding brothels... A case that the young apothecary manages to solve with great composure. But, back at the Jade Pavilion, the young girl is tasked by Jinshi to clarify an entirely different mystery: the body of an inner court maid has just been discovered in the icy waters of the moat...

Volume 5

After Mao Mao's latest investigation, the imperial palace is about to undergo a major change: Aduo, the gentle concubine, is going to be replaced... but that's not all! Due to a misunderstanding, the apothecary is forced to leave the inner court, to Jinshi's great dismay. In despair, the official goes to a banquet hosted by a wealthy aristocrat hoping to clear his head... and finds himself facing a Mao Mao who has become a courtesan! Without hesitation, he buys the young girl and takes her into his service...

Volume 6

Now fully in Jinshi's service at the outside court, Mao Mao finds himself resolving several investigations: whether it is poisoning, a suspicious fire or an indecipherable will, nothing seems to resist the apothecary! Only, a new challenge awaits, and not least: it has brought her to radically transform the appearance of the young man to the devastating beauty. Indeed, Jinshi wants to become a man of the people... but for what purpose?

Volume 7

While Mao Mao continues to investigate various suspicious cases, she ends up wondering if they are all connected. Indeed, someone seems to be acting in the utmost secrecy to achieve a specific goal... Thanks to her quick wit, the young girl quickly realizes that the accidents of recent months were actually crimes intended to reach a high-ranking person. She then goes to the scene at the peril of her life and manages to save the target of the murder in extremis... who was none other than Jinshi!

Volume 8

9784757572713 · 2021-05-25

Mao Mao wonders about Lacan's intentions, who constantly tries to get closer to her despite all her rebuffs. The apothecary thus challenges her: if he wins at xiangqi, she must acknowledge him as her biological father, but if she manages to defeat him, he must buy one of the courtesans from the grey-green palace! Unfortunately for the strategist, the young girl manages to win, not without cunning. As he falls unconscious, Lacan's memories resurface, revealing a painful past alongside a mysterious woman of bewitching beauty...

Volume 9

9784757575868 · 2021-11-25

After embarking on numerous investigations and saving a kitten that now bears her name, Mao Mao enjoys a moment of calm. Indeed, a caravan of merchants is passing through town to offer the finest items to the concubines and ladies-in-waiting: clothing, jewelry, various powders, tea, spices... However, nothing escapes the young girl's sharp eye, and several elements quickly catch her attention! Even when everything seems to be going well in the inner court, danger lurks...

Volume 10

9784757579859 · 2022-06-23

A new challenge awaits Mao Mao: to satisfy the emissary of a foreign country, she must find a dancer with the splendour as she looked like a goddess of the moon. Alas, today, the woman in question is none other than the tenancier of the green-grey palace, whose beauty has faded somewhat... Fortunately, the young apothecary is never short of ideas! Thanks to her resources and imagination, she organizes a show whose guests of honor will remember for a long time...

Volume 11

While investigating the disappearance of a sick servant, Mao Mao discovers that Lifa's company lady, who is also her cousin, was plotting to hope to take her place! A gesture with very heavy consequences... Shortly afterwards, the emperor himself asks the young apothecary to accompany her to the temple of choice, in which one must solve a riddle and borrow the right passage in order to prove his status as heir to the Queen Mother. Alas, the sovereign fails to break the secret of the place... Will Mao Mao understand the message that lies in it?

Volume 12

A new investigation was entrusted to Mao Mao... by the empress customs officer, this time! Indeed, the noble lady wonders if, at the time, she would not have cast a spell on her husband, who had died after losing her mind. The apothecary then discovers the heavy secret of the imperial family... Shortly afterwards, she is invited to a strange evening where young girls tell frightening stories in a room with a sinister atmosphere... So what is the riddle that Mao Mao is supposed to solve?

Volume 13

To escape the shots of a mysterious attacker, Jinshi and Mao Mao are forced to take refuge in a cave... As they try to get out, a certain closeness and an unfortunate gesture lead the apothecary to discover the eunuch's long-kept secret. Meanwhile, Basen and Gaoshun strive to find their master as well as his assailant. The investigation might take a new turn thanks to the hunting dog Lihaku takes care of...

Volume 14

Thanks to his knowledge, Mao Mao was able to protect Lishu's reputation, convinced that his mother's ghost haunted her, and thus avoid the humiliation of the girl... From now on, a mission of the utmost importance awaits the apothecary: in the inner court, it is whispered that several concubines would be pregnant... This is the case of Gyokuyo, whom she will have to help to give birth! Indeed, the operation presents itself rather badly. In order to allow the birth of the child in the best conditions, Mao Mao appeals to his adoptive father, Luomen, who therefore returns to the court after being banished from it.

Volume 15

9784757597693 · 2025-03-25

Mao Mao's sudden disappearance puts Jinshi's nerves to the test... He then sets out to track her, with the precious help of Luomen. He discovers that she is not the only person to have vanished: Shisui and one of the new eunuchs are also missing! The attendant's steps quickly lead him to the Garnet Pavilion to meet Lolan. There, the situation takes an unexpected turn... The young man will have to keep his cool and use all his resources to find Mao Mao!

Volume 16

Held captive in the northern mountains by the cruel Lady Shenmei, Mao Mao gradually discovers the true identities of Suilei and Lolan... Meanwhile, Jinshi must respond to Lacan's request, who begs him to raise troops to crush Shisho's rebellion in place of the emperor! Indeed, the Shi clan has secretly manufactured brand new weapons and attempted to assassinate the beautiful eunuch... Thus, he is forced to take responsibility and face a cruel dilemma: how to protect the court without shedding blood?