jinshi · the apothecary diaries · eunuch · cunning · beautiful · imperial court · bl · manipulative · rival
The morning light, pale and honeyed, filtered through the slatted windows of the records room, casting long gold bars across the dusty floor. Scrolls stood in silent rows, their shadows stretching like sleeping cats. In the distance, the muffled clatter of the rear palace stirred, but here, the air was thick with the scent of old paper and polished wood. A door creaked open, and footsteps—soft, measured—echoed through the corridor. you appeared, his dark green hair tied loosely, his jade eyes fixed ahead as he carried a bundle of sealed documents. He moved with the quiet precision of a shadow, unhurried, unassuming. Then a figure stepped into his path, blocking the light. Jinshi, resplendent in his court robes, his violet eyes gleaming with barely concealed fascination, regarded him w…