I'm Seeing A Lot More Posts Of People Getting Excited About Jinshi Manhandling MaoMao, From The Blatant

I'm seeing a lot more posts of people getting excited about Jinshi manhandling MaoMao, from the blatant sexual position in the frog scene to the way the touches her face and shoves honey into her mouth and that one kiss on the neck.

Some are happy and delving into how this or that part of the interaction is indicating their true feelings and how Jinshi is wearing down Maomao to understanding she likes him too.

Some are unhappy and saying it's noncon and uncomfortable and Jinshi is being a bad guy overstepping and wielding his authority to take advantage.

Personally, I think both are true in their own way and false in their own way, but more importantly: Jinshi's actions are interesting as a look into his psyche.

I definitely don't think Jinshi has any ill-intent toward Maomao. He likes her and is pulling pigtails essentially, but he ISN'T actually pulling pigtails. He's shoving his honey covered fingers in her mouth and making overly sexual bedroom eyes to distract her from him sneaking a snack off her plate. He's also very much backing off whenever Maomao signals a no and doesn't repeat things that have clearly made her uncomfortable and their relationship is slowly improving as a result.

Jinshi is a guy who, from quite a young age, has been tasked to pretend to be a eunuch and dangle himself in front of the royal harem to test their loyalty to the emperor they serve and weed out those who are willing to stray.

Jinshi is a guy who, during his formative years was suppressed and denied all his wants, then exactly when he's going into puberty was given sex-suppressing drugs to pretend to be a eunuch and told to be flamboyantly appealing to women.

Jinshi is a guy who's been encouraged and given success and praised for being overly sexual in a way he may or may not actually be comfortable with at all, while also being forced to have all proper appearance of being not sexual at all.

Jinshi is a guy who has been placed in charge of the royal harem, and in doing so has been basically given the duties of his brother-father's WIFE in managing his sexual affairs behind closed doors until he actually marries.

Jinshi has ISSUES.

He doesn't, actually, know how to act with a person he likes. Not as a friend who isn't a caretaker and definitely not as a lover. He's working his way through that with his relationship with Maomao (friendship first) - and she's actually the perfect person to go through this with because she was also raised in a ridiculously sexual environment she embraced from necessity but never actually wanted to join and is able to shake off his missteps. She's constantly aware of the power dynamic and of how he's permissive and listens to her and threads the needle of scolding/correcting him the right way and at the right times and with the right audience so he can understand without him losing face. And he tolerates and respects her in a way he does no one else.

I think this awkward period for them is actually vital for any future romance to work.

They're each personally, individually coming out of a shell made of their neglectful and simultaneously over and under sexual upbringing and present with each other's help, and when they finally get there they'll understand each other better than anyone else can.