I have to say when the lady in the clinic realized that Maomao worked under Gyokuyo something changed. I feel like at the very least this woman is in Gyokuyo's camp. Though for her to ask Maomao to look into a servant girl who has been sick and has been missing was not what I was expecting. Though the signs were easy to figure out for Maomao.
The real catch is what was Shin actually planning. Maomao is probably the only one who could figure out that what Shin was doing was akin to abortion. Sadly, this is the actual crime because what happened to the servant will be swept under the rug. Still, I was shocked at how overly pride Shin was towards Lihua. Given how important status can be in the rear palace. Though for her to want to essentially kill Lihua's upcoming child.
She felt she should have been one of the top concubines rather than Lihua. Though in reality, for her, a title was something, she cared more than doing the actual duty. She wanted to be the empress while Lihua wanted to a concubine or potential empress to the Emperor. Ultimately, that pride of hers is why she would have never been picked by the emperor as his top concubines. Plus, when you consider Lihua's beauty and status moreover.
That slap was not what I was expecting. Essentially, we can see that since Maomao helped Lihua recover, she has been in more control. I get the sense that she tolerated Shin for a long time, and she finally had enough. Really awesome to see compared to where she was at the beginning of S1. Still, her asking to ban Shin from the rear palace was in ways a mercy because the punishment could have been much, much worse.
Though the emperor's thoughts on Maomao are concerning. At this point, she has really put her name out there.