Tang Dynasty: Starting at Xuanwu Gate, this prince is better off not being one.

"Cheng Chumo? Su Gong's eldest son?"

Li Yu was no stranger to this name; he was the eldest son of Cheng Yaojin, the mischievous devil in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and a character who frequently appeared in later time-travel novels.

Li Chengqian nodded and went over to help Cheng Chumo up.

"Wait a minute," Li Yu quickly called out to stop him.

He ran two fingers through Cheng Chumo's sleeve and found that the blood-soaked fabric had already dried. He then saw by the firelight that his own fingers were free of blood and breathed a sigh of relief.

So he reached out and checked Cheng Chumo's breathing. Seeing that his breathing was even, he then felt his pulse.

"Your breathing is a little weak, hold this for me."

After handing the torch to Li Chengqian, Li Yu touched Cheng Chumo's forehead.

His forehead was frighteningly hot. Pulling back the sleeve over the injured area revealed that the wound was already festering – clearly infected!

They then called Li Tai over, and the three of them laboriously carried Cheng Chumo to the campfire...

After feeding Cheng Chumo some water and using the small amount of water that had been boiled on a stone slab to clean Cheng Chumo's wounds, Li Yu sat back down by the campfire.

The flames burned very brightly because Green Cloth kept adding firewood.

The area around the campfire was warm and pleasant, but Cheng Chumo, who had been carried there, was still deathly pale.

"Little Fish, can you save him?"

Li Chengqian looked earnest.

Although he was not close to Cheng Chumo, the importance of Duke Su to his father was self-evident, and he could not possibly stand by and watch him die.

"Me?" Li Yu pointed to himself.

Out of humanitarian concern, Li Yu also wanted to save this bear-like guy.

But the only connection he had with medicine in his past life was his job—a salesperson at a pharmaceutical company.

"How would I know how to save people..." Li Yu shook his head, indicating that he was helpless.

Li Chengqian was getting anxious.

During this period, thanks to Li Yu's leadership, they temporarily resolved their hunger problem, so he subconsciously regarded Li Yu as their backbone.

Now, even this pillar of support is helpless in the face of Cheng Chumo's life-threatening condition, and Li Chengqian is somewhat flustered.

"What's the rush? There's no use in being anxious. We don't have any anti-inflammatory drugs."

Seeing Li Chengqian pacing anxiously in front of him, Li Yu became increasingly irritated.

"Anti-inflammatory medicine? What's that?" Li Chengqian, who was pacing, suddenly stopped, his heart filled with curiosity.

"Anti-inflammatory drugs are..."

Before he could finish speaking, Li Yu suddenly widened his eyes.

"Yes! Anti-inflammatory medicine!"

He exclaimed in surprise, as if a sudden enlightenment had dawned on him.

"Keep an eye on him, I'll be right back!"

After giving a hasty instruction, Li Yu ran into the woods with a torch in hand, under the strange gazes of the three men...

.........

The Qin River flows through the majestic imperial palace, and Hangu Pass stands as a magnificent imperial residence. The splendid palace rises ten fathoms high, and the detached palaces extend for over a hundred zhang (approximately 33 meters).

The quietly spreading night could not conceal the splendor of Chang'an.

The city's more than one hundred wards and markets continued to bustle about in their own way. Pingkang Ward, in particular, was the most lively.

In the neighborhood, every now and then, a playboy would emerge from the Peach Blossom Pavilion, clutching his aching back. He would glance at the bright moon hanging high in the sky, realize that it was already curfew time, and then stagger back into the pavilion to fight again.

Inside the Peach Blossom Pavilion, a slightly talented but frivolous man stood disheveled by the window, pretending to recite a few nonsensical poems to the bright moon, which made the woman accompanying him cover her mouth and giggle.

A loud noise briefly drew the attention of everyone at Peach Blossom Pavilion, but no one paid it any mind, assuming it was just one of the customers enjoying themselves too much...

"Damn it! Useless! I asked you to do some things, and you let them all get away!?"

In a private room at Peach Blossom Pavilion, a burly man with a thick beard stared at the person kneeling before him with bloodshot eyes.

The man's cheeks were swollen and red. He looked at the broken tabletop, then lowered his head, trying to suppress the fear in his heart.

The private room fell silent, with only the heavy breathing of the burly man and the trembling of the man kneeling on the ground being heard.

As his anger subsided, Yuwen Bao stared intently at the still-kneeling deputy general and asked, "Who were these people you sent? Do they have any connection with the Crown Prince's Palace or our Prince's Mansion?"

Hearing his superior ask this question, the deputy general breathed a slight sigh of relief and replied, "General, don't worry. They're just wandering swordsmen from the martial world. His Majesty and the Prince of Qin will definitely not be able to find out anything about us."

"Those people don't need to be kept alive." Yuwen Bao kicked his deputy to the ground and said coldly, "Get out."

The aching general kowtowed gratefully and staggered out of the private room. A moment later, two beautiful dancers pushed open the door again…

.........

Compared to the bustling market, the usually lively Zhuque Avenue was much quieter during the day.

Besides the military officers patrolling the streets, even the caravans that usually come and go have completely disappeared.

Five miles outside Chang'an, Li Yuan's ancestral worship procession set up camp there.

Inside one of the tents, a group of people sat quietly, waiting for a young man with a short beard to lift the tent flap.

"Your Highness, what did His Majesty say?"

Inside the tent, the generals who had lost their sons disregarded etiquette and hurriedly asked Qin King Li Er, who had walked to the head of the table, about the situation.

Li Er shook his head: "Father has already sent more people to search. There's no other way; before entering the capital, we must ensure that Father has sufficient troops to protect him."

"I have ordered Jinda to guard the vicinity of Baoxie Road, and Xuanba to guard the rear. I will send someone to deliver the message as soon as there is any news."

"Please go back now! I will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly."

On a dark and windy night, a group of generals and commanders gathering together inevitably arouses suspicion.

Li Er had already spoken, and everyone naturally understood without saying a word, lowering their heads and leaving the tent.

For a moment, only four people remained in the tent.

"The Crown Prince and Prince Qi have gone too far this time. I will go and arrest their sons immediately!"

Inside the tent, Yuchi Gong, looking like a bear with red eyes, was about to rush out, simply because his eldest son was among the children who had been separated from him.

"presumptuous!"

Li Er roared, "I've investigated those people; they're just wandering swordsmen with no real connections in the martial world. They don't even know who sent them. What grounds do you have to arrest them?"

"We can't just sit here and wait!" The burly, dark-skinned man was so anxious he was almost crying.

"Are you going to die like this, or drag us all down with you?"

Changsun Wuji, who had been sitting quietly at the lower end of the table, suddenly spoke up.

"Then... then what do you suggest we do?"

"We'll discuss everything once we're inside the capital."

"Wait! Wait! Wait! We've been waiting for three days and there's still no sign of it..." Yuchi Gong was furious as soon as he heard this word.

"What can I do if I don't wait? Do you think I'm not worried? My Chong'er is nowhere to be found either, what can I do?"

"Enough! Get out, all of you!"

Inside the tent, Li Er slammed his hand on the table, shooing the two bickering men out...

When only Li Er and his wife remained in the tent, Changsun, who had been silently weeping, finally broke down and buried her face in Li Er's knees, sobbing uncontrollably.

"My godson! My little bluebird!"

The eldest grandson cried out in anguish, repeating only these two sentences over and over.

Stroking his grieving wife, Li Er clenched his right fist and gritted his teeth, saying, "Brother! Li Yuanji! I, Li Shimin, will remember this grudge!"

.........