The next morning, Deng Dengjie returned from Shenyang City and went into Li Shimin's room to report on the bravery of the men from yesterday.
"Is that so?" Li Shimin asked, skeptical, after hearing his report.
Deng Dengjie nodded repeatedly, "Your Majesty, how would I dare to lie? I watched in that room the entire night."
Li Shimin considered for a long time and finally said, "Go and inform that fellow. I agree!"
Two hours later, a naked Li Shimin lay on the operating table.
The most honored patient of the Great Tang Empire had arrived.
After the anesthetic took effect, Sun Simiao, somewhat worried, said to Fang Er, "Shall we test it? It would be troublesome if he woke up in pain."
Fang Er was taken aback, "How do we test it?"
Sun Simiao glanced at the closed door and whispered into Fang Er's ear, "Does His Majesty usually hit you?"
"When have I not?" Fang Er rubbed the back of his head, as if he had just been hit there by Li Shimin.
Sun Simiao pointed at Li Shimin's head and said with a mischievous smile, "Revenge for past grievances. Come, you hit him a couple of times and see if His Majesty is truly numbed."
Fang Er: "........."
"Old man, you're turning bad!"
"Heh heh heh, isn't this just learning from you, young friend?" Sun Simiao retorted earnestly.
"Learn from me, my foot!"
Fang Er looked at the anesthetized Li Shimin and suddenly recalled a skit he had seen in his previous life. A sudden impulse struck him.
He pressed the tip of his index finger against his thumb, brought it to his lips, blew on it, and then flicked it onto Li Shimin's head.
*Bong~~~*
The sound of the head flick was crisp and clear!
"Hahahahaha, how about it, young friend? Feeling better?" Sun Simiao roared with laughter.
He had only said it in jest; he hadn't expected Fang Er to actually do it.
"What are you thinking? I just wanted to see if the anesthetic was working!" Fang Er said, and flicked Li Shimin on the head again.
*Bong~~*
"Tsk tsk tsk, speaking of which, old Sun, your medicine is really potent!"
Sun Simiao rolled his eyes at him, "I've operated on so many people, and you're only now realizing my medicine is potent?"
Saying that, he lifted the white sheet covering Li Shimin, picked up the forceps and knife, and clamped down on the old sausage.
With the practice from the previous few people, Old Sun handled this job with great efficiency.
After sewing him up, he winked at Fang Er and said, "Kid, do you want to get a slice too?"
"Damn it!"
"Old Sun has turned bad!"
There are those who freeload meals and accommodations, but who ever heard of someone freeloading a surgical knife for no reason?
He took a green bean-sized pill and put it into Li Shimin's mouth. This was to suppress his instincts.
Without this, the stitches would be coming undone in minutes.
The reason the previous few people recovered normally in seven days was all thanks to this medicine.
Li Shimin was wheeled out of the operating room and taken to the courtyard where he was staying to recuperate. Fang Er and Sun Simiao also took off their gloves and walked out.
As they walked, Fang Er suggested to him.
"Old Sun, this surgery has already matured. Do you think we should add another department to the hospital?"
Sun Simiao nodded slightly, "That's easy to say. I'll bring a few apprentices later."
"This kind of minor surgery can be taught in at most ten days or so."
The matter of taking apprentices naturally didn't require Fang Er to worry about. As long as Old Sun was at the hospital, it was enough.
In the afternoon, Li Tai and Li Ke rushed over from Chang'an. When they learned that their father had been cut by Old Sun, they almost smashed the Bai Cao Ju.
However, after Sun Simiao clearly explained the reason, the two of them slyly approached Old Sun.
"Venerable Sun, why don't you give this prince a slice too??"
While Li Shimin was recovering, and taking advantage of the opportunity when Li Tai and Li Ke successfully underwent the procedure, Fang Er took Wang Xuance and nine other special forces soldiers to Luoyang.
It would be better to find the Imperial Seal of Succession sooner rather than later.
The system had a countdown limit, and if it wasn't found by the deadline, it would be a huge loss.
Luoyang City was very prosperous. It was the former capital of the Sui Dynasty and is now the transportation hub of the Great Tang.
Grain transported from the Yangzhou area to Chang'an had to pass through here for transshipment.
Similarly, supplies transported from Chang'an to the north also needed to go through Luoyang.
Helicopters had now become representative of the Great Tang's high command. When they landed outside Luoyang City, the common people voluntarily kept their distance, watching from afar.
After finding an inn in Luoyang City to rest, Fang Er waited for nightfall.
Luoyang City was divided into the Outer City, the Imperial City, and the Palace City.
The Outer City, also known as the Luocheng, was north of Mount Mang and south of Yique. It had a circumference of over 20 kilometers and was where officials lived and residents resided.
The Imperial City was located in the northwest of the Outer City, also known as the Taiwei City. It was rectangular and housed the residences of princes and the offices of various officials.
The Palace City was north of the Imperial City, called the Ziwei City. Its appearance was the same as the Imperial City, and it was the emperor's palace district.
In the western suburbs, there was also the Western Garden, with lakes and mountains, and countless rare plants and exotic animals.
The system's mission tracker indicated that the Imperial Seal of Succession was in the Ziwei City.
Currently, as a secondary capital of the Great Tang, the Palace City was guarded by soldiers. This matter could not be known to Li Shimin, otherwise, his fragile glass heart would surely start overthinking.
Therefore, it would be more convenient to wait until night.
As dusk fell, Fang Er took out several sets of night-traveling clothes and called Wang Xuance and the others to his side.
"Wear these."
"Duke, what is this?" Wang Xuance was very confused.
For a Duke to wear night-traveling clothes while out on business?
Seeing the puzzled expressions on everyone's faces, Fang Er explained, "We are going to the Ziwei City to find something."
Then, he put on a stern face, "This matter must not be leaked to anyone!"
"Yes!"
Hearing him say that, everyone understood what he meant.
After changing into their clothes, and as the sky completely darkened and the city entered curfew, teams of patrolling soldiers walked through the streets. Wang Xuance led two people ahead to scout, with Fang Er and the others following closely.
When they encountered patrolling soldiers, everyone would climb onto the rooftops to hide.
Without incident, they arrived at the foot of the Imperial Palace. Looking at the palace wall that was more than three meters high, Wang Xuance took a few steps back. The other two half-crouched by the wall, their four hands clasped together.
Wang Xuance used his momentum from a running start, stepped on their clasped hands, and leaped forcefully. Using the force they provided, he steadily clung to the top edge of the palace wall. With a surge of strength from his arms, he straddled the wall like a monkey.
After confirming that it was safe inside, he lowered a rope from his waist and pulled Fang Er up.
Everyone else also successfully scaled the palace wall using the rope.
The Palace City was vast, but since it was only a secondary capital, there were not many soldiers patrolling at night.
The group hid behind a rockery. After a patrol team passed, they moved towards the direction Fang Er indicated.