Chapter 122: You Will Regret Throwing That Punch

Shangguan Renran lifted her foot to leave, but Di Jiuzhuo quickly blocked her path. "It’s not over yet. Where are you going?"

Shangguan Renran frowned; she was not accustomed to being this close to strangers. "Is there anything else, Mr. Di?"

Before Di Jiuzhuo could reply, he sensed an anomaly in the air and an instantaneous threat, causing him to dodge to the side with lightning speed.

*Bang!* The bullet pierced the space where he had been standing and embedded itself into the wall.

The doors of the great hall were pushed open. Huangpu Shenqing stood there, gun in hand, maintaining his firing stance. Behind him, a group of people led by Mo Yi followed, turning the atmosphere icy and instantly transforming the St. Ji Fortress hall into a scene of carnage.

Meeting the gaze of the gloomy, menacing man, Shangguan Renran looked away, flustered.

Di Jiuzhuo’s playful, cynical demeanor was replaced by instant seriousness. "Is Massacre’s gun malfunctioning again?"

Huangpu Shenqing ignored him, looking instead at the young woman behind him. "Ranran, come here."

Although Shangguan Renran wanted to be stubborn and refuse to go over, she knew this was not the time for petty impulses. She moved toward him with Mo Jiu and Mo Shi, but as she passed Di Jiuzhuo, he grabbed her arm. She caught a fleeting, faint scent.

Mo Jiu and Mo Shi immediately launched an attack on Di Jiuzhuo, and Di Xing joined the fray. Released from his grip, Shangguan Renran hurried to the man’s side.

Huangpu Shenqing scanned the person in his arms, his deep brown eyes filled with concern. "Are you hurt?"

She shook her head. In truth, even if Huangpu Shenqing hadn't come, she wouldn't have let herself be harmed; it just would have taken some effort to talk her way out.

Nearby, Di Jiuzhuo had already turned toward them, unruffled. Mo Jiu and Mo Shi had each taken a kick to the stomach, and Di Xing hadn't fared much better.

"Massacre, this is the first time I've seen you with such an expression."

"Oh, no," he said, waving a finger slightly. "To be precise, it should be the second."

Huangpu Shenqing shielded the young woman behind him, his voice cold and ruthless. "Di Jiuzhuo, I warn you, she is not someone you can touch."

Di Jiuzhuo tilted his head slightly, lifted his right hand, and rubbed his fingers together with a wicked smirk. "I’ve already touched her, even if I wasn't supposed to. Hmm, the sensation was quite pleasant."

Huangpu Shenqing’s eyes burned with uncontrollable rage. "You are courting death."

Before anyone could react, he lunged forward and delivered a heavy blow. Caught off guard, Di Jiuzhuo took a punch to the face, his gums bleeding from the sheer force of the impact.

Di Jiuzhuo licked his back teeth, the danger in his eyes deepening. "Massacre, I will make you regret throwing that punch."

He charged forward, and the two men—different in skill and clashing in aura—became locked in a struggle.

"Master, be careful! He’s using poison!" Mo Jiu warned. Just moments ago, they had inhaled a bit of the powder Di Jiuzhuo had scattered, causing their bodies to go briefly numb before they were kicked in the stomach. The Ninth Master of the Di family was most skilled in pharmacy and excelled at using it to subdue enemies because he found it more... efficient.

Shangguan Renran also looked anxious; she did not want Mr. Huangpu to be hurt on her account.

Huangpu Shenqing threw a quick punch, which Di Jiuzhuo blocked. Huangpu followed with a lightning-fast kick, forcing Di Jiuzhuo to dodge. As Huangpu increased the speed of his attacks, Di Jiuzhuo was forced onto the defensive.

Just as a fist was about to strike his face, Di Jiuzhuo scattered an imperceptible powder from his sleeve. Huangpu Shenqing retreated to dodge, never breaking his rhythm, and quickly landed a kick to Di Jiuzhuo's stomach.

The two men separated.

"Damn it," Di Jiuzhuo cursed, clutching his stomach.

Di Xing stepped forward. "Master?"

"Mr. Huangpu, are you alright?" Shangguan Renran asked, her concern shifting.

Huangpu Shenqing pulled her into his arms. "Do you think your man is that useless?"

Shangguan Renran looked away, feeling awkward. What kind of thing was that to say?

Watching the pair embraced, Di Jiuzhuo’s lips curled into an even more malicious smile. *Huangpu Shenqing, you will regret that punch.*

Huangpu Shenqing scooped the young woman up in his arms and left Christine University. Fortunately, it was lunchtime, or this would have caused quite a stir on campus.

Inside the great hall of St. Ji Fortress, once everyone had left, a slender, fair hand with bright red nail polish picked up the discarded handkerchief. She carefully brushed off the dirt and tucked it into her bag as if it were a treasure.

In the back seat, the man held the young woman close, burying his face in the crook of her neck to inhale her fragrance.

"Why did Mr. Huangpu come here?" Shangguan Renran asked, feeling somewhat overwhelmed by his actions.

The man looked up, meeting her puzzled gaze. "Ranran didn’t tell me you would be here, either."

Only then did she remember that the last time they spoke, he had left in anger. He hadn't contacted her, and she hadn't reached out to him.

She twisted in his arms, feeling indignant. "I want to get out. I need to go to the Skikoway family castle."

The man gave her backside a firm pat. "What are you making a fuss about?"

Shangguan Renran’s face turned crimson, as bright as a peeled pomegranate. He—he had actually spanked her!

"First, explain why you came to Country M."

"You could come, why can't I?"

He patted her again, his tone deepening. "Answer properly."

Shangguan Renran could feel the heat radiating from her face—a mix of shyness, anger, and confusion. "Haven't you seen it already? I'm just here to give a speech."

"Why didn't you tell me in advance about the speech, hmm?"

In the last five or six days, if she had just said a word, he would have temporarily set his plans aside to accompany her.

Hearing the slight accusation in his voice, Shangguan Renran felt sullen and angry. Why should she have told him in advance? Didn't he leave in anger? What right did he have?

She refused to answer.

Huangpu Shenqing found her defensive stance both infuriating and amusing. "Fine, don't answer that. Then tell me, why was Di Jiuzhuo there?"

"He said he wanted to hear Shangguan Renran speak, but he didn't realize I was Shangguan Renran," she replied matter-of-factly.

Hearing her speak her own name, Huangpu Shenqing found it inexplicably adorable. His eyes filled with a tenderness as soft as feathers. "Then why did he want to hear your speech?"

Annoyed by this interrogation, and with the previous issues still unresolved, she snapped, "Is Mr. Huangpu a walking encyclopedia of questions? He probably came to hear me because he thinks my musical talent is better than his, or because he was drawn by my superior performance skills!"

Huangpu Shenqing laughed heartily at her self-praise. The magnetic, deep laugh resonating from his throat made Shangguan Renran feel that he was incredibly alluring.