"You want to fight me too?" Chu Qianli looked up, meeting Han Zhan's gaze.
She stood against the wind, facing the doubts and accusations of an entire family alone.
Her figure appeared incredibly slender, yet she stood perfectly straight!
There was no trace of fear in her expression!
For a moment, Han Zhan was mesmerized.
It was as if he had returned to the battle on Phoenix Mountain, seeing the resilient, regal aura on her face.
"Han Zhan," the woman beside him gently tugged his sleeve, her voice as soft as water, "Han Zhan, you don't need to offend her for me, I'm afraid..."
"You don't need to be afraid of her." Han Zhan's lost reason was instantly pulled back by Chu Huaiyu's voice.
He had actually lost himself staring at Chu Qianli just now.
Didn't he like Huaiyu? How could he repeatedly lose his soul looking at this woman!
He truly owed Huaiyu too much!
His guilt made Han Zhan's attitude towards Chu Qianli even colder:
"Hand over the keys and the token, and move those people from the treasury, or don't blame me for being impolite!"
"How can you be impolite?" Chu Qianli stepped back, her face full of caution, "Guards!"
At her command, over a dozen guards hidden around the courtyard instantly appeared, surrounding her and protecting her within their formation.
The people from the Duke's mansion were startled and collectively took two steps back.
When did this brat plant so many experts in the courtyard? They hadn't noticed anything!
The only one who knew, perhaps, was Han Zhan.
He had known all along that the courtyard was filled with experts.
He still couldn't figure out where she had invited these experts from.
"Do you think a mere dozen people can stop me?"
Even though they were all experts, Han Zhan believed he could still handle them.
The experts in the courtyard were nothing compared to the ultimate masters guarding the treasury.
As long as they guarded the treasury, Chu Hongtao and the Duchess would be completely unable to enter.
Han Zhan didn't particularly care about the treasury itself.
And these people in front of him wouldn't be able to stop him.
However, if a fight broke out, it would inevitably cause a great commotion.
If this matter got out, it would also have a negative impact on the Duke's mansion.
"I know you are skilled in martial arts, but if they are joined by me, you might not be able to win."
Chu Qianli's martial arts were inferior to his, but Han Zhan had witnessed the speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness of her needle attacks!
"Do you really intend to fight me?" Han Zhan's eyes darkened.
He hadn't expected that one day he would have to fight her.
Although he detested her to the extreme, he didn't want to hurt her unless absolutely necessary.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that question?" Chu Qianli stepped forward, refusing to yield an inch!
"You brat, hand over the keys!" The Duchess suddenly rushed forward, raising her hand to strike Chu Qianli's face.
As an elder, the guards didn't know whether to intervene.
A moment of hesitation allowed her to reach Chu Qianli.
Chu Qianli merely reacted instinctively.
The Duchess, with her frail body, was pushed by Chu Qianli and fell to the ground with a thud.
"Mother!"
"Old Madam!"
"Grandmother!"
A group of people immediately cried out in shock, rushing over to surround her.
"You... you... you actually attacked your grandmother!" Chu Hongtao's eyes turned red with anger, and he lunged at Chu Qianli like a madman.
This turn of events was truly unexpected.
The guards were imperial guards, and they could protect Chu Qianli if there was danger.
However, the Duchess and the Grand Tutor were clearly defenseless.
Facing such weak individuals, they were unable to intervene.
In the blink of an eye, Chu Hongtao reached Chu Qianli.
"You brat, I'll beat you to death!" He raised his hand to strike as well.
Chu Qianli still took two steps back, easily dodging, "If you act out again, don't blame me for being impolite!"
"I am your father! Do you dare to lay a hand on me?"
With so many people watching, he wanted to see if this brat was truly so arrogant that she would even harm her own father!
Chu Hongtao lunged again, this time grabbing Chu Qianli's clothes.
He had originally intended to force her down to her knees to apologize to the Duchess.
But perhaps even Chu Hongtao himself hadn't expected that his pull would tear Chu Qianli's clothes.
Seeing her collar almost ripped off, Chu Qianli instinctively pushed him away.
However, she had forgotten that Chu Hongtao was truly a frail scholar, with no martial arts skills at all.
This palm strike sent him flying.
"Don't hurt Father!" Chu Huaiyu screamed, rushing forward to grab Chu Qianli, "No!"
"Grand Tutor!" Han Zhan quickly stepped forward, catching Chu Hongtao before he fell.
But as he turned back, he saw Chu Qianli's palm about to strike Chu Huaiyu.
"Huaiyu!" Han Zhan, worried about Chu Huaiyu getting hurt, shifted his steps and instantly appeared between the two.
"Chu Qianli, you've gone too far!" He held Chu Huaiyu with one hand, while his other palm, completely driven by anger, sent a strike towards Chu Qianli's shoulder.
Han Zhan was the top expert of the Duke's mansion, capable of holding his own even against Feng Yexuan for a few moves.
This showed how formidable his martial arts were!
Even though the guards rushed to her rescue at their fastest, Han Zhan's palm still landed on Chu Qianli's shoulder.
The speed was too fast, the strike too fierce, Chu Qianli couldn't dodge it at all.
With a whoosh, her slender body was thrown back, hitting the closed door with a bang.
With a rumble, the door fell open.
Chu Qianli lay against the door, her head tilted, spitting out a mouthful of blood, almost losing consciousness from the force of the palm strike.
"Miss Li'er!" Steward Han, who had been guarding the Duke inside, rushed out.
The dozen guards also quickly protected Chu Qianli.
But she had ultimately been injured by Han Zhan.
Her shoulder blade already had an old wound that hadn't fully healed.
Now, with the new injury compounding the old one, her bone felt as if it had completely shattered, the pain bringing her close to fainting several times.
Han Zhan hadn't expected that the palm he struck in his haste would be so heavy.
He hadn't done it intentionally, but he truly hadn't expected Chu Qianli to be so malicious.
Not only had she injured her grandmother, but she had also attacked her own father and intended to harm Huaiyu.
That was why he had acted.
Now, seeing the bloodstain on Chu Qianli's lips, as she clutched her obviously injured shoulder and stood up in disarray,
He instinctively let go of Chu Huaiyu, wanting to go and check on her.
Chu Huaiyu beside him let out a delicate groan, "Han Zhan, I... I'm in pain."
Han Zhan's soul, which had been lost in Chu Qianli's injury, was instantly pulled back to reality.
He turned back to see Chu Huaiyu swaying precariously, unsure where she was injured, but her condition looked very bad.
"Huaiyu..."
But he had injured Chu Qianli...
"Do you want to fight again?" Chu Qianli raised her hand, wiping the blood from her lips.
With heavy steps, she slowly walked towards everyone.
"The keys and the token are in my hand. If you have the guts, come and snatch them. I'll accompany you to the end!"
Blood stained her lips and face, the blood she had just spat out herself.
Her face was as pale as paper due to the excruciating pain from her shoulder blade injury.
Yet, she still stood straight, standing tall and proud.
Her aura at that moment was so imposing that it silenced everyone in the courtyard, who didn't even dare to utter a sound.
Chu Qianli stared at them with sharp eyes and said sternly, "If you don't dare, then get out!"