Dou Youyou was overjoyed when Zhang Pingfan stepped in for her, but she worried if there would be trouble for hitting her cousin.
"What are you screaming about? Standing at the door and shouting, what do you want?"
A middle-aged man emerged from the villa. Seeing the scene, his face immediately darkened, as the one being beaten was his son.
"Dou Biao, who hit you?"
Dou Biao pointed at Zhang Pingfan, who stood beside Dou Youyou, and said fiercely.
"Dad, it was him, he hit me. He's probably an awakened one, with great strength!"
"Are you alright?"
"I lost two teeth from his blow!"
The middle-aged man turned his head to look at Zhang Pingfan.
"Are you Dou Youyou's boyfriend?"
Zhang Pingfan nodded and replied, "I am. Is there a problem?"
"There's a big problem. You're visiting the Dou family for the first time and you assault someone. I don't think you'll ever be a son-in-law to the Dou family!"
Zhang Pingfan chuckled, "If it weren't for Youyou, do you think I'd want to come here?"
"Young man, don't think you can be arrogant just because you're an awakened one. My Dou family has no shortage of awakened ones. You broke my son's two teeth today, and we need to discuss this matter properly!"
Zhang Pingfan sneered, "Fine, I'd like to see how you want to 'discuss' it with me!"
The middle-aged man waved his hand, and several men in black appeared. They were all awakened ones, originally bodyguards for the Dou family, whom they had recently trained into awakened ones.
"Tie him up! Even if you're Youyou's boyfriend, I'll make you regret it today. My son isn't someone anyone can just hit!"
"Who dares!"
Dou Youyou shouted crisply, causing the guards in front of her to halt. Compared to Dou Youyou, their strength was like that of infants.
Zhang Pingfan was stunned for a moment. This little girl was willing to stand in front of him, but how could he, a grown man, stand behind a girl?
"Youyou, don't you trust my abilities?"
Dou Youyou shook her head and said, "It's not that I don't trust you, it's that I'm afraid your strength might be too much, and you might end up killing them all!"
"..."
Everyone present was stunned. Even Dou Youyou said he was strong, so how strong was this fellow?
It was known that Dou Youyou's current strength test was 3000 catties, and she was currently the strongest human.
Dou Biao sneered.
"Stop pretending. Kid, do you think you'll be safe just because Dou Youyou is protecting you? Since you're here today, you won't be leaving on your own two feet!"
Zhang Pingfan said, "Oh really? Youyou, stand behind me. No one protected you before, but you have someone now. Dou Biao, I heard you bullied Youyou a lot in the past. Today, I'll settle the score with you, with interest!"
Just as Zhang Pingfan was about to make a move, an elder walked out of the villa, followed by several middle-aged men and women.
"Stop!"
Zhang Pingfan withdrew his hand. If he had been a moment slower, he would have truly hit him. Dou Biao would have been severely injured, if not worse.
In fact, Zhang Pingfan hadn't struck because he knew someone was about to come out.
Old Master Dou Guomin walked to Zhang Pingfan's side.
"My child, hitting him and knocking out two teeth was already a lesson. Today is a family gathering, so give this old man some face, and let it go at that!"
Zhang Pingfan knew this old man was here to protect his grandson. However, Zhang Pingfan didn't want to continue the entanglement, as this was Dou Youyou's home, and the people present were all her relatives.
If it weren't for them being Dou Youyou's relatives, Zhang Pingfan wouldn't have bothered wasting his breath on them.
"Since the elder has spoken, this matter is dropped. If anyone else is looking for an early death, they can continue!"
They wouldn't dare bully Youyou, considering her current capabilities.
However, even with great ability, a woman's status in the family would not compare to the male descendants.
"You must be Youyou's boyfriend. Thank you for saving my two granddaughters last time."
Zhang Pingfan replied, "It was my duty. After all, Youyou is my girlfriend, and I must protect her safety to the end!"
"Good, I'm relieved you have this sentiment. However, Youyou's identity is special right now, and being her boyfriend might cause unnecessary misunderstandings. I think you two should maintain some decorum in public."
What did he mean? Was he asking Zhang Pingfan to be a backup?
Zhang Pingfan said, "I'm sorry, she is my girlfriend, and I am her boyfriend. We are a couple, and there's no need to maintain any decorum!"
The old man's expression clearly soured. He had already given Zhang Pingfan ample face.
"It's good to be young and spirited, but that doesn't mean you can act recklessly. Youyou is your girlfriend, but she is also my granddaughter and my son's own daughter. Whether you two can be together depends on us!"
Zhang Pingfan sneered, "So you can casually dictate others' fates, and this is your granddaughter? I don't think this meal is necessary anymore. Youyou, let's go!"
Zhang Pingfan already had a poor impression of Dou Youyou's father, and now he had no good impression of her grandfather either.
These two only wanted to exploit Dou Youyou's abilities to the fullest, and their thinking was still the same.
But then again, it was a large family, and to survive, they would naturally have some means.
Zhang Pingfan took Dou Youyou's hand and prepared to leave.
The old man waved his hand, and all the security guards inside and outside the villa emerged, surrounding Zhang Pingfan and Dou Youyou.
"You can leave, but Youyou must stay. Today's family gathering was not for you, but for Youyou. Youyou, come here!"
On one side was the master she liked, and on the other were her relatives. Dou Youyou didn't know how to choose.
She looked towards her elder sister.
Dou Junwan was about to speak.
"Grandpa..."
"Junwan, this is not a place for you to speak!"
Zhang Pingfan shook his head helplessly.
It sounded like a family gathering, but to put it bluntly, it was about how to distribute Dou Youyou's abilities.
"How laughable, is this what they call family?"
Dou Guomin said, "Sacrificing the individual for the sake of the family's destiny is normal. Child, you can go. Don't look for Youyou anymore!"
"Haha, because of Youyou, I never intended to fall out with you. Are you sure you want to do this?"
Dou Biao laughed, "You're still barking orders when you're facing death. Grandpa, what are you waiting for? Dou Youyou is our family's greatest trump card right now, she can't go with this shady guy!"
"Take him down!"
With Dou Guomin's command, over twenty bodyguards charged towards Zhang Pingfan.
Zhang Pingfan rubbed his forehead and shook his head helplessly.
"Alas, why don't they listen to advice?"
Zzzzzzzzz...