She Atu’s voice remained steady, though it carried a heavy weight. "We all know what you did. Our family’s suffering is your doing. But we have no proof. Without evidence, I cannot call the police, even if I know it was you. So, do not worry."
She spoke openly. "One condition: from now on, you, Wang Xiuliang, are cut off from the She family. Do not contact us again. I do not have a second life for you to play with.
This time, we were lucky to meet a divine doctor passing by. If we had not, I would still be a drunkard. Ju Xiu would have been tortured by me until we lost our children. My mother would remain paralyzed like a living corpse. Fortunately, our suffering has ended. Please, do not come here again."
She Atu stated her demands directly. She did not want to see Wang Xiuliang again. The brotherly affection from their childhood was completely gone.
Wang Xiuliang’s expression darkened. He looked at He Atu and said, "Atu, I really do not know what you are talking about."
"Liangzi, my mother has woken up." He Atu looked at him, his expression saying that further denial was useless.
Wang Xiuliang’s face changed slightly, then he smiled. "That is good news. I heard your aunt had an accident two years ago, and you were unwell. I was worried about you."
"Worried?" He Atu laughed loudly, but the sound was full of mockery. "You were worried? I did not expect that. I thought you hoped I would die. I thought you hoped our family would be destroyed."
"Atu, why would you think that? We are bare-chested brothers who grew up together." Wang Xiuliang calculated in his mind, trying to guess how much He Atu knew.
She Atu’s mouth twitched, her face full of sarcasm. "Liangzi, I said my mother woke up. I know everything now.
She told me that day, she was tidying up in the yard. You came with date paste cakes, saying they were local specialties for her to taste. She ate them. Because of that taste, she has been paralyzed in bed for years. She cannot speak, but her mind is clear. She saw you clean up the remaining cakes and leave.
Why? If you truly cared, why did you leave when she fell? Why did you clean the cakes so neatly? Why did you make it look like she fell on her own? Liangzi, I am not as smart as you, but I am not a fool."
She Atu looked at Wang Xiuliang with a cold smile. "Liangzi, I said before, I have no evidence. Even now that my mother knows the date paste caused this, it is only her word. If I call the police, they will only investigate. The date paste from years ago is long gone. You likely disposed of it.
So, whether you admit it or not does not matter. Even if you admit it, others cannot do much without proof. The police might detain you for forty-eight hours at most. So, I will not call the police. It is unnecessary. I just want to see your final ending."
"What do you mean?" Wang Xiuliang’s face darkened. He did not understand why He Atu said this.
She Atu chuckled coldly. "Since you dared to treat me this way, you likely did the same to others. You must have offended many people. You will eventually sink.
The Buddha says, 'It is not that there is no retribution, but the time has not come.' Since that is so, I will wait. In the end, we will all meet in the Underworld. The result will come. I am not in a hurry."
Wang Xiuliang’s face grew even uglier. He forced a smile. "Atu, I think you misunderstood me. I came to the wrong place today."
"You do not need to come again," He Atu said calmly. "I cannot afford to associate with someone like you. I fear I might die without knowing how. Better to pretend we never met. Let us be strangers."
Wang Xiuliang stood up, his face showing thin anger. "Atu, do you know what you are saying?"
"I know exactly what I am saying," Atu said calmly.
"Rest assured, once I say it, I will not deny it. From now on, we are strangers. If we meet on the road, we do not need to nod. I consider my first half of life as buying a lesson."
Wang Xiuliang knew He Atu had discovered the truth. However, without evidence, he felt safe. Being strangers was fine. He had never intended to stay friends anyway.
Wang Xiuliang snorted. "Since that is the case, I take my leave."
"Take those local specialties with you. I do not want them. I do not know what is inside. We dare not eat anything you bring again, lest we die without knowing why." He Atu’s tone was mild, but Wang Xiuliang understood there was no turning back.
Wang Xiuliang snorted heavily again, picked up his things, and left.
"You let her go like that? Are you not afraid she will come back to harm us?" Ju Xiu had not approached when she Atu faced Wang Xiuliang. She was not worried about a fight; she Atu would not lose. But she was pregnant and could only just get out of bed, so she would not seek trouble.
She Atu came over, helped her sit by the heated brick bed, and said, "If I did not let her go, should I have kept her for lunch? I dare not sit with her. I want to see our child born."
Thinking of the previous children lost due to his beatings, sadness flashed in He Atu’s eyes. "I only hope the previous children can return. I, as a father, am too sorry to them."
Ju Xiu also felt heartache remembering the previous children. Seeing her husband’s state, she comforted her. "Fortunately, this one is safe. Do not worry. Although we lost the previous two children, I will protect this one well."
"Yes, I will also protect you and the child," He Atu said seriously. "Letting Wang Xiuliang go was my only choice. We truly have no evidence. Besides letting him go, we can do nothing. At most, we will just not associate with him in the future."
Ju Xiu sighed slightly. "Your thirty-plus years of brotherly friendship is gone like that."
Ju Xiu knew He Atu was a person who valued feelings deeply. Although he spoke harsh words today, his heart must have been heavy.