My Family Is Very Odd

Li Xiao Gui dangled in the air like a turtle, limbs hanging loosely and round eyes blinking.

"Wow, I'm flying! I'm flying! Wow!" Li Xiao Gui exclaimed, completely unafraid.

Young Ghost pulled at the back of Li Xiao Gui's clothes, leaving deep wrinkles in the fabric.

But in the blink of an eye... it was close, almost...

Young Ghost gazed down heavily, then after a few moments, turned with Li Xiao Gui.

He had been dead for a long time, long enough to forget where exactly his heart used to be in his body, yet he had just experienced the sensation of his heart stopping once again.

So, that's what it felt like.

Definitely not pleasant at all.

Should've turned you into a ghost earlier, Young Ghost thought, holding Li Xiao Gui up in front of him, his black, round eyes locking onto her.

Li Xiao Gui batted her curled eyelashes and grinned, "Daddy, do I look like a turtle like this?"

She wiggled her little hands and legs, mimicking swimming movements, making herself giggle.

Young Ghost: "..." Oh well, she's so carefree, she'll probably just dissipate as soon as she dies, not leaving him anything.

"...Silly little ghost."

Finally, Young Ghost let out a shallow, resigned sigh, a mixture of disdain and helplessness.

In a sweet, childish voice, Li Xiao Gui asked, "Daddy, why are you scolding me?"

Young Ghost snorted, "Because you're silly. Didn't you see the car coming just now? Why didn't you move?"

This question indeed put Li Xiao Gui in a bind. Because if that car had truly rushed straight towards her just now, not only Li Xiao Gui, no one could have avoided it.

But Young Ghost was unhappy, and couldn't stand it. Especially when he saw how perilous the situation had been just moments ago, and Li Xiao Gui was still laughing so carefreely. He was seething with frustration and wanted to vent it out.

But the truth was, everything happened too quickly. Before Li Xiao Gui even noticed, the car had been stopped, and they were both flying into the air.

Li Xiao Gui looked helplessly at Young Ghost, her round cheeks swaying side to side. With her eyes closed, she nonchalantly said, "What car? Little ghost didn't know, it's not a little ghost's concern."

Refusing to be a punching bag.

The little ghost was almost laughing at Young Ghost.

With her round and tender face, imitating a nonchalant expression, Li Xiao Gui's actions poked at Young Ghost's accumulated frustration. Like a punctured balloon, the irritation burst out of him completely.

And this troublemaker even pointed her finger and commanded, "Daddy, I want to fly over there! Higher!"

Young Ghost: "..."

He continued to carry the little turtle forward in flight.

"Wow, Daddy, you look so handsome!" Li Xiao Gui exclaimed.

Young Ghost unconsciously pursed his slightly upturned lips and flew even higher with the little ghost.

"Ah, it's so cool! The wind feels so nice! Daddy, you're so handsome! Ghosts are so handsome! Let's keep flying!" Li Xiao Gui exclaimed.

Young Ghost's lips, which had naturally curved upwards, dropped for a second. He began to educate her, "I advise you to dispel this idea immediately. Do you remember what I told you?"

Caught off guard, Li Xiao Gui stopped and asked, "Huh?"

Young Ghost grabbed Li Xiao Gui and halted in front of a dark shadow. Pointing, he inquired, "What should you do when you encounter a dark shadow like this?"

Li Xiao Gui hesitated, "..."

Thus, what was originally a pleasant outing, from a casual stroll to dining, turned into aerial flight, then evolved into a surprise inspection.

Joyful playtime turned into a final assessment.

...

"You have to avoid..." Li Xiao Gui could only respond obediently.

As dawn broke, people carried on with their lives as usual. The traffic accident from yesterday became a topic of discussion in social news, sparking conversations for two days before gradually fading away, leaving little impact on the town's life.

After a three-day absence, Chen Yuanyuan returned to school to attend classes. She remained indifferent to Li Xiao Gui, just as before. However, Li Xiao Gui didn't bother with her either, nor did she pay attention to the others in the class.

She was much quieter at school than at home, happily entertaining herself.

Chen Yuanyuan's close friends gathered around her, chattering away, asking her how she got sick and if she's feeling better.

Chen Yuanyuan replied, "I think I caught a cold, but I've been resting for a few days, so I'm fine now."

They continued chattering, and Chen Yuanyuan shyly responded, smiling at the side. Suddenly, she quietly lifted her head to steal a glance at Li Xiao Gui.

After looking and feeling a bit puzzled, it was as if she didn't understand why she had tried to sneak a look at her.

It felt like she owed something.

But Chen Yuanyuan couldn't remember.

After class, Shen Chen suddenly came to play with her. Li Xiao Gui happily ran out.

"Brother Chenchen!" she called out.

Shen Chen nodded; he always carried himself with an air of maturity, his face rarely showing any emotion.

Walking outside, Shen Chen asked her, "Have you seen that sister these past few days? Is she bothering you?"

Li Xiao Gui shook her head, "No."

Li Xiao Gui: "She's already gone."

Li Xiao Gui recalled the woman's farewell and told Shen Chen, "That day, she said goodbye to me."

"She said goodbye to you?" Shen Chen was skeptical, "Why would she say goodbye to you?"

He didn't believe that a resentful ghost would be so friendly. "Do you know her?"

Li Xiao Gui thought for a moment, then nodded, "Yeah, she walked me home, held an umbrella for me, and played with me. She's really nice."

"..." Shen Chen didn't believe it. This malevolent ghost had recently claimed a fresh human life when it got close to Li Xiao Gui.

However, that ghost indeed hadn't bothered Li Xiao Gui anymore.

The feeling of resentment he had sensed that day was gone from around Li Xiao Gui.

Strange, Shen Chen thought.

As Shen Chen pondered, he made up his mind to properly teach Li Xiao Gui how to expel spirits. He was determined that with enough strength, even if that ghost finally revealed its true form, she wouldn't be afraid.

Shen Chen asked, "Do you remember what I taught you that day?"

Li Xiao Gui obediently nodded.

Shen Chen said, "Well, try it again today."

As Shen Chen spoke, Li Xiao Gui closed her eyes.

Li Xiao Gui's eyes remained shut for a while. Shen Chen didn't rush her.

Then slowly, a black dot appeared, wobbling on the tip of Li Xiao Gui's finger. She excitedly brought her round little finger close to Shen Chen's eyes and declared, "It's out!"

"..." Shen Chen fell silent for a moment, then hesitated and asked, "Dust?"

"It's a black dot!" Li Xiao Gui corrected.

Shen Chen raised his index finger in silence and a golden spark ignited with a snap.

Li Xiao Gui looked up, her eyes fixated on the sparks at the tip of Shen Chen's finger. Her mouth fell open, and then she lowered her gaze to her own finger, murmuring, "Mm."

Shen Chen tentatively encouraged her, "Why don't you try again?"

Li Xiao Gui obediently nodded, but this time, not even a single black dot appeared.

Li Xiao Gui: "..."

Shen Chen: "..."

After an awkward silence, Shen Chen comforted Li Xiao Gui, "It's okay, you just need more practice."

Li Xiao Gui nodded.

Shen Chen continued, "Your spiritual power is black. Remember, when you draw a boundary, the area your spiritual power encompasses becomes a cage for evil spirits. Once the cage is formed, the seal takes shape. The stronger your spiritual power, the higher the success rate of the seal."

Li Xiao Gui nodded.

Shen Chen added, "Next time, I'll take you to try again. Oh, I can come to your house now. My dad is a skilled exorcist, and he can check if there are any evil spirits in your house. And one of my dad's colleagues is also there. She has a special pair of eyes—nothing can hide from her gaze."

Li Xiao Gui remembered the scene of Shen Chen expelling spirits and instinctively felt that he shouldn't come to her house.

Suddenly, Li Xiao Gui said, "Let's go to the amusement park!"

"?" Shen Chen halted. He felt like he and Li Xiao Gui were in two different worlds. Was he talking about this? Shen Chen was bewildered and suddenly didn't know what to say next.

Li Xiao Gui's eyes sparkled, and she repeated, "Brother, let's go to the amusement park! This weekend!"

"But, just now, we were talking about going..." Shen Chen tried to explain.

Li Xiao Gui rubbed her hands together, her round face looking up at him with pleading eyes. Her light eyebrows drooped, forming a figure-eight shape, as she begged, "Please, pretty please!"

Every time Li Xiao Gui did this, Young Ghost and Female Ghost would give in to her tantrums.

So, this action, after tasting its sweetness, became a habit for her. It grew more natural with time, and her little expressions became even more pitiful – plump and cute.

However, Shen Chen didn't actually want to go to the amusement park. He just wanted to focus on studying and sealing impurities.

He struggled as he looked at Li Xiao Gui, trying to resist. After two seconds of standoff, he couldn't hold out against Li Xiao Gui's shining big eyes and the repeated "pretty please" requests. He gave in to her invitation.

"Fine," Shen Chen said, then continued, "Before that, when should I come to your house?"

"..." Li Xiao Gui was taken aback.

Just as they were about to continue the conversation, the school bell rang, arriving a bit late.

"..."

Author's note:

Young Ghost's internal thoughts: You make me feel alive.

Extra Story: Huang Meimei (1)

I'm not good-looking, that's what everyone says.

That's what everyone says.

They say I shouldn't be called "Huang Meimei," I should be called "Huang Chouchou".

*美 (mei) - beautiful, 丑 (chou) - ugly

I don't accept it, I accept it.

They ostracize me, mock me, bully me.

I don't accept it, I accept it.

They say,

Huang Meimei, your nose is so big!

Huang Meimei, you're so ugly!

Huang Meimei, you're so disgusting!

I don't accept it, I accept it.

They draw turtles on my clothes, scare me with bugs, enjoy my screams, stab me with compasses.

I don't accept it, I accept it.

Because I'm afraid, I'm so afraid of them.

So I don't accept it, but I can only accept their exclusion, mockery, and bullying.

And so, day by day, another day.

I started disliking speaking, dreading going to school every week, and fearing looking in the mirror every day.

Whenever I looked at myself in the mirror, I felt so sad. Why did I look so ugly?

Finally, I admitted it: I'm Huang Chouchou.

ʕ•́ᴥ•̀ʔっ

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