My Family Is Very Odd

After school, Shen Chen took Li Xiao Gui to the dentist.

The closer they got to the clinic, the more Li Xiao Gui’s apprehension grew. Still, she steeled herself and walked in, albeit at a snail’s pace.

“Are you scared?” Shen Chen asked as they waited.

Li Xiao Gui hesitated for a moment before nodding honestly. “Can we not see the dentist if I’m scared?”

“No,” Shen Chen replied, his expression unyielding. “And no amount of acting cute will change that.”

Li Xiao Gui slumped in her seat. “Fine.”

The dentist diagnosed Li Xiao Gui with a cavity in her wisdom tooth.

By eight o'clock that evening, Li Xiao Gui emerged from the clinic, her wisdom tooth successfully extracted. However, her right cheek was now swollen like a bee sting.

“The doctor said the swelling will go down in a couple of days,” Shen Chen reassured her. “But no candy for a while. And no spicy or irritating foods either.”

Li Xiao Gui pouted, her swollen cheek making her look both pitiful and adorable.

Shen Chen couldn’t help but pat her head gently.

When they got back to the haunted house, Shen Chen told the five ghosts about Li Xiao Gui’s cavity.

The house immediately went into a frenzy.

“A cavity?!” exclaimed Young Ghost.

“A cavity!” gasped Female Ghost.

“Oh my, a cavity?” worried Ghost Granny.

Ghost Grandpa remained silent, his expression grave.

“A CAVITY!!!” roared Burly Ghost, who had simply assumed Li Xiao Gui wasn't feeling well that morning and had been planning to change up the menu.

They had all been so worried when they saw Li Xiao Gui’s swollen cheek, thinking she had been hurt and vowing revenge on whoever was responsible.

To think it was just a cavity… their anger dissipated as quickly as it had come.

The five ghosts exchanged sheepish glances. They were all guilty of indulging Li Xiao Gui’s sweet tooth. Burly Ghost, in particular, showered her with cakes, pastries, and all sorts of sugary treats.

Guilt gnawed at their non-existent consciences.

Perhaps it was the after-effects of the extraction, but Li Xiao Gui readily agreed when Shen Chen confiscated her candy stash.

She did, however, look at him with pleading eyes. “But… can you bring the candy with you to the orphanage?” she asked.

“I want to share them with the children.”

“Okay,” Shen Chen conceded.

Female Ghost, who had been secretly trying to stash away some candy for Li Xiao Gui, paused and looked up. “Orphanage?”

Li Xiao Gui nodded. “Yeah! My school’s volunteer activity this Saturday is at the community orphanage.”

The ghosts exchanged peculiar looks.

“Will it make Xiao Gui sad,” Burly Ghost asked hesitantly, “knowing she doesn’t have human parents?”

“Of course not!” Li Xiao Gui exclaimed, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “I have my parents, grandparents, and brother. That’s more than enough. I’m very happy.”

Overcome with emotion, Burly Ghost burst into tears. “Waaaah!”

Wiping his eyes, he pulled out his camera. “You look so cute even with a swollen cheek! We have to commemorate this momentous tooth extraction with a picture!”

Li Xiao Gui sighed but complied, posing for Burly Ghost.

As the five ghosts watched her, smiles on their faces, they each discreetly clutched the candy they had managed to squirrel away earlier.

They would make sure Li Xiao Gui had her fill once her tooth was healed.

Chomp, chomp, chomp. The sound of chewing echoed through the darkened room.

The only source of light came from the open refrigerator, its contents – a jumbled mess of fruits, snacks, and half-eaten food – littered with bite marks.

A figure huddled on the floor, gnawing on something unidentifiable. Her long hair was a tangled mess, obscuring her face.

Chomp, chomp, chomp.

The incessant chewing was interrupted by a knock on the door.

The figure froze, slowly lifting her head to stare at the door.

The door creaked open, and a porcelain doll slipped through the gap.

“You must be starving,” the doll chirped, her painted smile unwavering. “I know a place with lots of delicious food. Are you interested? You should really change bodies soon, you know. You’re ruining this one.”

Thump. Something rolled out of the figure’s grasp and clattered across the floor, coming to a stop in the dim light.

It was a bone, picked clean.

The figure slowly rose to her feet, her stomach growling ominously. As she lumbered towards the door, she bumped into a table, illuminating a computer screen.

The doll handed her a piece of paper.

Printed on it was a picture of a yellow building, with the words “Hope Orphanage” written underneath.

By Saturday, the swelling on Li Xiao Gui’s face had completely subsided, although she was still forbidden from eating candy.

The volunteer activity at the community orphanage was scheduled from 8 am to 5 pm.

Li Xiao Gui woke up at 7 am and arrived at the school meeting point by 7:40 am.

“Xiao Gui!” Xili called out, waving at her from afar.

Ever since their lunch together, Xili had made it a habit to wait for Li Xiao Gui and Chen Yuanyuan so they could eat together.

As it turned out, Xili was also volunteering at the orphanage that day.

Just as Li Xiao Gui was about to greet her, she felt a sudden weight on her schoolbag. Turning around, she saw Xu Li.

He shoved a bottle of milk into the side pocket of her bag.

“Here! You’re so short, you need all the nutrition you can get,” he said.

“What?” Li Xiao Gui frowned. “I don’t want it.”

“Yes, you do,” Xu Li insisted. “Or I’ll beat you up!”

Li Xiao Gui was furious.

Before she could retort, Shen Chen appeared behind Xu Li, his expression as intimidating as a tiger stalking its prey. He grabbed Xu Li’s bag and pulled him back.

Sensing danger, Xu Li turned around and saw Shen Chen. Remembering that Shen Chen and Li Xiao Gui were childhood friends, and feeling a surge of competitive spirit, he puffed out his chest and yelled, “What do you want?!”

Shen Chen, who was a head taller than Xu Li, simply stared down at him. His silence was more menacing than any words.

He picked up the milk that Xu Li had shoved at Li Xiao Gui and tossed it back to him.

Xu Li caught the milk, his jaw clenched.

As Xu Li stalked away, Xili leaned in with a mischievous grin. “Do you think he likes Xiao Gui?” she whispered.

Li Xiao Gui blinked, bewildered. She thought about Xu Li’s usual behavior – the teasing, the insults, the angry glares…

“Even if he does, with a personality like that, it’s no wonder Xiao Gui doesn’t like him back,” Chen Yuanyuan scoffed. She wasn’t a fan of Xu Li either.

“True,” Xili giggled. “But Xiao Gui is so nice. It’s like everyone likes her! I really like her too. She’s so cute!”

Shen Chen leaned in, his expression serious. “Auntie says we should focus on our studies and not think about dating yet.”

He was using Female Ghost’s words, figuring she would want him to keep an eye on Li Xiao Gui.

Li Xiao Gui nodded obediently. “Yeah, I don’t like him either.”

Whether Xu Li’s behavior stemmed from affection or animosity, Li Xiao Gui found it unpleasant. She had no interest in him whatsoever.

“You’re so serious, Shen Chen!” Xili laughed.

Shen Chen finally turned his attention to Xili. “You’re volunteering too?”

“Yeah, but I’m covering for a friend. Something came up,” Xili explained.

“Right.” Shen Chen paused. “I heard you encountered a ghost before. At the school swimming pool.”

Xili’s eyes drifted upwards as she recalled the incident. “Oh yeah! I was about to go swimming when someone pushed me from behind. I twisted my ankle and fell into the pool. It was terrifying! Luckily, I’m a good swimmer. But when I surfaced and looked around, guess what? There was no one there! It had to be a ghost!”

“You weren’t hurt, were you?” Shen Chen asked.

“Just a sprained ankle,” Xili replied. “Nothing serious.”

“Did anything strange happen after that?”

Xili shook her head. “Nope, nothing else.”

“Aren’t you scared?” Shen Chen pressed. “You’re still interested in the paranormal after encountering a ghost?”

Xili looked at him intently, a smile playing on her lips. “Of course I’m scared! But some things… the more they scare you, the more curious you become. That’s why I wanted to join the Paranormal Club! To see if ghosts are real! But in the end, I chickened out. Xiao Gui is amazing, though! She’s so brave! She just walked straight in without hesitation.”

She turned to Li Xiao Gui. “You guys really like ghost stories, huh?”

Li Xiao Gui smiled and nodded. “Yeah!”

“Me too!” Xili exclaimed. “I’m just a bit of a scaredy-cat.”

They chatted for a while longer until it was time to board the buses.

An hour and a half later, they arrived at the orphanage.

Li Xiao Gui slung her bag over her shoulder and gazed up at the yellow building – Hope Orphanage.

The guard opened the gates, allowing the buses to drive in before closing them again.

The buses parked in an empty lot near the old office building, where several people from the orphanage were waiting to greet them.

The students unloaded the supplies they had brought – rice, cooking oil, bread, books, and more – handing them over to the orphanage director. Some students helped with unpacking and organizing, while others pitched in with cleaning or entertaining the children.

Li Xiao Gui ran over to Shen Chen, her eyes sparkling with excitement. “Shen Chen, Shen Chen! The candy! And the snacks!”

Shen Chen chuckled and handed her his backpack.

Li Xiao Gui clutched the bag and ran towards a group of children, unzipping it and offering them candy.

The children were initially shy, only a few daring to approach Li Xiao Gui and accept her treats.

As time passed, however, Li Xiao Gui chatted and played with them, gradually breaking the ice. Soon, they were all laughing and playing games together.

Xu Li watched Li Xiao Gui from a distance, wanting to join in but unable to find an excuse, especially with Shen Chen by her side.

It was so frustrating! They weren’t even in the same class! Why did he keep following her around? Xu Li thought grumpily.

Meanwhile, Xili was showing cartoons to a group of children on her phone.

Chen Yuanyuan had also offered her phone, letting the kids play simple games she had downloaded beforehand. She then excused herself, camera in hand, to capture the day’s events.

The children, who rarely had access to such technology, were captivated by the phones, their eyes wide with wonder.

At 10:30 am, the orphanage kitchen staff started preparing lunch.

Ah Qing, the only cook, was responsible for feeding everyone in the orphanage. With so many extra mouths to feed today, he had to start earlier than usual. The lunch menu consisted of six dishes and a soup, enough for five tables of students, teachers, and children. It was a herculean task.

As he washed vegetables, he was once again distracted by the sound of chewing. He had been hearing it a lot the past couple of days.

Darn rats! he thought, annoyed.

But he didn’t have time to deal with pests right now. He had to focus on preparing lunch.

Just as he was trying to ignore the persistent sound, he heard a loud retching noise.

“Ugh!”

“Ugh!”

“Ugh!”

A strange smell, foul and metallic, wafted through the kitchen, accompanying the retching.

Ah Qing couldn't ignore it any longer. He put down the vegetables and cautiously approached the source of the sound.

It was coming from under one of the kitchen tables. As he peered underneath, he saw a disheveled, pregnant woman huddled on the floor, surrounded by gnawed food scraps.

She was vomiting violently, blood and other unidentifiable substances spewing from her mouth.

The metallic scent of blood intensified.

Ah Qing's face turned pale. He didn't want to imagine what those chunks in the pool of blood were, but he couldn't help himself… Bright red… intestines… or was it minced meat…?

The woman slowly lifted her head, her bloodshot eyes locking onto his. Blood trickled down her chin.

At 11:30 am, just an hour before lunchtime, one of the orphanage staff came to check on the food preparations. To their surprise, they found the kitchen in disarray, with only half-prepared vegetables and no sign of Ah Qing.

They initially assumed he had stepped out briefly and waited for half an hour. However, when they couldn’t reach him by phone and couldn’t find him anywhere, they realized something was wrong.

They didn’t have enough time to prepare the six dishes and soup as planned. In the end, they gathered a few people who knew how to cook and decided to make a simple pumpkin fried rice using the pre-cut pumpkins. They would use the rest of the prepared vegetables for a simple soup.

There was no time to wait for Ah Qing. They had to act fast.

Meanwhile, Li Xiao Gui, feeling thirsty after hours of playing with the children, headed towards Shen Chen, Xili, and Chen Yuanyuan.

It was almost lunchtime, and they decided to take a break.

As they walked, Li Xiao Gui noticed that the zipper on Xili’s bag was slightly open. “Xili, your bag’s open,” she said, reaching out to zip it up.

However, Xili reacted quickly, hugging her bag protectively. “Oh? Really? Haha, thanks,” she said, her voice a little higher than usual.

She glanced down at her bag, her expression momentarily startled, before quickly zipping it up.

Li Xiao Gui, her hand still outstretched, blinked in confusion before withdrawing it.

Shen Chen watched Xili intently, a thoughtful look on his face.

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