"What are you up to now?" Junho asked. Jina was on video chat with him, asking about how to send food offering to a ghost.
He was really worried for the girl. She had an unusually good control over her powers and also sohow, managed to ta ghosts in her own way. Was it an ability or her natural charm, he would never know. But he was afraid that this was going to affect her in a bad way soday.
"I made a new friend," she chirped. "His na is Kang Shinho. My mom and dad found him while they were at our winter lodge and brought him ho coz he has nowhere to go. He's living with us now! He told that he loves chocolates but he couldn't have any. His an dad used to beat him every ti he tried to have any chocolates."
Junho raised an eyebrow. Judging by Jina's words, this Shinho seed to be a child's ghost. He pursed his lips. Even though he did not know Shinho, he had an inkling how the kid may have died. Jina's usage of 'an dad' gave away who might have killed the poor boy.
Seeing Jina's hopeful face made him sigh.
"Okay," he began. "Do you know why people used to offer food to their dead relatives and ancestors in the old days?"
Jina shook her head.
"There was a belief that once a person dies, he forgoes his earthly body and adopts a heavenly body," Junho explained. "This heavenly body is the soul. Souls don't get hungry nor do they need food. However, the food offering to the deceased by their living relatives was a show of respect and love. You see, it was a way to rember those who have left us, making sure that we do not forget their presence in our lives."
"Even though ghosts do not have to eat," he continued. "Once their shrines received food offerings from their families, their spirits would accept the offer and eat it. The food symbolized that people still rembered them. The more you rember a person, the stronger the deceased person's soul becos. Also, when the heavens judge that person, once it has been determined that the person truly had people who loved him or her, their souls could reincarnate. Good souls get to have their one wish co true and would be granted that wish after reincarnating as a human being. Bad souls would be punished and would reincarnate as an animal."
Jina scratched her head. Even Shinho, who was sitting right next to her, could not make heads nor tails of what the old man had just said.
"Old man, can you just tell how to offer the food?" Jina asked. "I can't understand all that big stuff you just said."
Junho rolled his eyes, shaking his head in dismay.
"Why couldn't you turn out to be a child genius who's exceptionally good at everything?" he sighed.
"That's coz I'm normal and not a freak like that weirdo I t at camp!" Jina said indignantly. Junho wanted to facepalm himself upon hearing that. Jina was probably the least normal kid he had ever encountered.
"First of all, you need to make a small space for a shrine," he said. "Make a morial tablet. You can simply write his na on a piece of paper and stick it on a corner of your north facing wall. At midnight, put a small table in front of it and lay out the food on it. Place two candles on both sides and light them. Then, put your hands together and silently pray for the spirit to accept your offering. Bow in front of the na tablet three tis and then say out loud, 'Your good deeds are your reward. Please accept my offering and I pray your wish cos true'. Got it?"
Jina was writing it all down. She was like a diligent student learning from her teacher.
"Yes!" she exclaid. "So this ans, I can feed Casper and Yumi too! They'll be thrilled! Yumi has been complaining about eating dumplings."
"Yes you can," Junho said. "Now, if you're done, I'd like to go back to sleep."
"You're gonna sleep now?" Jina frowned. "It's just 12 PM!"
"I like my afternoon nap!" Junho snapped.
"You really are an old man!"
"Who the hell are you calling old?" Junho thundered.
"You, of course."
Junho grumbled while Shinho snickered. He had been silently watching the old man and the girl arguing.
"Go sleep," Jina said. "Old man."
Before Junho could retort, she turned off the screen and turned to Shinho. "We're gonna try this out tonight!" she declared. Shinho nodded, feeling very excited. He was finally going to taste chocolate!
"But what's your older brother's na?" Jina asked. "Do you know his na?"
Shinho shook his head. "I only know he also has my surna," he noted. "But I don't know his real na. You see, my mother and I lived in a small slum for years. But last year, she fell ill and a bunch of n entered our house to take away. She could not stop them because she was so ill. And after a few days, she killed herself."
Jina's eyes widened in shock. "And your dad took you in?" she asked. "But why did he kill you?"
"I don't know," Shinho said sadly. "He locked in the cellar and beat everyday. I tried my best not to anger him so I stayed in the darkness."
To his surprise, Jina gently hugged him. "It's okay," she assured him. "You're with us now. You're safe here."
Shinho blushed. No one had ever hugged him that way except for his mother. It was a brief yet sweet hug. She quickly let him go and bead at him.
"Now let's prepare tea for the dolls!" she exclaid. "They get cranky when they don't get food on ti!"
"Okay!"
Their innocent laughters were echoing the mansion. Nanny Kim, who was working downstairs, was surprised by how cheerful Jina sounded.
"Young miss is laughing so loudly," she noted thoughtfully. "Is she talking to a friend?"
Shrugging off that thought, she went back to work. As long as Jina was happy and cheerful, nothing else mattered to them.
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