"Mr. Fang, this is my friend Chen Miao."
Zhao Gongzi walked over and introduced him to Fang Zheng.
"Hmm? Young Master Zhao! What sort of job brought you here in person?"
Fang Zheng's eyes lit up as he looked at Zhao Gongzi.
"No job. I'm here about something else today."
As soon as Zhao Gongzi finished speaking, Fang Zheng's raised shoulders sank a little.
"Oh, I see. Let's talk out back, then."
Fang Zheng glanced at Chen Miao, then turned and headed back the way he had come.
Zhao Gongzi motioned for Chen Miao to follow.
After another look at the paper offerings, Chen Miao had already made up his mind.
Perhaps he could start practicing the Paper Effigy Yin-Congealing Method very soon.
Following the two of them into the back, Chen Miao discovered a surprisingly spacious courtyard.
If the Paper Effigy Shop counted as the entrance, the whole place was a large compound with two successive courtyards.
But once they entered the rear courtyard, there were no side rooms on either side.
On the left stood an open-sided, roofed hall, where a young man and a middle-aged man were making paper offerings.
On the right was a storeroom. Through its open door, Chen Miao could see all sorts of supplies stocked inside.
Only at the very back was there a small three-story building.
The overall style struck Chen Miao as odd.
Ignoring the three-story building at the back and looking only at the Paper Effigy Shop in front, the hall, and the storeroom on either side, the place resembled a charming old traditional building. Every visible structural element was wood.
Yet the three-story building at the back had a modern design.
The second floor even had floor-to-ceiling windows!
Either style would have looked quite nice on its own, but