Lao Fu waved his gleaming long silver scissors up and down, skillfully cutting the vibrant fabric in his hands. Scraps of cloth fluttered around like petals, silently nding on the table, the chairs, and the floor. A brand-new garment was complete.

  Lao Fu was a renowned tailor in the capital, his craftsmanship unmatched. From high-ranking officials and nobles to common folk, all were regur patrons of his tailoring shop. However, Lao Fu had six strict rules when making clothes for others:

  Lao Fu only made clothes for the deceased—no requests from the living would be entertained.The family must disclose the deceased's true cause of death without concealment; otherwise, they would bear the consequences.The fabric for the deceased's clothing was personally chosen by Lao Fu, and the design was solely at his discretion.During the tailoring process, the family had to leave the deceased in Lao Fu's shop for him to take measurements and tailor the garments himself.While the clothes were being made, the family was not allowed to visit or interfere with the shop and could only collect the finished garments on the agreed delivery date.When bringing the deceased, the family was also required to prepare offerings such as gold paper ingots, incense, and candles for the deceased.Lao Fu had a knack for preserving corpses, so even if a body stayed in his shop for a month or more, it never showed signs of decay or mold.

  Born with delicate, fair, and nimble hands resembling those of a woman, these very hands filled his pockets with silver. Naturally, they were what he cared for the most.

  Lao Fu's method of tailoring clothes for the deceased was unique. He crafted garments in a variety of styles and colors, tailored to the age, gender, and life stage of the deceased. His most prized tool was a special pair of silver scissors, with which every piece of clothing was made. Additionally, he had a collection of numbered sewing needles—ranging from sizes suitable for children to those for elderly men.

  Each was meticulously cataloged, and his leather pouch was filled with needles of every length and thickness to suit any requirement.

  Each time Lao Fu tailored a new garment, he would lock himself inside his airtight wooden workshop. He lit the incense and candles brought along with the deceased, pced offerings of specially prepared gold ingots for the dead, and took a few swigs of fine liquor. Once everything was ready, Lao Fu would wield his special silver scissors, moving deftly through the fabric he had carefully chosen. In no time, a finely crafted new garment would emerge from his skilled hands.

  Whenever he completed cutting a garment, he would open his leather pouch, select a sewing needle appropriate for the deceased, thread it with matching silk, and begin stitching with great care. He sewed directly onto the deceased's body, ensuring the garment fit perfectly. Clothes tailored by Lao Fu were impossible to remove from the deceased, as every piece was sewn directly onto them.

  Lao Fu was very particur about the thread he used, selecting it based on the characteristics of the deceased. For an elderly person, he would choose gold thread. For an unmarried woman, he would use white thread. For a newborn child, he would select bck thread. No matter which thread he used, Lao Fu always ensured that the thread, the garment, and the deceased were perfectly intertwined.

  One thing Lao Fu took special care with was the cause of death. If the person died a natural death, Lao Fu would pce a small piece of candlewick in their mouth. If the death was unnatural, he would sew a red silk thread at each of the deceased's eyelids, nose, mouth, and ear. Why did Lao Fu do this? Because he ran a "Yin-Yang Tailor Shop," a shop dedicated to tailoring garments for the dead and helping to guide their souls to the afterlife.

  Lao Fu understood the principles of yin and yang. The dead he had stitched garments for, whether they had died a natural death or through unnatural means, never caused trouble in the world again. This was why he had become so well-known in the capital.

  And now, another customer had come to his door.