Where the spirit of Feng Zikai resides

With laundry hanging over the bushes, flowers blooming in the corner and neighbors chatting in the sun, the Chang Le Cun courtyard looks much the same as other communities in downtown Shanghai.

There's nothing to suggest it is the former residence of a renowned man of letters.

Feng Zikai (1898-1975), pioneering cartoonist, essayist and translator, spent the last 21 years of his life in one of its Spanish-style houses.