In Beijing, November was still a time of transition between autumn and winter. But in Beixin City, located much farther north, the first snow of the year had already fallen at the beginning of the month.
A family courtyard in the mining district.
A thin layer of snow had collected on the ground.
Even this thin layer was fresh, having just fallen after the sanitation workers and the retired residents of the courtyard had spent the day clearing it.
With the snow and cold weather, Xu Qiguang and Bai Xiulan rarely cooked lunch at home on workdays. The mining bureau had a cafeteria, and of course, the nursery did too.
If relatives from their hometown or friends dropped by unexpectedly, the family courtyard also had a cafeteria. If it wasn't convenient to eat out, they could always buy a meal and take it home.
But today, there were no guests for lunch. Aside from the twins, Little Changyuan and Little Youyou, who were napping at the nursery, both Xu Qiguang and Bai Xiulan were home.
