This was the vegetable garden where Zhao Jun's family grew their produce in the summer.
It was mid-April. The temperature during the day would approach freezing, while at night, it would still drop below it.
His family's front yard faced the sun, so the daytime temperatures were higher. That, combined with the direct sunlight, meant the snow in the front yard had almost completely melted.
But here in the shady vegetable garden, a thick layer of snow remained.
Even so, the surface of this snow had melted and then frozen over again.
Zhao Jun entered the garden and stepped onto the snow.
With a CRUNCH, Zhao Jun's cotton-padded shoes sank into the snow.
Zhao Jun looked down. The surface of the snow had melted and refrozen into a thin, icy crust, but the snow underneath was still soft and powdery.
Zhao Jun took another step forward with his other foot, but this time, it didn't sink in.
