1975年二、三月间，一个平平常常的日子，细蒙蒙的雨丝夹着一星半点的雪花，正纷纷淋淋地向大地飘洒着。时令已快到惊蛰，雪当然再不会存留，往往还没等落地，就已经消失得无踪无影了。黄土高原严寒而漫长的冬天看来就要过去，但那真正温暖的春天还远远地没有到来。
在这样雨雪交加的日子里，如果没有什么紧要事，人们宁愿一整天足不出户。因此，县城的大街小巷倒也比平时少了许多嘈杂。街巷背阴的地方。冬天残留的积雪和冰溜子正在雨点的敲击下蚀化，石板街上到处都漫流着肮脏的污水。风依然是寒冷的。空荡荡的街道上，有时会偶尔走过来一个乡下人，破毡帽护着脑门，胳膊上挽一筐子土豆或萝卜，有气无力地呼唤着买主。唉，城市在这样的日子里完全丧失了生气，变得没有一点可爱之处了。
One day as usual, between February and March 1975, it is sleety; the woolly raindrops blended with sparse snowflakes are floating the way down to the earth. Insects will awake from winter sleep soon, how can the snow stay any longer? Mostly, the flakes have disappeared totally before they touch the earth. On the Loess Plateau, the coldest and longest winter is leaving, but the warmest spring is far from coming.
On such a sleety day, no person is willing to go out, if it doesn’t matter. The county town is much less noisy than usual in every streets and lanes. In the shades, the leftover snowdrifts and ice blocks are fading away by the knocks of raindrops, so the flagstone streets are overflowed by dirty liquid. The wind is still cold. The streets are empty, but at random, there will be a yokel, wearing a poky felt cap merely enough to cover the forehead, with a basket of potatoes or radishes in one arm, and yelling for possible buyers in a feeble voice. Alas, a town would lose all vigor in such a day, and nothing is lovely any more.
Source: http://tieba.baidu.com/p/2697723624?see_lz=1&lp=6034&post_type=normal&mo_device=1&is_jingpost=