North chills; south awaits floods

An aerial view of Lanzhou city, Northwest China's Gansu province, after snowfall on Oct 9, 2017. [Photo/IC]

Like Li, many visitors were confronted with flight delays, and even cancellations, on Sunday and Monday because of the weather in Beijing.

Visibility dropped to 125 meters in the early hours of Monday. It improved as the morning wore on, but it still affected flights.

As of 10 am, 133 flights at Beijing Capital International Airport had been canceled, and the Civil Aviation Authority of China warned passengers in the north to be aware of possible cancellations and delays.

Li's family was able to board a flight that landed in Beijing at 6 am on Monday, and he went to work after two hours' sleep.

"I'm exhausted after the long holiday, especially on such a chilly day," he said.

Beijing has seen temperatures drop by 10 degrees since Sunday－the result of a sweeping cold front－with a high of only 12 C on Monday. The cold will last until Wednesday, according to the National Meteorological Center.