A short video showing a member of the cleaning staff at the Summer Palace in Beijing explaining Buddhist scenic spots drew a lot of traffic     1     different social media platforms recently, with netizens marveling at his mastery of traditional Chinese culture. He has been dubbed the most powerful cleaning monk by netizens,     2     (original) appearing in Chinese writer Louis Cha’s novel Tianlong Babu.

In     3     video, the worker, Zhang Xu, 40, explains the cultural connotations of the sites to several tourists.     4     makes it special is his recitation of a list of dozens of hard-to-pronounce Buddhist sites. He     5     (speak) with such ease and confidence that it seems he is doing a tongue twister. People thought he must be a tour guide or expert, yet he was wearing the uniform of a janitor and holding a broom.

The video was posted by the researchers on social media platforms on Oct 7 and immediately became a trending topic online. Netizens expressed     6     (amaze) at how ordinary people can become the     7     (expert) in certain areas. Zhang said he had not thought of becoming famous online, as he only wanted to help the tourists who seemed     8     (puzzle). He told Beijing Daily that he     9     (be) interested in architecture since he was a child.

Zhang joined the cleaning staff at the palace in late 2021. “The traditional architecture of the palace is not just an assembly of bricks and layers. These elements are friends who have deep history     10     know how to speak to people who understand them,” he said.

Anyone who has an interest in Dunhuang will have heard of Fan Jinshi. The Chinese archaeologist (考古学家)     1     has spent more than half a century researching and preserving the caves at the heart of the ancient Silk Road in Gansu Province     2     (know) as the “Daughter of Dunhuang” in her field, though “protector” is probably a more fitting     3     (describe).

Fan bas been studying     4     historical site since the early 1960s, first as an archaeology undergraduate from Peking University, then as a conservationist when she became the deputy director of the Dunhunag Research Academy in 1984, which serves to prevent the ancient site from     5     (destroy).

“It is over a thousand years old. It is an old person, an     6     (extreme) weak old person. It has     7     (variety) diseases. If you are a little careless, it could be gone. Gone forever,” Fan says.

Today, thanks     8     the work of great archaeologists such as Fan, Dunhuang is proud of the world’s largest and best-reserved collection of Buddhist relies     9     (date) from the fifth to the 13th centuries. The-main Mogao site is made up of 735 caves spread across a 1,700-metre-wide cliff face, containing 45,000 square metres of murals (壁画)    10     more than 2,000 colorful sculptures (雕塑).

The term Xuan paper first appeared in On Famous Paintings through the Ages, a book     1     (write) by Tang Dynasty (618-907) scholar Zhang Yanyuan, in which he     2     (describe) Xuan paper as an ideal carrier for calligraphy and painting. Handmade Xuan paper from Jingxian county, East China’s Anhui province, was listed     3     a tribute for its super quality during the period.

The traditional craft of making Xuan paper is     4     (high) demanding, Sandalwood bark (檀香树皮),     5     plant native to southern China, goes through 108 procedures over the course of three years before it can transform into fine Xuan paper. Because of the entire procedure     6     is so complex, even the most skilled craftsman can only master limited number of steps.

The flow of ink, both guided and resisted by water, determines the output of Chinese art, and Xuan paper outshines others with its excellent ability     7     (make) the best use of ink. Different Xuan paper can     8     (create) for artistic expression in freehand ink paintings or calligraphy.

Unlike other forms of paper, Xuan paper is very resistant to damage brought by time.     9     (it) durability (耐久性) has made the preservation of many valuable     10     (work) from ancient China possible.

Today’s stars are at the center of much of the world’s attention. Paparazzi (狗仔队) camp outside their homes, cameras ready. Tabloids (小报) publishing stories about their personal lives. Although being famous might sound like a dream come true, they, feeling like zoo animals, face pressures that few of us     1     imagine.

According     2     psychologist Christina Villareal, celebrities—famous people—worry constantly about their public appearance. Eventually, they start to lose track of who they really are, seeing     3     the way their fans imagine them, not as the people they were before everyone knew their names. “Over time,” Villareal says, “they feel separated and alone.”

The phenomenon of tracking celebrities     4     (be) around for ages. In the 4th century B. C. , painters followed Alexander the Great into battle,     5     (hope) to picture his victories for his admirers. When Charles Dickens visited America in the 19th century, his sold-out readings attracted thousands of fans, leading him to complain about his lack of privacy. Tabloids of the 1920s and 1930s ran articles about film-stars in much the same way that modern tabloids and websites     6    .

Being a public figure today, however, is a lot     7     (difficult). Superstars cannot move about without worrying about photographers with modern cameras. When they say something silly or do something ridiculous, there is always the Internet     8     (spread) the news in minutes and keep their “story” alive forever.

    9     fame is so troublesome, why aren’t all celebrities running away from it? The answer is there are still ways to deal with it. Some stars stay calm by surrounding themselves with trusted friends and family or by escaping to remote places away from big cities. They focus not on how famous they are but on what they love to do or     10     made them famous in the first place.

In early December, Zhang Guimei was named a national outstanding member of the Communist Party of China for her     1    (contribute) to education in China.

About 20 years ago, while on the way to visit a student’s house, Zhang Guimei, a teacher in Huaping, noticed a girl     2     (sit) on the hillside. The girl, 13, told Zhang she was about to get married. It was decided by her parents. “But I want to go to school,” the girl said. Zhang went to her house and tried to persuade her parents to let the girl return to school and promised to pay for the school fees     3     (her). However, they didn’t agree.

From then on, Zhang dreamed     4     building a free high school for girls. After years of trying to raise money,     5     (eventual) , Huaping High School for Girls, a free public high school, was founded at the foot of the Shizi Mountain in Huaping,     6     Zhang is the headmaster.

Her efforts paid off. Since 2008, more than 1,800 students     7     (enter) college, which is considered a “miracle (奇迹)” in that far area.

Zhang plays     8     active part in local education. It is reported     9     she was given the honor at the country’s “role model for teachers” in February, 2021. Her     10     (move) stories encourage thousands of people.

As an epic (史诗)     1     brings back to life some of the most famous poets from the Tang Dynasty (618-907), the highly     2     (expect) animated movie Chang’an held its premiere (首映) in     3    was once its namesake city, now known as Xi’an, the provincial capital of Shaanxi province on July 2.

Produced by Light Chaser Animation, a Beijing-based animated studio known for its focus on tales inspired by traditional culture and mythology, the movie     4     (earn) a total box office of 1.824 billion yuan and     5     audience of 44.155 million so far, ranking second in the current mainland animation film history. 

    6     a runtime of 168 minutes, the longest of any Chinese animated movie to date, Chang’an tells the decades-long friendship of Li Bai, arguably the country’s most beloved poet, and Gao Shi, his close friend and a noted poet as well, and also gives a full     7     (describe) of the dynasty’s transition from peak prosperity to decline due to the unrest caused by An Lushan, who was once one of Emperor Xuanzong’s most favored     8     (general).

Xie Junwei, who co-directs the movie with Zou Jing, says that he made multiple trips to Xi’an in search of inspiration during the production,     9     (add) that the small statues and ancient paintings exhibited at the Shaanxi History Museum provided them with     10     (value) ideas for the film.