For those looking to escape the concrete jungle, maybe it’s time to dive into the bamboo forests of southern Sichuan.

A natural forest that people in Sichuan province tend     1     (visit) is the Southern Sichuan Bamboo Sea in Yibin. The 120-square-kilometer Bamboo Sea is the     2     (large) bamboo park in China and its average temperature seldom drops below zero degrees Celsius in winter     3     many parts of the country are covered with snow and ice.

Known as one of the country’s 10 most beautiful forests, it     4     (be) a popular tourist attraction since the Oscar-winning Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon     5     (shoot) there in 2001.

Two years later, the bamboo forest received world-wide     6     (recognize) as a bamboo reserve in December 2003,     7     (become) the fourth tourism destination in China to be granted Green Globe 21 certification.

The Bamboo Sea covers Changning and Jiang’an, two counties under the authority of Yibin. Amazed at its vast expanse (浩瀚), Huang Tingjian,     8     poet from the Song Dynasty, described it     9     “bamboo waves”. As Huang was an     10     (influence) man, his description gave rise to the forest’s popular nickname-the Bamboo Sea.

Festivals around the world have a wide range of     1    (origin), including seasons, religions, famous figures and significant events. The harvest festival     2     usually takes place after all the crops have been gathered is the most common one in different cultures. People celebrate it     3    (show) that they are grateful for the harvest.

In some regions, it’s a day for people to show     4    (they) respect for nature.     5    (decorate) with flowers and fruits, many churches become a joyful place for people to get together to celebrate festival.

Customs have a great impact     6     festivals, but they can change over time. For example, some Chinese cities give up the typical custom of lighting firecrackers, for it     7    (make) the air pollution more serious. In recent years, festivals are becoming more and more commercial, with businesses     8    (take) advantage of the celebrations.

Online shopping websites and social media apps have made it much     9    (convenient) for the public to spend more on gifts than before. In spite of that, festivals are an important part of society, because they reflect people’s wishes, beliefs, faiths and attitudes towards life. They are     10    (absolute) significant occasions that we should take advantage of to stay with our family and to relax and enjoy life.

Chinese screen, also known as pingfeng, is     1     unique and elegant piece of traditional furniture in Chinese decoration.     2     (typical), it is made of wood and features a delicate appearance. Famous for its carvings and paintings, the Chinese screen can block wind and noise from the outside, cover a door and make the room private. When     3     (decorate) a house, Chinese people attach great importance     4     the harmony of their living space with the surrounding environment. Architects believe a screen can help to control how the energy flow in a room and promote     5     (peace) environment.

With its roots in Chinese culture and ancient history, the screen is more than just a physical barrier or decoration. In addition to its decorative and practical     6     (function), the Chinese screen     7     (consider) a symbol of honor and respect as well. When important guests visit, the host often greets them behind the screen as a sign of respect and privacy.

Today, Chinese screens are still treasured and employed for their multiple roles. Whether     8     (use) to divide a room, create privacy,     9     add a touch of traditional elegance to a space, the Chinese screen     10     (remain) a beloved and valuable piece of design.

It was at the 2012 1SU World Figure Skating Championships that I first saw Japanese figure skater Hanyu Yuzuru. He was competing in free skating with a piece of music from Romeo and Juliet. I was    1     (immediate) attracted to his incredible     2    (perform) along with the expressive music.

Yuzuru has been     3    inspiration for me in my years as a senior high school student. In his career, he    4     (experience) innumerable difficulties and countless injuries so far. In 2014’s ISU Grand Prix, he was badly hurt on the ice due to a collision (碰撞). Though he was bleeding, he still insisted on     5    (compete) with no regrets. What’s more, in the 2018 Rostelecom Cup in Moscow, he couldn’t even walk because of a problem with the ligament (韧带) in his right ankle. But he ended up winning the championship and then    6    (award) the gold medal.

Yuzuru has always trained hard despite the suffering from asthma (哮喘). He bravely     7    (overcome) difficulties so he can dance on the ice and live life to the fullest. From 2012 to 2021, I have been inspired by Yuzuru’s spirit,    8    has helped me push forward no matter what. When    9    (face) with any problem that I think I can’t handle in life, such as being burdened with homework or when my grades are sliding (下滑), I watch videos of Yuzuru skating over and over again to search     10     hope and perseverance. After all, he succeeded against so much uncertainty. So how could I not face my own problems?

Confucius and Chinese Philosophy

    1    (bear)in 551 BC, Confucius has made the greatest contribution to Chinese culture of anyone in history.     2    he was raised in a poor family, he visited famous scholars and learned a lot. He developed his thoughts into a system of philosophy,     3    (know) as Confucianism,     4    emphasized(注重) self-cultivation, harmonious relationships with each other and respect     5    the elderly. Friends should be honest to each other.     6    (rule)should make an effort     7    (provide) a happy life for people. Meanwhile, he was a great teacher who devoted himself to    8    （promote）education for ordinary people. He travelled around to publicize(宣传) his political thinking but failed. But he never gave up. Over the last 2000 years, his philosophy     9    (continue) to influence China as well as     10     rest of the world. He is considered as the symbol of oriental(东方的) culture as well.

The Chinese couplet (对联) refers to two poetic lines obeying certain rules, often     1     (write) on red paper for     2     (appreciate).

As a form of Chinese literature, the couplet     3     (vary) in content and style. Some express people’s love to their motherland, some describe the beauty of nature,     4     some convey best wishes for the coming year.

Chinese couplets originated in the Five Dynasties, and since then they     5     (become) commonplace everywhere in China. It was the custom for people     6     (hang) peach wood charms to drive away evil spirits during the Spring Festival. Nowadays, couplets are used in a similar way.

It was said that the     7     (early) couplet was created by Meng Chang, king of Later Shu and it was     8     (wide) popular in the Northern Song Dynasty. At present, writing couplets     9     (regard) as a mark of the cultured life of scholars.

The couplet has two equal-length lines. However,     10     number of characters in each line can be from four to seven or more. The first and the second lines have opposite tone patterns. The last character of the first line is of an oblique tone, and its opposite in the second line, is of a level tone.

Who invented the ATM? There have been     1     (argue) for years over who should officially go down in history as “the inventor of the ATM”. Now the UK government is     2     (clear) saying it was James Goodfellow who invented the ATM.

Back in the mid-1960s, James Goodfellow was working     3     a development engineer for Glasgow firm Kelvin Hughes, and had been charged with inventing a way to enable customers to withdraw (取) cash from banks when Saturday opening ended. “Most people    4     (work) during the week couldn’t get to the bank. They wanted a solution. The solution was a machine which would issue cash on demand to a     5     (recognize) customer,” he said. “I set out to develop a cash-issuing machine, and     6     (make) this a reality, I invented the pin (personal identification number) and an associated coded token (代币).”

So far, the cash machine     7     (become) a world-conquering piece of technology. There are now 3 million ATMs worldwide, with     8     number forecast to hit 4 million by 2020. The good news for Goodfellow is     9     people are beginning to know him for his invention. Even     10     (good) for him, the Home Office has now officially recognized his other achievement.

Spring festival comes to an end. Here     1     (come) the lantern festival.The lantern festival can be dated back to Han dynasty. It is     2     the 15th day of the first lunar mouth.

Almost every     3     (tradition) festival in China comes with     4     (it) own food and the lantern festival is no exception. It is popular to have “yuanxiao” or “tangyuan”. It is a kind of dessert     5    (make) from glutinous rice, filled with black sesame, red bean paste or even meat fillings. In Chinese, tangyuann has a similar pronunciation with “tuanyuan”,     6     means reunion. Thus, having tangyuan denotes reunion, harmony and happiness for the family.

On the Lantern Festival night, the moon illuminates the dark sky while many lanterns shine bright colors on the earth. Lantern is the most notable part of the festival. Chinese craftsmen have made countless lanterns in different     7     (variety) such as Kongming lanterns, water lanterns. People used to join in lantern fairs in which they can watch lanterns, guess riddles and give their faithful prayers to decedents. In ancient China, unmarried woman couldn’t go out at will. Only at the lantern festival were they allowed     8     (go) to the lantern exhibition. That’s why ancient Chinese people considered the Lantern Festival as     9     occasion to look for a match or meet up with the beloved. Therefore, the lantern festival was     10     (actual) the real Chinese valentine’s day.