As a game of     1     (wise), Go is a legacy of traditional Chinese arts, considered one of the most important qualities of ancient Chinese literati (文人学士).

Appearing over 4,000 years ago in ancient China, Go was first introduced into Japan during the Sui and Tang Dynasties and into Europe in the 19th century. To date, it     2     (spread) to more than 40 countries.

The traditional game of Go also boasts a number of legends about its origin. It’s said that Emperor Yao became very disheartened when his son behaved     3     (bad). So Yao made the game of Go     4     (cultivate) him morally and intellectually.

It is     5    exciting and intense game and the situation on the board keeps changing and unpredictable. Players have to turn to all sorts of tactics in order to defeat their opponents.

Wu Qingyuan, a Chinese Go legend,     6     (regard) as the greatest Go player ever, once said, “Although Go is a     7     (compete) game, winning should never be seen as the final goal. It will teach you to think through things     8     to remain calm in the face of defeat”.

Go can take     9     other meanings to its players: a mirror of one’s personality, a mental “workout” and a beautiful art in     10     black and white pieces dance in balance across the board. Therefore, Go has become more and more popular among young people.

A piece of fossil sponge (海绵) that formed during the early Cambrian period was recently discovered in Changde, Hunan Province.

The     1     (discover) fossil sponge can date back to 540 million years ago. It ranges around 4 centimeters in     2     (high) and 3.5 centimeters in width. Paleontologist (古生物学家) Zou Hesi told the Global Times that the size is giant for a sponge from that period of time.

“Sponges become bigger and bigger over time; another fossil piece     3     (date) back to around 300 million years ago was also recently discovered in Ireland, for example. It was about 50 centimeters,” Zou told the Global Times. Found near the Cliffs of Moher, the piece     4     (name) as “Cyathophycus balori”. It is so far the largest known fossil sponge in the world.

    5     4-centimeter Chinese piece was unearthed     6     (unexpected) during a field survey that local researchers were conducting in the Taoyuan District, Changde. Tong Guanghui, a research fellow at the Hunan Museum of Geology,     7     (tell) the media that the team found a piece of rock on their way     8     research destination in the town of Sanyanggang.

“So we stopped, and used a geological hammer     9     (examine) the piece. It was unearthed in such a complete condition,     10     made us all thrilled about the discovery,” said Tong.

The 38th Qinhuai Lantern Festival Lights Up China

On the evening of February 2, the 2024 “Light Up China” event, the 38th annual China Qinhuai Lantern Festival lighting ceremony,     1    (begin) at the Bailuzhou Park in Nanjing, Jiangsu province. The Qinhuai Lantern Festival,     2     is also known as the “Jinling Lantern Festival”, is a folk cultural activity spread in Nanjing in history. It is usually held during the Spring Festival to the Lantern Festival every year. It is the most famous lantern festival in China and it is included in the national intangible cultural heritage list.

With the Bailuzhou Park, the Confucius Temple Scenic Area and the Laomendong District serving     3     main display venues, this year’s Qinhuai Lantern Fair has set up 7 exhibition areas with 330 lantern installations.

    4    (compare) to previous years’ lantern festivals, one of the major highlights this year is the remarkable “the Year of the Dragon” theme. For instance, at the front of the Linxing Gate of the Confucius Temple in Nanjing, the lantern display features twin dragons winding around pillars, blowing out dragon pearls, symbolizing auspiciousness (吉祥) and reunion. Meanwhile, the Bailuzhou Park takes     5    (inspire) from the “Illustration of Lanterns in the Shangyuan Festival” as its creative theme, showing     6     total of 68 sets of lanterns in various sizes and forms, recreating the splendid scene of observing lanterns during the Ming dynasty as described in the ancient artworks.

The Lantern Festival in Nanjing this year not only celebrates the traditional customs of the Lunar New Year but also highlights the city’s cultural heritage and     7    (innovation) spirit, drawing visitors from across the nation     8    (participate) in the joyous celebrations.

A local elderly person said to a news reporter     9    (proud), “It has the reputation of No. 1 Lantern Festival in the world and the Qinhuai Lantern Festival     10    (be) the best in the world. It is the only large-scale comprehensive lantern festival in China that integrates lantern exhibitions, lantern festivals and lantern markets.”

Chinese feature film Beyond the Clouds has touched a lot of moviegoers with its     1     (move) story of heroic rural school teacher Zhang Guimei. The production team of the movie told the Global Times that they hoped Zhang’s noble spirit and faith in education could     2     (convey) to the world.

Moviegoers praised the film Beyond the Clouds     3     (adapt) from the remarkable life of Zhang, who founded China’s first free all-girls high school in Huaping County, Southwest China’s Yunnan Province and     4     (help) over 1,800 poor girls head out of the mountains and realize their dreams of going to college.

As head of the school,     5     (visit) over 1,300 families in poverty, Zhang has traveled over 100,000 kilometers, earning her the title of “Outstanding Chinese Principal”. “Principal Zhang always thinks long-term and attaches great     6     (significant) to protecting girls’ privacy and dignity. She has devoted all her energy     7     the students. She’s a selfless     8     great person,” Yang Jin, one of the film’s directors, told the Global Times.

The film’s title     9     (actual) comes from the pledge (誓言) of the high school, “I was born beyond the clouds, not underneath a stream, and I desire to glare down upon the mediocrity (平庸) of canyons (峡谷) from the summit of the peaks.” “We expect children to see the film,     10     tells them that they need to overcome difficulties to climb up to the summit of the high mountain,” Yang said.

Dunhuang, an oasis (绿洲) in the Taklamakan Desert, used to be a major stop along the Silk Road, but is now mainly a fascinating tourist destination.

Those interested     1     Dunhuang’s colorful history will be attracted by the Mogao Caves, one of the city’s main attractions. The entrance to each cave     2     (block) by a locked door, which can only be opened by expert guides. Behind these doors are caves of all     3     (size) — from very small to absolutely huge. The caves contain thousands of priceless manuscripts and silk paintings, which, upon their discovery, drew much     4     (attend) to the area.

Also, there are few things as special as walking across the desert oasis at sunrise.     5     (catch) this incredible scene, you must rise early. It’s bitterly cold. But as the sun rises atop the golden dunes (沙丘) and paints a     6     (true) picturesque scene, all your efforts pay off. Sunset is a popular time for a camel ride. Get off the camels     7     walk up a rather steep dune overlooking Crescent Lake. From this position,     8     (regard) as the best one, the incredible sunset is awe-inspiring.

No trip to Dunhuang is complete without visiting the Dunhuang Museum,     9     it’s possible to put all of the city’s historical sites into proper historical context. The museum is expansive,     10     (contain) many original artworks. Here, you are bound to be amazed by Dunhuang’s rich culture.

7 . 阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。

In recent years, Chinese consumers’ sense of identification and     1     (proud) with traditional culture has been growing, leading them to prefer products with cultural heritage and significance. Mamianqun, traditionally     2     (wear) by the Han people, is one of the main representative styles of Hanfu.

During the just-ended Spring Festival holidays, Chinese people wearing traditional clothing can almost     3     (see) everywhere, reflecting the revival of China’s rich culture and serving as a strong new driver for retail spending.     4    , few people know that the     5     (large) Hanfu production base in China is Caoxian County.

Caoxian started to produce Hanfu in 2018 and benefited a lot from the growth of e-commerce. Today, Caoxian accounts     6     40 percent of Hanfu sales nationwide. In 2023, sales of Hanfu in the county     7     (reach) 7 billion yuan.

Caoxian is     8     (current) home to 2,282 companies related to the Hanfu business and 13,989 online Hanfu stores. Meanwhile, close to 100,000 people are involved in the Hanfu industry. It has developed     9     complete Hanfu industrial chain including original research and development, design, production, copyright protection, and other     10     (aspect).

China is known as Xia for its grand etiquette (礼仪) culture, and known as Hua for its beautiful attire (衣裳). With the     1     (change) in society, economic development, and cultural development, clothing has evolved over thousands of years. However, while the forms may have been changed, the essence (本质)     2     (remain) constant.

“In ancient China, emperors like Huangdi. Yao, and Shun brought peace to the world through their clothing.” Clothing holds     3     significant place in Chinese culture. It is not only used for daily wear,     4     (cover) the body and protect it from cold but also as an instrument of management. In ancient Chinese society, there were strict rules and dress codes about clothing. The presence of clothing distinguished civilization     5     barbarism (野蛮), while changes in color and style     6     (gradual) developed into a form of etiquette. Their design conveyed behavioral norms and     7     (they) patterns were rich in cultural significance. Moreover, ancient attire were also an important carrier of morality. China has always been known as a nation     8     values formal attire and etiquette.

What is the Chinese style? It is something that makes people think of China as soon as they see it. For example, the horse-face skirt, which     9     (favor) by international brands and Chinese people for many years, will continue to be attractive. Chinese clothing, as a classical style. has been known to the world overnight with good opportunities. It’s not just a traditional costume style but also a source of     10     (admire).

A brief meeting about the “China-France Year of Culture and Tourism in 2024” was held at the Palace Museum in Beijing on Thursday,     1     has released a variety of upcoming activities featuring cultural legacy and arts.

2024 marks    2    60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and France. The meeting’s place, the Palace Museum, was chosen for a reason. Starting from April 1, an art show co-planned by the Palace Museum     3    the Palace of Versailles (凡尔赛宫) in Paris, will debut (首次亮相) on site. A pocket watch that once     4     (witness) the friendship between France’s King Louis XIV and the Emperor Kangxi of China’s Qing Dynasty will     5     (display) among 181 other items.

The rare objects will introduce visitors       6       the cultural interactions that took place between the two countries       7     (date)back to the second half of the 17th century through the 18th century.

Compared to       8     (field) such as painting, music and film, “cultural legacy” is a rather novel field in China-France cooperative exchanges.       9     (they) efforts in areas like legacy conservation will inspire the world to see how the growth of humanity is independent from different cultural contexts.

Besides shows in China, more than 10 programs will be       10     (specific) launched in France to bring Chinese culture to locals in 2024. More than 20 Tang Dynasty treasures will be selected and then exhibited at the Guimet Museum in France in November.