Chinese weddings are as much about the happy couples as they are about their families. The weddings are     1     (impress) affairs that focus on blessings of happiness. The date of the wedding ceremony is chosen not     2     chance. Many couples carefully choose a favorable date     3     (bring) success to their marriage. The ceremony can last anywhere from four hours to three days,     4     depends on how many Chinese wedding traditions are observed.

The Chinese wedding invitation is     5     (typical) red with a golden Double Happiness symbol, with dates for the wedding and names of the couple     6     (include) inside.

While Chinese wedding traditions have modernized, the journey to pick up the bride     7     (be) still a lively affair. It can involve     8     use of firecrackers, playing drums, or even a lion dance.

Another vital tradition, the Chinese tea ceremony (Jing Cha),     9     (perform) at Chinese weddings to show the new couple’s respect, gratitude, and     10     (appreciate) for their parents’ love and effort in raising them. A red tea set with a Double Happiness symbol is used for the tea ceremony.

It’s really true    1    people say about English politeness: it’s everywhere. When squeezing past someone or passing through a crowd in a narrow place, people say “sorry”. When    2    (get) off a bus, English passengers say “thank you” rather than the driver. In Germany, people would never do these things.     3    all, squeezing past others is sometimes unavoidable, and the bus driver is only doing his job.

People thank each other everywhere in England all the time. When people buy something in a shop, customers and shop    4    (assist) in most cases thank each other twice or more. In Germany, it would be    5    (surprise) to hear more than one thank you in such a conversation. English employers thank their employees for doing their jobs,    6     is different from Germans, who would     7    (normal) think that paying their workers money is already enough.

Another thing I observed during my stay was that English people rarely criticize others. Even when I was working and mistakes    8    (point) out to me, my employers repeated several times but none of their explanations were intended as scolding me. It has been my impression that    9    avoiding scolding, English people are making an effort to make others feel     10    (comfort).

The first UN Chinese Language Day at the United Nations     1     (observe) on Friday at UN Headquarters in New York in 2010.    2     the world’s most widely spoken language, it seems appropriate that Mandarin (普通话) has one day every year dedicated (把……专用于) to it. This     3     (official) marked day of Mandarin language celebration was set by the United Nations as a way of celebrating the language’s history and     4     (contribute) to the world. It is hoped that having one day every year     5     (celebrate) Mandarin will encourage more people around the world to take it up. With China likely to become the     6     (large) economy in the world, it is important that the wider world becomes interestingly more perfect in this wonderful language. Every year UN Chinese Language Day     7     (fall) on April 20.A great way to get     8     (involve) in the celebration is to join a Mandarin class or attend one of the many Confucius Institutes (孔子学院)     9     are set up by China in countries around the world. The number of people learning Chinese is on     10     increase in China’s neighboring countries, such as Korea, Japan, and Vietnam.

By the Shang Dynasty (around 1600-1046 BCE), these symbols     1     (become) a well-developed writing system. Over the years, the system developed into different forms, as it was a time     2     people were divided geographically,     3     (lead) to many varieties of dialects and characters. This,     4    , changed under Emperor Qinshihuang of the Qin Dynasty (221-207 BCE).

What is it like to live in a cave once inhabited(居住)by ancient civilizations? Zhang Youbin and his wife have the answer．

Zhang is from     1     village in Guizhou Province．The local government entrusts him and his wife with the care of ancient Hongyan cliff paintings(岩画)，    2     decorate the cave located deep in mountains．

The cliff paintings，first     3     (find) in 1991，have a history of over 6，000 years. Most patterns have become unclear over the years．Those still recognizable show cows，palm prints，pigs and people．Experts say the paintings are very specific     4     have high artistic value.

In 2015，the couple settled there     5     (protect) the paintings．Back then，the road leading to the site was extremely narrow and dangerous in some sections．So Zhang was determined to widen the road．It     6     (take) him two months to dig and build the roadbed with stones．“The road is now much     7     (easy)for people to walk on,”he said．

The couple’s major     8    (responsible)is preventing those without authorization from entering the protected area in case the paintings are damaged．To save their commuting(往返)time，the couple established a temporary home in a cave near the paintings．

Having spent six years guarding the paintings, Zhang is very familiar     9     them．“I know the exact location and every detail of each painting．They are our cultural treasures and I feel greatly honored to protect them,”he said     10     (proud)．

More and more     1    (ambition) parents in the world are signing their children up for Chinese classes. Keen for their children to succeed in life, they see     2     (be) fluent in a second or third language as an advantage. In the USA, twice as many primary and middle school students took Chinese in 2017,     3    (compare) to 2015. In France, the number of students learning Chinese in the same age group     4     (increase) by 400% between 2007 and 2017. And an estimated 100 million foreigners are now learning Chinese, up from 30 million in 2004.

It is easy to understand     5     Chinese is becoming so popular. Learning Chinese may help people get more job opportunities. For example, there is China’s Belt and Road Initiative,     6     motivates many countries along the Silk Road to cooperate more closely. It has created thousands of local jobs for people with     7     knowledge of Chinese. Another reason is that studying Chinese provides access     8     the wonderful Chinese history and culture. Adam Turner, a school head teacher in the U.K., cites this as one appealing aspect of the     9     (recent) added Chinese course. “Learning Chinese can     10     (broad) the students’ minds to the outside world and help them see life from a new perspective,” he explains.

John Snow was a well-known doctor in London in the 16^th century. He marked on a map     1     all the dead people had lived and he found that many people who     2    (drink) the dirty pump water     3    (carry) the germs. He suggested that the source of all water supplies     4    (examine) and new methods of    5    (deal) with polluted water be found. Finally, “King Cholera” was defeated.