Ramie (苎麻), the main clothing material for Chinese people since ancient times, is also known as   “Chinese grass” in the world. The ramie output in China accounts for more than 90%     1     of the world. The linen (亚麻布) woven with ramie is     2    (consequence) called “Grass Cloth (夏布)”. Since ramie raw material has a thick gum and is irregular in texture, each step of procedure is purely manual. In that case, the weavers should complete more than a dozen steps     3     they finish making the clothes.

Rongchang, located in Chongqing, China, is considered as “Hometown of Grass Cloth”. Right now, in the spacious exhibition hall     4    (place) ancient pure wooden looms (织布机), along with many grass cloth products, all looking so dazzling     5     the eyes.

In old times, on a farmhouse engaged in the production of grass cloth, you could always see a busy scene     6     workers rinsed (清洗) the thin fibers between the ramie skin and the straw, and got the ramie silk as the raw material of grass cloth. Today, only some farmers in Rongchang are making grass cloth, most of them     7    (work) in family-run workshops.

Huang Xiuying,     8     only seventh-generation inheritor of the family business, has carried out bold     9     (innovate), integrating the aesthetics of the times, and using popular art design and cultural packaging     10    (give) grass cloth more sense of the times.

As the temperature continues to drop, the golden autumn seems to be coming to an end, indicating the     1    (arrive) of the Cold Dew period. Cold Dew, known as “Hanlu” in Chinese,    2     (fall) on October 8 and ends on October 23 this year.

During Cold Dew, temperatures drop     3    (significant) and the sun cannot reach the deep waters thoroughly. Therefore, fish swim in shallow waters,     4    the water temperature is relatively high, making Cold Dew the best season to cast a net or throw a line.

Chrysanthemums (菊花) are the symbolic flower of Cold Dew.     5    (prevent) autumn dryness, many regions in China have the custom of drinking chrysanthemum wine. In ancient times, drinking wine made with chrysanthemums    6    (think) to allow people long-lasting youth.

Other traditions to mark the season include hiking and climbing. With maple (枫树) leaves     7     (turn) red, the splendour of color welcomes nature lovers. On the day of the Double Ninth Festival, which often is around Cold Dew, people often climb hills with cornels (茱萸),    8     kind of plant. This custom, dating    9    the Eastern Han Dynasty (AD 25-220), aims to drive bad things away.

Cold Dew allows us to say goodbye to golden autumn with delicate design, and also gives us a chance to know     10     (much) about the culture behind the solar terms.

Every day at 9 am, Zhang Canjin, 58, comes to Drum Tower Street in Ningbo and walks into a small house     1     less than 10 square meters. Settling himself     2     (comfortable) in his usual chair, the inheritor of copper coin knitting starts his day.

In ancient times, copper coins     3     (represent) fortune and wealth. Linking copper coins one by one had the positive meaning of accumulating wealth. In 2018, copper coin knitting was listed as     4     intangible cultural heritage.

Zhang learned the skill from his dad     5     young. There weren’t that many ideas back then, just traditional ones like Chinese knots and swords. But this didn’t satisfy Zhang as he gradually mastered the skill. “Knitting the coins into different shapes doesn’t sound difficult, but the essence is     6     (think) big and be creative.” Zhang said.

Since starting his copper coin knitting store in 2014, Zhang     7     (spare) no effort in thinking big. To attract public attention and better promote the skill, Zhang spent two months crafting armor (铠甲) using over 8,000 coins,    8     (tailor) to his own body proportions, in2017. He then applied for a national patent following the work’s     9     (complete).

This success gave him more confidence to continue with his work. Even now, Zhang uses his we alth of creative ideas to make more copper coin products and shares the skill with a    10     (wide) audience.

Kaifeng, Tianjin and Weifang     1     (say) to be the top 3 traditional homes of Chinese kites. As an art, Chinese kites have developed for all time along the long history of local     2     (culture) traditions.

Weifang is a city of Shandong Province. It’s known     3     the “world kite capital”   because of its famous, well-made kites that/which are painted beautifully and fly perfectly. Weifang kites fully show general custom. Kite art has used     4     (method), skills and bright color style from this traditional Chinese painting. It     5     (become) one of the important kinds of Chinese kites.

The cool facts of Tianjin kites are the manners of the organization and connection and     6     (especial) the using of bright colors. Built on traditional Spring Festival wood block print in Yangliuqing, Tianjin kites try to be unusual,     7     (hope) to find something new in design and painting.

As one of the most ancient capitals in China, Kaifeng has    8     long history of kite making as well. In Kaifeng, during Qing Ming Festival, local people fly kites. When the kite fly up, they cut the kite line on purpose to let the kite go with the wind,     9     means letting go of all the stress and     10    (sad) from the past year, so as not to get sick in a coming year.

China State Railway Group Co., Ltd. (China Railway) said on Saturday that     1     sold 22.88 million train tickets on Friday,     2     (set) a new record for single-day ticket sales. Of the total, 20.95 million train tickets     3     (sell) on China’s official railway ticket-booking website.

Friday marks the presale of train tickets for the first day of the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays,     4     extend from Sept 29 to Oct 6 this year.

Ticket sales volumes reflect the travel demands of the people and the trends in economic and social development, said     5     official of China Railway, adding that the record-breaking ticket sales     6     Sept 15 are indicative of the strong demand for travel during the upcoming Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day “golden week” holiday.

China     7     (expect) to see 190 million railway     8     (trip) during the upcoming 12-day travel rush, which will last from Sept 27 to Oct 8. The Mid-Autumn Festival, falling on Sept 29 this year, is a     9     (tradition) Chinese Festival usually     10     (mark) by family reunions, watching the full moon and eating mooncakes.

The opening ceremony of the 19th Asian Games    1     (take) place at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center Stadium in Hangzhou, East China’s Zhejiang province    2     Saturday evening.

The ceremony    3     (theme) “Memories of Jiangnan” used the element of water    4     (showcase) the region’s natural beauty and cultural charm,     5     was a feast for the senses with stunning visuals.

During the parade, images of West Lake were projected (投射) onto the floor screen,     6     (allow) athletes and spectators to enjoy the city’s picturesque scenery in an immersive way. The     7     (enter) of the Chinese team was accompanied by a breathtaking visual representation of the motherland’s mountains and rivers. Also, netizens     8     (fascinate) by the display of oriental东方的aesthetics美学, strength of technology and warmth of art.

The opening ceremony    9     (definite) boasted many historic firsts. Not only did it break new ground in terms of technology using digital ignition (点火) for the first time, but also drew inspiration from    10     (tradition) culture, combining Hangzhou charm and Chinese elements.