1 . There once lived a monster named Nian, who lived deep in the sea and climbed up to eat cattle and ______ people.

Then, one New Year’s Eve, the villagers were in a great ______ to run away. Some were closing windows and locking doors, some were ______ and others were driving cattle and sheep. There came a beggar (乞丐), saying “I’ll drive away the ______ .”

Around ______ Nian rushed into the village. He found the grandmother’s house was bright with red paper ______ on the doors. The monster gave a loud cry, looked ______ for a moment and went to the door. There suddenly came the sounds of explosions (爆炸). Shaking all over, the monster dared not take a step ______ . It turned out that the colour ______ flames and explosions were what Nian feared the most. The monster ran away quickly in the darkness. All the villagers felt ______ and came back to thank the beggar.

To ______ such good luck, the villagers put on their ______ clothes and hats and went to their relatives and friends to send their ______ and congratulations. These ______   have been passed down through the generations, which is the ______ of the Spring Festival.

2 . Confucius would be happy if he lived in the modern world. He would see his works and philosophies(哲学) still _______________ among teenagers even though they live in an_______________ of information.

In Changzhou No.2 Middle School, Jiangsu, all senior 3 students now_______________ a course in Lun Yu once a week. The school aims to improve students’ appreciation of the Confucian heritage(遗产)as well as_______________   Chinese civilization.

“Students’ attendance in this course will _______________   30 percent of their Chinese score on the final exam.This reward_______________ their interest in the course, which is _______________ but full of wisdom,” said Cao Yongzhong, a Chinese _______________ at the school.

_______________won’t be easy for students to enjoy The Analects(文选) of Confucius ________________ ancient Chinese as they________________   so many other subjects to learn and exams to ________________.

Cheng Yun,18, didn’t like the”additional burden”________________, but now it turns to be a course ________________ she looks forward to.

“I thought it would ________________ my time for homework, but it doesn’t.________________ sentences are short and concise(精练). I even use some of his wise   sayings in my compositions, ________________   makes my writing more attractive,” Cheng said. ________________ the fact that all students are required to learn some chapters of the book when in junior school, they may be ________________ young to understand the truths revealed(揭示)by Confucius.” Although I ________________ the language we use nowadays to Confucius, what the master said in the book does help me shape my personality.”said Zhang Junzhuo,18.

3 . “When I first started learning calligraphy, I just copied the teacher’s strokes (笔画), and my work was ugly.” said Aryan from Afghanistan. He is currently a graduate student in Beijing, ________ in International Education of the Chinese language.

During his six-year stay in China, he discovered the ________ of Chinese culture. He also realized that Chinese is steadily becoming a(n) ________ language, and more people around the world want to communicate smoothly with Chinese.

To his surprise, the curriculum for foreign students in China ________ the classroom. The school organizes extracurricular ________ to help them learn and experience ________ and culture. After closer and deeper ________ with Chinese culture, Aryan found his hobby: calligraphy.

“Initially, I didn’t know much Chinese and thought calligraphy would be difficult,” Aryan said.” Later on, I found out that calligraphy can help me ________ my Chinese language skills and my understanding of Chinese culture.

He used to ________ the idea that writing Chinese characters was all about writing them neatly. But he later found out that this view is ________.Calligraphy helps him to understand both each stroke and the Chinese ________ toward life. The horizontal, vertical (垂直的) and left and right falling stokes on the paper ________ Chinese people’s unique symbols and memories. They are also the hidden ________ to better understanding Chinese culture.

Not only did Aryan gain a deeper ________ of Chinese characters, but also developed a more mature personality along the way. Calligraphy gives him strength when he feels ________ and lost, finding his inner peace.

4 . Fan Jinshi, known as the “Daughter of Dunhuang”, has made protecting and researching Mogao Grottoes her lifelong passion.

In July 1963, shortly after graduating from Peking University, Fan made her way to Dunhuang without ______ to serve the nation. The living conditions there were extremely ______ with no fresh water or electricity, only oil lamps and earthen beds. Besides, she felt ______ as the newspapers were probably a month ago. The thought of leaving ______ through her mind, but seeing the ______ view in the caves, she took roots there.

To protect the treasure, Fan and her colleagues put doors on the caves, planted trees and started monitoring temperature in the caves. Mogao Grottoes took on a new look ______ their efforts.

In 1979, Mogao Grottoes were ______ opened to tourists. Since 2000, visits to Dunhuang have ______ for the extended holidays, causing some murals (壁画) to become seriously damaged or even disappear. Faced ______ this, Fan decided to take responsibility for the caves, striking a balance between heritage protection and ______ .She ______ the idea of digitizing Dunhuang to permanently preserve the murals, painted cultures and historical data. In 2016 Digital Dunhuang was ______ online, enabling people around the world to enjoy clear images of the caves. ______ , Fan actively promoted international exchanges and partnerships for the popularization of Mogao Grottoes.

In December 2018, Fan was awarded the ______ “Reform Pioneer” by the nation. This May, Fan donated 10 million yuan to Peking University to promote the study of Dunhuang. Now the 85-year-old Fan Jinshi is as busy as ______ , still toiling (辛苦) to conserve and manage the caves.

5 . Do you know Bing Dwen Dwen (冰墩墩) and Shuey Rhon Rhon (雪容融) ? They are two very cute cartoon mascots (吉祥物) of the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics and Paralympic Games (残奥会).

Bing Dwen Dwen is a cartoon image (形象) of a panda _________ a spacesuit. It looks like a winter sportsperson from the future. “Bing” has several meanings in Chinese, but the most _________ meaning is “ice”, _________ is a symbol of winter sports. The word also means purity (纯洁). “Dwen Dwen” _________ a healthy, strong, honest, lively and lovely image of a panda. “Bing Dwen Dwen” shows the spirit of the Olympics, _________ a strong mind and a healthy body. It _________ for winter sports, bringing happiness to those who watch the Winter Olympic Games and cheer up the sportspersons who _________ the games. Shuey Rhon Rhon is _________ in the shape the Chinese lantern. It really looks like a Chinese lantern. “Shuey” means snow in Chinese. “Rhon Rhon” are two different Chinese characters (字) with the same _________. Shuey Rhon Rhon means tolerance (包容) among different cultures. It is like a lantern which __________ the dreams of the disabled sportspersons who are all good at sports, especially winter sports such as skiing and ice skating.

Do you like the two cartoon mascots? Do you want to own them? Now they are popular all over the world and it’s not easy to buy them.

6 . It is just past five o’clock on the Chinese New Year’s Eve. The dinner table is already________with white china plates and bowls, full of all sorts of dishes. Luo Yan,________the cover of a large bowl to breathe in the________smell of the soup his wife and mother have prepared. His son, Bofeng, happily takes a________of the chicken his grandfather has already________for him.

Six-year-old Bofeng has not________his grandparents in person for almost a year, and he is full of joy and excitement.________, the whole family could not be happier to be together. Despite the________outside, their happy faces fill the air with warmth while merry________rings throughout the house. The young couple and their son have settled in the________city. Every year, they travel a long way back for the Spring Festival, for their________of “three generations under the same roof”.

After dinner, the whole family________around the television to watch the Spring Festival Gala, while eating snacks and________each other excitedly. In the warmth and________of the room, Luo Yan talks about his plan for the future. “I hope we won’t have to be separated again,” he says, looking at his ageing parents. “We’ll come back more ________. After all, home is where all family members are together.”

7 . I’ve had the good fortune of spending a lot of time working in London over the years. I’m a typical American, _________ to making eye contact and smiling when speaking to others. But until I spent time abroad, I was never quite _________ of what my facial expressions could convey.

In the UK, I _________ not everyone made as much eye contact on the street as I did. And it was _________ to hold eye contact during a business meeting. My _________ smile could be considered as flirtatious (轻浮的). But my British colleagues _________: I was American. This forward attitude was not _________, but it was just my culture. _________, being expressively cheerful among those who keep _________ closer to their vest (背心 ) was accepted in the UK.

____________, in other countries a cultural misunderstanding of smiling can have serious results. While it’s unlikely that a mistimed smile will ____________ you a contract (合同),____________ interactions can make it much more difficult to build effective business relationships.

Different cultures ____________ smiling in different ways. In Russia, people do not smile because it ____________ that you are at best foolish or at worst, sneaky (卑劣的). Even in family photos, adults ____________ with stony faces. In Japan, smiling is a way to ____________ your feeling that you don’t want others to know. Australians have smiling cultures. While they might not have the same ____________ for giant white smiles as Americans, they smile more than our peers in Russia, Japan, Switzerland, and the UK.

If Americans have to work abroad, my ____________ is to make sure you do some research. It is ____________ to be yourself, but you should also learn about the culture you are going to visit. This will help you communicate ____________ and effectively with your peers.

8 . On Christmas Day in 2012, when I was fourteen, I didn’t get a single Christmas present. That wasn’t a _________. It was what I had _________. A week before Christmas, I decided that _________ presents, I wanted donations to buy presents for the children in the local orphanage (孤儿院).

When I told my family and friends about my plan, there were a lot of _________ but also support. However, it was only on Christmas Day that the reality hit me. When my baby sisters jumped out of bed, singing carols and opening presents, I lay there feeling _________ and making a list of all the things I really wanted for Christmas that year. I realized I had made a huge mistake.

As I _________ on the door of the orphanage that morning, I felt _________ because I realized how unprepared I was for what was _________. I even had the _________ of dropping the bags of presents outside the orphanage and________. I almost did, but then a kind woman opened the door and smiled when she __________ me in. I was taken to a room full of children, and was __________ angry at how empty it felt. I wanted the room to be filled with __________instead of fear. I wanted to make these children smile but I was __________.

But then something happened. As the workers in the orphanage __________ presents, the __________ in the room changed. I could see the __________ in the eyes of the children and their bodies filled with hope. I __________ feeling so powerless. A little girl, Diana, ran up to me and __________ my legs. I didn’t know I was crying __________ she asked me, “Auntie, why are you crying?” This only made me cry more.

9 . When I was growing up in Massachusetts, Thankgiving was always a time for family. When I moved 2,200 miles away from home to Austin, Texas after graduating from college, I still wanted to ________ the tradition of gathering with my family.________， I didn’t think flying home for Thanksgiving was wise because it cost much. It was not________that my entire family got on a plane to________me, either.

Friendsgiving was the________. My first Thanksgiving away from home came shortly after I moved, so I didn’t have many________ in the area. By my second Thanksgiving, I had more friends and was________with others who were far from home for the holiday. It was the perfect ________ to start to host my first Friendsgiving!

Everyone________the meal in some way. It not only cut down on the work I had to do as a(n)________, but it was also a chance for people to share their family ________during the festival with everyone else. Allowing everyone to donate also meant we could ________new things.

Since the start, I’ve hosted Friendsgiving twice and ________two others as a guest. Some people________each year, while others move away or head home for a change. Celebrations also change every time. Those unexpected ________year after year are ________one reason for my love for Friendsgiving. And some people at the Friendsgiving seem like family members for me.

I’ll probably ________live in the same area as my biological family again, but that doesn’t mean I can’t celebrate Thanksgiving with my ________family. Friendsgiving makes me feel grateful for the life I’ve________in a new place. And my new city is gradually becoming my new ________