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 . The Mid-Autumn Day is a happy time for a family reunion (团聚). But it was a different________after my parents and I came to America. I remember the first Mid-Autumn Day we spent here.

On that morning, I smiled seeing mooncakes on the table. But then I________I had classes at 1:50 pm and felt________. You see, there’s a________in China for this special day but not in America. Noticing my upset, Mom tried to comfort me, “We have duck at lunch, your favorite.________?” The duck cheered me up. We had a delicious lunch, but before we________it was time for class. I had to put down my________and sat before my computer. I couldn’t help________that my Mid-Autumn Day was like this — having online classes with lunch half-eaten. I would never________this in the past.

At the Mid-Autumn Gala (联欢会), the scene (场景) of a family having dinner together made me________. I really missed my grandparents. Although we had________them in the day, it was different from a reunion. How regretful we couldn’t________!

At midnight, I got lost in thought. The day is so important that I felt upset without a good________. But on second thoughts, although the holiday________, the moon was still full.________, although in different countries, all hearts of my family were connected. Realizing this made me filled with warmth.

5 . A committee was__________to limit damage to the Egyptian buildings and prevent the loss of ________ relics. The group asked for_________ from different departments and raised funds _________ the international community. Experts investigated the issue, conducted several tests, and then_________a proposal for _________ the buildings could be_________. Finally, a document was_________, and the work began _________ 1960. The project_________   together governments and environmentalists from around_________ world. Temples and other cultural sites were taken _________piece by piece, _________ then moved and put back together again in a place _______ they were safe from the water. In 1961, German engineers moved the _________ temple. Over the next 20 years, thousands of engineers and workers rescued 22 temples and countless cultural relics. Fifty countries donated nearly $80 million to the project.

6 . Spring Festival means a lot for Chinese people. However, given the sporadic COVID-19 outbreaks in different places, many cities ________ residents in any city with confirmed COVID-19 cases not to travel during the holiday in order to prevent any more outbreaks. ________, I stayed in Beijing during the Spring Festival of 2022. It was my first Spring Festival in China. I ________ it with my Chinese friends.

Several of Ralph’s coworkers came to our apartment to have ________ with me. They brought the meat and dough (面团) to make the ________ dumplings. While I was not ________ in making them, I certainly did enjoy eating them. As soon as all the food was ready, we ________ to enjoy the delicious foods.

Linda brought me Spring Festival couplets ________ good wishes and asked me to paste them on the door. Scott ________ me with many firecrackers. Some students gave me paper cuts to ________ my windows.

Eric invited me to ________ his family to spend New Year’s Eve together. Among the many ________ at dinner, they served a ________ fish. However, I was told we would only be eating half the fish that night because the ________ of it would be eaten the next day. This was done to ________ the good fortune over into the following year since leftovers are thought to be a ________ of prosperity. After dinner, we watched the Spring Festival Gala together. A martial art performance ________ me deeply. The show entitled “Walking Clouds, Flowing Water” starred three tai chi ________ practicing their moves on top of landmark buildings in three cities: Shanghai, Chongqing and Guangzhou of Guangdong province, which was amazing. I went to my ________ at midnight.

It was a very happy time and we have many good ________ of this festival holiday.