Born and raised in a village in Hunan province, Liu Dai’e     1     (introduce) a new technique to the traditional craft of Tujia brocade (锦缎) weaving over the past two years, which in 2006 was named as a national intangible cultural heritage.

Made by skilled weavers and     2     (involve) more than 10 processes, Tujia brocade features over 200classic designs.

Liu, who is     3     her 60s, said: “Only one side of these traditional products is woven with patterns, while     4     other side is left rough. It took me seven years to master the technique of presenting distinctive Tujia     5     (element) on both sides to my complete     6     (satisfy).”

As a national inheritor of the craft, Liu said, “Handwork is present throughout the entire process, and     7     (produce) designs that are more delicate than others, I use one shuttle line, instead of two.”

In 1986, Liu launched a Tujia brocade business with her sisters. She sensed the way in     8     the local brocade industry needed to develop, and took     9     to a high-end customized market. After that, Liu became     10     (intense) aware of the popularity of products featuring traditional designs made from materials such as silk and wool.

Shu embroidery (刺绣), also     1     (call) “Chuan embroidery”, is one of the four famous embroidery     2    (style) in China.

It     3     (enjoy) a high reputation as “a treasure of Sichuan” ever since the Han Dynasty. The technique of Shu embroidery reached     4     (it) peak during the Song Dynasty. In the Qing Dynasty, many embroidery workshops were set up.

After     5     founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949, Shu embroidery technique was     6     (great) improved and it developed various new kinds. Shu embroidery is famous     7     its superb workmanship, smooth and bright in quality. It has strong expression and artistic effect. The features     8     (say) to be fine and smooth needlework, simple and elegant colors, graceful and easy lines and the traditional Chinese paintings’ style. The needling characteristics lie in the even stitches (针法), bright threads, closeness     9     softness in quality. The embroidery takes locally-produced colorful cloth and threads as the materials.

The unique designs on Shu embroidery include flowers, birds, landscapes, fish, and human figures. Relevant products include curtains, wedding dresses, skirts, bedding and so on. It mainly employs the themes of     10     (happy).

Qingtuan, or sweet green rice balls, is     1     typical and popular Qingming Festival (Tomb Sweeping Day ) food in China’s eastern provinces.

Qingtuan     2     (make) of a mixture of glutinous (黏的) rice flour and green plant juice, and stuffed with sweetened bean paste. A green plant called mugwort, or “Ai Cao” in Chinese, is     3     brings the color to the delicacy. This time of year is when the plant has just jumped out of the earth and is at its     4     (fine).

With some soda     5     (add) to the water, the plant is boiled into a state of paste. Normal rice flour is mixed into glutinous rice flour to make the rice ball sticky,     6     not too soft to be shaped. Next, the liquid is poured into the powder. This rice dough is then kneaded (揉) into little green balls.

The green rice balls can have various fillings, most traditionally being sesame (芝麻) or bean paste. But nowadays some people also make     7     (one) filled with pork meat, pickled vegetables and bamboo shoots.

    8     (date) back to the Tang dynasty, the sweet green rice balls have been around for some 1000 years.     9     (original) a food to sacrifice to ancestors, they have gradually become a dish of the season. For people who leave their hometowns for work elsewhere, the sweet green rice balls are a delicacy reminding them     10     home.

As a distinctive visual art symbol of China, Chinese paper cutting, has been around for centuries. With     1     (simple) a piece of paper and a pair of scissors, diverse patterns ranging from portraits to animal zodiacs     2     (create) with delicate designs.

Due to their     3     (culture) value and low cost, Chinese paper cut-outs are popular ornaments used to decorate windows and mirrors. When light shines through the negative spaces of the cut-outs,     4     elegant pattern is formed indoors.     5     (refer) to as ‘window flowers’, the pretty cut-outs decorating windows are significant in Chinese traditional culture.

The oldest     6     (survive) paper cut-out is a symmetrical (对称的) circle from the 6th century found in Xinjiang, China. The art of Chinese paper cutting is believed     7     (originate) in China even before the invention of paper by Cai Lun in 105 CE. There have been documentaries     8     record the Chinese using other thin materials such as leaves, silk, and leather to carve hollowed patterns. It was found that during the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 BC), people had already cut tree leaves into various art forms     9     given them out as presents. They created paper-cuts to depict beautiful things, worship, and express good     10     (wish) .

Since its first appearance in Paris in mid-December, the Yuyuan Garden Lantern Show     1     (attract) huge crowds to admire its fine designs and     2     (color) lights during the cold winter nights at the 163-year-old Jardin d’Acclimatation amusement park.

It is the first time that the lantern show,     3     national intangible cultural heritage (非物质文化遗产) item in Shanghai, has been held outside China.

The show, which opened on Dec.15 in Paris at the same time as the one that opened in Shanghai’s Yuyuan Garden,     4     (be) among events celebrating the     5     (sixty) anniversary of the establishment of China-France diplomatic relations. It also welcomes the China-France Year of Culture and Tourism. The show will run through Feb. 25.

According to the event’s organizer Yuyuan Inc., 3,000 online tickets     6     (buy) up in a day, with additional ones being sold in-person.

At the brightly lit double dragon-shaped gate, long lines     7     visitors can be seen at the entrance.

    8     (theme) on “Classic of Mountains and Seas”,     9     shares the name of the ancient Chinese mythology (神话) Shan Hai Jing, the event comprises 60 large Chinese lantern sets and 2,000 traditional lanterns,     10     (allow) visitors to appreciate the breathtaking art of Chinese lanterns and broader Chinese culture.

Two things are unique about 2024. First, it’s a leap year, and second, it has     1     same calendar as 1996. This has made 1996 calendars a hot item on websites like eBay,     2    some are sold for almost $200. On certain Chinese online platforms, the keywords “1996 calendar” have surged to the top of the search rankings,     3    (result) in a significant increase in the prices of these special vintage calendars.

In this wave of discussions about calendars, some netizens also asked, “Are there still people using paper calendars currently?” Regarding this, some netizens said, “Although everyone now uses electronic     4    (product), just like some people love to collect stamps, there are also many people who have a hobby of collecting old calendars.” “Anyway, I buy a calendar every New Year.”

A netizen exclaims, “When     5    (use) a paper calendar, one can better experience the     6    (pass) of time from brand new to gradually turning yellow calendar pages, and also each important day     7    (mark). This is the time I have experienced.”

It is not unusual for leap year calendars to be     8    (entire) identical. Every 28-year cycle, leap year calendars will be precisely the same. Are you wondering when your 2024 calendar will repeat? You can reuse it in 2052.Netizens immediately subscribed     9    the view     10     it will be a “business opportunity,” suggesting “Let’s stockpile this year’s calendars and sell them online for a good price in 2052!”

“This year should see greater efforts to enhance cultural heritage,” said participants at a national conference attended by sector officials. The conference,     1     (hold) in Beijing on Friday and Saturday, summarized the work of cultural heritage authorities over the last year, and pointed out key     2     (task) for the coming 12 months.

“Major progress     3     (make) in the cultural heritage field last year,” said Li Qun, director of the National Cultural Heritage Administration.

“The level of cultural heritage protection and     4     (manage) has achieved significant improvement,     5     (promote) the preservation of cultural relics and protection of their security,” said officials. Moreover, they have deepened major archaeological studies, increased cultural heritage exchange and cooperation, established     6     sound modern museum system, and promoted technological innovations in this field.

They hope to promote the rule of law     7     (protect) cultural heritage better, promote major archaeological studies and increase communication in archaeology     8     Chinese scholars and their overseas counterparts.

A highlight of work in the last year is the start of the fourth national census of cultural relics,     9     continues to be carried out     10     (intensive).