Yu Rong, a Chinese artist, thinks of a new way to introduce     1     ancient story of Hua Mulan in her picture book. In the book, I Am Hua Mulan, she tells the story by     2     (combine) Chinese paper-cutting with international artistic styles. She places Shaanxi papercuts over western-style pencil sketches (素描)    3     (create) typical presentation of Chineseelements (要素), which turns out to be a     4     (success) and impressive breakthrough.

Hua Mulan,     5     story has been told by generations in China, was a fighter from the Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534). As a devoted daughter, she dressed herself as a man to serve in the army     6     place of her father. Mulan’s character, such as courage, kindness and a disinterested attitude towards fame and fortune, made     7     (she) one of the most respected historical Chinese heroines. Mulan’s story has been adapted     8     (frequent) in modern media. For example, in 1998, Disney produced a film named Mulan, which     9     (consider) a great success by critics and the public right after its release.

To better tell the story, Yu Rong takes inspiration from her several     10     (visit) to sites of ancient battles and Henan Province’s Yu Opera. After years of preparation she finally makes this extraordinary work.

The Winter Solstice Festival (冬至) is one of the most important     1     (festival) celebrated by the Chinese on or around December 22. As early as 2,500 years ago, China determined the point of the Winter Solstice by     2     (observe) movements of the sun with a sundial (日晷).

The Winter Solstice became a festival during the Han Dynasty. The Han people     3     (regard) the Winter Solstice as a “Winter Festival”, so officials would organize activities. On this day, both officials and common people would have     4     rest. In the Tang and Song dynasties, the Winter Solstice was a day to offer sacrifices (供奉)     5     Heaven and ancestors. The Qing Dynasty even had the record that “the Winter Solstice is as formal as the Spring Festival,” showing the great     6     (important) attached to this day.

The Chinese often celebrate the Winter Solstice Festival together with     7     (they) families.     8     people eat generally depends on where they come from. In some parts of North China, people     9     (traditional) eat dumplings on this day, while in parts of South China, the whole family will get together to have a meal     10     (make) of red-bean and sticky rice to drive away bad things.

Chinese Herbal(草本的) Medicine

Genuine Chinese people have found thousands of plants and herbs associated with the     1    （treat）of diseases, so herbal medicine is really     2    large system. Doctors would analyze their nature or property such as “cold and hot” or “yin and yang”, use all sorts of raw     3    （material）, and mix them to cure disease. Thus it is also different from the western medicine.

About the classification, in the Compendium（纲）of Material Medical by Li Shizhen in the Tang Dynasty （618-907）, there are 1892 types     4    （record）. Today we can     5    （brief）divide them into roots, rhizome(根茎), leaf, flower, seeds, grass, vines（藤蔓）, and so on.

Of course these raw（生的） herbs cannot be eaten when put before you; they need your own hand to prepare.     6       patients take is decoction（煎汁）of the herbs.

The quality is concerned     7     the decocting jar, quantity of water, and the frequency of decoction. Doctors suggest that water amount       8    （control）according to the nature of absorbing. Because the herbs bought from the chemist’s are usually dry, most of     9     need to be immersed into the water for 1-3 hours before decocting. The effect after 2 or 3 times’ decoction is     10    （good） than once. The mount patients will take is about 200-300 mi for children and 400-600 ml for adults.

For those who just love to shop online, Nov 11. is the    1    (good) time of the year. Online group buying is quite popular    2    the young. The main reason is that things in this way are    3    (cheap) than those bought in usual stores. Then, it is convenient to     4    (make) orders and pay. Besides, it is a trend and young people love following trends.     5    , every coin has two sides. Online group buying has    6    (advantage). It is sometimes unsafe. One of my friends was     7    (cheat) once. He bought     8    MP4 on a group buying site. Several days passed, he still didn’t receive the MP4. He called to find out    9    the problem was, and found that the site was a trick. Therefore, we must be careful when    10    (do) such shopping. In addition, buy only what we need and never buy unnecessary things just because they are cheap.

Why do different people like different colors? The answer depends largely     1       cultural values. To the Egyptians, green is a color     2     stands for the hope and joy of spring, while for Muslims, it means heaven. Red is a symbol of good luck in many cultures. During the Spring Festival in China, children     3     (give) money in a red envelope to bring good fortune in the New Year. For many nations, blue is a symbol of protection and religious beliefs. Greek people often wear a blue necklace hoping to protect     4     (they) against evils.

People’s     5    (choose) of colors is also affected by their bodies’ reactions toward them. Green is said to be the most restful color. It has the ability to reduce pain and relax people both mentally     6     physically. When     7    (work) in green environment, people have fewer stomach aches. Red can make a person’s blood pressure     8    (rise) and increase people’s appetite. Many decorators will include different shades of red in the restaurant. And many commercial websites will have a red “Buy Now” button because red is a color that     9     (easy) catches a person’s eye. Unlike red, blue is believed to cause people to lose appetite. Therefore,     10     you want to eat less, eating from blue plates can help.

China to Promote Traditional Opera in Schools

China’s central government has promised to promote traditional opera in schools.

Primary schools, secondary schools, colleges     1     universities will give students the opportunity     2     (watch) traditional opera free of charge, according to a guideline jointly     3     (issue) by the publicity department of the Communist Party of China and the ministers of culture, education and finance. By 2018, students in all schools and colleges nationwide can watch     4     opera free of charge every year.

The campaign for traditional opera to reach students     5    (be) common in all schools in 2020, according to the guideline. The guideline also urges schools to strengthen the creation of opera interest group.     6     calls on the joint effort of the government, education, society and individuals to support the campaign. The guideline also encourages     7     (invest) from enterprises, social organizations and individuals. There are hundreds of forms of local opera in China,     8     Peking Opera the most famous. Peking Opera and Kunqu Opera     9     (list) by UNESCO as an intangible     10    (culture) heritage.