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 Duanwu Festival, also     1     (name) the Dragon Boat Festival, was established    2     memory of Qu Yuan, a patriotic poet of the state of Chu during the Warring States period (475—221BC).

Qu Yuan,     3     died by committing suicide in the Miluo River, was known as a great patriot. Shortly after he died, the local people     4     (throw) food into the water to stop the fish from eating Qu Yuan’s body. They also sat on long, narrow paddle boats, known as dragon boats, making sound     5     (scare) away the fish.

    6     (tradition) celebrations of the Dragon Boat Festival include eating zongzi, drinking realgar (雄黄) wine, and     7     (race) dragon boats.

You don’t have to live in China long to know that     8     country’s most popular foods usually have a good story behind them. That’s     9     (particular) true of festival foods such as zongzi, the pyramid-shaped steamed rice packages in bamboo or reed leaves that have been associated with the Dragon Boat Festival for more than a thousand     10     (year).

The Mid-Autumn Festival,     1     is an important traditional festival in China, usually falls in September or October. It is on the 15th day of the     2     (eight) month of the Chinese lunar calendar.

Festival Celebration between New Zealand and China     3     (hold) with high quality performances at the New Zealand National Museum last Sunday night. Artists from southwestern China’s Chongqing     4     (present) the Wellington audience with Sichuan Opera Performance. The performances perfectly showed the charm of Chinese culture and art     5     the audience.

Guo Zongguang, who is the     6     (direct) of the China Cultural Center in New Zealand, stressed that this show was one of    7     most important events in this year’s culture exchanges between China and New Zealand.

Brett Hudson, a member of Parliament, acknowledged that China, now New Zealand’s largest trading partner, provided New Zealanders with thousands and thousands of     8     (job). Our relationship with China is     9     (extreme) important. Our two-way trade now tops 28 billion New Zealand dollars in 2018,     10     (help)New Zealanders improve life styles for families. And it is strengthening even further through cultural exchange and better understanding of one another.

The Han Dynasty is one of the most important     1     (dynasty) in Chinese history. There are many     2     (wonder) achievements during this period. It was the first Chinese dynasty     3     (open) its door to other cultures     4     its foreign trade was prosperous. The Silk Road opened up in the Han Dynasty     5     (lead) to the Middle and Western Asia and even Rome. Various forms of art     6     (blossom) during the period     7     many great works on literature, history and philosophy appeared. The publishing of China's first dictionary was completed in 100AD; it contains 9,000 Chinese characters. At     8     same time, great progress     9     (make) in science and technology was really amazing. The Han Dynasty lasted 400 years. However, the rulers, corruption (腐败) eventually resulted in     10     (it) destruction.

The art of paper-cutting in China may date back to the second century, since paper    1    (invent)by Cai Lun in the Eastern Han Dynasty in China. As paper became more affordable, paper0cutting became one of the most important    2    (type) of Chinese folk art. Later,    3     different regions adopting their own cultural styles, this art form spread to other parts of the world.    4     (usual), the artworks are made of red paper, as red is associated with    5    (happy) in Chinese culture, but other colors are also used.

With    6    (it) long history, paper-cutting,    7    originated in China, has been very popular among the ordinary Chinese people. People put up papercuts on walls, windows and doors at wedding ceremonies or festivals     8    (strengthen) the cheerful atmosphere.

Chinese papercuts are rich in content. The auspicious（吉祥的）designs symbolize good luck and the avoidance of evil. The child, lotus and bat designs suggest a family with    9    large number of children and grandchildren. Birds, livestock, fruit, fish and worms are also familiar objects    10    (accept) by Chinese farmers. In a word, papercuts used in different occasions have different meanings.

You know that Grandparents Day,     1     (take) place on the Sunday after Labor Day every year, is a holiday for celebrating your parents' parents. You might send them a card, or give them a call. But how did the holiday come to be?

In 1956, West Virginia native Marian McQuade was trying to plan a celebration for the elderly    2    (member) of her community. She made the sad discovery that many of the senior citizens in the nursing home didn't often receive visits from their families. So she set out     3     (choose) a day to honor and appreciate grandparents.

Grandparents Day became     4     official holiday in 1978. It's not     5    (actual) just for grandparents, but it's also to give grandparents an opportunity to show love     6     their children's children. Many families have     7     (meaning) ways of celebrating the holiday. Even if your grandparents live far away, that doesn't mean you can’t celebrate with them. Danielle Kirsch    8     (celebrate) by trying a new activity every year with her grandmother Elsie. This year, they will be painting together. Molly Arnold's grandmother is no     9    (long) around, but she still found a beautiful way to honor the holiday. She created a charity in memory of her grandmother,     10     passed away from Alzheimer's disease.

Beijing Opera,    1    (know) as China's national opera, also called Peking Opera, which originated in the late 18th century, is a combination of music, dance, art and acrobatics (杂技). It is the most influential and representative of all operas in China. It is called Beijing Opera because it is formed in Beijing. Beijing Opera has    2    history of 200 years and its origin can date back to old local operas, especially Anhui Opera,     3    was very popular in northern China in the 18th century. In 1790, the first Anhui Opera performance    4     (hold) in Beijing to celebrate the Emperor's birthday.

Later, some other Anhui Opera troupes (班子)     5     (continue) performing in Beijing. Anhui Opera was easy    6     (move) and good at absorbing the acting styles of other types of operas. Beijing accumulated many local operas,     7     (make) Anhui Opera improve quickly.

    8    the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, after the marriage for 10 years, Beijing Opera finally formed, and became the    9     (big) of all Operas in China. We can    10     (honest) say that Beijing Opera is the most important opera in China.

Brazil, the    1    (large)country in South America, is famous for the Amazon rainforest and soccer. But on the hottest days, people travel there for another reason – the Carnival. Full of excitement and fun, the Carnival is held    2    (annual) in February or March.

The word “Carnival” comes from the Portuguese “Carne Vale”,     3    means “farewell to meat”. In the early 1600s, the Portuguese    4    (bring)Europe traditions to Brazil.     5    (inspire) by black people brought there by the slave trade, they started    6    (they)own carnival with dances and music.

With its beautiful floats (花车),     7    (attract)clothes and happy people, the Samba Parade is the most fantastic event of the Carnival. Samba is said    8    (be)the soul of Rio. “This is    9    the passion for samba lies – the atmosphere is electric as even the oldest men and women sing and dance    10    the music,” travel guidebook Lonely Planet noted.

Different counties and cultures celebrate the New Year in different ways. Many countries still follow the lunar calendar,     1    (mean) that their new year often starts in late January or in February. New Year     2     (celebrate) for some countries (like China, Vietnam, and Korea) last not one day, but up to two weeks!

In the US, many people attend or throw New Year parties. They drink champagne, dance and cheer at the stroke of midnight. Fireworks, which in ancient times     3    (scare) away evil spirits, are very popular throughout the US like many other countries. Americans often make one or more New Year’s decisions, such as promising to quit     4    (smoke), lose weight, or stop drinking, most of     5    last little longer than a month.

In Scotland, homeowners open the front door at midnight to let in the New Year, and open the back door to let     6     the old year. In Japan, people ring a bell 108 times     7     (get) rid of the 108 bad desires people have. In Spain, people eat 12 grapes—one per chime— as the clock chimes midnight. In Korea, people ring a bell 33 times with the     8     (intend) of memorizing 33 ancient soldiers.

In Colombia, families make     9    rag doll called “Mr. Old Year.” They fill it with     10     the family doesn’t want anymore and then set it on fire to rid themselves of all the bad things of the previous year.