Cold Food Festival is a    1     (tradition) Chinese holiday celebrated before Qingming Festival, which usually falls    2     April 4 or 5.

Legend has it that Chong’er, a prince of Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period, experienced many hardships while he moved around the warring states. Once, when the prince suffered from     3     (starve), Jie Zitui, offered him food. Later, when Chong’er became the duke of Jin, he ordered a search for Jie who had gone into hiding in the remote mountains with his mother. The duke wanted Jie    4     ( serve) as one of his ministers. Contrary to    5     many people might assume, Jie, who preferred living a simple life in the Mianshan Mountain to     6     (become) a politician, refused the duke’s invitation. Chong’er ordered the mountain to be burned down to force Jie out of hiding.     7     (fortune), Jie did not give in and the fire ended up killing him and his mother. Feeling extremely sorry, Chong’er required that the setting of fire    8     (forbid) on the anniversary of Jie’s death. This meant all food was eaten cold. Therefore the festival is thus named.

Mianshan Mountain,     9     the tragedy happened, is now a famous tourist destination in Shanxi Province. In many areas of Shanxi, locals still remember this tradition.     10     cold food is not the only choice for people during the celebration, the practices of making typical cold dishes for the event have been preserved.

The ancient Xi’ an held China’s 14th National Games in September. Being the capital of thirteen     1    (dynasty) throughout Chinese history, the ancient city has never been far from sports. Starting from the Western Zhou Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty (618-907),     2     city has held many sports events. Cuju, the origin of modern football, was an     3    (amaze) game requiring kicking a ball into a net.

    4    (describe) as a form of entertainment among the public, Cuju first appeared in the ancient Chinese historical work Zhan Guo Ce (Strategies of the Warring States). In this period, people played the game     5     fun. Later, Cuju was     6    (usual) played in the army for military training purposes during the Han Dynasty. Emperor Hangaozu Liu Bang, the first emperor of the Western Han Dynasty not only liked watching Cuju games, but always tried his footwork on the playground. Liu Che, emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty,     7     was crazy about Cuju, would build a Cuju field wherever his army went. He used Cuju as a way     8    (train) soldiers. The     9    (early) record of women Cuju players can date back to the Han Dynasty.

As a way of national culture protection, Cuju     10    (list) into the first group of China’s intangible cultural heritages (非物质文化遗产) in 2006.

Chinese weddings are as much about the happy couples as they are about their families. The weddings are     1     (impress) affairs that focus on blessings of happiness. The date of the wedding ceremony is chosen not     2     chance. Many couples carefully choose a favorable date     3     (bring) success to their marriage. The ceremony can last anywhere from four hours to three days,     4     depends on how many Chinese wedding traditions are observed.

The Chinese wedding invitation is     5     (typical) red with a golden Double Happiness symbol, with dates for the wedding and names of the couple     6     (include) inside.

While Chinese wedding traditions have modernized, the journey to pick up the bride     7     (be) still a lively affair. It can involve     8     use of firecrackers, playing drums, or even a lion dance.

Another vital tradition, the Chinese tea ceremony (Jing Cha),     9     (perform) at Chinese weddings to show the new couple’s respect, gratitude, and     10     (appreciate) for their parents’ love and effort in raising them. A red tea set with a Double Happiness symbol is used for the tea ceremony.

The traditional Chinese lunar calendar     1     (divide) the year into 24 solar terms. Grain Rain, as the last term in spring, starts on April 20 and ends on May 4. Grain Rain originates from the old saying, “Rain brings up the     2     (grow) of hundreds of grains,” which shows this period of rainfall is     3     (extreme) important for crops. It signals the end of cold weather and a rapid rise in temperature. It also brings much rainfall and grains grow faster and     4     (strong).

There is an old custom in southern China     5     people drink tea on the day of Grain Rain. Spring tea during this time is rich in vitamins and amino acids,     6     (help) to remove heat from the body. People in     7     (north) China have the tradition to eat toona sinensis,     8     vegetable, which can strengthen the immune system. It is good for the stomach and skin too. In fishing     9     (village) in the north, Grain Rain means the start of the fishermen’s first voyage of the year. The custom dates back more than 2,000 years ago,     10     people believed they owed a good harvest to the gods, who protected them from the stormy seas.

In Sichuan province, we can often see folk artists producing     1     (painting) with liquid sugar in the parks. According to studies, sugar painting originated from the Ming Dynasty when sugar animals and figures     2     (create) in molds (模具). In the Qing Dynasty, it became     3     (popular) than before. The skills were improved and the patterns became various, most of     4     stood for good luck, such as fish, dragon and monkey. Later, the folk artists     5     (develop) this art by adding the skills of the Chinese shadow puppets and paper-cutting. The molds were also replaced     6     a small bronze spoon. As time passed by, the contemporary form of sugar     7     (gradual) evolved.

Although the number of sugar painters has reduced, due to its unique charm, a certain number of artists are making efforts     8     (protect) it by offering classes and applying for the National Intangible Cultural Heritage.

Today, this art is getting support again, for it has been listed as     9     intangible cultural heritage by the Sichuan government. Besides, the sugar painting artists have gained growing recognition,     10     (make) them feel proud and excited.

If you live in northeastern China, you expect long, cold winters. People     1     (live) in Harbin don’t just stand the cold, however, they welcome it. The city is home to the Harbin International Ice and Snow Sculpture Festival, which is considered to be     2     largest ice festival in the world. Even with temperatures usually close to zero, thousands of people head to city parks     3     (see) great ice sculptures, many bathed in colored lights.

The festival includes several thousand ice sculptures, some of     4     are the recreations of castles, historic landmarks and famous people, lit up at night in bright colors. Visitors can climb ice stairways and go down ice slides. They can also take part     5     sporting events, including skating, ice football     6     well as ice swimming.

The city started     7     (it) icy event in 1963 with the Ice Lantern Garden Party, a     8     (celebrate) of the tradition of creating lanterns out of blocks of ice. The larger festival     9     (begin) in 1985 and added sculptures, which have grown in number and size over the years. As it has gotten bigger, the festival has become popular outside the city.

    10     (official), the festival starts on January 5th and lasts over one month.