The oldest art forms in China are music and dance. Music played     1     important role in ancient China. In ancient times, bronze (铜) bells were instruments of official ceremonies. A bronze bell set from a tomb in the ancient state of Zeng in Hubei Province, contains 64 bells,each of     2     produces two distinct, tuned strike notes. More than 120 instruments     3     (dig)out of the same tomb. Music and related ceremonies managed     4     (provide) a structure for activities in the courts of rulers at all levels at that time.

Theatre, once the most important popular art form in China, remains important for some people. However, in recent years, its popularity     5     (fall) compared to television dramas, especially serials.

Chinese theatre originated in early religious dances,     6     (perform) at festivals for various reasons, such as preparing for harvest, hunting, or warfare. Yuan dramas-or operas, as they are more     7     (accurate ) called-consisted     8     songs and dances organized around plots on historical or contemporary themes. The operas were performed in special theatres, with elegant     9     (costume) and decorated stages. From Yuan drama, later     10     (region) forms developed, including contemporary Peking opera.

As cities continue expanding, it is becoming more important than ever to find ways to create sustainable and livable cities. Biophilic design (生物亲和设计), an approach that has gained great attention in recent years, is thought to be     1     (work). This approach seeks to incorporate elements of nature into the built environment,     2     aim is to improve the health of citizens and create more sustainable urban spaces.

Biophilic design     3     (root) in the idea that humans have a natural connection to nature and that incorporating natural elements into our surroundings can have     4     positive impact on our health. It recognizes that spending time in nature has been demonstrated     5     (reduce) stress and increase overall happiness.

One way to include biophilic design elements in urban environments is through the use of natural materials. Instead of relying on artificial materials that result     6     various problems, like plastic, biophilic design encourages the use of materials     7     (source) from nature, like wood or stone. These material create a more     8     (visual) attractive environment and produce a sense of connection to the natural world.

Another key element of biophilic design involves adding plants to the built environment     9     by bringing plants into urban spaces, biophilic design establishes a more calming environment. According to many studies, the     10     (expose) to green can increase productivity and promote health.

The 2023 Chinese Bridge Calligraphy and Painting Contest lasted for six months,     1     (attract) 1, 084 contestants from 86 countries     2     a total of 1, 146 calligraphy and painting works.

According to experts, the award winning calligraphy works this year mirrored many Chinese classic elements with more     3     (expressive) and creativity, compared to the winners of last year's contest,

“I feel honored to be the judge again and also     4     (delight) to find that the entries for this year have been such a breakthrough. From their progress, you can     5     (definite) see the authors must have spent a lot of time and energy learning traditional Chinese culture, ” commented one of the judges.

At the closing ceremony, Zhang Bo, professor from Beijing Language and Culture University, gave high praise of the achievement of overseas Chinese teaching,     6     played a significant role in cultural exchanges. He said the quality of the entries resulted from the contestants' years of study, as well as     7     guidance and assistance of overseas Chinese teaching behind them.

The experts suggested watching the videos about the contestants on the website. “Through these videos, we can see their daily practice and creation process,     8     we can also feel their understanding and love for Chinese culture from their introductions. The creative process of calligraphy and painting     9     (have) a visual appreciation similar to dance. It is our hope that these videos     10     (share) on social media will encourage more people to develop a love for Chinese culture.”

Cheng Yongmao was born in a village in Huairou, Beijing and began to learn the skill of building under the     1     (guide) of his uncle in 1972. Although he didn’t receive a     2     ( high) education, his practical experience enabled him to readily take in the theories, which in turn     3     (improve) his skills significantly.

Cheng received his first Great Wall assignment in 2004. He led a construction team of dozens of members, most of     4     came from mountainous areas in neighboring Hebei province and were     5     (consequent) good at hiking up and down the peaks.

In 2016, he started to work on the Jiankou section, which     6     (consider) one of the most dangerous parts of the Great Wall in Beijing and is known by hikers as the “Wild Wall”. The toughest place is called Yingfei Daoyang (Eagle Flies Upside Down),     7     (suggest) that even an eagle would have to fly straight up,     8     its beak pointing up directly toward the sky to fly over this spot. Working there is dangerous, but under Cheng’s leadership, the workers adapted to the     9     (challenge) environment and built up their strength.

After years of efforts, the section has regained its historical appearance. “Protecting the Great Wall is my responsibility,” he said, “As long as I can climb up the mountain, I’ll do my best to lead my team, especially to assist them in gaining experience     10     making their due contributions.”

The Monkey King, also     1     (know)as Sun Wukong, is the main character in the traditional Chinese book Journey to the West. The image of the Monkey King has been taken into the     2     (heart) of Chinese people and is one of the important symbols of Chinese culture. Because of his amazing     3     (intelligent), he gains great powers.

The Monkey King is not just a normal monkey. He is a brave, clever, wise and interesting monkey. In fact, he sometimes does not even look like a monkey. This is     4     he can make 72 changes, turning himself     5     different animals and objects.     6     (fight) evil souls, the Monkey King uses a magic stick. Sometimes he can make the stick so small that he can keep it in his ear. At other times, he is able to make it big and long. The Monkey King’s image appears     7     (frequent) in Chinese culture, not only in literary work,     8     in different entertainment forms, such as movies, TV shows, cartoons, and games.

Chinese children are excited when they see him. They are also interested in reading about him because the clever Monkey King keeps fighting to help     9     weak and never gives up. Sun Wukong has become a classic image in Chinese culture. His image     10     (represent) the spirit of courage and never giving up. At the same time, the story of Sun Wukong also inspires people to have the courage and wisdom to face all kinds of challenges and difficulties in life.

Guessing lantern riddles is an activity that     1     (date) back at least as far as the Southern Song Dynasty,     2     scholars wrote riddles on small slips of paper and     3       (hang) them from lanterns for festival attendees to guess.

Most of these lantern riddles were     4     (simple) created as a form of entertainment. Sometimes, however, imperial advisors used them to make a     5     (suggest) to the emperor.

If the emperor didn’t like it, the advisors could claim that the riddle had been interpreted incorrectly, thus     6     (avoid) his wrath (愤怒). This was possible because the riddles’ answers were rarely obvious and clear-cut, leaving them open to multiple interpretations.

Today’s lantern riddles are still difficult     7     (guess). So difficult, in fact, that they’re referred to as “lantern tigers” and guessing lantern riddles is sometimes referred to as “guessing lantern tigers”. Generally, lantern riddles are based on complex forms of wordplay and may be difficult for even     8     (advance) students of Chinese to understand.

Most riddles consist of the riddle itself and an implication that tells the guesser what form he or she should expect the answer to take. For example, sometimes     9     implication might indicate that the answer is a Chinese idiom, the name of a country or that it should be composed     10     Chinese characters.

Labor Day

How’s this for a strange idea: a day off from work in honor of work    1    (it)? Actually, that is     2     Labor Day, celebrated in the United States and Canada on the first Monday of every September, is all about.

The     3    (one) American Labor Day was celebrated in New York City on September 5th,1882, as thousands of workers and their families came to Union Square for a day in the park. There were picnics and a parade,     4     there were also protests. The workers had gathered, not just to rest and celebrate, but to demand fair wages, the end of child labor, and the right    5    (organize) into unions.

During the period known as The Industrial Revolution, many jobs were difficult and dangerous. People worked for twelve hours, six days a week,     6     extra benefits, and if you were young, chances are you were doing manual labor instead of your ABCs and fractions. Children as young as ten worked in some of     7    (dangerous) places. In the following years, the idea of Labor Day caught on. But then came the violent Haymarket Square Riot (暴乱) of 1886, which led to many deaths in Chicago. After that, many groups began to mark Haymarket Square on May 1st, which became known as International Workers’ Day.

But in spite of this new holiday, it was a long time before the changes that workers wanted     8    (become) a reality. At present, as America and Canada celebrate Labor Day, most of the two    9    (country) children enjoy a day off from school. But it is important to remember that there was a time when every day was a labor day for children in America, and     10    (unfortunate), the same fact remains true for millions of children around the world today.

Wang De, who is a blacksmith by trade and an inheritor of the 500-year-old art of dashuhua that     1     (literal) means “creating tree flowers”,     2     (live) in Yuxian county of Zhangjiakou.

Wang and his assistants put     3     over a dozen dashuhua performances for villagers and tourists as part of Spring Festival celebrations each year. The folk artist hopes the revival of the tradition can bring more visitors to his hometown of Zhangjiakou.

Dashuhua is a traditional form of fireworks performance that takes place during certain festivals.     4     (create) molten iron fireworks, waste iron is melted to 1,600℃ and thrown against a cold wall. The mix bursts into sparks that look like glittering tree branches.

But the high-risk tradition is still only reserved for     5     brave. Due to the nature of the performance-handling superheated coal and molten iron, it’s easy for performers to suffer injuries. During a performance a few years ago, Wang suffered severe     6     (burn) on his leg and took two months to recover.

There are only four people     7     (leave) in China who have mastered the ancient practice, three of     8     are either middle-aged or elderly. Both Wang’s father and grandfather were blacksmiths. Wang said     9     was his responsibility to pass this craft on to the next generation. Otherwise, it will be lost.

The art of dashuhua requires extraordinary courage, skill and     10     (strong). Now, The molten iron fireworks performance has become a major tourist attraction.

Asia’s first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) world champion Weili Zhang knocked out Poland’s Joann a Jedrzejczyk to win the chance     1     (challenge) for the women’s strawweight title at UFC275 on June 12, 2022 in Singapore.

The fight     2     (set) off wild celebrations on Chinese social media so far. The 32-year-old is seen as a genuine star. She became China’s first UFC champion in 2019. “Together we put girl power on display in the Octagon (八角笼). We’ve proved to people     3     said we cannot do certain things that we can.” Zhang said after the fight when     4     (interview) on stage.

Zhang’s fighting dream began young. Her childhood hero, Bruce Lee,     5     (inspire) her to take up kung fu when she was 6. Later, she learned sanda. But at 17, her sanda fighting career ended because of     6     (injury). Over the next six years, she tried different jobs, like a kindergarten teacher, a saleswoman     7     a bodyguard.

However, she still dreamed of being     8     fighter. In 2013, she started learning MMA. Many people think that the sport isn’t     9     (suit) for the “weaker bodies” of women. But Zhang     10     (strong) disagrees. “Anything men can do, women can do, too—and we can do it just as well as them.” Obviously, she has proved it’s true!

In November 2023, China launched a three-year action plan to promote the use of bamboo as a replacement     1     plastic. Actually, I’ve been using bamboo products more often over the years.

The look and feel of bamboo are absolutely above and beyond plastic,     2     there must be more positive aspects to bamboo other than just aesthetics (美学). When compared to    3     (healthy) plastic, bamboo is a highly renewable, natural material that is biodegradable (可生物降解的) and     4     (become) the “green gold” of modern times in recent years because it has so many good qualities.     5     (live) in a time when most of our homes are filled with plastic, I think it’s time     6     (wake) up to the green alternative and realize     7     (it) full potential as a planet protector.

This super-powered plant is actually a grass and looks like a weed in terms of     8     quickly it can grow and where it can live. The production costs of bamboo are     9     (extreme) low due to the easy availability of this material, and it requires almost zero adjustment when people produce bamboo products. From household objects to decorative settings, the quantity of uses bamboo has     10     (go) beyond our wildest dreams and I’d love to see it becoming more popular as time goes on.