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!

When young urban couples get married, they usually hire a fleet of about 10 cars to escort them and their family to the wedding venue. But one new couple in Dalian, Liaoning province, did something a little different — they     1     (choose) to rent a public bus instead.

    2     (look) back on their wedding day on Oct 5, the bride, Yang Le’er, said she still felt joyful about the bus experience,     3     added special meaning to the wedding.

On their wedding day,     4     red electric bus carried the bride and groom, and the guests to a hotel. “We played festive music along the way, and friends sang along. Even though my parents didn’t sing, they     5     (attract) by the atmosphere and didn’t show the traditional     6     (sad) of a daughter’s marriage,” Yang recalled.

    7     a cost of 10, 000 yuan, which included the decorations, she said getting the bus was     8     (relative) cheaper than hiring a fleet of cars. Besides, using a bus as their wedding car was so much cooler than a luxury car. On the road, they drew a lot of attention. Pedestrians took out their phones     9     (take) pictures and waved at them. When the bridesmaids and groomsmen shouted to passersby that “we’re getting married”, they received smiles and cheers in response.

Song Jian, the head of Dalian Transportation Advertising Co, said the company will explore more creative “theme buses”     10     expand related businesses in the future.

2024 will be the Year of the Dragon in Chinese culture. To celebrate it, “Long Chenchen”,       1     (color) orange and red and with a pair of doll eyes, has been designed     2     a cute yet lively dragon.

Named Long Chenchen,     3     the “dragon Chenchen”, the mascot for China’s upcoming Dragon Spring Festival Gala     4     (release) up to now, a lot of design details showing the aesthetics (美学的) of Chinese cultural elements.

The design of the     5     (seeming) cute-looking dragon was inspired by     6     item that was discovered in the Erlitou Ruins, a major site in Luoyang, Central China’s Henan province.

The fire shape pattern on its shoulder was inspired by a bronze piece with cloud patterns     7     (date) back to the Spring and Autumn Period (770BC-476BC) . The bronze piece has 12 vividly depicted dragon sculptures, showing ancient Chinese     8     (create) as well as skill for handicrafts. Another source of inspiration was a gilded dragon sculpture     9     is currently in the Xi’an Museum.

“I think this is why the mascot has successfully delivered the spirit of the dragon, which is important     10     (show) the life-force of Chinese culture, “one netizen posted on Sina Weibo.

The world in a university

The recently held Peking University 20th International Culture Festival was a spectacular showcase of unity and cross-cultural     1     (communicate).

Upon my arrival at the square of Peking University Hall on Oct 21, I     2     (immediate) found I was involved in a lively atmosphere. Students and alumni (校友) from over 100countries and regions had gathered     3     (celebrate) the university’s 20th International Culture Festival (ICF), with the theme of “Meeting the World at PKU”.

The International Culture Carnival featured a series of experiences, ranging from card games     4     creative activities. Each booth (摊位) that had been set up     5     (serve) as a gateway to another culture.

As I wandered around, I was invited to join a dance at the Malaysian booth. In no time, I found     6     (I) in the midst of a large dance circle, where people from different backgrounds celebrated together with     7     (energy) movements and joyful laughter.

Beside me were a girl from Inner Mongolia, China, and a girl from Russia     8     were excited to discover that their hometowns were right next to each other, despite being in different countries.

As I visited each booth, I engaged in conversations with students from different countries,     9     (share) thoughts and experiences on the carnival’s vibrant displays.

Manohar Kumar,     10     Indonesian student from the School of Chemistry, highlighted the festival’s role in promoting global understanding, tolerance, acceptance, and harmony. “It is a testament to the beauty of diversity and the power of cultural exchange,” he said.

The term Xuan paper first appeared in On Famous Paintings through the Ages, a book     1     (write) by Tang Dynasty scholar Zhang Yanyuan, in which he described Xuan paper as     2     ideal carrier for calligraphy and painting. Handmade Xuan paper from Jingxian county, East China’s Anhui province,     3     (list) as a tribute(贡品) to the imperial court for its supreme quality during the period.

The traditional craft of making Xuan paper is     4     (extreme) demanding. The bark of Sandalwood, a plant native to southern China, goes through 108     5     (procedure) together with rice straw over the course of three years before it can be transformed     6     fine Xuan paper. The entire procedure is so complex     7     even the most skilled craftsman can only master limited number of steps.

The flow of ink, both guided     8     resisted by water, determines the output of Chinese art, and Xuan paper goes beyond others with its excellent ability     9     (give) full play to ink. It is this durability that has made the preservations of many valuable works from ancient China possible.

Papermaking is a crystallization of     10     (wise) of the ancient Chinese, and Xuan paper is the peak of papermaking.

“Military-style” travel has become the latest fashion among Chinese college students, who spend as little money as possible to travel to as many places as they can during the weekend, rarely taking a break or even sleeping.

    1     (save) money, they usually hop on a normal-speed train on a Friday night, arrive at the destination city on Saturday morning, travel freely in the city, sleep at     2     24-hour restaurant for a few hours on Saturday, then repeat the same busy schedule on Sunday before returning to their university in time for classes on Monday morning.    3     (video) of them taking such trips have been trending on social media platforms, with many netizens     4     (praise) them for their energy and high ability to implement their plans. However, others question whether such a busy schedule is     5     (health).

According to professors, the trend of “military-style” travel is essentially a form of budget travel that     6     (appeal) to specific groups of people. It is reported that for many university students with limited budgets and time limits, the desire to explore the world     7     travel independently is a basic motivation. These young travelers are     8     (little) concerned with in-depth experiences and more focused on checking off popular tourist destinations on their schedule. This has led to the emergence (出现) of a type of tourism     9     travelers are willing to sacrifice comfort and luxury for affordability and     10     (convenient).

Driverless taxis are now available for hire in suburban Beijing, marking a new chapter in intelligent transport.

This is the first time that a     1    (full)autonomous group of vehicles has got     2    (permit)to operate in a world-class city.

Previously, robotaxis     3    (require)to have a human driver in case of an emergency. However, the two companies will be allowed     4    (operate)robotaxis with just the passengers inside.

The two companies, both among the leading players in China’s autonomous driving industry, have each put 10 autonomous vehicles in     5     60- square- kilometer area in Yizhuang, located in the southern suburb of Beijing.

Baidu plans to expand     6    (it)autonomous ride-hailing services to 65 cities in 2025 and 100 in 2030.

The market size for China’s self-driving taxi service is expected to reach 1.3 trillion(188.6 billion U.S. dollars)by 2030,     7    (account)for 60 percent of the country’s ride- hailing market at that time, according to     8    (science)forecasts from a global company, IHS Markit.

The robotaxi is also expected to pave the way     9     the development of private autonomous vehicles,     10     have the potential to be a revolutionary technology capable of transforming people’s lives.