Despite being 75 years old, Chai Tixia’s expertise in Jianzi is truly impressive. With quick kicks, he effortlessly sends the Jianzi into the air and gracefully guides it to land    1     (gentle) on his head.

Jianzi,    2     game that dates back to the Han Dynasty, is surprisingly simple: players must keep the Jianzi in the air,    3     (use) any part of their body except their hands and arms. However, to master this game    4     (require) a lot of practice.

While enjoyed throughout China, Jianzi     5     (describe) by Chai as an important aspect of hutong culture. The narrow alleyways, situated within Beijing’s inner city, provide the setting for the game’s    6     (popular). Each mormning, Chai and his fellow hutong residents gather for their shared passion for Jianzi.

Chai’s spirited matches with his neighbors have a big audience     7     (draw) to the artistry and excitement of the game. The onlookers who watch them playing with great athleticism are amazed at     8     Chai and his fellow players can achieve.

Having practiced Jianzi for over 30 years, Chai cherishes the physical and social     9     (benefit) the game brings. Engaging in lively matches with his neighbors energizes his body, enhances his flexibility,     10     promotes unity within the community. Through Jianzi, Chai harvests not only health but a sense of belonging and friendship.

Zhang Pihe, a Bai woman from Dali, is introducing the Bai culture to visitors who come to Hequn Village in Sangzhi County, Hunan Province．People watch how she     1    (skillful) folds and rolls (卷) the cloth —     2     important step in the traditional tie-dyeing (扎染) of the Bai ethnic group．

Up to now, a great many visitors     3    (attract)to the village．With     4    (it) rich Bai culture, Hequn Village becomes well-known far and wide．

About 700 years ago, some Bai people came to Hequn Village from Dali．After that, they were too busy making a living away from their homes     5    (learn)the Bai culture．As a result, nowadays many parts of the Bai culture are disappearing．For example, the Bai-style dance,     6     has more than 80 types of moves, is being lost．

Brought up and deeply influenced by the Bai culture, Zhang hopes she can help protect and pass it down．So when she moved to Hequn Village, she started her lifelon g career．“I hope to take advantage of the traditional cultural resources of the Bai ethnic group to help the     7    (develop)of our villages,” said Zhang．

On her arrival, Zhang set up the Bai tie-dyeing room,     8    (buy)tools and began training villagers in tie-dyeing skills．    9     a cultural advisor to the Bai cultural projects, Zhang also gave local women lessons on the music and dance of the Bai ethnic group,     10    (teach) them each movement with great patience．

“I have more confidence in spreading our Bai culture,” said Zhang．

An exhibition featuring “Jiaodong flower bobo” was held-at Yantai Culture Center to greet the     1     (approach) Spring Festival.

Made of wheat, bobo can assume various forms of animals and figures,     2     (decorate) with red jujubes (枣) and colorful-flowers. Eatable and entertaining, this kind of bobo looks like a delicate handicraft, showing the food culture and artistic pursuit of the local people.

It’s hard to know when Jiaodong flower bobo first appeared. In ancient times it     3     (use) as offerings. It still enjoys great     4     (popular) in the rural areas of Weihai, Yantai and Qingdao, where people steam bobo to celebrate special occasions like the Spring Festival, weddings and birthdays, as the word for “steam”     5     (pronounce) “zheng” in Chinese, indicating life’s fortune will rise.

The exhibition was designed to showcase the city’s protection of the craftsmanship of Jiaodong flower bobo,     6     was included in the Shandong provincial government’s intangible cultural heritage list in 2009.

The exhibition gathered 100 works by 20 inheritors (传承人) of the Jiaodong flower bobo modeling craft from Qixia, Laizhou, Zhaoyuan and Longkou. These inheritors were also invited     7     (introduce) the ‘art of making Jiaodong flower bobo. One of them, Jia Yuping from Qixia, said it was     8     honor to preserve and promote the heritage and that she was     9     (optimism) about its future.

“We wish to introduce     10     our citizens the folk customs of celebrating Chinese Lunar New Year through the exhibition, ”said an organizer.

Acupuncture (针灸), an ancient Chinese medical practice, has given countless patients     1     (relieve) of suffering and pain for thousands of years.

    2     treatment aims to promote the body’s self-regulating functions. Evolving from the discovery     3     using stone needles to stick specific points into the skin and underlying tissues could ease pain, acupuncture has become an essential part of traditional Chinese medicine, the philosophical concepts of     4     emphasize balance of bodily functions and overall physiological well-being. Acupuncture is also in line with the philosophy that promotes the     5     (harmony) coexistence of humans with nature.

In the book Records of the Grand Historian, which Sima Qian     6     (write) about 2,100 years ago, Bian Que, a     7     (true) skilled physician during the Warring States Period, was well known for having saved a prince     8     “death” by using needles to stimulate the Baihui acupoint (穴位) on the head of the unconscious man.

Over the years, acupuncture     9     (see) many advancements in scientific research and become a global and mainstream alternative treatment for various illnesses. According to a WHO report     10     (issue) in 2019, acupuncture is widely used in 113 of its 120 member countries, illustrating its increasing recognition and application.

The three astronauts of China’s Shenzhou 16 mission returned to Earth Oct 31, 2023 after completing a five-month mission aboard the country’s space station. Astronauts Jing Haipeng (the mission’s commander), Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao     1     (touch) down in their Shenzhou 16 spacecraft return capsule at the Dongfeng landing site around 8:10 a.m., according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). The Shenzhou 16 spacecraft separated     2     the Tiangong space station at 8:37 pm Monday on Monday, CMSA stated. Jing and company had     3     (early) handed over control of the space station to the Shenzhou 17 crew, who arrived on Oct. 26.

Zhu and Gui were the first     4     (member) of China’s third astronaut selection group to fly to space, with Gui also being the first payload specialist to fly to Tiangong. Mission highlights included Jing and Zhu conducting     5     eight-hour extravehicular activity, or spacewalk; cultivating vegetables; and a live, interactive lecture, which notably involved     6     (light) a match on the space station. Shenzhou 16 was the     7     (five) crewed mission to Tiangong and China’s eleventh astronaut flight overall. China aims to keep Tiangong operational and     8     (permanent) occupied for at least a decade. The nation also plans to expand the T-shaped space station,     9     currently consists of three modules and is about 20% as massive as the     10     (internation) space station.

More than 500 years ago, explorers sailed to the Americas. They    1     (bring) a few four-legged passengers along with them: pigs. Today, there are     2     (near) six million wild pigs, also known as boars (野猪),    3     (run) free in the US.

Boars can cause a lot of damage to crops and soccer fields.They eat baby birds and turtle eggs. Every year, they cause $1.5 billion in damage. People do all they could to stop them,     4    boars keep going strong.

Texas is home to half of the country’s boar population. Some     5     (county) offer hunters $5 for every boar tail they bring in. High-tech means are also used     6     (battle) the wild pigs. The latest is a steel (钢) cage     7    hangs off the ground— officials lay a track of tasty corn leading to     8    cage. Special cameras record the boars approaching. Officials watch from afar. At just the right moment, the officials press a button on an app. The cage drops and traps a dozen boars all at once.

But boars are smart. They’ve learned ways to avoid getting     9     (catch). They know that humans hunt in daylight. Now the animals sleep during the day and eat at night, when it’s much    10     (safe). Until we find a way to outsmart them, boars will keep pigging out on farms and gardens.

Saltwater Song is traditional folk music in Zhongsha in which enjoys great     1     (popular) among Tanzhou, Minzhong and other towns.

Saltwater Song dates back to the late Ming and early Qing period     2     people led such a poor life on the sea that their boats were their rooms and the sea was their land. They made their living by fishing and were exposed (暴露) to the sun and rain all the year.     3     (face)with such a terrible living environment, they sang to cheer themselves up. Gradually, they didn’t need to go out to fish on the sea, but the song     4     (pass) down during that period. Now people still sing it as a way to relax when they work on the farm.

    5     impresses people most is that Saltwater Song has a variety of forms, including long and short sentences of Saltwater Song, Gaotang Song, Da Zhu Song, Gu Mei Song, etc. It is performed     6     (natural) with rhymes (押韵), showing the intelligence of local farmers.

However, with foreign cultures     7     (pour) in, more and more younger generations are not interested in Saltwater Song, which puts it at the risk of disappearing. To protect it as much as possible, our country added it     8     the National Intangible Cultural Heritage List in May, 2006. Besides, with the support of the government, lots of     9     (color) activities about Saltwater Song are held and many inheritors (继承者) begin to appear. With all these methods, Saltwater Song     10     (draw) more attention so far.

The craft of Shao Lujie, a 28-year-old Chinese craftsman from Jinhua, Zhejiang Province, is known     1     quilling — a form of art that involves the use of paper strips (纸条) that are rolled, shaped and glued together to form complex designs.

Shao’s works mainly feature flowers and other plants. He created multiple works for the 19th Asian Games, featuring the event’s three mascots (吉祥物) and logo. In the past few years, Shao     2     (develop) cultural and creative products with local characteristics. His another     3     (improve) is that techniques and equipment have been simplified, making it easier for people to try.

Since childhood, Shao has enjoyed painting and handicrafts.     4     (finish) the learning of quilling in 2016 from a master of the art, Shao began to devote himself     5     (entire) to the craft. Later, by imitating the works of his instructors, he learned how     6     (integrate) new methods into his own works, combining this paper art handicraft with painting and different design elements.

In an age     7     AI-generated art works are entering the art market, Shao still sticks to this ancient craft. Every step — weaving, cutting, rubbing, folding, and pressing —     8     (do) by hand.

To get youngsters interested in the craft, Shao has gone online, sharing articles     9     (write) by himself and posting pictures of his latest works. Shao is considering     10     (open) an exhibition hall so that more people can learn about this craft and, ideally, pass it down, to future generations.

For the past twenty years, Chen Huili, a cultural heritage monitor and guide, has devoted herself to     1    (protect) the carvings of the Yuanjue Cave, part of the Dazu Rock Carvings in Chongqing,     2     were added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999.

While showing visitors around, Chen became painfully aware of the serious damage to the cave     3    (cause) by the passage of time. The flat-roofed cave lacked something to support its weight. As a result, the ceiling (顶部) was coming off in pieces, posing a great threat to the priceless carvings. With related knowledge and great eagerness     4    (save) the sculptures, Chen joined the protection center.

    5     time went by, Chen’s experience grew and eventually she developed her unique approach to protecting cultural heritage. She     6    (involve) in a number of major projects so far, including the eight-year restoration of the Thousand-Armed Avalokitesvara (千手观音). And with her team’s hard efforts,     7    (effect) measures such as hydraulic iron frames (液压铁架) have now     8    (successful) been introduced to support the roof of the Yuanjue Cave.

    9     her remarkable achievements, Chen remains unsatisfied. In her opinion, it’s highly necessary to improve the role of technology in cultural heritage protection and to train young talent for this field. For Chen, Yuanjue Cave will remain a focus and she believes there will be many fruitful     10    (discovery) further down the line.

Located in Wuyuan County, Jiangxi Province,     1     old Huizhou-style house is now known for its elegant cross-cultural design with a British garden, a fireplace and a bar counter.

The house     2     (own) by British citizen Edward Gawne and his wife Liao Minxin, a native of Jiangxi. “There are trees, bridges, flowing water and beautiful Huizhou-style houses in Wuyuan. This is     3     I imagined traditional Chinese culture would look like,” says Gawne.

When     4     (buy) in 2015, the 200-year-old house was out of repair. The couple determined to transform it into a bed-and-breakfast (B&B) (民宿). After nearly two years of renovation (翻修) with the help of international designers and architects, their Chinese-English-style B&B started operations.

“About 90 percent of our guests are foreigners,     5     can enjoy the beauty of Chinese traditional villages and learn about the culture and local customs,” Liao says.

So far Wuyuan County     6     (introduce) a considerable number of measures for managing the B&B industry. It     7     (regular) releases detailed information on the deserted historical buildings     8     (find) “adopters”. And the local housing department examines adopters’ renovation and decoration plans to protect the     9     (origin) style and structure of the buildings. “Apart from protecting old architecture, the lifestyles of people living in them in the past should also be kept,” says the director of the housing department.

Now in Wuyuan, there are over 800 high-quality B&Bs. The development in B&B construction has provided job     10     (opportunity) for more than 20,000 people and promoted the local tourism industry.