“With your fingers crossed, inhale; then slowly lift your arms above your head.” Lu Jing, 66, is demonstrating a Ba Duan Jin exercise in a video she posted on the Douyin video app. As one of a handful of high-level professionals in China, Lu     1     (teach) Ba Duan Jin since 2005. Each morning from 7 to 8:30, she organizes offline exercise sessions, attracting many a     2     (participate) every day.

Ba Duan Jin is     3     easy-to-learn indoor exercise     4     (consist) of a sequence of eight qigong movements that strengthen the muscles, improve circulation and respiration, and boost the immune system. Such health benefits appeal     5     Lu’s followers aged 16 to 70. “Losing weight is difficult for women at my age, but my ‘love handles’ have gone!” one says. “I need to be     6     (high) concentrated on the coordination of my movements and breathing so I feel     7     (liberate) from anxiety,” says another.

Lu is keen     8     (collect) feedback from viewers and interact with experienced practitioners. In Lu’s opinion, Ba Duan Jin is not a rigid fitness regime. It’s important to listen to people’s responses, so that the traditional exercise can     9     (tailor) to meet modern people’s needs. That is     10     we truly inherit the treasure of Chinese culture.

In 1974, farmers happened to unearth the tomb of Qin Shi Huang, which is filled     1     more than 8,000 statues of life-size soldiers. Now, a new theory     2     (suggest) that the statues have been inspired by Greek art. Researchers have even presented DNA evidence     3     (back) it up.

”We now have DNA evidence that close contact existed between the first emperor’s China and the west before the formal opening of the Silk Road. This is far     4     (early) than we formerly thought,“ says Li Xiuzhen, a researcher at a museum in Xi’an. ”The theory that the Chinese were interacting with Greeks or at least Greek culture at such     5     early date is not unbelievable.

“Although the Silk Road between China and Europe was     6     (official) established in the 3rd century AD, Romans were already wearing Chinese silk even during the rule of the First Emperor of Rome,” says Lukas Nickel, chair of Asian Art History at the University of Vienna. “I can even imagine the Chinese artists see some     7     (example)of Greek art, which made its way into Asia after Alexander the Great,     8     army in the 4th century BC fought all the way to present-day India. Before the     9     (appear) of the soldiers, China did not have a tradition of     10     (produce) life-size statues. The change indicates they may have had some outside influence or help.”

A total of 99 traditional culture enthusiasts, mostly in their 20s and 30s,     1     (gather) at the television show Yellow River Culture Competition, where they provided a youthful interpretation of the     2     (country) “mother river”, according to a meeting recently     3     (hold) in Beijing.

Initiated by Shandong Radio and Television Station in     4     (associate) with eight other provinces and regions along the banks of the Yellow River, the show adopted multiple formats to combine competitions and performances, such as singing folk songs and     5     (recite) poetry, to promote the history and culture of the civilizations that have thrived (繁荣) along the river for thousands of years.

The show invited four famous     6     (scholar), namely Kang Zhen, Meng Man, Li Bo and Yang Yu, as guest celebrities, sharing lesser-known knowledge about the historic moments     7     have been part of Yellow River’s cultures.

Meng Man, a professor at the Minzu University of China, quoted some of     8     most famous poems featuring the Yellow River in ancient China. “The Yellow River is the mother river of the Chinese nation and the     9     (spirit) source of Chinese civilization. Through this program, the audience can not only have a deep understanding     10     the history of the Yellow River, but also take a close look at the happy life of the people living along its banks,” she added.

Tai chi is a Chinese martial art often practised with the purpose of     1     (improve) health. The practice forms of tai chi are well known for relaxing, circular movements that work in harmony with breath regulation (调节). It can not only keep your mind calm     2     also make your body strong. As you focus on your breathing and movements, your mind can clear itself of its worries,     3     does your whole body good,

    4     (influence) by Taoist and Confucian thoughts, and the ideas of traditional Chinese medicine, the practice has developed into several styles,     5     (usual) named after a master, such as Chen-style and Yang-style.

Chen Bin, one of the     6     (master) of the Chen-style tai chi, has been practising the martial art since he     7     (be) six years old. More than two decades of practice has made him a master. “One’s understanding of tai chi can develop when the practice continues. As one’s experience grows, it becomes much     8     (easy) to understand its cultural meaning,” Chen Bing explains.

Tai chi has taught Chen Bing     9     (stay) calm during life’s ups and downs, and to learn about the world with     10     open mind. Moreover, the martial art encourages using gentleness to get over toughness, and making use of weakness to win strength through one’s self-awareness, which shows the wisdom of Taoism.

Huishan Ancient Town in Wuxi, East China’s Jiangsu province, is known as one of the four best spots in China     1     (appreciate) autumn scenery along with Anhui’s Hongcun village, Tachuan village, and Jiangxi’s Huangli. There are some ancient towns in the Jiangnan region, while Huishan town is unique. The ancient town not only has small     2     (bridge)a nd streaming rivers, but also has green mountains. In addition to delicious food, the town has     3     easy-going living environment.

Two emperors in the Qing Dynasty visited Huishan seven times     4     total and ancient literati (文人) left numerous poems and stories about the ancient town. Jichang Garden in the town is     5     (absolute) a necessary stop in autumn.     6     (build) beside Huishan Mountain, Jichang Garden     7     (transform) into a colorful palette (调色板) with mountains and rivers perfecting each other in the autumn.

The town’s 1,600-year-old Huishan Temple is home to a 600-year-old tree,     8     is still strong and covered with thick golden yellow leaves in late autumn,     9     (attract) plenty of tourists and local residents. Huishan town also has an Azalea Garden that in spring produces bright red azaleas (杜鹃花), and the view is highly    10     (impress).

I’m not sure when I started to love qipaos. I just remember that when I saw Zhao Wei and other stars     1     (wear) qipaos in the TV series Romance in the Rain, I     2     (impress). Although Chinese women are fond of wearing qipaos for special events, for example, red ones for weddings, I wear them more     3     (frequent), not only for parties but also sometimes even in the office.

I’ve collected some qipaos,     4     (buy) at a store in one of Beijing’s historical neighborhoods. A Chinese friend of mine recently gave me one of her old qipaos, which almost reaches my ankles. The qipao fits well at the shoulders,     5     it was simply too tight (紧的) at the waist.

Many foreigners’     6     (body) differ from those of the Chinese, which makes     7     hard for some foreigners to take off qipaos. Because I am not too short, and pretty thin, I can often buy ready-made qipaos in China.

In my native United States, non-Asians     8     (be) sometimes blamed on social media for wearing qipaos because of     9     (culture) differences, but in China, people have what I consider a more reasonable and open-minded approach: If foreigners wear qipaos, it is seen     10     an attitude of appreciation for Chinese culture.

In early 2022, the Ministry of Water Resources in China planned to invest 800 billion yuan building water management projects during the year. But the country     1     (see) the funds reach 823 billion yuan by the end of September.

Last year, the large-scale development played a significant role in ensuring stable home fund     2     promoting employment. Over 2. 5 million workers     3     (employ) in the development, including almost 2.1 million people from rural China. People also noted the     4     (remark) growth in funds it raised for water management projects. Almost 1. 16 trillion yuan was collected across the country last year, 44 percent more than 2021. Over 203.6 billion yuan was raised     5     government bonds, roughly 1.5 times that of the previous year. Over 37.9 billion yuan was invested     6     (expand) and renovate (翻新) 529 medium and large-scale irrigated areas in 2022. Thanks to the     7     (invest), over 10,000 kilometers of irrigation channels were built or renovated.

During the rare drought in the Yangtze River Basin last year, the complete systems in many of those irrigated areas functioned     8     (efficient) in reducing the impacts of the drought and reducing losses. Such irrigated areas guaranteed water supply to 11.3 million hectares of farmland in     9     (strike) regions. Despite the drought, the basin saw     10     good harvest of grain.

The Asian Para Games is the largest multi-sport event for the disabled in Asia. Up to now, the organizers     1     (host) it three times successfully. The torch relay for the fourth Asian Para Games     2     (official) started on Thursday in the city of Hangzhou in East China’s Zhejiang province, with many torchbearers     3     (run) along a relay route on the first day.

The launch ceremony kicked off     4     Thursday morning at Xiushui Square near the lake of Qiandao,     5     must-see tourist site in Hangzhou’s Chun’an county. The torch was relayed in the counties of Jiande, Tonglu, Fuyang and Xiaoshan along the Xin’an, Fuchun and Qiantang rivers, which all have world-class cultural tourism     6     (attraction). The torch finally arrived at the Hangzhou Olympic Sports Center to light up the main torch tower on Sunday.

Athlete Tan Yujiao,     7     was the first torchbearer among a total of 600 torchbearers, told the reporters on Thursday that she felt extremely honored and excited     8     (hold) the heavy torch.

As 188 torchbearers were representatives with a disability, intelligent bionic (仿生学的) hands and legs as well as intelligent guide dogs     9     (use) during the torch relay.

“We wish to convey the idea that technology can be much     10     (convenient) to the lives of disabled people,” said Du Zuofeng, deputy (副的) commander of the Hangzhou Asian Para Games Torch Relay Command Center.