According to legend, the Yellow River flooded during the period of Emperor Yao, and the people     1     (force) to leave their villages, and went to live in trees or on mountain tops. The flood     2     (bring) great misfortune to the people. So Yao assigned (指派) Gun to regulate it. Gun wanted to cut off the flood with stones     3     failed. Then, Shun assigned Yu, Gun’s son, to continue the work. Having learned     4     (he) father’s lesson, Yu dredged (疏浚) new river     5     (channel) as outlets, guiding water into river and river into sea. Day by day, year by year, Yu spent thirteen years     6     (govern) the flood without a break. It was said that during the thirteen years, he passed his home three times, but did not enter     7     his task was completed. His efforts not only solved the flood problem, but contributed to the     8     (develop) of agriculture.

In the face of difficulties, we should have the wisdom     9     (overcome) difficulties and the spirit of public selflessness. We also need powerful spirit and strong faith, only     10     that way can we work together to deal with a variety of difficulties.

The International Ice and Snow Festival kicked off in January in Harbin, capital city of China’s northernmost Heilongjiang Province. Harbin came as the hottest     1    (attract)in winter throughout China.

Harbin Ice and Snow World,     2    (build)on the northern bank of the Songhua River which flows through the city, is     3     landmark ice-and-snow theme park as the country’s top snow and ice tourism site for New /Year holiday travel.

The theme park,     4    (cover)an area of 810,000 square meters, this year used a total of 250,000 cubic meters of ice and snow mined from the Songhua River for crafting various sculptures     5     castles and towers, which are illuminated(照亮)by colorful lighting.

“This year’s scale of ice-and-snow sculptures in the park is the     6    (large)since it first opened in 1999,”said Sun Zemin, a marketing director of a travel agency. The park offers more than 20 amusement     7     (activity)including ice kart racing, snowmobile racing, snow drifting and snow yo-yo.

Sun said the number of ice slides in the park     8    (increase)by the time of the festival     9    (satisfy)the growing tourist demand, from 8 last winter to 14 this winter.

“My wife and I had thought about going to somewhere warm for a winter trip, but we were attracted by short videos that went viral online about ice-and-snow fun in Harbin. That is     10     we are here now,” said Sun Chengzhe, a tourist from east China’s Fujian Province.

Every Wednesday afternoon, Le Duc An, a Vietnamese PhD student at Beijing University of Technology, practices calligraphy in the calligraphy group.

The 33-year-old     1    (study) Chinese calligraphy for nearly three years. “I     2    (expose) to Vietnamese calligraphy when I was a child, and it was one of the things that made the biggest impression on me,” An says.

When he came to Beijing in 2019 for his PhD studies focusing on the environment, he also spent time practicing Chinese calligraphy,     3    (commit) himself in earnest to the journey of learning the art.

    4    (initial), An says that he did not understand the techniques in Chinese calligraphy, but with the help of Professor Liu Hongli, he gradually came to understand the meaning behind the characters and the techniques in calligraphy.

    5    (gain) a deeper understanding of calligraphy, An has visited many ancient sites in Beijing, including the Confucius Temple and the Forbidden City. He has also participated     6     a number of calligraphy competitions, both at school and international events.

An says that places     7     he has seen treasured scrolls of calligraphy have left a profound impression, and are     8     major source of inspiration. “Calligraphy has become a part of me,” An says.“Whenever I see Chinese calligraphy from different     9    (dynasty), and on sculptures and at historical sites, I find myself     10    (impress) by the vastness and depth of Chinese culture.”