The Year of the Dragon comes with inspiration for creativity and the power to bring big ideas     1    life.

Designer Wang Zijian’s Dragon Out of Water, a creative tea infuser (泡茶器),shines on the wall at the exhibition of the winning works of the 2024 Global Zodiac Design Competition at the Beijing Overseas Cultural Exchange Center.     2     (it) cute dragon design and special function are bound to appeal to young consumers. “It’s     3    unique product, and we expect a positive response from young customers,” Wang told Beijing Review.

The item belongs to China Chic, or guochao, also     4     (know) as “national wave”,    5    refers to products of all sorts including traditional Chinese cultural elements. These products    6     (embrace) by the country’s younger generations in recent years. According to a report by Xinhua News Agency, Gen Z    7     (account) for 74 percent of consumers of China Chic goods in 2022, and the search volume of China Chic products has increased five times over the past decade.

As a young designer, Wang hopes     8     (capture) young consumers with his creative interpretation of dragons. “I’ve been    9    (thorough) studying the dragon’s historical connotations (言外之意) and the     10     (psychology) characteristics of Gen Z consumers,” the 34-year-old designer told Beijing Review.

The Chinese culture of Fengshui has a long history     1     is an important discipline in ancient Chinese civilization. Fengshui explores the relationship between humans and their environment, believing that geographic     2     (surround) and layouts have a profound impact     3     one’s life and fortune. It is believed that by arranging things     4     (appropriate), one can harmonize the energies of the natural world. One of     5     core principles of Chinese Fengshui is the theory of Yin and Yang, and the Five Elements. According to this theory, the natural world     6     (classify) into five elements: wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. Fengshui makes use of these elements to balance the energy of the environment, hereby     7     (enhance) people’s well-being and fortune. Additionally, Fengshui     8     (emphasis) the selection of directions and layouts to bring     9     (significance) changes to one’s life and fortune. Hence, in the construction and layout of houses, people plan and design     10     (base) on the principles of Fengshui.

Today I’d like to introduce a kind of traditional Chinese folk art, shadow puppetry, which     1    (call) “yingzixi” or “dengyingxi” too. Mixed with craftsmanship, fine art, opera     2    music, shadow puppetry is considered to be a predecessor (前身) of the movie and has existed in China for a long time.

As for     3     origin, shadow puppetry can date back to the Han Dynasty. Once grieving the loss of his beloved wife Li, Emperor Liu Che even ignored the state affairs, which worried his officials quite a lot. So they made a puppet with the image of Li, and     4     (perform) before the Emperor. He was     5     (please) and asked them to spread the art form.

But unfortunately, the ancient art     6    （gradual) fell due to the impact of modern audio-visual (视听的)     7     (medium) like television and movies. Both Chinese artists and the government are making every effort     8     (protect) the ancient art form. And it was selected into the world intangible cultural heritage list     9    2011. So, as the constructors of China’s future, we are responsible for     10    (preserve) the precious heritage.