If you have the chance     1    (return ) to ancient China and ask an educated man     2    his biggest dream was. He would tell you that he wants to become a zhuang yuan, a title     3    (give) to the scholar who came first in the highest imperial examination.

In ancient China,     4    was not that easy to be an official. You have to take exams first. The exams are very difficult and have many     5    (procedure). The outcome has to be confirmed by the Emperor     6    (he). The number one scholar with the best score in the imperial exam is called zhuang yuan. Once you are selected     7     zhuang yuan, you will be appreciated by the Emperor and appear in a parade downtown with a red robe and a tall, strong horse. Zhuang yuan is referred to the elite scholars. Now the imperial     8    (compete) examination has been canceled for many years.

However, people still like to call the    9    (good) person in their field a zhuang yuan. An old saying     10    (go) that there are 360 trades and every trade has his master, or zhuang yuan.

The sheepskin raft, the oldest ferry tool along the Yellow River, has a history of nearly 2.000 years. The airbag of the raft is made of a whole sheepskin and experiences processes that include    1    (heat), soaking, sewing, drying and blowing. Afterwards, the airbags are attached     2     a wooden stand, enabling its use for transporting people and goods across the water.

It is said that the    3     (large) sheepskin raft in old times consisted of more than 600 sheepskin airbags, with an impressive length of 22 meters and a     4     (wide) of 7 meters.

    5     railways were not yet in operation and road traffic was inconvenient in the early 20th century, the sheepskin raft     6    (serve) as the most important means of transportation for residents nearby.

However, with the rapid development of society, the sheepskin raft has finished     7     (it) historical task in transporting people and goods. Nowadays, it can only be found in several cities. It has become a tool for people     8     (go) sightseeing along the river.

Today only some of the older generation of rafters still operate the traditional sheepskin rafts,    9     are struggling to make a living.     10    (surprising), the younger generations prefer to pursue other business opportunities on the riverbank rather than continue the operation.

The ancient Olympic Games began in the year 776 BCE.     1     , they died out around the year 393. It was in 1896, in Athens that the modern Olympic Games     2     (hold) first. A Frenchman Pierre de Coubertin     3     dream was that the Olympics would make it possible for people     4     ( live ) side by side in peace brought the Olympics back to life. Since then, motivated by the Olympic motto “Faster, Higher, Stronger”, thousands of     5     (high) trained and talented athletes     6     (devote) themselves to achieving sporting excellence and pushing the boundaries of human achievement, such as Muhammad Ali, Michael Jordan, Jessica Ennis-Hill and so on.

Chinese athletes have also made important     7     (contribute) to the Olympics. At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympic Games, China returned     8     the Olympics after 32 years’ absence and Xu Haifeng won our country’s first-ever gold medal. At the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Liu Xiang became the first Asian     9     (win) the gold medal in the men’s 110-metre hurdles. In 2008, in addition to hosting the Olympic for the first time, China also ranked first in the medal table. The year 2022 was another historic moment for China, as Beijing won     10     election to host the Winter Olympics.

Living Heritage: Xuan Paper

Smooth yet tensile. Universal and durable. With these qualities, Xuan paper is known as the “Paper of Ages”.

The term Xuan paper first appeared in On Famous Paintings through the Ages, a book written by Tang Dynasty scholar Zhang Yanyuan, in     1     he described Xuan paper as an ideal     2     (carry) 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 extremely     4     (demand). Sandalwood bark, a plant native to southern China, goes through 108 procedures together with rice straw over the course of three years before it can transform into a batch of fine Xuan paper. The entire procedure is so complex that even the most     5     (skill) craftsman can only master limited number of steps.

The flow of ink, both guided and resisted by water,     6     (determine)the output of Chinese art, and Xuan paper outshines others with its excellent ability to give full play to ink. Different proportions of bark to straw during the papermaking process can create different canvases best     7     (suit) to artistic expression in freehand ink paintings or calligraphy.

Xuan paper     8     (accompany) the passionate brushstrokes of the Chinese literati (文人墨客) for thousands of years. Unlike other forms of paper, it is very resistant     9     damages brought by time. It is this durability     10     has made the preservations of many valuable works from ancient China possible.

Papermaking is a crystallization of wisdom of the ancient Chinese, and Xuan paper is the crown of papermaking.

Hangzhou is recognized as the “City of Well-Being” in China. Hangzhou made its name     1     (know) to the world in 2016 by hosting the G20 Summit. Blessed with pleasant climate and few wars, Hangzhou has gradually formed     2     (it) own urban character.     3     busy Shanghai, you will slow down and relax once you are here. It seems that Hangzhou people don’t have many things to rush to in their     4     (day) life. No wonder Hangzhou is expanding annually by about 500,000     5     600,000 people.

The lifestyle, however, was laid down by two historical men of letters. One was Bai Juyi,     6     rebuilt the West Lake and made a new bank     7     (benefit) the locals. People love him. When it comes to him, it doesn’t sound like one is talking about a person who     8     (live) a thousand years ago. The other was Su Shi. His open-minded personality and diligence left many much-told tales. Seemingly,     9     (mention) his name gives people joy even after a thousand years.

Surely, Hangzhou will be even     10     (brilliant) with the holding of the 19th Asian Games.

The ancient Olympic Games began in 776 BCE. They     1     (hold) at Olympia in Greece every four years for almost 12 centuries, until they eventually died out around the year 393. The modern Olympics were first held in 1896, in Athens. It was a Frenchman, Pierre de Coubertin,     2     brought the Olympics back to life. His dream was that the Olympics would help people of different     3     (race) origins and cultures live side by side in peace.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics called on the whole world to join in the Olympic spirit and build a better future for humanity     4     the slogan “One World, One Dream”. In addition to     5     (host) the Olympics for the first time, China also ranked first in the medal table. This success is     6     (true) remarkable. At the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Xu Haifeng won our country’s first-ever gold medal. Since then the upward trend for Chinese sport has been unstoppable. At the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, Liu Xiang became the first Asian     7     (win) the gold medal in the men’s 110-metre hurdles, while at the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, the Chinese women’s volleyball team won     8     hard-fought victory in the final.

As Coubertin believed, “With the Olympic Games, each generation     9     (celebrate) its advent, its joy of living, its faith in the future, its     10     (ambitious) and its will to ascend.”