People of the Dai ethnic group in southwest China’s Yunnan province annually celebrate their Water Splashing (泼洒) Festival. It lasts for three days and marks the official New Year celebration for over one million people     1     (live) in China, mainly in Xishuangbanna and Dehong prefectures. The festival     2     (include) in China’s National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2006.

Originating in Persia in the 5th century, the water splashing ceremony spread to China around 1200 AD, and gradually became     3     folk custom among Dai people. On the first two days, people clean their houses, have their hair cut, and take showers. Various     4     (performance) can also be seen. Some people send Kongming lanterns into the sky, dance and sing freely on the streets, and watch     5     (color) dragon boat races on the Lancang River. On the third day of the festival,     6     marks the first day of the New Year on the Dai calendar, people often get up early in the morning     7     (wash)Buddha statues (佛像) in temples with clean water. After that, they     8     (joyful) join in the mass water splashing. People use anything     9     hand to splash water over others, from friends and neighbors to strangers, as an       10     (express) of their wishes for good luck for whoever is on the receiving end.

Porcelain, also named china, is made by heating raw materials, often a mix between china stone and kaolin clay, in a kiln (窑) at a temperature as high as 1, 200 degree Celsius, which is key     1     making porcelain.     2     (go)through the fire of reinvention at a high temperature gives porcelain with greater     3     (strong), more translucence (半透明) and a feast of colors.

Blue porcelain produced in Longquan, Zhejiang province, a technique which     4     (pass) down at least 1, 600 years ago, is a typical example of craftsmen’s pursuit of the perfect green light. And     5     takes 72 steps to produce Longquan celadon’s jade-like green. Plum green and light green are two colors of the best quality.

Porcelain has also been a carrier for cultural exchanges. Along with China’s silk and tea, porcelain was one of the first goods     6     (receive) worldwide trade. As it     7     (gradual) travelled around the globe through the ancient Maritime Silk Road, porcelain enjoyed great popularity among royal families and upper classes in Europe,     8     were attracted by these beautiful containers they named after China, a product that could be produced only in the far East.

Porcelain began as a     9     (practice) container and evolved into pieces of art. Even when shattered into pieces and buried deep in mud, cultural values     10     (attach) to porcelain would never disappear.

On September 17, 2023, the Cultural Landscape of Old Tea Forests of the Jingmai Mountain in Puer     1    (gain) World Heritage Site status, becoming a new Chinese entry on that list.   This means that it has been recognized     2     an important place of cultural significance.

    3    (locate) about 1,500 meters above the sea level, the heritage site in Puer, Yunnan province, contains five large-scale, well-preserved old tea forests. It is the first World Heritage Site with the theme of tea. It was     4    (joint) created by ancestors of Blang people,     5     immigrated to Jingmai Mountain in the tenth century, and by the ancestors of Dai people. Their     6    (contribute) have turned it into     7     unique and beautiful place that we see today.

    8    (ensure) lastingly inherited(继承) outstanding universal values of the old tea forests, China     9    (guide) local communities to join in protection and regulate tourism.   It will also advance international cooperation     10     cultural exchanges in the World Heritage circle. The heritage site presents the ecological wisdom that can be inspiring for sustainable development of the world today.

China is a big old country,     1     has a history of more than five thousand years. We are proud of     2     (it) culture and part of the culture even influences the world     3     (great), for example, the thought of Confucius (孔子). As Chinese economy develops very fast and plays     4     important role in the world, more and more     5     (foreign) learn Mandarin (普通话) in Confucius institutions (孔子学院). The Chinese traditional culture can     6     (test) by the time. It unites the whole nation and no matter     7     kind of disaster comes, we will fight together for the country’s future. Today, many young people lose faith in traditional culture and they are crazy     8     the western culture. They follow the western fashion,     9     (think) we are the old style. But some day, they     10     (realize) they are wrong to ignore traditional culture.

Yu Rong, a Chinese artist, thinks of a new way to introduce     1     ancient story of Hua Mulan in her picture book. In the book, I Am Hua Mulan, she tells the story by     2     (combine) paper-cutting with international styles. She places Shaanxi papercuts over western-style pencil sketches     3     (create) a typical presentation of Chinese elements, which turns out to be a     4     (success) and impressive breakthrough.

Hua Mulan,     5     story has been told by generations in China, was a fighter from the northern Wei dynasty (386-534). As a     6     (devote) daughter, she dressed herself     7     a man to serve in the army in place of her father. Mulan’s     8     (characteristic), such as courage, kindness and a disinterested attitude toward fame and fortune, made her one of the most respected historical Chinese heroines. Mulan’s story has been adapted     9     (constant) in modern media.

For example, in 1998, Disney produced a film named Mulan, which     10     (consider) a great success by critics and the public.

The youth version of The Peony Pavilion (《牡丹亭》) successfully entered the stage of the Spring for Chinese Arts at the Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center.

The Peony Pavilion,    1    cultural treasure of the world, was written by China’s Ming Dynasty playwright and writer Tang Xianzu, who is compared to William Shakespeare. And Kunqu Opera,    2    (combine) songs performed in the Suzhou dialect, graceful body movements, martial arts and dance, was    3    (original) born in the region of Kunshan, Jiangsu Province. It was listed as one of the representative     4    (work) of the oral and intangible heritage of humanity by UNESCO in 2001.

Kunqu Opera uses a    5    (vary) of gestures to express specific emotions and has distinguished itself by its rhythmic patterns. It also has a major impact     6    all the more recent forms of opera in China, such as Peking Opera.

    7    excites the organizing committee is that The Peony Pavilion    8    (attract) a growing young audience since its first performance in Beijing. Up to now, Beijing Tianqiao Performing Arts Center,    9    aim is to emphasize the inheritance, promotion, development and popularization of traditional Chinese culture and arts, has also held many exhibitions which are related to traditional drama, and established the Peking Opera inheritance class    10    (make ) the traditional art popular among children.

Huishan clay figurines (泥人) are produced in the western suburb of Wuxi, Jiangsu Province, and are one of China’s most famous folk arts, having a history     1     (date) back over a thousand years. The craft originated in the Southern Dynasties and reached its peak in the Qing Dynasty. During the Qing, an artist made five clay figurines for Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799) and     2     (reward) with high praise from the royal family.

Huishan figurines differ from those of other localities in that they are always small and always feature a big head. They are divided into two types -- mold-pressed (模板印制) and hand-crafted. The     3     ( cheap) , mold-pressed figures often serve as children’s toys while the hand-crafted pieces are more refined and original. The characters depicted (描绘) come mainly from     4     (legend) and Chinese opera plots. Da A Fu, a fat boy holding a fish, is the most popular figure in Huishan clay art.

The legend goes     5     long, long ago, a god, disguised as a boy, beat a fierce lion and saved the children in Huishan.     6     (express) appreciation, local people started to make clay figures of their boy savior Da A Fu. One third of the overall figure is taken up by Da A Fu’s large head,     7     a face round as a full moon and big ears reaching down to his shoulders. With its delicate design, vivid     8     (appear) and bright color, it has won great     9     (popular) among visitors in Wuxi. It is     10     image implying happiness and good fortune