Once upon a time, there was a man from the State of Chu who loved his sword very much. One day, he was sitting in a boat   preparing to cross a river {#blank#}1{#/blank#} he accidentally dropped his sword into the water. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} the ship moving fast on and the water running, the people on board reminded that he should go into the water to find his beloved sword back. The man felt in great {#blank#}3{#/blank#} ( anxious) too. However, he turned a deaf ear to that and instead, he {#blank#}4{#/blank#}  (immediate) took out a knife and made a notch（刻痕） on the side of the boat {#blank#}5{#/blank#} his dear sword fell. The people wondered why he did so. He said proudly the notch could help {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (get) his sword back. Shortly after the {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (arrive) at the shore, he entered the water just beneath the notch he made. Though {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (spend) rather a long time, he returned empty-handed. Without doubt, he was laughed at in public and his story became {#blank#}9{#/blank#} well-known joke in China.

    Today the idiom {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (relate) to the story is used to describe a person who stick to rigid rules without considering a changing environment or describes an action made pointless by changing circumstances.

    How long have you not written a character?

    Popular TV program National Chinese Characters Contest has brought people's attention back to written Chinese.

    The{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(compete)is the Chinese version of a classic word game American Spelling Bee. Pupils{#blank#}2{#/blank#}usually come from the fifth or sixth grade,{#blank#}3{#/blank#} (divide)into different teams and try to write down every word according to Its pronunciation.

    In less than two hours, the contestants need to solve dozens of questions{#blank#}4{#/blank#}(concern) error- prone(容易出错的) characters. Many students keep up with the show. They refer to{#blank#}5{#/blank#}as “the interesting Chinese lessons on TV”. Teachers and parents are also happy to see that children can learn and have fun at the same time.

    The program has gone beyond the circle of primary school students. “It is {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(surprising) instructive. I have corrected a lot of my own mistakes by watching the show,” said{#blank#}7{#/blank#}adult viewer.

    Guan Zhengwen, chief director of the show, considers written Chinese{#blank#}8{#/blank#}the root of China‘s{#blank#}9{#/blank#}(culture)heritage, “TV shows on Chinese language mean more than just a trend,” he said. “Mass media need to seek innovation(创新) in order to preserve our culture, We hope that National Chinese Characters Contest will get more people{#blank#}10{#/blank#}(brush)up our written language.”

    The traditional Chinese lunar calendar divides the year into 24 solar terms. Awakening of Insects (惊蛰) {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (fall) on Mar 6 and ends on Mar 20 this year.

Awakening of Insects signals a rise in temperature and increased rain fall. As the {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (three) solar term in the lunar year, {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (it) name suggests the fact that animals sleeping in winter are awakened {#blank#}4{#/blank#} spring thunder and that the earth begins to come back to life. It is the key time for spring agricultural {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (activity). It is also a good time for people to enjoy fun outdoors, especially for people living in the city. {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (drive) to the suburbs, fishing in a lake or enjoying the singing bird will make for a perfect weekend in spring. The most popular fruit in this season is pears.

    Eating pears around the Awakening of Insects {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (be) a widely-practiced custom in China. As the weather gets {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (warm) and the air becomes drier, people tend to feel their mouths and tongues are dry, {#blank#}9{#/blank#} can cause colds or coughs. A pear is sweet, juicy and cold, moistening (湿润) the lungs to arrest a cough. {#blank#}10{#/blank#}, pears are highly recommended during the Awakening of Insects.

    The 9th day of the 9th lunar month is the traditional Double Ninth Festival. It usually {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (fall) in October. In a mysterious book Yi Jing in ancient time, number {#blank#}2{#/blank#} （think）to be "Yang", {#blank#}3{#/blank#}（mean）positive. Because the 9th day of the 9th lunar month is pronounced as "Jiu Jiu" in Chinese, which means "forever", the Chinese ancestors considered it a lucky day worth celebration. That's why ancient Chinese began to celebrate this festival.

    Nelson Mandela was a great fighter. In his early days, he was a {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (law) and set up a law office,{#blank#}2{#/blank#} (offer) help to poor black people. Elias was {#blank#}3{#/blank#} of them. After he found a job in Johannesburg, he became worried about being out of work, for he didn't have a passbook. Mandela helped him get the correct papers,{#blank#}4{#/blank#} made him become {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (hope) about the future.{#blank#}6{#/blank#} (unfortunate), the office was closed by the government. Later, he became a leader of ANC Youth League. They attacked the anti-black laws. In 1963, ANC began to blow {#blank#}7{#/blank#} buildings because the peaceful way was not allowed. Nelson Mandela, this brave and {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (determine) man, devoted all his life to {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (help) the black to achieve equality. In 1993, he {#blank#}10{#/blank#} (give) the Nobel Peace Prize for his great contributions.

    The man who is going to fix our roof must be {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(honest) person my husband and I have ever met.

    My husband knew the back roof of the porch was fine and wanted {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(see) what this roofer would say when he gave his estimate. He told my husband that the back roof was just fine and then gave the estimate for the rest of the roof:$2,400.

    He called last night to tell us he could do the roof on Monday but {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(tell) us he had measured the roof {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(correct) by forgetting to add on the front part of the roof.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} instead of giving us a new estimate, he told us he {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(go) to do the roof for what he quoted us.

    My husband asked him what the correct estimate would {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(be).He said,"$3,000."Well, that's what I had thought it would be so that's {#blank#}8{#/blank#} I set aside. My husband was simply {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(amaze) at this roofer.

    The roofer doesn't know our decision that he'll get the $3,000.He's honest and is planning to be responsible for the mistake. My boss was kind to me when I made some {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(mistake) in the past and now I get a chance to pass this on to others.