—John.

    Long ago there was a poor farmer called Fred. Fred and his wife Doris lived {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(happy) together in their small old house. One winter night, the Luck Fairy visited {#blank#}2{#/blank#}.

    “Fred, you're a good farmer. I'd like to give you a wish,” said the Luck Fairy.

    “A wish?” said Fred.

    Fred and Doris smiled {#blank#}3{#/blank#}each other. Then Fred said, “Thank you, Luck Fairy. We're very healthy and happy.”

    “You work very hard {#blank#}4{#/blank#}you make very little money. Would you like some gold coins?” asked the Luck Fairy.

    “We're poor, but we have enough food {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(eat).” replied Fred.

    “You can use the gold coin to buy {#blank#}6{#/blank#}clothes. The winter here is very cold,” said Luck Fairy.

    “{#blank#}7{#/blank#} we haven't got many clothes, we've got enough.” said Doris.

    “Well, what about {#blank#}8{#/blank#}nice new house?” asked Luck Fairy.

    “Thank you, but I love my small old house very much. I {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(live) here since I was born. We don't need a new house,” said Fred.

    “You're quite different {#blank#}10{#/blank#}others. I like you very much,” said the Luck Fairy. “I wish you happy forever.” Then the Luck Fairy disappeared and never came back.

    The Laba Festival which is celebrated on the eighth day of the {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(twelve) month of the lunar Chinese calendar is a traditional Chinese holiday. “La” is the name of the month and “ba” has the same {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(pronounce) as that of 8 in Chinese.

    There are several {#blank#}3{#/blank#}(story) about the origin of this festival and it's difficult for us to tell which one is true. But today {#blank#}4{#/blank#}we do know is that this festival began as a way to honour ancestors. It was also {#blank#}5{#/blank#} time for the ancient Chinese to pray for a good harvest.

    The majority of Chinese have long followed the tradition of {#blank#}6{#/blank#}(eat) Laba porridge during the Laba Festival. {#blank#}7{#/blank#} general, the porridge contains eight ingredients, including some beans and rice. {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(traditional), Laba porridge is the most important part of the festival. Also, it is important that family members eat the porridge together.

    {#blank#}9{#/blank#} custom is soaking Laba garlic(蒜），{#blank#}10{#/blank#} is the best seasoning for the dumpling feast at the Spring Festival.

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

    Hua Mulan,{#blank#}5{#/blank#} story has been told by generations in China, is a fighter from the Northern Wei Dynasty（386﹣534）. As a devoted daughter, she dressed herself as a man to serve in the army{#blank#}6{#/blank#}place of her father. Mulan's characteristics, such as courage, kindness and a disinterested attitude toward fame and fortune, made{#blank#}7{#/blank#} （she） one of the most respected historical Chinese heroines. Mulan's story has been adapted{#blank#}8{#/blank#}（frequent） in modern media, including TV shows, video games and literature. For example, in 1998, Disney produced a film named Mulan, which {#blank#}9{#/blank#}（consider） a great success by critics and the public.

    To better tell the story, Yu Rong takes inspiration from her several {#blank#}10{#/blank#}（visit） to sites of ancient battles and Henan province's Yuju Opera. After years of preparation she finally makes this extraordinary work.

You Are a Time Traveler

    Time travel has long fascinated people. Traveling to the past or future would allow you to live in exciting periods of history or get a glimpse(一瞥) of {#blank#}1{#/blank#} the future holds. Think about it. If you could travel in time, where would you go? Perhaps you would voyage far ahead of the present day {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (meet)your future self! What about watching an original performance of {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Shakespeare play in Elizabethan England? Or maybe you would pay a visit to {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (you)as a baby.

    Since these ideas are universally appealing to everyone, it is {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (nature)that time travel interests so many writers, filmmakers, and scientists. It has been depicted in a {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (various) of media, such as literature, film, and science reports. But you might be surprised to realize that {#blank#}7{#/blank#} the smallest sense of the term, we are all time travelers. Even as you sit here {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (read)this article, time is racing forward. The future becomes the past as soon as it happens. The present is so fleeting(稍纵即近)! Everything you do quickly {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (become) part of the past, and so it is that we move through time. The famous scientist Albert Einstein, assigned a mathematical formula to this idea, {#blank#}10{#/blank#} is called The Theory of Relativity.