A
Peonies are highly prized flowers native to China. Chinese people started growing them about 2,000 years ago. Peonies have big, colourful flowers with a sweet smell. In traditional Chinese culture, they are a symbol of wealth and good luck. That’s why people have loved them for thousands of years.
The Chinese have the tradition of using flowers to describe different characters of people. For example, the plum flower(梅花) is the symbol of people with patience, the lotus flower stands for people who are honest and peaceful, and the chrysanthemum flower(菊花) symbolizes those who don’t care about fame and wealth. Peonies are the symbol of beautiful ladies. Traditionally, Chinese people describe peonies as “guo se tian xiang”.
During the Qin and Han Dynasties, Herbal Classic of Shen Nong(《神农本草经》) classifies various plants and substances as medicinal herbs(药用草药). Moreover, these herbs are frequently used in traditional Chinese medicine. Their roots, known as “mudanp”, are used to treat different kinds of ailments, such as fever and pain. During the Sui and Tang Dynasties, peonies gradually became the most popular flowers. Liu Yuxi, a poet from the Tang Dynasty, once wrote that “Only peonies are worthy of being called the national beauty; when they bloom, all the capital is in a stir.”
Today, peonies are still one of the favourite flowers for the Chinese. They are generally in full bloom in late April each year, which is the best time to enjoy these beautiful flowers.
() 1. How does the writer mainly organize the text in paragraph 2?
A. Facts→Opinions B. Descriptions→Examples
C. Reasons→Results D. Problems→Solutions
() 2. What does the underlined word “ailments” in paragraph 3 mean?
A. Plants. B. Flowers. C. Illnesses. D. Herbs.
() 3. What did Liu Yuxi want to express in his poem?
A. His love for the capital city.
B. His love and praise for peonies.
C. The beauty of the Tang Dynasty.
D. The difficulty of growing peonies.