Categories
Newbie

Short story: 谁的伞 – The Wrong Umbrella

Sometimes, things work out just the way they should.

Categories
Newbie

Short story: 长寿的秘密 – The Secret to a Long Life

What’s the real secret to living to 100? You’d think it’s healthy eating or daily exercise, right? Grandma Wang has a much simpler answer—and by the end, she’ll prove her point in the funniest way possible.

Categories
Newbie

Essay: 爸爸不说 – Dad Doesn’t Say It

Ever notice how some dads never say ‘I love you’ out loud? Well, sometimes, they don’t have to.

Categories
Beginner

Famous Song: 月亮代表我的心 – The Moon Represents My Heart

Get ready to fall for one of the most beloved love songs in Chinese history.

Categories
Newbie

Essay: 为什么中国人喝热水? – Why Do Chinese People Drink Hot Water?

Today’s post asks the perennial question: Why do Chinese people drink hot water?

Categories
Intermediate

Summary: 奥德赛 – The Odyssey

A summary of this summer’s popular classic, The Odyssey.

Categories
Beginner

Fable: 十二生肖 – The Twelve Zodiac Animals (why the cat hates the rat)

This great Chinese myth is like two fables in one. It tells the story of how the king of heaven created the Chinese zodiac, and it also tells the story about why cats hate mice.

Categories
Intermediate

Idiom: 滥竽充数 – Filling a Position Without the Skills

Ever bluffed your way into a job you couldn’t actually do? Well, meet Mr. Nanguo, who faked playing an instrument for years and got paid handsomely for it.

Categories
Newbie

Short story: 太多罚单 – Too Many Parking Tickets

Ever gotten so many parking tickets you wanted to give up driving forever? Well, that’s exactly what happened to Li Ming. But trading driving for walking turned out to the best decision Li Ming ever made.

Categories
Beginner

Short story: 幸运的抢劫犯 – The Lucky Robber

Li Ming spent ages plotting the perfect bank robbery, but on the big day, fate had a different plan in store.

Categories
Intermediate

Phrase: 此地无银三百两 – There isn’t 300 taels of silver buried here

The phrase we’ll learn today is used to describe a situation when someone tries so hard to hide or deny something that they basically point a giant arrow at it.

Categories
Advanced

Novels: Start reading 《阿Q正传》- The True Story of Ah Q by Lu Xun

Ever met someone who loses a fight but still walks away feeling like the winner? Meet Ah Q, Lu Xun’s unforgettable everyman who turns every humiliation into a personal victory through sheer mental gymnastics. In these opening chapters, we watch a narrator struggle just to name his subject—and then witness Ah Q’s legendary ‘spiritual victory method’ in glorious action.

Categories
Newbie

Essay: 什么是家? – What makes a home?

Ever bought all the furniture and still felt like something was missing? This little story tells us it takes more than tables and chairs to make a house feel like a home.

Categories
Beginner

Idioms: 对牛弹琴 – Playing the Lute to a Cow

Ever tried explaining something brilliant to someone who just didn’t get it? This classic Chinese story proves that knowing your audience matters more than knowing your art.

Categories
Intermediate

Idioms: 杀鸡儆猴 – Killing the Chicken to Scare the Monkeys

This idiom, which means “to make an example of someone,” comes up a lot in conversations about power, politics, and the workplace.

Categories
Beginner

Essay: 学切菜 – Learning to Cut Vegetables

In this wax-on, wax-off lesson, our narrator picks up the most important basic skill in Chinese cooking.

Categories
Beginner

Short story: 姑姑的马拉松 – Auntie’s Marathon

Think you’re too old to start something new? This fifty-year-old auntie would like a word.

Categories
Newbie

Dialogue: 打错了 – Wrong Number

Ever dialed the wrong number and just hung up in embarrassment? What if you didn’t? This gentle little story shows how one tired phone call and a lonely stranger turned a mistake into something warm.

Categories
Advanced

History: 公元536年:一场笼罩世界的天灾 – 536 AD: A Catastrophe That Enshrouded the World

Ever complained about a gloomy, sunless week? Try a whole year of it. Back in 536 AD, the sun dimmed to a mere ghostly glow, and no one alive had any idea why.

Categories
Intermediate

Science: 捕蝇草 -The Venus Flytrap

A plant that eats bugs and can count to two? Sounds like science fiction, right? Meet the Venus flytrap, a tiny green hunter that fascinated even Charles Darwin. Let’s find out how this clever little plant catches its dinner. Also, quick FYI: CRP will be off for the July 4th weekend, see you next week!