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Chinese grammar: Saying a lot with 有的是youdeshi

In Chinese, there are "a lot" of ways to say "a lot." “有的是” (yǒudeshì) is one of those ways. However, we need to be very clear: "有的是" is not the same as "有的+是". Unfortunately, these two phrases are extremely close, but their meanings are not the same at all! "有的是" indicates that the amount or quantity of something is very large, and it can sometimes indicate a mood of exaggeration.

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About the Wuxia (Martial Arts) Novels

Wuxia novel(武侠小说wǔxiá xiăoshuō) is a Chinese novel genre, which features martial arts heroes, i.e. swordsmen and those related to them, with the plot dedicating to the intricate(you use intricate to describe something that has many small parts or details) relationships of honor, loyalty, love and hatred between individuals in the world of martial arts. There's usually a thread of martial arts practice and demonstration running through the plot.

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Martial Art and Chinese Literature

Earliest literature work(文学作品wénxué zuòpĭn) on the martial art or chivalrous(a chivalrous man is polite, kind, and unselfish, especially towards women) characters was Records of the Grand Historian, a masterpiece from Sima Qian, the great historian in Western Han Dynasty. In the book, the sections such as Biographies of Knights-errant and Biographies of Assassins recorded the legendary characters including Jing Ke, Zhu Jia and Guo Jie in the form of historical biography.

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About Jianghu: The World of Martial Arts

Jianghu(江湖jiānghú) is a shared world and an alternate universe. It consists of several martial artists and pugilists gathered in the Wulin(武林wǔlín), who are usually congregated in clans, sects(a sect is a group of people that has separated from a larger group and has a particular set of religious or political beliefs), disciplines and various schools of martial arts(武术wǔshù). It is also inhabited by others such as "Youxia" (wandering heroes), nobles, thieves, beggars, priests, healers, merchants and craftsmen. The best Wuxia writers draw a vivid picture of the intricate themes of honour, loyalty, love and hatred between the individuals and communities within this milieu.

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Stringed and Woodwind Music in China

The Stringed and woodwind music(丝竹音乐sīzhú yīnyuè) of Jiangnan is the umbrella name of the stringed and woodwind music popular in the southern part of Jiangsu, the western part of Zhejiang and Shanghai City. The name is originated from the fact that the band mainly uses stringed and woodwind musical instruments such as urheen (erhu), dulcime (yangqin), lute, sanxian, qinqin, bamboo flute, Xiao and so on. The stringed and woodwind music had been popular among the people no latter than the Qing. It was closely integrated with folk activities, which brought about pervasive(something, especially something bad, that is pervasive is present or felt throughout a place or thing) mass foundation for the music of this kind.

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Auspicious Motifs in China

The traditional Chinese auspicious motifs(吉祥图案jíxiáng tú’àn) first appeared in the Zhou Dynasty, nearly 3,000 years ago. They later became widely popular among the general public. On every Spring Festival or other holidays, people would decorate their rooms and articles with these auspicious motifs to express their wishes for happy life and to celebrate the happy holiday. As a key component of traditional Chinese culture, the auspicious motifs are one of the symbols used to identify national spirits and goals. The silk auspicious motifs in the Ming and Qing dynasties covered a wide range of subjects that included trees, flowers, stones, insect, fish and birds. The seemingly(if something is seemingly the case, you mean that it appears to be the case, even though it may not really be so) ordinary motifs contained profound meanings and deep feelings. Generally, the motifs are in three forms: 1) motifs; 2) homophonic words; 3) illustrations in words.

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