织女是玉皇大帝的小女儿，是一个在天空中编织彩霞的仙女，她厌倦了无聊的神仙生活，决定下凡……
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The seventh day of the seventh lunar month is Qixi, widely regarded as China’s Valentine’s Day.
农历七月初七是七夕，被广泛认为是中国的情人节。
★ lunar month 阴历月
★ Valentine’s Day 情人节
Many different stories lay claim to being the origin of the festival, but one version is the most popular and accepted.
许多不同的故事都声称是这个节日的起源，但有一个版本是最受欢迎和接受的。
★ lay claim to 声称具有（技能或品质）
The youngest daughter of the Jade Emperor (the ruler of the world in legend), the Weaver Girl, was a fairy who weaved rosy clouds in the sky. She became tired of the boring immortal life and decided to descend to the mortal world.
织女是玉皇大帝(传说中世界的统治者)的小女儿，是一个在天空中编织彩霞的仙女。她厌倦了无聊的神仙生活，决定下凡。
★ the Jade Emperor 玉皇大帝
★ Weaver Girl 织女
★ fairy n.仙女
★★ immortal n.神仙
★ descend vi.下降
★★ mortal n.凡人
She met and fell in love with a cowherd. The Jade Emperor strongly objected to the couple’s union and forcibly separated them by the Milky Way, leaving them torn apart by the galaxy and only allowing them to meet once a year.
她遇到并爱上了一个牛郎。玉皇大帝得知后震怒，强行拆散了这对夫妻，让他们分居银行两边，只允许他们一年见一次面。
★★★ cowherd n.牧牛人
★ forcibly ad.强制地
★★ the Milky Way 银河
★ tear apart 使分裂
★★ galaxy 银河系
Despite that, the distance could not stop their love for one another. They still love each other and look forward to meeting once a year on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month.
尽管如此，距离并不能阻止他们对彼此的爱。他们仍然彼此相爱，并期待着每年农历七月初七见面一次。
On the brighter side, the tragedy of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl could not happen in modern China. With the development of high-speed railways, lovebirds no longer have any difficulty reuniting, even if they are many miles apart.
从好的方面来看，牛郎织女的悲剧是不可能发生在现代中国的。随着高速铁路的发展，即使相隔千里，情侣们也不再一面难求。
★ lovebirds n.情侣
★ reunite v.重聚
Beijing and Shanghai, the two largest cities in China are 1,200 kilometers away from each other. But a ride on the high-speed rail only takes four hours and there are more than 100 high-speed trains travelling between the two cities every day.
北京和上海是中国最大的两个城市，相距1200公里。但是乘坐高铁只需要4个小时，每天有100多列高铁往返在两个城市之间。
★ ride n.短途旅程
★ high-speed trains 高铁
The convenience and efficiency of modern travel have shortened the "galactic distance" between couples.
现代旅行的便利和高效缩短了夫妻之间的“银河距离”。
★ convenience n.便利
★ efficiency n.效率
★★ galactic a.银河的
On Qixi, more and more young people are going on dates and exchanging gifts to express their affection. This in turn gave rise to a unique Qixi economy. Long queues are also often formed at the gate of the Civil Affairs Bureau where couples rush to register for marriage when love is in the air. This is because Qixi carries with it a symbolic meaning, choose your own love and remain faithful for life.
在七夕这一天，越来越多的年轻人通过约会和交换礼物来表达爱意。这反过来又形成了独特的七夕经济。民政局门口也经常排起长队，情侣们在充满爱的空气中争相登记结婚。这是因为七夕带有一种象征意义，婚姻自主，忠贞不渝。
★★ affection n.爱慕之情
★ in turn 反过来
★ give rise to 产生
★ queue n.长队
★ the Civil Affairs Bureau 民政局
★ rush to 匆忙做
★ register for marriage 登记结婚
More than 2,000 years ago, Qixi also known as the “the Begging Festival”. In ancient China, women would visit their close friends and worship the Weaver Girl on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month, praying they could become as clever as the weaver girl and find their faithful lover.
两千多年前，七夕又被称为“乞巧节”。在中国古代，妇女会在农历七月初七拜访她们的密友并拜祭织女，祈祷她们能像织女一样聪明，找到自己忠实的爱人。
★ the Begging Festival 乞巧节
★ worship vt.拜祭
★ the Weaver Girl 织女
★ pray vt.祈祷
★ faithful a.忠诚的
In traditional Chinese marriage, women who pray for dexterity often devote all their energies to family life. However, times have changed, as has the role of women. A more diversified social role enables women in China to pursue their love courageously and no longer be bound to domestic life like the Weaver Girl.
在传统的中国婚姻中，祈求灵巧的女性通常会把全部精力投入到家庭生活中。然而，时代变了，女性的角色也变了。更加多元化的社会角色使中国女性能够勇敢地追求爱情，不再像织女那样被束缚在家庭生活中。
★★★ dexterity n.灵巧
★ diversified a.多样化的
★ courageously ad.勇敢地
★ bind vt.捆绑，束缚
★ domestic life 家庭生活
High-speed rail has brought tremendous changes. Many Chinese traditions have changed, but the tradition of festive reunions has stayed strong.
高铁带来了巨大的变化。中国的许多传统已经发生了变化，但节日团聚的传统仍然很强大。
★ high-speed rail 高铁
★ tremendous a.巨大的
★ festive reunion 节日团聚
注：一星词汇为四级难度，二星词汇为六级、考研难度，三星词汇为雅思、托福及以上难度，大家根据自己的考试要求选择性学习
