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To Live

Yu Hua's masterpiece follows Fugui's resilience through personal tragedies and historical upheavals, showcasing life's tenacious hope and simple optimism.



Dear Student,

Welcome, and congratulations on choosing a profound path for your HSK journey. Reading a classic like To Live by Yu Hua is not just about preparing for a test; it's about connecting with the soul of the Chinese language. I'm here to guide you on how to use this unique website to make your study both effective and deeply meaningful.

Your Guiding Philosophy: Learning to “Live” with the Language

Language mastery, much like the resilience of the novel's hero, Fugui, comes from consistent, authentic exposure and the courage to engage. Don't be intimidated by the text. Think of each chapter as a conversation. We will listen to its voice, understand its story, absorb its words, and finally, make it a part of your own expression. Progress is a step-by-step journey.

Practical Strategies for Each Skill

1. Listening & Pronunciation: Train Your Ear

Use the native audio for every paragraph and highlighted word.

  • Intensive Listening: For a short paragraph, try this: Saurar sau ɗaya don ra'ayi na gabaɗaya. Sa'an nan, saurar jumloli da jumloli, pausing after each to repeat aloud. Finally, look at the text and listen again. This builds your phonetic memory and intonation.
  • Shadowing: Play the audio and try to speak along simultaneously, matching the speed and tone as closely as possible. It's challenging but excellent for fluency.
  • Example: Listen to the audio for the sentence: “I wear a wide-brimmed straw hat on my head and slippers on my feet...” Pay special attention to the rhythm and the pronunciation of “wide-brimmed (kuānbiān)” and “slippers (tuōxié)”. Click on these highlighted words to hear them in isolation and imitate.

2. Reading & Comprehension: Dive into the Story

You have the perfect tools: parallel translation, highlighted HSK words, and dictionary links for every word.

  • First Read for Gist: Read a chapter quickly, using the translation in your language only when absolutely stuck. Ask yourself: What happened? Who is involved?
  • Deep Dive for Language: Read again slowly. This time, click on every highlighted HSK wordDon't just memorize the definition; read the example sentence provided. See how it's used in this specific context.
  • Use the Dictionary Wisely: For non-highlighted words (like “sīshú”), click the link to your language's trusted dictionary. This helps you build a broader vocabulary foundation without frustration.

3. Writing & Grammar: Learn from a Master

Yu Hua's prose is clear and powerful. Use it as a model.

  • Sentence Mining: Create a “Beautiful Sentences” notebook. Copy sentences that strike you with their structure or emotion. For instance, from the introduction: “The work profoundly demonstrates humanity's capacity to endure suffering and persistent optimism toward life.” Analyze it. How is the topic introduced? How are the ideas connected with “and”?
  • Pattern Practice: Take a sentence structure and replace the content. If you see “I heard ... voice”, you can write “I heard the teacher's patient explanation.”
  • Summarize: After finishing a chapter, write a 3-5 sentence summary in Chinese, using as many new HSK words as you can.

4. Speaking: Find Your Voice

Speaking is about retelling and reacting.

  • Narration: After studying a chapter, close the book. Pretend you are telling a friend about Fugui's life. Describe what he did, what happened to him. Use your own simple words.
  • Record Yourself: Use your phone to record your narration or when you read a paragraph aloud. Then, compare it to the native audio on the site. Be kind to yourself—notice one thing to improve each time (e.g., the tone of “Zhejiang”).
  • Example Practice: Try to describe the scene where the young Fugui is introduced: “He was once a rich young master, but later he lost everything.”

Building Your Vocabulary System

The highlighted words are your goldmine. Don't just collect them; activate them.

  • Spaced Repetition: Use flashcards (digital apps like Anki are great). On one side, put the Chinese word (e.g., gǎndòng). On the back, put the definition from the site and the original sentence from the book.
  • Thematic Groups: Group words from the story. For To Live, you might have lists for Family, Suffering & Resilience, Daily Life.
  • Context is King: Always remember the word in its sentence. The word "tenacious" is more memorable when linked to Fugui's character than when studied alone.

A Final Word of Encouragement

Learning a language through literature is a brave and beautiful choice. There will be moments of confusion, just as Fugui faced countless hardships. But remember his quiet strength. Your progress is hidden in your daily persistence. Each word you learn, each sentence you understand, is a step forward.

Let the story of To Live remind you: the journey itself holds meaning. Be patient with yourself, celebrate small victories, and trust the process.

I am cheering for you every step of the way. You can do this.

Da kyau,
Jagorar HSK ɗinku

Chinese Original
Translation
Yu Hua was born in 1960 in Haiyan, Zhejiang, and later moved to Hangzhou, Zhejiang.
I wore a wide-brimmed straw hat and slippers, with a towel hanging from the belt behind me.
Then I heard a hoarse yet moving voice as he began to sing an old song.
When I studied in the old-style private school, the teacher in a long gown would ask me to recite a passage, and that was the moment I felt most...
With a double push, he stumbled and fell back against the wall. In my youth, I indulged in drinking, eating, visiting brothels, and gambling—all sorts of...
Those four dishes were all vegetables, but Jia Zhen prepared each one differently, yet every bite was a delight.
Shen Xian frowned as if he had lost a great deal, his head hanging low and his eyes downcast.
Asking me to go back with Jia Zhen, isn't this deliberately exposing my shame and provoking my anger?
Waving to a waiter, saying, "Bring a hot towel for Young Master Xu."
Forget it, don't die. This debt is for my father to repay. Thinking of my father, I...
Ran nan ta uku, baba na yana liyafa baƙo a cikin gida. Yana tari mai ƙarfi, kuma ya ce...
Don samun waɗannan kuɗaɗen, ban san cewa za a gajiyar da mutane da yawa ba har mutuwa. A lokacin ne kawai na fahimci dalilin da ya sa baba na ya ƙi...
My father was no longer on his own land. His legs trembling, he made his way to the village.
The joyous occasion in my family. At that moment, I was in front of my father's grave. I heard the sound of gongs and looked up.
After Jia Zhen, my mother often sat by the side, secretly wiping away tears. I originally wanted to find some words to say.
Logically speaking, I should lend you some money. As the saying goes, 'Rescue the urgent, not the poor.' I...
Seeing Gen's appearance when he returned, I felt a pang of sourness. At that time, he carried it on his back all day.
At that time, I was with my mother when she twisted her foot and hurriedly ran to tell me, but she didn't finish her words.
Jia Zhen, born into a city family with delicate features, I watched her do rough work, feeling helpless.
We stopped and looked back; a squad of uniformed Nationalist soldiers stood there.
Quan asked me if I heard gunshots while sleeping at night, I said I did, he said that.
Wisps of cooking smoke rose up, twisting and turning in the air, that was the most.
Wadanda suka jikkata a sama, da farko sun taru cikin tuli, ba da dadewa ba suka hade, suna kuka da zafi a can.
What place is this? Chun and I looked up and around. How could we...
Let it go. I let go of what was hanging, and I let go of us.
It was late autumn when I left, and early autumn when I returned, covered in mud, I took the road home.
The tenant still refused to admit it, and when he tried to intimidate the other tenants, some wouldn't buy it, so he resorted to force.
That one had already come out and was grazing on the grass by the pond, standing there.
The person who went out to inquire in the village came back and said Fengxia was a bit younger, as if half a year had been subtracted from her age.
Youqing was frightened and shrank back. Seeing me lower my head and start eating again, he left.
I called Jia Zhen like this, and she got down from the bed, ran out without wearing shoes, and I...
The work had already exhausted Jia Zhen to the point where she couldn't even speak. Youqing had to let his mother rest.
Can I come and hug them every day? When the village hall opens for meals, can I...
The team accompanied him to my house first. I stood in front and knocked on the door, thump thump.
Since we can't eat enough to get fat anyway, let's just cook it in the pot. Youqing, this...
Wɔbɛkyere me anaa? Wang Xi ka sɛ, wɔrenkyere bio, wɔadi no nyinaa.
Metee Jia Zhen ka wɔ pon no afa no ho, mede me nan kɔɔ hɔ na muhuu Jia Zhen atena asase so.
I was completely baffled, not knowing what merit they had achieved, and waited for them to approach.
After that, Jia Zhen also died, although she still thought about the four parts she painfully lost.
After hearing it, I thought for a moment and felt it was indeed a bit excessive, not to mention the face that was lost.
Yara duk sun fara gudu, na ajiye sanduna a gefen titi don in ga ko Youqing yana cikin su.
Ku bar shi, gwamnan gari ya ce, muddin ba zai mutu da yunwa ba, ku ma ba za ku mutu da ita ba.
Knowing, I turned a corner and headed towards the city's shop as before.
Sometimes when digging, all you get is a rotten vine root; Fengxia is also starving.
Bring it here! Wang Si had no choice but to hand over the land to the team with a long face.
What are you cooking to eat? I just chuckled without saying a word. I didn't speak.
That night, Jia Zhen's tears kept flowing. She repeatedly instructed me: After I die...
At that time, Youqing was already gone, but a doctor came out and said it still wasn't enough to draw.
That night, I carried Youqing home, stopping and stopping, until I was too tired to carry him any further.
I thought of going to the village to see, the place where Youqing is buried. My mouth said okay, but my legs...
I thought that after Youqing died, Jiazhen wouldn't survive either. For a while, she really looked like she wouldn't.
I would sit there for half the day, forgetting to eat. Fengxia came to call me, calling several times before I saw her.
That day, I lost many things from my past, and they never came back to life.
Everything looks pleasing and sounds delightful when Fengxia is around.
Within three days, Wanxi arrived. He truly had a tilted head, lifting his left shoulder when he looked at me.
Chīfàn shénme de dōu huì biàn xiē, Jiāzhēn dāngshí yǎnjīng jiù shī le, tā shì.
Xǐ shuō diē zhīdào le, nà tiān wǎnshang Fèngxiá mō zhe xǐ sòng lái de huā.
Village to village, Jia Zhen warmly asked about the short and the long.
Fengxia had never learned to weave before; our family was poor, and no one had ever worn anything woven. Fengxia watched.
Every time I entered the city and saw many places, I avoided them; the city was fighting every day.
Chun was knocked to the ground, his body lying on that signboard, and a foot kicked him in the head.
During the busy farming season, Fengxia came and stayed for a few days, cooking and taking care of Jia Zhen for me, which made things much easier for me.
Xi said there were too many mosquitoes biting, so there wasn't much advantage to be gained, but Fengxia could.
That night, I sat in Xi's kitchen until dawn, the wind outside howling incessantly.
Fengxia and Youqing both died before me, and I have decided not to worry about them anymore.
It was truly Kugen who cried after pooping and peeing, making "mm" sounds; at first, I thought he was laughing.
Slow down, Kugen might fall! Xi hummed and still walked quickly.
Kugen didn't like them dropping tears on his face; he kept pulling at me, urging me incessantly.
This is my father's. I spent half a year with Kugen in the village implementing the household responsibility system.
Kugen giggled upon hearing it and remembered the whole sentence. Many times he reached into the chicken coop to...
Hau siang-siang sang, yau shih-hou siang-siang hen t'a-shih, chia ch'uan shih wo sung ti tsang ch'uan.
I pulled him back to the village, and everyone gathered around to watch the excitement. They all said I was being foolish.