merchant's home; rented home; store; shop
outside ...; beyond ...; not included in ...
to attack; to assail; to succeed (someone in a post, role, etc.); to make a sudden visit
killing a would-be avenger; having the tables turned on someone (e.g. by a challenger); being beaten at one's own game
one more time; once more; once again
to ask a question; to ask questions
to nod; to bow one's head in assent; to agree
unexpected; surprising; unanticipated; strange; unforeseen
to request; to beg; to call; to order; to entrust to; to rely on
to have a talk; to tell a story
as much as one can; as much as possible; if at all possible
to suit the convenience of; to accommodate
provisional; temporary; tentative; interim
some people; a number of people; several people; a few people
uniform; equal; even; common; ordinary; usual
caller; visitor; company; guest
to stare at; to look hard at; to look up and down; to scrutinize; to scrutinise
will not do; do not; does not
to be sensible; to be smart; to be tasteful; to be thoughtful; to be tactful; to be sensitive
human affairs; mundane matters; personnel affairs; human resources; human power; human effort
assessment (of value, damages, etc.); scrutiny (of budget requests, etc.); revision (of a budget)
to let pass; to allow through; to transmit (e.g. light, sound, etc.); to conduct (electricity); to stick through (e.g. a hole); to force through (e.g. an opening); to connect (e.g. two places)
(sense of) cleanliness; (sense of) freshness; clean impression
furnishings; implements; equipment
coloring; colouring; color scheme; colour scheme; (touch of) colour; embellishment
elegant; refined; polished; high-quality goods; first-class article
futility; waste; uselessness; pointlessness; idleness
valuation; appraisal; evaluation; appreciation; recognition; acknowledgement
to sit (down); to have a seat; to be seated; to assume (a position); to take on (a duty); to occupy (a post)
to sink; to go under; to go down (e.g. sun); to set; to feel depressed; to become subdued
feel (of something); touch; texture; feeling; impression
tea (esp. green or barley); tea break; teatime; tea ceremony
confectionery; sweets; candy; cake
this sort of; this type of
from the place (where); from the fact that ...; caused by the fact that ...; because
financial power; financial means; wealth
to peep (through); to peek; to await (one's chance); to guess; to infer
anti-; antithesis; fanqie; traditional Chinese spelling system in which two characters are used: the first one for the onset, the second one for rhyme and tone
society; public; community; social studies
to be profitable; to yield a profit
intention; plan; belief; assumption; estimate; estimation
to have a cramp; to twitch; to stiffen (of a face, expression); to freeze; to shrink (of skin, due to a scar); to tauten
wanting (to have); desiring; wishing for; I want (you, them, etc.) to (do)