foreword to a collection of poems; preface; explanatory notes; captions
lodging; inn; house; home; home of a servant's parents (or guarantor, etc.)
village; hamlet; countryside; country; home (of one's parents, etc.); hometown
to deify; to enshrine; to pray; to worship
custom; habit; customary practice
(understanding or appreciation of) culture; (one's) education; cultivation; sophistication; refinement
part-time employer; place where one works part-time
sorrow; grief; anguish; anxiety; worry; trouble
uneasiness; vague apprehension; premonition
without a moment's delay; leaving everything else unattended to
to run to; to come running; to rush (someplace); to hasten
filthy; dirty (looking); drab
prostitute; whore; tramp; floozy; slut
changing the subject; on a different note; by the way
tortoise; turtle; heavy drinker; turtle crest; turtle mon
to take along; to hold in the hand; to hang (e.g. from the shoulder or waist)
service; ministry; attendance; offering goods at a reduced price; providing a service for free
turtle scooping (festival game)
unseasonable; out-of-season
long life; longevity; long-lived; long-running (e.g. TV program)
(matter) for congratulations; worthy of celebration; happy (occasion, ending, etc.); naive; too good-natured; gullible
tortoise-shell divination (in ancient China and Japan)
Zuo zhuan (c. 4th century BC); The Zuo Tradition; The Commentary of Zuo
very serious matter; matter of very grave concern; momentous event
heartwarming; pleasant; charming; amusing
shell (of a crab, tortoise, etc.); carapace; (person's) back; years of experience
to warm (e.g. one's hands over a fire); to dry; to toast; to grill; to broil
chaps (in the skin); cracks
explanation; commentary; exposition; elucidation
edged tool; cutting instrument; knife
muscle; tendon; vein; artery; fiber; fibre; line
to crack; to get cracked; to develop a crack; to develop a fissure
to fall into someone's hands; to place oneself in someone's power
omen; sign of luck; origin; history; dependent arising; doctrine that everything has a cause and there is nothing that arises out of nothing
row; line; group (of peers); ranks (of); sequence; series (taxonomic rank)
congestion; crush; crowding; confusion; disorder