reins; bridle; control; the reins (on)
exactly; precisely; closely; tightly; properly; without fail
old tale; folk tale; legend; reminiscence
to start; to begin; to start up (a business, society, etc.); to open (e.g. a store); to start ...; to begin to ...
remote region; outlying district; border district; frontier
farmer; farming family; farmhouse; School of Agrarianism (China); School of Agronomists
eldest daughter; first-born daughter
all; altogether; entirely; exactly alike (e.g. in appearance); spitting image of; identical
contents; interior; substance; content; (sword) blade
serious; earnest; sober; honest; sincere
superior; excellent; brilliant; outstanding
study; diligence; working hard; experience; knowledge; discount
studies; schoolwork; classwork
motor nerve; reflexes; athletic ability; motor coordination
ordinary; common; commonplace; mediocre; unremarkable; undistinguished
calmness; composure; presence of mind; stability; steadiness
idea; plan; fancy; impulse; thought; whim
prudence; discretion; thought; consideration
endurance; perseverance; patience
to chip; to be chipped; to be missing (from a set, team, etc.); to be absent; to be lacking (in); to be short (of)
(time of) one's childhood; when one was a child
to look down (on); to condescend (to)
calm; quiet; gentle; moderate; reasonable; amicable
... years old; age (of) ...
complete change; about-face
diviner; fortune teller; soothsayer
to visit; to call on; to arrive (of a season, situation, etc.); to come; to appear
edge of town; outskirts of a village
to live; to reside; to inhabit
foresight; foreknowledge; intimation; premonition; prediction
to call; to name; to call oneself ...; to go by the name of ...; to purport (to be); to profess
famine; crop failure; chronic shortage (e.g. of water)
disaster; calamity; misfortune; trouble; woes
to sense; to infer; to gather; to pick up on; to get wind of; to perceive
in an instant; in a moment; immediately; suddenly; all of a sudden; all at once
village headman; village mayor
influential person; man of importance
trust (in); confidence; faith; reliance
several years; a few years
water shortage; shortage of water supply
old; aged; long; since long ago; of the distant past; long-ago
to quiet (a child, crowd, etc.); to quieten; to calm (one's nerves, excitement, etc.); to compose (oneself); to suppress (a rebellion, riot, fire, etc.); to quell
every year; yearly; annually