To reach out across the sea remains a strong desire today.The ancient sea routes（1）

traveled

traveled

（travel） by Zheng He are being revisited with the 2 lst Century Maritime Silk Road，（2）

which

which

is part of the Belt and Road Initiative.The aim of this initiative is（3）

to encourage

to encourage

（encourage）cooperation and trade across the（4）

historic

historic

（history）Silk Road areas，and（5）

strengthen

strengthen

（strength）the bonds（6）

between

between

China and the rest of the world，Trading（7）

has grown

has grown

（grow）greatly in recent years，and will continue to do so in years to come.China has invested billions in systems and（8）

services

services

（service） along these routes，which will help to（9）

greatly

greatly

（great）develop the whole area for（10）

the

the

benefit of future trade and cultural exchange.

1．In ancient times，（1）

（merchant）from China set sail from east to west，along（2）

became known as the Silk Road.A trading route across the sea（3）

（extend）for merchants（4）

（negotiate）trade deals，which also led to more awareness of each other's culture.Between 1405 and 1433，under the command of Zheng He，seven large （5）

（fleet）sailed west on voyages of trade and exploration，which were a sight（6）

（behold）and were （7）

a league of their own at that time.Although China （8）

（withdraw）from expeditions after 1433，these land and sea routes remained active channels between other cultures for centuries.Today the ancient sea routes travelled by Zheng He are being revisited with the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road，which is part of the Belt and Road Initiative，with the aim to encourage cooperation and trade across the historic Silk Road areas，and strengthen the（9）

（bond）between China and the rest of the world.With the latest technology（10）

hand，the need to trade and the desire to enhance relationships will drive China to reach out across the sea far into the future.