to revere the past and despise the present (idiom)​

speaking generally(general speaking)

upgrade one's family background in order to raise one's social status

block the enemy's retreat and then destroy him

agree like cats and dogs

national enmity and family harted

Singing and dancing

officials shield one another

goldfish bowl(in front of everybody)

(in a broad sense)sons of princes and nobles(sons of the aristocracy and the rich)

talent unmatched in one's generation

become a Buddhist

be off to distant places

tall and erect, reaching through the clouds (idiom); used to describe tall mountain or skyscraper

a state within a state

There is no exception to this rule

an unpractical rountine document

singsong houses and dancehalls

Crowd of spectators

have no means to borrow money