When somebody calls, first of all, the (26) would offer him a cigarette and a cup of tea. In the countryside, (27) , old men often allow visiting guests to share the long-stemmed Chinese pipe which they themselves are smoking. At wedding (28) , brides would offer cigarettes to all guests who came to express their (29) and light the cigarettes for each of them one after another. All these were originally (30) the Chinese hospitality and respect towards the guest, but in recent years, the old tradition has been used as a means to nurse good relations. Even those who never smoke have (31) cigarettes in their pockets. Whenever they have to seek somebody’s favor, they first offer him a cigarette. If the other party turns it down, he is being impolite. If he accepts it he has to do something, for (32) demands a favor in return. Tobacco contains harmful substances. So offering cigarettes to someone (33) doing harm to him. But neither people who offer cigarettes nor those who take them fully realize it. It is even (34) for the host to pass the long-stemmed Chinese pipe or water pipe to the visitor after smoking it beforehand. Once I paid a visit to relative who had just (35) abroad. He was smoking but did not produce one for me. Instead, he placed the cigarette packet on the table and told me: "Cigarettes produce carbon monoxide and nicotine. But if you don’t mind this, take it yourself." His way of offering cigarettes was unique but worth learning.