Final answer:
The Yellow River is the river closest to the Yellow Sea, making the correct answer (a) Yellow River. This river has shaped China's agricultural and civilizational development, contrasting with the Yangtze River, which lies further south.
Step-by-step explanation:
The river that is on the top, closer to the Yellow Sea, is the Yellow River. The Yellow River, or Huang He, is distinguished by the light-colored silt it carries and is Asia's second-longest river. Originating from the Tibetan highlands, it flows through the North China Plain before emptying into the Yellow Sea. The river has been central to Chinese civilization, influencing the development of agriculture and settlement patterns. Major historic dynasties such as the Shang and Zhou leveraged the river's flooding for irrigation, turning the region into a cradle of Chinese culture and innovation.
Conversely, the Yangtze River flows out of the Tibetan Plateau towards the Sichuan Province and then through the Three Gorges region, reaching the East China Sea at Shanghai. The Yangtze River basin is a hub for extensive rice and wheat farming, and it supports large population centers including Wuhan, Chongqing, Nanjing, and Shanghai. While the Yangtze also has significant historical importance, its proximity to the Yellow Sea is further south compared to that of the Yellow River.