No matter what… always… (无论…总)

Structure 无论 + open part，（subject）总 + constant result

无论…总… pairs the connector 无论 ("no matter what", already seen at HSK 4 with the 无论…都… closing) with the adverb 总 (zǒng, "always, without fail"). Swapping 都 for 总 gives a more formal flavour and stresses the person's steadiness or the result's recurrence over time: it is not merely that the result holds in every case, but that it holds again and again. After 无论 comes an "open" part (谁/什么/多…, or A 还是 B), and 总 introduces what invariably happens: 无论遇到什么困难，他总能从容面对 = "whatever the difficulty, he always faces it calmly".

Examples

无wú论lùn遇yù到dào什shén么me困kùn难nán，他tā总zǒng能néng从cóng容róng面miàn对duì。
Whatever difficulty he meets, he can always face it calmly.
无wú论lùn工gōng作zuò多duō忙máng，她tā总zǒng会huì抽chōu时shí间jiān陪péi伴bàn家jiā人rén。
No matter how busy work is, she always finds time to be with her family.
无wú论lùn别bié人rén怎zěn么me劝quàn，他tā总zǒng是shì固gù执zhí己jǐ见jiàn。
No matter how others try to persuade him, he always clings to his own view.
无wú论lùn顺shùn境jìng还hái是shì逆nì境jìng，她tā总zǒng保bǎo持chí着zhe乐lè观guān。
In good times or bad, she always keeps her optimism.

Levels are indicative: they follow the standard Chinese Grammar Wiki (AllSet Learning) progression, not an official HSK 3.0 mapping. We never assign levels by eye.

This point and the other 370, with audio on every example, inside Wanyu.