tā shuō zuì zhòngyào de bù shì lǐwù duō guì, érshì sòng lǐwù de rén.

The pattern 不 是 A，而是 B means “not A, but (rather) B.”
It’s used to contrast two possibilities and say that B is the correct / important one, not A.

In this sentence:

• 不 是 礼物 多 贵 → “it is not how expensive the gift is”
• 而是 送 礼物 的 人 → “but (rather) the person who gives the gift”

So the whole middle part means:

The most important thing is not how expensive the gift is, but the person who gives the gift.

You can think of 不 是 … 而是 … as a fixed contrast pattern that is very common in Chinese.

而是 is normally used together with a preceding 不 (不 是 / 不 …) to make a “not A but B” contrast.

• 不 是 A，而是 B → “not A, but (rather) B”

It emphasizes that A is rejected and B is correct / preferred.

但是 / 可是 both mean “but / however” and usually connect two clauses without that built‑in “A is wrong, B is right” feeling:

• 我想去，但是 没时间。
  I want to go, but I don’t have time.

In this sentence, 而是 is the second half of the pattern 不 是 … 而是 ….
You normally would not replace it with 但是 or 可是 here.

最 means “most; the most” and marks the superlative degree.

• 重要 = important
• 很 重要 = very important
• 最 重要 = the most important

So 最 重要 的 here means “the most important (thing)”.

Compare:

• 这件事 很 重要。
  This matter is very important.
• 这件事 最 重要。
  This matter is the most important.

In our sentence, 最 重要 的 is being turned into a noun phrase (“the most important thing”), then described further by 不 是 …，而是 ….

Here 的 is being used as a nominalizer – it turns an adjective phrase into a noun phrase.

• 最 重要 = most important (adjective phrase)
• 最 重要 的 = the most important one / the most important thing (noun phrase)

Chinese often leaves out obvious nouns if the meaning is clear from context. You could make it explicit:

• 他 说 最 重要 的 事情 不 是 …
  He said the most important thing is not …

But 事情 (“thing, matter”) is so predictable that it’s natural to omit it and just say 最 重要 的. The listener understands it as “the most important thing.”

They are related but used in slightly different ways:

1. 最 重要 的

   • Here 的 nominalizes an adjective phrase.
   • 最 重要 (most important) → 最 重要 的 (the most important [thing]).

2. 送 礼物 的 人

   • Here 的 links a describing phrase with the noun 人.
   • 送 礼物 (give gifts) + 的 + 人 (person) → “the person who gives gifts”.

You can think of both as markers that connect something describing with a noun:

• adjective + 的 → a noun phrase:
  最 重要 的 → “the most important (thing)”
• verb phrase + 的 + noun → like a relative clause:
  送 礼物 的 人 → “the person who gives (the) gift(s)”

Chinese typically puts the describing part before the noun, and 的 connects them.

Structure:

• [送 礼物] 的 人
  • 送 礼物 = give a gift
  • 的 = marker connecting the description to the noun
  • 人 = person

So literally it is:

“[gives gift] 的 person” → “the person who gives the gift”

This is a very common pattern and is the usual way to express relative clauses (like “who …, that …, which …”) in Chinese:

• 我 昨天 见 到 的 人 = the person whom I saw yesterday
• 他 买 的 书 = the book that he bought
• 会 说 中文 的 老师 = the teacher who can speak Chinese

So 送 礼物 的 人 naturally means “the person who gives the gift.”

Both 送 and 给 can be involved in giving, but they have different typical uses:

• 送:
  • “to give (as a present)”
  • “to deliver / to send”
• 给:
  • “to give (to someone)” in a broader sense
  • often highlights the receiver (who you give to)

Because 礼物 (gift) is explicitly mentioned, 送 礼物 naturally suggests “to give a gift (as a present)”.

• 送 礼物 的 人 → “the person who gives (presents a) gift”
• 给 礼物 的 人 sounds incomplete; you’d normally say:
  • 给 他 礼物 的 人 → “the person who gives him a gift”
  • 给 我 礼物 的 人 → “the person who gives me a gift”

So 送 礼物 的 人 is the most natural way to say “the person who gives the gift” here.

Here 多 贵 means “how expensive” (degree/extent of expensive).

Pattern:

• 多 + adjective can mean “how [adj]” in terms of degree:
  • 多 高 = how tall
  • 多 大 = how big / how old (for age)
  • 多 远 = how far
  • 多 贵 = how expensive

So 礼物 多 贵 means “how expensive the gift is” (the degree of expensiveness).

This phrase is not a question here; it’s part of a statement:

• 最 重要 的 不 是 礼物 多 贵
  The most important thing is not how expensive the gift is.

Depending on context, 多 + adjective can appear in questions (多 高？) or in statements like this, referring to degree.

You could say 礼物 多么 贵, but the feeling is a bit different.

• 多 贵 is simpler and very common in spoken modern Chinese.
• 多么 贵 can sound more emphatic / exclamatory or a bit more formal / literary, especially in statements.

In everyday modern usage:

• 多 + adjective is often enough:
  • 不 要 在意 礼物 多 贵。
    Don’t mind how expensive the gift is.

多么 is very common in exclamations:

• 多么 贵 啊！
  How expensive it is!

So 礼物 多 贵 is perfectly natural here and fits the neutral descriptive tone of the sentence.

In writing, 不 and 是 are often separated as two words: 不 是, but together they function as “is not / are not”.

The pronunciation follows a tone sandhi rule:

• 不 is normally bù (4th tone).
• Before another 4th‑tone syllable, 不 changes to bú (2nd tone).

Here, 是 is 4th tone, so:

• 不 是 is pronounced bú shì, not bù shì.

Meaning‑wise, 不 是 礼物 多 贵 simply means “is not how expensive the gift is.” The separation is just standard word segmentation; together they mean “is not.”

Chinese verbs do not change form for tense like English verbs do. Time is shown mainly by:

• Time words: 昨天, 现在, 明天, 刚才, etc.
• Context
• Sometimes aspect particles (了, 过, 着), but those are about aspect, not pure tense.

In English we often say:

• He said (that) the most important thing was not …

In Chinese you can just say:

• 他 说 最 重要 的 不 是 …
  He said (that) the most important thing is not …

The 是 here is neutral; it doesn’t have a tense built into its form. The past time is already clear from 他 说. So using 是 is completely natural, and there’s no need to change anything to match “said.”

You do sometimes see 最 重要 不 是 … in real usage, and many people will say it. However, the versions have slightly different structures:

1. 最 重要 的 不 是 …

   • 最 重要 的 is a noun phrase: “the most important thing”.
   • Very clear, explicitly treating “the most important (thing)” as the subject.

2. 最 重要 不 是 …

   • Here 最 重要 acts more directly as a predicate: “what is most important is not …”
   • In casual speech or writing, this is acceptable and common.

So:

• 他 说 最 重要 的 不 是 礼物 多 贵，而是 送 礼物 的 人。
  is very natural, slightly more “complete” in structure.

Your suggested form without 的 is understandable and also heard, but 最 重要 的 不 是 … is the standard textbook‑clear structure for learners.

Chinese does not need a word exactly like English “that” to introduce a clause.

English:

• He said that the most important thing is not how expensive the gift is, but the person who gives it.

Chinese:

• 他 说 最 重要 的 不 是 礼物 多 贵，而是 送 礼物 的 人。

There is no mandatory linking word like “that”. You simply place the quoted / reported content directly after 说.

Sometimes you can use words like 说（他）是…, 说…的 是…, or for other verbs you might see 觉得（…）, 认为（…）, or 说 ：“…” with actual quotes, but:

• For “He said that …”, just 他 说 … is the normal structure.

So nothing is missing; Chinese just doesn’t require an explicit “that” here.