There was a kingdom long, long ago. It was ruled by a king who loved riddles (谜语). Once a year, the king made a new riddle. He gave a prize to the person who could solve the riddle.
There was a baker who also lived in this kingdom. Everyone agreed that he baked the finest breads. The baker had almost everything he needed except for a horse. If the baker had a horse, he could sell his fine breads from one end of the kingdom to the other.
One year, the king made a new riddle that puzzled everyone. “1 will give a prize to the person who can solve my riddle,” the king said. “Anyone who wins will have the pick of one of my strongest horses.” He then drew a line down the middle of the courtyard. “Make this line shorter without erasing (清除) any part of it,” the king said.
People came from far and wide. “How can you make a line shorter without erasing any part of it?’’ the people in the crowd asked each other. Some of them tried. The dressmaker kicked dirt over the line to hide it. The farmer poured water over the line to make it disappear. None of these worked, and the people went home disappointed. Everyone was puzzled about how to solve this new riddle.
A week passed, and nobody had any new ideas. Then one day the baker came into the courtyard with a bag of flour (面粉).
“Your Majesty,” the baker said to the king, “I can make your line shorter without erasing any part of it.” Then the baker opened his bag of flour. He poured out a line of flour right next to the king’s line. The line the baker made was longer than the king’s line.
“Now, good king,” the baker smiled, “your line is shorter.”
The people were amazed. The king laughed and clapped his hands. “You have won the prize. I will give you a horse of your choice.”
The baker was excited. Now he could sell his breads from one end of the kingdom to the other.
1.What was the baker’s problem at the beginning of the story?
A.He couldn’t make fine breads.
B.He needed money to open more stores.
C.He didn’t have enough flour to make more breads.
D.He couldn’t sell his breads all over the kingdom.
2.The baker smiled because __________.
A.he was glad to see the king B.he wanted to make the king happy
C.he felt sure that he solved the riddle D.he sold a lot of breads to the villagers
3.Who tells this story?
A.The king. B.The farmer and the dressmaker.
C.The baker. D.Someone who is not a character in the story.
Sweet Tomatoes
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1.People can’t go to Sweet Tomatoes _______ for a meal.
A.on Wednesday B.on Friday C.on Sunday D.on Monday
2.Mr. and Mrs. White visited Sweet Tomatoes with two kids, Sara, age 7; Tom, age 4. They have to pay ¥_______ for the meal.
A.110 B.120 C.150 D.180
3.What’s a “Coupon” used for?
A.To invite a friend. B.To save money.
C.To get a VIP card. D.To be a reader of China Daily.
I was standing in line behind a woman in her 60s. When it was her turn to pay, the shop owner greeted her and asked how she was doing.
The woman looked down, shook her head and said, “Not so ________, my husband just lost his job. I don’t know how I can get through the holidays.”
Then she gave the shop owner the food stamps (食品券) for poor families.
My heart hurt. I wanted to help but didn’t know ______. Should I offer to pay for her food, or ask for her husband’s resume(简历)?
As I walked towards my car, I met the woman again. I remembered something in my ______. It wasn’t any money or an offer of a job, but ______ it would help.
“Excuse me,” I said. “I heard what you said to the shop owner. It sounds like you’re going through a really ______ time right now. I’m so sorry. I’d like to give you something.”
I handed her the small card from my wallet.
When the woman read the two ______ on the card, she began to cry. Through her tears, she said, “You have no idea how much this ______ to me.”
To tell the truth, her reply was a little ______. Having never done anything like this before, I didn’t know what could happen. All I could say was, “Would it be OK to give you a hug?”
After that, I walked into my car and began to ______ too.
The words on the card?
“You Matter.”
A few weeks earlier, a friend gave me a similar (相似的) card as encouragement for my work. When I read it, I really felt _____ . So I ordered my own box of You Matter cards and started sharing them.
1.A.bad B.busy C.funny D.good
2.A.when B.how C.where D.why
3.A.wallet B.car C.pocket D.handbag
4.A.again B.instead C.maybe D.often
5.A.easy B.hard C.pleasant D.special
6.A.pictures B.letters C.sentences D.words
7.A.comes B.happens C.means D.costs
8.A.boring B.exciting C.relaxing D.surprising
9.A.chat B.cry C.drive D.shake
10.A.warm B.sorry C.well D.weak
Xiao Zhan shot to fame overnight this summer with The Untamed. Which of the following phrases may have the same meaning as “shoot to fame”?
A.Go through difficulties. B.Become famous to people.
C.Win an important competition. D.Have a chance to act in a film.
Brunch might happen around__________.
A.8:00 am B.10:30 am C.12:30 pm D.5:00 pm
I often borrow many books from the library but __________ them unread.
A.lent B.forget C.bring D.return