He was a little, skinny (痩得皮包骨的) old man and lived by himself. No one knew much about him. One day, he got a bad cold and called for a doctor.
While the doctor was examining the old man, he asked, “Don’t you have a friend who could come to look after you?”
“No, I have no friends. I’ve never had any,” the old man replied.
“You’ve lived in this village all your life and never had a friend?” the doctor asked, surprised.
“Well, I’m not ashamed to say that I am 70 years old but I never met anyone I could call a friend for long. If it isn’t one thing wrong with them, it is another,” the old man answered.
“Come, come. Our village head, Mr. Black, will surely come to your aid if he knows you’re sick. I’m sure you know him too,” the doctor said.
“Of course I know him.” replied the old man, “but it’s so boring to hear him talk. You’d imagine the world had nothing in it but his wheat field and those pigs he always talks about.”
“Then what about Mr. White who lives down the road?” the doctor said.
“The most selfish fellow I ever came across, though I admit he’s clever. He’s traveled to many places and read many books and is very interesting to talk to. He used to come in here a lot at one time. But he would only come when he felt like doing so and he would stay away for long periods of time. I don’t call that friendship.”
The doctor laughed. “You surely can’t bring up anything against Mr. Smith though? Everyone loves him.”
“You’re right,” agreed the old man. “He has a good sense of humor and is great company, but his noisy tongue makes my poor head ache.”
“I’m afraid you see so many of your neighbors’ bad points that you’re blind to their good ones. You’re a hard nut to crack, old man. Anyway, please call me if you need me. As a doctor, I’ll attend to you whether you like me or not,” the doctor said as he picked up his bag and hat to leave.
The door closed and not a word of “thank you” was heard.
4. The doctor is very surprised because the old man ________.
A.is so proud of having no friends |
B.has lived by himself for such a long time |
C.hasn’t had a true friend his whole life |
D.knew so many things about other people’s lives |
5. How does the old man think of Mr. Black?
A.He is so indifferent that he never talks to others. |
B.He is only concerned about his wheat field and pigs. |
C.He pays attention to others more than himself. |
D.He is too shy to talk to the strangers. |
6. The underlined phrase “a hard nut to crack” probably means a person ________.
A.who is difficult to win over |
B.who seldom believes others |
C.who is in good health and seldom gets sick |
D.who tries so hard to work on friendships |
7. We can infer from the article that ________.
A.the doctor is very happy about taking care of the old man |
B.the old man feels sorry about treating his neighbors badly |
C.the doctor will ask someone to take care of the old man |
D.the old man is selfish and only sees problems in others |