【推荐1】Han-Shin was poor when he was a child. He often had ________ to eat. Every day, he had to go fishing by the bank (岸) of the river, but there were ________ fish.

One day, some women were washing clothes in the river. An old woman saw Han-Shin and walked over to him, “You look ________. Please eat this bowl of ________,” she said. Han-Shin bowed down (鞠躬) to thank her. From then on, the old woman gave Han-Shin food every day.

When Han-Shin ________, he worked very hard and was always kind to others. The people loved him and made him king.

Han-Shin never forgot the old woman after he became rich. He always ________ the woman’s rice and her kindness in his mind. In order to thank her, he looked for the woman everywhere. At last, he found the old woman and brought her to his palace (王宫). Han-Shin bowed down, “I told ________ that I would pay you back someday. You taught me how to be a man,” he said. He gave the woman a lot of ________.

“Thank you for the gold,” said the woman ________. “________ you have already paid me back by becoming such a successful and kind man.”

Modesty (谦逊) is a valuable quality in many cultures around the world. In China, there is no _________. But the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” seems to disagree with this.

During the Warring States Period, the Qin army _________ Handan, Zhao. Seeing that Handan was in danger, Prince Pingyuan decided to look for help from the State of Chu. He wanted to _________ twenty talented people to go with him. However, he could _________ find 19 people who were good enough. Then, a man named Mao Sui volunteered. Prince Pingyuan looked at Mao Sui with doubt, “_________    did you come here with me?” “Three years ago,” Mao Sui answered.

“I hear that a person with talent is like an awl (锥子) in a cloth bag. Its sharp point will soon pierce through the bag. You’ve been here for a long time, but I haven’t seen any of your _________. Maybe you don’t have any talent,”   said Prince Pingyuan.

“What I’m asking you now is to put me into that bag and show my talent. If you do that, I will pierce through it. But not only the point — the whole awl,” Mao Sui said _________.

Impressed by him, Prince Pingyuan allowed Mao to join his team, and Mao’s hard work finally _________. Now the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” is used to _________ someone who volunteers to do a task.

However, there is a fine line between self-confidence and arrogance. It’s important to believe in yourself, but a strong ego can harm your career and professional relationships. So we recommend letting your work _________ for itself.