2 . Dong Yuhui, a 30-year-old live streaming host for East Buy (东方甄选), found himself in an online controversy (争议) that began on Dec.5.

East Buy, a subsidiary of the New Oriental education, said that many of the things Dong said in his live streams were written by the East Buy team, not by himself. The then-CEO, Sun Dongxu, criticized Dong and the team, which made Dong’s fans upset.

Surprisingly, this controversy made Dong even more popular. In just one week, his Douyin followers increased by over 3 million, while East Buy lost more than 2 million followers. Sun was no longer the CEO, and Dong became vice president of New Oriental’s cultural and tourism business.

Despite his rising fame, Dong remains humble. “I am not good-looking or tall; I don’t know why I have so many supporters,” he said.

However, Xu Hanze, an associate professor (副教授) at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronauts, believes that Dong got more attention because of his talent and intelligence, thanks to his habit of reading extensively.

In the age of consumerism, Dong does not trick consumers into buying unnecessary products, but encourages them to be rational (理智的) when shopping online. He also puts more effort into educational activities and events to help farmers.

He believes that people should not wish to be the next Dong Yuhui. “I want to tell other young live streamers that they do not need to be me, as each story is moving in its own way.” He went on to say that people are not products made on manufacturing lines, and that diversity (不同) what makes people special.

3 . Once there were two neighbors. One of them was an old teacher and the other was an office worker. Both of them planted the same plants in their gardens. The old teacher gave a little water to his plants every day and didn’t always care for them, while his neighbor gave much water to his plants and looked after them well.

The old teacher’s plants were simple but looked good. The office worker’s plants were much taller and greener. One night, there was a heavy rain. The next morning, the office worker saw his plants were uprooted (连根拔起), but the old teacher’s plants stood firmly (稳固地).

The neighbor was surprised and went to the old teacher and asked, “We both grew the same plants together. I looked after my plants better than you did, and I even gave them more water. However, my plants were uprooted, while yours weren’t. Why?”

The old teacher smiled and said, “You gave your plants more water, so they didn’t need to work for it. I gave them a little water, so their roots grew deeper to get more water. It made them stronger.”

4 . High in the mountains, and deep in the forest, lived a lake with many plants and animals in and around her. ①The plants and animals had enough food and clean water to keep them healthy. The wind carried pure air, and the rain came down clear and clean. But recently, Lucy Lake and her friends haven’t been feeling very well. ②All the plants and animals got together to talk about the problem. “Why are we sick?” “What can we do?” asked all of them. No one had any answers.

Just then two hikers appeared. The animals told them about their problems. “Can you help us?” they asked. “Yes,” one hiker said. “I think it’s because of ③acid rain.”

Acid rain comes from chemicals in the air. The pollution comes from factories, cars and trucks.

“So, although I don’t want to, I help the pollution travel through the air!” said the wind, “And I carry it to the land!” cried the rain.

“If you can help us think of some solutions, we will send a message to tell people how to clean up our environment,” one hiker said.

With the help of the plants and animals, the two hikers made a list of ideas for saving Lucy Lake and her friends.

Time passed, and the forest and lake began to feel a little better.

The next time the hikers climbed up the mountains to Lucy Lake, they smiled at what they found. “We’re glad things have started to change,” one hiker said. “And we’re glad ④you helped us make a difference.” said the other.

5 . Once, a man sold his well to a farmer. Next day when the farmer went to get the water from that well, the man didn’t agree. He said, “I sold you the well, not the water, so you can’t get the water.”

The farmer became very sad. And he came to the judge in the office alone. He described everything and asked for help. The judge called up the man who sold the well to the farmer.

He asked, “Why don’t you let him use the water of the well? You have sold the well to him.” The man replied, “I have sold the well to the farmer, not the water. That means he can’t get the water from the well.”

The judge smiled and said, “OK, as long as you have sold the well to him, and you say the water is yours, then you can’t keep your water in the farmer’s well. Either you pay for the farmer to keep your water, or you must take it out of his well right away.”

The man understood that his idea couldn’t work. The story tells us we can’t cheat others, though we are smart. We can’t win in the end.

6 . Writing a good story is no easy task. What’s the secret? Mo Yan, a Nobel Prize winner in literature, believes his success comes from a large amount of reading.

Mo was born into a farming family in a village in Shandong Province. He grew up listening to folk（民间的）stories about gods, spirits and foxes. Those stories later became the inspiration（灵感）for Mo’s writing.

Mo left school at the age of 12 and started to work in the fields. (2)Although he was tired after his daily hard work, Mo was always hungry for books. However, there were very few in the village. He read his elder brother’s textbooks and even dictionaries. He helped others with farm work in exchange for books.

After Mo left his hometown and joined the army in 1976, he began to read widely, including works by Lu Xun and many other famous writers.

He studied from these writers but did not copy them. (1) , he (1) his own style. “I grew up in an environment filled with folk culture. It enters my novels whenever I pick up a pen. This has affected, even decided, my style,” Mo told a group of reporters in his hometown shortly after he won the award.

As the first Chinese citizen to win a Nobel Prize in literature, the organization spoke highly of his works. They described his writing as a mixture of fantasy and reality, combining historical and social perspectives（看法）.

8 . Once there lived a wise man. His son, however, was very lazy and did nothing all day. The wise man was worried about his son’s future. One day, he said to his son. “I want you to go to find some treasure. I have drawn a map to guide you.” Then he handed his son a bag. Inside the bag were clothes, some food, a little money and the map.

The son set out the next day. He had to travel across forests, rivers and mountains. Along the way, he was helped by some people with food and by some with shelter(住所). He came across robbers who tried to rob him. He also saw changing scenery and seasons.

Finally, after a long year, he got to the place his father said. He spent two days looking and digging for the treasure, but found nothing.

Disappointed, he headed back to his home. On his way back, he experienced the same scenery. Sometimes, he would stop to enjoy the beauty of nature. He also learned to hunt and make meals. He had to mend his own clothes and fix shelter himself. He was now able to tell time by the position of the sun. He met the same people who had helped him earlier. This time, he stayed and helped them in order to repay them.

When he got home, he apologized to his father for not finding the treasure. “There wasn’t any treasure in the very first place, my son,” the father answered with a smile. “But I think you have found your life’s true purpose.”

10 . One weekend, Taylor, an eight-year-old girl, went shopping with her parents. She asked her parents to buy a toy she wanted. Instead of giving her money to buy the toy, Taylor’s father encouraged her to make money by herself. “How can I make money?” Taylor thought for a while and had an idea, “Why not make cakes and sell them at church to raise money to buy the toy?”

The next day, Taylor started her plan. She first needed some money for tools and materials. So she borrowed $40 from her parents and promised to pay it back. Then she began to make cakes by herself. To her parents’ surprise, she made $175 by selling the cakes that Sunday.

Everyone thought Taylor would buy the toy she wanted. She certainly had made enough money for it, but she didn’t. Instead, Taylor decided to buy business cards and had her father’s phone number on them. Then she began handing the cards out. More people knew Taylor and came to buy her cakes. Even large companies began to try buying her delicious cakes.

Though Taylor has made a lot of money, she still works hard at school. She also likes to take part in other activities. So Taylor must carefully manage her time. For example, instead of watching TV after school, Taylor might have to bake(烘焙) a lot of cakes for customers. When she has dance lessons on some days, she needs to get her baking done on time so she isn’t late for class.

Making cakes may take time and be hard work, but Taylor sees the fun in it. “I think making cakes is mostly my hobby.” she says. She also decorates(装饰) the boxes that are used to pack the cakes. Taylor uses all kinds of decorations to make sure each box looks special for her customers. People love the extra feeling Taylor gives them by decorating the boxes, so more and more people come for her cakes. Now Taylor is 15, her cakes are becoming very popular in her hometown. She achieves a sweet success.