1 . Modesty is a valuable quality in many cultures around the world. In China, this is no different. However, the phrase “毛遂自荐” seems to disagree with this.

During the Warring States Period, the Qin army marched (进军) on Handan, the capital of Zhao. Seeing that Handan was in danger, Prince Pingyuan asked for help from the state of Chu. He wanted to pick 20 talented people to go with him. However, he could only find 19 people who were good enough. Then, a man named Mao Sui volunteered.

Prince Pingyuan looked at Mao Sui with doubt. “How long have you been here with me?” “Three years,” Mao Sui answered. “I hear that a person with talent is like an awl 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 achievements. Maybe you don’t have any talent,” said Prince Pingyuan.

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

Impressed, Prince Pingyuan allowed Mao to join his team, and Mao proved very helpful. Now the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” is used to describe someone who volunteers to do a task.

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

1. Where did Mao Sui come from?

A．Qin.

B．Chu.

C．Zhao.

D．We don’t know.

2. What does the underlined phrase “pierce through” mean?

A．cut or make a way through	B．be on both sides of
C．be made up of	D．make a slight shake

3. What is the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” used to describe now?

A．Feeling powerful	B．Volunteering for a task
C．Being honest enough	D．Showing modesty

4. What can we learn from the passage?

A．Talented people have no chances.	B．We should believe in ourselves.
C．Modesty isn’t a valuable quality.	D．A strong ego can do good to our career.

3 .

Once, there was a little boy called Meng Ke. His father passed away when he was just a baby, so he lived alone with his mother.

At first, they lived near a graveyard (墓地). The graveyard was always filled with scary sense. Meng’s mother thought to herself, “No, this is not the place to raise my child.” So the next day she packed the bags and left the graveyard with Meng Ke.

They moved to a house next to a noisy market. People crowded the market, chatting and bargaining (讨价还价), while vendors (小贩) shouted trying to attract customers. Meng Ke saw this and pleased himself by acting like a vendor. But his mother was very afraid and told herself, “No, this is certainly not the proper place to raise my child, either.” So she took Meng Ke away from the market at once.

At last, they settled down beside a school. Every day Meng Ke watched the pupils. He imitated (模仿) their polite manners. He saw the students reading books and he did so as well. Soon he developed a great interest in looking for knowledge. His mother was pleased at seeing this.

So Meng Ke and his mother lived there for years, and Meng Ke grew up to be a well-mannered, knowledgeable and wise man, and today we all know him as Mencius.

1. When did Meng Ke’s father die?

A．When Meng Ke was just a baby.	B．When Meng Ke was a pupil.
C．When Meng Ke was playing chess.	D．When Meng Ke was reading a book.

2. Where did Meng Ke and his mom live one after another?

A．Near a graveyard→beside a school→next to a noisy market.

B．Next to a noisy market→near a graveyard→beside a school.

C．Beside a school→near a graveyard→next to a noisy market.

D．Near a graveyard→next to a noisy market→beside a school.

3. What does the story mainly want to tell us?

A．Imitating is necessary in study.

B．It’s convenient to live near the school.

C．A good environment is very important for a person to grow up.

D．A successful child usually needs the selfless love of a mother’s.

4. What’s the best title for the passage?

A．Mencius’ Mother Moved Three Times

B．Meng Ke and His Mom Moved All the Time

C．Meng Ke and His Mom Traveled All the Time

D．Meng Ke Loved Doing Fresh Things All the Time

4 .

One year, winter came with great cold. The wind blew hard. The snow didn’t stop falling.

In the palace, Emperor (皇帝) Taizong of the Song Dynasty (朝代) put on heavy clothes. He asked his men to add more charcoal (煤炭). Sitting by the fire, he felt warmer. That made him think of his people.

“This winter is not going to be easy. People can’t make it if they feel hungry and cold!” he said to one minister (大臣). “Go and get some food and charcoal. Give them to the people.” After he said those words, the minister went to get things prepared. Soon, food, clothes and charcoal were sent to people in need.

The wind was blowing. The snow was falling. But people were warmed by Taizong. They all said Taizong was a great emperor.

1. When did the story happen?

A．A cold autumn in Song Dynasty.	B．A hot summer in Han Dynasty.
C．A cold winter in Song Dynasty.	D．A warm winter in Song Dynasty.

2. Emperor Taizong thought of his ________ in the story.

A．sister

B．minister

C．palace

D．people

3. What were NOT sent to the houses people live according to the passage?

A．Money.

B．Food.

C．Clothes.

D．Charcoal.

4. What do we know about Emperor Taizong from the passage?

A．He didn’t like the winter.

B．He had more than 100 ministers.

C．He sent charcoal to people by himself.

D．He loved people very much.

5 . During the Jin Dynasty (晋朝), there was a child named Che Yin. He was intelligent and loved reading. He grew up in a poor family and couldn’t afford lamp oil (灯油) to study at night.

One night, he saw fireflies (萤火虫) outside his house and came up with an idea. He caught some fireflies in a cloth bag and hung the bag up as a lamp. It was said that he spent all of his summer nights reading like this.

Another child named Sun Kang who lived during the same period also loved reading. One night during winter, Sun used up all of his lamp oil and couldn’t study at night. When he suddenly woke up at midnight, he saw the snow reflecting the moonlight outside his house. His first thought was “Oh, I can use the reflected light to read!” He took out his books and read, even though he was freezing cold.

Both of the two kids later became successful government officials (官员). People were touched by their hardworking spirit and their stories inspired the Chinese idiom (成语) “nangying yingxue (囊萤映雪)”, or “to read by the light of bagged fireflies or the reflected light of snow”.

In the past, people had a harder time studying than we do now. They had to copy books by hand because books were valuable back then. For poor families, paper and writing brushes were too expensive to afford. Students even had to travel over mountains and rivers in order to find a good teacher. However, these difficult situations did not stop young people from pursuing (追求) knowledge.

判断正（T）误（F）。
1. Che Yin enjoyed reading. ________
2. Sun Kang didn’t live during the same period as Che Yin. ________
3. Che Yin and Sun Kang achieved success when they grew up. ________
4. Now, people had a harder time studying than before. ________
5. Sun Kang read by catching fireflies in a cloth bag and hung it up as a lamp. ________

6 . Yang Zhen was an honest and clean（廉洁的） government officer during the Eastern Han Dynasty.

One day, Yang met his old workmate Wang Mi on a trip. They had fun talking about their life experiences and good wishes for the nation. In the past, Wang’s ability and political ideas were not accepted by the people around him. At that time, Yang saw Wang's talent and promoted（提拔）him.

The chance helped Wang to be successful. Wang never forgot Yang's help and invited him to stay over for the night.

It was near midnight when Wang knocked on the door of Yang's bedroom. He handed Yang a bag and said, "This is to thank you for teaching me and helping me become who I am today. "Yang looked at the bag. It was full of gold. "Do I look like a person who takes presents from others? I thought you knew me well! ”Yang said angrily.

“It’s late now. No one will know if we keep it a secret. "said Wang. "What do you mean no one will know? Heaven（天） knows! Earth knows! You know and I know! "said Yang. "You can lie to anyone but not your own heart. " The door was closed and Wang left the room in shame.

1. Why did Wang Mi give Yang Zhen a bag of gold?

A．To move Yang to a higher position.	B．To express thanks for Yang's help.
C．To ask Yang to help other people.	D．To help Yang to take a pleasant trip.

2. In what order did the following happen?
a. Yang promoted Wang because of his talent.
b. Wang handed Yang a bag of gold.
c. Yang got angry and didn't take the gold.
d. Yang and Wang met again on a trip.
e. Wang left in shame.
f.Wang invited Yang to stay over for the night.

A．d→f→a→c→e→b	B．d→f→a→b→c→e
C．a→d→f→b→c→e	D．a→d→f→c→b→e

3. According to paragraph 4, why didn't Yang take the present?

A．Because Yang wanted to be honest to himself.	B．Because everyone would know what he did.
C．Because Yang was not smart enough.	D．Because Yang couldn't help Wang any more.

4. What does the story mainly tell us?

A．Having ability is the key to success.	B．Helping friends is meaningful.
C．Being honest and clean is important.	D．Knowing people well is necessary.

7 . 阅读下面的短文，从所给的 A~E 五个选项中，选出正确的答案填空，使短文通顺，内容完整，并填涂在答题卡上，其中选项中有一项是多余的。

Among the many poets in history, who is called the “immortal poet (诗仙)”?     1     Many people think he is romantic (浪漫的) and free, just like an immortal. However, in the Chinese cartoon movie Chang An (《长安三万里》), we see a different Li Bai. In the movie, Li dreams about being an officer. But he faces challenge after challenge. He can’t take keju because of his family runs a business and businessmen can’t become officers at that time.     2    . He has difficulties and problems just like everyone of us.

    3     When he enjoyed nature, he said, “Its torrent dashes down three thousand feet from high. As if the Silver River fell from the blue sky.” When he had a setback (挫折), he said, “Heaven has made us talents, we’re not made in vain. A thousand gold coins spent, more will turn up again.”

Li Bai might not be as perfect as we think.     4     As long as his poems are here with us, he is always the “immortal” in our hearts.

A．Yes, he is Li Bai.

B．But it doesn’t really matter.

C．He did many different jobs.

D．Later, he makes a mistake and is banished (流放).

E．But his poems give us inspiration (启发) and confidence (自信).

8 .

Confucius was born on September 28th, 551BC in China. He was a great teacher at that time. Confucius is also known as Kong Qiu.     1     However, some people describe him as being born poor.

Confucius’s ideas were based on the concept (观念) of self-discipline (自律). He believed that a leader needed to exercise self-discipline. His teaching idea focused on the “Six Art”. To Confucius, the main goal of being a teacher was to teach people to live with honesty.     2    

    3     He wrote some of the most famous traditional Chinese works, and one of them is The Spring and Autumn Annals《春秋》. Confucius’s students wrote The Analects of Confucius《论语》according to his sayings. It teaches everyone in China how to behave well and be a good man.

Confucius died on April 11th, 479 BC in Qufu, China.     4     He is also an important symbol of ancient Chinese culture.

A．Today he is widely considered as one of the greatest teachers in Chinese history.

B．The Analects of Confucius is one of Confucius’s greatest works.

C．Through his teaching, he influenced many people in that society.

D．Confucius is famous for writing.

E．It is thought that he was born in a rich family.

9 . Yang Shi was clever when he was a child. He entered school to study at four and could read and write poems at the age of seven. The local people called him a talented man. He was well-known everywhere.

One day, Yang Shi and one of his schoolmates had different views on a certain question. In order to get a correct answer, he went to visit Cheng Yi, a famous philosopher(哲学家). At Cheng Yi’s house, however, the guarding kid said to him, “Mr. Cheng is napping(睡午觉). You’d better go back and come later.” Yang replied, “It doesn’t matter. I’ll wait here for a while.”

After a while, it began to snow heavily. However, Yang kept on standing in the snow and waiting for Cheng so that he could ask Cheng questions. The little kid kindly reminded Yang that Cheng might not wake up in a short time and invited him to warm himself in the house. But Yang continued waiting outside against the cold wind and the falling snow without even one move.

When Cheng woke up and came out of his study, the little kid reported to him that Yang Shi was waiting outside the door. Cheng Yi asked the kid to let Yang in right away. When the little kid opened the door, everyone was shocked. The snow outside was more than a foot deep, but Yang still stood there without moving his feet. “Young man, why are you so silly? You could have come again!” Cheng Yi said to Yang Shi in his study. “It’s OK! As a student, if I want to learn from the master, of course I should wait outside the door,” Yang answered. Later, Cheng Yi accepted Yang Shi as his student.

1. When could Yang Shi write poems?

A．After three years of school.	B．After four years of school.
C．When he was four.	D．At the age of six.

2. Which is the right order according to the passage?
①The guarding kid invited Yang Shi to warm himself.
②Yang Shi became a student of Cheng Yi.
③It started to snow heavily.
④Cheng Yi came out of his study.

A．①③④②

B．③①④②

C．③①②④

D．④③①②

3. Why was everyone shocked to see Yang Shi?

A．Because he was playing with snow.	B．Because he was standing in the deep snow.
C．Because he was reading in the snow.	D．Because he was running in the snow.

4. What can we learn from the story?

A．We should learn to be patient to wait.	B．We must solve our problems by ourselves.
C．We students should learn to help each other.	D．We students should respect our teachers.