1 . In the post-war era, re-gifting and returning gifts to shops were commonly occurring.My mother and Aunt Florence ran a_________. For them finding desirable stock (储备物) for the store was an adventure. But the greatest_________of all was getting the wanted items without taking too many_________ones ‘paired’ with them. This pairing resulted in a highly saleable item being paired with something that had to be heavily discounted just to move it off the shelves_________at a loss.

One item I particularly remember was an ugly ornament (饰物) framed in a horseshoe.My mother was shocked by its_________ . My aunt patiently explained she had to buy it to_________some attractive crockery sets (瓷器套装) in high demand. She had paid ten pounds for it and hoped to get five pounds for it. After briefly_________ it at ten pounds, she put it on our bargain table, expecting the crockery sets would sell quickly and cover the_________ on it.Several days later she managed to sell the ornament for three pounds to a value d customer who _________to give it to a neighbour, who loved horses.

The following Saturday, our family was invited to a 21st birthday party, and my father was     __________with buying a suitable gift from the jeweler in town. However, he delayed his __________because he had his car repaired. As a result, he __________a wrapped present from our own store’s stock. Little did he know that it was the __________ .

At the party, as the presents were__________, my mother held my shoulder tightly when she saw the ornament. The__________of our family, the gift’s original purchaser, and the recipient’s (接受者) family were a mix of shock and__________. My father, realizing his mistake,__________that he thought it was a collector’s item due to the ten pound price tag.

The next day, realizing my mother discovered the ornament which had been sold had been returned by Sheila, the recipient’s mother, who __________a ten pound refund , Aunt Florence burst into laughter, though the relationship between the__________owners of the ornament sourced.

          __________ this event, I learned the value of giving cash or gift cards.1.

A．company

B．department

C．market

D．store

2.

A．challenge

B．decision

C．secret

D．promise

3.

A．satisfactory

B．unaffordable

C．undesirable

D．cheap

4.

A．frequently

B．suddenly

C．occasionally

D．gradually

5.

A．advantage

B．colour

C．influence

D．appearance

6.

A．display

B．get

C．rent

D．appreciate

7.

A．selling

B．investing

C．pricing

D．charging

8.

A．expense

B．loss

C．figure

D．value

9.

A．planned

B．agreed

C．failed

D．hesitated

10.

A．impressed

B．satisfied

C．tasked

D．bored

11.

A．dating

B．shopping

C．meeting

D．riding

12.

A．borrowed

B．bought

C．designed

D．selected

13.

A．ornament

B．jewel

C．horseshoe

D．card

14.

A．unlocked

B．covered

C．unwrapped

D．dusted

15.

A．thoughts

B．reviews

C．mistakes

D．reactions

16.

A．disbelief

B．sadness

C．delight

D．anxiety

17.

A．instructed

B．explained

C．added

D．informed

18.

A．exchanged

B．donated

C．received

D．rejected

19.

A．mysterious

B．temporary

C．aggressive

D．optimistic

20.

A．Speaking of

B．Working on

C．Hearing of

D．Reflecting on

2 . Four Top Skills I’ve Learned From My Kids

In my journey as an entrepreneur (企业家), one of the best sources of leadership development is parenthood. There’s one thing that being a parent and being a business leader have in common.     1    . So what are some of the lessons that parenthood can teach us about business leadership?

Give up control

As a parent, I’ve learned that there’s only so much control you can really have over your kids. They need to make their own decisions — and mistakes — and learn from them. You can try to control your kids when they are young.     2     .

Become more flexible (灵活)

    3     . You never know when someone might get hurt or sick and make troubles in your plans. Parenthood is a non-stop exercise in flexibility and adjusting to difficulties. The business world can be much the same way.

    4    

We all make mistakes, and it can be tempting to hide those mistakes, especially from people you want to look up to you. But since we teach our kids to admit when they’ve made a mistake and apologize if they hurt someone, it’s important that we do the same when we make a mistake that hurts them.

Become more understanding and empathetic (共情的)

Emotional intelligence is one of the most important skills for effective leadership. And there’s nothing like being a parent to help you better understand people’s emotions and motivations.     5     . The empathy is a valuable skill for a business leader.

A．Admit your mistakes

B．Kids come with unknown risks

C．It’s that there’s a lot to be learned

D．As they grow up, you should let go

E．You’d better stick to your perfect plan

F．That can help you develop your empathy

G．Correct the mistakes as soon as possible

3 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

Sandy and Jane came to see the jobo tree on the hilltop again. Jobos were their favorite fruit, but the tree belonged to a lady who lived in the house by the hill. They heard she was difficult, but that sometimes she would give fruit in return for an errand(差使)

The girls finally gathered their courage to knock on her door. An elderly woman with a fierce look answered, staring down at the girls. “We heard …”said Sandy, her voice shaky, “that you give jobos in payment for running an errand.”

The lady raised one eyebrow, then went into the kitchen and took two baskets. She pushed them into the girls’ hands.“Go fill these with jobos, and come right back.”

The girls raced up the hill to the tree and filled the baskets with the ripest jobos. Back at the house, the lady filled a bag with rice and handed it to Sandy. “Take this bag and one basket of jobos to the Brown family. And ask them for the payment,” the lady added with a tight smile.“If you return without the payment, you won’t get the fruit.”

The girls struggled all the way with the bag and the basket. When they were there, Mrs. Brown answered the door. Inside on the floor were three little children, each painting something on papers.

Mr. Brown was lying sick in bed.Times were hard.

The girls handed her the food.“This is from the lady with the jobo tree, ” said Sandy.

“She asked for the payment, too.”Jane said awkwardly.

“The payment! The payment!” The children repeated, waving the paper in their hands happily.

Sandy and Jane looked at each other strangely. With a smile, Mrs. Brown handed Sandy a large sealed(密封的)envelope so full that it was almost starting to break open. The girls said goodbye and left quickly. “I wonder,” Sandy murmured, “whether Mrs. Brown can afford to pay for that food.”

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。

Worried, the two girls discussed what was in the envelope as they walked back.

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The lady opened the envelope, took out a pile of papers, and smiled.

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