Once a very rich man and his son collected valuable paintings of famous artists like Picasso, Van Gogh and Monet.
Later, the son left to join the army. After a few weeks, the old man received a letter saying his son had died while taking another soldier to hospital. The old man became very lonely and sad.
One day, a soldier visited the old man and gave him a painting—it was a portrait（肖像） of his son. The painting of his son became the old man’s most valuable item. He told his neighbors it was the greatest gift he had ever received. The following spring, the old man died.
All of the man’s paintings would be sold at an auction（拍卖会）. The auction began with the painting of the old man’s son.
“Who will open the price at $100??” the auctioneer asked. Moments passed and no one spoke or raised their hands. Someone said, “Who cares about that painting? Let’s get on to the good ones.” More voices followed in agreement. “No, we must sell this one first,” replied the auctioneer. “Now , who will take the portrait of the son?”
Finally, a good friend of the old man spoke, “Ten dollars!” “Will anyone go higher?” called the auctioneer. After more silence he said, “Going once... going twice... Sold!” The auctioneer then announced（宣布） that the whole auction was over. “According to the father’s will, whoever takes the son’s portrait gets the whole collection,” the auctioneer said.
Because of the father’s love, whoever took the son got it all.
1.How did the old father’s son die?
A. He died of a serious heart disease.
B. He died while taking another soldier to a hospital.
C. A car hit him when he went home
D. He was killed by a doctor.
2.What was the first painting to be sold at the auction?
A. The paintings by famous artists.
B. The gift given by the old man’s neighbors.
C. The portrait of the old man’s son
D. The most expensive collection of the old man.
3.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. At the beginning of the auction, everyone realized the importance of the painting of his son.
B. The painting of the old man’s son was as popular as the other paintings.
C. The old man’s will was to give away the whole collection to charity.
D. The old man’s good friend got the whole collection for only ten dollars.
Bike-sharing has swept across China, with an increasing number of people choosing bike riding instead of driving. The bike that the service company provides has GPS or Bluetooth on it, and those bikes can be easily unlocked with a smart phone and left anywhere in public. Bike-sharing allows people to borrow a bike from one place and return it at another place easily.
In some cities, we can see more and more people riding this kind of sharing-bikes. It’s very convenient to use the bikes if you have a smart phone. First, you have to download such an APP on your smart phone. Then what you need to do is to find a nearest bike through the APP, scan the QR code on the bike or connect your phone with the bike over a Bluetooth wireless connection. You will find the bike can be unlocked itself. Then you can enjoy your trip. What’s more, the greatest advantage of bike-sharing is that you can easily find one and never worry about where to park it. The cost of riding depends on the time that you spend. Normally, every hour you ride, you need to pay one yuan. It doesn’t cost so much, does it?
At the same time, some people park the bikes in their own homes. Besides, some people don’t value the bikes. Now service companies are trying to solve the problem like being stolen. Technology and science have changed our social lifestyles. We have to say bike-sharing brings us more convenience without doubt. And we also hope that people can not only enjoy it but also put it to good use.
1.From the first paragraph, we know ______.
A. bike-sharing is invented in China
B. sharing-bikes are used by some people
C. most people in cities don’t drive
D. sharing-bikes can be borrowed anywhere
2.If you want to use a sharing-bike, you must ______ first.
A. have a smart phone and download an APP
B. download an APP and pay for the trip
C. unlock the bike and download an APP
D. find a nearest bike and borrow it from anyone
3.Which of the following is NOT mentioned in this passage?
A. Bike-sharing is very cheap.
B. Bike-sharing is a kind of green transport.
C. Sharing-bikes are easy to unlock.
D. Sharing-bikes may be stolen.
Thang-ga（唐卡）is a special kind of painting. It was found only in Tibet, China. It started from the Tang dynasty（唐朝）. Thang-ga paintings show Tibetan people’s lives. In recent years, Thang-ga paintings have caught the public’s attention. At the same time, the Chinese government has also tried hard to protect the art.
The color of Thang-ga paintings look wonderful and special. Because of the special environment of Tibet and the excellent skills of artists, the paints（颜料）used in Thang-ga are different from other paints. They were made from minerals like gold and silver, as well as some plants. The paints were made by hand and the beautiful colors could last for hundreds of years.
However, with the development of technology, people now use cheaper and more easily-made chemicals to make Thang-g paints. The traditional paints used in Thang-ga paintings took a lot of work and they were made in many secret ways. Later people stopped making the paints and forgo about them. So the skills needed to make them were almost lost. The traditional Thang-ga paintings are difficult to find now.
1.Thang-ga is an unusual kind of art.
2.Thang-ga was found only in Tibet in the Tang dynasty.
3.The special environment of Tibet and the excellent skills of artists make Thang-ga paints different from other paints.
4.The color of Thang-ga paintings can’t last for hundreds of years without modern technology.
5.The skills of artists have been already lost, so it is difficult to find the traditional Thang-ga paintings.
When things went wrong, Freddy always had something nice to say. When Dad forget about the pizza and it burned. Freddy said “Don’t worry. It’ll still taste good.” And he was _______. The pizza edges were dark, but the middle wasn’t half bad. When his teacher Mr. Hall knocked into a bookshelf in the library, Freddy said, “Don’t worry. Mrs. Bog won’t be upset.” The librarian just laughed and helped _______ the books. Freddy looked on the bright side. And everyone liked that about him. Everyone, that is, except Hazel. Hazel was the new kid in class. On her first day, Freddy said “Nice to meet you, Hazel. I think you’ll like it here.” “I ______ it.” she talked back. Freddy had never met anyone like her. When Mr. Hall said they’d have a break inside _______ it was raining. Freddy said, “Every cloud has a silver lining.” “A silver lining?” Hazel shook her head. “Bad things come in threes.” Greta was carrying paints in ______ class. She fell over, and paints went flying. “That was the second bad thing. What will the third thing be?” Hazel seemed so _______about the Rule of Three Bad Things. “It’s beautiful!” Emma picked up Freddy’s painting, not realizing she had paint on her fingers. “Freddy’s picture is ______ !” Hazel pointed, “There’s number three.” Emma looked sad. “I’m sorry, Freddy.” “It’s OK...If you add wings, the fingerprints could look like butterflies（蝴蝶）,” said Freddy. _______ refused to put a finger on Freddy’s paper. Only Hazel did. “Want to add one?” Freddy asked. Hazel thought about it, then nodded. She put her finger into paint, gently（温柔地） pressed it onto Freddy’s painting and _______ added wings. “It looks great,” said Freddy. Hazel _______. “You know, I don’t really think there’s a Rule of Three Bad Things” Sometimes, there are good things hiding where you don’t expect them.
1.A. clever B. right C. active D. famous
2.A. pick up B. look after C. go through D. throw away
3.A. expect B. believe C. doubt D. understand
4.A. although B. unless C. until D. because
5.A. science B. music C. art D. history
6.A. happy B. worried C. sorry D. sure
7.A. in a mess B. on show C. in fashion D. on sale
8.A. Somebody B. Everybody C. Anybody D. Nobody
9.A. angrily B. quickly C. carefully D. secretly
10.A. smiled B. promised C. warned D. shouted
----Will we have dinner at the Hope Restaurant ?
----Maybe. We’ll go there if the show ______ before 6. But I don’t know if there ______ any free tables then.
A. will end; were B. will end; will be C. ends; were D. ends; will be
Now she has ______ 3 pounds. She should avoid ______ too much.
A. put off; eats B. put up; ate C. put out; eat D. put on; eating
