Zheng He, the Columbus of the East, was an amazing man．
He was born in 1371 and, 11 years later, was caught by the army of a rich young man called Zhu Di and made to work for him．Over time the rich man saw that Zheng He was very clever and strong and they became close friends．In 1403 Zhu Di was made the King of China and he asked Zheng He to join his new government．
The King wanted to learn more about the world and show other countries his power．He ordered many new ships to be built and made Zheng He their leader．Between 1405 and 1433, Zheng He led seven sea trips to different parts of the world．He certainly travelled to India, Africa and the Middle East．A few people think his ships may have even reached South America and Australia．
Each trip lasted between two and four years and it is believed he sailed more than 50 000 kms during the years of his travels．With 28 000 men and over 300 ships, such as boats for food, water and even soldiers' horses, Zheng He led a fleet(舰队)whose size would not be equalled by Europeans for over 500 years I
On these trips he brought with him many Chinese goods like silk and medicine to give to foreign kings or to sell for local goods．He returned from each trip with boats filled with expensive things such as gold and jewellery, foreign guests and strange animals like a giraffe．
It is a pity that we may never learn everything about Zheng He s travels．After he died in 1433, the new king, who believed these trips were unlucky and too expensive, had them stopped and he burned almost all the books about Zheng He’s travels．It is only in the last 50 years that historians have begun to carefully study the adventures of the great Zheng He．
(1)
Why did the Chinese King want Zheng He to sail to many different countries?
[ ]
A．
To bring new countries under the control of China．
B．
To show the world how strong the King was．
C．
To receive gifts from the kings of other countries．
D．
To discover unusual animals．
(2)
What do we know about Zheng He from the passage?
[ ]
A．
He sailed to all seven continents．
B．
Each of his trips lasted one year．
C．
He died at the age of 62．
D．
He was a successful businessman．
(3)
Which of the following did Zheng He NOT bring with him from China?
Do you still remember the terrible earthquake in 2008 in Sichuan, which killed at least 87,000 people and left millions homeless? On the twelfth day after the earthquake, Premier Wen Jiabao said, “A new Wenchuan will rise from the ruins(废墟)．” Now his words have come true．More than three years has passed and the worst－hit areas in Sichuan have risen from the ruins．
So far, 95％ of the reconstruction projects(重建项目)have been completed．Nearly 3,000 schools, 1,000 hospitals and more than 5 million homes have been built．Now everyone has been provided with a home, a job and social security(社保)．
Dong Xinjun, a villager in Qingchuan, said volunteers from Zhejiang taught him how to grow mushrooms and now he makes about 3,000 yuan more than before every year．
Zhu Lihu, the headmaster of a village primary school in Qingchuan, told us that teaching equipment had been greatly improved．Now they have new classrooms, a library and a computer room with 20 computers．
On March 8 th, 2012, Premier Wen Jiabao made his 10 th visit to Sichuan Province after the earthquake．He visited a lot of middle schools and neighborhoods．At Beichuan Middle School, Premier Wen embraced a student named Zheng Haiyang, who lost both of his legs in the earthquake．The students told Premier Wen that their new school was very beautiful．And they would never forget that it was built with the hearts and strength of people across the whole country．
Premier Wen believes that the people in Wenchuan have a “strong will” and a “bright future”．They will never back down, but stand bravely on this land．
(1)
What is NOT provided for everyone in the earthquake－hit areas?
[ ]
A．
A home．
B．
A job．
C．
A computer．
D．
Social security．
(2)
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
[ ]
A．
Nearly 1,000 schools have been built．
B．
Dong Xinjun makes about 3,000 yuan every year．
C．
Zhu Lihu's new school has a new large gym．
D．
Zheng Haiyang is a student of Beichuan Middle School．
(3)
How many times has Premier Wen visited Sichuan since the earthquake happened?
[ ]
A．
5 times．
B．
8 times．
C．
10 times．
D．
12 times．
(4)
What does the underlined word “embraced” mean in Paragraph 5?
[ ]
A．
Put arms around him in a loving way．
B．
Shook hands with him in a friendly way．
C．
Bowed to him in a very polite way．
D．
Smiled at him in a very kind way．
(5)
How does the passage show us “Wenchuan has risen from the ruins”?
