A few years ago I asked my children’s governess, Julia Vassilyevna, to come into my study.

  “ Sit down, Julia Vassilyevna,” I said.“Let’s settle our accounts. Although you most likely need some money, you stand on ceremony and won’t ask for it yourself. Now then, we agree on thirty rubles a month…”

  “ Forty.”

  “ No, thirty. I made a note of it. I always pay the governess thirty. Now then, you’ve been here two months, so…”

  “ Two months and five days.”

  “ Exactly two months. I made a specific note of it. That means you have sixty rubles coming to you. Subtract nine Sundays… you know you didn’t work with Kolya on Sundays, you only took walks. And three holidays…”

   Julia Vassilyevna flushed a deep red and picked at the flounce of her dress, but--- not a word.

   “ Three holidays, therefore take off twelve rubles. Four days Kolya was sick and there were no lessons, as you were occupied only with Vanya. Three days you had a toothache and my wife gave you permission not to work after lunch. Twelve and seven---nineteen. Subtract…that leaves…hmm…forty-one rubles. Correct?”

Julia Vassilyena’s left eye reddened and filled with moisture. Her chin trembled; she coughed nervously and blew her nose, but---not a word.

“ Around New Year’s you broke a teacup and saucer: take off two rubles. The cup cost more, it was an heirloom, but---let it go. When didn’t I take a loss? Then, due to your neglect, Kolya climbed a tree and tore his jacket: take off ten. Also due to your heedlessness the maid stole Vanya’s shoes. You ought to watch everything! You get paid for it. So, that means five more rubles off. The tenth of January I gave you ten rubles…”

“ You didn’t ” whispered Julia Vassilyevna.

“ But I made a note of it.”

“ Well…all right.”

“ Take twenty-seven from forty-one ---that leaves fourteen.”

Both eyes filled with tears. Perspiration appeared on the thin, pretty little nose. Poor girl!

“ Only once was I given any money,” she said in a trembling voice, “ and that was by your wife. Three rubles, nothing more.”

“ Really? You see now, and I didn’t make a note of it! Take three from fourteen… leaves eleven. Here’s your money, my dear. Three , three, three, one and one. Here it is!”

I handed her eleven rubles. She took them and with trembling fingers stuffed them into her pocket.

“ Merci,” she whispered.

I jumped up and started pacing the room. I was overcome with anger.

“ For what, this ---‘merci’?” I asked.

“ For the money.”

“ But you know I’ve cheated you, God’s sake---robbed you! I have actually stolen from you! Why this ‘merci’?”

“ In my other places they didn’t give me anything at all.”

“ They didn’t give you anything? No wonder! I played a little joke on you, a cruel lesson, just to teach you … I’m going to give you the entire eighty rubles! Here they are in an envelope all ready for you… Is it really possible to be so spineless? Why don’t you protest? Why be silent? Is it possible in this world to be without teeth and claws--- to be such a nincompoop?”

She smiled crookedly and I read in her expression: “ It is possible.”

I asked her pardon for the cruel lesson and , to her great surprise, gave her the eighty rubles. She murmured her litter “merci” several times and went out. I looked after her and thought: “How easy it is to crush the weak in this world!”

1.When the employer called Julia Vassilyevna in to talk with him, what he really wanted to do was _______

A. to settle their accounts

B. to criticize her for neglecting her duties as a governess.

C. to play a joke on her so as to amuse himself.

D. to teach her not to be so spineless.

2.The employer made all those criticisms about Julia Vassiliyevna’s work because __________

A. she had neglected her duties.

B. he wanted to pay her as little money as possible.

C. he wanted to make her realize that she was being cheated and protest against it.

D. he wanted to make her feel miserable.

3. Julia Vassilyevna accepted everything her employer said because ________

A. she had in fact neglected her duties.

B. she was a very dumb girl.

C. she thought it was of no use to protest to her employer.

D. she loved the children she taught.

4. The employer became very angry when Julia Vassilyevna said “ Merci” because ________

A. she didn’t say “Merci” loudly.

B. she didn’t protest to him.

C. he thought that by simply saying “ Merci” she wasn’t polite enough.

D. he didn’t like the way in which she stuffed the money into per pocket and expressed her thanks.

5. The text is about _______

A. how a governess was cheated by her employer.

B. how an employer tried to teach the governess a cruel lesson.

C. how a governess was fired by her employer for being a nincompoop.

D. how an employer punished the governess for not having done a good job.

I was born in Korea, and my family came over to America when I was 10. I’m the middle child of three girls, and my parents moved so we would experience a different life. They did it for our education and to give us more of a chance than they had. We moved to Staten Island, and I went to the High School of Performing Arts in New York City. My parents didn’t agree with me when I told them I wanted to be an actress. My father suggested I try premed(医学预科). But after they saw me in plays they were really proud.
I graduated from Boston University and was doing theater in New York when I got cast in a Korean miniseries(电视连续剧). We started shooting the show in New York, and then went to Korea to finish it up. They said I would be there for three weeks, but it ended up being two months. The miniseries took off, and overnight, I became recognizable. It was sort of like Lost. It blew up. Then amazing projects were offered to me. I kept thinking, “ I’ll do one more and then go back to the US.” I ended up staying for seven years.
Some people described me as the Julia Roberts of Korea, which is a bad comparison because she’s the queen of romantic comedy. I became famous in Korea for a dramatic role in a film called Shiri. I played a “La Femme Nikita” type of role. I was the girl with gun—all action．
(   )65. The writer’s parents moved to America so as to _________.
A. offer a good chance to their children.
B. receive a good education in performing
C. seek a good life in America
D. film a Korean miniseries
(   )66. When the writer announced her decision to become an actress, her parents_____.
A. were both in favor of her   B. felt very ashamed of her
C. didn’t agree at first         D. took it for granted
(   )67. What is the second paragraph mainly about?
A. The author’s performing life in America.
B. The difficulties of filming abroad.
C. The popularity of the miniseries Lost.
D. The author’s first performing breakthrough.
(   )68. The writer referred to the Julia Roberts of Korea as a bad comparison to show______.
A. she looked down upon Julia Roberts.
B. she disliked to compare with others
C. she had a different style of performing
D. she was better at dramatic roles than Julia

A woman called Julia lived in the countryside, one year she decided to visit the capital city to see the sights. She stayed at a hotel near the central market. She had seldom been to the city before, and was very excited about what she would find.

On the first morning of her visit, as she walked from the hotel to the market, she passed a beggar (乞丐). He was holding up a notice, which said, “Blind from birth. Please give generously(慷慨地).”Julia felt sorry for the beggar and she bent down and put a dollar coin into his bowl. “Thank you.” he said. The same thing happened again the following day. On the third day, however, Julia did not have a dollar coin. She had only fifty cents, so she dropped this into the beggar’s bowl. “What have I done wrong?” the beggar said, “Why are you so stingy (吝啬的) today?”

Julia was very surprised at the beggar . “How do you know I haven't given you a dollar?” she said, “If you’re blind you can't know what coin I put into your bowl.” “Ah,” explained the beggar, “The truth is that I'm not blind. I'm just looking after this place for the regular beggar while he’s on holiday.” “On holiday?” Julia said, “And what exactly does your blind friend do on holiday?” “He goes into the countryside,” the man said, “and takes photographs. He's a very good photographer.”

1.Where was the beggar sitting?

2.On the first two days, ____.

3. On the third day, the blind man____ .

The London Eye is a giant 135---meter tall Ferris wheel situated on the banks of the River Thames in the British capital. Since 20 January 2011, it has been officially known as the EDF Energy London Eye following a three---year deal with the company. It is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe, and the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over 3.5 million people every year. The London Eye is located at the western end of Jubilee Gardens, on the South Bank of the River Thames In the London Borough of Lambeth in England, between Westminster Bridge( which has longer history than the famous Severn Bridge to the west of London) and Hungerford Bridge. When erected in 1999, it was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world, until surpassed first by the 160 m Star of Nanchang in 2006, and the 165m Singapore Flyer in 2008. A breathtaking feat of design and engineering, passengers in the London Eye’s capsules can see up to 40 kilometers in all directions. The London Eye is the vision of David Marks and Julia Barfield, a husband and wife architect team. The wheel design was used as a metaphor for the end of the 20^th century, and time turning into the new millennium(千禧年). Back in 2000, the London Eye was known as the Millennium wheel. In 2009, a 4D Film Experience was added as a free extra to enjoy before your ride on the Eye. Once you get high enough and start coming down the other side, you will see people reach for their cameras. Here’s where the good stuff is right at your fingertips(or seems so). Parliament and Big Ben are beneath you, as are so many other historical things . If you are interested in other attractions in London, you can refer to the homepage.

1.Which of the following statements is NOT correct ?

A. It is so popular that every year, more than 3.5 million people visit the London Eye.

B. London Eye is called the EDF Energy London Eye from 2011 because the company bought it.

C. It is designed by David Marks and Julia Barfield, a husband and wife architect team.

D. It is 135---meter tall and is the tallest Ferris wheel in Europe.

2.What cannot be seen from the London Eye ?

    A. The beautiful sights of the River Thames.

    B. The Westminster Bridge.

    C. The famous Seven Bridge.

    D. Big Ben

3.We can infer from the passage that___________.

    A. London Eye is the third tallest Ferris wheel in the world.

    B. London Eye was named the Millennium Wheel at first.

    C. London Eye is free of charge, and that's why so many people come here.

    D. Before your ride on the London Eye, you can first enjoy a 4D film now.

4.You can find this passage_________.

    A. in a magazine    B. in a newspaper       C. from a guidebook D. on a website

---- I’m terribly sorry for breaking the vase, Julia.

---- ______, Jack. After all, you didn’t do it on purpose.