A
Once there was a man who liked to eat mangoes. One day he decided to get the sweetest mango from the very top of the tree. Mangoes which are exposed to the sun the most are the sweetest.
So he climbed up to the top, where the branches were thin. He managed to pick up a few sweet reddish fruits, but, in an attempt to climb down, he slipped and started falling towards the ground. Fortunately, he caught the branch as he was falling and remained helplessly hanging on the tree. Then he started to call nearby villagers for help. They immediately came with a ladder and sticks, but could do little to help him.
Then after some time one calm and thoughtful person arrived — a well-known sage (a wise person) who lived in a simple hut nearby. People were very curious to see what he would do, as he was famous in solving many people’s problems in the area and sometimes very complicated ones.
He was silent for a minute and then picked up a stone and threw it at the hanging man.
Everybody was surprised. The hanging mango lover started to shout: “What are you doing?! Are you crazy? Do you want me to break my neck?” The sage was silent. Then he took another stone and threw it at the man. The man was very angry: “If I could just come down, I would show you!”
That’s what everybody wanted. Then he was coming down. But how? Now everybody was tense about what would happen next! Some wanted to blame the sage, but they didn’t. The sage picked another stone and threw it again at the man, even more forcefully. Now the man on the tree was even more angry and developed a great determination to come down and take revenge (复仇).
He then used all his skill and strength and somehow reached the branches which were safe to start going down. And he made it! Everybody was amazed.
However, the rescued man found the sage gone. He stood there, realizing that the man really saved him because he induced (引诱) him to try his best and save himself.
“I should be thankful and not angry.”
小题1:From the story we know that the sweetest mango must be the one ______.
A．on the very top of a tree
B．hidden in the middle of a tree
C．on the tree for the longest time
D．exposed to sunlight less often小题2:What happened after he had picked a few sweet reddish mangoes?
A．He slipped and fell to the ground suddenly.
B．He was climbing down quickly but carefully.
C．He remained hanging helplessly on the tree.
D．He shouted loudly for help but no one helped.小题3:How did the man feel when the sage hit him with a stone?
A．He was nervous.
B．He kept silent.
C．He felt surprised.
D．He was angry.小题4:What do you think motivated (caused) the man to climb down?
A．Courage.
B．Revenge.
C．Carefulness.
D．Assistance.小题5: What does the story imply?
A．Anger saves one’s life.
B．Wisdom does count (很重要).
C．Skill and strength count.
D．Anger is the biggest enemy.
