二、完形填空(共 12 小题,每小题 1 分,满分 12 分)
Modesty(谦逊)is a valuable quality in many cultures around the world. In China,there is no 1
A
. But the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” seems to disagree with this.
During the Warring States Period,the Qin army(军队) 2
D
Handan,Zhao. Seeing that Handan was in danger,Pingyuan Jun decided to look for help from the State of Chu. He wanted to 3
B
twenty talented(有才能的)people to go with him. However,he could 4
B
find 19 people who were good enough. Then,a man named Mao Sui volunteered. Pingyuan Jun looked at Mao Sui with doubt(怀疑),“ 5
D
did you come here with me?” “Three years ago,” Mao Sui answered.
“I hear that a person with talent is like an awl(锥子)in a cloth bag. Its sharp(锋利的)point will soon pierce(刺穿)through the bag. You have been here for a long time,but I haven’t 6
A
you. Maybe you don’t have any talent,” said Pingyuan Jun.
“What I’m asking you now is to put me into that 7
C
and let me show my talent. If you do that,I will pierce through it. But not only the point — the whole awl,” Mao Sui said in a 8
D
way.
Impressed,Pingyuan Jun allowed Mao to join his team,and Mao 9
B
proved himself. Now the phrase “Mao Sui recommending himself” is used to 10
C
someone who volunteers to do a task.
However,there is a fine line between self-confidence and arrogance(傲慢). It’s important to believe in 11
C
,but a strong ego(自我)can harm your relationship with others. So we recommend letting your work 12
A
for itself.