Thousands of years ago, there lived a king. His people loved him, since he looked after their needs well. He would often invite some smart people to look at his work and give him advice.
The king built many things. As he grew old, the king thought, “I will build a perfect palace to remember my whole life. It will be the best one not only in my kingdom（五国）, but also in neighboring states.”
In a month, the king worked out a perfect design（设计）for his palace. He invited his advisers, as well as smart people from neighboring states, to get their ideas about the design.
“Unbelievable! It will be a perfect palace,” all the advisers said, except for an old man standing in the corner. The king turned to the old man and asked, “Why are you silent? Don’t you think that my palace will be a perfect one?”
The old man replied in a calm voice, “Dear king! Your palace will be strong and last forever. It will be beautiful, but not perfect. It may take tens of thousands of workers a whole lifetime to build it, working day and night. Your palace will cost a lot of money which must come from the people. If your people live worse due to this building, how perfect can it be?”
The king thought for a while and thanked the old man for his words. He decided to give up his plan and care more about people’s lives.
【小题1】What can we learn about the king from the first paragraph（段落）? ________| A．He was a good king. |
| B．He wasn’t kind to his people. |
| C．He didn’t often listen to others’ advice. |
| D．He was the smartest man in his kingdom. |
| A．To help his people live a better life. | B．To remember himself as a great king. |
| C．To interest people from other states. | D．To show how strong his kingdom was. |
| A．Glad. | B．Strange. | C．Quiet. | D．Lonely. |
| A．Listening to others is not a bad idea. | B．Great men were not born this way. |
| C．Nobody can do whatever they want. | D．Be strong enough to stand up for yourself. |
