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(765, 1, '2011-08-30 23:08:07', '2011-08-31 03:08:07', '[two_third]\r\nAnother slightly off-color \"they don\'t teach you how to say that in the textbook\" joke, this one about two parents dealing with an unexpected pregnancy in the family. This is really upper-intermediate, not too terribly advanced, but there may be quite a few new words here for intermediate readers.\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/20110830-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Advanced Chinese Jokes and Written Vocaublary Practice\" title=\"Advanced Chinese Jokes and Written Vocaublary Practice\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />You\'ll have to forgive me these couple of recent not-really-for-kids jokes - I\'m no primary school teacher, and I find that an endless stream of kids\' jokes gets a bit tiresome, and is not as reflective of real spoken language. This is the kind of joke you\'d tell with your friends after a couple of glasses of 啤酒, and you have to admit, as scripted jokes go, this one\'s pretty funny.\r\n\r\nIt\'s a little hard to get rolling on this one, as the first sentence is a little hard to get past unless you know what they\'re talking about, so I\'ll explain a bit. The joke starts out: \"一个16岁的女孩跟她母亲说她已经2个月没来了\", which literally translates into \"A 16-year-old girl tells her mother that already two months hadn\'t come.\" Once you see it in English, and you know the joke\'s about pregnancy, it\'s pretty easy to decipher the meaning - the girl hasn\'t had her period for 2 months and suspects she\'s pregnant. Thing is, the medical word for \"menstrual cycle\" never actually shows up here - we\'re seeing instead the colloquial term \"月\", or \"moon / month\".\r\n\r\nIt\'s also worth noting that in this reading, 令媛 is the name of the pregnant daughter - that is not really explained.\r\n\r\nAnd one last interesting grammar point here is the phrase \"负该负的责任\". To \"负责任\", means to shoulder your responsibilities and fulfill your obligations. So this phrase means \"fulfill the responsibilities that should be fulfilled\", or \"to bear the responsibilities that one should bear\". \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this joke is \"你可以再来一次\".\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n验孕剂 - [pinyin]yan4 yun4 ji4[/pinyin] - Pregnancy test\r\n浑蛋 - [pinyin]hun2 dan4[/pinyin] - Variant of 混蛋, meaning scoundrel, cur, bastard\r\n法拉利 - [pinyin]fa3 la1 li4[/pinyin] - Ferrari (sports car brand)\r\n跑车 - [pinyin]pao3 che1[/pinyin] - Sports car\r\n名牌 - [pinyin]ming2 pai2[/pinyin] - Name brand\r\n风度 - [pinyin]feng1 du4[/pinyin] - Elegant (applies only to men)\r\n绅士 - [pinyin]shen1 shi4[/pinyin] - Gentleman\r\n别墅 - [pinyin]bie2 shu4[/pinyin] - Villa\r\n继承 -  [pinyin]ji4 cheng2[/pinyin] - To inherit\r\n双胞胎 - [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n不幸流产 - [pinyin]bu4 xing4 liu2 chan3[/pinyin] - Accidental miscarriage\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n一个16岁的女孩跟她母亲说她已经2个月没来了.... 母亲一听不得了赶紧去药房买了<strong>验孕剂</strong>来确认一下... 结果女孩真的怀孕了！ 母亲又哭又骂的问到:\"到底是那个<strong>浑蛋</strong>干的好事，你给我从实招来!!\" 女孩只好打了通电话... 半小时后，一部全新的<strong>法拉利</strong><strong>跑车</strong>疾驶到了女孩家门，而跨出车门的是位全身<strong>名牌</strong>衣着又<strong>风度</strong>翩翩的中年<strong>绅士</strong>. 绅士进入屋内与女孩及她的父母双亲在客厅坐了下来. \"午安!\"绅士礼貌的向她们问候并说道:\"<strong>令媛</strong>刚刚告知了我这个大问题，但是因为我的个人家庭问题，很抱歉我无法娶令媛为妻，不过我会<strong>负该负的责任</strong>\" \"这样好了，如果生的是女孩，我会留3家店面，2间房子，1栋海边<strong>别墅</strong>及一个200万美金的帐户给她\" \"如果生的是男孩，我会让他<strong>继承</strong>2家公司再加上一个200万美金的帐户\" \"如果生的是<strong>双胞胎</strong>，那就每人继承1家公司还有各100万美金的帐户\" \"但如果<strong>不幸流产</strong>了............\" 此时在一旁沉默已久的父亲，突然站起来，并把手紧紧的搭在绅士的肩上后说:\"没关系，到时你可以再来一次!!\" \r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nA 16-year-old girl said to her mother that she had missed 2 menstrual cycles... as soon as her mother heard this, she rushed in extreme haste to the pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test and confirm the issue... sure enough the daughter was pregnant!  Crying and yelling, the mother asked, \"Whichever scoundrel did the happy deed, you make him come face me!!\" The daughter was forced to pick up the phone... half an hour later, a brand new Ferrari sports car quickly pulled up to the girl\'s front door, and who stepped out of the car but an elegant middle-aged gentleman wearing a completely new set of brand-name clothes. The gentleman entered the room and sat down in the living room with the daughter and her parents. \"Good afternoon!\" the gentleman politely paid his respects, and said, \"Ling Yuan [presumably daughter\'s name] just told me about this serious problem, but because of my own family situation, I\'m very sorry to say I can\'t take Ling Yuan to wife, but I will bear the responsibility I should bear. This should do: if a girl child is born, I will give her 3 storefronts, 2 houses, 1 seaside villa and a bank account with 2 million American dollars in it. If a boy is born, he will inherit 2 companies plus a bank account worth 2 million American dollars. If it\'s twins, each will inherit one company and a 1 million American dollar bank account. But if it\'s a miscarriage...\"  At that moment, the girl\'s father, who had been sitting silently off to one side, suddenly stood up, put both hands firmly on the gentleman\'s shoulders and said, \"Don\'t worry, if that happens [lit: when the time comes] you can come back again!\" \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]\r\n\r\n', 'You can come back again', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '756-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-08-30 23:08:07', '2011-08-31 03:08:07', '', 756, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/08/30/756-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(770, 1, '2011-08-30 23:17:36', '2011-08-31 03:17:36', '[two_third]\r\nAnother slightly off-color \"they don\'t teach you how to say that in the textbook\" joke, this one about two parents dealing with an unexpected pregnancy in the family. This is really upper-intermediate, not really super advanced, but there will be quite a few new words here for lower-intermediate readers.\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/20110830-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Advanced Chinese Jokes and Written Vocaublary Practice\" title=\"Advanced Chinese Jokes and Written Vocaublary Practice\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />You\'ll have to forgive me these couple of recent not-really-for-kids jokes - I\'m no primary school teacher, and I find that an endless stream of kids\' jokes gets a bit tiresome, and is not as reflective of real spoken language. This is the kind of joke you\'d tell with your friends after a couple of glasses of 啤酒, and you have to admit, as scripted jokes go, this one\'s pretty funny.\r\n\r\nIt\'s a little hard to get rolling on this one, as the first sentence is a little hard to get past unless you know what they\'re talking about, so I\'ll explain a bit. The joke starts out: \"一个16岁的女孩跟她母亲说她已经2个月没来了\", which literally translates into \"A 16-year-old girl tells her mother that already two months hadn\'t come.\" Once you see it in English, and you know the joke\'s about pregnancy, it\'s pretty easy to decipher the meaning - the girl hasn\'t had her period for 2 months and suspects she\'s pregnant. Thing is, the medical word for \"menstrual cycle\" never actually shows up here - we\'re seeing instead the colloquial term \"月\", or \"moon / month\".\r\n\r\nIt\'s also worth noting that in this reading, 令媛 is the name of the pregnant daughter - that is not really explained.\r\n\r\nAnd one last interesting grammar point here is the phrase \"负该负的责任\". To \"负责任\", means to shoulder your responsibilities and fulfill your obligations. So this phrase means \"fulfill the responsibilities that should be fulfilled\", or \"to bear the responsibilities that one should bear\". \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this joke is \"你可以再来一次\".\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n验孕剂 - [pinyin]yan4 yun4 ji4[/pinyin] - Pregnancy test\r\n浑蛋 - [pinyin]hun2 dan4[/pinyin] - Variant of 混蛋, meaning scoundrel, cur, bastard\r\n法拉利 - [pinyin]fa3 la1 li4[/pinyin] - Ferrari (sports car brand)\r\n跑车 - [pinyin]pao3 che1[/pinyin] - Sports car\r\n名牌 - [pinyin]ming2 pai2[/pinyin] - Name brand\r\n风度 - [pinyin]feng1 du4[/pinyin] - Elegant (applies only to men)\r\n绅士 - [pinyin]shen1 shi4[/pinyin] - Gentleman\r\n别墅 - [pinyin]bie2 shu4[/pinyin] - Villa\r\n继承 -  [pinyin]ji4 cheng2[/pinyin] - To inherit\r\n双胞胎 - [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n不幸流产 - [pinyin]bu4 xing4 liu2 chan3[/pinyin] - Accidental miscarriage\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n一个16岁的女孩跟她母亲说她已经2个月没来了.... 母亲一听不得了赶紧去药房买了<strong>验孕剂</strong>来确认一下... 结果女孩真的怀孕了！ 母亲又哭又骂的问到:\"到底是那个<strong>浑蛋</strong>干的好事，你给我从实招来!!\" 女孩只好打了通电话... 半小时后，一部全新的<strong>法拉利</strong><strong>跑车</strong>疾驶到了女孩家门，而跨出车门的是位全身<strong>名牌</strong>衣着又<strong>风度</strong>翩翩的中年<strong>绅士</strong>. 绅士进入屋内与女孩及她的父母双亲在客厅坐了下来. \"午安!\"绅士礼貌的向她们问候并说道:\"<strong>令媛</strong>刚刚告知了我这个大问题，但是因为我的个人家庭问题，很抱歉我无法娶令媛为妻，不过我会<strong>负该负的责任</strong>\" \"这样好了，如果生的是女孩，我会留3家店面，2间房子，1栋海边<strong>别墅</strong>及一个200万美金的帐户给她\" \"如果生的是男孩，我会让他<strong>继承</strong>2家公司再加上一个200万美金的帐户\" \"如果生的是<strong>双胞胎</strong>，那就每人继承1家公司还有各100万美金的帐户\" \"但如果<strong>不幸流产</strong>了............\" 此时在一旁沉默已久的父亲，突然站起来，并把手紧紧的搭在绅士的肩上后说:\"没关系，到时你可以再来一次!!\" \r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nA 16-year-old girl said to her mother that she had missed 2 menstrual cycles... as soon as her mother heard this, she rushed in extreme haste to the pharmacy to buy a pregnancy test and confirm the issue... sure enough the daughter was pregnant!  Crying and yelling, the mother asked, \"Whichever scoundrel did the happy deed, you make him come face me!!\" The daughter was forced to pick up the phone... half an hour later, a brand new Ferrari sports car quickly pulled up to the girl\'s front door, and who stepped out of the car but an elegant middle-aged gentleman wearing a completely new set of brand-name clothes. The gentleman entered the room and sat down in the living room with the daughter and her parents. \"Good afternoon!\" the gentleman politely paid his respects, and said, \"Ling Yuan [presumably daughter\'s name] just told me about this serious problem, but because of my own family situation, I\'m very sorry to say I can\'t take Ling Yuan to wife, but I will bear the responsibility I should bear. This should do: if a girl child is born, I will give her 3 storefronts, 2 houses, 1 seaside villa and a bank account with 2 million American dollars in it. If a boy is born, he will inherit 2 companies plus a bank account worth 2 million American dollars. If it\'s twins, each will inherit one company and a 1 million American dollar bank account. But if it\'s a miscarriage...\"  At that moment, the girl\'s father, who had been sitting silently off to one side, suddenly stood up, put both hands firmly on the gentleman\'s shoulders and said, \"Don\'t worry, if that happens [lit: when the time comes] you can come back again!\" \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]\r\n\r\n', 'You can come back again', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '756-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-08-30 23:17:36', '2011-08-31 03:17:36', '', 756, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/08/30/756-revision-8/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(772, 1, '2011-08-31 21:25:06', '2011-09-01 01:25:06', '', 'Advanced and Intermediate Chinese Newspaper Vocabulary and Headlines', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110903-inline', '', '', '2011-08-31 21:25:06', '2011-09-01 01:25:06', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110903-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(773, 1, '2011-08-31 21:26:06', '2011-09-01 01:26:06', '', 'Advanced and Intermediate Chinese Newspaper Vocabulary and Headlines', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110903', '', '', '2011-08-31 21:26:06', '2011-09-01 01:26:06', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110903.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(2384, 1, '2020-05-24 06:48:18', '2020-05-24 10:48:18', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"] \nHad a complaint a few days ago that my <a href=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/18/chinese-childrens-fable-freedom-in-heaven/\">fable about a pretty bird</a> was too political, so I figured I\'d give ya\'ll something more exciting to complain about. Break out your Little Red Books, it\'s Communism Week at CRP. \n\nBecause Chinese Communism is an increasingly touchy international topic, a quick note: I am putting up these stories because they are historically, academically and linguistically interesting, not because I am promoting any political viewpoint. To maintain a pleasant, learning-focused environment, I don\'t allow political comments here. If you express your political opinions in the comments - positive, negative, or neutral - I will delete them. You may directed outraged letters to me@kendraschaefer.com, but I may or may not post them on Facebook where my friends and I \n\nRight, so <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lei_Feng\">Lei Feng</a> (雷锋) was a larger-than-life Communist people\'s folk hero. Though tales of his good deeds spread like wildfire and took on a mythic quality, he was actually a real person: a People\'s Liberation Army solider who lived from 1940-1962, dying at the age of 22 when he was struck by a falling telephone pole in the line of duty. But his legend never really waned: he is still considered the personification of Mao Zedong Thought and the ultimate socialist Boy Scout. He was held up by the Party propaganda machine as a person to emulate, someone with a perfect moral character and devotion to the socialist cause, so much so that children were encouraged to foster \"Lei Feng Spirit\" (雷锋精神).\n\nIn this post, I translate one of many, many stories about Lei Feng\'s general do-gooding. I chose this one because it\'s got all the best elements of a classic Lei Feng tale: over-the-top selflessness towards the common people, grand statements of loyalty to the Party, and all the rest.\n\n<h4>Some Language Stuff</h4>\nIf this is your first foray into Communist-themed reading, you\'ll learn a few new words that are common to writing from the 1940s-1970s: \n\n单位 [pinyin]dan1 wei4[/pinyin] - work unit\n解放军 [pinyin]jie3 fang4 jun1[/pinyin] - [People\'s] Liberation Army (PLA) \n同志 [pinyin]tong2 zhi4[/pinyin] - comrade \n毛主席 [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao\n党 [pinyin]dang3[/pinyin] - short for \"共产党\", the Party / the Communist Party.  \n\nThere are also a few names of places: Shenyang (沈阳), Liaoning (辽宁) and Jilin (吉林) - all places within northeastern China. \n\nThis post centers around good deeds that Lei Feng did while traveling around the northeast on army business. I had a little bit of trouble translating some of the travel-related sentences, because the way people talk about travel in Chinese is slightly different than the way we do in English. For one thing, if someone is traveling within China, the phrase 去外地 [pinyin]qu4 wai4 di4[/pinyin] is used. At first glance, \"去外地\" just means \"to go other places\", but this is specifically used to mean \"other places within China\", not \"other countries\". Trips outside of China are usually described as 去国外 or 去外国. Also, pay attention to the word 出差 [pinyin]chu1 chai1[/pinyin]. This specially means \"to travel on business\", as opposed to traveling for pleasure.\n\n<strong>想都没想</strong> [pinyin]xiang3 dou1 mei3 xiang3[/pinyin] - Phrase means \"without even thinking about it\" or \"without a second thought\". \n\n<a href=\"https://baike.baidu.com/item/%E9%9B%B7%E9%94%8B/5569?fr=aladdin\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source here</a>\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]\n\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\n[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<h4>雷锋小故事</h4>\n从一九六一年开始，雷锋经常应邀去外地作报告，他出差的机会多了，为人民服务的机会也就多了。\n\n人们流传着这样一句话：“雷锋出差一千里，好事做了一火车。”\n\n有一次，雷锋外出，在<span class=\"highlightText\">沈阳</span>车站换车，出检票口的时候，他发现一群人围着一个背着小孩儿的中年妇女。原来这名妇女从<span class=\"highlightText\">辽宁</span>去<span class=\"highlightText\">吉林</span>看丈夫，一不小心把车票和钱都丢了 ，雷锋连忙用自己的津贴费买了一张去吉林的火车票塞到大嫂手里，大嫂眼含热泪地问：“小兄弟，你叫什么名字？住哪的？是哪个<span class=\"highlightText\">单位</span>的？”\n\n雷锋回答道：“我叫<span class=\"highlightText\">解放军</span>，家就住在中国。”\n\n五月的一天，雷锋冒雨去<span class=\"highlightText\">沈阳</span>。他为了赶早车，早晨5点多就起来，带了几个干馒头就披上雨衣上路了。路上，雷锋看见一位妇女背着一个小孩，手还牵着一个小女孩，正艰难地向车站走去。雷锋<span class=\"highlightText\">想都没想</span>，脱下身上的雨衣就披在大嫂身上，又抱起小女孩陪她们一起来到车站。上车后，雷锋见小女孩冷得直发抖，就把自己的贴身衬衣脱下来给她穿上。雷锋估计她们早饭没吃，就把自己带的馒头给她们吃。火车到了沈阳，天还在下雨，雷锋便把她们送到家里。\n\n那位妇女感激地说：“<span class=\"highlightText\">同志</span>，我可怎么感谢你呀！”\n\n雷锋说 ：“不要感谢我，应该感谢<span class=\"highlightText\">党</span>和<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>啊！”\n\n他在日记中写下了这样一段话：“我的一切都是<span class=\"highlightText\">党</span>给的，光荣应该归于<span class=\"highlightText\">党</span>，归于热情帮助我的<span class=\"highlightText\">同志</span>，至于我个人做的工作，那是太少了，我这么一点点贡献，比起对我的要求和期望还是非常不够的……” \n</div>\n[/su_column]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\nBeginning in 1961, Lei Feng was often invited to go to other cities to make reports, and [since] he had many opportunities to travel on business, he also had many opportunities to serve the people.   \n\nPeople often said [of him]: \"When Lei Feng travels for business, [he rides there] on a train of good deeds.\" \n\nOne time, [while] Lei Feng was out and about, he was changing trains at Shenyang station, and when he was at the ticket booth, he saw a group of people standing around a middle-aged woman who was carrying a small child on her back. Turns out this woman was going from Liaoning to Jilin to see her husband, and accidentally lost her ticket and her wallet, so Lei Feng quickly used his own allowance to buy a ticket to Jilin and pressed it into the woman\'s [lit: \"elder sister\'s\"] hand. Her eyes brimming with tears the woman [lit: elder sister] said: \"Little Brother, What is your name? Where do you live? What is your work unit?\" \n\nLei Feng answered: \"My name is Liberation Army, and China is my home.\" \n\nOne day in May, Lei Feng braved the rain to go to Shenyang. In order to catch the early train, he woke up at 5:00 A.M., took some dry steamed buns, put on his rain gear and set out upon the road. On the road, Lei Feng saw a woman carrying a small child on her back, and leading another little girl by the hand, and [she was] struggling towards the train station. Lei Feng didn\'t give it a second thought, he took off his own rain gear and draped it over the woman\'s body, picked up the little girl and accompanied them to the station. On the train, Lei Feng saw the little girl shivering from cold, so he took off the shirt on his back and gave it to her to wear. Lei Feng guessed that they hadn\'t eaten breakfast, so he took out the buns he had brought and gave them to the women. When the train reached Shenyang, it was still raining, and Lei Feng took the women to their home. \n\nThe women gratefully said: \"Comrade, how can I ever thank you?\" \n\nLei Feng said, \"You don\'t have to thank me, you should thank the Party and Chairman Mao!\"\n\nIn his diary, he wrote the following: \"Everything I have was given to me by the Party, and all glory should belong to the Party, should belong to those comrades who enthusiastically helped me. As for the work I\'ve done, it isn\'t very much, my tiny contributions don\'t measure up to what I need and hope [to give]....\"\n[/hide-this-part]\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist folk tales:  The good deeds of Lei Feng', 'It\'s Communism Week at CRP! I\'m kicking off with some classic stories about the good deeds of Communist folk hero Lei Feng, the ultimate socialist Boy Scout. HSK 4-5.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2350-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-05-24 06:48:18', '2020-05-24 10:48:18', '', 2350, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/24/2350-autosave-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2367, 1, '2020-05-21 20:37:09', '2020-05-22 00:37:09', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nI had an impossible time finding beginner Communist history , so we\'ll have to settle for this patriotic essay\r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.rensheng5.com/xiaogushi/id-9965.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source here</a>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>国庆节作文</h4>\r\n国庆节到了，我们国家成立五十九周年了，机关、学校、工厂、社区、各单位门前挂着红布，上面写着“庆祝国庆”四个大字。\r\n\r\n为了庆祝这一天，我们国家放七天长假，让大家高高兴兴的休息。有的人带着孩子去旅游，有的带着孩子去秋游，还有的带着孩子去超市、逛大街、进公园，大家都玩的特别开心。回家时大家都提着大包小包，有吃的，有穿的，有用的，还有学习用品和书籍。爸爸妈妈告诉我，现在生活真幸福，好像芝麻开花节节高，这应该感谢党的改革开放政策好。\r\n\r\n国庆节的夜晚更加美丽，街上有各种各样的宫灯，五彩缤纷，还有人行道上火树银花星星点点，闪闪发光，使人看后流连忘返。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nChina GAVE BIRTH to Mao Zedong\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nHe is the People\'s great emancipator \r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nHe is the People\'s great emancipator \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the people\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nThe people there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\n<em>Hu er hei yo</em>\r\nThe people there receive liberation\r\n\r\n东方红太阳升 \r\n中国出了个毛泽东\r\n他为人民谋幸福\r\n呼儿嗨哟\r\n他是人民大救星\r\n他为人民谋幸福\r\n呼儿嗨哟 \r\n他是人民大救星 \r\n大救星\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: National Day', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2366-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-21 20:37:09', '2020-05-22 00:37:09', '', 2366, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/21/2366-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2366, 1, '2020-05-28 00:00:21', '2020-05-28 04:00:21', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\n<strong>Quick reminder:</strong> To maintain a polite, language learning-focused environment, political comments – positive, negative, or neutral – are not allowed, and will be deleted. Dinner table rules, please.\r\n\r\nZhu De (朱德 [pinyin]zhu1 de2[/pinyin]) is an early Communist folk hero, and the founder of the People\'s Liberation Army (解放军 [pinyin]jie3 fang4 jun1[/pinyin]), also called the Red Army (红军 [pinyin]hong2 jun1[/pinyin]). He was applauded as a people\'s general, and this popular revolutionary story - in which Zhu De helps his regiment carry grain (粮食 [pinyin]liang2 shi[/pinyin]) up a mountain on a carrying pole (扁担 [pinyin]bian3 dan[/pinyin]) - shows his willingness to toil alongside the common soldiers. The story spawned many popular posters of him, like this one:\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/chinese-reading-practice-communist-language-learning-zhude-carrying-pole.jpeg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Reading Practice Exercises: Communist Folk Stories Revolutionary Heroes\" width=\"425\" height=\"500\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-2387\" /> \r\n\r\nZhu De is a revolutionary from the early days of Chinese Communism. For those who don\'t know their CCP history: modern China was founded in 1949, but for the 20-odd years before that, the Red Army was fighting various wars for control of the country. Zhu De was instrumental in these wars, and after 1949, he became a key Party leader and politician. This story is set in the early days of the wars, in 1928. It\'s crazy to think that Zhu De, who was born in 1886 and died in 1976, lived to be 90 years old, but spent three or four decades of his life doing nothing but fighting battles. Considering how many people died in those wars, or were purged in political upheavals afterwards, this guy was a real survivor. \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nThis is an example of a story that will look much harder on first glance than it actually is. That\'s because some of the vocab is intermediate, but the sentence structure is beginner. The intermediate vocab is also used repetitively, so once you look up the tougher words, you\'ll immediately have an opportunity to see them again in the text. The first two sentences are much rougher than the rest, because they\'re almost entirely made up of intermediate words, so push through those and it\'ll be easier going from there. If you break the sentences down patiently, and you are at HSK 3 or up, I promise you can get through this. \r\n\r\nWe have a few proper names here: \r\n朱德同志 [pinyin]zhu1 de2 tong2 zhi4[/pinyin] - Comrade Zhu De \r\n红军 [pinyin]hong2 jun1[/pinyin] - the Red Army\r\n井冈山 [pinyin]jing3 gang1 shan1[/pinyin] - Jinggang Mountain \r\n\r\nWe also have some military words: \r\n队伍 [pinyin]dui4 wu[/pinyin] - troops \r\n敌人 [pinyin]di2 ren2[/pinyin] - enemy\r\n战士们 [pinyin]zhan4 shi4 men[/pinyin] - soldier \r\n打仗 [pinyin]da3 zhang4[/pinyin] - to fight a war\r\n\r\nAnother word that comes up quite a bit is 粮食 [pinyin]liang2 shi[/pinyin] - Also just 粮 [pinyin]liang2[/pinyin]. This is a general term for \"grain\", could be wheat, rice, millet, oats, or whatever.\r\n\r\nAnd one phrase that might be a little hard to understand:\r\n\r\n<strong>争着去</strong> [pinyin]zheng1 zhe qu4[/pinyin] - 争 means \"to fight\" or \"to struggle\", 着 is a present-tense grammar word, and 去 means \"go\" or \"leave\". At first glance, 争着去 looks like it means \"fighting in order to leave someplace\", but it\'s not. In this case, it\'s describing a group of people pushing and shoving to be the first to volunteer to go somewhere. Imagine a group of soldiers asked to undertake a hard mission - one person says, \"I\'ll go!\" and someone else says, \"No, choose me, I\'ll go!\". This is 争着去. \r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>朱德的扁担</h4>\r\n1928年，<span class=\"highlightText\">朱德同志</span>带领一支<span class=\"highlightText\">红军队伍</span>到<span class=\"highlightText\">井冈山</span>。山上是<span class=\"highlightText\">红军</span>，山下不远就是<span class=\"highlightText\">敌人</span>。\r\n \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">井冈山</span>上粮食不多，常常要派一些人到山下的田园去挑粮。<span class=\"highlightText\">井冈山</span>离田园很远，山高路窄，非常难走。可是每次挑粮大家都<span class=\"highlightText\">争着去</span>。\r\n \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">朱德同志</span>也跟<span class=\"highlightText\">战士们</span>一起去挑粮。他穿着草鞋，挑起满满的一担粮食，跟大家一起爬山。白天挑粮，晚上还常常整夜整夜地学习怎样跟<span class=\"highlightText\">敌人打仗</span>。大家觉得他要做的工作太多，就把他那根扁担藏了起来。可是<span class=\"highlightText\">朱德同志</span>又找到了一根扁担，写上“<span class=\"highlightText\">朱德</span>扁担，不要拿走”八个大字。大家见了，更敬爱<span class=\"highlightText\">朱德同志</span>，不好意思再藏他的扁担了。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nIn 1928, Comrade Zhu De lead a detachment of Red Army troops to Jinggang Mountain. The Red Army was on the mountain, but down the mountain not far away was the enemy. \r\n \r\nThere wasn\'t much grain on Jinggang Mountain, so [they] often had to send a few people down to the fields below to tote back some grain. Jinggang Mountain was far from the fields, the mountain was high and the roads were narrow, it was very hard going. But each time grain had to be carried back, everyone fought to be the one to go.\r\n \r\nComrade Zhu De also went along with the soldiers to carry grain. He wore grass shoes, carrying a pole packed full of grain, and climbed the mountain with everybody else. During the day [he] carried grain, and during the evening he often spent the whole night studying how to make war on the enemy. Everyone felt he had too much work to do, so they took his carrying pole and hid it. But Comrade Zhu De found another carrying pole, and wrote 8 big words on it: \"Zhu Du\'s carrying pole, please don\'t take it\". Everyone saw this, and loved and respected Comrade Zhu De even more, and were too ashamed to hide his carrying pole again. \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist folk tales: 《朱德的扁担》- Zhu De\'s Carrying Pole', 'Zhu De (朱德) is an early Communist folk hero, and the founder of the People\'s Liberation Army (解放军), also called the Red Army (红军). This popular revolutionary story highlights his willingness to toil alongside the rank and file soldiers. HSK 3-4. ', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'communist-folk-tales-zhu-des-carrying-pole', '', '', '2020-05-28 09:43:55', '2020-05-28 13:43:55', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=2366', 0, 'post', '', 0),
(2365, 1, '2020-05-21 19:55:31', '2020-05-21 23:55:31', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nOne picky little horse doesn\'t appreciate the food he is served, until he sees what everyone else is eating. Upper-beginner, bordering on intermediate, HSK 4.\r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nQuite a bit of the harder vocab in this piece revolves around eating. We\'ve got  津津有味 [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin], to eat something with joyous relish, 啃 [pinyin]ken3[/pinyin], to gnaw on, 狼吞虎咽 [pinyin]lang2 tun1 hu3 yan4[/pinyin], to fiercely gobble something up, and 饥肠辘辘 [pinyin]ji1 chang2 lu4 lu4[/pinyin], to be so hungry one\'s stomach is rumbling. \r\n\r\n饥肠辘辘 is actually a pretty interesting phrase. 饥肠 means \"an empty stomach\", and 辘辘 is being used as an onomatopoeia, <em>lu lu</em> being the sound of one\'s stomach grumbling from hunger.  \r\n\r\n<strong>爱挑食</strong> [pinyin]ai4 tiao1 shi2[/pinyin] - Three different words here, 爱, to love, 挑, to be picky, and 食, food. The literal translation here is \"loves to be picky about food\". It bears pointing out that in this case, \"love\" does not really mean \"to have fondness for\", but rather, \"to do something often\". We use \"love\" this way in English as well, as in, \"You just love to start an argument, don\'t you?\"\r\n\r\n<strong>转一圈</strong> [pinyin]zhuan3 yi1 quan1[/pinyin] - 转 is \"to turn around\" and 一圈 is \"a circle\" or \"a loop\". That might sound like it means \"to spin around in a circle while standing in place\", but it doesn\'t. It means \"to make a circular pass through a place\" - imagine shopping at a farmer\'s market or something, you walk all around to the different stalls to see what everyone is selling. \r\n\r\n<strong>一幕</strong> [pinyin]yi1 mu4[/pinyin] - You\'ll notice my popup dictionary translates this as \"a curtain\", a \"screen\" or \"an act of a play\". A 幕 is indeed the measure word for \"an act of a play\", but this is being used figuratively, what it means here is \"scene\", as in, \"When my eyes came to rest upon that ugly scene...\" \r\n\r\n<strong>那儿</strong> [pinyin]na4 er[/pinyin] - Literally means \"there\", but when it comes after a noun, it means \"over where [noun] is\", or \"[noun\'s] place\". I just covered a similar usage of \"这儿\" in the <a href=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/20/chinese-fable-the-learned-son/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">last beginner post</a>. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.rensheng5.com/xiaogushi/id-9965.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source here</a>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>最可口的食物</h4>\r\n\r\n在一个农场里养着很多动物。其中有一匹<span class=\"highlightText\">爱挑食</span>的小马，它总是不满意农场主给它的食物。于是它决定去转<span class=\"highlightText\">一圈</span>，看看别的动物们<span class=\"highlightText\">那儿</span>有什么好吃的。\r\n　　\r\n它很快就发现了几只鸡正在愉快地吃着什么，上前一看，是谷子，它尝了一口，却马上又吐了出来，“一点味没有，不好吃！”说着就走了。\r\n　　\r\n不久它又看到一只狗在<span class=\"highlightText\">津津有味</span>地<span class=\"highlightText\">啃</span>着骨头，还有一只猫一边唱着歌一边<span class=\"highlightText\">撕咬</span>着一条鱼。这些食物，它看了都害怕，那气味快使它呕吐。它赶紧走开了。\r\n　　\r\n走了好一会儿，小马有点渴了，它来到水塘边喝水。看到两只鸭子正在抢夺一条蚯蚓，蚯蚓被它们拉扯的又细又长，最后断成两截，两只鸭子<span class=\"highlightText\">狼吞虎咽</span>地吃下了各自的半截，又开始寻找起来。看到这残忍的<span class=\"highlightText\">一幕</span>，小马水也<span class=\"highlightText\">顾不上</span>喝就跑开了，“真恐怖！”它说。\r\n　　\r\n跑了<span class=\"highlightText\">一大圈</span>，它看到的动物吃的东西，都不合它的胃口，有的甚至还让它感得恶心。小马饥肠辘辘的回到马厩，才发现主人为它预备的草料，才是它最喜爱最可口的食物。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThere was a farm where many animals were raised. Among them was one little horse that was very picky about his food, he was always unsatisfied with what the farmer gave him to eat. So he decided to go walk around, to see what yummy things the other animals had to eat. \r\n　　\r\nHe quickly discovered a few chickens happily eating something, so he went over to look, it was grain, so he tried a mouthful, but he spit out, \"[This] has no flavor, it\'s gross!\", he said and left.　\r\n　　\r\nNot long after he saw a dog gnawing on a bone with relish, and a cat singing a song while tearing into a fish. Just looking at these foods frightened him, and the smell made him retch, so he quickly took his leave. 　\r\n　　\r\nAfter walking for a while, the little horse was a bit thirsty, so he went to the pond to drink some water. He saw two ducks fighting over an earthworm, they stretched the earthworm out long and thin, and finally broke it into two pieces, and the two ducks each gobbled down their piece, and started looking about [for another]. Seeing this cruel scene, the little horse couldn\'t even stand to drink any water and quickly ran away, \"Truly horrifying!\" he said. \r\n　　\r\nHe ran all around, and everything he saw the other animals eating didn\'t suit his own tastes, and some even disgusted him. He returned to his pen with his stomach rumbling, and found that the grass master had prepared for him to eat was his favorite delicious food after all.  \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Children\'s Story: 最可口的食物 - The most appetizing meal', 'One picky little horse doesn\'t appreciate the food he is served, until he sees what everyone else is eating. Upper-beginner, bordering on intermediate, HSK 4.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2331-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-21 19:55:31', '2020-05-21 23:55:31', '', 2331, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/21/2331-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(779, 1, '2011-09-09 07:00:09', '2011-09-09 11:00:09', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short first-person essay about a kid lighting firecrackers with his parents. I went back and forth on whether to classify this as \"beginner\" or \"intermediate\". It\'s easier than most of my intermediate stuff, but it\'s got a tighter density of higher-level words than my beginner stuff. But it\'s only a few sentences long. I finally settled on \"Beginner\", if willing to walk through it word-by-word and puzzle it out, you may be able to get it.\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis isn\'t really an essay, per se. The Chinese have a different word for this type of \"what I did that day\" article: they call it 记事 (a record of events, like a diary) or 叙事 (a narrative). The weirdest part about this, I think, is the part where the kid says he smokes a cigarette his dad gave him. How old is this child? The rest of the piece makes it sound like he\'s about 7-10? Anywayyyy... on with the Chinese.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>放花炮</h4>\r\n\r\n今天晚上，我和爸爸妈妈一起<strong>放花炮</strong>。 爸爸用上<strong>打火机</strong>点上一根<strong>香烟</strong>，我拿着烟，<strong>吸</strong>了几口后就开始放花炮。我点了一个，花炮<strong>喷出五颜六色</strong>的的<strong>火苗</strong>，真是太美丽了！<strong>冲天炮</strong>太<strong>危险</strong>了，我不敢放，爸爸帮我放，我只在旁边看。 不一会儿，花炮放完了，我们就高高兴兴地回家了。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThis evening, my mother father and I set off fireworks together. Father used a lighter to light a cigarette, I took the cigarette and after a few puffs we began lighting the fireworks. I light one, and the firework sprayed multicolor flames, so beautiful! Rockets are too dangerous, I don\'t dare light them, so father helped me do it, and I stood beside and watched. Soon after, the fireworks were all gone, and we happily returned home. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'setting-off-fireworks', '', '', '2020-04-28 19:40:48', '2020-04-28 23:40:48', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=779', 0, 'post', '', 10),
(1800, 1, '2020-04-20 05:51:19', '2020-04-20 09:51:19', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short first-person essay about a kid lighting firecrackers with his parents. I went back and forth on whether to classify this as \"beginner\" or \"intermediate\". It\'s easier than most of my intermediate stuff, but it\'s got a tighter density of higher-level words than my beginner stuff. But it\'s only a few sentences long. I finally settled on \"Beginner\", if willing to walk through it word-by-word and puzzle it out, you may be able to get it.\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis isn\'t really an essay, per se. The Chinese have a different word for this type of \"what I did that day\" article: they call it 记事 (a record of events, like a diary) or 叙事 (a narrative). The weirdest part about this, I think, is the part where the kid says he smokes a cigarette his dad gave him. How old is this child? The rest of the piece makes it sound like he\'s about 7-10? Anywayyyy... on with the Chinese.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>放花炮</h4>\r\n\r\n今天晚上，我和爸爸妈妈一起<strong>放花炮</strong>。 爸爸用上<strong>打火机</strong>点上一根<strong>香烟</strong>，我拿着烟，<strong>吸</strong>了几口后就开始放花炮。我点了一个，花炮<strong>喷出五颜六色</strong>的的<strong>火苗</strong>，真是太美丽了！<strong>冲天炮</strong>太<strong>危险</strong>了，我不敢放，爸爸帮我放，我只在旁边看。 不一会儿，花炮放完了，我们就高高兴兴地回家了。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThis evening, my mother father and I set off fireworks together. Father used a lighter to light a cigarette, I took the cigarette and after a few puffs we began lighting the fireworks. I light one, and the firework sprayed multicolor flames, so beautiful! Rockets are too dangerous, I don\'t dare light them, so father helped me do it, and I stood beside and watched. Soon after, the fireworks were all gone, and we happily returned home. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '779-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:51:19', '2020-04-20 09:51:19', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/779-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(780, 1, '2011-09-04 10:48:54', '2011-09-04 14:48:54', '', 'Chinese Beginner Intermediate Vocaublary Essay - Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110905', '', '', '2011-09-04 10:48:54', '2011-09-04 14:48:54', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110905.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(781, 1, '2011-09-04 10:49:29', '2011-09-04 14:49:29', '', 'Chinese Beginner Intermediate Vocaublary Essay - Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110905-inline', '', '', '2011-09-04 10:49:29', '2011-09-04 14:49:29', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110905-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(782, 1, '2011-09-04 10:48:10', '2011-09-04 14:48:10', '[two_third]\nA short first-person essay about a kid lighting firecrackers with his parents. I went back and forth on whether to classify this as \"beginner\" or \"intermediate\". It\'s easier than most of my intermediate stuff, but it\'s got a tighter density of higher-level words than my beginner stuff. But it\'s only a few sentences long. I finally settled on \"Intermediate\", but if you\'re beginner level and you\'re willing to walk through it word-by-word and puzzle it out, you may be able to get it.\n<!--more-->\n\nThis isn\'t really an essay, per se. The Chinese have a different word for this type of \"what I did that day\" article: they call it 记事 (a record of events, like a diary) or 叙事 (a narrative). The weirdest part about this, I think, is the part where the kid says he smokes a cigarette his dad gave him. How old is this child? The rest of the piece makes it sound like he\'s about 7-10? Anyway... The Chinese title of this little story is 放花炮.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n放 - [pinyin]fang4[/pinyin] - To release, to put, to place, to set off (in this case, to \"set off\" fireworks)\n花炮 - [pinyin]hua1 pao4[/pinyin] - Firecracker, fireworks\n打火机 - [pinyin]da3 huo3 ji1[/pinyin] - Cigarette lighter\n香烟 - [pinyin]xiang1 yan1[/pinyin] - Cigarette\n吸 - [pinyin]xi1[/pinyin] - To smoke something\n喷出 - [pinyin]pen1 chu1[/pinyin] -  To spray out, to spurt out\n五颜六色 - [pinyin]wu3 yan2 liu4 se4[/pinyin] - Multicolored\n火苗 - [pinyin]huo3 miao2[/pinyin] - Flames\n冲天炮 - [pinyin]chong1 tian1 bao1[/pinyin] - Rocket type of firework that shoots into the air\n危险 - [pinyin]wei1 xian3[/pinyin] - Dangerous\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天晚上，我和爸爸妈妈一起<strong>放花炮</strong>。 爸爸用上<strong>打火机</strong>点上一根<strong>香烟</strong>，我拿着烟，<strong>吸</strong>了几口后就开始放花炮。我点了一个，花炮<strong>喷出五颜六色</strong>的的<strong>火苗</strong>，真是太美丽了！<strong>冲天炮</strong>太<strong>危险</strong>了，我不敢放，爸爸帮我放，我只在旁边看。 不一会儿，花炮放完了，我们就高高兴兴地回家了。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nThis evening, my mother father and I set off fireworks together. Father used a lighter to light a cigarette, I took the cigarette and after a few puffs we began lighting the fireworks. I light one, and the firework sprayed multicolor flames, so beautiful! Rockets are too dangerous, I don\'t dare light them, so father helped me do it, and I stood beside and watched. Soon after, the fireworks were all gone, and we happily returned home. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '779-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-04 10:48:10', '2011-09-04 14:48:10', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/779-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(783, 1, '2020-04-20 05:49:51', '2020-04-20 09:49:51', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\nA short first-person essay about a kid lighting firecrackers with his parents. I went back and forth on whether to classify this as \"beginner\" or \"intermediate\". It\'s easier than most of my intermediate stuff, but it\'s got a tighter density of higher-level words than my beginner stuff. But it\'s only a few sentences long. I finally settled on \"Intermediate\", but if you\'re beginner level and you\'re willing to walk through it word-by-word and puzzle it out, you may be able to get it.\n<!--more-->\n\nThis isn\'t really an essay, per se. The Chinese have a different word for this type of \"what I did that day\" article: they call it 记事 (a record of events, like a diary) or 叙事 (a narrative). The weirdest part about this, I think, is the part where the kid says he smokes a cigarette his dad gave him. How old is this child? The rest of the piece makes it sound like he\'s about 7-10? \n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]\n\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\n[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<h4>放花炮</h4>\n\n今天晚上，我和爸爸妈妈一起<strong>放花炮</strong>。 爸爸用上<strong>打火机</strong>点上一根<strong>香烟</strong>，我拿着烟，<strong>吸</strong>了几口后就开始放花炮。我点了一个，花炮<strong>喷出五颜六色</strong>的的<strong>火苗</strong>，真是太美丽了！<strong>冲天炮</strong>太<strong>危险</strong>了，我不敢放，爸爸帮我放，我只在旁边看。 不一会儿，花炮放完了，我们就高高兴兴地回家了。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nThis evening, my mother father and I set off fireworks together. Father used a lighter to light a cigarette, I took the cigarette and after a few puffs we began lighting the fireworks. I light one, and the firework sprayed multicolor flames, so beautiful! Rockets are too dangerous, I don\'t dare light them, so father helped me do it, and I stood beside and watched. Soon after, the fireworks were all gone, and we happily returned home. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '779-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:49:51', '2020-04-20 09:49:51', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/779-autosave/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(785, 1, '2011-09-06 07:00:30', '2011-09-06 11:00:30', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>我为妈妈做点儿事</h4>\r\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\r\n\r\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\r\n\r\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \r\n\r\nAfter a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \r\n\r\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: I Did Something for Mom', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'i-did-something-for-mom', '', '', '2020-04-28 19:40:42', '2020-04-28 23:40:42', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=785', 0, 'post', '', 3);
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(1799, 1, '2020-04-20 05:47:48', '2020-04-20 09:47:48', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>我为妈妈做点儿事</h4>\r\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\r\n\r\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\r\n\r\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \r\n\r\nAfter a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \r\n\r\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'I Did Something for Mom', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '785-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:47:48', '2020-04-20 09:47:48', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/785-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(786, 1, '2011-09-04 11:32:30', '2011-09-04 15:32:30', '', 'Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110906', '', '', '2011-09-04 11:32:30', '2011-09-04 15:32:30', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(787, 1, '2011-09-04 11:33:07', '2011-09-04 15:33:07', '', 'Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110906-inline', '', '', '2011-09-04 11:33:07', '2011-09-04 15:33:07', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(788, 1, '2011-09-04 11:29:32', '2011-09-04 15:29:32', '[two_third]\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \n<!--more-->\n\nThis story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\n\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \n\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\n\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\n\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\n\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \n\nAfter a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \n\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'I Did Something for Mom', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '785-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-04 11:29:32', '2011-09-04 15:29:32', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/785-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(789, 1, '2020-04-20 05:47:30', '2020-04-20 09:47:30', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \n<!--more-->\n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\n\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \n\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\n\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\n\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]\n\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\n[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<h4>我为妈妈做点儿事</h4>\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\n\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\n\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \n\nAfter a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \n\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'I Did Something for Mom', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '785-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:47:30', '2020-04-20 09:47:30', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/785-autosave/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(790, 1, '2011-09-04 11:33:19', '2011-09-04 15:33:19', '[two_third]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\r\n\r\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\r\n\r\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />After a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \r\n\r\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'I Did Something for Mom', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '785-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-04 11:33:19', '2011-09-04 15:33:19', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/785-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(813, 1, '2011-09-06 18:36:09', '2011-09-06 22:36:09', 'http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\r\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\r\n\r\n[two_third]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》：讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n　　《世上另一个我》：讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 18:36:09', '2011-09-06 22:36:09', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-4/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(791, 1, '2011-09-04 10:49:52', '2011-09-04 14:49:52', '[two_third]\r\nA short first-person essay about a kid lighting firecrackers with his parents. I went back and forth on whether to classify this as \"beginner\" or \"intermediate\". It\'s easier than most of my intermediate stuff, but it\'s got a tighter density of higher-level words than my beginner stuff. But it\'s only a few sentences long. I finally settled on \"Intermediate\", but if you\'re beginner level and you\'re willing to walk through it word-by-word and puzzle it out, you may be able to get it.\r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110905-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese Beginner Intermediate Vocaublary Essay - Setting Off Fireworks\" title=\"Chinese Beginner Intermediate Vocaublary Essay - Setting Off Fireworks\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This isn\'t really an essay, per se. The Chinese have a different word for this type of \"what I did that day\" article: they call it 记事 (a record of events, like a diary) or 叙事 (a narrative). The weirdest part about this, I think, is the part where the kid says he smokes a cigarette his dad gave him. How old is this child? The rest of the piece makes it sound like he\'s about 7-10? Anyway... The Chinese title of this little story is 放花炮.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n放 - [pinyin]fang4[/pinyin] - To release, to put, to place, to set off (in this case, to \"set off\" fireworks)\r\n花炮 - [pinyin]hua1 pao4[/pinyin] - Firecracker, fireworks\r\n打火机 - [pinyin]da3 huo3 ji1[/pinyin] - Cigarette lighter\r\n香烟 - [pinyin]xiang1 yan1[/pinyin] - Cigarette\r\n吸 - [pinyin]xi1[/pinyin] - To smoke something\r\n喷出 - [pinyin]pen1 chu1[/pinyin] -  To spray out, to spurt out\r\n五颜六色 - [pinyin]wu3 yan2 liu4 se4[/pinyin] - Multicolored\r\n火苗 - [pinyin]huo3 miao2[/pinyin] - Flames\r\n冲天炮 - [pinyin]chong1 tian1 bao1[/pinyin] - Rocket type of firework that shoots into the air\r\n危险 - [pinyin]wei1 xian3[/pinyin] - Dangerous\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天晚上，我和爸爸妈妈一起<strong>放花炮</strong>。 爸爸用上<strong>打火机</strong>点上一根<strong>香烟</strong>，我拿着烟，<strong>吸</strong>了几口后就开始放花炮。我点了一个，花炮<strong>喷出五颜六色</strong>的的<strong>火苗</strong>，真是太美丽了！<strong>冲天炮</strong>太<strong>危险</strong>了，我不敢放，爸爸帮我放，我只在旁边看。 不一会儿，花炮放完了，我们就高高兴兴地回家了。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nThis evening, my mother father and I set off fireworks together. Father used a lighter to light a cigarette, I took the cigarette and after a few puffs we began lighting the fireworks. I light one, and the firework sprayed multicolor flames, so beautiful! Rockets are too dangerous, I don\'t dare light them, so father helped me do it, and I stood beside and watched. Soon after, the fireworks were all gone, and we happily returned home. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Setting Off Fireworks', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '779-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-04 10:49:52', '2011-09-04 14:49:52', '', 779, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/779-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(792, 1, '2011-09-12 07:00:31', '2011-09-12 11:00:31', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. <!--more-->\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>西瓜</h4>\r\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\r\n\r\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\r\n\r\n破开西瓜，<strong>周围</strong>是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜<strong>瓤</strong>。<strong>咬</strong>一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会<strong>拉肚子</strong>。\r\n\r\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进<strong>垃圾桶</strong>，可不能随便<strong>乱扔</strong>，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\r\n\r\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \r\n\r\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \r\n\r\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to drop the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: Watermelon', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'watermelon', '', '', '2020-04-28 19:40:58', '2020-04-28 23:40:58', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=792', 0, 'post', '', 12),
(1801, 1, '2020-04-20 05:53:23', '2020-04-20 09:53:23', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. <!--more-->\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>西瓜</h4>\r\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\r\n\r\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\r\n\r\n破开西瓜，<strong>周围</strong>是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜<strong>瓤</strong>。<strong>咬</strong>一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会<strong>拉肚子</strong>。\r\n\r\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进<strong>垃圾桶</strong>，可不能随便<strong>乱扔</strong>，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\r\n\r\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \r\n\r\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \r\n\r\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to drop the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:53:23', '2020-04-20 09:53:23', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/792-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(804, 1, '2011-09-06 08:23:56', '2011-09-06 12:23:56', '[two_third]\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜圆圆的，有一条一条的绿色花纹，像一个皮球。\n\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\n\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\n\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \n\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \n\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to put the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:23:56', '2011-09-06 12:23:56', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(794, 1, '2011-10-06 23:16:01', '2011-10-07 03:16:01', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA quick child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. If this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \r\n\r\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\r\n喜欢 - to like\r\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \r\n不得了 - Extremely\r\n\r\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \r\n\r\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>我的玩具熊</h4>\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Congcong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful! \r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: My Toy Bears', 'A quick child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom.', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'my-toy-bears', '', '', '2020-04-28 19:41:17', '2020-04-28 23:41:17', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=794', 0, 'post', '', 1),
(1802, 1, '2020-04-20 05:56:35', '2020-04-20 09:56:35', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA quick child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. If this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \r\n\r\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\r\n喜欢 - to like\r\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \r\n不得了 - Extremely\r\n\r\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \r\n\r\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>小马过河</h4>\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Congcong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful! \r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:56:35', '2020-04-20 09:56:35', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/794-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(793, 1, '2011-09-06 07:54:14', '2011-09-06 11:54:14', '[two_third]\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \n<!--more-->\n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\n\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \n\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\n\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜圆圆的，有一条一条的绿色花纹，像一个皮球。\n\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\n\n　　吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />After a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \n\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', '', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 07:54:14', '2011-09-06 11:54:14', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(795, 1, '2011-09-06 08:01:48', '2011-09-06 12:01:48', '[two_third]\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \n<!--more-->\n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\n\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \n\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\n\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜圆圆的，有一条一条的绿色花纹，像一个皮球。\n\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\n\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Little Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:01:48', '2011-09-06 12:01:48', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/794-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(797, 1, '2011-09-06 08:04:37', '2011-09-06 12:04:37', '[two_third]\r\n\r\n\r\nhttp://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:04:37', '2011-09-06 12:04:37', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/794-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(796, 1, '2011-09-06 08:03:43', '2011-09-06 12:03:43', '[two_third]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\r\n\r\n西瓜圆圆的，有一条一条的绿色花纹，像一个皮球。\r\n\r\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\r\n\r\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Little Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:03:43', '2011-09-06 12:03:43', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/794-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(798, 1, '2011-10-10 23:57:52', '2011-10-11 03:57:52', '[two_third]\r\nThis is a plot synopsis of the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">\"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" title=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Since this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \r\n\r\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\r\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\r\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\r\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\r\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\r\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\r\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\r\n掀起- [pinyin]xian1 qi3[/pinyin] - To lift; an upsurge\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\r\n　\r\n 　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \r\n\r\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \r\n\r\n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'draft', 'open', 'open', '', 'the-opposite-of-me', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:56:57', '2020-04-20 09:56:57', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=798', 0, 'post', '', 0),
(799, 1, '2011-09-06 08:11:13', '2011-09-06 12:11:13', '', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:11:13', '2011-09-06 12:11:13', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(800, 1, '2011-09-06 08:11:19', '2011-09-06 12:11:19', 'http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:11:19', '2011-09-06 12:11:19', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(802, 1, '2011-05-07 18:28:07', '2011-05-07 22:28:07', '[two_third]\r\n\r\nThis Chinese excerpt is from the modern militant action novel \"Cold Thorn\", or 冷刺, written by 天地飘鸥. You\'ll be reading the first part of Chapter 1: King of the Commandos (特种兵之王). <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/20110411-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Advanced Chinese Reading: Cold Thorn Part 1\" title=\"Advanced Chinese Reading: Cold Thorn Part 1\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />The language here is very heavy on the cheesy military slang, so if you like action movies and thrillers, you\'ll be able to catch quite a few of the cliches. \r\n\r\nIf you\'d like to finish reading the book after you finish this first bit, the <a href=\"http://vip.book.sina.com.cn/book/index_162000.html\">full text is available online from Sina.com</a>\'s book archive.  \r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n冬眠 - [pinyin]dong1 mian2[/pinyin] - Hibernation\r\n斑驳- [pinyin]ban1 bo2[/pinyin] - Mottled\r\n潜伏 - [pinyin]qian2 fu2[/pinyin] - Concealed, covered\r\n纹丝不动 - [pinyin]wen2 si1 bu4 dong4[/pinyin] - Not move a whisker\r\n闷热 - [pinyin]men1 re4[/pinyin] - sultry\r\n追踪 - [pinyin]zhui1 zong1[/pinyin] - Track, trace, follow a trail\r\n特战 - [pinyin]te4 zhan4[/pinyin] - Special forces\r\n狙 - [pinyin]ju1[/pinyin] - Lie in ambush\r\n杀戮 - [pinyin]sha1 lu4[/pinyin] - Massacre\r\n匪夷所思 - [pinyin]fei3 yi2 suo3 si1[/pinyin] - Freak, fantastic\r\n比武 - [pinyin]bi3 wu3[/pinyin] - Martial / military contest\r\n军区 - [pinyin]jun1 qu1[/pinyin] - Military region\r\n出局 - [pinyin]chu1 ju2[/pinyin] - Be eliminated [from a contest]\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n韩枫静静地伏在厚厚的落叶下，一动不动，安静得如同一条<strong>冬眠</strong>的蛇，不，他比蛇还要无声无息，谁也不会想到<strong>斑驳</strong>腐烂的落叶堆里会有这样坚强的生命存在，仿佛亘古就是如此。真是无法想象一个人能在这样的环境中<strong>潜伏</strong>两天两夜，不吃不喝，<strong>纹丝不动</strong>。在苍茫的原始丛林中，空气<strong>闷热</strong>得令人窒息，浑身就像霉烂了似的，湿漉漉的感觉别提有多难受了，何况韩枫的身上还捂着这么厚的一堆落叶，真是连气也喘不过来了。\r\n\r\n韩枫就这样无声无息地潜伏着，安静得几乎连生命的体征也消失了，身边来来往往已经过去了几个特种小组，就连最擅长<strong>追踪</strong>的“灵狐”特战小组也没有发现他。\r\n\r\n他不能动，也不敢动，因为他知道林中还有不少<strong>特战</strong>高手在伺机<strong>狙</strong>杀，他要做最有耐心的猎人而不是成为别人的猎物。他们这一组除了他，其他人都“挂”了，在三天前残酷的“<strong>杀戮</strong>”中先后“阵亡”，而他，凭着超强的第六感和<strong>匪夷所思</strong>的身手不但逃过了对方的狙杀，而且还“杀”了数名富有经验的特战精英，居然毫发无伤。在十多个特战精英小组的攻击下能做到这一点，真是奇迹！\r\n\r\n这次的特种兵大<strong>比武</strong>，是五年一度的全国“特种兵”对抗大赛，来自全国七大<strong>军区</strong>的特战精英，个个都是身经百战的高手，随便挑出一个，横扫一个普通连队绝不是痴人说梦。这次的特种兵大比武是实兵对抗，一切从实战出发，除了弹药是空包弹外，其他都是特种部队必需的武器装备。十天为限，没有后援，没有给养，各自为战，淘汰者<strong>出局</strong>。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\r\nHan Feng silently hid beneath a thick pile of dead leaves, motionless, as calm as a hibernating snake; no, he was even more silent than a snake. No one would think that a strong life could exist inside such a motley, rotten pile of dead leaves, it was as if [the pile] had always been this way. There was no way to imagine  that a person could hide in this environment for two days without food or drink, not moving a whisker. In this vast primeval forest, the weather was so stiflingly hot as to make men suffocate, as if they were rotting from head to toe; needless to say the clamminess was very uncomfortable, moreso since Han Feng was covered in a thick pile of dead leaves - it was difficult to even draw breath. \r\n\r\nAnd so Han Feng hid there not making a sound, his very sense of life nearly fading away, as special units came and went around him; even the most expert trackers, the \"Quick Foxes\" special forces unit, didn\'t discover his position.\r\n\r\nHe didn\'t move, he didn\'t dare, because he knew that in the forest special forces experts were laying in wait to ambush him. He must be the most patient hunter, or else he would become someone else\'s prey. Everyone else in his group had already been \"hung\". In the \"massacre\" three days before, they\'d \"died\" in battle one after the other. But he, relying on his superior sixth sense and freakish agility, had escaped his opponent\'s ambush, and had also \"killed\" more than a few of supremely experienced special forces elite, somehow taking no wounds himself. It was a real miracle that he\'d managed this under attack from 10-plus special forces elite groups!\r\n\r\nTo this Commando Competition, an international \"special forces soldier\" face-off held once every five years, came elite commandos from the world\'s seven major military regions. Each [soldier] had [proven themselves] in numerous battles - it would not be unrealistic to say that any one you picked out of the bunch could single-handedly wipe out a whole unit of regular soldiers. This Commando Competition was a real military engagement, everything was like a real war, except for the fact that blanks are used for ammunition, all other equipment was special forces standard issue. A ten day limit, no reinforcements, no support, every man for himself, anyone eliminated is out of the running. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]\r\n', 'Cold Thorn Part 1', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '630-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-05-07 18:28:07', '2011-05-07 22:28:07', '', 630, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/05/07/630-revision-19/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(805, 1, '2011-09-06 08:24:17', '2011-09-06 12:24:17', '[two_third]\r\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\r\n\r\n西瓜圆圆的，有一条一条的绿色花纹，像一个皮球。\r\n\r\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\r\n\r\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\r\n\r\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \r\n\r\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \r\n\r\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to put the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:24:17', '2011-09-06 12:24:17', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(806, 1, '2011-09-06 08:41:59', '2011-09-06 12:41:59', '[two_third]\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. The Chinese title of this article is 西瓜.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n圆圆的 - [pinyin]yuan2 yuan2 de[/pinyin] - Spherical\n花纹 - [pinyin]hua1 wen2[/pinyin] - Design pattern\n皮球 - [pinyin]pi2 qiu2[/pinyin] - Ball (made of plastic or leather)\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\n\n破开西瓜，周围是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜瓤。咬一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会拉肚子。\n\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进垃圾桶，可不能随便乱扔，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\n\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \n\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \n\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to put the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 08:41:59', '2011-09-06 12:41:59', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision-4/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(807, 1, '2011-09-06 09:25:26', '2011-09-06 13:25:26', '', 'Beginner Chinese Vocabulary Reading Essay for Children', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110912', '', '', '2011-09-06 09:25:26', '2011-09-06 13:25:26', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110912.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(808, 1, '2011-09-06 09:26:37', '2011-09-06 13:26:37', '', 'Beginner Chinese Vocabulary Reading Essay for Children', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20110912-inline', '', '', '2011-09-06 09:26:37', '2011-09-06 13:26:37', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110912-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(809, 1, '2011-09-06 09:17:33', '2011-09-06 13:17:33', '[two_third]\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. The Chinese title of this article is 西瓜.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n圆圆的 - [pinyin]yuan2 yuan2 de[/pinyin] - Spherical\n花纹 - [pinyin]hua1 wen2[/pinyin] - Design pattern\n皮球 - [pinyin]pi2 qiu2[/pinyin] - Ball (made of plastic or leather)\n周围 - [pinyin]zhou1 wei2[/pinyin] - Surrounding, encompassing\n瓤 - [pinyin]rang2[/pinyin] - Pulp (of a fruit)\n咬 - [pinyin]yao3[/pinyin] -  Bite, nibble, nip\n拉肚子 - [pinyin]la1 du4 zi5[/pinyin] - Diarrhea\n垃圾桶 - [pinyin]la1 ji1 tong3[/pinyin] - Trash Can\n乱扔 - [pinyin]luan4 reng1[/pinyin] - To litter\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\n\n破开西瓜，<strong>周围</strong>是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜<strong>瓤</strong>。<strong>咬</strong>一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会<strong>拉肚子</strong>。\n\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进<strong>垃圾桶</strong>，可不能随便<strong>乱扔</strong>，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\n\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \n\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \n\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to drop the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 09:17:33', '2011-09-06 13:17:33', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision-5/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(810, 1, '2020-04-20 05:52:24', '2020-04-20 09:52:24', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. <!--more-->\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n圆圆的 - [pinyin]yuan2 yuan2 de[/pinyin] - Spherical\n花纹 - [pinyin]hua1 wen2[/pinyin] - Design pattern\n皮球 - [pinyin]pi2 qiu2[/pinyin] - Ball (made of plastic or leather)\n周围 - [pinyin]zhou1 wei2[/pinyin] - Surrounding, encompassing\n瓤 - [pinyin]rang2[/pinyin] - Pulp (of a fruit)\n咬 - [pinyin]yao3[/pinyin] -  Bite, nibble, nip\n拉肚子 - [pinyin]la1 du4 zi5[/pinyin] - Diarrhea\n垃圾桶 - [pinyin]la1 ji1 tong3[/pinyin] - Trash Can\n乱扔 - [pinyin]luan4 reng1[/pinyin] - To litter\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\n\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\n\n破开西瓜，<strong>周围</strong>是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜<strong>瓤</strong>。<strong>咬</strong>一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会<strong>拉肚子</strong>。\n\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进<strong>垃圾桶</strong>，可不能随便<strong>乱扔</strong>，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\n\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \n\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \n\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to drop the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:52:24', '2020-04-20 09:52:24', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-autosave/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(814, 1, '2011-09-06 18:50:45', '2011-09-06 22:50:45', '[two_third]\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important part in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and so easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work 她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。When she\'s betrayed at work, 当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 18:50:45', '2011-09-06 22:50:45', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-5/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(811, 1, '2011-09-06 18:35:29', '2011-09-06 22:35:29', 'http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[two_third]\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \n<!--more-->\n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\n\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \n\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\n\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\n\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\n\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />After a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \n\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 18:35:29', '2011-09-06 22:35:29', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(812, 1, '2011-09-04 11:34:06', '2011-09-04 15:34:06', '[two_third]\r\nA sweet essay about a young child doing something nice for her mother. \r\n<!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story has two proper nouns in it, which I should probably explain. The words 《大宅门》, which is the title of a TV show called \"Grand Gate Mansion\". This is a real Chinese TV soap / drama. If you want to watch it, <a href=\"http://v.pptv.com/show/hs26OKAGdrQXlVk.html\"> here\'s a full video episode of Grand Gate Mansion</a>. Another interesting thing about that is the punctuation  《 and 》, marks that don\'t exist in English. In English, when we refer to the name of a book or movie, we often put the name in quotes, for example, \"Cinderella\" or \"Gone with the Wind\". These 《》 punctuation marks are the equivalent of quotes in English, but while we use quotes for lots of purposes, the Chinese only ever use these to describe the name of a play, book, movie or show.\r\n\r\nThe other proper noun is 明明, a young girl\'s name. \r\n\r\nOne of the things I really like about this is also the juxtaposition between the three words 小心, 放心 and 开心, which mean \"to be careful or cautious\", \"to stop worrying\", and \"to be happy / to have fun\", respectively. You\'ll notice these words all end in 心, \"heart\", and these words could literally be translated as \"small heart\", \"to let go of your heart\", and \"open heart\". When you\'re being careful, doesn\'t it feel like your heart is small? And when you stop worrying about something, isn\'t it just like \"putting your heart down\"? And when you\'re having fun, isn\'t it just like you have an \"open heart\"?\r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this little narrative is 我为妈妈做点儿事.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n吃完晚饭,妈妈在厨房里洗碗，明明坐在大大的沙发上，<strong>津津有味</strong>地看着自己喜欢的<strong>动画片</strong>。\r\n\r\n过了一会儿,动画片演完了，电视<strong>屏幕</strong>上出现了大宅门的<strong>片名</strong>。明明知道妈妈最喜欢看《大宅门》了，明明想妈妈要做事，要洗碗，很<strong>辛苦</strong>，一定要让妈妈看会儿《大宅门》，她边想边向厨房跑去。明明拉着妈妈的<strong>围裙</strong>说: “妈妈，您最喜欢看的《大宅门》开始了，您快去看吧,我来洗碗。”妈妈高兴地说: “好呀，你洗碗的时候一定要<strong>小心</strong>啊。”明明说: “妈妈您放心吧!”\r\n\r\n妈妈坐在舒服的沙发上看起电视，明明在厨房里认真地洗碗，这个晚上她们俩过得可<strong>开心</strong>了!\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nAfter dinner was done, mother was in the kitchen washing dishes, and Ming Ming was on the big sofa, watching her favorite cartoons with great interest.  \r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110906-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary and Simplified Reading Materials\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />After a while, the cartoons were over, and the TV show title \"Grand Gate Mansion\" appeared on the screen. Ming Ming thought about how her mother had things to do, she had to wash the dishes, which is very tiring work, so [Ming Ming] should certainly let mother watch Grand Gate Mansion for a while, and thinking this, she ran into the kitchen. Ming Ming pulled on her mother\'s apron and said, \"Mama, your favorite show \'Grand Gate Mansion\' is starting, quick, go and watch it, I\'ll wash the dishes.\" Mother happily said, \"Great, just be careful as you\'re washing the dishes.\" Ming Ming said, \"Mama, don\'t worry!\" \r\n\r\nMother sat on the comfortable sofa and watched television, and Ming Ming was in the kitchen diligently washing dishes - that night those two had a great time! \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'I Did Something for Mom', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '785-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-04 11:34:06', '2011-09-04 15:34:06', '', 785, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/04/785-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(815, 1, '2011-09-06 18:52:19', '2011-09-06 22:52:19', '[two_third]\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important part in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and so easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work 她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 18:52:19', '2011-09-06 22:52:19', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-6/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(816, 1, '2011-09-06 18:57:20', '2011-09-06 22:57:20', '[two_third]\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important part in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and so easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work 她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsay complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Ale 重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 18:57:20', '2011-09-06 22:57:20', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(818, 1, '2011-09-06 19:05:33', '2011-09-06 23:05:33', '[two_third]\r\n\r\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\r\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\"The opposite of me\" is about a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important part in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and so easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work 她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \r\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \r\n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 19:05:33', '2011-09-06 23:05:33', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-9/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(817, 1, '2011-09-06 19:04:35', '2011-09-06 23:04:35', '[two_third]\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段爱恨交织的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的双胞胎姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、嫉恨了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，主人公林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一筹码。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也陷入前所未有的危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的艰辛历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场邂逅，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important part in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and so easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work 她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It breaks open 然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中掀起了新的风浪……\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 19:04:35', '2011-09-06 23:04:35', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/798-revision-8/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(819, 1, '2011-09-06 09:27:25', '2011-09-06 13:27:25', '[two_third]\r\nA young child\'s thoughts and description of watermelon, their favorite fruit. The Chinese title of this article is 西瓜.\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/20110912-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary Reading Essay for Children\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Vocabulary Reading Essay for Children\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n圆圆的 - [pinyin]yuan2 yuan2 de[/pinyin] - Spherical\r\n花纹 - [pinyin]hua1 wen2[/pinyin] - Design pattern\r\n皮球 - [pinyin]pi2 qiu2[/pinyin] - Ball (made of plastic or leather)\r\n周围 - [pinyin]zhou1 wei2[/pinyin] - Surrounding, encompassing\r\n瓤 - [pinyin]rang2[/pinyin] - Pulp (of a fruit)\r\n咬 - [pinyin]yao3[/pinyin] -  Bite, nibble, nip\r\n拉肚子 - [pinyin]la1 du4 zi5[/pinyin] - Diarrhea\r\n垃圾桶 - [pinyin]la1 ji1 tong3[/pinyin] - Trash Can\r\n乱扔 - [pinyin]luan4 reng1[/pinyin] - To litter\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n我吃好多水果，但是我最喜欢的是西瓜。\r\n\r\n西瓜<strong>圆圆的</strong>，有一条一条的绿色<strong>花纹</strong>，像一个<strong>皮球</strong>。\r\n\r\n破开西瓜，<strong>周围</strong>是白色的瓜皮，中间是鲜红的瓜<strong>瓤</strong>。<strong>咬</strong>一口，甜甜的，真好吃。我好想一口气把整个西瓜吃完，可是妈妈说，西瓜不能多吃，吃多了会<strong>拉肚子</strong>。\r\n\r\n吃完西瓜，瓜皮要丢进<strong>垃圾桶</strong>，可不能随便<strong>乱扔</strong>，因为有人踩到上面会摔倒的。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nI eat a lot of fruit, but my favorite is watermelon.\r\n\r\nWatermelon is round, and has a striped green design [on it], like a leather ball. \r\n\r\nWhen you break open a watermelon, it\'s surrounded by white skin, in the middle is bright red pulp. Take a bite, it\'s so sweet, it\'s delicious. I\'d love to eat it all up in one mouthful, but mama says you can\'t each too much watermelon, if you eat too much you\'ll have diarrhea. \r\n\r\nWhen you finish eating the watermelon, you have to drop the skin in the trash can, you can\'t just carelessly litter, because if a person steps on it they can slip and fall. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Watermelon', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '792-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-06 09:27:25', '2011-09-06 13:27:25', '', 792, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/06/792-revision-6/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(821, 1, '2011-09-19 08:51:07', '2011-09-19 12:51:07', '[two_third]\n\n\nhttp://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they can some automatic words, it\'s really fun. 更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-19 08:51:07', '2011-09-19 12:51:07', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/19/794-revision-5/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(820, 1, '2011-09-19 08:49:37', '2011-09-19 12:49:37', '[two_third]\n\n\nhttp://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head,  这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-19 08:49:37', '2011-09-19 12:49:37', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/19/794-revision-4/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(824, 1, '2011-10-06 22:57:13', '2011-10-07 02:57:13', '[two_third]\n\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n神秘 - [pinyin]shen2 mi4[/pinyin] - Mysteriously\n兮兮 - [pinyin]xi1 xi1[/pinyin] - Used after some words to mean \"extremely\".\n猜 - [pinyin]cai1[/pinyin] - To guess\n急不可耐 - [pinyin]ji2 bu4 ke3 nai4[/pinyin] - Unable to wait\n兴高采烈 - [pinyin]xing1 gai1 cai3 lie4[/pinyin] - Happily and excitedly\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful [lit: fun]! \n\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 22:57:13', '2011-10-07 02:57:13', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-8/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(822, 1, '2011-09-19 08:51:49', '2011-09-19 12:51:49', '[two_third]\r\n\r\n\r\nhttp://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\r\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\r\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\r\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\r\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\r\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\r\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\r\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they can some automatic words, it\'s really fun. 更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-09-19 08:51:49', '2011-09-19 12:51:49', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/09/19/794-revision-6/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(823, 1, '2011-10-06 22:47:31', '2011-10-07 02:47:31', '[two_third]\n\n\nhttp://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，神秘兮兮地对我说: “聪聪，猜猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我急不可耐的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我兴高采烈地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧挨在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前翘着，一双眼睛像两颗黑珍珠，胖乎乎的身体，圆圆的脑袋，让人喜欢得不得了。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really fun. 更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 22:47:31', '2011-10-07 02:47:31', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(825, 1, '2011-10-06 23:04:06', '2011-10-07 03:04:06', '[two_third]\nIf this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了\n\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \n\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n神秘 - [pinyin]shen2 mi4[/pinyin] - Mysteriously\n兮兮 - [pinyin]xi1 xi1[/pinyin] - Used after some words to mean \"extremely\".\n猜 - [pinyin]cai1[/pinyin] - To guess\n急不可耐 - [pinyin]ji2 bu4 ke3 nai4[/pinyin] - Unable to wait\n兴高采烈 - [pinyin]xing1 gai1 cai3 lie4[/pinyin] - Happily and excitedly\n挨 - [pinyin]ai1[/pinyin] -  Next to\n翘 - [pinyin]qiao2[/pinyin] - Raised from, sticking out of (such as, \"nose sticking out of a face\")\n珍珠 - [pinyin]zhen1 zhu1[/pinyin] - Pearl\n胖乎乎 - [pinyin]pang4 hu1 hu1[/pinyin] - Chubby\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的胳膊，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来无穷的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful [lit: fun]! \n\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:04:06', '2011-10-07 03:04:06', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-9/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(826, 1, '2011-10-06 23:10:15', '2011-10-07 03:10:15', '[two_third]\nA quick and upper-beginner / lower-intermediate child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. \n\nIf this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \n\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\n喜欢 - to like\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \n\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re incredibly likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \n\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \n\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n神秘 - [pinyin]shen2 mi4[/pinyin] - Mysteriously\n兮兮 - [pinyin]xi1 xi1[/pinyin] - Used after some words to mean \"extremely\".\n猜 - [pinyin]cai1[/pinyin] - To guess\n急不可耐 - [pinyin]ji2 bu4 ke3 nai4[/pinyin] - Unable to wait\n兴高采烈 - [pinyin]xing1 gai1 cai3 lie4[/pinyin] - Happily and excitedly\n挨 - [pinyin]ai1[/pinyin] -  Next to\n翘 - [pinyin]qiao2[/pinyin] - Raised from, sticking out of (such as, \"nose sticking out of a face\")\n珍珠 - [pinyin]zhen1 zhu1[/pinyin] - Pearl\n胖乎乎 - [pinyin]pang4 hu1 hu1[/pinyin] - Chubby\n胳膊 - [pinyin]ge1 bo5[/pinyin] - Arm\n无穷 - [pinyin]wu2 qiong2[/pinyin] - Boundless\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful [lit: fun]! \n\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:10:15', '2011-10-07 03:10:15', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-10/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(827, 1, '2011-10-06 23:13:44', '2011-10-07 03:13:44', '', 'Beginner Chinese Reading Exercises - Essays and Children\'s Stories', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111006', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:13:44', '2011-10-07 03:13:44', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111006.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(828, 1, '2011-10-06 23:14:58', '2011-10-07 03:14:58', '', 'Beginner Chinese Readers for Children\'s Essays', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111006-inline', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:14:58', '2011-10-07 03:14:58', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111006-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(829, 1, '2011-10-06 23:10:58', '2011-10-07 03:10:58', '[two_third]\r\nA quick and upper-beginner / lower-intermediate child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. \r\n\r\nIf this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \r\n\r\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\r\n喜欢 - to like\r\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \r\n不得了 - Extremely\r\n\r\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \r\n\r\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n神秘 - [pinyin]shen2 mi4[/pinyin] - Mysteriously\r\n兮兮 - [pinyin]xi1 xi1[/pinyin] - Used after some words to mean \"extremely\".\r\n猜 - [pinyin]cai1[/pinyin] - To guess\r\n急不可耐 - [pinyin]ji2 bu4 ke3 nai4[/pinyin] - Unable to wait\r\n兴高采烈 - [pinyin]xing1 gai1 cai3 lie4[/pinyin] - Happily and excitedly\r\n挨 - [pinyin]ai1[/pinyin] -  Next to\r\n翘 - [pinyin]qiao2[/pinyin] - Raised from, sticking out of (such as, \"nose sticking out of a face\")\r\n珍珠 - [pinyin]zhen1 zhu1[/pinyin] - Pearl\r\n胖乎乎 - [pinyin]pang4 hu1 hu1[/pinyin] - Chubby\r\n胳膊 - [pinyin]ge1 bo5[/pinyin] - Arm\r\n无穷 - [pinyin]wu2 qiong2[/pinyin] - Boundless\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful [lit: fun]! \r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:10:58', '2011-10-07 03:10:58', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-11/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(830, 1, '2020-04-20 05:57:52', '2020-04-20 09:57:52', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\nA quick child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. If this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \n\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\n喜欢 - to like\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \n不得了 - Extremely\n\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \n\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \n\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\n\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]\n\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\n[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<h4>我的玩具熊</h4>\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\n\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\n\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\n\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\n</div>\n[/su_column]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Congcong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\n\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \n\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful! \n\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \n\n[/hide-this-part]\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]</div>', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:57:52', '2020-04-20 09:57:52', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-autosave/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(1805, 1, '2020-04-20 05:57:58', '2020-04-20 09:57:58', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA quick child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. If this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \r\n\r\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\r\n喜欢 - to like\r\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \r\n不得了 - Extremely\r\n\r\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \r\n\r\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>我的玩具熊</h4>\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Congcong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful! \r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:57:58', '2020-04-20 09:57:58', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/794-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(831, 1, '2011-10-06 23:16:01', '2011-10-07 03:16:01', '[two_third]\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111006-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Chinese Readers for Children&#039;s Essays\" title=\"Beginner Chinese Readers for Children&#039;s Essays\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />A quick and upper-beginner / lower-intermediate child\'s essay about two toy bears - a present from mom. \r\n\r\nIf this article is on or just above your reading level, you may have trouble with the phrase 让人喜欢得不得了. Let\'s take it piece by piece: \r\n\r\n让人 - Makes one / makes people / Causes people to feel (as in \"That makes people mad.\")\r\n喜欢 - to like\r\n得 - Grammatical word tacked on to \"喜欢 \" that can be loosely translated into \"that is\" or \"they are\". \r\n不得了 - Extremely\r\n\r\nSo the whole phrase really means, \"They\'re extremely likeable\", but I\'ve translated it a little more directly in the actual body of the translation so it\'s easier to track with the sentence. \r\n\r\nAlso worth a quick mention is the word 胖乎乎, meaning \"chubby\", but this word sounds very endearing, not insulting - a baby, for example, would be 胖乎乎. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueernianjizuowen/2011-08-12/1313140910230695.html\">You can find the original story on Tom61. </a>\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n神秘 - [pinyin]shen2 mi4[/pinyin] - Mysteriously\r\n兮兮 - [pinyin]xi1 xi1[/pinyin] - Used after some words to mean \"extremely\".\r\n猜 - [pinyin]cai1[/pinyin] - To guess\r\n急不可耐 - [pinyin]ji2 bu4 ke3 nai4[/pinyin] - Unable to wait\r\n兴高采烈 - [pinyin]xing1 gai1 cai3 lie4[/pinyin] - Happily and excitedly\r\n挨 - [pinyin]ai1[/pinyin] -  Next to\r\n翘 - [pinyin]qiao2[/pinyin] - Raised from, sticking out of (such as, \"nose sticking out of a face\")\r\n珍珠 - [pinyin]zhen1 zhu1[/pinyin] - Pearl\r\n胖乎乎 - [pinyin]pang4 hu1 hu1[/pinyin] - Chubby\r\n胳膊 - [pinyin]ge1 bo5[/pinyin] - Arm\r\n无穷 - [pinyin]wu2 qiong2[/pinyin] - Boundless\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n今天，妈妈下班回来，<strong>神秘兮兮</strong>地对我说: “聪聪，<strong>猜</strong>猜看，我给你买什么了？我猜了好几次，妈妈都连连摇头。她看我<strong>急不可耐</strong>的样子，从背包里拿出一样东西，我<strong>兴高采烈</strong>地接过一看，啊，原来是一对可爱的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n这两只玩具熊全身雪白雪白的，它们紧紧<strong>挨</strong>在一起，像一对亲密的小姐妹。半圆形的耳朵，小小的鼻子向前<strong>翘</strong>着，一双眼睛像两颗黑<strong>珍珠</strong>，<strong>胖乎乎</strong>的身体，圆圆的脑袋，<strong>让人喜欢得不得了</strong>。\r\n\r\n更有趣的是，如果用手拍它的<strong>胳膊</strong>，它就会发出悦耳动听的音乐来，真是好玩极了。\r\n\r\n两只玩具熊像我的好朋友，它们天天陪伴着我，给我家带来<strong>无穷</strong>的欢乐。我喜欢我的玩具熊。\r\n\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nToday, mother came back from work, and very mysteriously said to me: \"Cong cong, guess what I have bought for you?\" I guessed many times, but mother repeatedly shook her head. Seeing my impatience, she took something from her backpack, I happily and excitedly took it from her and looked, ah! It was a pair of cute toy bears.\r\n\r\nThese two toy bears\' bodies were white as snow, they were pressed close together like a pair of dear sisters. Half-circle ears, small noses pointed outwards, a pair of eyes like two black pearls, chubby bodies, round head, all make them very lovable. \r\n\r\nMost interesting is that if you use your hand to pat their arms, they automatically play some sweet-sounding music, it\'s really wonderful [lit: fun]! \r\n\r\nThese two toys are like my good friends, they accompany me every day, and they bring lots of fun to my family. I like my toy bears. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'My Toy Bears', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '794-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-06 23:16:01', '2011-10-07 03:16:01', '', 794, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/06/794-revision-12/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(832, 1, '2011-10-10 12:08:43', '2011-10-10 16:08:43', '[two_third]\n\nhttp://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\nhttp://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当<strong>厄运</strong>朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面<strong>揭示</strong>的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 12:08:43', '2011-10-10 16:08:43', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-10/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(833, 1, '2011-10-10 23:43:06', '2011-10-11 03:43:06', '[two_third]\n<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">This is a plot synopsis of the very book \"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. \n\nSince this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \n\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on Chinese book site http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n津津有味 - [pinyin]jin1 jin1 you3 wei4[/pinyin] - To do sth. with great interest\n动画片 - [pinyin]dong4 hua4 pian1[/pinyin] - Cartoons [lit: moving drawing slides]\n屏幕 - [pinyin]ping2 mu4[/pinyin] - Screen [for TV, computer, etc.]\n片名 - [pinyin]pian1 ming2[/pinyin] - Show or movie title\n辛苦 - [pinyin]xin1 ku3[/pinyin] - Hard or exhausting work\n围裙 - [pinyin]wei2 qun2[/pinyin] -  Apron\n小心 - [pinyin]xiao3 xin1[/pinyin] - Be careful\n放心 - [pinyin]fang4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n开心 - [pinyin]kai1 xin1[/pinyin] - Happy, fun\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当<strong>厄运</strong>朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面<strong>揭示</strong>的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:43:06', '2011-10-11 03:43:06', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-11/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(835, 1, '2011-10-10 23:56:13', '2011-10-11 03:56:13', '', 'Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111010-inline', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:56:13', '2011-10-11 03:56:13', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(834, 1, '2011-10-10 23:52:41', '2011-10-11 03:52:41', '[two_third]\n<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">This is a plot synopsis of the very book \"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. \n\nSince this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \n\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:52:41', '2011-10-11 03:52:41', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-12/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(836, 1, '2011-10-10 23:57:07', '2011-10-11 03:57:07', '', 'Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111010', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:57:07', '2011-10-11 03:57:07', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(837, 1, '2011-10-10 23:53:20', '2011-10-11 03:53:20', '[two_third]\r\n<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">This is a plot synopsis of the very book \"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. \r\n\r\nSince this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \r\n\r\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\r\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\r\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\r\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\r\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\r\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\r\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\r\n掀起- [pinyin]xian1 qi3[/pinyin] - To lift; an upsurge\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \r\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \r\n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:53:20', '2011-10-11 03:53:20', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-13/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(838, 1, '2011-10-10 23:57:52', '2011-10-11 03:57:52', '[two_third]\r\n<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">This is a plot synopsis of the very book \"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" title=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Since this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \r\n\r\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\r\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\r\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\r\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\r\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\r\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\r\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\r\n掀起- [pinyin]xian1 qi3[/pinyin] - To lift; an upsurge\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \r\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \r\n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:57:52', '2011-10-11 03:57:52', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-14/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(839, 1, '2011-10-10 23:59:36', '2011-10-11 03:59:36', '[two_third]\nThis is a plot synopsis of the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">\"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. <!--more-->\n\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" title=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Since this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \n\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\n掀起- [pinyin]xian1 qi3[/pinyin] - To lift; an upsurge\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\n　\n 　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\n\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \n\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-autosave-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:59:36', '2011-10-11 03:59:36', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-autosave/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(840, 1, '2011-10-10 23:58:32', '2011-10-11 03:58:32', '[two_third]\r\nThis is a plot synopsis of the book <a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Opposite-Me-Novel-Sarah-Pekkanen/dp/1439121982\">\"Opposite of Me\" by Sarah Pekkanen</a>. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111010-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" title=\"Chinese Reading Passages and Chinese Book Passages: Advanced\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Since this is an English language novel, if it sounds like your cup of tea, you can follow the link to Amazon above and snag a copy. \r\n\r\nYou can see the original Chinese synopsis (and many others) on book site <a href=\"http://book.douban.com/subject/6041708/\">http://book.douban.com</a>. \r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n爱恨交织 - [pinyin]ai4 hen4 jiao1 zhi1[/pinyin] - Love-hate entaglement\r\n双胞胎- [pinyin]shuang1 bao1 tai1[/pinyin] - Twins\r\n嫉恨 - [pinyin]ji4 hen4[/pinyin] - To hate out of jealousy\r\n主人公 - [pinyin]zhu3 ren2 gong1[/pinyin] - Protagonist of a story\r\n筹码 - [pinyin]chou2 ma3[/pinyin] - Bargaining chip\r\n陷入 - [pinyin]xian4 ru4[/pinyin] -  To sink into\r\n前所未有的 - [pinyin]qian2 suo3 wei4 you3 de5[/pinyin] - Unprecedented\r\n艰辛 - [pinyin]jian4 xin1[/pinyin] - Don\'t worry\r\n邂逅 - [pinyin]xie4 hou4[/pinyin] - A chance encounter\r\n掀起- [pinyin]xian1 qi3[/pinyin] - To lift; an upsurge\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　《世上另一个我》: 讲述了一段<strong>爱恨交织</strong>的情感纠葛。林赛有一个美丽漂亮的<strong>双胞胎</strong>姐姐亚历克斯，一个在她生命里扮演了重要角色的人，一个让她羡慕、<strong>嫉恨</strong>了二十多年的人。亚历克斯永远性感美丽、光彩照人，轻易就能得到父母甚至是陌生人的宠爱，那是林赛从未有过的幸福。和姐姐在一起，她总是令人遗憾的存在。在《世上另一个我》中，<strong>主人公</strong>林赛努力学习、拼命工作，事业的成功是她获得关注的唯一<strong>筹码</strong>。她为工作赔上了自己全部的生活，却终究逃不脱这个社会并非以实力论输赢的规矩。当工作遭遇重大背叛，她的职业也<strong>陷入</strong><strong>前所未有的</strong>危机当中。\r\n　　《世上另一个我》也是一场找寻自我的<strong>艰辛</strong>历程，一个温馨感人的爱情故事。重返故乡的林赛依然要面对亚历克斯耀眼的光芒。甚至那个喜欢了她二十多年的男孩，也只因和亚历克斯的一场<strong>邂逅</strong>，就从此改变了心意。林赛埋怨命运的不公，而这种情绪也全部转嫁到了亚历克斯的身上。\r\n　　然而，当厄运朝亚历克斯袭来，林赛终于发现自己对姐姐的情感远非自己以为的那么直接简单。为了满足姐姐的愿望，林赛爬上了关闭多年的阁楼，却意外发现了一个尘封多年的旧信封，信封里面揭示的竟是一个隐藏了近三十年的大秘密。它打破了林赛长久以来为自己规划的人生历程，也在姐妹二人的生活中<strong>掀起</strong>了新的风浪……\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\n\"The opposite of me\" is about emotional entanglements in a love-hate relationship. Lynsey has a beautiful twin sister, Alex, who plays a very important role in her life, who makes her envious, and is someone she has jealously hated for 20 years. Alex has always been sexy and beautiful, radiant to look upon, and because of this easily gains the love of her parents and even strangers, a blessing Linsey has never had. When she\'s with her sister, her sister\'s presence is always regrettable. In \"The Opposite of Me\", the main protagonist Linsey is a diligent student, a hard worker, and her careers success is the only thing she has. Her life has suffered at the expense of her work, but after all is said and done, she can\'t shake off the fact that in this society, winning or losing doesn\'t really depend on playing by the rules. When she\'s betrayed at work, her career also sinks into an unprecedented crisis. \r\n　\"The Opposite of Me\" is also about the process of working through hardships, a comforting love story. Returning to her roots, Linsey still must face Alex\'s dazzling radiance. Even the man who has liked her for 20 years, after meeting Alex by chance, changes his affections. Linsey complains about the unfairness of fate, and heaps this moodiness onto Alex\'s shoulders. \r\n　　However, when bad luck comes to visit Alex, Linsey finally finds out that her feelings towards her sister are far from as simple as she thought. In order to fulfill her sister\'s wish, Linsey climbs into the attic that has been closed for years, and unexpectedly discovers an old envelope that has been gathering dust for years; inside the envelope is a secret that has been hidden for almost 30 years. It changes the long-set course of her life, and raises a new wind in the lives of two sisters. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'The Opposite of Me', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '798-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-10 23:58:32', '2011-10-11 03:58:32', '', 798, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/10/798-revision-15/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2382, 1, '2020-05-23 23:34:34', '2020-05-24 03:34:34', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find actual beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. To read this smoothly without looking anything up, you\'d have to be an advanced reader. But this song is accessible to HSK 3-4 readers who are willing to put in a bit of effort, because it\'s got all the entry-level Communist vocab, the lyrics are very repetitive and bite-sized, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some study, you can get this. However, because there\'s a lot to parse here, I\'m going to do a lot of explaining.\r\n\r\nFirst, some critical Communist-themed vocab: \r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China, who died in 1976\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\nThen, some grammatical points of order:\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the point.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another tricky grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n<strong>呼儿嗨哟</strong> [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:34:34', '2020-05-24 03:34:34', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2381, 1, '2020-05-23 23:31:43', '2020-05-24 03:31:43', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find actual beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. This song, however, is doable with some work. There will be a ton of new words here for you. But, it\'s got all the entry-level Communist vocab, the lyrics are very repetitive and short, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some study, you can get this. Because there\'s a lot to parse here, I\'m going to do a lot of explaining.\r\n\r\nFirst, some critical Communist-themed vocab: \r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China, who died in 1976\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\nThen, some grammatical points of order:\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the idea.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another tricky grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n<strong>呼儿嗨哟</strong> [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:31:43', '2020-05-24 03:31:43', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2380, 1, '2020-05-23 23:28:46', '2020-05-24 03:28:46', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. This song, however, is doable with some work. There will be a ton of new words here for you. But, it\'s good vocab to learn if you want to understand China, the lyrics are very repetitive and short, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some work, you can get this. Because there\'s a lot to learn here, I\'m going to do a lot of explaining\r\n\r\nFirst, some critical Communist-themed vocab: \r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\nThen, some grammatical points of order:\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the idea.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another difficult grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n<strong>呼儿嗨哟</strong> [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:28:46', '2020-05-24 03:28:46', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2379, 1, '2020-05-23 23:25:47', '2020-05-24 03:25:47', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. This song, however, is doable with some work. There will be a ton of new words here for you. But, it\'s good vocab to learn if you want to understand China, the lyrics are very repetitive and short, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some work, you can get this. Because there\'s a lot to learn here, I\'m going to do a lot of explaining\r\n\r\nFirst, some critical Communist-themed vocab: \r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\nThen, some grammatical points of order:\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the idea.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another difficult grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n<strong>呼儿嗨哟</strong> [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星 \r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:25:47', '2020-05-24 03:25:47', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
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(856, 1, '2011-10-21 01:24:47', '2011-10-21 05:24:47', '', 'Authentic Chinese Recipes - Spicy Shredded Potatoes - Advanced Reading Practice', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111020', '', '', '2011-10-21 01:24:47', '2011-10-21 05:24:47', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111020.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
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(2378, 1, '2020-05-23 23:22:16', '2020-05-24 03:22:16', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. This song, however, is doable with some work. There will be a ton of new words here for you. But, it\'s good vocab to learn if you want to understand China, the lyrics are very repetitive and short, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some work, you can get this. Dig in for some real study, though. \r\n\r\nIf this your first step into Communist-themed reading, you\'ll learn some critical vocab:\r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the idea.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another difficult grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n呼儿嗨哟 [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星 \r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:22:16', '2020-05-24 03:22:16', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2376, 1, '2020-05-23 23:17:06', '2020-05-24 03:17:06', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \r\n\r\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席). To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \r\n\r\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HwFt6YH2t74\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \r\n\r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nI had an impossible time trying to find beginner-level reading on Communism. This song, however, is doable with some work. There will be a ton of new words here for you. But, the lyrics are very repetitive, and short, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some study, you can get this. \r\n\r\nIf this your first step into Communist-themed reading, you\'ll learn some critical vocab:\r\n \r\n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China\r\n\r\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\r\n\r\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\r\n\r\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\r\n\r\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \r\n\r\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\r\n\r\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\r\n\r\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\r\n\r\n中国 - China\r\n出了 - ???\r\n个 - A / one\r\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\r\n\r\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生, \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现, \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the idea.   \r\n\r\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another difficult grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this twice, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \r\n\r\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \r\n\r\n呼儿嗨哟 [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>东方红</h4>\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星 \r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民大救星\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \r\n他是我们的带路人\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n领导我们向前进 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \r\n领导我们向前进\r\n\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \r\n照到那里那里亮\r\n哪里有了共产党 \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n哪里有了共产党\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\r\n\r\n东方红,太阳升 \r\n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\r\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \r\n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior \r\n\r\nChairman Mao loves the People\r\nHe is our guide\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\nIn order to build New China\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe leads us towards advancement\r\n\r\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\r\nWherever it shines, there is light\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\nWherever the Communist Party goes\r\nHurrah!\r\nThe People there receive liberation\r\n\r\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\r\nMao Zedong appeared in China\r\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\r\nHurrah!\r\nHe is the People\'s great savior\r\nGreat savior\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 23:17:06', '2020-05-24 03:17:06', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2377, 1, '2020-05-24 06:34:21', '2020-05-24 10:34:21', '[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">It\'s Communism Week at CRP. All this week, we\'re learning Chinese through the lens of historical and modern CCP propaganda, speeches, stories, essays and songs.</p> \n\n<strong>Quick reminder:</strong> To maintain a polite, language learning-focused environment, political comments - positive, negative, or neutral - are not allowed, and will be deleted.\n\nThis song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing. This rousing anthem worships the glory of Chairman Mao (毛主席) - I\'m not actually sure \"rousing\" really covers how over-the-top this song is, it\'s so enthusiastically grand it kind of bowls you over. To be clear: this is not the official Chinese national anthem, but during the height of the Cultural Revolution it was kind of an unofficial national anthem, and most folks on mainland usually remember at least some of the lyrics. \n\nI often get requests from readers to add audio to my posts, and I can\'t do it because of time constraints, but since this was such a popular song, there are still lots of places you can listen to it. So, if you want to listen to the song with music and lyrics, <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GndAiU2qoDI\">you can check it out here</a> (and if that link breaks in the future, just look up 东方红 on Youtube, there are lots of vids). \n\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\nI had an impossible time trying to find actual beginner-level reading on Communism. Even the children\'s stories are pretty hard. To read this smoothly without looking anything up, you\'d have to be an advanced reader. But this song is great for HSK 3-4 readers who are willing to put in a bit of effort, because it\'s a good overview of all the entry-level Communist vocab, the lyrics are very repetitive and bite-sized, and there are enough beginner-level words here to point you in the right direction, so with some study, you can get this. However, because there\'s a lot to parse here, I\'m going to do a lot of explaining.\n\nFirst, some critical Communist-themed vocab: \n \n<strong>毛泽东</strong> [pinyin]mao2 ze2 dong1[/pinyin] - Mao Zedong, the founder of modern China, who died in 1976\n\n<strong>毛主席</strong> [pinyin]mao2 zhu3 xi2[/pinyin] - Chairman Mao, Mao Zedong\'s official title\n\n<strong>大救星</strong> [pinyin]da4 jiu4 xing1[/pinyin] - You can probably figure out the general idea here by looking at each character individually. 大 is \"big\" or \"great\", 救 is \"to rescue\", and 星 is \"star\". All together, this means \"great savior\", one of the many worshipful terms used to describe Chairman Mao during the Cultural Revolution.\n\n<strong>共产党</strong> [pinyin]gong4 chan3 dang3[/pinyin] - The Communist Party (CCP)\n\n<strong>人民</strong> [pinyin]ren2 min2[/pinyin] - The People. This is used in almost every line of this song, so I won\'t highlight every instance. \n\n<strong>解放</strong> [pinyin]jie3 fang4[/pinyin] - Liberation\n\nThen, some grammatical points of order:\n\n<strong>了</strong> [pinyin]le / liao3[/pinyin] - If you listen to the audio, you\'ll notice that the singers pronounce 了 as <em>liao</em>, rather than <em>le</em>. This is just a colloquial pronunciation thing, the meaning of this grammar word has not changed.\n\n<strong>出了</strong> [pinyin]chu1 le / liao3[/pinyin] - Grammatically speaking, the most difficult part of these lyrics for me is translating 出了, because it\'s a little abstract. The full lyric is 中国出了个毛泽东, which I\'ll break down here:\n\n中国 - China\n出了 - ???\n个 - A / one\n毛泽东 - Mao Zedong\n\nWe know that 出 means \"to go out\", \"to issue forth\". It\'s present in the word 出生 [pinyin]chu1 sheng1[/pinyin], \"to be born\", and also present in the word 出现 [pinyin]chu1 xian4[/pinyin], \"to appear\". So, this lyric means something like \"Mao Zedong appeared in China\", or \"China gave birth to one Mao Zedong\". Neither of those translations feel exactly right, but you get the point.   \n\n<strong>为</strong> [pinyin]wei4[/pinyin] - Another tricky grammar point here is the use of 为. We see this being used in two ways, once just by itself, and once as 为了. These two uses have different definitions. When 为 is by itself before a noun, it means \"for (noun)\". As in \"for the people\". When it is 为了, before a verb, it means \"in order to (do something)\". \n\n<strong>得</strong> [pinyin]de2[/pinyin] - The definition of 得 being used here is \"to receive\". \n\n<strong>呼儿嗨哟</strong> [pinyin]hu1 er hei1 yo1[/pinyin] - Don\'t get tripped up on this, these aren\'t real words. These are just sounds that round out the song, as in the \"ooooh\" or \"la la la\", that you might hear in English songs. You might best translate this as \"Hurrah!\", a sound that expresses joy and victory.\n\nAlright, ready? Let\'s do this.\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]\n\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\n[su_row]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<h4>东方红</h4>\n东方红,太阳升 \n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\n\n<span class=\"highlightText\">毛主席</span>爱人民 \n他是我们的带路人\n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国 \n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n领导我们向前进 \n<span class=\"highlightText\">为了</span>建设新中国\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span> \n领导我们向前进\n\n<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>像太阳 \n照到那里,那里亮\n哪里有了<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\n哪里有了<span class=\"highlightText\">共产党</span>\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n那里人民<span class=\"highlightText\">得</span><span class=\"highlightText\">解放</span>\n\n东方红,太阳升 \n中国<span class=\"highlightText\">出了</span>个<span class=\"highlightText\">毛泽东</span>\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\n他<span class=\"highlightText\">为</span>人民谋幸福\n<span class=\"highlightText\">呼儿嗨哟</span>\n他是人民<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span> \n<span class=\"highlightText\">大救星</span>\n</div>\n[/su_column]\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\nThe East is Red, the sun is rising\nMao Zedong appeared in China\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\nHurrah!\nHe is the People\'s great savior \nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\nHurrah!\nHe is the People\'s great savior \n\nChairman Mao loves the People\nHe is our guide\nIn order to build New China\nHurrah!\nHe leads us towards advancement\nIn order to build New China\nHurrah!\nHe leads us towards advancement\n\nThe Communist Party is like the sun\nWherever it shines, there is light\nWherever the Communist Party goes\nHurrah!\nThe People there receive liberation\nWherever the Communist Party goes\nHurrah!\nThe People there receive liberation\n\nThe east is red, the sun is rising\nMao Zedong appeared in China\nHe is working for the People\'s prosperity\nHurrah!\nHe is the People\'s great savior\nHe is working for the people\'s prosperity\nHurrah!\nHe is the People\'s great savior\nGreat savior\n[/hide-this-part]\n[/su_column]\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Communist songs: 《东方红》- The East is Red', 'This song is a relic of the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976). The melody was adapted from an old farmer\'s folk song back in 1942, and became popular when Mao Zedong\'s (毛泽东) cult of personality was in full swing.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2343-autosave-v1', '', '', '2020-05-24 06:34:21', '2020-05-24 10:34:21', '', 2343, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2343-autosave-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(887, 1, '2011-11-02 21:17:18', '2011-11-03 01:17:18', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short, sweet children\'s essay about how umbrellas look on a rainy day. The Chinese title is 小伞花. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111102-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Chinese Reading - Simplified Texts, Passages and Essays\" title=\"Easy Chinese Reading - Simplified Texts, Passages and Essays\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Most of this is beginner reading, but there is one part of a sentence towards the end of the text which is intermediate reading, so I\'ve outlined the more difficult words there in the \"click to listen\" area. \r\n\r\nYou\'ll also notice another onomatopoeia (I\'ve been running into those a lot lately), 滴滴答答. We\'re rather lucky when we describe sounds in English, we can mash a bunch of letters together until they sound similar to the sound we heard - we have a little more flexibility. I could write: pfffsssshhhh, and you could make that sound, or imagine that sound. The Chinese have no alphabet to work with, so they do this by taking existing characters that sound similar and arranging them together. In this case 滴滴答答 (di1 di1 da1 da1) represents the pattering of raindrops, as you might hear rain fall against a window or roof.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>雨伞</h4>\r\n今天，我回家写作业的时候，我听见外面<strong>传来</strong>了<strong>滴滴答答</strong>的声音，我想一定是下雨了。我赶忙跑到窗前，向下一看，街上的<strong>行人</strong>都打着<strong>雨伞</strong>，真的是下雨了。\r\n\r\n雨伞有黄色的、有白色的、有红色的、有紫色的，还有银灰色的……，美丽<strong>极了</strong>!\r\n\r\n我觉得雨伞可真好，它为我们<strong>撑</strong>起了一片<strong>晴朗</strong>的天空，它真是我们的好朋友。我希望每天都能下雨，让我的漂亮小雨伞每天都能<strong>陪伴</strong>我。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nToday, when I had returned to my house and I was doing my homework, I heard the sound of droplets coming from outside, and I thought it surely must be raining. I hurriedly ran to the window, and looked down, on the street the pedestrians were all carrying umbrellas, and it was indeed raining. \r\n\r\nThere were yellow umbrellas, and there were white ones, and red ones, and purple ones, and also silver ones... so beautiful!\r\n\r\nI thought about how great umbrellas are, they unfurl a sunny and cloudless sky for us, they\'re really our good friends. I wish it could rain every day, so that my beautiful little umbrella could accompany me.\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Umbrella Flowers', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'umbrella-flowers', '', '', '2020-04-20 07:47:14', '2020-04-20 11:47:14', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=887', 0, 'post', '', 5),
(1807, 1, '2020-04-20 05:59:02', '2020-04-20 09:59:02', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short, sweet children\'s essay about how umbrellas look on a rainy day. The Chinese title is 小伞花. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111102-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Chinese Reading - Simplified Texts, Passages and Essays\" title=\"Easy Chinese Reading - Simplified Texts, Passages and Essays\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />Most of this is beginner reading, but there is one part of a sentence towards the end of the text which is intermediate reading, so I\'ve outlined the more difficult words there in the \"click to listen\" area. \r\n\r\nYou\'ll also notice another onomatopoeia (I\'ve been running into those a lot lately), 滴滴答答. We\'re rather lucky when we describe sounds in English, we can mash a bunch of letters together until they sound similar to the sound we heard - we have a little more flexibility. I could write: pfffsssshhhh, and you could make that sound, or imagine that sound. The Chinese have no alphabet to work with, so they do this by taking existing characters that sound similar and arranging them together. In this case 滴滴答答 (di1 di1 da1 da1) represents the pattering of raindrops, as you might hear rain fall against a window or roof.\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>雨伞</h4>\r\n今天，我回家写作业的时候，我听见外面<strong>传来</strong>了<strong>滴滴答答</strong>的声音，我想一定是下雨了。我赶忙跑到窗前，向下一看，街上的<strong>行人</strong>都打着<strong>雨伞</strong>，真的是下雨了。\r\n\r\n雨伞有黄色的、有白色的、有红色的、有紫色的，还有银灰色的……，美丽<strong>极了</strong>!\r\n\r\n我觉得雨伞可真好，它为我们<strong>撑</strong>起了一片<strong>晴朗</strong>的天空，它真是我们的好朋友。我希望每天都能下雨，让我的漂亮小雨伞每天都能<strong>陪伴</strong>我。\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nToday, when I had returned to my house and I was doing my homework, I heard the sound of droplets coming from outside, and I thought it surely must be raining. I hurriedly ran to the window, and looked down, on the street the pedestrians were all carrying umbrellas, and it was indeed raining. \r\n\r\nThere were yellow umbrellas, and there were white ones, and red ones, and purple ones, and also silver ones... so beautiful!\r\n\r\nI thought about how great umbrellas are, they unfurl a sunny and cloudless sky for us, they\'re really our good friends. I wish it could rain every day, so that my beautiful little umbrella could accompany me.\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Umbrella Flowers', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '887-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:59:02', '2020-04-20 09:59:02', '', 887, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/887-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(872, 1, '2011-10-23 11:28:36', '0000-00-00 00:00:00', '', 'House Hunting: ', '', 'draft', 'open', 'open', '', '', '', '', '2011-10-23 11:28:36', '2011-10-23 15:28:36', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=872', 0, 'post', '', 0),
(873, 1, '2011-10-23 11:28:15', '2011-10-23 15:28:15', '', 'Auto Draft', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '872-revision', '', '', '2011-10-23 11:28:15', '2011-10-23 15:28:15', '', 872, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/23/872-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(875, 1, '2011-10-28 11:47:06', '2011-10-28 15:47:06', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" title=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />When I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears. We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]nao3 hai3[/pinyin] - The mind, the brain\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'draft', 'open', 'open', '', 'a-promise-is-worth-a-thousand-gold-and-thoughts-on-crying', '', '', '2020-04-20 05:57:15', '2020-04-20 09:57:15', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=875', 0, 'post', '', 2),
(876, 1, '2011-10-28 10:06:13', '2011-10-28 14:06:13', '', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 10:06:13', '2011-10-28 14:06:13', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(877, 1, '2011-10-28 10:31:37', '2011-10-28 14:31:37', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\n\nWhen I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem cold and heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person and find out what\'s wrong, the Chinese help you save face by giving you the opportunity to pull yourself together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\n\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are fake, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\n\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. \n\nThis is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \n\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n浸泡 - [pinyin]jin4 pao4[/pinyin] - to soak, to immerse\n若干 - [pinyin]ruo4 gan1[/pinyin] - A number of, a certain amount\n汤匙 - [pinyin]tang1 chi2[/pinyin] - tablespoon\n茶匙 - [pinyin]cha1 chi2[/pinyin] - teaspoon\n适量 - [pinyin]shi4 liang4[/pinyin] - an appropriate amount\n即可 - [pinyin]ji2 ke3[/pinyin] - \"and that will do\", or \"that will be fine\".\n蒜瓣 - [pinyin]suan4 ban4[/pinyin] - garlic clove\n翻炒 - [pinyin]fan1 chao3[/pinyin] - stir\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<strong>材料:</strong>\n土豆丝（需用冷水<strong>浸泡</strong>会）\n干辣椒若干个\n一根青椒和红椒\n葱花少许，\n白醋1汤匙\n油辣子2<strong>汤匙</strong>（随意）\n3个蒜瓣\n盐1<strong>茶匙</strong>\n几滴香油\n\n<strong>做法:</strong>\n1. 烧热锅，倒入<strong>适量</strong>花生油，小火炒干辣椒使之出香味<strong>即可</strong>，随即放入葱花，炸锅；\n2.开大火下入青椒和红椒圈圈，翻炒后放入土豆丝，大约1分钟，放入白醋；\n3.炒2-3分钟左右，再放入辣子油和<strong>蒜瓣</strong>（拍碎），<strong>翻炒</strong>；\n4.待土豆丝上色后放入盐，滴几滴香油翻炒，关火盛出装盘即可。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n<strong>Ingredients</strong>\nPotato strips (you have to use cold water to blanch them)\nA number of dried peppers \nOne red pepper and one green pepper\nA few chopped scallions\nOne tablespoon of white pepper\n2 Tablespoons hot pepper oil (to taste) \n3 cloves of garlic \n1 teaspoon of salt \nA few drops of sesame oil \n\n<strong>Instructions:</strong>\n1. Warm up the wok on low heat [you can sub a large flat pan], and put in an appropriate amount of peanut oil, lightly fry the dry peppers until they emit a fragrant smell, then immediately put in the scallions and deep fry them; \n2. Turn the heat up high, cut the red and green peppers into thin rings and put them in, and when they\'ve been pan fried, put in the potato strips and after about 1 minute, put in the white pepper;\n3. Saute for around 2-3 minutes, and then put in the hot pepper oil and the garlic cloves (crushed), and stir;\n4.Wait until the potatoes get a bit of color and then put in the salt, add a few drops of sesame oil and stir, turn off the flame and transfer to plate.\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 10:31:37', '2011-10-28 14:31:37', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(878, 1, '2011-10-28 10:33:19', '2011-10-28 14:33:19', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\n\nWhen I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem cold and heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving thethe opportunity to pull yourself together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\n\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are fake, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\n\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \n\nThis is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \n\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n浸泡 - [pinyin]jin4 pao4[/pinyin] - to soak, to immerse\n若干 - [pinyin]ruo4 gan1[/pinyin] - A number of, a certain amount\n汤匙 - [pinyin]tang1 chi2[/pinyin] - tablespoon\n茶匙 - [pinyin]cha1 chi2[/pinyin] - teaspoon\n适量 - [pinyin]shi4 liang4[/pinyin] - an appropriate amount\n即可 - [pinyin]ji2 ke3[/pinyin] - \"and that will do\", or \"that will be fine\".\n蒜瓣 - [pinyin]suan4 ban4[/pinyin] - garlic clove\n翻炒 - [pinyin]fan1 chao3[/pinyin] - stir\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<strong>材料:</strong>\n土豆丝（需用冷水<strong>浸泡</strong>会）\n干辣椒若干个\n一根青椒和红椒\n葱花少许，\n白醋1汤匙\n油辣子2<strong>汤匙</strong>（随意）\n3个蒜瓣\n盐1<strong>茶匙</strong>\n几滴香油\n\n<strong>做法:</strong>\n1. 烧热锅，倒入<strong>适量</strong>花生油，小火炒干辣椒使之出香味<strong>即可</strong>，随即放入葱花，炸锅；\n2.开大火下入青椒和红椒圈圈，翻炒后放入土豆丝，大约1分钟，放入白醋；\n3.炒2-3分钟左右，再放入辣子油和<strong>蒜瓣</strong>（拍碎），<strong>翻炒</strong>；\n4.待土豆丝上色后放入盐，滴几滴香油翻炒，关火盛出装盘即可。\n\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\n<strong>Ingredients</strong>\nPotato strips (you have to use cold water to blanch them)\nA number of dried peppers \nOne red pepper and one green pepper\nA few chopped scallions\nOne tablespoon of white pepper\n2 Tablespoons hot pepper oil (to taste) \n3 cloves of garlic \n1 teaspoon of salt \nA few drops of sesame oil \n\n<strong>Instructions:</strong>\n1. Warm up the wok on low heat [you can sub a large flat pan], and put in an appropriate amount of peanut oil, lightly fry the dry peppers until they emit a fragrant smell, then immediately put in the scallions and deep fry them; \n2. Turn the heat up high, cut the red and green peppers into thin rings and put them in, and when they\'ve been pan fried, put in the potato strips and after about 1 minute, put in the white pepper;\n3. Saute for around 2-3 minutes, and then put in the hot pepper oil and the garlic cloves (crushed), and stir;\n4.Wait until the potatoes get a bit of color and then put in the salt, add a few drops of sesame oil and stir, turn off the flame and transfer to plate.\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 10:33:19', '2011-10-28 14:33:19', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(880, 1, '2011-10-28 11:21:57', '2011-10-28 15:21:57', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\n\nWhen I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\n\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\n\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \n\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \n\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - \"and that will do\", or \"that will be fine\".\n奴隶\n此时此刻\n诺\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\n\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\n\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\n\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\n\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\n\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\n\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \n\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\n\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:21:57', '2011-10-28 15:21:57', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-5/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(879, 1, '2011-10-28 11:14:22', '2011-10-28 15:14:22', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\n\nWhen I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\n\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\n\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \n\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \n\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n西塞罗- [pinyin]jin4 pao4[/pinyin] - \n坦白 - [pinyin]ruo4 gan1[/pinyin] - A number of, a certain amount\n寒假 - [pinyin]tang1 chi2[/pinyin] - tablespoon\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]cha1 chi2[/pinyin] - teaspoon\n天使 - [pinyin]shi4 liang4[/pinyin] - an appropriate amount\n脑海 - [pinyin]ji2 ke3[/pinyin] - \"and that will do\", or \"that will be fine\".\n奴隶 - [pinyin]suan4 ban4[/pinyin] - garlic clove\n翻炒 - [pinyin]fan1 chao3[/pinyin] - stir\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\n\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我吞吞吐吐地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\n\n　　我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小天使和一位邪恶的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\n\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”此时此刻，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\n\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一诺千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\n\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I had almost forgotten myself. \n\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \n\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\n\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so s\n\n　　我从这件事，我明白了：做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一诺千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:14:22', '2011-10-28 15:14:22', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-4/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(881, 1, '2011-10-28 11:44:22', '2011-10-28 15:44:22', '', 'Simplified Chinese Passages Reading Practice Intermediate and Beginner ', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111028', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:44:22', '2011-10-28 15:44:22', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(882, 1, '2011-10-28 11:46:13', '2011-10-28 15:46:13', '', 'Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111028-inline', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:46:13', '2011-10-28 15:46:13', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(883, 1, '2011-10-28 11:22:54', '2011-10-28 15:22:54', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\nWhen I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:22:54', '2011-10-28 15:22:54', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-6/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(886, 1, '2011-11-02 20:51:13', '2011-11-03 00:51:13', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" title=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />When I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears. We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-02 20:51:13', '2011-11-03 00:51:13', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/02/875-revision-8/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(884, 1, '2011-10-28 11:47:06', '2011-10-28 15:47:06', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" title=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />When I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:47:06', '2011-10-28 15:47:06', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(885, 1, '2011-10-28 11:47:06', '2011-10-28 15:47:06', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" title=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />When I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears by what was essentially a fairy tale. We\'d joke that losing our lunch money made us 哭起来 (burst into tears), or that not being able to find our socks made 泪水盈满了我的眼眶 (tears well up in our eyes). We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-10-28 11:47:06', '2011-10-28 15:47:06', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/10/28/875-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(889, 1, '2011-11-02 20:51:39', '2011-11-03 00:51:39', '[two_third]This is a mid-level essay about learning to be honest. If you\'ve read some of my other essay translations, you will start to see a pattern emerge in school essay writing. They usually include an all-too-tidy life lesson in morality, and usually an instance of tears welling up in the author\'s eyes. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/20111028-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" title=\"Easy Simplified Chinese Reading Passage Texts - Intermediate Level\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />When I was in Chinese class in college in China, my friends and I used to joke about this - how almost every essay we were assigned to read involved the author being moved to tears. We found this pattern especially strange because the Chinese people are not prone to crying in public - and if you do cry in front of a Chinese person you don\'t know well, the polite thing for them to do is pretend not to notice and look the other way. Though that may seem heartless to a culture where the polite thing to do is get involved and try to comfort the crying person, the Chinese help a crying person save face by giving them the opportunity to pull themselves together and make the whole situation go away without comment.\r\n\r\nHowever, during funerals it is entirely acceptable to hire professional mourners, who fake-cry and sing sad songs while fake-sobbing and crawling on their knees in fake despair. Later during the funeral, the mourners will perform happy dances to lighten the mood - it\'s almost like they guide the Chinese through the process of mourning and healing during the funeral. Though everyone there is aware the tears are faked for the benefit of performance, the Chinese find this very moving, whereas I think I would find it offensive if a stranger made a show of fake-crying at a funeral.\r\n\r\nPerhaps to a Chinese person, who knows that crying in front of others is, in most circumstances, too blatant a display of one\'s secret inner self, the thought of someone being so upset that they lose control and cry in public shows just how upset they are, and is therefore moving. This is one thing I may never quite figure out. \r\n\r\nAnyway, this article has a lot less to do with crying than I\'m leading you to believe, and more to do with integrity. This is a little more accessible than most articles because it includes a trope that we\'re all familiar with: a variation of the devil and and angel sitting on opposite shoulders routine. This essay doesn\'t use the word \"devil\", instead it uses the term \"evil angel\". This confusion is probably due to the fact that Christianity doesn\'t get a lot of play in China. The only thing most Chinese know is that Islam, Christianity and Judaism are major world religions, and involve going to church, but that\'s often about it. But Chinese mythology does have good and evil spirits in it, so I imagine that\'s where the mixup comes in - well... if we\'re going to get specific, technically Lucifer is an evil angel, but my point is that there is a Chinese word for \"devil\" (more like \"a devil\" than \"the Devil\", though), 魔鬼, which does not appear here. \r\n\r\nThe Chinese title of this is 一诺千金.\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n西塞罗- [pinyin]xi1 sai1 luo2[/pinyin] - Cicero\r\n坦白 - [pinyin]tan3 bai2[/pinyin] - forthright\r\n寒假 - [pinyin]han2 jia4[/pinyin] - winter vacation\r\n吞吞吐吐 - [pinyin]tun1 tun1 tu3 tu3[/pinyin] - Stutter when speaking, hem and haw\r\n天使 - [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n邪恶- [pinyin]tian1 shi3[/pinyin] - angel\r\n脑海 - [pinyin]xie2 e4[/pinyin] - Wicked, evil\r\n奴隶 - [pinyin]nu2 li4[/pinyin] - slave\r\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\r\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n　　诚信是做人之本啊！有时候诚信就在于一个动作，一句语言，<strong>西塞罗</strong>曾经说过一句话: “<strong>坦白</strong>使人心地轻松的妙药”。这一句话我深有体会，今年<strong>寒假</strong>，我做了一个没有诚信的小孩子。\r\n\r\n　　记得在一个忙碌的寒假日，我赶着做作业。突然，我发现作文本和摘录笔用完了，我急急忙忙的拿着钱下楼买本子去了。那个老人用善良的微笑对我问道: “小朋友，你要买什么啊？”我说: “我要买一本作文本和一本摘录本。”“一共5元钱”老人说。我想了想，我只有4元钱，怎么办呢？我<strong>吞吞吐吐</strong>地说: “我…我只有4元钱啊？”怎么办，我和店主商量说: “我住在你们楼上，我下次再拿钱给你吧，好吗？”“好。”他爽快地答应了。过了几天，我又再次去买东西，那个老人忘记那件事情了。我似乎也忘了那件事。\r\n\r\n我付完了第二次买东西的钱后，我准备回家去了。突然，有一位善良的小<strong>天使</strong>和一位<strong>邪恶</strong>的小天使在我的脑海里出现了，它们在我的心中争吵。我听到了两种不同的语言。那位善良的小天使说: “你要把事实说出来啊！”那位邪恶的小天使说: “不要讲啊，如果讲出来要浪费一元钱呢。”那位善良的小天使说: “你不要做金钱的<strong>奴隶</strong>，要做诚信的主人啊！”那邪恶的小天使说:“干嘛要做有诚信的人啊，诚信又不能当饭吃啊！”他们不停地争吵，我心烦意乱的，这时我想起书上看到的这句子话；“坦白使人心地轻松的妙药”。\r\n\r\n　　我鼓足了勇气，坦白地说出来。开始时，老人脸涨得红红的，好像很生气似的。过了一会儿，他对我说: “没关系了，我不会怪你的，你是一个知错就改的孩子啊！”<strong>此时此刻</strong>，泪水盈满了我的眼眶，我诚恳地对那个老人说: “对不起，爷爷。”\r\n\r\n　　我从这件事，我明白了: 做人不能骗人，要做个有诚信的人啊！一<strong>诺</strong>千金是多么的重要啊！诚信是金，用多少钱都买不回来。\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nHonesty is the root of integrity! Sometimes honesty is based in an action, a spoken word. Cicero said that: \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" This is something I understand deeply from personal experience. During this year\'s winter vacation, I [did something bad that meant I] was not a very honest child.　\r\n\r\nI remember on a busy winter break day, I was catching up on homework. Suddenly, I discovered that my essay book and my excerpt book had both been filled up [with writing], so carrying my money, I hurried downstairs to go buy notebooks. The old person [at the store] smiled kindly at me and asked: \"Small friend, what do you want to buy?\" I said: \"I want to buy one essay book and one excerpt book.\" \"That will be a total of 5 yuan,\" the old person said. I thought and thought, I only had 4 yuan, what should I do? Stuttering, I said, \"I... I only have for yuan?\" Talking over what to do with the shop owner, I said, \"I live just above you, the next time I come down I\'ll give you the rest of the money, OK?\" \"Ok,\" he answered brightly. A few days passed, and again I went down to buy something, but the old person had forgotten the whole incident. I acted as if I had also forgotten.\r\n\r\nAfter I\'d finished paying after the second time I went to buy something, I was about to leave to go back to my house. Suddenly, a good little angel and an evil little angel appeared in my mind, and they began to fight with each other. I listened to their differing words. The good little angel said, \"You should speak up about this incident!\" The evil little angel said, \"Don\'t mention it, if you mention it then you\'ll have wasted 1 yuan.\" The good angel said, \"Don\'t be a slave to money, be a master of honesty!\" The evil little angel said, \"What do you want to be an honest person for, you can\'t eat honesty [lit: honesty can\'t be food].\" They fought incessantly, and I was torn and confused, but at that moment I remembered the phrase I had read in a book, \"Forthrightness is a wonderful medicine that puts the heart at ease.\" \r\n\r\nI drummed up my courage, and forthrightly spoke up. At first, the old person\'s face became red, and he seemed very angry. After a while, he said to me, \"Don\'t worry about it, I won\'t blame you, you\'re a child that corrects a mistake when he sees it!\" At that very moment, tears welled up in my eyes, and I sincerely said to the old person, \"I\'m sorry, grandfather.\" [not the author\'s real grandfather - this is a form of respect from a younger child to an older man.]\r\n\r\nAfter this, I understood, having integrity means you can\'t cheat people, and I want to be an honest person! [The phrase] \"A promise is worth a thousand gold\" is so very important! Honesty is gold, and you can\'t buy it back with money. \r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'A Promise is Worth A Thousand Gold, and thoughts on crying', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '875-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-02 20:51:39', '2011-11-03 00:51:39', '', 875, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/02/875-revision-9/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(888, 1, '2011-11-02 21:05:57', '2011-11-03 01:05:57', '[two_third]\nA short, sweet children\'s essay about how umbrellas look on a rainy day. The Chinese title is 小伞花. <!--more-->\n\nMost of this is beginner reading, but there is one sentence towards the end of the text which is intermediate reading, so let\'s cover that here (or give the essay below a shot, then come back to this breakdown if you need it).\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n传来- [pinyin]chuan2 lai2[/pinyin] - Arrive\n滴滴答答 - [pinyin]di1 di1 da1 da1[/pinyin] - The sound of water droplets falling on something\n行人 - [pinyin]xing2 ren2[/pinyin] - Pedestrian\n雨伞 - [pinyin]yu3 san3[/pinyin] - Umbrella\n极了 - [pinyin]ji2 le5[/pinyin] - very, extremely [used after word it refers to]\n撑- [pinyin]cheng1[/pinyin] - To open up / unfurl\n晴朗 - [pinyin]qing2 lang3[/pinyin] - sunny and cloudless\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompan\n此时此刻 - [pinyin]ci3 shi2 ci3 ke4[/pinyin] - At that very moment\n诺 - [pinyin]nuo4[/pinyin] - promise\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，我回家写作业的时候，我听见外面<strong>传来</strong>了<strong>滴滴答答</strong>的声音，我想一定是下雨了。我赶忙跑到窗前，向下一看，街上的<strong>行人</strong>都打着<strong>雨伞</strong>，真的是下雨了。\n\n雨伞有黄色的、有白色的、有红色的、有紫色的，还有银灰色的……，美丽<strong>极了</strong>!\n\n我觉得雨伞可真好，它为我们<strong>撑</strong>起了一片<strong>晴朗</strong>的天空，它真是我们的好朋友。我希望每天都能下雨，让我的漂亮小雨伞每天都能<strong>陪伴</strong>我。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, when I had returned to my house and I was doing my homework, I heard the sound of droplets coming from outside, and I thought it surely must be raining. I hurriedly ran to the window, and looked down, on the street the pedestrians were all carrying umbrellas, and it was indeed raining. \n\nThere were yellow umbrellas, and there were white ones, and red ones, and purple ones, and also silver ones... so beautiful!\n\nI thought about how great umbrellas are, they unfurl a sunny and cloudless sky for us, they\'re really our good friends. I wish it could rain every day, so that my beautiful little umbrella could accompany me.\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Umbrella Flowers', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '887-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-02 21:05:57', '2011-11-03 01:05:57', '', 887, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/02/887-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
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(891, 1, '2011-11-02 21:16:37', '2011-11-03 01:16:37', '', 'Easy Chinese Reading - Simplified Texts, Passages and Essays', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111102-inline', '', '', '2011-11-02 21:16:37', '2011-11-03 01:16:37', '', 887, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111102-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(892, 1, '2011-11-02 21:13:12', '2011-11-03 01:13:12', '[two_third]\nA short, sweet children\'s essay about how umbrellas look on a rainy day. The Chinese title is 小伞花. <!--more-->\n\nMost of this is beginner reading, but there is one part of a sentence towards the end of the text which is intermediate reading, so I\'ve outlined the more difficult words there in the \"click to listen\" area. \n\nYou\'ll also notice another onomatopoeia (I\'ve been running into those a lot lately), 滴滴答答. We\'re rather lucky when we describe sounds in English, we can mash a bunch of letters together until they sound similar to the sound we heard - we have a little more flexibility. I could write: pfffsssshhhh, and you could make that sound, or imagine that sound. The Chinese have no alphabet to work with, so they do this by taking existing characters that sound similar and arranging them together. In this case 滴滴答答 (di1 di1 da1 da1) represents the pattering of raindrops, as you might hear rain fall against a window or roof.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n传来- [pinyin]chuan2 lai2[/pinyin] - Arrive\n滴滴答答 - [pinyin]di1 di1 da1 da1[/pinyin] - The sound of water droplets falling on something\n行人 - [pinyin]xing2 ren2[/pinyin] - Pedestrian\n雨伞 - [pinyin]yu3 san3[/pinyin] - Umbrella\n极了 - [pinyin]ji2 le5[/pinyin] - very, extremely [used after word it refers to]\n撑- [pinyin]cheng1[/pinyin] - To open up / unfurl\n晴朗 - [pinyin]qing2 lang3[/pinyin] - sunny and cloudless\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n今天，我回家写作业的时候，我听见外面<strong>传来</strong>了<strong>滴滴答答</strong>的声音，我想一定是下雨了。我赶忙跑到窗前，向下一看，街上的<strong>行人</strong>都打着<strong>雨伞</strong>，真的是下雨了。\n\n雨伞有黄色的、有白色的、有红色的、有紫色的，还有银灰色的……，美丽<strong>极了</strong>!\n\n我觉得雨伞可真好，它为我们<strong>撑</strong>起了一片<strong>晴朗</strong>的天空，它真是我们的好朋友。我希望每天都能下雨，让我的漂亮小雨伞每天都能<strong>陪伴</strong>我。\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nToday, when I had returned to my house and I was doing my homework, I heard the sound of droplets coming from outside, and I thought it surely must be raining. I hurriedly ran to the window, and looked down, on the street the pedestrians were all carrying umbrellas, and it was indeed raining. \n\nThere were yellow umbrellas, and there were white ones, and red ones, and purple ones, and also silver ones... so beautiful!\n\nI thought about how great umbrellas are, they unfurl a sunny and cloudless sky for us, they\'re really our good friends. I wish it could rain every day, so that my beautiful little umbrella could accompany me.\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Umbrella Flowers', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '887-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-02 21:13:12', '2011-11-03 01:13:12', '', 887, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/02/887-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
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(1001, 1, '2011-12-08 22:25:04', '2011-12-09 03:25:04', '', 'Intermediate and Advanced Simplified Chinese Reading Passages and Essays', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20120112-inline', '', '', '2011-12-08 22:25:04', '2011-12-09 03:25:04', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/20120112-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(901, 1, '2011-11-09 08:53:42', '2011-11-09 13:53:42', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>一暴十寒</h4>\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒一天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at creating analogies to foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun for a day, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I give him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Story Behind the Idiom: 一暴十寒 - Temporary diligence followed by laziness', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'story-behind-the-idiom-yi-pu-shi-han', '', '', '2020-05-07 17:17:47', '2020-05-07 21:17:47', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=901', 0, 'post', '', 1),
(1809, 1, '2020-04-20 06:03:19', '2020-04-20 10:03:19', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>一暴十寒</h4>\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒一天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at creating analogies to foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun for a day, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I give him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Story Behind the Idiom: 一暴十寒', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 06:03:19', '2020-04-20 10:03:19', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/901-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(902, 1, '2011-11-07 17:38:16', '2011-11-07 22:38:16', '[two_third]\nIdiom by Mencius, Or\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n传来- [pinyin]chuan2 lai2[/pinyin] - Arrive\n滴滴答答 - [pinyin]di1 di1 da1 da1[/pinyin] - The sound of water droplets falling on something\n行人 - [pinyin]xing2 ren2[/pinyin] - Pedestrian\n雨伞 - [pinyin]yu3 san3[/pinyin] - Umbrella\n极了 - [pinyin]ji2 le5[/pinyin] - very, extremely [used after word it refers to]\n撑- [pinyin]cheng1[/pinyin] - To open up / unfurl\n晴朗 - [pinyin]qing2 lang3[/pinyin] - sunny and cloudless\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n战国时，有个叫孟轲的人，大家称他为孟子。孟子善于通过打比方来发表议论。\n\n当时，有人指责孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说：“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在阴冷的地方冻十天，即使是生命力再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会少之甚少，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nDurin　　战国时，有个叫孟轲的人，大家称他为孟子。孟子善于通过打比方来发表议论。\n\n　　当时，有人指责孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说：“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在阴冷的地方冻十天，即使是生命力再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会少之甚少，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\n\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-07 17:38:16', '2011-11-07 22:38:16', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/07/901-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(903, 1, '2011-11-07 17:38:50', '2011-11-07 22:38:50', '[two_third]\r\nIdiom by Mencius, Or\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n传来- [pinyin]chuan2 lai2[/pinyin] - Arrive\r\n滴滴答答 - [pinyin]di1 di1 da1 da1[/pinyin] - The sound of water droplets falling on something\r\n行人 - [pinyin]xing2 ren2[/pinyin] - Pedestrian\r\n雨伞 - [pinyin]yu3 san3[/pinyin] - Umbrella\r\n极了 - [pinyin]ji2 le5[/pinyin] - very, extremely [used after word it refers to]\r\n撑- [pinyin]cheng1[/pinyin] - To open up / unfurl\r\n晴朗 - [pinyin]qing2 lang3[/pinyin] - sunny and cloudless\r\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n战国时，有个叫孟轲的人，大家称他为孟子。孟子善于通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人指责孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说：“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在阴冷的地方冻十天，即使是生命力再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会少之甚少，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], everyone called him MengZi. Menzi was good at 　　战国时，有个叫孟轲的人，大家称他为孟子。孟子善于通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n　　当时，有人指责孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说：“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在阴冷的地方冻十天，即使是生命力再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会少之甚少，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-07 17:38:50', '2011-11-07 22:38:50', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/07/901-revision-2/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(904, 1, '2011-11-09 08:33:18', '2011-11-09 13:33:18', '[two_third]\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\n\n\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\n晴朗 - [pinyin]qing2 lang3[/pinyin] - sunny and cloudless\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\n\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会少之甚少，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\n\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:33:18', '2011-11-09 13:33:18', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-3/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(905, 1, '2011-11-09 08:34:10', '2011-11-09 13:34:10', '[two_third]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\r\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\r\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \r\n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \r\n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\r\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\r\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\r\n少之甚少 - [pinyin]shao3 zhi1 shen2 shao3[/pinyin] - Less and less\r\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:34:10', '2011-11-09 13:34:10', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-4/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(906, 1, '2011-11-09 08:49:05', '2011-11-09 13:49:05', '[two_third]\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\n\nThis story is a little odd, because the idiom 一暴十寒 means \"ONE day of sun, TEN days of frost\", but the story references TEN days of sun and TEN days of frost - \"one day of sun\" is never mentioned. Which calls the whole \"story behind the idiom\" thing into question. Surely, some of the stories are truly historical, and have stayed with the Chinese people over several thousand years. Some are probably very very recent. \n\nNow, I spent a summer as an editor assistant in an educational publishing house in Beijing, and I can tell you a lot of these \"historical stories\" (when they\'re used as language exercises, anyway) are just kind of made up to fit the word count needed. \n\nI was recently reading \"<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Taoism-Holmes-H-Welch-Jr/dp/0807059730\">Taoism: The Parting of the Way</a>\" by Holmes Welch, and he mentions an interesting phenomenon in Chinese scholarly history: several thousand years ago, some Chinese scholars or philosophers who wanted to get their ideas widely disseminated would write a book, then put the name of a dead but well-respected philosopher on it, and claim they had found a lost work by the other philosopher. Very clever, but it does confuse the historical record a bit. \n\nThese types of stories should be treated similarly - in many cases it\'s impossible to tell where they came from. Sometimes there is a real historical tie-in to an old text, sometimes it\'s all apocryphal - basically an urban legend. So, who knows if this idiom what made up my Mencius, made up by a scholar pretending to be Mencius, or made up by a school teacher to help students remember the text - either way, it\'s a nice (and short) little blurb.\n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\n少之甚少 - [pinyin]shao3 zhi1 shen2 shao3[/pinyin] - Less and less\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\n\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\n\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:49:05', '2011-11-09 13:49:05', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-5/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
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(909, 1, '2011-11-09 08:49:43', '2011-11-09 13:49:43', '[two_third]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n\r\nThis story is a little odd, because the idiom 一暴十寒 means \"ONE day of sun, TEN days of frost\", but the story references TEN days of sun and TEN days of frost - \"one day of sun\" is never mentioned. Which calls the whole \"story behind the idiom\" thing into question. Surely, some of the stories are truly historical, and have stayed with the Chinese people over several thousand years. Some are probably very very recent. \r\n\r\nNow, I spent a summer as an editor assistant in an educational publishing house in Beijing, and I can tell you a lot of these \"historical stories\" (when they\'re used as language exercises, anyway) are just kind of made up to fit the word count needed. \r\n\r\nI was recently reading \"<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Taoism-Holmes-H-Welch-Jr/dp/0807059730\">Taoism: The Parting of the Way</a>\" by Holmes Welch, and he mentions an interesting phenomenon in Chinese scholarly history: several thousand years ago, some Chinese scholars or philosophers who wanted to get their ideas widely disseminated would write a book, then put the name of a dead but well-respected philosopher on it, and claim they had found a lost work by the other philosopher. Very clever, but it does confuse the historical record a bit. \r\n\r\nThese types of stories should be treated similarly - in many cases it\'s impossible to tell where they came from. Sometimes there is a real historical tie-in to an old text, sometimes it\'s all apocryphal - basically an urban legend. So, who knows if this idiom what made up my Mencius, made up by a scholar pretending to be Mencius, or made up by a school teacher to help students remember the text - either way, it\'s a nice (and short) little blurb.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\r\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\r\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \r\n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \r\n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\r\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\r\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\r\n少之甚少 - [pinyin]shao3 zhi1 shen2 shao3[/pinyin] - Less and less\r\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:49:43', '2011-11-09 13:49:43', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-6/', 0, 'revision', '', 0);
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(910, 1, '2011-11-09 08:53:42', '2011-11-09 13:53:42', '[two_third]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111109-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy and Difficult Chinese Idioms for Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Students\" title=\"Easy and Difficult Chinese Idioms for Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Students\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story is a little odd, because the idiom 一暴十寒 means \"ONE day of sun, TEN days of frost\", but the story references TEN days of sun and TEN days of frost - \"one day of sun\" is never mentioned. Which calls the whole \"story behind the idiom\" thing into question. Surely, some of the stories are truly historical, and have stayed with the Chinese people over several thousand years. Some are probably very very recent. \r\n\r\nNow, I spent a summer as an editor assistant in an educational publishing house in Beijing, and I can tell you a lot of these \"historical stories\" (when they\'re used as language exercises, anyway) are just kind of made up to fit the word count needed. \r\n\r\nI was recently reading \"<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Taoism-Holmes-H-Welch-Jr/dp/0807059730\">Taoism: The Parting of the Way</a>\" by Holmes Welch, and he mentions an interesting phenomenon in Chinese scholarly history: several thousand years ago, some Chinese scholars or philosophers who wanted to get their ideas widely disseminated would write a book, then put the name of a dead but well-respected philosopher on it, and claim they had found a lost work by the other philosopher. Very clever, but it does confuse the historical record a bit. \r\n\r\nThese types of stories should be treated similarly - in many cases it\'s impossible to tell where they came from. Sometimes there is a real historical tie-in to an old text, sometimes it\'s all apocryphal - basically an urban legend. So, who knows if this idiom what made up my Mencius, made up by a scholar pretending to be Mencius, or made up by a school teacher to help students remember the text - either way, it\'s a nice (and short) little blurb.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\r\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\r\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \r\n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \r\n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\r\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\r\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\r\n少之甚少 - [pinyin]shao3 zhi1 shen2 shao3[/pinyin] - Less and less\r\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:53:42', '2011-11-09 13:53:42', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-7/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(911, 1, '2011-11-09 08:53:58', '2011-11-09 13:53:58', '[two_third]\r\nThis short tale addresses the background story behind the Chinese idiom 一暴十寒, which literally translates to \"One day of sun, ten days of frost\", and which means \"to bust butt for a little while and then get lazy\", or \"to only work for a short time and then fail\". The story below really applies to the latter meaning. Though this is categorized as advanced, upper-intermediate readers could surely tackle this. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111109-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Easy and Difficult Chinese Idioms for Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Students\" title=\"Easy and Difficult Chinese Idioms for Beginner, Intermediate and Advanced Students\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />This story is a little odd, because the idiom 一暴十寒 means \"ONE day of sun, TEN days of frost\", but the story references TEN days of sun and TEN days of frost - \"one day of sun\" is never mentioned. Which calls the whole \"story behind the idiom\" thing into question. Surely, some of the stories are truly historical, and have stayed with the Chinese people over several thousand years. Some are probably very very recent. \r\n\r\nNow, I spent a summer as an editor assistant in an educational publishing house in Beijing, and I can tell you a lot of these \"historical stories\" (when they\'re used as language exercises, anyway) are just kind of made up to fit the word count needed. \r\n\r\nI was recently reading \"<a href=\"http://www.amazon.com/Taoism-Holmes-H-Welch-Jr/dp/0807059730\">Taoism: The Parting of the Way</a>\" by Holmes Welch, and he mentions an interesting phenomenon in Chinese scholarly history: several thousand years ago, some Chinese scholars or philosophers who wanted to get their ideas widely disseminated would write a book, then put the name of a dead but well-respected philosopher on it, and claim they had found a lost work by the other philosopher. Very clever, but it does confuse the historical record a bit. \r\n\r\nThese types of stories should be treated similarly - in many cases it\'s impossible to tell where they came from. Sometimes there is a real historical tie-in to an old text, sometimes it\'s all apocryphal - basically an urban legend. So, who knows if this idiom what made up my Mencius, made up by a scholar pretending to be Mencius, or made up by a school teacher to help students remember the text - either way, it\'s a nice (and short) little blurb.\r\n\r\n[/two_third]\r\n[one_third last=last]\r\n<div class=\"postintro\">\r\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\r\n战国 - [pinyin]zhan4 guo2[/pinyin] - Warring States Period (around 475 BC to 221 BC)\r\n孟轲 - [pinyin]meng4 ke1[/pinyin] - Mencius\' full name\r\n孟子 - [pinyin]meng4 zi5[/pinyin] - Mencius\' common name \r\n善于 - [pinyin]shan4 yu4[/pinyin] - To be good at \r\n指责 - [pinyin]zhi3 ze2[/pinyin] - Point the finger, criticize\r\n阴冷 - [pinyin]yin1 leng3[/pinyin] - Gloomy and cold\r\n生命力- [pinyin]shen1 ming4 li4[/pinyin] - Vitality\r\n少之甚少 - [pinyin]shao3 zhi1 shen2 shao3[/pinyin] - Less and less\r\n陪伴 - [pinyin]pei2 ban4[/pinyin] - Accompany\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_third]\r\n\r\n<hr />\r\n\r\n[one_half]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<strong>战国</strong>时，有个叫<strong>孟轲</strong>的人，大家称他为<strong>孟子</strong>。孟子<strong>善于</strong>通过打比方来发表议论。\r\n\r\n当时，有人<strong>指责</strong>孟子不尽力帮助齐王。孟子便解释说:“比如说，天下有些易活的植物，假如把它放在太阳下晒十天，然后再把它放在<strong>阴冷</strong>的地方冻十天，即使是<strong>生命力</strong>再强的植物也会死。我见到齐王的机会<strong>少之甚少</strong>，即使给了他些良好的影响与帮助，我一离开，一些和我主张不同的人，又带给他许多不好影响。我怎么能使齐王的思想、品质好起来呢？”\r\n</div>\r\n[/one_half]\r\n\r\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\r\nDuring the Warring States Period, there was a man named Meng Ke [Mencius], who everyone called MengZi. Menzi was very good at using real-life situations to create analogies and foster discussion.　\r\n\r\nAt that time, there was a person who criticized Mencius for not trying harder to help the King of Qi. Mencius explained plainly, saying, \"Take this as an example: there are some plants that live well on this earth [lit: under heaven], but if you take them and put them in the sun to dry for ten days, then you take them and put them in the gloom and cold to freeze for ten days, even if their vitality is strong they\'re still going to die.  My opportunities to see the King of Qi have been less and less, so even if I gave him some good influence and help, as soon as I leave, some people that don\'t advocate the same things I do will influence him negatively. [That being the case,] how can I improve the quality of the King of Qi\'s thinking?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Story Behind the Idiom: Yi Pu Shi Han', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '901-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-09 08:53:58', '2011-11-09 13:53:58', '', 901, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/09/901-revision-8/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(2374, 1, '2020-05-23 22:01:54', '2020-05-24 02:01:54', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA little thrush (画眉 [pinyin]hua4 mei2[/pinyin]) trades one cage (笼子 [pinyin]long2 zi[/pinyin]) for a bigger one, and doesn\'t much like the upgrade. Suitable around HSK 3.\r\n\r\nYou could take a lot of lessons away from this story. Maybe it\'s trying to tell us that money is immaterial without friends and loved ones around us. Or maybe that God is fallible. Or that the grass is always greener. You read it, you decide. \r\n<h4>Some language stuff</h4>\r\n说道 [pinyin]shuo1 dao4[/pinyin] - Usually, when we first start reading dialogues, we learn that \"说\" means \"said\", as in \"He said,\" (他说). There are actually a few different ways to say \"said\" in Chinese, three off the top of my head. 说 is the \"beginner\" way. At the intermediate level, this can become 说道 [pinyin]shuo1 dao4[/pinyin], or simply 道. In ancient Chinese, they often use 曰 [pinyin]yue1[/pinyin], which looks like 日 [pinyin]ri4[/pinyin], but if you look closely you\'ll see it\'s a little wider, and the line crossing it in the middle doesn\'t quite touch the right side of the character. In this piece, we\'ve got 说道 and a 问道 - don\'t let that \"道\" confuse you, it just means \"to say\". \r\n\r\n翡翠 [pinyin]fei3 cui4[/pinyin] - My translation software has this as \"jadeite\", but this can be both jade or emerald, and since I usually see \"jade\" translated as 玉 [pinyin]yu4,[/pinyin] I\'m going with \"emerald\" here.\r\n\r\n<strong>大得我飞都飞不到边</strong> [pinyin]da4 de wo3 fei1 dou1 fei1 bu dao4 bian1[/pinyin] - We\'ve also got one slightly rough sentence construction here. This clause is being used by the thrush to describe a house, let\'s break it down:\r\n\r\n大 - Big\r\n得 - To the extent that / to the point that\r\n我 - I\r\n飞 - fly\r\n都 - but even\r\n飞 - fly\r\n不到 - can\'t arrive at / can\'t reach\r\n边 - the edge.\r\n\r\nIn other words, the house is so big that even if the bird starts flying at one side of the house, he can fly and fly but still won\'t reach the other side. \r\n\r\nFinally, the last clause is a bit long, so here\'s a trick for figuring it out: find the 跟 [pinyin]gen1[/pinyin], which in this case means 比 [pinyin]bi3[/pinyin], a comparative word. Everything before 跟 is being compared to what\'s after it. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.rensheng5.com/xiaogushi/id-1746.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source here</a>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>天堂里的自由</h4>\r\n\r\n一只可爱的画眉被主人关在笼子里，上帝于是对画眉说：“跟我到天堂去生活吧。”\r\n\r\n“我现在生活的很好啊，为什么要去天堂呢?”画眉<span class=\"highlightText\">说道</span>。\r\n\r\n上帝反问道：“那你有自由吗?”\r\n\r\n画眉沉默了。\r\n\r\n画眉跟着上帝来到了天堂，上帝把它安排在<span class=\"highlightText\">翡翠</span>宫里住下，自己便去忙别的事情。\r\n\r\n过了很长一段时间，上帝突然想起了画眉，便去翡翠宫看它。他问画眉：“我亲爱的孩子，你现在过得还好吗?”\r\n\r\n画眉哀叹一声，说：“房子很漂亮，<span class=\"highlightText\">大得我飞都飞不到边</span>，可是我一个人孤零零地生活在这大房子里<span class=\"highlightText\">跟</span>住在笼子里有什么区别呢?”\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nA cute little thrush was shut in a cage by its master, so God said to the thrush: \"Come and live with me in Heaven.\" \r\n\r\n\"My life is very good now, why should I go to heaven?\" the thrush said.\r\n\r\nGod answered, \"Well, do you have freedom?\" \r\n\r\nThe thrush was silent.\r\n\r\nThe thrush followed God to Heaven, and God arranged for it to settle down in an emerald palace, and then he went to deal with other matters.\r\n\r\nAfter a long time had passed, God suddenly thought of the thrush, and so he went to the emerald palace to see it. He asked the thrush: \"My dear child, are things going well now?\"\r\n\r\nThe thrush uttered a sorrowful sigh, and said: \"The house is beautiful, so big that [no matter how long] I fly I can\'t reach its edges, but how is living by myself alone in this big house any different than living in a cage?\"\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Fable: 天堂里的自由 - Freedom in Heaven', 'A little thrush (画眉 [pinyin]hua4 mei2[/pinyin]) trades one cage (笼子 [pinyin]long2 zi[/pinyin]) for a bigger one, and doesn\'t much like the upgrade. Suitable around HSK 3.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2320-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-23 22:01:54', '2020-05-24 02:01:54', '', 2320, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/23/2320-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(919, 1, '2011-11-27 19:32:45', '2011-11-28 00:32:45', '', 'Advanced / Intermediate Chinese Essays and Reading Passage', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111127', '', '', '2011-11-27 19:32:45', '2011-11-28 00:32:45', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111127.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(920, 1, '2011-11-27 19:33:59', '2011-11-28 00:33:59', '', 'Advanced / Intermediate Chinese Essays and Reading Exercise', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111127-inline', '', '', '2011-11-27 19:33:59', '2011-11-28 00:33:59', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111127-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(2470, 1, '2020-05-31 22:37:09', '2020-06-01 02:37:09', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\n<p style=\"padding:25px; margin-bottom: 20px; font-style: italic; background-color:#ffeaee;\">In the <a href=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/tag/novels/\">Novels</a> series, I get you started reading the first few paragraphs of classic Chinese fiction. If you like the beginning, you can <a href=“https://amzn.to/2zEEBIo\">buy the book</a> and keep reading.</p> \r\n\r\nSuper challenge time: this is the longest and most difficult read I\'ve ever posted. Long, because I wanted to put up the entire first chapter. Difficult, because... well, I explain below. Wang Shuo has been called \"China\'s Kerouac\", I might lean more towards \"China\'s Bukowski\", and as such, this piece is not appropriate for children. There is tons of swearing and (very) mild sexual content - you have been warned. \r\n\r\n<a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wang_Shuo\">Wang Shuo (王朔)</a> is the bad boy of contemporary Chinese writers, a real controversial figure, and his work, which centers around the dark underbelly of Beijing in the 1970s and 80s, spawned its own genre of \"hooligan\" fiction. This isn\'t the organized, moneyed mob fiction of Hong Kong, this is the small-scale thievery that reflects urban life on the mainland right after the Cultural Revolution, when the country just started opening up to international trade and society was a mess. Wang Shuo\'s plots are so ugly, dark and brutal that he has been called a \"spiritual pollutant\" by the powers that be.  \r\n\r\nThis is the complete first chapter of his book <em>Hot and Cold, Measure for Measure</em>, or 《一半是火焰，一半是海水》. The book contains several short novellas, but the namesake work is only around 90 pages long in total. I\'m just about to finish reading it. The plot is horrendously depressing: the story of a thug who casually seduces a young high school girl with a bright future, breaks her down with his callousness until she becomes a prostitute and eventually kills herself, which sets off another chain of events. The extremely relatable realism with which Wang Shuo describes her destruction will have any woman who has ever been involved with a bad-news boyfriend cringing. \r\n\r\nThis chapter sets up the rest of the book in two scenes: One, we meet the protagonist as he is in the middle of a scam he often runs. I\'m going to explain the nature of the scam here because it\'s confusing unless you spent time in China twenty years ago. Basically, the protagonist works with a gang that includes a friend of his (named 方方) and a few prostitutes (mainly one lady named 亚红). During this time in China, it was very common for prostitutes to work in and around hotels, they would push their cards under the door of hotel rooms, or cold-call the room to ask if services were required. This was illegal, but it happened all the time; I can still remember having cards pushed under my hotel room doors in the early 2000s, sometimes five different cards a night. The protagonist and his friend wait until one of the prostitutes in the gang have landed a client. Then complicit hotel staff (named 卫宁) calls the gang, who burst into the room dressed like policemen and demand money as a \"fine\" from the hotel guest, and take the prostitute out as if they are arresting her. So this is where the book starts, with a phone call from a corrupt staff member at the hotel\'s front desk to the gangsters, telling them which rooms the prostitutes are in with their clients.\r\n\r\nIn the second half of the chapter, the protagonist goes about the next day of his life doing some errands, and eventually meets and has a conversation with this girl, Wudi (吴迪), whose life he will later ruin. She is spunky but naive, daring and precocious in the way that young people can be when they think they can handle themselves, but haven\'t yet encountered real danger or darkness in their lives. \r\n\r\n<h3>Some language stuff</h4>\r\nLinguistically speaking, this is one of the hardest Chinese books I\'ve ever read, because it\'s full, full, full of underworld slang, colloquialisms and swear words, and like a lot of great fiction, some of the things that happen aren\'t clearly spelled out, they\'re only suggested and you have to read between the lines. I read it very slowly, 5-10 pages in a sitting. I\'m going to explain some of the slang used here that isn\'t in the dictionary. \r\n\r\n野鸽 - 鸽 is slang for \"prostitute\". 野, as you probably know from the word 野生, means \"wild\" or \"untamed\". 野鸽 refers to a prostitute that is not working for the gang. In the first paragraph, 野 is used by itself, this is what it\'s referring to.\r\n\r\n小子 - This is a derogatory way to refer to someone. It translates to something like, \"little shit\". \r\n\r\n他妈 - Usually 他妈的, the swear word \"fuck\" or \"fucking\" - but not referring to the sexual act itself, just used for emphasis in the middle of a sentence, same way it is in English, as in \"What the fuck are you doing here?\"\r\n\r\n没劲\r\n\r\n小毛头\r\n\r\n丫头\r\n\r\n四胜三和五负\r\n\r\n凑人\r\n\r\n来劲\r\n \r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>《一半是火焰，一半是海水》第一章</h4>\r\n	\r\n“喂，两对都进房了。房间号927、1208，还有一只野的，进了1713.”\r\n\r\n“知道了。” \r\n\r\n我放下电话，马上穿上西服外套，提起书包，招呼正在看电视的方方，三步并作两步跑下楼。我那辆花四千元买来的旧“白茹”车停在街角便道上。我们坐进车里，把汽车迅速地开上马路，直驶远处灯火辉煌的“燕都”大饭店。在饭店旁边的一条林荫道上，我招手停在一溜轿车的后边，下了车“乒乓”关好门，快步加入一群刚从一辆大旅行车下来的日本游客中间，走进“燕都”饭店富丽堂皇的大厅。彬彬有礼地站在总服务台里的卫宁不易察觉地给我们使个眼声：一切正常。我和方方走进盥洗室，打开皮包，拿出两套警服换上，走出盥洗室，沿安全楼梯爬上去。爬到第九层，我们都是气喘吁吁，待呼吸均匀了，我们走向服务台，坐着的服务员抬头诧异地看我们。“我们是公安局的，请开927房间。”\r\n\r\n服务员顺从地拎起一串钥匙领着我们走向长廊尽头的一间客房。“里边有客人。”服务员看到门上挂的“请勿打扰”的小牌，回头对我说。“知道，打开锁。”我命令道。\r\n\r\n服务员钮开锁，站在一旁。\r\n\r\n“你回去吧。”方方粗鲁地挥手避开服务员。\r\n\r\n服务员消逝在走廊的另一端，我和方方立即开门冲了进去……我和方方带着亚红出来，皮包里塞着几千崭新的钞票，神情严肃地走服务台进了电梯间，方方和亚红忍不住笑起来。\r\n\r\n“你们笑什么，真<span class=\"textHighlight\">他妈没劲</span>。”我说着也忍不住笑了，对亚红说：“你在楼下酒吧等会儿，我们还得上去收拾12层那小子。”我们把电梯开到底层，让亚红出去，又开上12层。\r\n\r\n十五分钟后，我们换下警服带着另一个姑娘在酒吧找到亚红，一起喝了杯酒，亚红挽着方方先出去。我给总服务台的卫宁打了电话，告诉他事已办完，十七层那只野鸽让她舒舒服服睡一宿，早晨报警。我挽着另一个姑娘坦然走出饭店。方方已经把“白茹”发动了，我们一上车就开走了。\r\n\r\n早晨，我被电话铃吵醒，睡在我旁边的亚红接了电话，告诉我，卫宁说那两个受到我们讹诈的倒霉蛋已经结了房钱走了，那只野鸽也被在大门等着的警察塞上车抓走了。亚红翻身又睡了。我却睡不着，一支接一支地抽起烟。阳光从厚重的窗帘后倾泄出来，我轻轻走到窗前，从窗帘缝隙看了会儿外面车水马龙，阳光明媚的街道，把窗帘拉严。我不喜欢晴朗的早晨，看到成千上万的人兴冲冲地去上班、上学，我就感到形孤影单。白天我没有什么事可干，也没什么人等我，我的朋友们都在睡觉。我又抽了五支烟，看了看日历，然后穿衣服，洗脸刷牙，走出我住的这套公寓。我走过街角停放的“自茹”车，径直走向公共汽车站。尽管上班高峰已过，车内还是十分拥挤。一个坐着的中年男人下车，我刚要坐下，看到一个抱小孩的年轻妇女，便呼招她过来。\r\n\r\n“谢谢。”年轻妇女坐下后，又逗弄着小孩说：“谢谢叔叔。”\r\n\r\n“谢谢叔叔。”我冲小孩笑笑，小孩从衣兜里掏出一块彩纸包装的巧克力，剥开纸刚要往嘴里填，看我瞅着他，举起巧克力给我。\r\n\r\n“不要，叔叔不吃。”“吃吧，没事。”“真的不吃，叔叔要下车了。”\r\n\r\n我挤下车，沿街走了一站，到单位医务室要了张“三联单”，打电话约了一肝不太好的朋友去医院替我抽了一管血。又在商业区的两个储蓄所把我昨晚挣的那笔钱分别用我去世父母的名字存了进去，然后去邮局给一个交钱即可注册入学，不须考试的函授大学汇了报名款和一年的学费。我报的专业是法律。办完这些事，我到一家人不太多的豪华餐厅吃午饭。这家餐厅菜做的十分讲究，我看着漂亮的图案喝了不少红酒，又吃了几个浇了巧克力汁的冰淇淋，下午才走出餐厅，在报亭买当天所有的日报和晚报，坐在电报局等长途电话的排椅上细细测览。黄昏时我给家里打了个电话，方方接的。我们聊了会儿，他正在和卫宁下围棋，卫宁一早前来了，他们下了一天棋，他四胜三和五负，晚上准备凑人撞麻将。我告诉他我晚点回去，就挂了电话。\r\n\r\n暮春时节，树木草地都绿遍了，花丛怒放。我走进一个举办晚间音乐会的公园，在音乐亭前等退票。一个老人送了我一张，我又转送给一对只有一张票的青年伴侣，坚决不要他们加倍的票款。在高大、油漆剥落的廊柱间，我看到一美丽少女坐以汉白玉石台上看书，悬在空中的两条长腿互相勾着脚，一翘一翘。她一手棒书，一手从放在身旁的一个袋袋中抓瓜子磕，吐出的皮儿拢成一堆，嘴里哼着歌，间或翻一页书，悠闲自在，楚楚动人。我悄悄走到她身后，踮脚看那本使她入迷的书。是一本很深奥的文艺理论著作，我一目十行地看了一会儿，索然无味，正要转身走开，忽听女孩说：\r\n\r\n“看不懂吧。”她仰起脸，笑吟吟地望着我。\r\n\r\n我脸红了，感到不知所措，因为我还会脸红。片刻，我镇静下来，说：“就是学生，这会儿在公司看书也有点装模作样。”“我在这儿坐了一下午了，你瞧，我看了多少。”\r\n\r\n她快速地把看过一页数捻了一遍，我捏捏那厚厚的一迭，联想到书的内容，怀疑地问：“你看这么快”\r\n\r\n“我也看不懂呗，就看得快。”\r\n\r\n　　我们都笑了。“不看了。”女孩把书撂到一旁。“你有事吗”她问我。“没有。”我说：“没人约我。”“聊聊？”“聊聊。”我在她旁边坐，她把瓜子袋推给我。我不大会磕瓜子，磕得皮瓤唾液一塌糊涂。\r\n\r\n　　“瞧我。”女孩示范性地磕了一个瓜子，洁白的贝齿一闪，我下意识地闭紧自己被烟熏得黑黄的牙齿。女孩倒没注意，晃悠着腿四处张望。“你是哪个学校的”我注意到她里面毛衣上别着一枚校徽。女孩龇齿咬着瓜子看着我笑起来。\r\n\r\n　　“这就叫‘套瓷’吧。”女孩说：“下边你该说自己是哪个学校的，我们两校挨得如何近，没准天天能碰见……”\r\n\r\n　　“你看我象学生吗”我说：“我是劳改释放犯，现在还靠敲诈勒索为生。”“我才不管你是什么呢。”女孩笑着瞅着自己的脚尖，似乎那儿有什么好玩可笑的，“你是什么我都无所谓。”\r\n\r\n　　我半天没说话，女孩也没说话，只是美滋滋地看着天边夕阳消逝后迅即黯淡下来，却又不失瑰丽的云彩：“那块云象马克思、那块象海盗，象吗，你说象吗”\r\n\r\n　　“你多大了”女孩转过头看我，仔仔细细打量了我一遍：“你，过去没怎么跟女孩接触过吧。”“没有。”我面不改声色心不跳地骗她。\r\n\r\n　　“我早看出来了，小男孩！刚才我看书时就看见你远远地，想过来搭讪又胆怯，怕我臊你一顿是不是”\r\n\r\n　　“我和一百多个女的睡过觉。”\r\n\r\n　　女孩放声笑起来，笑得那么肆无忌惮，那么开心。\r\n\r\n　　“你笑起来，”我说：“跟个傻丫头似的。”\r\n\r\n　　女孩一下不笑了，悻悻地白了我一眼：“我不说你，你也别说我了。实话告诉你，我已经谈了一年多恋爱了。”女孩又笑了，有几分得意。“是你的傻冒同学吧？”\r\n\r\n　　“他才不傻呢，是学生会干部。”\r\n\r\n　　“那还不傻傻得已经没法练了。”\r\n\r\n　　“哼，你这种只被爸爸妈妈吻过的<span class=\"highlightText\">小毛头</span>也<span class=\"highlightText\">配</span>说他。”\r\n\r\n　　“我要是他，就敢跟你睡觉。”我微笑地说：“他敢吗？”\r\n\r\n　　尽管天色已经很暗了，我也察觉得出女孩的脸排红了：“他很尊重我。”我哧笑：“嘁，尊重，别说了，咱甭说了。你也别装傻了。”\r\n\r\n　　女孩闷了半天没吭声。我吹起口哨，叼起一支烟，把烟盒递给她，她摇摇头。“”又完了不是“我取笑她，”敢在光天化日之下看书，不会抽烟，时髦半截。“”你别来劲。“女孩不服地说，”给我一支！“\r\n\r\n　　我把嘴上的烟给她，她抽了一口，“呼”地全吹了出去。我伸胳膊搭在她肩上，她哆嗦了一下，并没拒绝。我把她搂过来，她近在咫尺地看看我，拔拉掉我的胳膊，强笑着说：\r\n\r\n　　“我有点儿信你和一百多个女人睡过觉了。”\r\n\r\n　　“干吗有点信，就应该信。知道我外号叫什么吗？老枪！”\r\n\r\n　　我听到完完全全收拾书的声音，恶意地笑着说：“我叫你害怕了。”“才没有呢。”女孩站起来：“我只是该走了。”\r\n\r\n　　“敢告诉我你叫什么，住哪儿吗”\r\n\r\n　　女孩跳下石台，亮晶晶的眼睛在黑暗中闪烁，笑着说：“啊哈！我还以为你能始终不同凡响，闹了半天，也落了俗套。”\r\n\r\n　　“好，我俗。你走吧。哎，”我叫住她：“咱们要是再见了，就得算朋友了吧”“算朋友”女孩笑着走了。\r\n\r\n　　我笑眯眯地在石台上坐了一会儿，也跳下石台走了。\r\nBy <a href=\"https://amzn.to/2zEEBIo\" target=\"blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">paperback</a> or <a href=\"https://amzn.to/2Z7Japj\">Kindle</a>.\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\n\"Hey, both pairs just went into their rooms, the room numbers are 927, 1208, and there\'s one other [that isn\'t part of our gang], went into 1713.\" \r\n\r\n\"Got it.\" \r\n\r\nI put down the phone, immediately put on my suit jacket, picked up my book bag, and called to Fangfang who was watching TV, and we ran down the stairs two at a time. The “Peugeot” car I paid 4000 RMB for was parked on the corner of the street. We got in the car, and drove quickly onto the road, and drove directly towards the brilliant lights of the Yandu Hotel. On a shady street next to the hotel, I waved to stop behind a row of cars, our doors closed with a <em>ping pang</em>, and we quickly stepped in to intermingle with a group of Japanese tourists that had just gotten off a tour bus, walking [among them] into the Yandu Hotel\'s resplendent lobby. Courteously standing behind the main service counter, Weining surreptitiously shot us a look: everything was normal. Fangfang and I walked into the washroom, opened the leather bag, took out two police uniforms and changed into them, walked out of the washroom, and took the emergency exit stairs up. We climbed to the 9th floor, both of us huffing and puffing, and waiting until our breath came easier, then we walked towards the [floor\'s] service counter. The service personnel sitting there raised his head and looked at us astonished. \r\n\r\n\"We\'re the police, please open room 927.\" \r\n\r\nThe staff compliantly lifted out a chain of keys and lead us to a room at the end of the long hall. \r\n\r\n\"There\'s a guest inside.\" The staff saw the \"do not disturb\" sign hung on the door, and said looking back at us. \r\n\r\n\"We know, open the lock.\" I ordered. \r\n\r\nThe service staff twisted open the lock, and stood to one side.\r\n\r\n\"Get back,\" Fangfang roughly waved away the staffer. \r\n\r\nThe staff disappeared down another hallway, and Fangfang and I immediately opened the door and charged inside.... Fangfang and I walked out with Yahong, our leather bag stuffed full of a few thousand fresh bank notes, and with serious expressions entered the elevator next to the service desk, then Fangfang and Yahong could [no longer] suppress their laughter. \r\n\r\n\"What are you two laughing at, what the fuck is so funny [lit: it\'s really fucking uninteresting].\" But as I spoke I couldn\'t help laughing myself, and I said to Yahong, \"Wait in the bar downstairs for a bit, we\'ve still got to go grab up those little shits on the 12th floor.\" We took the elevator to the lower floor, let Yahong out, then went back up to 12.  　\r\n\r\nFifteen minutes later, we changed out of our police clothes and took the second girl to the bar to find Yahong, had some drinks together, and Yahong left on Fangfang\'s arm. I gave Weining at the main service desk a call, told him it was done, and to let the hooker on the 17th floor sleep soundly for the night, then call the [real] cops [on her] in the morning. With the other girl on my arm I walked casually out of the hotel. Fangfang had already started up the Peugeot, and he drove off as soon as we got in.\r\n\r\nIn the morning, I was woken up by a phone call, and Yahong who had been sleeping by my side answered it. She told me: Weining said that the two sorry suckers that we\'d scammed had already paid for the rooms and left, the other prostitute had been taken away by the cops that were waiting at the main entrance. Yahong rolled over and went back to sleep. I couldn\'t fall asleep again, [so I just] smoked one cigarette after another. Sunlight was spilling at an angle through the thick curtains, and I walked quietly to the window, looking out through the crack in the curtains onto the flow of people and traffic outside, the sun shining brightly on the street, and pulled the curtains firmly shut. I don\'t like the early morning, seeing people in their hundreds and thousands rush to work, to school, makes me feel like an isolated shadow. I don\'t have anything to do during the day, and no one\'s waiting for me, my friends are all asleep. I smoked another five cigarettes, looked at the calendar, then put on my clothes, washed my face and brushed my teeth, and walked out of the apartment where I was staying. I walked past the Peugot parked at the corner, and walked straight to the bust stop. Even though rush hour was already over, the bus was still pretty packed. One guy who was sitting down got off the bus, and I was just about to sit [in his place], when I saw a young woman carrying a small child, and called her to sit.\r\n\r\n\"Thank you.\" After the young woman sat down, she cutely said to the kid: \"Thank the uncle.\"　\r\n\r\n\"Thank you uncle.\"\r\n\r\nI smiled at the kid, and he fished a piece of chocolate wrapped in colored paper out of his pocket, ripped open the packet and was about to stuff it into his mouth, saw me watching him, and held up the chocolate to me.\r\n\r\n\"No thanks, uncle doesn\'t want it.\" \r\n\r\n\"Have it, it\'s nothing.\" \r\n\r\n\"No, really, uncle\'s got to get off.\" \r\n\r\nI pushed my way off the bus, walked along the road as far as the next stop, arrive an infirmary and asked for asked for a triplicate invoice, then called an acquaintance to go to the hospital and get some blood drawn in my place. At two [separate] savings banks in the business district I deposited the money I\'d gotten last night under my dead parents\' names, then I went to the post office and sent a tuition payment to a correspondence university where you didn\'t have to take a test to register, just pay. I registered to major in law. Once I\'d finished these things, I went to eat lunch at a fine dining restaurant where there weren\'t too many patrons. The food at this restaurant was exquisite. I drank no small measure of wine while looking at the lovely picture [menu]，ate a few ice creams drizzled with chocolate sauce, left the restaurant in the afternoon, bought the morning and evening papers at the news stand, and sat on the long-distance call waiting bench in the telegraph office and browsed them thoroughly. I called the house around dusk, Fangfang picked up. We talked for a while, he\'d just been playing Go with Weining. Weining had come over earlier, they\'d been playing Go all day，he won a few, tied a few and lost a few，and tonight they were planning to get some people together for a Majiang game. I told him I\'d be back that night, and hung up the phone.\r\n\r\nIt was late spring, the trees and grasses had turned green, the flowers bloomed in profusion. I went into a park where they\'d organized an evening music event, and waited in line to return my ticket. An old man had given me one ticket, I ended up re-gifting it to a young couple who only had one, refused their offer to make up the difference. Between the huge, green-painted pillars, I saw a beautiful young woman sitting on the marble platform reading a book, her two long legs hanging in the air hooked at the angles, swinging. She was holding a book in one hand, and was picking sunflower seeds out of the bag at her side with the other, the shells she\'d spit out had amassed into a pile, she was humming a song, turning a page now and then, leisurely and unrestrained, delicate and lovely. I quietly walked up behind her, and stood on tiptoe to look at the book that had fascinated her so. It was a profound works of literary theory, I skimmed it for bit, [found it dull and insipid], and I was just about to turn around and leave, when I suddenly heard the girl say:\r\n\r\n\"You don\'t understand it, huh?\" she turned up her face, looking at me with a smile. \r\n\r\nMy face turned red, and I felt at a loss that I [was still capable of] getting embarrassed. After a moment, I settled down, and said: \"You\'re just a student, sitting here in the park reading is a bit of affectation.\" \r\n\r\n\"I\'ve been sitting here all afternoon, look here you, see how much I\'ve read.\"\r\n\r\nShe quickly flipped through all the pages she\'d read, and I pinched that thick stack, and thinking back on the contents, asked doubtfully, \"You read that quickly?\" \r\n\r\n\"I don\'t understand it either, but I read it quickly.\" \r\n\r\nWe both smiled. \"I\'m done reading.\" The girl put the book to one side. \"You have somewhere to be?\" she asked me. \r\n\r\n\"No,\" I said. \"No appointments.\" \r\n\r\n\"[Shall we] chat [for a bit]?\"\r\n\r\n\"Let\'s chat.\" \r\n\r\nI sat down next to her, and she pushed the bag of sunflower seeds over to me. I didn\'t really know how to crack the sunflower seeds [with my teeth], and [when I tried] spittle went everywhere.\r\n\r\n\"Watch me.\" The girl demonstrated with a single sunflower seed, her pure white teeth flashing, and I subconsciously closed my mouth over my own tobacco smoke-yellowed teeth. But she didn\'t notice, swinging her legs in all directions. \"What school are you from?\" I noticed there was a school emblem on her inside sweater. Biting down on a sunflower seed, the girl looked at me and smiled. \r\n\r\n\"That\'s called \'cottoning up\',\" she said. \"Next you\'ll probably say whatever school you\'re from, and that our schools are so close to each other, maybe we can run into each other every day...\" \r\n\r\n\"You think I look like a student?\" I said. \"I\'m a criminal freed from the work camps, I extort people for a living.\"\r\n\r\n\"I don\'t care what you are,\" the girl said, smiling and looking at her toes, as if there was something amusing there. \"Whatever you are is nothing to me.\" \r\n\r\nI didn\'t speak for a while, and the girl didn\'t speak either, just looked on, pleased, as the evening light disappeared on the horizon and the sky quickly dimmed, but didn\'t lose its magnificent clouds: \"That cloud looks like Marx, that one looks like a pirate, doesn\'t it, don\'t you think so?\" \r\n\r\n\"How old are you?\" the girl turned her head to look at me, carefully looking me over. \"You, doesn\'t look like you\'ve been with that many women.\" \r\n\r\n\"Nope,\" I said, lying to her without a change in expression or a thump of the heart. \r\n\r\n\"I could tell right away, little boy! As I was reading my book just now, I saw you standing far away, wanting to talk to me but also timid, afraid I\'d curse you, huh?\"　\r\n\r\n\"[Actually,] I\'ve slept with over 100 women.\"\r\n\r\nThe girl let loose a laugh, unbridled and amused. \r\n\r\n\"You laugh,\" I said, \"like a dumb chick.\"　　\r\n\r\nShe suddenly stopped laughing, angrily throwing me a scornful glance, \"I didn\'t criticize you, don\'t criticize me. Truthfully speaking, I\'ve already been with someone for a year.\" The girl smiled again, quite satisfied with herself. \r\n\r\n\"Is it one of your idiot classmates?\" 　\r\n\r\n\"He\'s not an idiot, he\'s a cadre in the student union.\"　　\r\n\r\n\"Then he\'s stupid beyond measure.\"　\r\n\r\n\"Huh, a little baby like you who\'s only been kissed by his parents doesn\'t deserve to speak of him.\"　\r\n\r\n\"If I was him, I\'d already have had the courage to bed you,\" I said, smiling lightly. \"Has he dared?\"　　\r\n\r\nAlthough the sky was already gloomy, I perceived the girl\'s face reddening, \"He respects me.\" \r\n\r\nI tittered, \"Oh, respect, don\'t even, no need for us to talk about that. And no need for you to play dumb.\"  \r\n\r\nThe girl sat there vexed for a while saying nothing. I started whistling, started sucking on a cigarette, passed her the cigarette pack, she shook her head. \r\n\r\n\"Busted again, aren\'t you?\" I teased her, \"willing to read a book in broad daylight, but can\'t smoke cigarettes, [guess you\'re] only half-fashionable.\"\r\n\r\n\"Don\'t be obnoxious.\" Still, unwilling to be conquered, she said, \"Give me one!\"\r\n\r\nI passed her the cigarette that was in my mouth, she took a puff, and <em>heng</em>, blew it all out. I stretched an arm around her shoulder, she trembled a second, but didn\'t refuse. I pulled her near to me, she looked at me from close up, pushed my arm off, and with a forced smile said: \r\n\r\n\"I might believe a little that you\'ve slept with over 100 women.\" \r\n\r\n\"What are you doing only \'believing a little\', you ought to just believe. You want to know what they call me? The Old Pistol.\"　\r\n\r\nI heard her grabbing up all of her books, and she said with a nasty smile, \"Well, <em>I</em> call you scared.\" \r\n\r\n\"Well, I\'m not.\"\r\n\r\nThe girl stood up: \"I should probably go.\"\r\n\r\n\"Do you dare tell me your name, or where you live?\"　\r\n\r\nThe girl jumped off the platform, her bright, crystal eyes flashed in the darkness, and she said smiling, \"Ah ha! I thought maybe you weren\'t like everyone else, [talking shit] half the day, but then sinking into mediocrity.\"　　\r\n\r\n\"Fine, I\'m mediocre. Go. Hey,\" I called her to stop, \"If we meet again, let\'s consider ourselves friends.\"\r\n\r\n\"Sure, friends,\" she said, and smiling, left.　\r\n\r\nI sat for a while on the platform smiling genially, then I too jumped down and left. 　\r\n\r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Novels: Start reading Chinese gangster novel 《一半是火焰，一半是海水》by Wang Shuo', 'In our most challenging post yet, you\'ll read the first chapter of controversial literary bad boy Wang Shuo\'s dark plunge into the criminal underbelly of Beijing. HSK 6+, not suitable for children.', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '2453-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-05-31 22:37:09', '2020-06-01 02:37:09', '', 2453, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/05/31/2453-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(928, 1, '2011-11-29 14:00:19', '2011-11-29 19:00:19', '', '20111205', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111205', '', '', '2011-11-29 14:00:19', '2011-11-29 19:00:19', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/20111205.gif', 0, 'attachment', 'image/gif', 0),
(929, 1, '2011-11-29 14:02:24', '2011-11-29 19:02:24', '', 'Practice Simplified Chinese Reading with Intermediate Texts and Passages', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111205-inline', '', '', '2011-11-29 14:02:24', '2011-11-29 19:02:24', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/20111205-INLINE.gif', 0, 'attachment', 'image/gif', 0),
(933, 1, '2011-12-10 07:00:22', '2011-12-10 12:00:22', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short, easy (very) beginner read about a child going ice-skating. The word \"ice skating\" appears about a bazillion times in the space of these few sentences, so, after reading this, you may expect to recognize the word for the rest of your natural life. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111210-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Simplified Chinese Essay - Chinese Reading Passage\" title=\"Beginner Simplified Chinese Essay - Chinese Reading Passage\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />A note: The characters 周井寒 which appear in this essay are a person\'s name. The person is referred to twice, first by their given name, 井寒, then by their full name, 周井寒. The person\'s relationship to the author isn\'t really specified. This clearly isn\'t the name of the child\'s mother, as 周井寒 is referred to as a \"he\". \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueyinianjizuowen/2011-11-28/1322449584234905.html\">And here\'s the original source</a>\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>快乐的我</h4>\r\n早上，我把<strong>作业</strong>写好了，妈妈起来了，我对妈妈说: “妈妈，我把作业都做好了。”吃过<strong>早饭</strong>后，妈妈<strong>带</strong>我去<strong>溜冰</strong>。到了<strong>溜冰场</strong>，我穿好<strong>溜冰鞋</strong>，开始溜冰了。溜冰的时候，我一不小心<strong>摔倒</strong>了，井寒把我<strong>扶</strong>起来了，我<strong>连声</strong>说: “谢谢你，周井寒。”周井寒摔倒了，我也把他扶起来。　　\r\n\r\n今天，你帮我，我帮你，我们<strong>互相</strong>帮助，我们真快乐啊！　　\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nIn the morning, I finished my homework, and [when] mother got up, I said to her: \"Mama, I finished all my homework.\" After we ate breakfast, mama took me ice skating. When we got to the ice rink, I put on my ice skates and began ice skating. When I was ice skating, I wasn\'t being careful and fell down, and Jing Han helped me back up, I repeatedly said: \"Thank you, Zhou Jing Han.\" Zhou Jing Han fell down, and I also helped him up.  \r\n\r\nToday, you help me, I help you, we help each other, we\'re so happy! \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Essay: Happy Me!', '', 'publish', 'open', 'open', '', 'happy-me', '', '', '2020-04-28 19:40:08', '2020-04-28 23:40:08', '', 0, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/?p=933', 0, 'post', '', 5),
(1812, 1, '2020-04-20 06:06:04', '2020-04-20 10:06:04', '[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"yes\" class=\"\"]\r\nA short, easy (very) beginner read about a child going ice-skating. The word \"ice skating\" appears about a bazillion times in the space of these few sentences, so, after reading this, you may expect to recognize the word for the rest of your natural life. <!--more-->\r\n\r\n<img src=\"http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111210-INLINE.jpg\" alt=\"Beginner Simplified Chinese Essay - Chinese Reading Passage\" title=\"Beginner Simplified Chinese Essay - Chinese Reading Passage\" width=\"100\" height=\"100\" class=\"imgborder alignleft\" />A note: The characters 周井寒 which appear in this essay are a person\'s name. The person is referred to twice, first by their given name, 井寒, then by their full name, 周井寒. The person\'s relationship to the author isn\'t really specified. This clearly isn\'t the name of the child\'s mother, as 周井寒 is referred to as a \"he\". \r\n\r\n<a href=\"http://www.tom61.com/youxiuzuowen/xiaoxueyinianjizuowen/2011-11-28/1322449584234905.html\">And here\'s the original source</a>\r\n\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]\r\n\r\n<div class=\"readingPassage\">\r\n[su_row]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\r\n<h4>快乐的我</h4>\r\n早上，我把<strong>作业</strong>写好了，妈妈起来了，我对妈妈说: “妈妈，我把作业都做好了。”吃过<strong>早饭</strong>后，妈妈<strong>带</strong>我去<strong>溜冰</strong>。到了<strong>溜冰场</strong>，我穿好<strong>溜冰鞋</strong>，开始溜冰了。溜冰的时候，我一不小心<strong>摔倒</strong>了，井寒把我<strong>扶</strong>起来了，我<strong>连声</strong>说: “谢谢你，周井寒。”周井寒摔倒了，我也把他扶起来。　　\r\n\r\n今天，你帮我，我帮你，我们<strong>互相</strong>帮助，我们真快乐啊！　　\r\n</div>\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[su_column size=\"1/2\" center=\"no\" class=\"\"]\r\n[hide-this-part morelink=\"Show English translation\"]\r\nIn the morning, I finished my homework, and [when] mother got up, I said to her: \"Mama, I finished all my homework.\" After we ate breakfast, mama took me ice skating. When we got to the ice rink, I put on my ice skates and began ice skating. When I was ice skating, I wasn\'t being careful and fell down, and Jing Han helped me back up, I repeatedly said: \"Thank you, Zhou Jing Han.\" Zhou Jing Han fell down, and I also helped him up.  \r\n\r\nToday, you help me, I help you, we help each other, we\'re so happy! \r\n[/hide-this-part]\r\n[/su_column]\r\n[/su_row]</div>', 'Happy Me!', '', 'inherit', 'closed', 'closed', '', '933-revision-v1', '', '', '2020-04-20 06:06:04', '2020-04-20 10:06:04', '', 933, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2020/04/20/933-revision-v1/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(934, 1, '2011-11-29 18:49:56', '2011-11-29 23:49:56', '[two_third]\nA short, easy (very) beginner read about a child going ice-skating. The word \"ice skating\" appears about a bazillion times in the space of these few sentences, so, after reading this, you may expect to recognize the word for the rest of your natural life. <!--more-->\n\nA note: The characters 周井寒 which appear in this essay are a person\'s name. The person is referred to twice, first by their given name, 井寒, then by their full name, 周井寒. The person\'s relationship to the author isn\'t really specified. This clearly isn\'t the name of the child\'s mother, as 周井寒 is referred to as a \"he\". \n\nThe Chinese title of this essay is 快乐的我. \n\n[/two_third]\n[one_third last=last]\n<div class=\"postintro\">\n<h4>Click to Listen</h4>\n作业 - [pinyin]zuo4 ye4[/pinyin] - Homework\n早饭 - [pinyin]zao3 fan4[/pinyin] - Breakfast\n带 - [pinyin]dai4[/pinyin] - To take (someone) to do (something)\n溜冰 - [pinyin]liu1 bing1[/pinyin] - Ice skating\n溜冰场 - [pinyin]liu1 bing1 chang2[/pinyin] - Ice skating rink\n溜冰鞋 - [pinyin]liu1 bing1 xie2[/pinyin] - Ice skates\n摔倒 - [pinyin]shuai1 dao3[/pinyin] - To fall down\n扶 - [pinyin]fu2[/pinyin] - Help someone up, to support with one\'s hand\n连声 - [pinyin]lian2 sheng1[/pinyin] - Say repeatedly, say over and over\n互相 - [pinyin]hu4 xiang1[/pinyin] - Each other, mutually\n</div>\n[/one_third]\n\n<hr />\n\n[one_half]\n<div id=\"chinesetext\">\n早上，我把<strong>作业</strong>写好了，妈妈起来了，我对妈妈说: “妈妈，我把作业都做好了。”吃过<strong>早饭</strong>后，妈妈<strong>带</strong>我去<strong>溜冰</strong>。到了<strong>溜冰场</strong>，我穿好<strong>溜冰鞋</strong>，开始溜冰了。溜冰的时候，我一不小心<strong>摔倒</strong>了，井寒把我<strong>扶</strong>起来了，我<strong>连声</strong>说: “谢谢你，周井寒。”周井寒摔倒了，我也把他扶起来。　　\n\n今天，你帮我，我帮你，我们<strong>互相</strong>帮助，我们真快乐啊！　　\n</div>\n[/one_half]\n\n[one_half last=last][hide-this-part morelink=\"SHOW ENGLISH TRANSLATION\"]\nIn the morning, I finished my homework, and [when] mother got up, I said to her: \"Mama, I finished all my homework.\" After we ate breakfast, mama took me ice skating. When we got to the ice rink, I put on my ice skates and began ice skating. When I was ice skating, I wasn\'t being careful and fell down, and Jing Han helped me back up, I repeatedly said: \"Thank you, Zhou Jing Han.\" Zhou Jing Han fell down, and I also helped him up.  \n\nToday, you help me, I help you, we help each other, we\'re so happy! \n[/hide-this-part][/one_half]', 'Happy Me!', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '933-revision-v1', '', '', '2011-11-29 18:49:56', '2011-11-29 23:49:56', '', 933, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/2011/11/29/933-revision/', 0, 'revision', '', 0),
(935, 1, '2011-11-29 19:17:44', '2011-11-30 00:17:44', '', '20111210', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111210', '', '', '2011-11-29 19:17:44', '2011-11-30 00:17:44', '', 933, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111210.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0),
(936, 1, '2011-11-29 19:18:39', '2011-11-30 00:18:39', '', 'Beginner Simplified Chinese Essay - Chinese Reading Passage', '', 'inherit', 'open', 'open', '', '20111210-inline', '', '', '2011-11-29 19:18:39', '2011-11-30 00:18:39', '', 933, 'http://chinesereadingpractice.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/20111210-INLINE.jpg', 0, 'attachment', 'image/jpeg', 0);
