B

    Frederic Chopin(弗兰德里克.肖邦) was born in March, 1810, near Warsaw in Poland(波兰). He was one of the greatest musicians in the world. In 1831, he went to Paris. No people but he could play the piano very well.

    At that time people in Paris liked the Hungarian(匈牙利的) pianist Franz Liszt(弗朗兹.李斯特).One night, at a concert, Liszt went to the piano and the people shouted. As all the lights in the concert were turned off, a wonderful piano concert started. The music was so good that the listeners were all greatly interested. They kept praising the pianist and thought that Liszt had reached something new in playing the piano. Suddenly, all the lights were turned on again as the music came to an end. And there stood a young man instead of the famous Hungarian pianist Franz Liszt.

    Liszt had planned all this. As the lights went out, Liszt left his chair and let Chopin take his place. So with the help of Liszt and his own talent(天赋), Chopin soon became famous.

    Fred is eight years old. He goes to school near his home. He always goes there and comes home on foot. One day he comes home from school late. His mother sees him and asks him, "Why are you late, Fred?"

    "My teacher is very angry and asks you to go to her office tomorrow."

    "To her office? Why?" his mother asks. "Because she asks a question in the class." Says Fred. "Nobody can answer it, but I can."

    "You are so clever, my son." His mother says with a smile.

    Her question is "Who puts the tomato on my chair and makes my trousers dirty?" says Fred.

    Once there was a famine（饥荒）.A rich cook sent for twenty of the poorest children in the town and said to them, “In this basket there is a piece of bread for each of you. Take it and come back to me every day at this hour for more.”

    In a hurry the hungry children got together around the basket, and fought over the bread because each wanted the largest piece.At last they went away without even thanking the good cook. Mary, a poorly-dressed girl, did not fight with the other children,but stood quietly in distance.When the badly-behaved children had left,Mary took the smallest piece,which was all left in the basket.She kissed the cook's hand and went home.

    The next day the children were as badly-behaved as before. Mary got a piece of bread almost half the size of the one she got the first day.When she came home,her mother cut the bread open. Many new, shining pieces of silver fell out of it.

    Her mother was very worried, and said, “Take the money back to the cook at once.The silver must have fallen into the dough（面团）by accident. Hurry up, Mary” When the little girl gave the rich man her mother's message, he said, “It was no mistake.I had the silver pieces put into the smallest bread for you as a prize. Always be as satisfied, peaceable and thankful as you now are. Go home now, and tell your mother that the money is yours.”