Christopher Columbus is famous because he found something he wasn't looking for.

    In 1492, Columbus sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in order to reach India. What he found was something far different. He found the New World. How did this come about? It all started in Italy.

    Christopher Columbus was born in Genoa in 1451. His family didn't have a lot of money, and Christopher wasn't an only child. He didn't have much of an education until he was much older. Instead, he went to sea. He sailed around the Mediterranean(地中海) and as far north as England and Ireland.

    During his travels, Columbus heard the reports of land to the west of the Madeira and Azores Islands. They were in the Atlantic Ocean west of Portugal. He wanted to know more and got maps and books on geography.

    Marco Polo said that Japan was only 1,500 miles east of China. As a result, Columbus thought that Japan was only 3,000 miles west of Portugal. And 3,000 miles was a distance that ships could travel in those days.

So, Columbus decided that he wanted to get to the East by going west. He thought that if he sailed far enough west, he would sail around the world enough to reach the East. Based on his calculations(计算), Japan was only 3,000 miles away, after all.

    Do you know Chinese movie legend Chow Yun-fat? Chow Yun-fat is a Chinese film and television actor, and is named "The Asia's greatest actor". Also, he is a photographer. Everyone likes him very much.

    Chow Yun-fat was born in Lamma Island, Hong Kong, on May 18, 1955. After his father died, his family became very poor. In his childhood, he helped his mother farm and raise chickens on the island. He was only at school for three years, and then left school to work as a porter, messenger, and salesman. In 1973, he was chosen to study in the third artist training class of the wireless TV station. He became a basic actor one year later. He went to Hollywood, the USA in 1995 and soon became the main actor in several films. He became a film superstar later.

    On October 15^th, 2018, Chow Yun-fat said he planned to give his total property $5.6 billion HKD (that's $714 million USD) to charity. "My dream is to be a happy and normal person, "Yun-fat told the reporter." The hardest thing in life is not about how much money you earn, but how to keep a peaceful mindset and live the rest of your life in a simple and carefree manner."

    Chow Yun-fat spends only $800 HKD ($102 USD) every month. He keeps frugal by taking a bus or train as often as possible and doing charity work instead of spending it on himself. He had a Nokia phone for 17 years. A few days ago, he had to use a smart phone, because his Nokia one stopped working. He always shops at discount clothing stores, because, he said: "I don't wear clothes for other people. As long as I think it's comfortable, then it's good enough for me."

Julie grew {#blank#}1{#/blank#}in Guangzhou. Last year, she moved to Harbin. She also experienced the heavy snow there. 

It was Sunday yesterday. In the afternoon,there was a strong wind and  {#blank#}2{#/blank#} were getting together in the sky. It seemed there would be a heavy snow.

At around seven o'clock,it {#blank#}3{#/blank#}to snow. At first, it snowed lightly. Then it snowed heavily. At ten o'clock,Julie went to bed. She couldn't sleep for about two hours. She was thinking about the snow."A snowstorm is coming,"she said to {#blank#}4{#/blank#} .Suddenly, a strong wind blew and the windows were broken. The floor was full of glass. Julie lived {#blank#}5{#/blank#}so there was no one to help. What great trouble she was in!

Julie had to call the police. When the police arrived,they helped Julie to repair the windows. And luckily,the snow wasn't so heavy as Julie expected. It soon stopped completely.

A good king needs honest ministers (大臣) to help him manage the country. However, one king believed that his most important minister was a bit too honest!

The Valuer's job was to say what the price of everything in the country should be. He did his best to set fair prices, so that buyers and sellers would be happy. 

This did not please the king! "A good Valuer should set the prices that I want-then I can buy things cheaply and sell them expensively. " he said. "What's the point of having a Valuer if he doesn't set the prices I want?"

Soon, the king invited a foolish man to be the Valuer and fired (解雇) the honest Valuer. People brought all kinds of goods-rocks and fruit, fans and potatoes, fish and elephants. The foolish man had no idea how much anything was worth, so he just said whatever price came into his head. People were angry about many of the prices he set, but what could they do? He was the king's Valuer, after all!

One day, a horse trader came, leading five hundred fine horses. He bowed to the king and the Valuer, and said, "How much are my horses worth?" The king wanted the horses, so he told the Valuer to set a very low price. The Valuer thought for a moment and said, "Your horses are worth. . . a cup of rice!" The horse trader was speechless! But he had no choice but to accept the Valuer's price. 

However, the next day, the horse trader went back, carrying the cup of rice he had been given. "Yesterday, you said that my five hundred horses were worth a cup of rice, " the horse trader said to the Valuer. "____"

The foolish Valuer was surprised by this question. He said, "Your cup of rice is worth, er. . . this big city, and everything in it!" There was silence. . and then everybody started shouting at once. 

"That is silly!" shouted the king. "This city is worth far more than a cup of rice!"

. . .