A driver stopped his car on a street side to have a rest. As he lay down in the seat and closed his eyes, a person came up and knocked at the window to ask the time. The driver opened his eyes and looked at his watch: "It's 8:05," he said. Then he went to sleep again. But soon he was woken up again because a second person was knocking at the window. "Sir, do you know the time?" he asked. The driver looked at his watch again, and told him it was half past eight.

    In this way, the driver thought he could not have a good rest, so he wrote a short note(纸条) and stuck(贴) it on the window for all to see. It said, "I don't know the time."

    Again, he lay down in the seat for his sleep. A few minutes later, a third person came and began to knock at the window, "Hey, sir," he said. "It's a quarter to nine."

    Lao She wrote Teahouse in 1957. The play shows the audience life in China between 1898 and 1945. It takes place in a teahouse in old Beijing and it tells us the story of Wang Lifa and his customers(顾客). It describes the changes in Chinese society over fifty years.

    The story starts in 1898 during the Qing Dynasty(朝代). It continues in 1916, and finally, it brings the audience to the end of the Anti-Japanese War（抗日战争）in 1945. After the war, Wang loses the teahouse and he dies.

    Lao She was born in Beijing in 1899. He wrote many plays, novels and short stories. He was named a “People's Artist” and a “Great Master of Language”. He was one of the greatest Chinese writers of the 20th century.

    In Lao She Teahouse today, waiters bring tea to the customers and sell them delicious Chinese food. If you like the Beijing Opera, folk music, acrobatic (杂技的) or magic shows, you can enjoy them at the teahouse. Lao She Teahouse gives a wonderful welcome to everyone around the world.

    A young queen was given a magic box by a wizard (男巫). The box would bring happiness to the whole country whenever it was opened in a place full of the spirit of generosity (慷慨).

    The queen traveled all over the country, looking for the most generous people. If she collected them all, she would open the magic box. The queen felt disappointed because nothing special happened.

    One day when the queen decided to return to her palace, she saw a poor little boy begging. She would like to give the boy some money, but she didn't have any with her. So the boy asked her if she could give him the old box. Then he could sell it for a little money. At first the queen hesitated (犹豫), because she had been told the box had magical powers. But seeing how poor the boy was, she gave it to him. The boy took the box and opened it.

    Immediately, all the most wonderful things one could imagine started flying out of the box and a voice said, "Why look for it in others? Goodness always starts in yourself. "

    While enjoying all the wonders of the magic box, the queen learned to set an example to others, and she became the best queen ever in history.

    Peter lived in a village. He was sad recently because he thought that he had nothing left. One day, Peter went to ask a wise man for help. He said to the wise man, "I have nothing left, so I don't want to live." The wise man smiled sympathetically(同情地).

    The wise man took out a piece of paper and drew a straight line down the middle. He explained that he would write down the things Peter had lost on the left side and the things Peter still had on the right side.

    The wise man asked, "When did your family leave you?"

    "What do you mean? They haven't left me. They love me!"

    "That's great!" said the wise man. "Then that will be the first thing on the right side -Family haven't left. Now, do you have freedom(自由)?"

    "That's a silly question. Of course I do!"

    "Good! That's the second one on the right side-You have freedom!" said the wise man, writing it down.

    After Peter was asked some more questions in the same way, he finally understood and smiled. "Things will change when you think of them in a different way!" he said.

    As a matter of fact, change your attitude and you will change your world. It's necessary to have a positive(积极的)attitude to life.

    Jimmy is a very kind young man. He works in a big supermarket. His workmates like him very much. Last month Jimmy caught a bad cold, and he stayed in bed for about two weeks. But after he got well, something happened-he couldn't stop winking(眨眼) . When he stayed at home, he was all right as usual. But if he went out, he couldn't stop his eyes from winking.

    Jimmy went to work the next morning. On the way he met a policeman and winked at him. The policeman felt surprised but said nothing. Then he met an old man and winked at him. The old man thought he must be mad. But still he didn't say a word.

    Real trouble started when he met women. First he met a young lady. He winked at her. The woman's face turned red, and ran away as fast as she could. And then he met an old woman who carried a walking stick. Jimmy winked at her. She looked closely at him. Jimmy winked again.

    Without saying a word, she hit Jimmy on the head with her walking stick. "Take that!" she cried out. "This is a lesson(教训) for you."

Poor Jimmy! How could he explain it? He ran away quickly. From then on, he always wears a pair of dark glasses when he goes out.

    A man got into a train and found himself sitting beside a woman. She was about thirty-five years old. Soon they began talking to each other. He asked her, "Do you have a family?" "Yes, I have one son," the woman answered. "Oh, really?" said the man. "Does he smoke?" "No." The woman answered. "That's good", man was glad to say. "I don't smoke, either. Smoking is bad for one's body son drink wine?"

    "Oh, no," the woman answered at once. "He has never drunk wine." "Good!" the man said. "And does he ever come home late at night?" "No, never," "his neighbour answered. "He goes to bed after dinner every nigh." "Well," the man said. "He's a good young man. How old is he?"

    "He's a good young man He is six months old today," the woman answered with a smile.