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有趣的英语故事阅读
丈夫用马换回了一袋烂苹果，大家肯定都会绝对妻子会骂他吧?结果不然，想知道怎么回事吗?快跟小编一起看看下面的故事吧!
The old man who did no wrong
In the countryside, there is a cottage with a thatched roof. There is a shock's nest on the eaves. The wall slopes and there are flowers in the window. They have a pot-bellied stove. In this cottage live an old couple -- a peasant and his wife. Even though they are poor, they are not attached to their few possessions. They have a horse.
One day, the old woman says: "Husband, today is the market day. You ride the horse, sell it or exchange it for something else…you will never do anything wrong." The sun is blazing2 hot. There are no clouds in the sky. The road is dusty. What's more, there is no where to shelter. Just then, a man approaches with a cow. The cow is healthy and better than others. "It is sure to make the best milk!" the peasant thinks. "It would be a good buy for me to exchange the cow for the horse…" "Hello, friend." he says. "I think that the hose3 is worth more than the cow, but I don't mind. The cow is more useful to me. Will you trade with me?" "Certainly, I will." The man who is leading the cow says. So they trade. The peasant could have gone home because he had done what he wanted to do. But since he was on his way to the market, he resolves to go and have a look. Therefore, he continues up the road with the cow. In no time, he catches up with a man who is leading a sheep which is nice and fat with good wool. "I want this very much, the peasant thinks in his heart, it can eat the grass beside the ditch. In winter, it can stay with me in the house. Maybe a sheep is better than a cowl. Then the peasant trades the sheep for the cow. After this, he leads the sheep onward4. On the road, he see a man with a big goose under his arm near a fence. " The peasant says: "You have such a big goose! It's feathers are thick and it is fat. If I tie it and put it in the little pond, it is good. My wife can feed it, fruit peels and cabbages. She has often said ‘I want to have a goose. Now she may realize her dream.'" The man agrees. So they trade. The peasant now owns a goose. He walks into the town. There so many people on the road. The people and the animals are like rabbits in a warren. The peasant comes to a ditch next to the fence of the taxman's potato field. A hen is tied in the field. Seeing this, the peasant thinks: "This hen is the best one which I have seen. It is better than the priest's hen. On my! I want this one. A hen can find grain and fend5 for itself. It will be a good buy if I trade the hen with the goose." "May we trade?" he says. "Trade?" The man says. "Oh, that's not bad." So they trade. The taxman gets the goose and the peasant owns the hen. He has done a lot of business on the way to the market. It is hot and he feels tired. He wants to eat and drink something. He walks toward a tavern6. As he is going in, a seller is coming out. They meet at the gate. "What do you have in the sack?" The peasant asks. "Mashed7 apples" the seller says. "a bag of apples to feed pigs" The peasant say: "There are so many. I wish my wife could see this. Last year, our apple tree just produced three apples. We stored them in the cupboard until it split8 out. It is a fortune. My wife said. Now, she may see quite a fortune. Yes, I wish she could see this." "How much?" the seller asks. "How much? I want trade it with the hen. " So he gets a bag of mashed apples. When he goes into the tavern to the bar, he put the apples near the stove. He does not realize that the fire is burning. There are so many people in the room, including the horseman, the dealer9 and two Englishmen who are very rich. There is a sound: the fire is toasting the apples. "What are those?" Soon they know that the peasant traded the cow with a horse and continued to trade until he got a bag of mashed apples. "Ah, when you go home, I am sure that your wife will hit you", the two Englishmen say, "She will quarrel with you." "She will give me a kiss and she will not hit me." the peasant says, "my wife will say my husband is always correct." They say: "we can bet one hundred and eleven pounds!" The peasant says: "I can juts10 bet a bag of mashed apples. What's more, I may add my wife and myself to the bet. I think that makes it fair." "Good, very good!" they say. So the bet is made. The master drives out his cart. The two Englishmen and the peasant with mashed apples get on it. After a while, they reached the peasants' house.
"Good evening, wife!"
"Good evening, husband!"
"I have traded."
"You know what you have done." the old woman says so she hugs him. So they forget all the guests and the apples.
"I traded a cow for the horse."
"Thank goodness, we have milk." the old woman says. "We have milk and cheese. That was a good deal."
"Yes, but I traded a sheep for the cow."
"Ah, that is better!" the old woman says, "That was considerate of you. We have enough grass to raise the sheep. Now I have white cheese and woolen11 socks. Yes, we have woolen night clothes. A cow will not produce so many things. Its hair will fall out. It is considerate of to do that."
"But I traded a goose for it!"
"My dear, we will have goose on St. Martin's festival. You always make me happy. It is a good idea. We may raise the goose which will be fat before the St. Martin's festival. "
"But I traded a hen for it." Her husband says.
"A hen?"
"That was a great deal!" the old woman says. "The hen will lay eggs which will hatch1 into chicks. We just need a brood12 of chicks."
"But I traded a bag of mashed apples for it."
"Now I can not help kissing you." the old woman says, "Thank you, my good husband! Now I will tell you something. As you know, after you left, I planned to cook for you. I remember that pancakes are your favorite food. But I have no caraway seed. So I borrow some from the school teacher. I knew that they had some. But the teacher's wife is so mean. I asked her to lend some to me. ‘Borrow?' she says to me. ‘We planted nothing in the vegetable garden besides a mashed apple. We can't lend you because I don't have any apples.' Now I can lend her ten mashed apples or a bag of mashed apples. Husband, this is so funny!" She kissed him after saying this.
"This is wonderful!" the two Englishmen say together, "Always he is always meeting misfortune13, he is happy. That is good fortune." Then they pay the peasant 111 pounds because he does not get hit but gets a kiss.
Yes, if an old woman thinks her husband is the cleverest man in the world and says what he does is right, she will gain!
词汇积累
1 hatch hejxU
n.孵化，舱口;vt.孵，孵出，策划;vi. 孵化
参考例句：
No one knows how the new plan will hatch out.谁也不知道这新方案将怎样制订出来。
The bird mistook the pebble for egg and tried to hatch it.这只鸟错把卵石当蛋，想去孵它。
2 blazing jxrzt7
a.强烈的，燃烧的，炫目的
参考例句：
A huge fire was blazing in the fireplace. 壁炉中火烧得正旺。
a blazing hot day 大热天
3 hose bdqzP
n.输水软管，长统袜;vt.浇园子，用管冲洗
参考例句：
Connect the hose to the tap and turn on the tap.把水管接在龙头上，打开水龙头。
After raining,I always hose the yard out.雨后，我总是用软管把院子冲干净。
4 onward 2ImxI
adj.向前的，前进的;adv.向前，前进，在先
参考例句：
The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping.黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。
He followed in the steps of forerunners and marched onward.他跟随着先辈的足迹前进。
5 fend N78yA
v.照料(自己)，(自己)谋生，挡开，避开
参考例句：
I've had to fend for myself since I was 14.我从十四岁时起就不得不照料自己。
He raised his arm up to fend branches from his eyes.他举手将树枝从他眼前挡开。
6 tavern wGpyl
n.小旅馆，客栈;小酒店
参考例句：
There is a tavern at the corner of the street.街道的拐角处有一家酒馆。
Philip always went to the tavern,with a sense of pleasure.菲利浦总是心情愉快地来到这家酒菜馆。
7 mashed Jotz5Y
a.捣烂的
参考例句：
two scoops of mashed potato 两勺土豆泥
Just one scoop of mashed potato for me, please. 请给我盛一勺土豆泥。
8 split avXwG
n.劈开，裂片，裂口;adj.分散的;v.分离，分开，劈开
参考例句：
Who told you that Mary and I had split up?谁告诉你玛丽和我已经离婚了?
The teacher split the class up into six groups.老师把班级分成6个小组。
9 dealer GyNxT
n.商人，贩子
参考例句：
The dealer spent hours bargaining for the painting.那个商人为购买那幅画花了几个小时讨价还价。
The dealer reduced the price for cash down.这家商店对付现金的人减价优惠。
10 juts 83d8943947c7677af6ae56aab510c2e0
v.(使)突出( jut的第三人称单数 );伸出;(从…)突出;高出
参考例句：
A small section of rock juts out into the harbour. 山岩的一小角突入港湾。 来自辞典例句
The balcony juts out over the swimming pool. 阳台伸出在游泳池上方。 来自辞典例句
11 woolen 0fKw9
adj.羊毛(制)的.;毛纺的
参考例句：
She likes to wear woolen socks in winter.冬天她喜欢穿羊毛袜。
There is one bar of woolen blanket on that bed.那张床上有一条毛毯。
12 brood msIzk
n.同窝幼鸟一个家庭的孩子;v.孵蛋，闷想
参考例句：
The hen brought off a brood of young.母鸡孵出了一窝小鸡。
It is time for hens to brood.该是母鸡孵蛋的时候了。
13 misfortune ZjFyh
n.不幸，厄运，逆境，不幸事故，灾难
参考例句：
It is said to be an omen of misfortune.那被认为是一种不幸的先兆。
She had the misfortune to break her leg.她不幸摔断了腿。
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