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儿童英语读物 The Mystery of the Hot Air Balloon CHAPTER 3 Too Many Questions

时间:2017-08-15 08:15来源:互联网 提供网友:qing   字体: [ ]
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When the Aldens came downstairs, Barbara met them in the entry hall. “Come into the parlor,” she said and led them into the room where the argument had taken place.

Grandfather was already there.

A table in the center of the room was set with juice, tea, coffee, and plates of pastries1 and breads.

“Oh, boy,” Benny said. “Does it smell good!”

“It tastes good, too,” Grandfather assured2 him.

“Help yourselves,” Barbara told them.

They filled their plates and sat down.

“Have you lived here long, Mrs. Moran?” Jessie asked politely.

Barbara laughed. “Oh, my, yes,” she said. “All my life. I love this old town. Please call me Barbara.” She seemed to relax for the first time since the Aldens’ arrival.

“Barbara’s grandparents and the Lloyds founded Lloyd’s Landing3,” Grandfather explained. “Does Mary still live here?” he asked Barbara.

“Mary?” she repeated as though she’d never heard the name before. “Ah, yes, she’s — uh — still . . . here.”

Mary. That was the name of the woman Barbara had been arguing with. Benny poked4 Violet5. She gave him a warning glance.

“Mary who?” Benny asked.

“Mary England,” Grandfather answered. “She’s the Lloyds’ granddaughter. As I remember she left town — wanted to see the world — but it wasn’t long before she realized there was no place like home.”

“That’s for sure,” Benny said. He took his plate back to the table for seconds.

Sky and Matt came in.

Sky looked surprised and happy. “You made it!” she said.

Benny’s smile was wide. “I told you we would.”

Grandfather stepped forward and introduced himself.

“You must be the grandfather we’ve heard so much about,” Matt said as he shook Mr. Alden’s hand.

“And you two must be the adventurers I’ve been hearing so much about,” Grandfather responded. “Are you staying here, too?”

“For the time being,” Matt answered. “We rented a store in town. There’s an apartment above it. We have some work to do on it before we can move in.”

“As soon as everything’s ready,” Sky added, “we’re getting married.”

Everyone except Barbara said, “Congratulations.”

Soo Lee was thinking about their store. She pictured it in the center of town. Surely, they couldn’t launch6 balloons from there. “Where do you . . . take off?” she asked.

Sky seemed to know what she was thinking. She laughed. “We’d certainly stop traffic if we tried to launch a balloon in the middle of Main Street.”

“The balloon port is just outside town,” Matt explained. “The store is our headquarters7.”

“No matter where you launch them,” Barbara said, “balloons will stop traffic.”

“That could be good for this old town,” Mr. Alden said. “Put some life into it.”

Barbara shot him a disbelieving glance. “There’s nothing wrong with this town,” she said. After a pause, she laughed nervously8. “Oh, dear. I didn’t mean to snap9 at you. It’s just that I don’t understand why Sky and Matt chose Lloyd’s Landing for their business.”

Matt smiled. “For the reason you said: There’s nothing wrong with this town.”

“It’s a very charming10 town,” Sky put in. “We looked all over before deciding to open our business here.”

“Yes, but with all the hills and the forests, won’t it be dangerous?” Barbara asked.

“Ballooning is dangerous only when the pilot is untrained or takes risks,” Matt answered.

“Balloonists enjoy beautiful scenery,” Sky said. “Lloyd’s Landing has plenty of that.”

“We’re so far from the main highway,” Barbara said. “Wouldn’t it be more profitable11 to locate closer to . . . traffic?”

Sky laughed. “If we wanted to make lots of money,” she responded, “we wouldn’t be in the ballooning business.”

Barbara kept asking questions.

Finally, Henry said, “I read a newspaper article about this — are the townspeople against the business coming to town?”

Barbara’s face reddened. She picked up the coffeepot. “Excuse me,” she said. “I’ll get more coffee.” She hurried away.

“Have you been having trouble with the local people?” Mr. Alden asked Matt.

“No trouble, really,” Matt answered. “They don’t know anything about ballooning so it makes them a little . . . edgy12.”

“We bought the property,” Sky said. “It’s ours. We have every right to be here.”

Barbara came in from the kitchen. “Mr. Alden, there’s a telephone call for you. You can take it in the hall.”

Grandfather sighed. “I hope it’s not the mill13.”

But it was. “I’m sorry, but I have to get back home,” he said when he returned. “I’m needed at the mill.”

The children tried to hide their disappointment, but it was difficult.

“Don’t look so sad,” Mr. Alden told them. “I think we can work this out.”

Barbara said, “The children are welcome to stay here. I’ll keep an eye on them.”

“They’re very independent,” Grandfather said. “I’m sure they won’t be any trouble.”

“I’ll be happy to have them,” Barbara said.

“They’ll be out at the port with us most of the time,” Sky put in. “We’re on our way out there now. Would you like to ride along?” she asked the children.

Suddenly, Benny was no longer hungry. He set his plate on the table. “Would we ever!”

“Good. Then it’s settled,” Mr. Alden said. He hugged each of his grandchildren. “I’ll pick you up on Sunday evening.”

“Is everybody ready?” Sky asked.

They were.

“Well then, let’s go!” She headed for the door.

The children followed.

“Oh, Benny,” Grandfather said. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

Benny cocked14 his head. “Am I?” he said.

“Your second helping15 of this delicious cinnamon bread.”

“Oh, that’s all right,” Benny said. “I’ve had enough.”


点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 pastries 8f85b501fe583004c86fdf42e8934228     
n.面粉制的糕点
参考例句:
  • He gave a dry laugh, then sat down and started on the pastries. 杜新箨说着干笑一声,坐下去就吃点心。 来自子夜部分
  • Mike: So many! I like Xijiang raisins, beef jerky, and local pastries. 麦克:太多了。我最喜欢吃新疆葡萄干、牛肉干和风味点心。
2 assured wy6znN     
a.确实的,深信的
参考例句:
  • He spoke in a calm, assured voice. 他冷静自信地说。
  • The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
3 landing wpwz3N     
n.登陆;着陆;楼梯平台
参考例句:
  • Owing to engine trouble,the plane had to make a forced landing.由于发动机出了毛病,飞机不得不进行迫降。
  • When are we landing?我们什么时候着陆?
4 poked 87f534f05a838d18eb50660766da4122     
v.伸出( poke的过去式和过去分词 );戳出;拨弄;与(某人)性交
参考例句:
  • She poked him in the ribs with her elbow. 她用胳膊肘顶他的肋部。
  • His elbow poked out through his torn shirt sleeve. 他的胳膊从衬衫的破袖子中露了出来。 来自《简明英汉词典》
5 violet 8h3wm     
adj.紫色的;n.紫罗兰
参考例句:
  • She likes to wear violet dresses.他喜欢穿紫色的衣服。
  • Violet is the color of wisdom,peace and strength.紫色是智慧的,和平的和力量的颜色。
6 launch b29xY     
vt.发动,推出;发射;n.发射,下水,投产
参考例句:
  • The makers are about to launch out a new product.制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。
  • Would it be wise to launch into this rough sea?在这样汹涌的大海中游泳明智吗?
7 headquarters Eryz21     
n.司令部,指挥部;总部,总店
参考例句:
  • Several great guns from the headquarters are coming to see us today.总部的几个大人物今天要来看我们。
  • The bank has its headquarters in Pairs.这家银行的总行在巴黎。
8 nervously tn6zFp     
adv.神情激动地,不安地
参考例句:
  • He bit his lip nervously,trying not to cry.他紧张地咬着唇,努力忍着不哭出来。
  • He paced nervously up and down on the platform.他在站台上情绪不安地走来走去。
9 snap tFCzw     
n.啪地移动,突然断掉;v.猛咬,咬断,谩骂,砰然关上
参考例句:
  • He broke off the twig with a snap.他啪地一声把那根树枝折断了。
  • These earrings snap on with special fasteners.这副耳环是用特制的按扣扣上去的。
10 charming 7wuzfa     
adj.迷人的,可爱的
参考例句:
  • She looked small and gentle and altogether charming.她看起来小巧文雅,十分迷人。
  • She has charming manners.她具有媚人的风姿。
11 profitable 5QJxW     
adj.有益的,能带来利益的,有利可图的
参考例句:
  • That business became profitable last year.那项生意去年变得很赚钱。
  • The convention business is very profitable for the hotel industry.承办会议业务能给旅馆业带来很高的利润。
12 edgy FuMzWT     
adj.不安的;易怒的
参考例句:
  • She's been a bit edgy lately,waiting for the exam results.她正在等待考试结果,所以最近有些焦躁不安。
  • He was nervous and edgy, still chain-smoking.他紧张不安,还在一根接一根地抽着烟。
13 mill rDYxf     
n.磨坊,碾磨机;制造厂,工厂;vt.磨,碾
参考例句:
  • The rice mill was wrecked by the enemy bombing.碾米厂遭到了敌机的轰炸。
  • The farmer took his grain to the mill.这个农民把谷子送到磨房。
14 cocked 99b1ff32fdb88ff7c476dee468291518     
竖起的
参考例句:
  • She cocked her hat at a jaunty angle. 她把帽子歪戴成俏皮的样子。
  • The hunter cocked his rifle. 猎人扣扳机准备射击。
15 helping 2rGzDc     
n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的,辅助的
参考例句:
  • The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
  • By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。
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