. III 阅读（共两节, 满分40分） 第一节阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分

问题：

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III 阅读（共两节, 满分40分）

第一节阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）

阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C和D项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

Carl’s parents had started a small grocery store and had built it over the years into a major supermarket. Carl now worked there full time.

He liked working at his parent’s business; it was an honest business. He had been brought up to be honest, to tell the truth, and more — he knew that there was such a thing as truth. A year ago, his homeroom teacher had said in front of the whole class:

“There is no such thing as truth.”

Carl Savinski had stood up and said, “That would make your statement false.”

“Huh?”

“That would make your statement false,” Carl had repeated. “If there is no such thing as truth, then your statement is not true. To say that there is no such thing as truth is absurd — you dumb piece of shit!”

Carl was expelled from school for two weeks. He didn’t go back. He joined his parent’s business instead.

In the past year he had learned that to be honest was not only the right thing to do but also the practical thing to do. He saw how his parents had built this business. He saw that they had made reasonable rules for the staff and employed them equally without favoritism. The staff liked working there and his parents had gained a competent work force that cared about the future of the company.

His parents had gained more customers by treating them honestly, by being fair, by giving them more value for their money. If produce was too old, they threw it out; they didn’t sell three-day old bread as fresh.

They stuck to terms with their suppliers: if payment was required in thirty days, they paid in thirty days. If a supplier accidentally shipped more than they were invoiced for, they paid for the extra; but if this happened too often, they changed suppliers. They built up honest relationships with their suppliers. And they gained: they were first to be offered a commodity in short supply, and first to receive a discount if a supplier was over stocked.

In the past year Carl Savinski saw with his own eyes, in his day-to-day job, that being honest paid. He saw that to be reasonable, to be honest, to tell the truth was practical — that one did not suffer a loss by being honest, but made a gain.

41. How long had Carl worked in his parents’ supermarket?

A. For half a year.                                         B. For more than a year.

C. For a year.                                                     D. For years.

42. What does the underlined word “expelled” mean?

A. cut off                B. driven off             C. set off                  D. warned of

43. Why did the staff like working for Carl’s parents?

A. Because the staff were all equally paid without favoritism.

B. Because Carl’s parents made strict rules for their business.

C. Because the future of the company was really promising.

D. Because the regulations were effective and the staff were equally treated.

44. Which of the following can be seen as an honest operation of the company?

A. They gave more discounts by raising the price.

B. Their butcher cut more fat off the meat.

C. They changed suppliers for cheaper goods.

D. Their contracts are occasionally not carried out.

45. What does this story mainly tell us?

A. Being honest pays off.                                 B. Being honest makes a loss.

C. Not all people believe in truth.                      D. People have a false belief in truth.