When it comes to the Mid-Autumn Festival, Chinese people will certainly mention a certain mystical animal: the Jade Rabbit. It is a character from Chinese folklore, who lives on the moon with Chang’e. There are many interesting legends about the Jade Rabbit.

1. How was the Jade Rabbit selected?

    In ancient China, Wu Gang, an immortal (神仙) tasked with creating special pills which all immortals have to take every thousand years to live forever, gave some to humans. Furious, the Jade Emperor punished him and sought a new immortal medicine maker among animals. Pretending to be weak, he asked for food in a forest. A monkey and fox helped, but a rabbit, finding nothing, jumped into the fire, offering itself as food instead. Moved by what the rabbit did, the Jade Emperor made him the next immortal medicine maker.

2. How did the Jade Rabbit become the Moon Goddess’s companion?

    One day, the Queen Mother of the West came and asked for a few extra pills. The Jade Rabbit told the Queen Mother that each immortal can only receive one pill every thousand years and that the Jade Emperor forbade any additional pills to be given. The Queen Mother was very upset and insisted on having another pill. The Jade Rabbit didn’t dare to refuse any more and gave her the extra pill. Later, the Jade Emperor heard about this and asked the rabbit to determine a punishment for itself. The Jade Rabbit told the Jade Emperor that he would go and live in the Moon Palace with Chang’e and be lonely forever.

3. Why is the Moon Rabbit called the Jade Rabbit?

    The rabbit worked very hard to learn how to create immortal medicine and soon mastered the skills, making the Jade Emperor so happy that he decided to make the rabbit snow white. The rabbit’s fur was as white and smooth as jade, and so it was called the Jade Rabbit.

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1.What does the underlined word “Furious” probably mean?

A Excited.

B Shocked.

C Worried.

D Angry.

解析：选D。词义猜测题。根据划线单词后面的“the Jade Emperor punished him and sought a new immortal medicine maker among animals”可知，吴刚在天庭的工作是制作长生不老药，那种药所有神仙每一千年都必须吃一次来保持长生不老。但是吴刚将几粒长生不老药给了人类。因此，玉皇大帝处罚了吴刚并且到凡间寻找动物来代替吴刚作为仙药制造者，由此可推测玉皇大帝对此勃然大怒。故选D。

2.How did the Jade Rabbit respond when the Queen Mother of the West asked for extra pills?

A He immediately gave her the pills.

B He refused her request at first.

C He asked the Jade Emperor for advice.

D He pretended not to understand her.

解析：选B。细节理解题。根据第三段的“The Jade Rabbit told the Queen Mother that each immortal can only receive one pill every thousand years and that the Jade Emperor forbade any additional pills to be given.”可知，玉兔告诉王母娘娘，每位神仙每一千年才能得到一颗药丸，而且玉皇大帝禁止任何额外的药丸被分送出去，因此一开始玉兔拒绝了王母娘娘的要求。故选B。

3.Why did the Jade Emperor make the rabbit snow white?

A To reward it for its hard work and success in work.

B To punish it for giving the Queen Mother an extra pill.

C To make it easier for Chang’e to find it in the Moon Palace.

D To make it more attractive to other animals.

解析：选A。细节理解题。根据第四段的“The rabbit worked very hard to learn how to create immortal medicine and soon mastered the skills, making the Jade Emperor so happy that he decided to make the rabbit snow white.”玉兔非常努力地学习如何制造仙药，且不久就掌握了制药技巧，这使玉帝十分喜悦，并决定使玉兔的毛变得雪白。这表明玉帝是因为玉兔的努力和成功而奖励它，使其变得雪白。故选A。

4.What can be inferred about the Jade Rabbit’s character from the story?

A It was mean and stupid.

B It was lazy and unskilled.

C It was selfless and responsible.

D It was tricky and impolite.

解析：选C。推理判断题。根据文章内容可知，玉兔在找不到食物时，选择跳入火中，牺牲自己作为食物，这表现出它的无私；当玉兔由于害怕给了王母娘娘额外的药丸后，它勇于承担责任，接受惩罚：去和嫦娥住在广寒宫，并永远孤寂。由此可以推断出，玉兔的性格特点是无私的和有责任心的。故选C。