1 / 34 句0 词已学
【阅读理解】Reading: The Aquarium on the Plateau
Ma Yulan was 34 years old and had spent six years keeping the aquarium alive.
She had studied ecology as an undergraduate and came from a rural county outside Xining.
The aquarium held 12,000 litres of artificial seawater and 240 fish, including an elderly sturgeon named Old Chen.
It sat at 2,260 metres on land that had been grassland for centuries but was now mostly dust.
Visitors paid 80 yuan to see a blue fantasy of coral and reefs in the dry highland.
Behind the scenes, Ma dealt with insulation against brutal winters, salt hauled by truck, and electricity bills that had tripled since 2019.
She had taken out three loans totalling 460,000 yuan and had missed the second installment.
Her mother disapproved, and her aunt called the endeavour a slow fraud against oneself.
In late spring, the water in the reservoir dropped below the intake pipe due to a creeping drought.
Ma tried to improvise with a detour pipe, a borrowed pump, and rationed fresh water carried in two buckets.
Most fish died, but the sturgeon survived.
A colleague, Tashi, 26, suggested releasing the survivors into a river 40 kilometres away, but Ma refused, saying the river's chemistry would poison them.
The insurance company declined the claim, and revenue had fallen 71 percent in four years.
Local officials offered a subsidy of 15,000 yuan, which Ma found insulting.
She advertised on short-video platforms, drawing 300,000 views but almost no customers.
Her daily visitors hovered around eleven.
In August, the pump failed for good.
Ma and Tashi drained the tank, and the smell hung in the chamber for weeks.
Old Chen was released into a pond at a Buddhist monastery, where an amateur monk promised to feed him.
The building now houses an exhibition on celestial observation, and Ma works as a consultant designing artificial wetlands.
She still keeps the failed pump in her apartment, next to a photograph of her father.
Questions
1. What was the main reason for the aquarium's difficulties?
A. The fish were not suited to the artificial seawater. B. The electricity bills had tripled since 2019. C. The drought caused water levels to drop below the intake pipe. D. The visitors complained about the high ticket price.
2. What does the word 'crept' in the passage most likely mean?
A. Moved slowly and quietly B. Disappeared suddenly C. Increased rapidly D. Became worse noisily
3. Why did Ma refuse to release the surviving fish into the river?
A. The river was too far away. B. The river was already polluted. C. The river was too cold for the fish. D. The river's chemistry would harm the fish.
4. What can be inferred about Ma Yulan's feelings at the end of the passage?
A. She is planning to reopen the aquarium. B. She is proud of her new job. C. She remains attached to the failed aquarium. D. She regrets not accepting the subsidy.
5. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A. How to Run an Aquarium B. The Life of a Sturgeon C. The Aquarium on the Plateau D. A Successful Business in Xining