James Bond

Question 1

Where was the speaker born?

Answer 1

The speaker was born at Tongji Hospital in Hankou, Wuhan.

Example sentence: 我在汉口同济医院出生的那天。

Question 2

What did the speaker’s father do to reach the hospital during a snowstorm?

Answer 2

The speaker’s father borrowed a donkey from farmers near the Fruit Lake and rode it to reach the hospital.

Example sentence: 他向省委所在地水果湖附近的农民借了一头毛驴。

Question 3

How did the speaker’s father cross the Yangtze River to reach the hospital?

Answer 3

The speaker’s father took a ferry with the donkey to cross the Yangtze River.

Example sentence: 由于崭新的长江大桥被各种停滞的车辆堵得水泄不通,我父亲就牵着毛驴坐轮渡过了江。

Question 4

How does the speaker feel about the city of Wuhan?

Answer 4

The speaker feels familiar and connected to the city of Wuhan due to a simple life event.

Example sentence: 仅仅也就是因为发生了这么一个简单的生活片断,我就对这个城市没有了生疏感。

Question 5

What is one of the contradictions the speaker has with the city of Wuhan?

Answer 5

One of the contradictions is that the streets in Wuhan do not follow the traditional east-south-west-north orientation.

Example sentence: 武汉市的街道不分东南西北,随着长江的流向分上上下下。

Question 6

What is the speaker’s experience with the roads in Beijing?

Answer 6

The speaker found the roads in Beijing to be very straightforward and well-organized, yet still managed to get lost.

Example sentence: 然而我总在北京迷路。

Question 7

What is the common feeling of the speaker towards Beijing’s road?

Answer 7

The speaker finds Beijing’s road very law-abiding.

Example sentence: The code of the road in Beijing is very respectful of the law.

Question 8

Why does the speaker often get lost in Beijing?

Answer 8

The speaker often gets lost in Beijing due to the lack of sunlight for orientation.

Additional information: The speaker mentions the need for sun orientation in Beijing, but Beijing often lacks sunlight.

Question 9

What is a key point of confusion for the speaker when receiving directions in Beijing?

Answer 9

The speaker gets confused when instructed to go east or north as they do not know the directions.

Example sentence: The pedestrians on the road told the speaker to go east, then north, which only made the speaker more confused.

Question 10

Why does the speaker feel disoriented in Beijing in recent years?

Answer 10

The speaker attributes recent disorientation in Beijing to severe air pollution affecting visibility.

Additional information: The speaker mentions that getting lost in recent years is due to severe air pollution, causing the sky to be covered with gray clouds.

Question 11

What is the meaning of ‘zhì wú jǐn suì yuè’?

Answer 11

It’s all just like a dream (third chapter, optional)

This phrase is used to describe how the city of Wuhan felt to the speaker.

Question 12

What happened to the city of Wuhan on that day?

Answer 12

The city was heavily snowed in. The speaker’s family was holding a meeting. After the meeting, the snow had already blocked the traffic.

The city was experiencing heavy snowfall, causing traffic disruptions.

Question 13

What did the speaker do while walking on the Chang Jiang bridge?

Answer 13

The speaker was cutting and tying. The speaker felt lost in Wuhan and was not familiar with the main streets.

The speaker was engaged in cutting and tying while feeling disoriented in the city.

Question 14

What does the speaker learn from observing the river?

Answer 14

The speaker can understand the general situation of the city by observing the river. The speaker saw the shadow of his father-in-law, and the smooth hair on the horse’s back. This means that the speaker has a distant and unconnected relationship with the city.

Observing the river helps the speaker gain insight into the city.

Question 15

How does Da Mao perceive Wuhan?

Answer 15

Da Mao’s impression of Wuhan is very chaotic, with some negative feelings. He believes that a city has three major districts, but they are completely different and are not connected.

Da Mao’s perception of Wuhan is disorganized and fragmented.

Question 16

What is the impression of Mao towards the people in Wuhan?

Answer 16

Very chaotic and disorganized, but he still believes that the city has three major districts, and the relationship between them is very harmonious. This situation is really unimaginable!

Example sentence: People often laugh at him, saying that he is like a child.

Question 17

What does Mao often do in handling difficult situations?

Answer 17

He always avoids answering directly, and his words are often ambiguous. He tends to avoid taking a clear stance.

Example sentence: Students often joke that he is indecisive.

Question 18

How does Mao deal with the issue of self-respect?

Answer 18

He is easily hurt in terms of self-respect, similar to a child, often showing in irrelevant places. For example, they need to show that they know how to take medicine correctly, even though who can really take medicine correctly?

Example sentence: He gets offended easily when someone questions his knowledge.

Question 19

What is the relationship between Beijing and Wuchang according to Mao?

Answer 19

The streets in Wuchang are divided into upper and lower sections, which Mao considers incomprehensible. Mao says that in our city, Chinese cities are mostly square, with roads running in all directions. Look at Beijing, the residential areas are divided into north, south, east, and west, who can differentiate clearly?

Example sentence: Mao believes that the layout of streets in Beijing is confusing.

Question 20

What is the unique aspect of the roads in Beijing according to Mao?

Answer 20

The roads in Beijing are very narrow and winding, but Mao always gets lost in Beijing. Once, when visiting a friend’s house, I lost my way. The pedestrians on the road quickly told me to go east and then walk straight, out of the alley to the north, and walk a few miles to the east. This clear direction made me even more confused, as I never knew where was east, where was west, and where was north.

Example sentence: Mao often gets lost in Beijing due to the confusing layout of the streets.

Question 21

What was Mao’s experience when trying to find his way in Beijing?

Answer 21

When trying to find his way in Beijing, Mao often got lost and ended up going in the wrong direction. This clear direction only made him more confused, as he could not distinguish between east, west, and north.

Example sentence: Mao’s sense of direction is very poor.

Question 22

What direction is the lake when the speaker is in the west?

Answer 22

The lake is to the north when the speaker is in the west.

This indicates that the speaker is more familiar with the north than the east.

Question 23

Why do they need the sun’s guidance on their journey in Beijing?

Answer 23

They need the sun’s guidance because Beijing often lacks sunlight.

There was a day when the speaker missed the exact time to meet a friend for a prepared meal due to heavy air pollution.

Question 24

What color is the sky in Beijing nowadays?

Answer 24

The sky in Beijing is often covered in grayish haze nowadays.

This is due to the heavy pollution in the air.

Question 25

What does the speaker always hope for when encountering a taxi in Beijing?

Answer 25

The speaker always hopes for a chance to speed up the journey when encountering a taxi in Beijing.

But the speaker and the taxi driver always seem to have conflicting intentions.