A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
一碗面，一台相机，和他终于看清的心
A Bowl of Noodles, a Camera, and What He Finally Saw
About this story
In Never-Ending Summer, Zhou Wan cares for Lu Xixiao while her mother pays her to push him abroad, and he films her at an amusement park and realizes she is who he wants to paint. HSK 2 Chinese listening practice.
This is an HSK 2 Chinese listening episode that runs about 3 minutes. The full Mandarin script is shown with tap-for-pinyin and a line-by-line English translation, so you can listen and read at once — comprehensible input in the sense of Stephen Krashen's i+1 theory. It teaches 13 key vocabulary words such as 钱、妈妈、家 and walks through 4 grammar patterns, each explained in English with examples. The same news story is retold at 4 difficulty levels — use the level selector above to find the version that is challenging but still understandable for you.
Read at your level
原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
Last time, Zhou Wan moved into Lu Xixiao's home.
The two of them lived together, studied together, ate together.
They grew closer and closer.
Today, let's keep going.
One day, Lu Xixiao fell ill.
Every day Zhou Wan made him warm food and took good care of him.
Lu Xixiao was happy inside; he felt Zhou Wan was truly good to him.
But even in good days there was trouble.
Zhou Wan's mother came again.
She gave Zhou Wan a check for a hundred and fifty thousand.
She said this was only half of grandma's surgery money.
Whether Zhou Wan got the other half depended on whether she obeyed.
Her mother wanted Zhou Wan to talk Lu Xixiao into going abroad alone, soon.
Only if Lu Xixiao left would the rest of the money go to Zhou Wan.
Hearing this, Zhou Wan felt awful, but she had no choice.
Now, back to Lu Xixiao.
Lu Xixiao loved to paint, but he could never paint anything of his own.
His teacher said everything he painted was just copying his late mother.
Lu Xixiao was miserable; he couldn't find what he wanted to paint.
Zhou Wan urged him to go out, see other people's lives — maybe he'd find new ideas.
So Lu Xixiao took Zhou Wan to an amusement park.
He held a camera and secretly kept filming Zhou Wan.
He asked Zhou Wan: why do you insist on helping me?
Back home, looking at Zhou Wan on the camera, he suddenly understood.
The person he truly wanted to paint was Zhou Wan.
From that day, Zhou Wan became the most important person in his paintings.
The two of them went to a very old little shop.
The grandpa there said Lu Xixiao used to come here often with his mother.
This time was the first time he'd brought a friend.
Lu Xixiao painted in the little shop, and Zhou Wan sat quietly beside him.
In that moment, the two of them were both happy.
But Zhou Wan knew clearly: this happiness had a secret in it.
She was liking Lu Xixiao more and more, while still taking her mother's money and hiding the truth from him.
This summer was both sweet and hard.
If it were you, what would you do?
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇HSK 1. 剩下的钱就会给周挽 = the rest of the money would go to Zhou Wan.
HSK 1. 周挽的妈妈又来了 = Zhou Wan's mother came again.
HSK 1. 周挽搬进了陆西骁的家 = Zhou Wan moved into Lu Xixiao's home.
HSK 1. 第一次带一个朋友来 = the first time he brought a friend.
HSK 3 (照顾), taught here. 好好地照顾他 = takes good care of him.
HSK 2 (办法). 她没有办法 = she had no choice.
HSK 3 (画), story word. 他画不出自己的东西 = he can't paint anything of his own.
Beyond HSK 2. 奶奶手术费的一半 = half of grandma's surgery fee.
Beyond HSK 2. 一张十五万的支票 = a check for 150,000.
Beyond HSK 2. 劝陆西骁早点出国 = urge Lu Xixiao to go abroad soon.
Beyond HSK 2. 他拿着相机，偷偷地拍周挽 = he films Zhou Wan with a camera.
Beyond HSK 2. Lu Xixiao takes Zhou Wan to an amusement park.
Beyond HSK 2. 这份幸福是有秘密的 = this happiness has a secret in it.
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法只要 A，就 B
只要 A，就 B = as long as A (happens), then B — a condition and its payoff.
只要陆西骁走了，剩下的钱就会给周挽。
一直 + 动词
一直 = all along / continuously, marking an ongoing action or state.
他一直画不出自己的东西。
一直偷偷地拍周挽。
忽然一下子
忽然 / 一下子 = suddenly / all at once — stacked for a sharp, sudden realization.
忽然一下子明白了。
一边 A，一边 B
一边…一边… = doing two things (here, two conflicting things) at once.
一边越来越喜欢陆西骁，一边还拿着妈妈的钱。
Proper nouns
专有名词Sources
来源Free account
Keep learning from this story
Create a free account to keep saved words and your preferred level together.
- Keep words with their story context
- Remember your preferred level
- Build your vocabulary over time