A Chinese podcast · Same story, 4 levels
美国参议员欠甜品店六年，帖子传开后才付钱
A Senator Pays a Bakery Bill After Six Years and a Viral Post
About this story
A Kansas campaign owed a bakery $678.75 for six years; after her viral post, he paid $1,300 but she won't vote for him. 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 12 key vocabulary words such as 但是、钱、年 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.
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原文Read the complete story in Chinese. Reveal pinyin and English only when you need them.
English transcript reference
There is a U.S. senator named Roger Marshall.
He is in Kansas.
This year he is running for re-election, and he really needs votes.
But there is an old problem: six years ago, his team bought desserts and did not pay.
The dessert seller is named Holly Thomas; she has a small shop called Holly's Sweet Treats.
She made 150 cookies; the cookies had sugar on them and were very sweet.
There were also 100 small cakes with strawberries inside.
There were also 100 chocolate cakes.
The total was $678.75.
The dollar is American money.
She waited six years; she called, she wrote emails, but no one answered.
She was very unhappy.
On Thursday, she wrote a post online.
A post is words written online that many people can see.
She said: It has been six years, and I have not forgotten.
I will not vote for him.
The post spread quickly; many people read it, and many people talked about it.
On Friday, the senator paid her the money.
On Saturday, he said online: We do not know why this happened, and we want to say sorry to her.
He gave her $1,300.
$1,300 is much more than $678.75, almost twice as much, but not exactly twice.
Holly said: His paying is the right thing, but I still will not vote for him.
Why will she not vote for him?
Because she waited too long.
The senator said: We do not know why this happened.
Holly said the order was placed by staff members, and she cannot put all the blame on him.
But she is also a shop owner, and she knows that if employees make a mistake, the boss is also responsible.
The person who placed the order was a staff member of Roger Marshall.
Holly said she is also a boss, and if her own staff make a mistake, she is also responsible.
She did not put all the blame on Roger Marshall.
But the six-year wait made it hard for her to change her mind.
If the post had not spread, would he have paid?
No one knows.
But Holly said: His paying is the right thing, but she still will not vote for him.
Think about it: if you had waited six years, would you vote for him?
Listen again
Try it without the transcript and notice what sounds clearer.
What vocabulary does this episode teach?
词汇HSK 2. Used to contrast two clauses, as in 但是有一个老问题.
HSK 1. Common noun; appears in 没有给钱 and 给了她钱.
HSK 1. Used in time expressions like 六年前 and 六年了.
HSK 2. Often followed by a clause, as in 我们不知道为什么会这样.
HSK 2. Appears in 她等了六年 and 六年的等待.
HSK 2. Used to ask a reason, as in 为什么她不给他投票？
Beyond HSK 2. A verb-object compound meaning to cast a vote; appears in 给他投票.
Beyond HSK 2. Political term for a member of a senate; appears in 美国有一个参议员.
Beyond HSK 2. General word for sweet foods; appears in 买了甜品.
Beyond HSK 2. Internet term for a post; appears in 写了一个帖子.
Beyond HSK 2. Business term for an order; appears in 订单是工作人员下的.
Beyond HSK 2. Formal term for staff; appears in 他的工作人员.
* beyond level超纲词
What grammar patterns appear in this episode?
语法有 + Object
Expresses existence: 'there is/are'. Used to introduce people or things.
美国有一个参议员，叫 Roger Marshall。
卖甜品的人叫 Holly Thomas，她有一个小店，叫 Holly's Sweet Treats。
没有 + Verb
Negates a past action with 没有, meaning 'did not'.
但是有一个老问题：六年前，他的团队买了甜品，没有给钱。
她说：六年了，我没有忘记。
如果……，会……吗？
A conditional question pattern: 'If ..., would ...?'
如果帖子没有传开，他会给钱吗？
你想一想：如果你等了六年，你会给他投票吗？
因为……
Introduces a reason or cause, meaning 'because'.
因为她等得太久了。
Proper nouns
专有名词Sources
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