8大中国传统故事英文版，值得收藏！（中英文本）(15)

Welcome to ALO7"s Power to Learn! Today"s story is The Jade Emperor’s Zodiac Calendar, retold by Jenny Lam and Sheila Higginson and narrated by Megann Wither.
Let’s take a trip. We will go to a place before time. The Jade Emperor rules over the Heavens. He is kind. He is wise.
The Jade Emperor wants a way to tell time. He makes hours and days.
He makes months and years. Each year has twelve months. Twelve years make one cycle.
He wants to name the years in each cycle. He is not sure what to name them. Then he sees the animals.
“I will have a race!” he says. “The first twelve animals to finish the race will have a year named for them!”
The animals hear about the race. They can’t wait!
Cat lives next door to Rat.
“We could win!” Cat tells Rat.
“I will wake up extra early,” says Rat. “I will be a winner.”
“Wake me up early, too,” Cat says to Rat. “We can go together.”
The next day, Rat wakes up extra early. He is very excited. He runs straight to the race. He forgets all about Cat!