练习材料：L34-2：A happy discovery 时长：1’35
My old friend, Frank Halliday, is just such a person.
maɪ əʊld frɛnd, fræŋk Halliday, ɪz ʤʌst sʌʧ ə ˈpɜːsn.
He has often described to me how he picked up a masterpiece for a mere 50 pounds.
hiː hæz ˈɒf(ə)n dɪsˈkraɪbd tuː miː haʊ hiː pɪkt ʌp ə ˈmɑːstəpiːs fɔːr ə mɪə 50 paʊndz.
One Saturday morning, Frank visited an antique shop in my neighbourhood.
wʌn ˈsætədeɪ ˈmɔːnɪŋ, fræŋk ˈvɪzɪtɪd ən ænˈtiːk ʃɒp ɪn maɪ ˈneɪbəhʊd.
As he had never been there before, he found a great deal to interest him.
æz hiː hæd ˈnɛvə biːn ðeə bɪˈfɔː, hiː faʊnd ə greɪt diːl tuː ˈɪntrɪst hɪm.
The morning passed rapidly and Frank was about to leave when he noticed a large packing case lying on the floor.
ðə ˈmɔːnɪŋ pɑːst ˈræpɪdli ænd fræŋk wɒz əˈbaʊt tuː liːv wɛn hiː ˈnəʊtɪst ə lɑːʤ ˈpækɪŋ keɪs ˈlaɪɪŋ ɒn ðə flɔː.
The dealer told him that it had just come in, but that he could not be bothered to open it.
ðə ˈdiːlə təʊld hɪm ðæt ɪt hæd ʤʌst kʌm ɪn, bʌt ðæt hiː kʊd nɒt biː ˈbɒðəd tuː ˈəʊpən ɪt.
Frank begged him to do so and the dealer reluctantly prised it open.
fræŋk bɛgd hɪm tuː duː səʊ ænd ðə ˈdiːlə rɪˈlʌktəntli praɪzd ɪt ˈəʊpən.
The contents were disappointing.
ðə ˈkɒntɛnts wɜː ˌdɪsəˈpɔɪntɪŋ.
Apart from an interesting-looking carved dagger, the box was full of crockery, much of it broken.
əˈpɑːt frɒm ən ˈɪntrɪstɪŋ-ˈlʊkɪŋ kɑːvd ˈdægə, ðə bɒks wɒz fʊl ɒv ˈkrɒkəri, mʌʧ ɒv ɪt ˈbrəʊkən.
Frank gently lifted the crockery out of the box and suddenly noticed a miniature painting at the bottom of the packing case.
fræŋk ˈʤɛntli ˈlɪftɪd ðə ˈkrɒkəri aʊt ɒv ðə bɒks ænd ˈsʌdnli ˈnəʊtɪst ə ˈmɪnəʧə ˈpeɪntɪŋ æt ðə ˈbɒtəm ɒv ðə ˈpækɪŋ keɪs.
As its composition and line reminded him of an Italian painting he knew well, he decided to buy it.
æz ɪts ˌkɒmpəˈzɪʃən ænd laɪn ˈrɪmaɪndɪd hɪm ɒv ən ɪˈtæliən ˈpeɪntɪŋ hiː njuː wɛl, hiː dɪˈsaɪdɪd tuː baɪ ɪt.
Glancing at it briefly, the dealer told him that it was worth £50.
ˈglɑːnsɪŋ æt ɪt ˈbriːfli, ðə ˈdiːlə təʊld hɪm ðæt ɪt wɒz wɜːθ £50.
Frank could hardly conceal his excitement, for he knew that he had made a real discovery.
fræŋk kʊd ˈhɑːdli kənˈsiːl hɪz ɪkˈsaɪtmənt, fɔː hiː njuː ðæt hiː hæd meɪd ə rɪəl dɪsˈkʌvəri.
The tiny painting proved to be an unknown masterpiece by Correggio and was worth hundreds of thousands of pounds.
ðə ˈtaɪni ˈpeɪntɪŋ pruːvd tuː biː ən ʌnˈnəʊn ˈmɑːstəpiːs baɪ Correggio ænd wɒz wɜːθ ˈhʌndrədz ɒv ˈθaʊzəndz ɒv paʊndz.
任务配置：L0+L4
知识笔记：
conceal v. to prevent something from being seen or known about:
eg: Is there something you're concealing from me?
reluctantly in a way that shows that you are not willing to do something and are therefore slow to do it:
练习感悟：
Reluctantly, he did what I asked.