很久很久以前，洪水经常泛滥。大水淹没了田地，冲毁了房屋，毒蛇猛兽到处伤害百姓和牲畜，人们的生活痛苦极了。
洪水给百姓带来了无数的灾难，必须治好它。当时，一个名叫鲧的人领着大家治水。他只知道筑坝挡水，九年过去了，洪水仍然没有消退。他的儿子禹继续治水。
禹离开了家乡，一去就是十三年。这十三年里，他到处奔走，曾经三次路过自己家门口。可是他认为治水要紧，一次也没有走进家门看一看。
禹吸取了鲧治水失败的教训，采用疏导的办法治水。他和千千万万的人一起，开通了很多河道，让洪水通过河道，最后流到大海里去。洪水终于退了，毒蛇猛兽被驱赶走了，人们把家搬了回来。大家在被水淹过的土地上耕种，农业生产渐渐恢复了，百姓重新过上了安居乐业的生活。
洪 [hóng] 洪水毒 [dú] 毒蛇猛兽
蛇 [shé] 毒蛇
兽 [shòu] 猛兽
伤 [shāng] 伤害
灾 [zāi] 灾难
难 [nàn] 灾难
道 [dào] 知道 河道
仍 [réng] 仍然
退 [tuì] 消退
继 [jì] 继续治水
续 [xù] 继续
认 [rèn] 认为
训 [xùn] 教训
被 [bèi] 毒蛇猛兽被驱赶走了
恢 [huī] 恢复
业 [yè] 农业
产 [chǎn] 生产
鲧 [gǔn] Gun was a figure in Chinese mythology who was the father of Yu the Great.
禹 [yǔ] Yu the Great was a legendary king in ancient China who was the founder of the Xia dynasty.
洪水 [hóngshuǐ] flood
经常 [jīngcháng] often | frequently
泛滥 [fànlàn] be in flood | overflow
淹没 [yānmò] submerged
冲毁 [chōnghuǐ] destroy by rush of water
房屋 [fángwū] house | building
毒蛇 [dúshé] viper
猛兽 [měngshòu] beast of prey
百姓 [bǎixìng] common people
牲畜 [shēngchù] domesticated animals
痛苦 [tòngkǔ] pain | suffering
灾难 [zāinàn] disaster | catastrophe
筑坝挡水 [zhùbà dǎngshuǐ] build a dam to contain the flow of water | damming
消退 [xiāotuì] gradually vanish | fadeaway
家乡 [jiāxiāng] fatherland | hometown
曾经 [céngjīng] once | ever
可是 [kěshì] but | yet
认为 [rènwéi] think | consider
要紧 [yàojǐn] important | urgent
吸取 [xīqǔ] draw | absorb
失败 [shībài] failure | loss
教训 [jiàoxùn] lesson
采用 [cǎiyòng] adopt | use
疏导 [shūdǎo] open up a path for
开通 [kāitōng] open up | dredge
通过 [tōngguò] pass | through
耕种 [gēngzhòng] cultivate
农业 [nóngyè] agriculture | farming
生产 [shēngchǎn] production | manufacture
恢复 [huīfù] recover | resume
安居乐业 [ānjūlèyè] live and work in peace and contentment
