Janice and Maggie work in the offices of a shipping company in Kwai Chung. They are best friends as well as work colleagues. When the two of them are together they gossip a lot about other people who work for the company. Listen to these short conversations and then answer the questions.
Conversation 1
Maggie: Listen to what I've found out about Tommy Jones in the account department you won't believe this.
Janice: Tommy Jones? That's the blond haired American guy with the beard?
Maggie: No. Tommy's English with dark hair and glasses. He's very quiet and hardly speaks to anyone.
Janice: I know who you mean. All the girls in accounts really like him. He's so polite.
Maggie Lilian asked him to her birthday party last month and he said go but he didn't turn up. You remember?
Janice: Well yes. He keeps himself to himself though, doesn't he? He hasn't got any friends at work.
Maggie: That's him. He used to work at an English bank in Central.
Janice: I've often wondered why he moved here. He's only a junior accountant and he must be in his late thirties.
Maggie: Well, guess what I've found out? A friend who knows someone who works at the bank told me just by chance.
Janice: Go on.
Maggie: Rumour has it that he stole some money from the bank by making mistakes in the accounts on purpose.
Janice: No! I can't believe that!
Maggie: It's true. He was dismissed from his job even though the bosses couldn't prove anything. He disappeared from Hong Kong back to England for a while.
Janice: Why did he come back? And how did he get a job here?
Maggie: I don't know. It's all very strange.
Janice: I'm going out with Sandy from accounts for dinner at the weekend. I'll ask her if she knows anything. I bet she'll be surprised when I tell her what we know. Mmmmmmm.... interesting.
Conversation 2
Janice: Ooh, do you know what I heard? Do you remember Michelle Wong who used to be Mr Li's personal assistant?
Maggie: Yes. A spotty faced girl with no dress sense. She reminded me of Ugly Betty.
Janice: That's her.
Maggie: She got a better job as P A to the manager of that luxury hotel in Sheung Wan.
Janice: That's right. However she got that job, we'll never know.
Maggie: True.
Janice: Well, I heard yesterday that the police had arrested her at the weekend in Tsim Sha Tsui.
Maggie: What!!!???
Janice: Yes. She was caught shoplifting. An assistant saw her put a silk top into her bag without paying for it. The store security man stopped her and sent for the police.
Maggie: I can't believe that.
Janice: Perfectly true. My mun plays mahjong with a friend of her mum's and I she's been telling everyone what happened.
Maggie: I wonder if Mr Li knows?
Janice: I have to take some papers to his office this afternoon. I'll ask his secretary if she's heard anything. She's a real gossip and she'll definitely tell Mr Li by the end of the day. He thought a lot of Michelle and was sorry to see her leave. I'd love to see his face when he finds out.