地道美语听力练习:遭朋友背叛

My friend Charles convinced me to go into business with him about a year ago. I wish I had had the benefit of hindsight to say “no.” I was too trusting and that was my downfall.
一年前我的朋友查尔斯说服我跟他去创业。我希望当时自己能有先见之明，对他说“不。”我太容易相信别人，这是我的软肋。

At first, everything was fine. We worked our butts off to get the business off the ground. But as soon as it looked like the business was going well, Charles turned on me. I had never been so deceived.
起先，一切都顺利。我们竭尽全力使业务走上正轨。然而，一旦公司有好转的迹象，查尔斯就背叛了我。我从未被这样深深地欺骗过。

We never signed a formal partnership agreement. Since we were old friends, we relied on a verbal agreement that we would own the business 50-50. One day, out of the blue, Charles said that as the owner of the business, he had decided that my services were no longer needed. I told him he was crazy. I was co-owner and he couldn't just fire me. He said that that was never the agreement and he was the sole owner.
我们从未签订过正式的合伙协议书。因为我们是老朋友，所以只有五五分账的口头协议。令人意外的是，有一天查尔斯对我说，作为公司的所有者他决定不再让我继续工作。我是他的合伙人，不能被他这样炒掉。他说没有任何协议能证明这一点，他是这家公司的唯一所有者。

And that is how I got cheated out of being co-owner of a successful business. My old friend Charles turned out to be unscrupulous. From now on, I'll be watching my back and looking out for my own interests. No one will ever stab me in the back again!
这就是我被骗、从一家成功企业的合伙人到被炒鱿鱼的过程。事实证明，我的老朋友查尔斯是个不择手段的人。从现在起，我会为了自己的利益，防着别人，再也不让那些想从背后捅我一刀的人有机可乘。