I have a searching question for readers. A searching question is a question intended to find out the truth about something. My searching question is this: Would you help a stranger who needs to make an urgent call but finds out his mobile phone is not working? It happened to me last week. My friend and I had arranged to eat fish ball noodles in Shau Kei Wan, but I couldn\'t find him at the MTR exit. I had just bought a new phone but mistakenly took my old one without a SIM card. Unable to call my friend, I asked a passerby to help. He refused.
Several others ignored me. I asked a shopkeeper who told me to ask the building security guard next door. The security guard told me to leave. Everyone refused to help even though I explained I just needed a few seconds to tell my friend where I was. I said they could make the call themselves using speakerphone without handing me the phone. After trying many times, a young passerby who may have recognized me from my old TV shows, kindly called my friend. I told my friend where I was and profusely thanked the young passerby. To profusely thank someone means to thank that person a lot.
I understand most people fear using their mobile phones to call unknown numbers because those numbers could belong to crooks (criminals) or scam artists. Scam artists are people who use dishonest schemes to trick others into giving them money through emails, social media, or phone calls. But I don’t think I look like a scam artist! Would you have helped a stranger?
我有一道 searching question給各位讀者——a searching question是一道尋根究底、探究真相的問題。我那條探究真相的問題（searching question）是：一個陌生人要打個緊急電話，卻發現自己的手機失靈了，你會幫助他嗎？上星期這件事就發生在我身上了。我約了朋友去筲箕灣吃魚蛋麵，在港鐵站出口卻找不到他。我剛買了新手機，卻誤帶了沒有電話卡的那部舊手機。我無法打電話給我的朋友，只好向一位途人求助。他拒絕了。
另外幾個人同樣無視我。我問一個店主，對方叫我問隔壁的大廈保安，保安卻叫我離開。人人都拒絕幫忙，即使我已解釋我只需要幾秒鐘，跟朋友說我在哪裏。我也說他們可以代為打這個電話，開擴音而毋須將手機交給我。試了好幾次之後，一個年輕的途人也許是從昔日的電視節目上認得我，友善地打了電話給我的朋友。我跟朋友道明我身處何方，然後便再三感謝（profusely thanked）這位年輕的途人。To profusely thank someone 是指重重的感謝某人。
我明白大多數人都會害怕用自己的手機去打電話給陌生的號碼，因為那些電話號碼說不定是屬於罪犯（crooks）或是 scam artists。Scam artists是用不誠實的計謀，透過電郵、社交媒體或電話去詐騙。可是我不認為我看起來像騙徒（scam artist）啊！你可會這樣幫助一個陌生人嗎？
[email protected]
Michael Chugani褚簡寧
中譯：七刻
