'The Early Bird Catches The Worm!'

“早起的鸟儿有虫吃！”

At an ungodly hour in the morning or “ch’i cha pei cha” (七早八早）in Hokkian dialect, a Proton Wira with three or four passengers arrived at our residential area to do a “sure-win business” as not a single cent was needed to invest in this business. Even if the “business” venture were to turn awry, they are still guaranteed with free board and lodging courtesy of the government and paid by taxpayers.( Masuk penjara makan nasi lemak!)

日前七早八早就有一辆Proton Wira载着三、四名乘客开进我们的住宅区准备做一单稳赚无赔，又不用资本的生意～打劫。万一他们生意失败，政府还会提供他们免费吃住，由人民埋单～坐牢。

Well, the waist pouch of an old Indian man was recently snatched at the front gate of his daughter's house by another Indian man emerging from the Proton Wira.

当时，有一位年老的印度人走到他女儿家门前，正想进去拿脚踏车出来踏，被一个印度壮汉从Proton Wira下车假装问路，抢了老者的腰包，连忙乘车而逃。

那老者因为腰包被抢，一时慌张起来，不知如何是好。过后他急忙求救，叫喊道：“Curi! Curi!"

当时，或许是大多数人还在睡梦中，又或许是有人听到呼叫声也不敢出来，所以没有人跑出来拔刀相助。老人家只有眼巴巴看着跟随多年的腰包一去不回头。

The old man was helpless when confronted by a criminal who was much younger than him. All he could do was to shout out, "Curi ! Curi !” hoping that other residents in the neighbourhood would be alerted to come out to assist him. But, his attempt was in vain. Not a single soul responded to his screams! They could be too indulged in their sweet dream. Or they could be too afraid to risk their lives to lend him a hand.

The snatched thief, after successfully executed the crime, quickly escaped in an awaiting car.

One should not be amazed that criminals have also internalized the proverb, ‘the early bird catches the worm’ which they have most probably learnt in school.

我们也许会感到惊讶，为什么匪徒们也懂得七早八早出来干案。孰不知这些匪徒也有可能受过英文高等教育，懂得英国谚语：“早起的鸟儿有虫吃！”

One needs to be immersed in English proverbs to be a smarter thief.

因此我们可以推论，要想成为一个精明能干的劫匪，必须要受英语高等教育，多读英国谚语，懂得“早起的鸟儿有虫吃！”