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959words2026-01-26 09:14

In a village nestled deep in the mountains,a young boy named Tom proudly boasted to his friends that he was the best at playing hide-and-seek in the world.His friends didn't believe him,so he decided to hide.
Tom wasn't exaggerating.His friends truly couldn't find him.
In fact,no one in the entire village could find him.

My girlfriend,Lily,and I went camping with a group of outdoor enthusiasts.However,as we were walking,we somehow got separated from the main group.
As the sky grew darker,I was considering finding a clean spot to set up camp when Lily suddenly exclaimed in excitement.I followed the direction she was pointing and vaguely saw a small village in the distance.
She grabbed my arm,full of anticipation.
"Let's go to that village and ask for a place to stay for the night!"
As we approached the village,an old woman sitting on a stone at the entrance suddenly rushed up to us and grabbed my arm.
"Have you found my son?"

I was startled and instinctively pulled my hand back.Before I could say anything,she made a shushing gesture at me and whispered in a low voice.
"I'll tell you,my son is really good at playing hide-and-seek!"
"No one can find him."
"Have you found him?"

Lily and I exchanged a glance.Had we encountered a crazy old woman?
Just as we were at a loss,a man in his thirties quickly approached,took the old woman's hand,and led her aside.He whispered a few words in her ear and then gave her a piece of candy.The old woman giggled and ran away.
After learning about our situation,the man introduced himself with a smile.His name was David,and he was the village chief.
Upon learning that we had gotten separated from the other hikers,he kindly offered that if we didn't mind,we could spend the night at his house.
Under the village chief's guidance,we walked through the narrow alleys of the village,feeling the unique atmosphere of the place.
Unlike the idyllic scenes depicted in photographers'works or ink wash paintings,this small village had no sense of beauty.Instead,it exuded an air of dilapidation and decay.
Almost half of the houses were abandoned.In the collapsed houses,tall trees had grown,or the rotting doors and windows were half-open.The remaining houses also seemed lifeless.Elderly people,on the verge of death,sat listlessly at the doorways,eyeing us with their cloudy eyes.
Perhaps still shaken by the encounter with the crazy old woman at the entrance,Lily's initial excitement and curiosity had vanished completely.Instead,she looked a bit panicked and pressed closely against me,on high alert.
The village chief's house was at the end of the village.In front of the house,there was a small yard enclosed by a wooden fence,with some farming tools scattered around.
As we were about to enter the house,Lily,who had turned to look back,suddenly let out a scream and grabbed my arm.I turned around and saw that in front of the shabby mud-brick house diagonally opposite the yard entrance,the crazy old woman we had met at the village entrance was staring straight at us.
The village chief smiled and told Lily not to be afraid,saying that the old woman wasn't a bad person and wouldn't harm anyone.
However,he then seriously warned us that it was getting dark and we shouldn't wander outside.Firstly,there were no streetlights in the village,and the mountain roads were difficult to navigate,so it was easy to get injured.Secondly,the villagers were wary of outsiders,and there might be misunderstandings.
When he saw Lily nodding and promising,he smiled and nodded in return.He rummaged through a cabinet and took out a few flatbreads,saying that it was already past the meal time and that they didn't have much in the countryside,so we should make do with it.Then he went into the room on the left and started tidying it up.
Lily looked at the flatbreads on the table,gave me a glare,made a"no"gesture at me,glanced at the room,then leaned close to me and whispered in a low voice.
"Are we really going to stay here for the night?"
"How about we leave?Maybe the team leader and the others are also looking for us.If we both move towards each other,we might find the group soon."
As she spoke,her eyes instinctively glanced towards the old woman's house.
It seemed that she had been quite frightened by the crazy old woman.
I pointed at the increasingly darkening sky and the pitch-black forest.
"It's not safe to walk in the forest in this situation."
"We'd better just stay here for one night.Don't worry,I'm here with you."
Soon,the village chief had tidied up the room.However,when he reached the door of the room,he stopped in his tracks,turned back to look at us,and seemed to want to say something but hesitated.
My heart suddenly felt nervous for no reason,and my eyes instinctively drifted towards my backpack,where there was a Swiss Army knife that could barely be used for self-defense.
He smiled awkwardly."It's nothing.You should rest early."
"Wait a minute!"
Lily stopped him and handed him two hundred-yuan bills,saying some polite words with a smile.
He declined at first but then put the two bills into his pocket and quickly left the room.
Lily and I exchanged a glance and couldn't help but laugh.
After this little episode with the village chief,Lily's mood had calmed down.She was no longer so scared.Plus,after walking in the mountains all day,she was really tired and soon fell asleep.
Suddenly,Lily let out a scream.I jolted awake,opened my heavy eyelids,and looked at her.I saw that she had jumped out of bed and was pointing at the bed with wide eyes full of fear.
Without thinking,I jumped out of bed and stood in front of Lily to protect her.
I just took one look in the direction Lily was pointing at,and all my drowsiness vanished instantly.I felt a chill run down my spine!