I put away the compass and said softly: "I'm not lost. I have no intention of going down the mountain at all."
The old man chuckled: "Don't be afraid, I am a mushroom picker."
I tilted my head and saw that he was indeed carrying a bamboo basket on his back, and the mushrooms inside had already sprouted.
"Looking at your delicate skin and tender flesh, you must not be a mountaineer, right?"
There is no way to hide this kind of thing. People who run around in the mountains all year round can see it on their skin.
I can only say that this old man’s eyesight is very good. There is no point in hiding it now. I was about to answer, but quickly changed my mind.
"What is a mountain guest?"
The old man laughed loudly and said, "You kid, you must be a student of some school, and you sneaked out to play?"
He shook the backpack on his body and said, "Those of us who depend on the mountains for food are mountain guests."
The old man supported the tree and looked up at the sky: "Look, tonight will be difficult. You are young and strong, and I have experience."
"How about we team up and spend the night together?"
I took a closer look and found that this old man was indeed not a ghost. Naturally, I was less wary of him.
"What kind of partner?"
The old man pointed to the mountain in the distance with his stick: "There is a place over there where you can take shelter from the rain. I have a bad health. Please help me carry the basket and I will take you there."
I suddenly became alert again: "Why can't we go down the mountain now?"
"Silly boy." The old man pointed to the sky: "If this continues, it won't be long before it rains."
"By then, we will be trapped halfway up the mountain, with no place to hide from the rain!"
I thought about it and asked, "You mean, we are still at the top of the mountain?"
"Where else could I be?"
So I just wandered around for a long time, just walking in circles?
I looked at him suspiciously, then thought about the current situation, and decided to believe him for the time being.
Firstly, apart from his cunning appearance, there is nothing weird about this old man; secondly, I really have no experience in the mountains.
Seeing that the rain is about to fall, running around in the mountains at this time is indeed not a wise choice.
To put it bluntly, even if this old man is not a good person, I am young and strong, can I still be afraid of him?
The most important thing is that the first grade of junior high school on my chest gave me a lot of confidence.
"That's it, I'll carry it for you."
The old man slowly knelt down and put the backpack on the ground: "Then it's all thanks to you."
I hung the backpack on my body and followed him, walking sideways one step deeper and one step shallower.
There is a kind of fluorescent grass on the mountain that emits light green light at night. The seeds of this grass can secrete red juice.
At night, this kind of grass looks particularly bright. As I walked forward, I pulled the fruits.
When I saw a slightly thicker tree, I pressed out some juice on it as a mark of my return.
If we continue to wander around in the mountains, I can find a way out.
Before walking a few steps, a heavy downpour suddenly fell.
The dense raindrops formed a water curtain hole in front of my eyes, and the visibility dropped rapidly, making it almost impossible for me to see the old man in front of me clearly.
Suddenly, a wooden stick stretched out in front of him, and the old man's voice came over.
"Hold on! Don't slide down!"
His voice was very loud, even in the heavy rain, it was not inferior at all: "Hang the basket on your chest!"
At this moment, I was a little moved and a little guilty.
I shouldn't think of everyone as a bad person.
Perhaps because of running in the mountains all year round, although the old man looks thin, his arms are really strong.
It was an uphill road, but he held on to me effortlessly, and even the strength of his arms meant that I didn't even have a chance to slip.
The rain was getting heavier and the road was getting steeper.
The old man suddenly stopped and shouted: "We can't leave anymore, we have to find a place first!"
"Come with me!"
Before I could say anything, the old man took another step forward. After stumbling around, he stopped again.
I squinted my eyes, trying to see where I was.
This place is a remote mountain with towering gray stones and little vegetation coverage.
Where the old man pointed was a triangular space squeezed out by several huge rocks.
"Let's go!"
I asked with some concern: "Can this be safe?"
"rest assured!"
I followed him and ducked in, only to find that there was a different scene inside the cave.
