A Chinese woman, who was missing for 10 years and - at one point - presumed dead by her parents, has been found living in internet cafe for a decade.

The woman, known under the pseudonym of Xiaoyun, was found by police at a cyber cafe in the city of Hangzhou, east China, reported the People's Daily Online.

She said she had been supporting herself by playing games at internet cafes.

A Chinese woman was found living in cyber cafes for 10 years after she went missing in 2005 (file photo)

Police found Xiaoyun on November 20 during a spot check at an internet cafe in the Kangqiao district of Hangzhou.

The woman, now 24, used a fake ID and was taken back to the police station for investigation.

After checking the missing persons database, police officers realised Xiaoyun matched the descriptions of a woman from nearby Dongyang city, who was reported missing 10 years ago.

Xiaoyun later confessed to the fact. She said she was a rebellious teenager and decided to leave home after an argument with her father.

She told Qianjiang Evening News: '[I] had ran away from home before. And at that time when I tried to ask my dad for some money, [my parents] wouldn't give it to me, saying I must be lying.

'So I decided to run away for good.'

Xiaoyun said during the decade she had lived in several places including Jinhua, Jiangxi and Hangzhou.

She made a living by working at different internet cafes.

She was particularly good with an online game called Cross Fire, so other gamers would pay her to play the game for them.

The woman ran away from home in 2005 and supported herself by playing video games for clients (file photos)

Xiaoyun said she usually spent the night at internet cafes, or sometimes public bathhouses.

Her parents had presumed Xiaoyun was dead for a long time. They had even had her name removed from their household registrations at the local police station.

However a few years ago, Xiaoyun reached out to her mum on social media.

Xiaoyun's mother told Qianjiang Evening News: 'I haven't changed my mobile number in the past 10 years. I thought she might get in touch when she thought of me.

'Afterwards, WeChat (a Chinese chatting app) got popular, so my daughter added me by searching for my mobile number. But she never let me find her.'

With Xiaoyun's permission, police arranged her parents to meet their daughter who they hadn't seen for a decade.

During the emotional reunion, her mum said: 'I have a quicker temper and a strong character. I had indeed scolded her before.

'But after 10 years, she is a grown-up now. I will not tell her off again.'

Xiaoyun was fined 1,000 Yuan (£103) for using a fake ID.

However, it remains unclear if she will go back to live with her family.