My Taoist nun girlfriend is from the Republic of China era, 1942.

Chapter 190 Prelude to Parting

Winter break is already halfway over.

At 6:30 a.m., in the community garden, Sun Wan was timing the small pink figure in front of her with a stopwatch.

"...eighty-nine, ninety, ninety-one..."

Zhao Moli gritted her teeth, her face flushed red, and the jump rope whistled under her feet. Finally, on the ninety-ninth jump, she tripped on the rope and stopped, panting heavily.

"Jasmine, that's great! You've made tremendous progress!"

Sun Wan handed over a towel and warm water.

Zhao Moli took the water glass and gulped down half of it. Her bangs were soaked with sweat and stuck to her smooth forehead.

The results after nearly a month of consistent effort are remarkable.

Zhao Moli had visibly lost weight; her once round face now showed a more defined contour, and she moved much more lightly when running, no longer the chubby little girl who would pant after just a few steps.

After finishing her workout, she immediately went up to Lu Yang, held up five fingers, then four, and said, "Yangyang, I jumped ninety-nine times today, just one short of a hundred!"

"Yes, got it."

"That……"

"Give!"

Lu Yang took a small, square box out of his pocket and handed it to her.

Yangyang is the best!

Zhao Moli cheered and eagerly opened it.

Inside lay a pink children's smartwatch, its face adorned with her favorite teddy bear.

She quickly put the children's watch on her wrist, looked at it over and over, and was overjoyed.

Lu Yang took out his phone, helped her activate the watch, and saved his number, Zheng Qingtong's number, and the numbers of both sets of parents into it. He patiently taught her how to make calls and send voice messages.

Zhao Moli clumsily tapped the small screen, found the name "Yangyang" in her contacts, and pressed the call button.

The phone in Lu Yang's pocket rang.

He took out his phone and pressed answer.

"Hey?"

"Hehe, Yangyang! Did you hear me?"

Zhao Moli's excited voice came from the phone.

Lu Yang responded indulgently, "I heard you."

Zhao Moli then called Zheng Qingtong to share the good news with another friend.

The allure of new toys is endless.

At six o'clock the next morning, before dawn, Lu Yang's phone on his bedside table vibrated.

He closed his eyes, fumbled for his phone, swiped to answer, and heard Zhao Moli's energetic voice coming from the other end.

"Yangyang! Wake up! I'm going to exercise!"

Lu Yang took the phone away from his ear, stared at the ceiling in silence for three seconds, and then replied in a hoarse voice, "...I understand."

He hung up the phone and resignedly got up.

From then on, Lu Yang had an extra human alarm clock.

Zhao Moli wakes him up at six o'clock every day without fail, rain or shine, even more punctual than the alarm clock he sets himself.

Besides waking her up, Zhao Moli would occasionally send Lu Yang voice messages using her watch, with all sorts of content.

"Yangyang, I ate broccoli today, and there wasn't a single floret left!"

"Yangyang, look at the clouds in the sky, doesn't it look like a big cotton candy?"

"Yangyang, I just saw 250 downstairs. It's scaring other stray dogs again..."

Lu Yang usually only replies with a single "hmm," or simply doesn't reply at all.

But every time I hear her chattering on my watch, I unconsciously slow down what I'm doing.

...After the winter break, the kindergarten reopened.

The campus, which had been quiet for more than half a month, was once again filled with the laughter of children. The children gathered together, chattering and showing off their New Year's gifts and holiday experiences.

"My dad bought me a whole set of Ultraman cards!"

"My mom took me skiing last year!"

"Look at my new dress, it's the same one Elsa wore!"

In the corner of the game area, Lu Yang was slowly building a complex castle with building blocks, with Zhao Moli and Zheng Qingtong acting as his assistants on either side, responsible for passing him "building materials".

Zhao Moli would occasionally raise her wrist to show Zheng Qingtong her pink phone watch.

"Qingtong, I call you every day, but why don't you answer sometimes?"

"I usually keep my phone on silent, because I'm afraid my mom will find out."

Zheng Qingtong sighed and handed a blue building block to Lu Yang, her eyes filled with unconcealed loneliness.

"Also, I probably won't be coming to kindergarten after the summer vacation."

"why?"

“My mom said that the knowledge in kindergarten is too simple and it’s a waste of time. She plans to send me to primary school at the end of this semester.”

For Zheng Qingtong, skipping a grade was more like a pre-arranged exile than a source of pride.

"Starting primary school?"

Zhao Moli's little brain didn't quite catch on for a moment. She counted on her fingers and said, "But we still have to go to kindergarten and preschool... It'll be a long, long time before we can go to elementary school!"

Lu Yang, however, chose to focus on practical matters: "Have you found a school yet?"

"Hmm... XX International Academy, they say the tuition is over 400,000 a year, which is more expensive than this kindergarten."

"Your father agreed too?"

"I suspect they will disagree."

"You mean your dad doesn't know?"

"Um……"

Based on past experience, Zheng Qingtong judged that there was basically no possibility of her mother changing her decision.

It's highly likely that the couple had a fight, with the father blaming the mother for acting on her own, and the mother crying and complaining that she was only doing it for the child's own good.

After the commotion escalated, things were smashed, and in the end, nothing was resolved...

The thought of her friend leaving made Zhao Moli incredibly sad. To combat this sadness, she almost subconsciously pulled another major event from her memory.

"Okay... Anyway, Yangyang and I are moving to the capital."

The moment the words left her lips, Zheng Qingtong abruptly raised her head. For the first time, her usually calm and composed eyes revealed a clear shock and panic.

She looked directly at Lu Yang, her eyes pleading, desperately wanting a negative answer.

"Yangyang, are you and Jasmine going to the capital?"

Lu Yang nodded slightly: "My dad seems to have made up his mind. The move should take place around the summer vacation."

The moment she received confirmation, Zheng Qingtong felt as if her heart was being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, slowly sinking downwards.

Going to primary school and going to the capital are two completely different concepts.

Lu Yang noticed her disappointment and, in his usual calm tone, tried to offer rational comfort.

"Qingtong, don't worry, we should... come back occasionally. After all, Dad grew up in Jiangcheng, and Grandpa and Grandma's graves are also in Jiangcheng."

These words drifted by like feathers, leaving no weight in Zheng Qingtong's heart.

She forced a smile and picked up another block, intending to place it on the unfinished castle, but her outstretched hand trembled slightly.

The building blocks slipped from her trembling fingertips.

It collapsed with a loud crash.

(End of this chapter)