The days at Hogwarts

Before Crouch could speak, Bertha Jorkins had already skipped over, sat down casually, put her wand on the grass, and started chattering: "Oh, thank you, Ludo. ...I just feel pain in my feet. You don’t know how long I have been walking this morning. I have never..."

Bertha Jorkins looked like she was thinking about something, but she couldn't remember where she came from and where she went, and she was stunned for a moment.

Crouch frowned and slowly walked to Bagman's side, but did not sit down: "I have been looking for you everywhere, Ludo. The Bulgarians insist that we add twelve more seats to the top box."

"Oh, so they want this, I thought..."

"There's something I've been meaning to tell you, Arthur. Ali Bashir wants to talk to you about the ban on flying carpets."

"Oh, I've told him a hundred times that carpets are classified as Muggle artefacts in the Magical Items Register..."

Seeing them gradually chatting, Loren wanted to leave, but seeing that Hermione was listening with interest and even seemed to want to take out a note to record in detail, he had no choice but to stay.

Chapter 426 Clues

"They think there's a niche in the family transportation market."

"But flying carpets will never replace broomsticks in Britain."

"I remember my grandfather had an Axminster pile carpet that could seat twelve people on it... of course, that was before flying carpets were banned."

Barty Crouch's voice was unhurried and steady, as if he was adhering to some strict rules.

Staring at the burning bonfire, Hermione's eyes lit up slightly.

She listened to the words of the three chatting, filtered and deleted redundant information, and then pieced together the trivial information collected. Now she has a clear understanding of the Ministry of Magic's model for managing import and export goods.

It's a bit crude, but it's easy to manage and easy to exploit loopholes.

It's as if... these laws had these loopholes reserved when they were enacted.

While Hermione was thinking this, she slowly raised her head and quietly glanced at Mr. Barty Crouch and Mr. Weasley, who was involved in the relevant business... Both of them mentioned the relevant matters as if they were just chatting, their expressions Frankly, he said whatever he thought of and was completely unaware of such shortcomings.

Loren silently looked at Bertha Jorkins sitting opposite, her dilated pupils and her face full of confusion.

Listening to the conversation between Arthur and his two colleagues, Ms. Jorkins showed a look of reminiscence from time to time, and occasionally a hint of confusion flashed across her face. She probably remembered the things they had mentioned, but confusion would quickly creep up on her. her face.

It seemed that her brain was covered in a thick fog, making it difficult to recall past memories and form new memories.

This state reminded Loren of his respected Defense Against the Dark Arts professor Gilderoy Lockhart.

Such a wizard has obviously lost some of his ability to care for himself and should now be recuperating in a closed ward at St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Maladies, but this lady Bertha Jorkins is still at work...

Loren blinked, feeling a little strange inside.

In the Ministry of Magic, which is full of confidential documents, a witch's memory was erased or modified using a powerful forgetting spell, and no one seemed to notice...

Was it a dark wizard from outside, or someone from within the Ministry of Magic?

What could be the hidden secret...

He silently withdrew his gaze, having some guesses in his mind, and quietly observed Mr. Barty Crouch of the Department of International Affairs Cooperation.

The chat among the staff of the Ministry of Magic continued. Most of the time it was Ludo Bagman who spoke. Arthur only intervened when it came to his duties. Barty Crouch’s words and demeanor There is always a rigid dogma, as if every particle of dust in the family is engraved with legal documents. Bertha Jorkins always had a thoughtful look on her face.

Ludo Bagman couldn't get a word in on the flying carpet, so he turned the topic to a field he was familiar with: "How's it going? You're busy enough, Barty?"

Barty Crouch nodded: "I'm quite busy. You know, organizing and arranging portkeys on five continents is not an easy task, Ludo."

Arthur, who was on vacation, said with a smile: "I think you all would rather this matter ends quickly, right?"

Bagman suddenly laughed: "Of course not, I have never been so happy...and after the Quidditch World Cup is over, there is a more important job waiting for us, don't you think so, Barty?"

"We promise not to announce it to the public first..."

Crouch frowned, and seeing that he wanted to continue speaking, he said sternly: "Ludo, it's time for us to meet those Bulgarians."

"There's nothing to hide. I'm willing to bet you that these kids will find out soon. I mean, it happened at Hogwarts..." Bagman waved his hand carelessly, as if he didn't care at all. Confidentiality was an issue, but he still stood up slowly and said, "See you later! You are on the top box with me - I am the commentator of the game!"

Crouch looked at the confused witch: "Bertha, let's go."

Bertha Jorkins paused for a moment before reacting. She stood up in a panic and walked to Crouch's side. But after she stood up, she realized that her wand had fallen to the ground. She ran back to pick up the wand. After some tossing, Then he activated Apparition and disappeared in place.

Crouch shook his head and left with Bagman.

huh-huh-

The boiling water made an uneasy sound inside the kettle, and the kettle on the campfire spewed out scorching steam.

After hearing the sound, Molly hurriedly ran out of the tent, hurriedly poured boiling water into the teapot, and poured a cup of scalding hot tea for everyone sitting around the fire.

"..."

A group of people were holding hot teacups and couldn't take their mouths.

Molly added firewood to the bonfire and glanced at George and Fred lightly, making them shrink back in fright: "If I find you gambling, you don't need to build your magic wand shop, all that mess. The products will be like these firewood... Do you understand?"

George and Fred kept nodding.

Molly glared at Arthur again, and then began to scold: "Look at the friends you made, do they look a little serious..."

Arthur quickly apologized and smiled: "Don't be angry, Molly, this is just Ludo's hobby, a trivial hobby..."

"Oh, Merlin, there are people who like to let children participate in gambling, why don't the Aurors of the Ministry of Magic arrest him... and you two, I dare say that if it weren't for Loren, you guys would definitely get involved. "

Listening to Molly's nagging lectures on the twins, and occasionally even Arthur's lectures, she looked at the hot tea in the cup. She probably wouldn't be able to drink it for a while. Loren and others around them were afraid of harming innocent people, so they put down the tea and ran away. .

Nearly a hundred thousand wizards continue to pour into the area hidden on the edge of the swamps and forests. As the sun rises and the thick fog gradually dissipates, the camp packed with tents is gradually becoming lively.

Loren and Hermione walked side by side slowly around the tent. After listening to Hermione talk about the loopholes in the regulations she found, Loren nodded noncommittally: "I didn't pay attention to the content of their chat, but I noticed that the uncle Ms. Sarah Jorkins.”

"Bertha Jorkins?"

Hermione thought back to the lady who only said two sentences at the beginning. She didn't want to think about it, but now that she thought about it, there was indeed something wrong.

"The pupils are dilated and she is always remembering..." Loren sorted out the doubts about her little by little, "I have seen these symptoms of memory problems in Gilderoy Lockhart."

"You mean... the Oblivion Curse!" Hermione opened her mouth slightly, "But she is an employee of the Ministry of Magic?"

"I don't know the specific situation..." Loren looked at the colorful tents in the camp, recalling the plot about the Quidditch World Cup in his distant memory, and paused for a moment, "Anyway, we should try to be careful. I have a hunch that this will happen." A football game might not go that well."

Hermione nodded worriedly.

……

As the Quidditch World Cup final approaches, the excitement that has been suppressed for a long time spreads in the camp along with the breath of the wizards. The summer air seems to be unable to bear such excitement and expectation, gradually heating up until it is unbearably hot and trembling slightly. .

As night fell and all the wizards arrived at the scene, the Ministry of Magic could no longer conceal the supernatural scenes and simply relaxed its control, and various signs of magic broke out.

The entire camp was filled with vendors descending from the sky, some carrying trays and some pushing carts filled with strange and weird gadgets.

There are rose-shaped badges that scream and glow, strange wizard hats inlaid with living specimens, small models of flying Firebolts, support light boards for the Irish and Bulgarian teams, and magic statues of famous players...

A lively scene.

Chapter 427 In the box

Deep and deep sounds of gongs and drums came from the depths of the woods, and countless lanterns were suddenly lit on the treetops. The colorful lights connected together to outline a road leading to the stadium.

"Time's up! Come on, let's go!"

Arthur shouted excitedly, holding Molly in his right hand and holding a green Irish flag in his left hand, walking in front like a child.

Behind them were a series of little wizards. Bill, Charlie and Ginny were wearing discounted Irish support badges. Harry and Ron had an exquisite telescope hanging around their necks. Ron was wearing a three-cornered hat on his head. The clover is swaying and dancing.

Ron shook his head and said happily: "If it weren't for Loren, I wouldn't have known these things could be so cheap... Bargaining is really an affordable skill."

Harry:…

He touched the holographic telescope on his neck. There were all kinds of weird knobs and dials on it. They were smooth in texture and exquisite in shape... Who would have thought that just adding a zero and then discounting it by half would turn out to be the real selling price?

At that time, the vendor asked for ten galleons, and Loren cut it to nine cents. The vendor actually agreed.

Praise Loren!

The most eye-catching ones were George and Fred, who were wearing cheering items of both the Irish and Bulgarian teams, which attracted the glares of hardcore fans of both teams. However, the two did not care at all and proudly showed off the low-priced goods they bought for only ten Nats.

Hermione followed Ginny, holding a booklet of competition instructions and looking at it carefully. Even if the person in front stopped, she didn't know it, and she stumbled and bumped into Ginny's back——

I didn't fall down, but my face hit the competition manual driven by inertia, which caused a little pain.

click-

The flash came on, and Hermione turned around to see Loren holding an old-fashioned camera, and her whole body felt bad.

The little witch looked at him in disbelief: "You fumbled for half an hour, and the first photo you took turned out to be the moment when I was embarrassed?"

Loren adjusted the ink cartridge containing the developing solution and grinned: "Don't be moved, I will treasure it."

The mechanical roller inside the camera made a soft sound, and a slightly hot photo was spit out. The girl in the photo had her head buried in a manual. Her face was squeezed by the manual as she staggered clumsily, and her twisted nose and lips looked like Extremely funny.

"Who would be moved by this?"

Hermione reached out to grab the photo in embarrassment, and Loren ran away. The two of them chased Arthur and Molly in front of them.

Walking quickly into the woods along the path illuminated by lanterns, thousands of people were walking around, making a noise like a tide, shouting, laughing, and intermittent singing.

This feverish excitement seemed to be contagious, and Hermione couldn't help but smile on her face as she chased after him.

They walked through the woods for twenty minutes, talking and laughing loudly, and finally emerged from the other side of the woods and stood in front of a huge stadium.

The magnificent golden walls reflect the brilliant brilliance, and are simply taller and broader than a dozen Hogwarts castles.

"Five hundred staff from the Ministry of Magic have been busy for a whole year. It can accommodate 100,000 spectators." Arthur stood in front of the stadium, looking at the shocked expression on Harry's face, and proudly introduced, "Every inch of this place The place has been cast with a Muggle-repelling spell. Whenever a Muggle comes close to this place, they will suddenly think of urgent matters..."

The witch at the ticket gate obviously knew him, and let them pass with just a quick glance: "First-class ticket! Top box! Go all the way upstairs, Arthur, to the top."

"Thank you Daisy! Have a great night!"

"roll!"

"Ha ha……"

Entering the stadium, one hundred thousand wizards were taking their seats one after another. Those seats were arranged in a ladder shape around the oval stadium. The arena looked as flat and smooth as velvet. In the center of the arena was a huge blackboard, with golden words constantly flashing on it, as if an invisible giant hand was writing on the blackboard and then erasing them:

Cornflower - a broomstick suitable for the whole family, safe and reliable, with a built-in anti-theft buzzer...

Mrs. Skoll's All-Purpose Miracle Stain Remover - removes stains with ease!

Fengya brand wizard uniforms - London, Paris, Hogsmeade...

Everything was shrouded in a soft and mysterious golden light, and they went up the stairs covered with purple-red carpets until they reached a small box on the top floor.

The box is located at the highest point of the stadium, facing the golden goalposts of the Quidditch field. The space inside the box is much larger than it looks from the outside. There are nearly forty purple and gold-plated seats arranged in two rows, which are obviously also used. The traceless stretching spell.

Taking their seats according to the seat numbers on the tickets, they were the first people to enter the box. There were no outsiders, so the house elf and Bertha Jorkins in the second to last seat in the row behind were particularly conspicuous.

He has long ears like a bat, and is wrapped in a tea towel for wiping the tea set, as if wearing a loose robe. His face is buried in his hands, and his two short legs are stretched out on the chair in front of him.

Bertha Jorkins sat nearby, humming happily.

"Bertha," Arthur turned to greet her, "I didn't expect you to come earlier than me."

Jorkins tilted his head to look at him, as if confused for a moment, and said subconsciously: "Twenty more seats have been added to the box. Mr. Crouch asked us to wait for him here."

"Oh, I know, those people in Bulgaria, right?" Arthur smiled.

Jorkins nodded and continued humming to himself.

Harry looked at the house elf for a long time. Although he thought it was impossible, he still tentatively called out: "Dobby?"

The house elf raised his head, unclenched his fingers, peered at him from between his fingers, and said in a voice more shrill and harsh than Dobby's: "Sir, are you calling me?"

"I'm sorry," Harry scratched his head, "I thought you were someone I knew before."

"But I also know Dobby, sir, my name is Winky!" The house elf noticed the scar on his forehead and lowered his hands, showing an expression of awe, "Dobby talks about you all day long, sir! "

"How did you meet, and how was Dobby's summer vacation?"

"In the store where house elves buy ingredients..."

Harry and Winky chatted, and Hermione also took the opportunity to ask a few questions about house elves. She soon discovered that Winky was an even more ignorant and rigid house elf than Dobby and Wheat. Hermione was so angry that she wanted to put some books in her head. Declaration of Independence.

Loren looked at the house elf and Bertha Jorkins, a faint crystal blue light flashing in his eyes.

Compared to these two people, the mysterious wizard hiding under the invisibility cloak next to him interested him more.

Chapter 428: I didn’t see it clearly, I’ll take a look again

Following the group including Weasley and Loren, more and more people entered the top box where they were.

The clothes of those people looked very distinguished. Arthur and Percy kept shaking hands and greeting people. In addition, there were many familiar faces. Loren and the others quickly knew the identities of these people.