Harry Potter and the Candy Factory

After everything was negotiated, Guffey, with a beaming smile and an almost humble attitude, returned to his desk and nodded to Russell, saying,

"Mr. Russell, please wait a moment, I'll call our best reporter over right away. Google search reading."

As he spoke, he reached out and pressed a device on his desk that resembled an electric bell.

A low "buzz" sounded, flashing past Russell's ears.

Immediately afterward, a series of rapid "哒 哒 哒" sounds of high heels on the wooden floor came from a distance, approaching Guffey's office.

Then, the footsteps stopped, and their owner stood in front of the office door, speaking with a less-than-pleasant voice, greeting enthusiastically and quickly through the door,

"Editor Guffey! Did you call for me? Is there any big news that needs me to cover?!"

Russell frowned slightly at the sound, looking towards the door.

For some reason, he had a faint, unpleasant premonition in his heart.

"Ah, this is Rita Skeeter—one of the best reporters in our *Daily Prophet*. She has written many famous reports and articles… for example, *The Life and Lies of Dumbledore*, *Ollivander? Wand Master, or a Fraudulent Charlatan*, *Cornelius Fudge is More Capable of Leading Us Than Millicent!* and so on… all from her pen."

Seeming to sense some inexplicable meaning from Russell's expression, Guffey smiled as he introduced her, a hint of pride in his voice, as if proud of the success of these articles or books.

However, after hearing Guffey's introduction, Russell's premonition only deepened.

The corner of his eye twitched subconsciously, and in his mind, he began to flesh out the image of this Rita Skeeter, whom he had never met.

Vaguely, he even felt that she had something in common with Director Umbridge, who worked in the Ministry of Magic…

But before he could think more, Guffey's gaze had already shifted to the door.

"Come in, Skeeter! Come and meet our Mr. Russell."

As his words fell, a "click" sounded, and the metal lock on the door was released.

"Squeak…" The rusted door hinges began to turn slowly, and the woman outside the door stepped inside.

This was also a bloated woman, although not as exaggerated in proportion as Umbridge, she was also far from healthy.

Her hair was permed into wavy curls, but it looked somewhat stiff, especially when paired with her distinctive high chin, making it look particularly awkward.

On her round face, she wore exaggerated glasses with thick frames, inlaid with densely packed, different-sized, and colored jewels, with almost no aesthetic sense, making people uncomfortable just looking at them.

Her thick, fat fingers clutched a crocodile-skin handbag, her nails were two inches long and painted bright red.

… … … …

As Skeeter cheerfully walked into the office with light steps, her rolling eyes noticed Russell, the house-elf sitting in the chair facing the desk.

Instantly, she realized something. As a reporter, Skeeter quickly obtained the information she wanted from Russell.

She grinned, revealing a bright smile, not sneering at Russell's status as a house-elf like others, but taking the initiative to greet him.

"So, this is Mr. Russell that Editor Guffey mentioned, right? Mr. Russell, it's a pleasure to meet you, I am Rita Skeeter, a reporter."

It must be said that although Skeeter likes to exaggerate facts and write articles that contradict the truth to attract the public's attention, she is different from Umbridge, a government official who relies on flattery to get ahead. At least in the profession of a reporter, she is indeed a very capable person.

"…Hello, Ms. Skeeter."

Facing Skeeter's greeting, Russell did not have any particularly large prejudice against her because of his initial subjective impression. He nodded and politely responded.

Her smile remained unchanged, and after a brief greeting with Russell, she turned her head and focused her attention back on her boss, Editor Guffey.

"So, is this time to do an exclusive interview with Mr. Russell, or something else? To be honest, I feel like I can already draft the title. Just write: *A House-Elf Who Escaped Bondage…*"

However, before Skeeter could finish her eager speech, Guffey, who seemed to know what she was going to say, quickly and deliberately coughed, forcing the words she was about to blurt out back into her stomach.

Then, he smoothly took over Skeeter's words, and explained with a meaningful smile,

"This Mr. Russell… is Mr. Charlie Black's…"

Seeming to be considerate of Russell's feelings, Guffey deliberately paused twice when he mentioned his relationship with Charlie, then slowly turned his head to look at Russell, who was still calm as usual in the chair.

"Servant."

Russell said these two words briefly, completing Guffey's sentence.

Upon closer observation, there was no unhappiness or even a trace of anger on his face because of this title. Everything seemed so natural, and there was nothing to fuss about…

"Yes, yes, yes…" Guffey hurriedly laughed, retracted his gaze, and continued to say to Skeeter,

"This time, Mr. Russell is here with Mr. Black's orders. Mr. Black has entrusted this to my hands."

When Guffey said "Mr. Black," he deliberately emphasized it.

As he spoke, he subtly pushed the job advertisement placed in front of the desk forward, the meaning of which was self-evident.

"B…Mr. Black?"

Hearing the implicit warning in her editor's tone, the bright smile on Skeeter's face finally became stiff, and she restrained herself slightly.

Beneath the diamond-encrusted glasses, a complex emotion filled with surprise, fear, solemnity, and many other emotions emerged in her eyes.

Obviously, she naturally understood Guffey's meaning. It was undoubtedly telling her how to write this report correctly.

As for the three types of people that British wizards fear the most, they are equally suitable for Skeeter.

Because even if her name was well-known and she was a senior reporter for the Daily Prophet, in the eyes of those in high positions, she was no different from an ordinary wizard.

She dared to write about Albus Dumbledore and dared to scold Millicent because she clearly understood that these people wouldn't care about her reports. Even if they knew, they would just laugh it off and ignore it, just like they wouldn't pay attention to a beetle smaller than your fingertip...

But Charlie Black was different. Although she didn't have much personal contact with Charlie Black himself, having only met him up close a few times during interviews.

However, from the information she had collected about him, she could vaguely discern a few things.

Since founding the Charlie's Chocolate Factory, Charlie Black had been intentionally or unintentionally promoting his public image as a "law-abiding wizard businessman."

In various newspapers, you could hardly find any negative news about him. The "house-elf employees," which should have been a hot topic, had become a no-go zone for any newspaper.

To some extent, this could be regarded as a unique tacit understanding between many newspapers and Charlie himself...

Because Charlie would really be unhappy with your report, he would really read every article about him. He was truly maintaining the good external image he had built over a dozen years.

Skeeter was certain that if someone was really blind at this time, Charlie Black would definitely not mind making that person disappear...

The office fell into a brief silence due to Skeeter's contemplation.

But it was only for a short time, because soon, the complexity in Skeeter's eyes disappeared completely, and the smile on her face returned to normal.

"I remember Mr. Black just made the front page of the newspaper today, didn't he? Could it be that he has some new news to announce to other wizards in the British magical world through us?

If so, then Mr. Black has come to the right place, because our Daily Prophet is undoubtedly the most fair and efficient newspaper... Okay, let me see."

Regaining her composure, Skeeter reached for the job advertisement on her desk, her eyes scanning quickly, reading the contents in rapid succession.

"This... this is?"

Skeeter's reaction was not much different from Gu Fei's when he first saw it. Soon, the expression on her face showed signs of losing control, accompanied by a surge of joy from her heart, almost causing Skeeter to fail to suppress her excitement.

She suddenly raised her head, her eyes like those of a hungry wolf staring at its prey, flashing with a greedy light that made people feel a little afraid.

"Editor-in-chief! Is this real!?"

Gu Fei's eyes were equally excited, a kind of excitement unique to newspaper people for major news.

"It's real... I've already verified it with the higher-ups... This, this is indeed Minister Fudge's instruction!!!"

Hearing this, Skeeter unconsciously increased the strength of her hands, crumpling the job advertisement in her hand.

"Now, I order you, immediately, right away! Write a news article based on Mr. Charlie Black's decision! Then publish it on the front page of the Daily Prophet tomorrow!!!"

"Understood, Editor-in-chief Gu Fei!"

Skeeter nodded in agreement without hesitation.

Because she knew the value of this news... As long as she wrote it, even without exaggerating the facts or distorting the original meaning, it would definitely bombard the entire British magical world!

No, it should be said that if there was enough time, this news would not only cause a sensation in the British magical world, but also in the German magical world, the French magical world, and even the American magical world across the ocean!

At that time, she could really make a name for herself!

So, the moment she received the order, she turned and walked towards the door in a hurry, the rhythm of her high heels tapping on the floor several times faster than when she had just entered.

She left straight away, ignoring Russell, who had been sitting quietly in the chair from beginning to end, and ran towards her office.

"Haha... she's too excited."

Suddenly, only the two of them were left in the office. Gu Fei smiled and said to Russell, while also calming down his emotions a bit.

"I can see that." Russell nodded, looking thoughtfully at the door that had not yet been closed, and couldn't help but compare Skeeter and Umbridge again in his heart.

The result was predictable. This Ms. Skeeter, although it was the first time they had met and she wasn't very likable either, still couldn't shake Umbridge's glory as the number one on his "Most Hated Humans List."

"Oh, right."

Suddenly, Russell seemed to have thought of something again and quickly interrupted his meaningless reverie, saying to Gu Fei.

"Is there anything else you need me to do? Please continue!"

At this time, Gu Fei looked at Russell with the eagerness of seeing an old friend he hadn't seen for many years. Hearing Russell's voice, he hurriedly stood up, carefully walked to the other party's side, and waited for instructions.

"Do you guys handle printing here?"

Russell asked.

"Uh..." Hearing this, Gu Fei hesitated for a moment.

"We originally didn't have this business. Besides the Daily Prophet, we don't print anything else, but..."

Speaking of this, Gu Fei changed the subject.

"If Mr. Russell needs it, we can make an exception to serve you! And it's free, we don't charge money."

"That's not necessary."

The result was not what Gu Fei had expected. After he finished saying this, Russell shook his head, then took out a small money bag from behind him and threw it into Gu Fei's hand.

Gu Fei was stunned, and subconsciously reached out to catch it. Without opening it, just by weighing it, Gu Fei could feel that the amount of Galleons inside should still be quite considerable.

"What I want to print is not just one or two..."

Russell jumped down from his seat, imitating Charlie's appearance, tidying up the wrinkles on his clothes a bit, and said as he turned to walk towards the door.

"The job advertisement just now, print as many copies as this money can print."