days at Hogwarts

Chapter 771 Mrs. Granger's Good Teaching

mid-September.

It has been two weeks since school started. It is late summer and early autumn, and the remaining heat is making its last struggle. The weather is a bit sultry.

The crickets were chirping louder and louder, and they were making their last struggle - if they didn't mate, they would die alone. Crookshanks often took Mrs. Norris to catch these annoying guys.

Perhaps because there are often students and professors walking in the courtyard, the crickets here have become desensitized and did not hide away when they saw the two bad cats approaching, and eventually became toys under the cats' claws.

The two cats frequently shuttled back and forth in the grass in the courtyard, and when they returned to the common room at night, their bodies were always covered with grass leaves.

As students went to and from school and the administrators patrolled and cleaned, Loren inevitably met Filch. For several days in a row, the administrator had a gloomy face, which left Loren confused.

If the sun was shining brightly, warm but not too hot, Crookshanks and Mrs. Norris would stroll around the grounds to bask in the sun. Students from Care of Magical Creatures and Herbology would sometimes run into them, rummaging through their pockets for snacks and teasing them.

Unfortunately, the cat didn't appreciate it.

Crookshanks was not good-looking enough, and with his persimmon-shaped face, he could not get any snacks, and could only earn some cookies and nuts with his shiny ginger hair. Mrs. Norris's appetite was completely spoiled by Filch, and the squirrel meat strips and fish biscuits were for feeding owls, and she only ate hand-baked beef jerky.

The two cats occasionally go for a walk by the lake, and occasionally run into idle seventh graders, such as a couple who often read books and newspapers under a tree. Crookshanks will not run over excitedly to act coquettishly, but will only look up and say hello when passing by. Couples who are concentrating on love and taking time to read books will only glance at it lightly and don't bother to pay attention.

It was the same today. Under the red-leaf tree by the lake, Hermione was sitting and reading the latest issue of the Daily Prophet. Loren was leaning on her shoulder, chewing a green apple in his hand.

Produced by the Malfoy family orchard.

According to Draco, this is the few fixed assets left in their family. The rest are dozens of stores, more than a dozen farms across the country, and shares in more than a dozen chain stores...

But overall, the income of pure-blood families has dropped sharply, the influence of the Malfoy family has gradually weakened, and we haven't heard news about the Malfoy family in public for a long time.

For example, when the fountain statue in the main hall of the Ministry of Magic was unveiled recently, a photo of the wizard Zhang Mingliu was published on the newspaper headlines. In similar occasions in the past, Lucius would dress up carefully and stand next to the minister, but this time there was no sign of Lucius at all. The report only simply mentioned that the cost of making the statue was donated by the Malfoy family.

The Malfoy family hasn't been so low-key in hundreds of years.

What follows is the trial and extradition of Death Eaters, which are progressing in an orderly manner and the related news is no longer new.

Even more eye-catching is the Ministry of Magic's internal investigation, in which many senior officials have been removed from their posts for investigation. The Department of International Affairs and Cooperation is the hardest hit area, with almost all of its core staff being spokesmen for pure-blood families. Whenever there is a random inspection of goods, news will be released in advance to safeguard the import and export trade of pure-blood families.

There are also proposals to ban trade goods, which are also means for pure-blood families to exclude their peers. For example, the Selwyn family is deeply involved in the flying broom industry, so they bribed their staff to ban portable flying products such as flying carpets...

This inventory has completely plugged similar loopholes. The International Affairs and Cooperation Department has opened a new list of trade commodities and is even preparing to host an air speed race.

Hermione quickly browsed the news in the newspaper, learned about recent events, and summarized the useful information in her heart. While sorting out her thoughts, she asked Loren: "After rejecting Nott's proposal, why did you propose to cooperate with them in business? What do you plan to ask them to do?"

"Click..."

Loren chewed the apple pulp and said, "Although these pure-blood families are in a weak position now, their channels and connections are rare resources, and they also have sufficient talent reserves. With their help, the promotion of the new space-shifting device after graduation will be much smoother, and they can also profit from it. This is a win-win situation."

Hermione nodded, looking thoughtful.

This guy has been lazy and casual for a long time, and has not paid much attention to dealing with Voldemort. Why is he so keen on promoting the new space-shifting device?

"Click..."

Loren didn't notice her gaze, swallowed the last bite of the apple, and threw the apple core into the grass.

It is the time when ants and insects store food for the winter. A fruit core can allow many ants to survive the cold winter, and it may even sprout branches next year. In any case, it can be considered as a reward for planting trees by our ancestors.

It's just that the juice between the fingers is a bit troublesome.

Glancing at Hermione who was concentrating on her thoughts, Loren stood up and went to the lake to wash his hands, then tiptoed back and reached out to press Hermione's shoulders, kneading and massaging them:

"Hermione..."

"?"

Hermione turned her head silently: "Tell me, what topic do you want to use to divert my attention and make me ignore that you are wiping the lake water from washing your hands on my clothes."

Loren continued massaging, pretending he hadn't heard: "Your birthday is coming soon, do you want any birthday present?"

"What gift did you prepare?"

"An improved two-way teleportation device, like the one that connects The Burrow and 12 Grimmauld Place."

"Why did you change your mind?"

"The device Flamel and I are designing is more advanced and can transmit farther. The original device feels a bit crude, but the new device is still in the research and development stage and cannot be produced. So I asked if you have any gifts you are looking forward to."

"..."

I want to give you the best, so I can't give you the original gift.

Hermione lowered her eyes and stared into his eyes, her brows softened: "In fact, there is no need to prepare gifts every year. We will have a long time to spend together in the future. We will spend every birthday together. This is something more precious than a gift."

"emmm..."

Loren still insisted: "It's my eighteenth birthday after all, there should still be some sense of ceremony."

"Do you have to give a gift?"

Hermione asked softly with a gleam in her eyes.

Loren shook his shoulders impatiently: "Hurry up and tell me!"

"Let me make it clear in advance that I don't actually have to give up the gift, but you were the one who kept asking me. If the gift I suggested makes you feel awkward, just refuse it directly. Don't make excuses and complain about other things, and try to convince me to give up repeatedly."

"How can it be--"

Loren was about to agree directly, but suddenly paused, stopped his hands, and looked at her expression in confusion.

"Something's wrong...are you provoking me?"

Loren frowned slightly, lost in thought.

Miss Know-It-All is no longer the nerdy girl she used to be. Her EQ and IQ are only slightly lower than his. She will no longer foolishly expose other people's shortcomings, and of course she will not propose any outrageous gifts. She said this just to block her way out and stimulate him to agree directly.

Strange.

Since it wasn't an excessive gift request, why did she resort to provocation?

Hermione turned a page of the newspaper, pretending to be calm, but her tone was very gentle: "I'm just being considerate of my boyfriend."

This woman has a sweet mouth!

But this made Loren more cautious.

After careful consideration, Loren thought that he could accept this gift. With the Elder Wand and the Philosopher's Stone, even if she really wanted the stars in the sky, it was not impossible to give it a try. If it didn't work, he could still ask for help from Grandpa Bates's money.

I have made the decision in my heart, but I still remain cautious on the surface.

Loren hesitated for a moment and raised his chin: "You tell me first."

Hermione pursed her lips and remained silent for a moment, with a slight smile on her lips. She knew that this meant he had agreed, so she put down the newspaper in her hand, turned her head and leaned closer, staring into his eyes:

"My birthday is on a Friday and I only have one Defense Against the Dark Arts class."

"so what?"

Loren had a bad feeling in his heart, but this woman stayed too close to him for too long, and even rubbed his nose with hers in a mean way. At this distance he could clearly feel her breath, warm and itchy, and his little heart was pounding.

Who taught her that?

Hermione looked at him with her beautiful eyes, and her soft voice seemed to be whispering: "After class, I want you to turn into a cat and stay with me all day."

"!"

6◇9◇Book◇Bar

Loren's neck turned red, but he couldn't continue speaking when he thought of the warning Hermione had given him not long ago.

"I don't actually need a gift, but you insisted on asking me..."

"If the gift I propose makes you feel awkward, just refuse it directly..."

"Don't keep blaming me and trying to convince me to give up."

The lingering sound seems not to have dissipated yet, and still lingers in my ears, like the chirping of crickets - it's so annoying!

"Hermione, we are no longer the children we were back then. I think we should be mature and stable..."

"We should be frank and sincere. Tell me now, do you agree or refuse?"

"Hermione, I think I need to remind you that my eighteenth birthday hasn't arrived yet..." Loren's expression was serious and his speech was slow. He deliberately left blank space and did not finish the subsequent threat.

You'd better leave yourself some wiggle room.

"hey-hey……"

As someone once said, what requests will Miss Granger be forced to agree to next year, and what does it have to do with Hermione who is about to have a happy birthday?

Hermione imitated his tone and laughed twice, her whole body revealing the joy from the bottom of her heart: "So you agree?"

"..."

Loren remained silent and lowered his head to concentrate on reading the newspaper.

This woman thought she had gotten the upper hand, but in fact she had forgotten about wiping her hands, so a win and a loss was a draw. And there would be something even more outrageous waiting for her next summer vacation.

In the long run, the advantage is still on me!

Hermione next to him was still staring at him with a smile, and that look made people feel creepy.

"emmm..."

Loren suddenly felt that the grass here was a bit prickly. He stood up, patted his butt, and said to himself, "I'm going back to the dormitory. Seamus and Dean are planning to organize a group night outing this year, and they can't do without my help."

"..."

Hermione watched his back gradually disappear into the distance, a pleased smile forming at the corners of her mouth and eyes.

……

Gryffindor Tower, boys' dormitory.

Crystal clear runic characters float in the room, drifting along some clear-cut traction, landing in the right position, and combining into an obscure and complex alchemical array. The arrangement of patterns and characters conforms to the hidden laws of magic, revealing a unique beauty.

As the last set of runes were embedded into the alchemy array, Loren closed the Book of Fantasy. The preliminary design of the new space-shifting device had been completed here. By simultaneously guiding the soul and body to shift through space, it completely eliminated the discomfort caused by the pressure and pulling of space teleportation on the body, thereby improving the riding experience and greatly increasing the teleportation distance.

However, the ideal model still needs to be converted into a physical device, relevant tests need to be carried out, problems need to be discovered and adjustments need to be made.

According to Loren and Flamel's speculation, the current model is flawed - the magic power consumption increases exponentially with the distance.

In the past, traditional ways of moving in space were mainly based on Apparition, Floo Network and Portkey. Apparition was the most common universal magic, and ordinary adult wizards could use it repeatedly after mastering it. The distance was directly linked to the caster. In theory, as long as the caster was skilled and energetic, he could even travel around the world in a short time.

The Floo Network is a spatial channel built by the Ministry of Magic. Without the need for wizards to cast spells, a handful of Floo powder can be used to cross half the continent, and repeated teleportation can also achieve a trip around the world. The same is true for portkeys, but they are more cumbersome to use.

The new space teleportation device is not much different from the Flyway Network in short-distance transmission. However, if it encounters a single ultra-long-distance transmission, the magic resources consumed per unit distance are thousands of times that of the Flyway Network.

On the other hand, this kind of space-shifting device requires the establishment of a beacon system, similar to a base station for telecommunications signals, and occasionally a signal tower, and the material resources consumed are an astronomical figure.

"I'll just say it's a big deal..."

Loren stretched, stuffed the fantasy book into the pendant, walked out of the dormitory, and saw groups of people gathered in the common room. They were all seventh-grade students who were about to graduate, chattering about tonight's night tour.

Several roommates gathered around the sofa.

Loren came over and sat down next to him, and asked with interest, "When does it start?"

"Let's start when the lights are out." Simo was also eager to try.

"What are the specific arrangements?"

Dean lowered his voice: "We plan to revisit the rooms where the adventures took place, the underground passage where the Philosopher's Stone is hidden, the secret room connected to the bathroom, and the restricted area of ​​the library..."

“How many people are participating in total?”

"All Gryffindor seventh years are participating. People from other houses have also responded, but the number of people is uncertain."

"If I get caught this time, hiss..."

Loren found the thought exciting.

Tonight is the graduation night out that Seamus and Dean had planned during the summer vacation. As they are about to graduate and leave, they hope to have a real adventure with their friends.

It was agreed that the event would be held today, as the new school year had just started and the colleges had not yet accumulated their college points. Even if many students were caught violating school rules, the college score would be deducted to zero at most, which would not affect the college cup evaluation. The four founders had never expected that there would be such a loophole in the gem scoring rules.