Chapter 884 Malfoy’s Counterattack

The Hogwarts School Board does not meet in the castle.

On the fifth underground floor of the British Ministry of Magic, there is a meeting hall dedicated to the British branch of the International Confederation of Wizards. However, since the second half of last year, it has been used more as a designated meeting place for the Hogwarts School Board.

This is not surprising. After all, in the wizarding world, magic schools have always been under the jurisdiction of the International Federation of Wizards.

To be more precise, magic schools around the world are supervised and registered by the Education Department of the International Federation of Wizards, a subsidiary of the International Federation of Wizards. All students from uncertified magic schools are registered with the Ministry of Magic of each country. In the official registration, they are all specially marked as "wild wizards" and "dropout wizards".

Dumbledore got dressed and apparated directly to the hall of the Ministry of Magic.

As soon as he appeared, the wizards crowded in the reception hall greeted him warmly and respectfully.

The honorary title of the current president of the International Federation of Wizards has almost no sense of existence for Dumbledore. Whether it is officials, visitors, or foreigners, people still regard him as a professor, which makes Dumbledore very gratified and happy.

However, such pleasant scenes are limited to public places.

When Dumbledore stepped out of the elevator and entered the "meeting room" of the Hogwarts School Board, his expression gradually calmed down.

Perhaps the people in this conference room would still regard him as the principal of Hogwarts, but Dumbledore knew very well that in their eyes, this was just a position with some special rights, nothing more.

"Good morning, everyone."

Dumbledore said, taking out his pocket watch and taking a look at it, "There are still five minutes until the agreed time...but I see that everyone has arrived, so why don't we just get down to business, so as to save each other's time."

"Of course that's great, Professor." Minister of Magic Cornelius Fudge said with a smile.

"Okay. Let's get started."

Dumbledore nodded and strode to the podium in the center of the room.

Unlike usual, in addition to the members of the Hogwarts School Board, there were also some people sitting in the empty meeting hall, such as Cornelius Fudge, Barty Crouch, Amelia Bones, Dorothy Ministry of Magic officials like Rhys Umbridge.

Since Hogwarts began to trial the "new curriculum standards", the Ministry of Magic has been involved in some discussions from time to time.

Of course, today is a little bit special.

As the first day of November, Dumbledore's agenda for today's meeting was quite intense.

In addition to discussions about the trial implementation of the "new curriculum standards" in the first two months of Hogwarts, today is also the time for the regular meeting of the British branch of the International Federation of Wizards. As usual, they have to start finalizing some legal changes and international cooperation for next year... ...and even the way to deal with local conflicts that may be involved.

Dumbledore waved his wand lightly, and a stack of meeting documents appeared in front of everyone.

Immediately afterwards, he told the school board and the Ministry of Magic in detail about the teaching situation in the first two months of Hogwarts, as well as ghost dishes, the establishment of the "Ghost Patrol", etc. Happily, there were no Any objections.

"I think that's totally fine and yes, it makes sense."

After Dumbledore finished talking about the Ghost Patrol, Fudge said, "Ghost dishes are a unique product that originated from Hogwarts and is unique to the British wizarding community! You are right, Professor Dumbledore... …I don’t think any ghost can resist this temptation…The security around Hogwarts should be improved——”

"Thank you, Mr. Minister." Dumbledore politely interrupted Cornelius Fudge's nonsense.

After the first few meetings, he was well aware of the Minister of Magic's talent for eloquence.

If not interrupted in time, today's meeting may last from morning to afternoon - when the meeting takes place in the Hogwarts principal's office, the chance of such a situation happening can be said to be almost 100%.

"So, do you have any questions?"

Dumbledore asked softly and gently, looking around the hall.

His eyes mainly moved on the members of the Hogwarts School Board of Trustees. No matter how the officials of the Ministry of Magic evaluated them, Hogwarts-related personnel changes and educational reform were still subject to the final opinions of the Board of Directors.

In fact, it was not difficult for Dumbledore to make a statement.

But in Elena's words, from time to time the Hogwarts School Board must have some sense of participation,

And in this way, if any accidents or problems arise later, it will also be the result of collective discussion. Everyone will spontaneously and subconsciously maintain the small group in order to reduce their responsibilities - on the other hand, in order to reduce their responsibilities, As a conclusion, this sentence will make people feel more comfortable.

Facing Dumbledore's questioning, Lucius Malfoy, sitting in the corner, hesitated.

Having participated in several Hogwarts school board meetings, he naturally knew what Dumbledore meant.

The next time is for the Ministry of Magic and the British branch of the International Federation of Wizards. Unrelated personnel like him who do not serve in the Ministry of Magic will naturally prepare to leave - school board members are not qualified to observe "political affairs."

"Well...Professor Dumbledore...I have a small proposal." Lucius said.

"Mr. Malfoy, do you think there are any problems with the new curriculum teaching feedback and the ghost patrol team?"

"Um...no, I think these are good...actually it's something else."

Lucius Malfoy said after careful consideration.

As he and Dumbledore talked, all the wizards in the room turned to look at him.

"'Something else,' Mr. Malfoy, what do you mean?"

Cornelius Fudge raised his eyebrows.

Lucius Malfoy gritted his teeth and took a breath.

"Actually, I was wondering if we could allow house elves outside the school to go to Hogwarts Castle for further education."

"Advanced studies?" Cornelius Fudge asked in confusion, "Study what? Although Hogwarts is a magic school, in my impression, there should be no courses for house elves yet. ?”

"That's right. Mr. Minister, you briefly mentioned it a few months ago."

Lucius Malfoy explained patiently, with a sincere expression.

"Ever since I experienced the food at Hogwarts, I have long wanted the clumsy idiot at home to learn from it. This way, Draco won't be thinking about hurrying up every time he comes home from vacation for less than half a week. Back to school."

He saw the funny look on Cornelius Fudge's face and quickly added.

"I know it's a bit abrupt to say this suddenly... but - how should I put it - as everyone knows, the elves at Hogwarts are obviously ahead of the entire wizarding world in terms of cuisine and housekeeping. We, the wizarding family - Compared to the few stupid guys in our respective families, Hogwarts has a lot to learn from in this regard..."

"So," Dumbledore said thoughtfully, "you want Hogwarts to accept a group of foreign elves?"

"It can be understood this way," Lucius Malfoy nodded calmly, "The school can, like us, command and use the house elves at will during this period... I just hope that the excellence of Hogwarts... ...Whether it is wizards or advanced house elves, their experience is spreading more and more widely in the magical world."

"Similar to being sent to study? It sounds like some ideas."

At this moment, Mr. Greengrass, one of the chairman of the Hogwarts School Board of Trustees, nodded slightly.

"Personally, I think Mr. Malfoy's suggestion makes some sense - during this time, I have become increasingly dissatisfied with the house elves at home. They should find a place to study hard. They should How to serve your master.”

The old wizard thought for a moment, turned his head and looked at the other wizards around him, and said softly.

There is no doubt that most of the wizards present are from well-known families. They almost represent the ancient pure-blood families that still maintain their glory in the British magic world today. Most of them have house elves in their respective families.

The question raised by Lucius Malfoy also happened to "expose" what these wizarding families had been unable to do before.

Compared with the huge number of "Hogwarts elves" that are constantly changing and evolving, as time goes by, the house elves distributed in various ancient pure-blood wizarding families are becoming more and more clumsy and difficult to use - it is difficult to cook the same dishes. Not to mention eating, due to the lack of complete guidance and education, many elves have even begun to become neurotic and dementia.

"Sending elves to Hogwarts to further their studies? This is quite constructive."

Cornelius Fudge was stunned for half a second, nodded thoughtfully, and glanced at Barty Crouch beside him.

As the Minister of Magic, he thinks further than Greengrass. Ever since Dumbledore ignited his ambition to "rebuild the glory of the British wizarding world" some time ago, Fudge has been thinking about how to expand his influence during his tenure.

Cornelius Fudge actually knew very well that compared to the previous Ministers of Magic, he had a lot of luck in sitting in this position.

If it weren't for Dumbledore's recommendation, Crouch's son's cheating, and the retirement of the previous Minister of Magic... these factors happened to accumulate at that time, and his prestige in the eyes of the public alone would not be enough to be elected Minister of Magic.

However, Cornelius Fudge has an advantage. He is very good at asking for help and absorbing the advice of elders.

There is no doubt that Albus Dumbledore is the recognized wise man of this era. Cornelius Fudge did not mind letting people know that he would write more than a dozen letters to Dumbledore every month for help - in fact, he even By acquiescing to the spread of this kind of news, and with the blessing of "Dumbledore's suggestion", his prestige and reputation have risen rapidly, almost visibly to the naked eye.

And just a few months ago, Dumbledore taught him some political skills for the first time.

Unique, irreplaceable, milestone... Any positive reform will inevitably leave traces in history, and these are the keys that can help him gain support in future selections, and are also the most important and stable political achievements.

And now...

"Of course, of course, Mr. Malfoy, your suggestion reminds me."

Cornelius Fudge pondered for two seconds and said with a bright smile.

"Apart from Hogwarts Castle, there is no other place in the world where so many house elves gather. Standing still will make such useful servants gradually disappear... That would be a pity... We can start with We will pilot it on a small scale, and then use the International Federation of Wizards to promote it to focus the attention of all pure-blood wizarding families in the world on Britain."

"Oh, that's a genius idea, Mr. Minister."

Umbridge leaned forward and complimented somewhat exaggeratedly.

"We can even let them give birth to more, fill up various wizard families, and reappear..."

"Ahem, sorry, interrupt for a moment -"

Dumbledore coughed slightly and glanced meaningfully at Malfoy.

"Hogwarts has no arrangements in this regard for the time being, and there is no corresponding precedent before... Whether it is school safety or specific details, there are still many things that need to be explored and discussed - besides, this is no joke, In my opinion, if such 'dispatch learning' is really to be implemented, then at least one academic year should be used as the time unit."

The old wizard said calmly, looking around the hall with undeniable determination in his tone.

"Due to various factors, during this period, this house elf cannot return to its original family. This will inevitably cause a lot of problems, so I think it is best to..."

"There will never be any complaints or worries from the Malfoy family." Lucius said simply.

"I mean, the house elves of the Malfoy family can be used as the first batch of pilots. Many things can only be seen after trying them, right? Or, what is there in Hogwarts at this time? Inconvenient place?"

The middle-aged father's eyes met Dumbledore's eyes squarely. This was the first time in more than ten years that they looked at each other without evasion.

If the "Dangerous Key" is in Hogwarts Castle, then it is most likely to have fallen into the hands of Albus Dumbledore. Slytherin's secret treasure can only be opened by Slytherin people. It was something the Dark Lord had mentioned inadvertently.

Perhaps Dumbledore's original intention was to expel the danger from the Chamber of Secrets, but Lucius was not entirely reassured.

After all, decades ago, the young Dark Lord had managed to elude Albus Dumbledore in his prime.

In Lucius Malfoy's view, there are only two Slytherins in Hogwarts that Dumbledore can command - and compared to the elusive 'betrayer', Draco Obviously easier to be coaxed and manipulated.

Therefore, he must find countermeasures before anything happens.

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Great!