Chapter 222 A Few Things About the Banquet

Malfoy Manor.

As midnight approaches, the bright lights are still not extinguished, and music and bonfires flow freely in the snowy night. Although there is snow falling in the courtyard, it is not cold at all.

People gathered together in twos and threes, divided into large and small groups, and talked about different topics.

The female relatives gathered around the white peacock on the pavilion, discussing the style of evening dresses and the color of silk scarves; the pure-blood families discussed business, the entry business license of the Magical Congress of the United States of America; and Quidditch enthusiasts discussed gambling. ,team……

In a corner of the courtyard, sanctimonious people gathered together. These people were once Death Eaters and later managed to escape trial.

The same experiences and common interests bind them together. Although a group of people are separated and full of calculations against each other, they still have a subtle sense of identity.

When he accidentally talked about the vulgarities of American wizards, Flint, a member of the purebloods and well-informed, looked at Crabbe and raised his goblet and joked:

"I heard that your boy was imprisoned by the Ministry of Magic? The charge proposed by Principal Dumbledore was manipulating a basilisk to threaten the safety of Mudblood students. Ha, you have to be lucky that this is in the UK. If it were the Magical Congress of the United States, He has been executed."

The surrounding pure-blood family members burst into laughter.

Seeing the ugly look on Old Crabbe's face, a middle-aged wizard from the Rozier family patted him on the shoulder: "Don't be so serious about Christmas! Spend some money on it, and you can pick it up without waiting for the holiday to end."

The bear-shaped old Crabbe was wearing a large shirt, and his fat body was still filling the fabric. His face was still gloomy, and he glanced at Fudge not far away with his bear eyes: "Last time, because of the werewolf incident, A lot of money has been given away. Vincent, that idiot who doesn't know how to live or die, just die in Azkaban."

Although he said this, everyone around him knew that Vincent was his only son, and he certainly could not let the Ministry of Magic imprison him in Azkaban.

Flint glanced around and took a few steps forward. Everyone knew that he was trying to whisper something, so they all came closer and took the initiative to form a circle.

Flint confided the information he had heard: "Vincent was sent to the Ministry of Magic by Dumbledore himself, and that damn Moody is also involved in this case. Many people are paying attention to this matter, and if you have money, you may It can’t be sprinkled in.”

The bear-like Vincent's face became even more ugly. The fat on his face was squeezed together, making him look fierce and ugly. Everyone around him could feel the violent aura on his body.

Flint glanced at Fudge again, and sincerely suggested to Crabbe: "Don't worry about the law, find a way to get the person out of the Ministry of Magic first, and then send him out. It doesn't matter whether it's the United States or France, change your identity." It's easy."

People around him all echoed:

"Yes, Dumbledore is old."

"His influence no longer reaches as far as it did decades ago."

No one cares whether Vincent really broke the law or whether he really threatened the safety of Muggle students...

After all, who here doesn't have some dark magic items hidden in their home, and who doesn't want to clean up those Mudbloods? There just aren't enough benefits to drive them into practice.

"Things may be different from what we think," the middle-aged wizard of the Rosier family said, his voice lowered, "There is also a secret theory in the Ministry of Magic, Albus Dumbledore Who was involved in bringing up this matter when handing Vincent over to the Ministry of Magic!"

When he talked about that person, he calmly touched the outside of his arm with the goblet - the location of the mark of the dark devil.

Everyone onlookers understood what he meant, and the scene became silent for a while.

"Is it true...I mean, is that one really back?" Flint looked at Old Crabbe and probed cautiously.

Although Old Crabbe was not as smart and smooth as Lucius, he was still keenly aware of the change in the way people around him looked at him, and he was vaguely repelled by him.

The obvious fear and suspicion, hidden behind these emotions is fear, the fear of the Dark Lord

However, because he was the first person to come into contact with the Dark Lord, no one dared to betray him. They were worried that the Dark Lord would really be resurrected and that Crabbe, with Voldemort's power, would take revenge on others.

Old Crabbe had a ridiculous feeling in his heart...

They definitely don't want the Dark Lord to return, and they don't want to have a supreme master above them, a master who can take away their lives at any time.

But if the Dark Lord really returns, they will be the most pious and loyal Death Eaters.

"I don't know the specific situation," Old Crabbe said, and everyone around him was quietly waiting for his next words, "But I haven't seen the Dark Lord with my own eyes. It should be that idiot Vincent was possessed by some dark magic item. Confused, it also attracted a ghost.”

Flint stared at his face and asked impatiently: "Is that ghost related to the mysterious man?"

Old Crabbe was silent for a moment, shook his head, and repeated: "It's just that idiot Vincent was confused by the black magic item."

The tense atmosphere suddenly relaxed. Flint took a sip of the wine in the goblet and said with a relaxed smile: "Oh, of course! That Hogwarts Castle has existed for thousands of years. What kind of Dark magic items are not surprising. If you ask me, the place the Ministry of Magic should search most is Hogwarts."

"Yes, yes!" the onlookers echoed, with false smiles on their faces.

Of course, they would not easily believe Old Crabbe's lies. They had their own plans in their hearts, but they didn't show anything strange on their faces. After all, he was a Death Eater who escaped justice. If he hadn't been cunning, he would have died in Azkaban, his soul would be fed to the dementors, and his body would have been thrown into the sea to feed the fish.

The middle-aged wizard Rosier seemed even more relaxed: "Just like the argument circulating in the Ministry of Magic, this is just Dumbledore's excuse. He is trying to seize Fudge's power and seek the position of Minister of Magic."

"That's right. After all, everyone knows that if the mysterious man really comes back, the only one who can compete with him is Dumbledore. As long as the news about that person spreads, someone will definitely recommend Dumbledore as Minister of Magic. "

"Haha, what a clumsy trick."

"If you ask me, although Dumbledore's magic is very powerful, these tricks are too clumsy."

"Yes!"

Flint took another glass of wine from the tray of the passing Veela waiter. Without the psychological pressure, Flint drank slowly this time and acted like a pure-blood noble: "If you ask me, this is a good thing. Solve it. After all, Vincent was only controlled by a dark magic item, so of course he is not guilty."

Ambiguous smiles appeared on everyone's faces, because they had used this excuse to escape guilt. They were controlled by the curse, affected by the Imperius Curse, and threatened by black magic...

Although they did many evil deeds as Death Eaters, they themselves were kind and innocent.

Old Crabbe's expression also relaxed, and he discussed with everyone how traditional arts could be used on his son.

In the darkness of the backlit corridor, Dobby the house elf crept past, hiding his figure as much as possible to avoid disturbing the guests tonight with his presence.

If he could, he would rather stay in the kitchen and die than come out.

But it must deliver hot food fresh from the oven to the long table. Fortunately, the first half went smoothly, and now it just needs to hide in the kitchen.

Dobby walked cautiously, and a thin human-shaped shadow instantly enveloped him: "It is indeed you!"

Sirius Black grasped Dobby's slender neck with his big hands, and with the cover of his long robe, he led him to a remote room without anyone noticing.

"Do you recognize me?" There was a dangerous gaze in the sunken eyes, and the thick murderous intent came out of Black's body, making Dobby tremble.

Malfoy invited almost all the pure-blood families. As the only remaining bloodline of the Black family, he was almost the only heir. Not to mention Narcissa was his cousin. Blake easily got the invitation to the party.

After nearly a semester's investigation, Black didn't get any useful clues. However, at the banquet, he caught this house elf - Dobby.

Christmas present... Blake grinned, showing yellow teeth.

Dobby's whole body was shaking uncontrollably, and he stammered in reply: "Yes, yes, you are Mr. Black, Master Narcissa's cousin..."

"You're still not honest!" Black's face twitched, "Either you explain everything clearly. Or, I go to Malfoy and explain it clearly. Your master will definitely be happy to chop off your head! I think you should too. Very happy!"

"No! No, Dobby doesn't want to, Dobby wants to live!" the house elf cried in a high-pitched voice, with a look of fear and despair on its face.

Blake released his hold on its neck: "Do you recognize me now?"

He wasn't worried about Dobby escaping. The house elf's master was in this manor, so it couldn't escape.

"I know, Dobby knows, you are Mr. Harry Potter's godfather." Dobby said tremblingly.

"Tell me clearly why you intercepted Harry's letters during the summer vacation, why you stopped him from returning to school, and did you know about the basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets in advance!" Black asked.

"Oh, summer vacation! Summer vacation! Master!" Dobby fell into a state of madness, with tears and snot flowing down his face, and he kept hitting his head with his fists.

"Dobby can't say it! Dobby can't say it!"

"Dobby is a bad elf! Dobby is a bad elf!"

The house elf clenched his fist and hit his head with unreserved force. The skin was soon broken, and horrifying dark blood was mixed with snot and tears.

Blake's face was full of disgust, and he shouted roughly: "That's enough! Shut up!"

Dobby's behavior reminded him of the crazy house elf in Black's old house, Kreacher. But Black also understood that this was causing the house elf to betray its current master, and it was not surprising that Dobby would engage in these self-harming behaviors.

"Wait here obediently!" After Blake said that, he got up and went out.

A moment later, Black re-entered the room, followed by Narcissa, the mistress of Malfoy Manor, who was wearing a luxurious evening dress.

"Hey, Sirius, the white peacock is about to open its tail! Why did you call me here?" Narcissa complained dissatisfied.

Narcissa was in a good mood tonight, and even looked at her cousin who had been imprisoned in Azkaban for ten years with ease.

A few months ago, Old Crabbe led a group of werewolves into a mess in her living room. For this reason, Lucius also specially asked Malfoy to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas. Narcissa thought that there was something wrong with the Malfoy family.

But tonight's grand banquet dispelled her worries. Almost all the prominent officials of the Ministry of Magic came. Her husband had a pleasant chat with the Minister of Magic at the banquet...

As for those werewolves, they will be driven outside the borders of Britain under the comprehensive and in-depth implementation of the "Anti-Werewolf Act".

"I want to buy this house elf from you. As you know, Black's old house has not been cleaned for more than ten years and is almost uninhabitable." Black said, pointing to Dobby on the ground.

Narcissa glanced at the dirty Dobby with disgust, and quickly withdrew her gaze. She did not want her eyes that had just admired the white peacock to be polluted: "I remember that the Black family has its own house elf. If he dies, there is no way he can escape. Alright?"

Probably Sirius wanted to take Dobby away, and Dobby thought it was a betrayal of his master, so he was punishing himself. Narcissa guessed casually.

Creatures like house elves are not scarce. As long as you have money, you can always buy or exchange them from other pure-blood families.

But Narcissa was a little hesitant when she suddenly wanted to sell her servants.

Dobby lay on the ground wailing, snot, tears and blood falling on the carpet. Narcissa's brows knitted together, undisguised disgust flashing in her eyes.

"You mean Kreacher? It's too old, too old to move. It begs me to chop off its head all day long." Seeing that Narcissa's refusal was not firm, Black continued, "I just want to renovate the old house as soon as possible. Sort out the jewelry, antiques, etc.”

"I don't want to spend the effort to look elsewhere. If you agree, I can pay this much." Black stretched out his hand and gestured for a price that made Narcissa's heart move.

In order to establish a relationship with Fudge, the Malfoy family has spent a lot of money recently. Donated a large amount of money to the Ministry of Magic, sent a large amount of money to Fudge through secret channels, donated a large amount of money to St. Mungo's, and held the expenses for tonight's Christmas banquet...

The price Black offered was enough to make Malfoy bleed.

Narcissa suppressed her happy mood and nodded reservedly: "I have to discuss it with Lucius. Anyway, I will use it for tonight's banquet."

"Of course." Blake smiled with satisfaction.

Neither of them took a second look at Dobby lying on the ground, and walked out of the room together.

"What are your plans for the future?"

"I don't know, let's leave it like this."

"If you ask me, you should find a pure-blood girl to marry and have a few children as soon as possible. You can't let the bloodline of the Black family be cut off."

"Yeah." Blake agreed casually.

"Look at the Weasley family. Although they say they don't care about pure blood, their actions are very honest. After all, they have given birth to so many children, right? Don't be like Andromeda. I remember she had a child with a Muggle. My daughter’s name is Tonks…”