Clearing wasteland was quite a troublesome task. Besides the weeds above ground, the roots and stones beneath the surface also had to be cleared away.
Of course, before that, the land had to be plowed.
Charles was thinking about how to ask Seamus to help plow the land in the Common Room when Hermione came looking for him with an older girl.
Hermione introduced Charles: "This is Eleanor Chatelot, a sixth-year student. She wants to ask you about those feathers... Hey, don't look at people like that!"
There was no one named Eleanor Chatelot in Charles's "memories." He had only seen her a few times in the month or so since term began, but she had left a deep impression.
Eleanor was over 1.75 meters tall, with looks good enough to make a living in Hollywood. Her brown hair fell like a waterfall all the way to her thighs, and she had a figure that Hogwarts robes couldn't conceal. A faint smile always rested on her face.
When she saw Charles staring blankly at her, Hermione gave him a kick. Eleanor covered her mouth and giggled. "Smith, your girlfriend is going to be angry!"
"No, no!" Charles hurriedly denied it. "We were just classmates in primary school. I was thinking that when she wants a boyfriend, I'll introduce my friend David Beckham to her."
Hermione froze for two seconds, then glared at him. "Who is David Beckham?"
Charles answered, "Oh, he's a football player. He just joined Manchester United this summer."
"Really?" Eleanor smiled. "My family lives in Manchester. Are you a Manchester United fan too?"
Charles shook his head and answered seriously, "I'm an AC Milan fan."
Hermione couldn't stand the two of them going off-topic anymore, so she said to Charles, "Chatelot wants to ask you about those feathers."
Eleanor wore a smile that said I know what you're up to as she said to Charles, "This isn't the place to discuss it. Come with me."
Charles could tell that she knew where the feathers had come from. The Common Room certainly wasn't a good place to discuss going to the Forbidden Forest, so he left the Common Room with her.
Eleanor led Charles to a corridor some distance from the Common Room. A painting of several ladies picnicking beside a lake hung on the wall. After Eleanor exchanged greetings with them, the painting moved aside, revealing a door behind it.
Charles was startled by what he saw beyond the door. It opened directly into a Potions laboratory, fully equipped with all kinds of apparatus. Shelves lining both walls were packed with various ingredients.
Farther in, there were two more doors. Eleanor took him to look around. One opened into a bedroom, while the other led to a study. A tea table stood by the window.
Eleanor invited Charles to sit at the tea table and poured him a cup of tea.
Charles asked in surprise, "Miss Chatelot, you actually have your own laboratory at Hogwarts?"
Eleanor smiled. "Just call me Eleanor. There's no need to be so formal with me."
"Professor Dumbledore arranged this private laboratory for me. I'm very interested in Potions and have some talent for it, so I needed a place to conduct my own experiments."
"Only Professor Dumbledore, Professor McGonagall, and Professor Snape, who occasionally comes to instruct me, know about this place. Other than them, you're the first guest I've had here."
Charles sighed. "Professor Dumbledore actually arranged a laboratory for you alone. Your family must have senior officials in the Ministry of Magic."
As far as he was concerned, the fact that the headmaster and deputy headmistress had agreed to this, and that Snape even came to teach her, meant that Eleanor's family had to be extremely powerful. Even the Malfoy family couldn't compare.
Eleanor said to him nonchalantly, "Both my parents are Muggles. It's really nothing. I've simply donated 50,000 Galleons to Hogwarts every year since I was in first year."
Charles blinked, his mouth falling wide open in shock. Fifty thousand Galleons a year—that was 250,000 pounds. Compared to that, the flying brooms the Malfoy family would donate to Slytherin's Quidditch team next year were nothing.
Eleanor smiled faintly and asked him, "Do you remember Ronila Egret?"
Charles froze, then immediately answered, "You know Ronila? She, Hermione Granger, and I were classmates in primary school."
"Of course I know Ronila." Eleanor's face lit up with a brilliant smile. "Her mother and my mother are sisters. We're all very grateful that you rescued her from the kidnappers. We wanted to invite you to our home during the summer, but we didn't expect you and your grandfather to go to France. Ronila happened to be staying with her maternal grandmother in France at the time, so we tried to contact you there, but then you suddenly returned to Britain."
Charles confirmed two things. First, the world was sometimes a very small place. Second, the girl in front of him was the daughter of a major capitalist. In terms of wealth, the Malfoy family was nowhere near hers. Twenty-five thousand pounds a year was nothing to her family; it might even bring them greater returns.
He cautiously asked, "You're not taking the Potions home to sell... no... giving them to people as gifts, are you?"
Eleanor looked at Charles with satisfaction and said, "That kidnapping case was never made public because the police used the Truth Serum I had prepared on the kidnappers. They learned that someone from my own family was behind it, and making it public would have had a bad impact."
"I can tell you about what happened afterward. In early September, a very serious car accident occurred in Wales. The driver fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into a large tree by the roadside."
Charles understood and said regretfully, "The tree was innocent. It should've just fallen into the river."
Eleanor covered her mouth and laughed, then continued, "The wizards in the Ministry of Magic are all idiots. As long as you come up with a good excuse, taking Potions home for personal use isn't a problem."
"With Truth Serum, the police in quite a few places now have a good relationship with my family. Some of our business partners suffer from insomnia, and taking too many sleeping pills has made them resistant to the effects. Draught of Living Death can give them a good night's sleep. Comfrey Essence and Skele-gro, which can treat injuries, are also very popular."
Charles understood. Even capitalists valued human relationships and social etiquette. If Eleanor's Potions could help other business partners solve a few problems, then after several business deals, the nearly two million pounds donated over seven years could be recovered—and such cooperation could continue in the future.
He asked Eleanor, "So you want me to get you some ingredients from the Forbidden Forest? Such as those feathers?"
"That's right." Eleanor nodded, then gave Charles a mischievous smile. "Among the feathers you gave Granger, the cheapest were Silencing Bird feathers. One sells for five Galleons in Diagon Alley, and the rest are worth over a hundred Galleons altogether."
"I imagine you have a way to obtain more materials from the Forbidden Forest. Why don't we divide the responsibilities? You find the materials I need, and I'll pay you."
Charles thought it over, then agreed to her proposal. "No problem. I'm currently working with Hogwarts and Snape. You can give me a list of materials, and if you need anything, I'll give it to you."
Eleanor smiled at him. "Then it's settled. If you need any Potions, come find me. You can also come here and make them yourself."
"Hehehe... For male students, the chance to be alone with me is something they can only dream of."
Charles shrugged. "What a pity. I don't have that much time right now."
"You should know that I asked for a plot of land to grow some magical plants. Now I'm still racking my brains over how to turn the soil."
"That's easy," Eleanor said. "Wizards who enjoy gardening invented the Ground-loosening Charm. I can help you."
Charles scratched his head and said somewhat awkwardly, "The plot isn't small. It would be too much trouble for you."
Eleanor only smiled without saying anything.
What happened next was simply ridiculous.
Charles and Eleanor went to the plot of land. Eleanor had just loosened less than a square meter of soil when a group of older male students rushed over to show off, eagerly helping her tidy up the entire plot. Throughout the whole process, Eleanor didn't say a word. She only smiled.
Before you continue