Clues to the Chamber of Secrets

Snape's gaze towards Ernie held a hint of anger. Bing Huan's playful smile also vanished. "This is why I detest gossips. On that night, Harry's father bought time with his life. Harry's mother also sacrificed her life, casting the Blood Relation Protection Charm on Harry.

Both the books above and those detailing the effects of ancient spells like the Blood Relation Protection Charm are all available in the regular borrowing section of the library. Stop insulting a pair of great parents with your ignorance. Even though you are all young, rumors can cause lifelong harm."

The Great Hall fell silent, and Bing Huan returned to his seat. Not long after he sat down, a figure, slightly taller than others his age, walked over.

"I'm sorry, Harry," Ernie said, his eyes red. "I shouldn't have doubted you because of some baseless rumors. Your parents are the bravest people I know."

"Thank you, but next time you talk about me, remember to pay me for my appearance fee."

Ernie, who had expected to be scolded, froze. Laughter erupted in the Great Hall once more due to Harry's joke.

On the way to the classroom, Draco couldn't help but ask, "I thought you were going to mock him."

"I could have cursed him out, but I chose to completely sever the roots of these rumors. The path I take and the person I become are mine to decide." Harry smiled, looking ahead.

The other three looked at Harry strangely, as if he had been swapped with an alien.

"Yo~ Where did you learn that? So philosophical," Bing Huan said, putting his arm around Harry's neck. "Acting all deep with me now."

"An old man told me."

During the lunch break, Bing Huan was summoned to the Headmaster's Office. "A brilliant speech, Little Huan. What makes me even happier is that Harry has truly grown. He not only has a strong inner self but also a broad mind."

Bing Huan shot Dumbledore an exasperated look. "You just enjoyed the show. You let the rumors start, and I'm the one debunking them."

Grindelwald spoke somewhat sheepishly, "Albus is the Headmaster, after all. If he had explained, it would have seemed like he was taking sides. You, as a classmate, are more impartial."

"Impartial, am I?" Bing Huan took a sip of orange juice. "Those three are so close to being my sons, they just need to change their last names."

After a brief chat, Bing Huan went back to rest.

At the end of the day's classes, the five of them gathered in an empty classroom. Now that the rumors about Harry had been cleared up, it was time to focus entirely on the Chamber of Secrets.

"Draco," Harry turned to him. "Your family is quite familiar with Pureblood Wizarding matters. Do you have any information about the Chamber of Secrets?"

Draco looked at the four of them with a mysterious expression. "So now you know to ask me for help, huh? My father told me that this Chamber of Secrets was opened about 50 years ago. It was opened by the Dark Lord, and that time, opening the Chamber resulted in the death of a female student."

"Voldemort? Speaking of which, Voldemort is clearly a title. What was his real name?" Bing Huan's thoughts jumped.

"I don't think anyone knows that," Draco replied, frowning. "My father said he doesn't remember ever hearing the Dark Lord use his own name. He even seemed to resist using it, as if it were something dirty."

"Let's summarize what we know," Hermione said, taking notes of everyone's contributions. "Hundreds of years ago, Salazar Slytherin left a Basilisk in the Chamber of Secrets to aid his successor. He intended to 'purify' Hogwarts through killing. 50 years ago, his heir opened the Chamber once, causing casualties. Now, another heir has opened it again, intending to eliminate Non-pureblood Wizards from Hogwarts.

Although we don't have a clear direction regarding the culprit of this incident, we can investigate what happened 50 years ago to confirm the location of the Chamber of Secrets and how to deal with it. By then, even if we don't seek him out, the culprit will reveal himself to us."

Afterward, the group split into three teams. Malfoy went to find his followers and have them send letters home, asking if there were any details from 50 years ago that they didn't know. Hermione and Bing Huan decided to check the library for any records. Ron and Harry would ask those still at school if they knew anything.

The classmates, having just cleared up their misunderstanding of Harry, and learning that Harry was working hard to protect them like last year, were all willing to cooperate with Harry's investigation and ask their friends. As a result, their group had the easiest time.

However, the incident from that year had been suppressed as a secret by the Ministry of Magic, leaving almost no effective clues. The next day, the Daily Prophet, delivered by owl, reported that Fudge, the Minister of Magic, had officially begun carrying out punishments. The sentence had been passed months ago, and it was only being implemented today.

Harry wasn't worried about Fudge, but asked with concern, "So Mr. Weasley is really okay now, right?"

Bing Huan gave Harry a serious look. "Dare to doubt Uncle Zhang, and you might end up there too."

Harry: Σ(°ロ°)

There were no classes today, so the four of them were pulled to the library by Hermione to help her search for clues. That evening, the five of them, having found nothing, were wandering dejectedly in the corridor. As they looked around, they heard Filch's curses.

"So much trouble again! I spent the whole night mopping, as if I didn't have enough work. No, I must go find Dumbledore."

Filch grumbled and left. As they walked past the spot where Mrs. Norris had been attacked, the floor was covered in water, just like that night. They also heard a girl crying.

They followed the sound to the door of a restroom. "It's her," Hermione seemed to realize something.

"Who?"

"Moaning Myrtle."

Ron asked confusedly, "Who is Moaning Myrtle?"

A ghost floated behind Ron and shouted, "I am Moaning Myrtle!" Then, it flew into the air, looking down at them. "I don't expect you to know me. Who would talk about the ugly, pathetic, and dejected Moaning Myrtle? Are you guys throwing things at me too?"

Harry: "Why would we throw things at you?"

"I don't know," Myrtle said sadly. "I was just thinking about my own business, but people always thought it was fun to throw things at me."

Ron: "But it wouldn't hurt you if they hit you, right? The things would just pass through you."

"Yes!" Myrtle excitedly floated in front of Ron. "You can throw books at Myrtle, she won't feel it. Hitting her stomach is 10 points, and hitting her head is 50 points." As she spoke, she passed her ghostly arm through Ron's stomach and head.

Then, she cried and flew into the toilet.

Ron was a little startled. "Why is she angry?"

The four of them: "..."

Harry suddenly noticed something on the ground. He picked it up and saw a notebook. Engraved on the cover was a name: Tom Riddle.

"Looks like it's this person's diary."

"I remember that name," Ron said, as if recalling something. "When I was serving detention before, I saw it while I was polishing trophies. Riddle received a special contribution award for the school 50 years ago."

Hermione: "50 years ago?! That means Tom Riddle was at school during the last Chamber of Secrets incident. This diary might contain information about what happened then."

"Brilliant deduction, Hermione, but you've overlooked one point." Harry flipped through the diary strangely.

"What?"

"There are absolutely no words in this diary."

Hermione: (๑•̌.•̑๑)ˀ̣ˀ̣

The group stared at the diary for a long while, unable to figure anything out. "Maybe there's something hidden on it?" Bing Huan said. "But the book is still wet, so we can't use many methods. Let's take it back and figure something out after it dries."

Fearing they might damage it, they didn't use magic. Instead, they chose to leave it in a ventilated area to air dry naturally. The next day, the others continued searching for clues, while Harry stayed alone in the dormitory, battling with the diary.

Harry swore he had never studied a book so intently in his life, but the diary seemed unmoved, still showing not a single word. At noon, Hermione even brought a revealing eraser, but it was equally fruitless.

At night, while Harry was doing his homework, he accidentally flicked a drop of ink onto the diary.