Harry Teases Cho Chang

Gryffindor's complete switch to the Black Bamboo Mark I drew intense curiosity from the spectators. The vivid emerald-green brooms clutched by the players as they entered looked strikingly bright, and the red-and-green color combination was especially eye-catching.

"What kind of broom is that?"

"I've never seen it before. It looks so strange."

"Won't those metal clasps on the broomstick be uncomfortable?"

The audience buzzed with discussion, while Lee Jordan recited the ad copy at Zhang San's request:

"Black Bamboo Mark I, a magical miracle from deep within the bamboo forests of the East! Forsaking the bulky branches of traditional brooms, it is crafted from Mount Longhu black bamboo—light as a feather, hard as dragon scales. Its exclusive unicorn steering runes grant you falcon-like agility during dives."

The spectators who came to Hogwarts to watch Quidditch matches were not limited to Hogwarts students. Many adult wizards also bought tickets to watch. This was one of the school's major sources of operating funds, and the annual Quidditch matches between the four Houses earned Hogwarts a handsome profit.

Therefore, promoting the Black Bamboo Mark I during a Hogwarts Quidditch match was quite an excellent platform. To get Lee Jordan to agree to add a spoken advertisement, Zhang San had paid him ten Galleons in sponsorship fees.

After all, Lee Jordan was staking his commentary career on reading an ad. If Zhang San had been too stingy, he would have seemed cheap.

Lee Jordan claimed it was not that he lacked principles—Zhang San had simply offered far, far too much.

Madam Hooch, her eyes sharp as a hawk's, carried a box to the center of the pitch and threw the Quaffle into the air. The Chasers from both teams immediately rushed toward it to fight for possession.

Then the Bludgers and the Golden Snitch rose into the air in succession to join the match, and the Quidditch pitch instantly became lively.

The Quaffle had to be fought over, the Bludgers had to be dodged, and the Golden Snitch had to be chased... the entire pitch became a complete mess.

The Ravenclaw players in blue uniforms had a more steady, cautious competitive style. They attacked and defended according to the rhythm of their daily training, but that style appeared rigid on an ever-changing pitch.

The fully reequipped Gryffindor players had already adapted to riding the Black Bamboo Mark I. It looked like it would chafe between the legs, but under the protection of the Thickened Cushion Charm, it was relatively comfortable to ride.

If she had not considered the air resistance coefficient of racing brooms, Hermione would have wanted to place a Sofa Charm on the Black Bamboo Mark I to improve its comfort.

Why couldn't flying brooms break into the Asian market? Wasn't it because flying carpets were far more comfortable than brooms? Human nature was to enjoy comfort. Soft flying carpets were certainly more popular than brooms that chafed between the legs.

The Black Bamboo Mark I's performance, comparable to the Nimbus 2000, gave the Gryffindor players every advantage. They were faster, more agile in turning, and steadier in sudden stops... If compared to aerial combat, Gryffindor facing Ravenclaw was like sixth-generation fighters bullying fourth-generation fighters.

The difference in broom performance had an enormous impact on the match. Whenever Gryffindor had the Quaffle, Ravenclaw's players could not catch them no matter how hard they chased.

At this point, it was necessary to mention the pitch's idlers—the Seekers. Ravenclaw's Seeker was Cho Chang, and this girl, who had only just joined the team, was being bullied terribly by Harry Potter.

Before this match began, Oliver Wood had sternly ordered Harry not to catch the Golden Snitch too early. They needed to rack up enough points against Ravenclaw to make up for their previous loss to Slytherin.

Thus, Harry Potter's task in the early stages was harassment. Without catching the Golden Snitch himself, Harry Potter had to ensure that Cho Chang could not catch it either.

That little thing was worth too many points, and catching it meant the match was over. That meant Gryffindor would not be able to farm more points from bottom-feeder Ravenclaw.

Cho Chang was nearly driven mad by Harry Potter. That damned guy interrupted her path every time she approached the Golden Snitch. Even more irritatingly, she simply could not keep up with Harry Potter's broom.

Once, Cho Chang had almost touched the Golden Snitch when Harry Potter suddenly cut in, slapped the Snitch away to the other side, and used his body to block her flight path.

Cho Chang nearly cried as she watched the Golden Snitch, which had almost been within her grasp, flee away. She glared fiercely at Harry Potter with resentful eyes. If looks could kill, Harry would probably already be stiff.

"How can he be so fast?" Cho Chang gritted her silver teeth.

She had already discovered the crux of the problem. Harry Potter's broom was at least three times faster than hers. This meant that no matter how she struggled, she could not escape his harassment.

So annoying!

Leaving aside the grievances between the Seekers, things were even livelier on the Beaters' side. After returning to the training field, the Weasley Twins became increasingly coordinated after mounting the Black Bamboo Mark I. Each wielded a bat and chased after the Bludgers, and whenever they caught one, they gave it a relentless pounding, smashing it viciously toward Ravenclaw's Keeper.

The two Bludgers tore across the pitch like solid cannonballs. Fred struck first, using one Bludger to block the Ravenclaw Keeper's movement. George coordinated perfectly with him and, while the opposing Keeper was accelerating sharply and unable to turn, smashed the second Bludger at him.

Bang!

The Bludger struck the opposing Keeper square in the face. The unlucky Keeper drifted to the ground like a falcon shot from the sky. The Quidditch pitch had already been enchanted; falling from the air would at most cause broken bones, not death.

The Hogwarts school hospital had a complete treatment plan for bone injuries. A few days inside was all it took to leave safely.

Zhang San had also once wondered why the Quidditch pitch was not protected by injury-prevention magic. With wizarding methods, that was entirely possible.

In the end, he had only understood the reason after digging through a book on the history of Quidditch. Getting hurt in a fall was also part of the match, and the audience loved watching it.

Otherwise, if Quidditch players got knocked down and nothing happened to them, where would the thrilling excitement be?

The downed Ravenclaw Keeper was carried away, and the rest of the match entered garbage time. Gryffindor casually farmed three hundred points before ending the match. While it was not impossible to farm over a thousand points, this was ultimately an intra-school competition. There was no need to make things so ugly.

A three-hundred-point lead was enough to give Gryffindor an advantageous position, and even against Slytherin again, they would have ample confidence. If their score in the previous loss to Slytherin had not been so ugly, they would not have farmed points from Ravenclaw.

The match ultimately ended with Harry Potter easily catching the Golden Snitch. The Bamboo Mark I's speed utterly crushed the Golden Snitch. No matter how wildly the little thing darted around, it could not escape Harry Potter's grasp.

Cho Chang had truly come to hate Harry Potter. As the saying went, a warrior could be killed but not humiliated. Today, Harry had indeed toyed with Cho Chang on the pitch like a dog.

Though that had not been Harry Potter's intention, as the one carrying out the tactic, he was bound to bear his opponent's anger.

Hopefully his first love would not hate him for the rest of her life—this was Cho Chang's Quidditch debut, and Harry Potter had nearly shattered her resolve.