Silan's Money Was Probably Going Down the Drain
"You know... today is the last day to register." Arthur Weasley somewhat awkwardly pulled out a newspaper. "The Daily Prophet's grand prize draw is tomorrow, and we might win 700 Galleon."
By the end, Arthur Weasley's voice was filled with barely suppressed excitement.
Silan saw an advertisement in the newspaper.
The annual the Daily Prophet's Galleon Prize draw is coming soon!
Everyone has a chance to win 700 Galleon!
Who says you can't be the next lucky one?!
[The registration fee is only 5 Galleon. If you'd like to try your luck, please send a letter to London...]
Seeing this, Silan roughly understood.
Arthur Weasley came here to borrow money to participate in the Daily Prophet Grand Prize.
This grand prize is similar to a newspaper lottery; wizards pay to register, and if they are lucky enough to be drawn, they can receive 700 Galleon.
This is a regular feature of the Daily Prophet's annual program.
But the registration fee of five Galleon was already a huge sum for Arthur Weasley.
Sure enough, Arthur Weasley scratched his head awkwardly, blushing, and whispered, "So... uh... you know, kids..."
Arthur Weasley gestured to them, "To win these 700 Galleon, I need to borrow some money from you first."
"If I win the grand prize, I will definitely return it to you," Arthur Weasley promised, raising his hand.
"I think you should wake up, Dad." George shook his head. "No one around us has ever won this award before."
"Look at Mr. Lovegood next door, he never participates in these kinds of activities."
"That's because Mr. Lovegood's the Quibbler and the Daily Prophet are rivals," Arthur Weasley argued quietly.
"It's not entirely because of that," Fred said, frowning. "How can you be so sure you'll win?"
"Five Galleon, even if you just throw them down the drain, at least you'd see some splashes."
George nodded in agreement. "If you ask me, this is clearly a conspiracy by the Daily Prophet."
"Just think about it, the registration fee for one person is 5 Galleon. If 1,000 people register, even without the grand prize, the Daily Prophet will still earn 4,300 Galleon!"
"My God, I never imagined they had so much money! Why don't they just rob Gringotts?" George realized.
Fred pursed his lips, somewhat angrily thinking that he and George had only earned 1,200 Galleon after a whole school year selling quills.
The Daily Prophet can easily earn several years' worth of their money simply by placing an ad telling people they might win the lottery!
That's absolutely outrageous!
"They don't even make as much money as they do from robbing Gringotts!" Fred scoffed.
As the most famous newspaper in the England Wizarding World, the Daily Prophet's reputation is beyond question, and many people read it.
The exorbitant profits involved are simply unimaginable.
George and Fred continued to reassure him, "I don't think they'll pick you just because you're an employee of the Ministry of Magic."
"And if Mom finds out, she'll be furious."
Arthur Weasley stood there, somewhat embarrassed, and also felt that he had been indulging in wishful thinking.
Actually, he originally had the money to participate.
He had been dreaming of winning the Daily Prophet Grand Prize for many years, and he had been saving money bit by bit for it.
After saving for who knows how many years, Arthur Weasley finally collected 5 Galleon this year.
But the last time he searched the Walton house, he brought several of his old buddies.
Several of his friends helped him with things, and he always treated them to a meal as a token of his appreciation, which resulted in him spending all the money he had saved.
That's when he had no choice but to ask the children for help.
"You're right," Arthur Weasley sighed helplessly. "I've been too naive. Goodnight, children."
George and Fred said, "Go back to sleep, Dad."
They may have money, but that doesn't mean they'll do business that's destined to lose money.
In their view, throwing those 5 Galleon into the Daily Prophet's grand prize would be less useful than wasting them.
"Alright, goodbye." Arthur Weasley sighed and turned to leave.
"Wait a minute, Uncle Arthur Weasley," Silan suddenly said.
"What's wrong?" Arthur Weasley asked, turning his head.
Silan smiled and took five Galleon out of his pocket, handing them to him.
"This is for me?" Arthur Weasley looked at Silan in astonishment.
"This is a complete waste of money." George shook his head. "Five Galleon could buy five boxes of Dungbomb."
Fred looked helpless as well. "George is right, Silan, you didn't need to do this."
"The odds of winning are just too low."
"I have a different opinion," Silan smiled confidently. "I dare say Uncle Arthur Weasley will definitely win the Galleon Grand Prize from the Daily Prophet."
"Why?" Even Arthur Weasley couldn't help but ask this time.
"Because I saw it," Silan said seriously. "Just take it as Prophecy."
"I foresee that in the near future, Uncle Arthur Weasley will win a big prize, and you'll all take the money on a trip to Egypt."
[Silver Tongue: Proficiency +1]
The first half of Silan's statement was made up, while the second half was the truth.
In his recollection, Arthur Weasley Weasley did indeed win the Daily Prophet Award in the original storyline.
This also brought the Weasley family a windfall, allowing them to travel to Egypt and, incidentally, visit Bill Weasley Weasley, Gringotts worked as Curse-Breaker in Egypt.
But the idea of a "Prophecy" was so absurd that George and Fred exchanged bewildered glances.
"That's hard to say. We don't believe Dad has that kind of good luck."
Silan shrugged. "Let's wait and see. Anyway, I'm the one paying."
George said helplessly, "You really didn't waste your money."
Arthur Weasley was also a little nervous. To be honest, he wasn't sure about his luck, especially when it came to money.
Most of the time, Weasley and Galleon are completely unrelated.
"Don't be nervous," Silan smiled at Arthur Weasley encouragingly. "Just participate normally."
Arthur Weasley nodded, clutching the five Galleon tightly in his hand, his excitement reigniting.
"If I win the grand prize, I'll definitely pay you back double! Oh, then we can really go on a trip to Egypt!"
"Come with us, Silan, let's go as a family!" Arthur Weasley invited enthusiastically.
"Dad, you haven't won an award yet..." George and Fred reminded him, somewhat exasperated.
"Oh, okay... but seriously, if I really win the award, I think we could really consider going to Egypt..."
After saying that, Arthur Weasley hurriedly left the room and ran downstairs as fast as he could.
While Molly was busy in the kitchen, Arthur Weasley secretly slipped the registration fee into the envelope and filled out the registration form.
"Errol, my old friend!"
"Good luck! This is the only request I'll ever make. You absolutely must deliver this application!"
"Please, old buddy!"
Arthur Weasley kept nagging as he fed Errol the Owl Supplement, glancing at the kitchen every now and then.
After Errol finished the Owl Supplement, Arthur Weasley opened the window and let it out.
Only after Errol disappeared into the night did he close the window and sneak back upstairs.
George and Fred shook their heads at the sight.
"It looks like Silan's money is going to be wasted."