Who's in favor, and who's against?

"Th-three... thousand... two... two hundred years?"

Every pure-blood wizard turned that number over in their mind. Many were so shocked that they leaped to their feet.

What did more than 3,200 years mean? That was longer than the history of Britain's wizarding world! It went all the way back to Ancient Greece!

Of the twenty-eight pure-blood families, the Black family had the longest history, and even that only dated back to the Middle Ages.

They thought of their treasured family trees, which could fit embroidered on a single tapestry, then looked at the enormous genealogy Zhang Xiao had produced, nearly as large as a tabletop.

Malfoy swallowed involuntarily. Much of his swagger faded without him realizing it, and he faltered:

"The Malfoy family was granted a barony by the British monarch..."

Clatter! Zhang Xiao tipped out another pile of scroll paintings, picked one at random, shook it open, and pointed to the figure depicted on it.

"This was someone from a branch of our family. He couldn't cultivate-in other words, what you call a Squib. During the Yuan Dynasty-you know the Yuan Dynasty, right?

"He was granted the title of 'guogong,' a duke.

"A guogong is a duke. Members of our family's branches also served as imperial preceptors for generations. You understand what an imperial preceptor is, right? Merlin's position."

Even a Squib from a branch of the family had been made a duke? What did that make the main line? Surely nothing less than generation after generation of Ministers for Magic would do?

With every sentence Zhang Xiao spoke, Malfoy seemed to shrink a little further. To make sure they understood just how prestigious the Celestial Masters' Mansion was, Zhang Xiao went a step further.

He thoughtfully produced a world map-a Tang Dynasty edition-and pointed to the vast territory of the Tang Dynasty, comparing it with Britain.

Malfoy's already pale face had gone deathly white. He swayed on his feet and summoned his last scraps of strength to say:

"Our family also has... has a manor..."

"A manor? We live in palaces. We have over a dozen Daoist palaces alone. You know what a palace is, right?"

Malfoy was utterly speechless. None of the other pure-blood wizards watching dared make a sound either. The family histories, wealth, and standing they took such pride in amounted to nothing before Zhang Xiao. Even Slytherin himself would have had to concede defeat.

Seeing that the moment was ripe, Zhang Xiao prepared to deliver the killing blow. Yet the words stopped on the tip of his tongue. After a long hesitation, he finally abandoned the idea.

I can't say it. If I expose that secret, I'll become the pure-bloods' mortal enemy. They won't stop until one side is dead. I might be fine myself, but I might not be able to stay at Hogwarts.

The secret carried such enormous weight that even Dumbledore could not bear it. He could only set it aside for now, wait until the time was right, and personally sound the death knell for those idiots-the purebred kind! (Note 1)

He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed the impulse, and looked around before saying:

"I wasn't here when you chose your leader. Now I nominate myself. Who's in favor, and who's against?"

The female prefect, Gemma, quietly stepped back.

In this pure-blood circle, where everyone competed over history, status, and wealth, Zhang Xiao stood at the very pinnacle. No one had a family older or nobler than his-provided, of course, that everything he said was true.

At least while the facts remained uncertain, the rules of their game made him the undisputed leader.

Gemma did not know whether this young wizard from the East was boasting or stating facts, but she glanced at Zhang Xiao's wand and the exquisite little pouch hanging from his belt.

Heh... a wand worth over ten thousand, and an equally precious pouch enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm... She wisely chose to back down.

Malfoy clenched his fists, looking utterly crushed. He wanted to object, but the thought of Zhang Xiao's terrifying family background deflated him like a punctured ball.

Only after a long hesitation did he say, reluctantly and dejectedly:

"The Malfoy family agrees."

Crabbe was much smarter than Goyle. His eyes flickered, and he followed suit:

"The Vincent family agrees."

Blaise Zabini gave a cold snort, but did not object either.

Pansy Parkinson looked at Draco Malfoy with worry in her eyes and said quietly:

"The Parkinson family agrees."

Goyle looked from side to side and hurriedly said:

"Same here!"

Zhang Xiao glanced at Daphne Greengrass, who was still lying on the floor, and shrugged.

"I imagine the Greengrass family won't have any objections either. That makes me the first-years' leader."

He tapped his wand against his palm, his expression serious.

"My first rule: no bullying your classmates! Not through actions, and not through words! If you still don't know how to behave..."

A murderous smile suddenly spread across Zhang Xiao's handsome face.

"Then I swear on the dark wizard I killed with my own hands that I'll teach you some manners!"

The temperature in the Slytherin Common Room seemed to drop several degrees. Many of them shuddered involuntarily, staring in terror at the eleven-year-old boy before them.

They liked to think of themselves as ruthless, but the worst thing they had ever done was gang up on their classmates and bully them. None of them had ever killed anyone!

A strained smile appeared on Malfoy's pale face.

"Zhang, you're joking, right? Children aren't allowed to kill people."

Zhang Xiao nodded at him and flashed a perfect smile that could have made girls scream.

"That's right, I'm joking. But you're welcome to test me!"

Malfoy felt as though a bucket of cold water had been poured over his head. He stood there, tongue-tied, not daring to speak.

Zhang Xiao walked over and patted his shoulder.

"All right, Draco. Are you really sure you know how to be a true aristocrat? I can help you with that!"

He held out his hand and said softly to Malfoy:

"You'll soon find that some wizarding families are much better than others, Draco."

A gleam suddenly flashed in Malfoy's eyes, then faded again. Pressing his lips together, he slowly extended his hand.

The little "pure-blood" snakes remained silent for a while before heading to their respective dormitories, presumably hoping some quiet time would help them piece their shattered worldviews back together.

More than three thousand two hundred years! What a terrifying number!

A few Slytherins of various ages still remained in the common room. A frail girl stepped forward.

She bowed deeply and said softly through her nasal sobs:

"Thank you."

One after another, as though they had reached an unspoken understanding, they all bowed silently.

Then they left without a sound, though the look in their eyes had changed.

Zhang Xiao could not describe the feeling. He only knew that, for some reason, his heart felt considerably lighter.

The last to approach was Davis. Zhang Xiao patted his shoulder.

"Has the Petrificus Totalus worn off?"

Davis was clearly feeling much better. He wiped away his tears and shrugged at Zhang Xiao. "That older student's spell was awful. It just wore off."

He paused, then suddenly asked:

"We're no worse than them, are we?"

Zhang Xiao shook his head and said solemnly:

"No!"

Under Davis's bewildered gaze, he gave him a thumbs-up.

"You're far better than them!"

Davis began crying again. He lowered his head, wiped his tears with his sleeve, and returned Zhang Xiao's thumbs-up.

"Thank you. You're our real leader."

Only after Davis left did Zhang Xiao realize that he was now alone in the enormous common room.

This was far from over. How could changing such deeply ingrained beliefs possibly be easy?

Tonight, he had merely used the rules of their game to temporarily suppress Slytherin's toxic atmosphere.

There was still much to do. But so what?

He pointed his wand at the scattered objects on the floor, sending them flying back into the Heaven and Earth Bag.

Zhang Xiao suddenly thought that following the example of a certain unnamed Ancient Runes professor might not be a bad idea. Beat all of Slytherin into submission, and the house would finally be peaceful.

Besides, had Salazar Slytherin really been like those pure-bloods-selfish and cunning, lacking courage and unable to judge the situation?

No. Zhang Xiao shook his head, rejecting that possibility. Gryffindor would not have befriended a coward. Ravenclaw would have scorned the company of idiots and fools. Hufflepuff could never have accepted a bloodthirsty, brutal madman with no love in his heart.

And from his hazy memories, Slytherin himself did not seem to have looked down on Muggles. Many of his childhood playmates had been Muggle children from Hogsmeade.

The four founders had become close friends because they respected one another. The supposed traits of the four houses were merely each founder's most outstanding qualities.

In other words, Salazar Slytherin had not been like today's idiots-the purebred kind. Yet he had indeed left behind the Chamber of Secrets and a basilisk to purge Muggle students. What had made him choose to do that, even at the cost of falling out with his three closest friends?

Seeing how late it had grown, Zhang Xiao firmly put an end to his wandering thoughts, shook his head, and went back to bed.

That night, the Owl Tower west of Hogwarts emptied by more than half as flocks of owls flew off in every direction, their sharp cries piercing the air.