I have a friend

The incident with the Shafiq family had hit a nerve with most of the pure-blood aristocracy. They banded together, clamoring to teach this ungrateful Eastern noble a lesson.

Yet this "unbreakable" alliance fell apart in remarkably little time. Zhang Chengdao's methods were almost identical to Zhang Xiao's thinking.

He picked out the less extreme families, such as the Malfoy family, the Abbott family, the Macmillan family, the Slughorn family, and the Shacklebolt family.

A series of cooperation agreements followed, immediately attracting pure-bloods who had little antipathy toward Muggles and were unwilling to cling to old conventions.

Vast sums of glittering gold Galleons! And the vast, untapped market of the East!

The East was simply too mysterious. Its people seemed never to leave their country, and no matter how hard these pure-bloods investigated, they learned no more than Dumbledore had.

Otherwise, they would never have resorted to such crude tactics to force the family behind Zhang Xiao to reveal itself.

Who knew what they were thinking? They had never even tried looking for answers in Muggle history.

Win some over, strike at others, divide their ranks, and let them fight among themselves. It had to be said that this approach worked remarkably well.

Even Zhang Chengdao admitted:

"That old man was a legend. Even though he was an ordinary person, that didn't stop his brilliance from reaching every corner of Huaxia. Even within the Daoist Order, quite a few people treasure his ideas."

Of course, those behind-the-scenes deals and maneuvers had nothing to do with Zhang Xiao. As Zhang Chengdao put it, the Daoist Order had gone to considerable trouble for him this time.

Throughout its history, the Daoist Order had never been interested in venturing abroad. Their family of three coming overseas was already an exception among exceptions, let alone cooperating with pure-bloods on import-export trade.

Zhang Xiao found that strange, too. Even if he was the heir to the Celestial Master's heir, that hardly seemed enough to warrant so much effort from the Daoist Order.

His dad still wore that same "I know, but I'm not telling" expression, leaving Zhang Xiao furious but helpless.

Still, he had to admit that not having to worry about anything, with someone there to back him up, felt pretty damn great!

Zhang Xiao had never imagined his second conversation with the headmaster would come so soon. Before he had even finished reading his newspaper, a little note abruptly appeared on his plate.

"Come to the Headmaster's Office tonight. The password hasn't changed."

This was Zhang Xiao's second visit to the Headmaster's Office in a single week.

The headmaster was dressed much more formally this time. Pointing to his robes embroidered with stars and moons, he spread his hands toward Zhang Xiao, the same gentle smile on his face.

"Thanks to you, the pure-bloods invited me to serve as a witness-a witness to the cooperation between East and West.

I must say, your family's handling of the matter was quite an eye-opener. I'm also very pleased that they exercised considerable restraint.

The best possible outcome is that no one lost their life over it."

Zhang Xiao sat up straight and said with a wry smile:

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I only told them what had happened. I don't know how they handled the details. But I can say for certain that my family has no intention of expanding into the West."

Dumbledore nodded slightly and said softly:

"I can see that."

Then he fixed his gaze on Zhang Xiao through his half-moon spectacles and asked solemnly:

"Zhang, whatever the case, you have effectively become the leader of a portion of Slytherin. At the very least, those pure-bloods who chose to cooperate with your family will gravitate toward you without even realizing it.

You now have the power to influence them.

Although you are only a first-year, I will not treat you as merely a first-year student. The wisdom and methods you have displayed go far beyond what one would expect at your age.

So please take this as a question from an old man, a headmaster who hopes to see his school become a better place.

Where do you intend to lead Slytherin?"

Zhang Xiao felt the jade pendant against his chest turn searing hot. His heart lurched. Legilimency?

He took a deep breath and looked the old man before him straight in the eyes.

"At the very least, I won't lead it into the abyss. Perhaps I'll give them something to rally around, add a little pride, a measure of responsibility, a little more acceptance, and finally instill glory."

Dumbledore suddenly smiled. His long fingers gave a crisp snap, and Fawkes let out a clear cry. Turning his head, he plucked a feather from his own body and placed it in Dumbledore's hand.

He just yanked it right out!

"Take it. You can use it to contact me when necessary. Simply burn the feather.

Of course, it can only be used once. I will decide whether to offer you further support based on how events unfold.

I hope you will keep your word, Zhang."

Zhang Xiao let out a quiet breath of relief. The headmaster's presence was truly intimidating, but things seemed to have gone well. He had probably passed the test.

He said goodbye and was about to leave when he seemed to suddenly remember something. Choosing his words carefully, he said:

"Professor, I'd like to ask your advice about something."

Dumbledore settled into an attentive posture.

"Well... I have a friend. This friend wants to change certain things and certain people, but he's found that even when he makes an effort, things gradually return to their original course in the end.

I... this friend feels very lost. Are a lot of things simply destined never to change?"

A trace of amusement appeared in Dumbledore's blue eyes. He said in a rather lighthearted tone:

"I have a suggestion for you... for this friend of yours. Nothing in this world exists in isolation. Everything is bound together by intricate connections.

When you change just one thing, the things connected to it may exert an even greater force, compelling it to return to its original course.

So it isn't that change is impossible. The key is whether you can discover those connections and try a different approach.

For instance, if you want to change Slytherin, words and your illustrious family background alone can only win you superficial respect. Cooperation, however, can give you the power to bring about real change.

I wonder whether you... whether that friend of yours can understand what I mean."

Zhang Xiao pondered for a while, carefully turning those words over in his mind, then nodded, looking relieved.

"Thank you, Headmaster!"

Dumbledore watched Zhang Xiao leave. The portraits on the walls finally stirred back to life, and a plump old man hurriedly asked:

"Albus, was that child telling the truth?"

Dumbledore shook his head and said:

"Armando, Legilimency is not infallible. Besides, that child carries a magical item capable of blocking it. A truly remarkable item. (Note 1)"

The portraits began clamoring:

"Then how can we be sure he won't become the next Voldemort? Merlin, he has even greater advantages than Voldemort did!"

"No, we must put a stop to this!"

"Albus, you mustn't lose your judgment!"

Dumbledore spread his hands to signal the portraits to quiet down, then said calmly:

"Everyone, sometimes we must admit that the experience age and a lifetime of encounters bring is more useful than Legilimency!

At least at this moment, I believe what this child said. So I will continue to observe him, even if he is a Slytherin."

The portraits fell silent for a while before finally reaching a consensus:

"We'll listen to you. You're the headmaster!"

Dumbledore turned his gaze toward the phoenix, who was pretending to doze with his eyes closed.

"Fawkes, you like him too, don't you? I only wanted you to give him a shed feather, not one of your tail feathers."

Fawkes gave a clear cry, as though saying something.

Dumbledore chuckled.

"Interesting. Then let's wait and see."

Note 1: The pendant isn't that overpowered. Just think of it as something so rare that even the entire Daoist Order only has a handful. I'll explain it later.