Homecoming from Hogwarts
Chapter 997 The Current Status of the Workshop
Bringing food to Remus?
Percy's eyes were drawn to the package in his left hand by Sirius' words, and his expression was stunned.
Whether in the Ministry or at home, he had heard about the prosperity of Professor Brian and Professor Lupin's learning machine workshop. According to estimates within the Department of International Magical Cooperation, the taxes that the Learning Machine Workshop is expected to pay this year will cause the Ministry of Magic's annual business tax rate to increase by several percentage points compared to last year!
So, would Professor Lupin, who is in charge of such a large workshop, have no place to eat?
Percy did learn something from his career in the Ministry of Magic. He did not point this out, but said with a grunt,
"I, um, oh. I also want to go to the machine workshop to learn--"
Sirius' words made Percy realize that Professor Lupin might still be working overtime in the workshop. Under Sirius's surprised gaze, he raised the file bag in his hand.
"Professor Blaine asked me to give this to Professor Lupin—"
"Amosta?"
Sirius was even more puzzled.
"Isn't he at Hogwarts?"
Percy was very glad that Sirius had not heard about the task assigned to him by the Minister of Magic, otherwise, he would probably not have been kind to him.
"I, uh, have some Ministry matters to deal with. I just came back from Hogwarts. Professor Blaine asked me to give this document to Professor Lupin on my way back. What are we going to do with him?"
Percy didn't want to discuss this topic in depth. He looked at the criminal being stepped on by Sirius and tried to change the subject.
Some of Percy's tricks naturally could not be hidden from Sirius's eyes, but Sirius did not want to pry into Percy's secrets too much. After raising his eyebrows slightly and looking at Percy deeply, Sirius looked at Colkant with disgust.
"Well, I'm afraid I don't have time to escort him to the Ministry now, I have--"
Sirius looked back at the still-lit Leaky Cauldron.
"I can ask Tom, the bar owner, to help look after it first. He has an owl. I'll write a letter to the ministry, and Amelia will send someone to pick it up."
As he spoke, he flicked his wand and made Colkanto float up and follow him, trotting across the white cobblestone street and into the backyard of the Leaky Cauldron.
Ten minutes later, an owl spread its wings and took off from the yard. After circling twice in the sky, its body disappeared into the dark blue night.
"Come on, Percy--"
Sirius waved at Percy, who was still in a daze in the yard, and shouted with a smile.
"You're from Hogwarts, Percy, have you seen Harry?"
Sirius led Percy towards the industrial area of Diagon Alley. He knew that Percy's situation in the Ministry was not very good, just like himself, so he didn't talk about work-related matters.
"Oh, Harry. Yes, I saw him, and Ron and Hermione -"
Percy's eyes flickered and his cheeks flushed.
Not only did he meet the three of them, he almost had a fight with them in Professor Brain's office. But he couldn't tell Sirius about it, so he just nodded and stammered,
"They were, uh, in good spirits. But you know, Sirius, I was in a hurry to get back, so I didn't talk to them much."
"Is it?"
Sirius glanced at Percy sideways, frowned slightly, and said nothing more.
He had been Percy's Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, and he had also lived with Arthur's family for a period of time, so he could be said to know his third son quite well.
In the mild-tempered Weasley family, Percy could be considered the most ambitious one, and he made no secret of his determination to advance in his career after joining the Ministry of Magic. To be honest, Sirius did not particularly appreciate Percy's style, and becoming a high-ranking official in the Ministry of Magic was not an excessive dream, but Percy's problem was that he was somewhat blinded by the desire for power and could not distinguish what was the most important thing.
The lingering depressing atmosphere made Sirius and Percy feel uncomfortable, so they quickly went deeper into the alleys of the industrial area.
When entering a certain area, a deafening roar tore apart the tranquility of the first night. This place was not as deserted as the outside. Even when night fell, workers were still coming and going in the workshops. Percy followed Sirius to a park. This park had the most workshops in this area. Even so, there were still three huge workshops under construction on a large open space in the park. A dozen wizards were waving their wands to make steel beams fly into the air and set up in the right position.
After finally pulling his eyes away from the chimney that was belching thick smoke, Percy looked towards the only office building in the factory. Lights were on in almost every office in the building, and Percy could see many figures flickering behind the windows.
There were not only wizards but also goblins guarding the factory gate, but they were obviously very familiar with Sirius. Sirius just said a few words about who Percy was and what he was doing there, and the smart and capable guards let them enter the factory. The workers waiting to deliver the raw materials at the gate had to be detected by honesty probes and endoscopes before they were allowed to pass.
"The security here seems to be even tighter than the Ministry of Magic!"
Percy was a little shocked by the scene at the gate, and he clicked his tongue.
"In fact, the security measures here are more complete than what you see--"
Sirius smiled and pointed to the roof of the workshop and a row of dense pine trees and bushes behind the park wall.
"Those places have skilled wizards secretly monitoring the workshops. In addition, the campus is protected by many powerful magics including the Anti-Apparition Charm. I bet that even if all the Aurors in the Auror Office of the Ministry of Magic want to attack here by force, they will not be able to break through the defense here—"
"I do not understand--"
Sirius' explanation surprised Percy even more.
"Why do you have to do this?"
"You'll have to ask Amosta—"
Sirius shrugged.
"That was his request. Remus put a lot of thought into building the workshop's defenses in a warlike state."
There was a burning smell in the air. It wasn't that there was a fire somewhere, but the atmosphere here made Percy feel burning.
Everyone walking through the park had a sense of urgency on their faces. No one was taking a leisurely stroll. Everyone was jogging to their destination.
Looking at the workers, administrators and alchemy experts who came and went and seemed to have endless work to do, Percy suddenly felt a little envious. He was not simply envious of their busyness, but of the sense of upliftment that lingered around these people, a feeling that could not be found even in the Ministry of Magic.
"They seem to love this job—"
Percy followed Sirius towards the brightly lit office building, his eyes following a group of wizards in respectable clothes who were hurriedly running towards a workshop.
"Oh, of course--"
Sirius said half-jokingly, half-meaningly,
"Remus offers them a very high salary. The most common workers here earn more than 400 Galleons a year, while the salaries of experts and mid- to high-level business personnel are comparable to those of Hogwarts professors. Oh, to be honest, if the Ministry doesn't give me a raise, I'd rather come here and be a security guard!"
Four hundred galleons is just the minimum level?!
Percy's eyes widened in shock, this salary was even higher than what he earned at the Ministry of Magic, and yet this income was the lowest standard here!
Sirius was pleased with the surprise on Percy's face. He patted Percy on the shoulder and pushed him up the stairs.
"Come on, I bet Remus is starving."
"Oh, isn't there a place to eat here? Why does Remus need you to bring food?"
Still in shock, Percy subconsciously voiced his doubts.
"Oh--"
Sirius's face showed an unnatural look, and he coughed twice.
"Ahem. You know, Remus has been living with me, um. He's used to Kreacher's cooking."
(End of this chapter)
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