Falsifying history is good business

Chapter 328 The Origin of the Second Golden Cup
Dumbledore did find out some key information.

"Unidentified people are searching the black market for ancient Greek artifacts; this is the news brought back by Mundungus." The founder of the Order of the Phoenix had a bit of the qualities of Mengchangjun, who could use any thief to his advantage; he obviously knew that Mundungus had dealt with the Forrester family more than once, so he did not elaborate on the identity of this liar and thief.

"Ancient Greek artifacts have always been treasures in the collecting world; maybe it's just a whim of a collector." Lin You was a little listless; the series of incidents in the past two days had kept him in a state of high tension.

"It's different," Dumbledore said. "According to Mundungus, the person looking for the ancient Greek artifact has a very specific goal: a golden wine jug. The other party is offering a very high price. In the past two days, three antique dealers have come to Mundungus to inquire about the news, all for the same goal."

Earl Goff finally perked up; as a nobleman, he knew a thing or two about the antique collecting world. It was not uncommon to designate a collection target in the antique industry, which often meant that the collector already had something that matched the target.

Just a few days ago, a gold cup was robbed from the British Museum’s warehouse, and at the same time someone was looking for an ancient Greek “golden wine jug” on the black market?
Such a coincidence made everyone think too much.

"What are you going to do?" Lin You's attitude began to become serious.

"It's not me, but Alastor," said Dumbledore. "He thinks the person who is looking for the golden flagon is likely to be Voldemort, or at least Barty the Younger; so, he wants to make a bait to lure out the black market buyer."

"If it was Alastor's idea, why didn't he do it himself?"

"Alastor is visiting some 'old friends', all of whom he met when he was an Auror. It is said that they have some reputation in the black markets of various countries." Dumbledore only said half of the words, but you could understand it as soon as you heard it.

"That is to say, he has already taken action?" Lin You couldn't help laughing, "Then what do you need me to do? You are not here just to report the news, are you?"

"This plan requires a realistic bait, which must be convincing in terms of both its shape and origin." Dumbledore was not at all shy when he made the request. "It is best if it is a real artifact from ancient Greece. A reliable source document must also be compiled, and the origin of the flagon must be linked to the archaeological discoveries of Sir Patrick Morgan."

Lin You suddenly realized: "Then it is indeed only me who can do it."

The golden wine jug was actually easy to deal with; with Dumbledore, the master of Transfiguration, at hand, even if he couldn't find the authentic ancient Greek one from more than 2,000 years ago, he was fully capable of making a fake that was indistinguishable from the real thing.

The most difficult part was to compile a reliable history document for the wine jug. If the other party was really looking for a wine jug to go with the gold cup, then the document had to be linked to Patrick Morgan’s archaeological report; otherwise, it would be difficult to lure the other party in.

Dumbledore and Moody did not know the true identity of the so-called "Sir Morgan". They only thought he was a Muggle nobleman and archaeologist. If they wanted to compile false information related to his archaeological report and make it credible, the most convenient way was to ask the Forrester family for help.

"OK, leave this to me; information, and the wine jug." Since he had decided to help, Lin You was happy to do so; he remembered that the family treasury housed many cultural relics from different historical periods, including quite a few gold products, so he could just find a suitable one and modify it for use.

It is not difficult to fabricate false information, which is the specialty of intelligence agencies. There is already a mature operating mechanism for how to make it look real and old, and then fabricate a complete chain of evidence.

After the British Museum robbery, Earl Goff's subordinate agencies began to work at high speed; in addition to the stupid method of looking for people through surveillance, experienced investigators have started from the archaeological discoveries of "Sir Patrick Morgan" and have made a comprehensive investigation of the archaeological career of this knight in a very short time. They even successfully found the reason why Sir Morgan's archaeological materials flowed from the Muggle world to the wizarding world.

The investigators’ thinking was very clear: since the robbers came for Sir Morgan’s archaeological findings, would Sir Morgan’s other archaeological findings also become the other party’s target?

The biggest advantage of law enforcement agencies in fighting criminals is that they have sufficient resources and can attack from all aspects and angles at the same time. Even if Dumbledore didn't come, Earl Goff's subordinates would soon get the news of the black market and come up with similar solutions.

Lin You, who came with the task of making bait, received a thick stack of investigation materials before he even opened his mouth - all of which were the results of his subordinates' work over the past few days.

"The golden cup of Hebe, the goddess of youth?" The information summarized the clues collected since the incident. Lin You frowned when he turned to the first page.

"Sir Patrick Morgan"'s ability to create false information is amazing.

This name was active in British history until the eve of the end of World War I. He was active during the war, but died of illness before the end of the war. The information also mentioned this person's grave and attached a photo of the tombstone.

Various clues show that not only was part of Sir Morgan's archaeological findings left in Greece, but even some of the cultural relics brought back to London were lost. Investigations showed that two members of the archaeological team later developed symptoms of amnesia; the doctor at the time diagnosed it as head trauma and old age, but now suspects that they were cast under a forgetfulness spell.

It’s a pity that it has been a long time since then and the parties involved have passed away, so it cannot be proven.

However, the investigators sent to Greece made new discoveries; although the local cultural relics were basically destroyed in the First and Second World Wars, many rumors remained among the local residents, all related to Sir Morgan's archaeological discoveries.

It is said - just said - that a local Greek archaeological expert left a diary, claiming that he had found a wax tablet at the excavation site, the text on which clearly showed that the origin of the gold cup was related to the goddess of youth Hebe.

Unfortunately, over the years, not only has the wax plate disappeared, but even the diary that provided indirect evidence has only a few fragments left; therefore, the relationship between the golden cup and the gods is only a guess.

It is real and unreal, incomplete and yet continuous.

"You are very suitable for the job of counterfeiting cultural relics, Sir Morgan." Lin You cursed in his heart, and then assigned the task of creating false information.

"You already have a clue, right, My Lord?" As a contact person, Mycroft Holmes has been staying in the investigation team; seeing that Lin You has issued such a clear task, how could this smart man not understand?

"Maybe, maybe not. Even if it's a coincidence, we have to give it a try." Lin You smiled when he saw the people from Holmes' family; since Patrick Morgan's fake identity has always belonged to the Muggle world, wouldn't it be perfect to let Muggles do the forging?

(End of this chapter)