Falsifying history is good business

Chapter 73 Earl Goff's "territory"

Lin You spent the last two days of the Christmas holiday in his "fiefdom" Gough Island.

In 1992, at the end of the th century, the so-called "noble fiefdom" had become an outdated and false concept; however, although the feudal rights of the fiefdom were gone, the ownership of the land could still exist.

The fiefdom of Gough Island was taken back by the British democratically elected government as early as the end of the last century, but the Forresters were rich and bought back the original fiefdom. They also expanded the area and bought several uninhabited islands in the nearby Tristan da Cunha Islands.

As a British overseas territory, this remote island in the South Atlantic is sparsely populated; more than a thousand nautical miles from the nearest continent. The island was first developed by seal hunters two centuries ago, but it was not until 1956 that the first permanent man-made building on the island was built - a weather station.

In such a desolate place, the land price is naturally extremely cheap, so much so that successive Earls of Goff only need to pay a very small amount of land tax and inheritance tax to pass down the island land from generation to generation.

The island also became an integral part of Earl Goff's strong family heritage.

What seems like a desolate and useless place to ordinary people is, in the eyes of the wizarding family, an irreplaceable treasure.

"Look, look, that's a Norwegian Ridgeback... No, we can't get close to it, and we can't hug it. We can only watch from a distance."

"Ah, I have unknowingly come to the cave of the Moon Crazy Beast, but they only come out when the moon is full, so we can't see them now. Oh no, you can't touch them, that's feces, we use it to make distilled water fertilizer."

"Look, the bird snake is hatching eggs. No, we can't go over there and we can't make any noise. But we can use the hatched eggshells to make Easter eggs for you."

"Listen, the call of the hornet is so beautiful. Don't make a fuss, Miss Minerva, we can't listen to it for too long. Come on, put on your earmuffs... We can go to the beach to see the fire crabs. When you grow up, you can use their shells to make crucibles."

The old butler Ken pushed the stroller and strolled around the "territory" of Earl Goff, occasionally pointing out the magical animals and plants nearby to Minerva, while at the same time "strictly" rejecting some of the little one's requests.

I don’t know how he can always understand every word that the half-year-old baby girl wants to express - even though the little girl can't speak a word.

Lin You followed not far behind, bored, yawning lazily, wondering whether he should turn around and take a nap.

When it was snowing heavily in the northern hemisphere, it was warm in the southern hemisphere; the main members of the Forrest family hid in such a remote island to avoid the bad winter weather.

However, although it was a sunny and warm day perfect for sleeping in, the old butler insisted on taking Minerva to "visit" the Forest family's magic reserve; at the same time, considering that some magical creatures were dangerous, he "requested" Lin You to accompany and protect them.

The "Earldom" on Gough Island is the world's largest comprehensive sanctuary for magical creatures. The famous magical biologist Newt has visited here many times and has also provided guidance on the construction of the sanctuary.

In terms of the number of biological species, the protected area is definitely much richer than the suitcase in Mr. Newt's hand.

Suddenly seeing so many new things, the little girl Minerva was very excited. Her chubby limbs kept jumping around. Sometimes she lay on her back and stretched out her hands to "hug" the fire dragon flying hundreds of feet in the sky. Sometimes she reached out her hand to touch the manure of the moon-crazy beast on the side of the road. Sometimes she lay on the guardrail to look at the poisonous horned beast, and shouted "yeah" to try to attract attention.

After walking all the way, the stroller was almost shaken apart.

This excessive energy and curiosity earned the old housekeeper a comment of "lively and cute". Poor Lin You had to comfort the timid creatures that were "scared" by the little girl while yawning, and at the same time "persuading" some dangerous animals, such as the venomous leopard and the Niffler, to retreat.

Especially the Sniff.

No one can guarantee that these money-hungry guys will not covet Minerva's jewel locket. That thing can explode like a star, and if the Niffler's claws reach into it, it can burn you to ashes on the spot.

As for the "bird-snake Easter eggs" and "fire crab cauldrons" that the old butler had promised the little girl, they were not a big deal; the materials from these magical creatures, after a certain "de-magic" treatment, were originally the flagship products "exported" to the Muggle world.

Similar products include the skins shed from various fire dragons, which are favored by some European luxury goods manufacturers because of their scarcity and unique quality.

In other words, the true origin of those skins cannot be made public, otherwise the price of dragon skins will increase by more than ten times in a minute.

The whole morning was spent accompanying the old housekeeper and Minerva on the tour. The little girl was so energetic that it was "terrifying". She was still not satisfied until noon and held her milk bottle to "communicate" with the bowtruckles and fairies in the woods.

According to the old housekeeper's schedule, it seems that they will go to the depths of the jungle to see unicorns next; in his words, "Those lovely and pure creatures will definitely love Miss Minerva; maybe they will even take the initiative to leave a horn as a gift!"

Lin You held his forehead in silence and could not help but remind him: "Ken, I remember there is a guest who made an appointment to visit this afternoon?"

"Oh, yes, sir." The old butler suddenly woke up from his doting mood on the little girl, "It's Professor Dumbledore. He will visit Gough Island with Mr. Scamander. It's about time."

As a result, this tour - or inspection of the family business - was forced to stop, and Lin You was able to return to the estate on the island to prepare to receive visitors.

In fact, this is not the first or second time that Newt Scamander has visited Gough Island. Due to the rich diversity of the magical creatures on the island, this magical creature expert comes to investigate every few years and also provides help to improve the living environment of the creatures on the island.

But it is meaningful that Dumbledore would accompany Scamander this time.

Although Lin You knew that his "fictitious" father had once been an ally of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore had been on and off with the Forrester family since the death of the previous earl, and had not shown any signs of a close friendship.

In other words, in the eyes of the world, the headmaster of Hogwarts and the Earl of Goff's family did not have much social interaction, and the relationship between the two sides was not deep. At most, they were just "acquaintances" who knew each other.

This time, accompanying Newt Scamander on the visit, it seemed that there was a meaning of letting Mr. Scamander act as an intermediary to establish contact with the Forresters.

But...why?

What exactly does this old wizard, recognized as the "only" great magician in the world, want to do?
　Second update, 23:59, caught up.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)