Hogwarts: Harry Returns from Water Margin

Chapter 9: The Sorting Hat Reveals the Deadly Child

Picking up where we left off, Harry, seeing Ron's puzzled question, laughed and said, "Even a hero can be brought down by a penny. I know you're short on cash, so I've prepared some travel money for you in case you need it."

It should be noted that Ron's father, Arthur, worked at the Ministry of Magic and held a supervisory position, yet his monthly salary was only a few dozen Galleons. Now, Harry had brought nearly a hundred Galleons, enough for the Weasley family to live on for several months.

Although Ron is poor, he is an ambitious man. How could he be willing to take Harry's gold and silver for nothing?

He glanced away from the Galleons and said, "No, Harry, this is far too valuable. How can I take your money? You, you should put it away."

Seeing that Ron had money in his eyes but a sense of duty in his heart, Harry was greatly impressed and thought to himself: Although I misjudged Malfoy, I was not wrong about Brother Ron. He is indeed a good man who does the right thing and does the right thing.

He bowed respectfully and said, "If you hadn't scared Crabbe away with the mouse just now, how could I have dealt with Goyle? How could I not accept these small gifts?"

"If you refuse again, it means you don't recognize me as your brother."

Seeing Ron still hesitating, Harry feigned anger and pretended to take Galonnaise out of the carriage, saying, "If you don't take it, brother, I have no face to take it back."

Seeing Harry's actions, Ron quickly said, "No! Harry, I'll take it."

After Ron stuffed all the gold coins into his bag, Harry's anger turned to joy. "This is it, my good brother. Come with me."

After saying that, he left the cubicle and took the lead, squeezing into the group of wizards getting off the bus.

Looking at the Galleons in his bag and then at Harry's back, a surge of hot air welled up in Ron's chest, rising to his throat and nostrils, making his eyes sting.

It is:

A lavish feast reveals sincerity, and genuine gold is given to the brothers.

A true connoisseur is hard to find today; what is forbidden but to die for righteousness?

The aisle was packed with people, and several young wizards nearly stepped on Harry's wizarding robes. Ron squeezed through the crowd and shouted, "Hey! Watch yourselves! Can't you see you're stepping on other people?"

The young wizards, startled, retreated.

Enough of this rambling.

Harry and Ron got off the train and squeezed onto the platform. A gust of night wind blew into their robes, raising goosebumps.

After a short while, a light appeared in the distance. The newcomer carried a lantern; he was tall and imposing, and his every step shook the earth, making him seem like a small giant.

The giant shouted, "First-year students! First-year students, come this way! Harry, come here, are you alright?"

Upon seeing the figure, Harry was delighted and bowed respectfully, saying, "Brother Hagrid, what brings you here?"

Hagrid chuckled, "The professors are all busy, and Mr. Filch can't stand the wind, so I'm the only one who can help. Oh, nice new haircut."

"Just so I don't have to worry about getting my eyes covered." Harry turned to the side and said, "Brother, this is the good guy I met on the Express, his name is Ron Weasley."

Hagrid, upon hearing the word "Weasley," seemed to have a headache. "Another Weasley. I've spent almost my entire life trying to get your two twin brothers out of the Forbidden Forest."

Ron scratched his face, looking embarrassed.

After settling the young wizards in, Hagrid taught Harry, and Ron boarded the lead boat with him.

The small boat moved on its own without oars, and Hagrid at the bow laughed, "You two must be starving. You can have a good meal when we get to the auditorium."

Harry said, "I have food in my belly and am not hungry yet, so I can have a few drinks with my brother."

Upon hearing that he'd had a few drinks, Hagrid's expression changed, and he quickly said, "Harry! Minors can't drink alcohol! It's illegal, you know?"

Harry laughed again, "If that's the case, then on that day at the Leaky Cauldron, my brother and I were drinking together. Wouldn't that mean we were both guilty?"

Hagrid was startled and waved his hands frantically, but Ron was astonished and asked, "Harry, you've had alcohol? Like, one of those fruit juice drinks with added alcohol?"

Harry laughed. "It's brandy!"

Ron was horrified. "That's strong liquor!"

"Alright, let's not talk about alcohol anymore!" Hagrid interrupted rudely. "Harry, from now on, as long as you're in my sight, I will never let you drink a drop of alcohol!"

Harry chuckled, "I only need to get my brother half-drunk. Hagrid, would you like to give up drinking?"

Hagrid remained silent, brooding to himself, blaming himself for corrupting young Harry.

Half an hour later, the fog dissipated, and an ancient castle appeared.

But we see:

A stone fortress atop the clouds pierces the sky, its myriad windows ablaze with light that illuminates the night.

A spell is cast to blind people, but only a wizard can see it clearly.

Upon seeing the castle, Harry clicked his tongue in amazement, thinking to himself: Gringotts is already an extremely luxurious place, but compared to Hogwarts, it is nothing.

Before long, the group landed, disembarked, and were led into the castle by Hagrid.

Knocking on the oak door, a tall, thin old woman had been waiting for a long time.

The old woman had high cheekbones, a hooked nose, and pursed lips; one look was enough to tell she was not someone to be trifled with.

Hagrid greeted the old woman, "First-year student, Professor McGonagall."

"Thank you, Hagrid. Leave the rest to me."

After Hagrid left, Harry and the others followed McGonagall to the Great Hall where new students were welcomed.

Pushing open the door, a completely different world unfolded within. Hundreds of bright lamps hung in the air, while the ceiling was an open-air structure. At first glance, the interior seemed like a bottomless pit, stretching as far as the eye could see.

Harry was surprised and thought to himself: I have also heard of the Buddhist saying that a mustard seed can contain Mount Sumeru, but I thought it was just a saying. Now I have seen it for real.

The Great Hall had four rows of long tables, filled with wizards from the four houses of Hogwarts. In front of them were rows of desks, occupied by Hogwarts professors and staff.

Looking again in mid-air, there were also translucent, white souls floating freely, making Harry stare in disbelief.

He watched as Professor McGonagall waved her wand, summoning a chair and placing a tattered felt hat on it. She said, "Alright, children, now comes the most important thing: sorting you into your houses."

"All you have to do is put your hats on, and they will tell you where to go."

Ron breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this; he had thought he was going to have to fight a giant.

The other wizards were the same, but Harry frowned, puzzled.

If this is such a big deal, how can you make a judgment based on a hat?

As he was thinking, Professor McGonagall read aloud, "Hannah Abbott!"

A girl with two golden braids stumbled and ran off, and moments later, the hat cried out:

"Hufflepuff!"

Harry suddenly realized that the hat was actually a talkative one.

He reflected inwardly, "Now that I've come to this magical world, I can no longer view things with the usual logic."

Professor McGonagall called out the names, and one by one, the young wizards around her left.

As Ron had predicted, Draco Malfoy went to Slytherin, while Hermione and Ron went to Gryffindor.

After waiting for a while, Professor McGonagall paused and said, "Harry Potter."

Harry was a paragon of virtue in the wizarding world, and the students knew this all too well. They were all whispering among themselves.

Harry couldn't hear what the people were saying, but he sat down on the stool and put the hat on his head.

The moment I put it on, a voice seemed to travel a thousand miles, yet it also resonated from the corner of my heart.

"Difficult, extremely difficult. You seem very courageous, and not a bad person either—wait, you've killed someone?"

A tattered felt hat peeked at the scarred man, and suddenly a murderous aura surged to the heavens. He had never seen bloodshed in this life, but in his past life, the slaughter was boundless. Whether this hat could discern past and present lives remains to be seen; we'll find out in the next chapter.