days at Hogwarts

Loren briefly reviewed the tenure of several ministers and found that what Professor McGonagall said made sense. Many ministers took office due to unexpected circumstances and resigned due to unexpected circumstances.

The position of Minister of Magic is similar to that of the Headmaster of Hogwarts. There is no fixed term. Coupled with the long natural lifespan of wizards, it is not uncommon for some to stay in office for decades without any illness or disaster.

For example, the lucky Faris Spavin, who served for 38 years, was persuaded to resign by the Wizengamot due to Alzheimer's disease. He was 147 years old when he retired.

Hector Foley took office in 1925 and served for 14 years before being dismissed for not paying enough attention to the threat posed by Gellert Grindelwald to the entire wizarding world.

Eugenia Jenkins took office in 1968 and was dismissed after seven years because she was unable to deal with the rise of Voldemort. Her successor, Harold Minkan, only served for five years and was also dismissed because he was unable to deal with Voldemort.

Millicent Badnor came at the right time. Not long after she took over in 1980, Voldemort was unexpectedly overthrown. She served as minister for ten years and retired honorably.

The 1990 ministerial election was at a delicate time. Crouch, who was originally the most qualified to take over, had been exposed to the scandal of his son being a Death Eater and was politically marginalized. He served as the director of the International Affairs Cooperation Department to handle some trade affairs. The unknown Cornelius Fudge showed a gentle personality and had no means, so he was favored by Dumbledore, who believed that he could bring a period of stability and peace to the wizarding world. He used his reputation to win votes for him and was eventually elected.

The result was that Dumbledore almost lost his reputation in his later years.

During his tenure, Cornelius Fudge allowed officials to abuse their power, was close to the pure-blood party, and handed power to those who were willing to flatter and provide Galleons. Senior Deputy Minister Umbridge and Walton McNeill were among them, which led to serious corruption. The trials and punishments were manipulated by some officials...

Not to mention that he chose to ignore Dumbledore's warnings in order to maintain power, which almost led to the destruction of the Ministry of Magic.

Then there is Rufus Scrimgeour, who, as the Head of the Auror Office, lacks experience, but happens to encounter Voldemort leading the Death Eaters to attack the Ministry of Magic. Minister Fudge and the more experienced Amelia were attacked and controlled by Death Eaters at the dinner the day before, leaving him the only one who can lead the Aurors to resist the attack.

The Minister was subsequently removed from office, Amelia's reputation was damaged, and Scrimgeour naturally took over as Minister.

A comprehensive comparison of their resumes shows that most ministers came from the Department of Law Enforcement, and very few had worked in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes. As for the other departments, such as the Department of Sports, the Department of Transport, and the Department of Regulation of Magical Creatures, they are completely functional fringe departments and cannot train Ministers of Magic.

"It seems I still have to join the Law Enforcement Department..." Loren flipped through the brochure on the table. "There are three departments in total. The Office of Control of Prohibited Articles, where Mr. Weasley works, is the Office of Prohibition of the Misuse of Muggle Articles. The Auror Command Center requires three years of training to become an Auror, and the progress is too slow... The Wizengamot Administration, let's choose this one."

"..."

Professor McGonagall was silent for a moment. "Although this department is called the Wizengamot Administration, it actually has no management authority. Its daily work is to communicate with Wizengamot members and convey trial information... Moreover, the Ministry of Magic staff are not confined to a certain department. Several departments are a whole. Even if they work in other departments, as long as they make achievements, they will be promoted to the Law Enforcement Department, promoted to Assistant Minister or Senior Deputy Minister, and participate in elections in these capacities."

"I see……"

Professor McGonagall glanced at Loren who seemed to be deep in thought, then looked at Hermione who looked helpless, and chuckled, "This conversation is just to give you an idea of ​​career choices. It doesn't mean you have to make a decision now. And with your grades, I can say that you are completely free to choose these careers."

"Thank you, Professor." Hermione nodded.

"In addition, I must ask you for one thing." Professor McGonagall paused and solemnly reminded, "Supervise Loren's recent review, especially the recitation of the History of Magic. Don't let him be lazy."

"I know, Professor!"

"Hey! I'm still here! What do you mean?"

Before Loren, who looked indignant, could finish his words, Hermione had already pulled him out.

"This is blatant discrimination! This is an insult to my personality!"

Professor McGonagall just found it funny.

"..."

The cursing voices gradually became weaker and soon disappeared completely.

Sitting alone behind the desk,

Professor McGonagall leaned back in her chair, took off her heavy black-framed glasses, rubbed her brows, and felt her sore muscles gradually relax. She had been talking to students about career consultation since breakfast and hadn't had a break for several hours. Now that there were two of them doing the consultation together, she could finally squeeze out some time to rest.

Professor McGonagall closed her eyes and began to think about Loren's situation.

Many Hogwarts students don't have to worry about finding employment.

Independent and thoughtful students will spend a year or two traveling after graduation, and stay there after finding a job they like, which may be a wizard shop or a Muggle city. Students from wealthy families are divided into two groups. One group will return home to inherit their parents' business, including Muggle-borns and pure-blood wizards. The other group will not work, and they don't have to worry about supporting their families...

What kind of job would Loren do?

Although he is lazy and a bit of a nag, he has outstanding personal abilities, making people both love and hate him. His superiors and colleagues must be very troubled by him.

"..."

Professor McGonagall sat up straight and sorted out the brochures. She picked up the tea and took a sip. The bitter taste quickly permeated her tongue, revealing a light sweetness. A smile appeared at the corner of her mouth.

The rustling sound of footsteps was heard, and the next student for career consultation had arrived.

……

1996 5 Month 26 Day.

10am, auditorium.

The upcoming event generated endless enthusiasm, allowing the young wizards to temporarily forget the pressure of the approaching exams and chat happily.

"Have you decided on your future career? My mother is a healer at St. Mungo's Hospital, and she suggested that I become a healer too!" a Hufflepuff student said excitedly, while the students next to him chattered about their own situations.

"I want to be a therapist, but they are too demanding."

"Good jobs require very high academic performance. I want to be a curse breaker for Gringotts so I can travel around the world on adventures, but they require me to have learned arithmetic and divination." A little wizard sighed.

"I took Arithmancy in my third year, but I found it too difficult and Professor Victor assigned too much homework, so I dropped out."

"..."

At the Gryffindor table, Ron silently recited today's date in his heart.

It was the last Sunday in May, 14 hours until Monday, and he still had three papers to finish, but it didn't matter.

He grasped the sleeve of his wizard robe and wiped the sweat off his palms, then rubbed them a few more times to completely remove the sticky feeling. He looked at the sky outside the window. The sunlight was warm but not glaring. It was perfect weather for a Quidditch game.

Today was the day of the last game of the Quidditch season of this school year, Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw, and also his last game as a regular Keeper.

Next year he will be the captain.

Ron didn't think he had to wait until next year to take on the responsibility of captaincy. He took a deep breath and patted the shoulder of the Seeker next to him: "Harry, I need to confirm the tactics later with you -"

"I'm the Seeker. You should discuss your tactics with the Beaters and Chasers..." Harry pushed him away without looking back and continued talking to Loren and Hermione. "Recently, I've tried to talk to Professor Slughorn about some dark arts, but he's too vigilant and doesn't give me a chance to advance the topic, let alone talk about Horcruxes. So far, there's been no progress at all."

"After what happened with Voldemort, he must be on high alert," said Hermione.

Loren beside him nodded: "Don't be too eager, and don't make your purpose so obvious, lest he notices something is wrong and becomes more wary of you."

"I think so."

"..."

Ron clenched his fists silently.

Damn it, don’t underestimate the future captain of the team!

I must block a few balls in a cool manner later to establish my captain’s prestige in advance!

Ron thought so and pondered his tactics in the auditorium. After Angelina confirmed the start information of the game, he led the players out with great confidence.

Change into team uniform and come to the stadium.

Listening to the boiling cheers in his ears and looking at the Ravenclaw players on the opposite side, Ron's breathing unconsciously became rapid and his heartbeat began to accelerate.

A few minutes later, Madam Hooch blew her whistle, and Lee Jordan's magically diffused commentary spread throughout the stadium: "This school year's Quidditch season finals, Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw, this is not only about the ownership of the Quidditch trophy, but also about the ownership of the house cup! This school year there is no extra points for Harry, no deductions for Professor Snape, the total scores of the four houses are very close, let's see who can lift this year's house cup!"

He hovered in front of the scoring circle on his broom, took a deep breath, and looked around like a king inspecting his territory.

Ravenclaw's captain Roger Davis is mediocre in talent and is about to graduate, but he has not been able to lead the team to a decent victory. The goalkeeper Grant Page is not as good as him at all. Randolph Burrow and Jeremy Stratton are weak in hitting, so there is no need to worry about them. Instead, the new members Chambers and Bradley are worthy of attention.

"Just keep an eye on their shots..."

Ron felt the hot blood pumping through his heart throughout his body, every muscle was cheering, and every cell was ready to block the ball.

ten minutes later.

"Let's congratulate Gryffindor on their victory!"

Lee Jordan yelled at the top of his lungs, so loud that it made people doubt that his voice was enough to be heard throughout the stadium even without magic. "Although this game started badly and Roger Davis scored first with a lightning attack, Harry never let us down! He didn't give Ravenclaw any chance and directly caught the Golden Snitch to end the game!"

"Let us congratulate Gryffindor again, long live Harry Potter!"

Ron blinked, his expression a little confused.

Although he won the game, he felt empty and depressed.

……

Just like that, June arrived, the grass was in full bloom, and everything was fragrant.

For the fifth graders, the weather was too bright, so bright that it was a little sad - the OWL exam was approaching.

Professors of various subjects assigned homework but no longer checked it strictly. They encouraged students to arrange their own review plans in their spare time. All class time was used for review. The professors listed the questions they thought were most likely to appear on parchment, but did not let them take the exam. Instead, they wrote the answers and sent them to them.

They did not have to answer the bound test papers. Instead, the professor asked them to choose questions they thought were valuable and look through them and compare their answers.

No one noticed when the class became silent and solemn. Perhaps it was when Professor McGonagall handed out the exam timetable, or when the countdown to the exam completely entered the single digits, or when the textbooks and books were turned and wrinkled...

It was another warm and sunny day. Loren and his friends, feeling dizzy from studying, left the library and came to the beech trees by the lake to breathe fresh air.

The satin-smooth greenery undulates softly in the breeze, the emerald green grounds sparkle in the sun, and the cloudless blue sky is reflected in the gently rippling lake.

Leaning against the tree roots, spreading the book under the shade of the beech tree, the scattered sunlight sprinkled through the branches and leaves, shining on the parchment pages, shining golden and bright to the point of being dazzling.

Loren couldn't concentrate on reading anymore. He put his head on Hermione's shoulder and said, "Hey, you know, the black market transactions between fifth and seventh grade students are very active these days."

Hermione couldn't concentrate on reading anymore. She closed the book, took a breath and sniffed Loren's scent, letting out the pent-up irritation in her heart. "I know. Harold Dingo was blocked in Myrtle's bathroom and beaten for reselling fake Dragon's Claw powder."

"Why?" Ron immediately became interested. "The price is cheap and the quantity is sufficient. I wanted to buy some to try it out."

Harry was silent for a moment, then said faintly, "According to Myrtle, his dragon claw powder is made from dried fox feces."

"..." Ron fell silent.

Harry patted his shoulder and consoled him, "You can try the Buffy Brain Refresher. Eddie Carmichael, a sixth-year Ravenclaw student, is reselling it. He pasted his last year's report card on the outside of the bottle. He got nine excellent grades, and his business is booming."

"Come on, a pint costs twelve gold Galleons, I can't afford it even if you sell it." Ron said, his eyes suddenly lit up, "Loren, you can brew potions, can I buy from you?"

"I don't do this business. Bafe's brain-stimulating agent is not a health-care medicine. Drinking it carelessly will cause problems. If you need it, you can go to the school clinic to find Ms. Pomfrey. She can judge whether you should take the medicine and how much to drink..."

Loren had a thoughtful expression, it was incredible that there were no twins involved in this kind of business.

"Forget it. Madam Pomfrey only gives us this when we have a cold in the winter. She certainly wouldn't prescribe it for review purposes."

"..."

The chaos of the black market business continued for some time, and all the illegal businesses were eventually cracked down and investigated by Vice-Principal Minerva McGonagall and closed down.

Surprisingly, as Professor McGonagall's main focus, George and Fred did not participate in any business and were incredibly well-behaved.

Only a few Gryffindor students knew that George and Fred were making a fortune.

They are suppliers to those unscrupulous traders.