Chapter 12: Snape's Tenderness

On Friday, Harry's first class was Potions. Perhaps because of the strange dream on the first day of school, Harry didn't want to mess up his Potions. The night before, he previewed the textbook very seriously, not just the first lesson, because he found that Hogwarts professors liked to skip lessons, so he also looked at the lessons behind.

The Potions classroom was in a cold and damp basement, and Professor Snape dressed like a bat, his gloomy gaze scanning the students.

"In my Potions class, I can teach you how to bottle fame, how to brew glory, and even say... store death... as long as you are not as stupid as the bunch of idiots I taught before." He introduced the content of the course in a low voice, which made Harry listen very yearningly. He also wanted to work hard to prove that he was not the idiot in Snape's mouth.

"Potter!" Snape suddenly called Harry up, "If you add the powder of asphodel bulb to the juice of wormwood, what will be the result?"

"Uh, prepare Draught of Living Death?"

"That's right... then, where would you go to find a bezoar for me?"

"Inside the stomach of a cow, Professor."

"What is the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"They are different names for the same plant."

"... Harry." Professor Snape drooped his eyebrows, he looked a bit sad, "You are very good, Gryffindor gets one point."

Harry didn't speak, looking at the professor quietly.

"If you really know what I'm asking." His tone returned to being low and gloomy, "Draught of Living Death is a very strong hypnotic agent, and bezoar has a detoxifying effect. Monkshood is poisonous, pay attention to distinguish between wolfsbane and wolfsbane flower, they are not the same..."

In Professor Snape's explanation, some students began to copy notes, while Harry copied these three questions into his textbook with a trace of doubt.

Approaching the end of class, Snape called Harry.

"Harry, you have a talent for Potions." He said, "I hope..."

Harry looked at him, waiting for the next sentence.

"I hope you study hard, if you encounter any problems, you can come to my office to find me." Snape finally just said this sentence, then he looked at his medicine cabinet quietly without opening his mouth again.

After finishing the Potions class on Friday, there were no other courses. Harry ate lunch and came to the library. He hoped to finish his homework early, so that he could go to Haige's for afternoon tea with a relaxed body and mind later.

Zhang Qiu learned of Haige's invitation and proposed to go together. Harry thought about it and agreed. In fact, Haige welcomed any student to be a guest at his place, but students often didn't like Haige very much.

"By the way, the professor asked me three unrelated questions today." Harry said while opening his Potions textbook, "But I suspect he was hinting at something."

Zhang Qiu took a look and said very affirmatively: "In the Celestial Empire, we have the habit of 'entrusting ambition to objects', which formed many 'images'. For example, when we talk about the moon, it is often linked to the hometown, so, understanding these three questions is not difficult, just find what each item corresponds to."

"I do know the concept of images, but I have never read poetry from the Wizarding World." Harry was moved, "Perhaps I can borrow a collection of poems."

"Oh, it's not that troublesome." Zhang Qiu said, "Many flowers have flower languages, just find a book introducing flower languages."

Just like that, Harry temporarily threw his homework behind his head, his heart full of Snape's hints.

"... Asphodel refers to pure love, wormwood is peace, no longer blaming oneself. Bezoar has no special meaning, and monkshood refers to malice." Zhang Qiu closed the book and said with a puzzled face: "You might have guessed wrong, he just asked three questions casually."

"I believe he is hinting at me." Harry scratched his head, "Perhaps, asphodel crushed and added to wormwood juice means as long as you give up love, you can stop blaming yourself? And the resulting Draught of Living Death means you can sleep peacefully. Could it be that the professor thinks I am confused by love and can't sleep?"

"Interesting, in fact, love can also be extended to other ideals or beliefs." Zhang Qiu followed up, "If a cow implies honesty and strength, and cows ruminate, then the bezoar in the stomach can also be counted as food. That is probably saying, the food of an honest and powerful person can relieve troubles?"

"This is interesting, I think the cow might refer to Haige, the professor should know that I am going to Haige's for afternoon tea today." Harry's eyes lit up, "And monkshood is malice. Oh right, the professor also mentioned wolfsbane flower, what does wolfsbane flower mean?"

"Let me see, heroic character, born for love." Zhang Qiu gave the answer while flipping through the book.

"Then that's right, he reminded me that wolfsbane is monkshood and not wolfsbane flower, meaning some people pretend to be heavy on love and righteousness, very heroic, but their true thoughts are full of malice!" Harry had a sudden realization.

"Hmm..." Zhang Qiu supported her forehead, "Do you really think the professor meant this? If I were to say, Professor Snape has nothing to do with you, he doesn't need to give you three pieces of advice that are completely useless."

"Okay, but it's not completely useless." Harry said, "At least going to Haige's for afternoon tea will definitely be very happy, just like you said, relieve troubles."

However, Harry didn't have any troubles originally. Instead, when he went to Haige's for afternoon tea, he encountered new troubles.

Haige seemed to know some things about Snape. As soon as he mentioned Snape, he would stutter and change the topic. The first time Harry said Snape seemed to pay much attention to him, Haige couldn't wait to ask Luo En about Charlie, and enthusiastically invited them to eat rock cakes as hard as wood; the second time Harry said Snape's hair was oily, he was anxious to let Harry look at the clippings, saying someone robbed Gringotts.

The Wizarding World also had bank robberies, Harry was quite curious, but looking carefully, the robbers didn't rob anything, and said something about the vault being moved out long ago. This was very strange. Was the robber specifically naming someone's vault to rob?

However, compared to this news that didn't have a beginning or an end, he cared more about Snape's affairs. It seems that Snape must know some secret, and this secret might have something to do with Haige.

"Eh, July 31st, that happened to be your birthday, right?" Zhang Qiu took the newspaper and said casually.

Harry didn't remember telling Zhang Qiu his birthday, but it was possible that her magical master divined it. By comparison, he cared more about the fact that he went to Gringotts on July 31st, and Haige secretly extracted a powerful magic item of Deng Buliduo.

Through Zhang Qiu's unintentional reminder, Harry looked at Haige with a different look, and whispered: "Is it possible that the robber wanted to rob what we just took away?"

All of a sudden, Haige's expression was very wonderful, and he hurriedly said: "I think it's very possible, after all, that is magic—oh, many people want to get it. However, it doesn't matter, Deng Buliduo set up layers of barriers to protect it."

"What philosophy?" Harry asked.

"I can't tell you, bad, I seem to have said too much that I shouldn't have, Deng Buliduo will be unhappy." Haige grabbed a pile of rock cakes in a panic, "Eat more, child, eat more."

"Thank you, Haige." Harry felt his teeth were about to collapse, he really didn't want to eat anymore, "We'll take it back to eat, I haven't finished my homework yet."

"Uh, okay." Haige looked a bit at a loss, "Welcome you to come again next time, anytime."

"What he said shouldn't be 'die miserably', right." Walking out of Haige's hut, Luo En said thoughtfully, "Deng Buliduo set up many barriers, but he was worried that students would accidentally break in, so he specifically reminded us?"

"Very possible." Harry said, "However, since it is Deng Buliduo's secret, we'd better not inquire."

"Aren't you curious?" Zhang Qiu said eagerly, "The greatest wizard, what will his secret be?"

"You can't say it like that." Harry explained with a frown, "Can't a great wizard have privacy? And, precisely because he is powerful, perhaps those barriers will be very dangerous, I don't want to really 'die miserably'."

"But just like what Quirrell said, what was it, I forgot a bit." Luo En said, "In short, his power has no effect on students, perhaps those barriers are very simple, all knowledge learned in class?"

"My intuition tells me that Luo En you might be right." Harry couldn't help but laugh, "Deng Buliduo might not set the barriers to be very terrible because of kindness. However, doesn't this mean that the existence of us students hinders him from guarding his secrets from bad guys?"

"Then that was really said by Quirrell." Luo En said thoughtfully, "Deng Buliduo is exhausting because he chose to become the headmaster. We students who enjoy his protection are actually consuming his strength."

"I understand what Snape meant!" Harry clapped his hands abruptly, scaring both people on the side.

"Adding asphodel to wormwood juice gets Draught of Living Death, meaning giving up the ideals carried because of self-blame can sleep peacefully. The professor doesn't want me to pursue that item because of fear of You-Know-Who; bezoar in the cow's stomach can detoxify, meaning Haige will guard Deng Buliduo's secret and also protect us well; and wolfsbane is monkshood and not flower, meaning although Deng Buliduo is a hero who is great because of love, in this matter, he is full of malice toward anyone who dares to touch this secret, we must not take it lightly."

"What are you talking about Harry?" Luo En was completely confused, "When did Professor Snape tell you these things?"

"This is his brilliance." Harry laughed proudly, "If I were a stupid child, I wouldn't realize that Deng Buliduo hid a powerful magic item; and if I were smart enough to know this, then I should also be able to understand his hint."

"The fact is, I really understand what he meant." Harry was full of confidence, "I will absolutely not go to the third floor to touch 'die miserably'!"