Chapter 312: Proper Gossip

"Tell me, what's going on with Hermione's state?" Harry naturally had a heart for gossip.

"Just as I mentioned before, she likes Tang Tang Nade, but her reason stops her," Zhang Qiu analyzed. "And, Hermione is a quite kind person."

"What does this have to do with kindness?"

"Originally, Hermione wanted to use Luo En to act as a 'boy more suitable for her,' but clearly, she noticed some interactions between Luo En and Alina, so she let Luo En go again," Zhang Qiu spread out her notebook, flipped forward a few pages, and then pointed to the content on it.

"Tang Tang Nade once invited us to watch his movie premiere. This was a very clever move. He not only scared away Luo En's affection for Hermione but also stopped Hermione from using Luo En through Alina's way," Zhang Qiu said somewhat awkwardly, but Harry could understand what she meant.

"So, originally there was still a possibility that Luo En and Hermione would turn fake into real as their relationship deepened, but after the Four Seasons Hotel trip, they both started to be afraid of contacting each other," Harry summarized.

"Yes, I told you that day that the only factor preventing you from selling Hermione to Tang Tang Nade is that Luo En still has ideas about her," Zhang Qiu's tone carried a hint of helplessness, but also seemed to carry a bit of schadenfreude. "And this idea is gradually dissipating."

"In fact, I don't quite understand Luo En's mind now," Harry hesitated. "He once said that he felt Hermione was the only girl who made him feel sincere, but looking at his awkward appearance this time, I really don't know what he's thinking."

"If we put Luo En's matter aside and talk about Hermione herself," Zhang Qiu changed the subject. "Hermione no longer uses Luo En as psychological comfort, but she can't meet other boys in school who are excellent enough to make her heart move, so she turns to accepting celibacy."

"No smart person would make such a firm decision about life events at such an early stage. Clearly, Hermione claiming she won't marry is just to suppress the thoughts about Tang Tang Nade in her heart. The firmer she says it, the more it shows she is deeply trapped in it. There is a Chinese idiom called 'color fierce inside soft,' which describes this state."

"So she is making things difficult for herself now?" Harry hesitated. "And us, we just watch? Do nothing?"

"Whether we do or don't depends on Luo En's thoughts," Zhang Qiu shook her head.

"But, will Tang Tang Nade really be good to Hermione?" Harry hesitated. "He was so mean to Cassandra, let alone Hermione is only similar to her—"

"You don't have to worry about this. Tang Tang Nade has already invested so much in Hermione, and if there are no accidents, he will invest more," Zhang Qiu touched her chest. "If things weren't like this, I would also try to stop him with my conscience."

"Why do you think so?" Harry was still a bit disgusted with Tang Tang Nade. "He not only abandoned Cassandra back then, but now he wants to continue to control her life, and even to fake his image, he made up that broken thing about Black Dark. No matter how I look at it, I think he's a villain."

"You're right. But think about it from another angle: why did he go to such lengths to cover up the truth back then? He isn't running for governor. Besides Hermione, who cares about his private life?" Zhang Qiu raised her eyebrows. "I think his ideal girlfriend, as the movie implies, is a Pepper Potts type: shrewd, capable, strict in character. Being pretty and having a good figure is just incidental."

"And Cassandra just happened to hit his aesthetic, but couldn't satisfy the other two points, so she not only had no status in Tang Tang Nade's heart but also became a scandal, a dark history: she proved that Tang Tang Nade is a scumbag who can't control his lower body."

"The reason I'm certain Tang Tang Nade will be good to Hermione is that she also showed excellent qualities such as intelligence, diligence, and capability, and Cassandra proved one thing for us, which is that Hermione's appearance is unparalleled in Tang Tang Nade's eyes," Zhang Qiu summarized. "Synthesizing these points, in Tang Tang Nade's heart, he should be determined to marry her."

Harry nodded.

"If you want to persuade me not to interfere with Tang Tang Nade's layout, I think you've convinced me. Luo En isn't that fascinated by Hermione. If it can be proven that Tang Tang Nade will be good to Hermione, then we can indeed follow him," he rubbed his chin. "I know this is unfair to Cassandra, and it's not entirely a good thing for Hermione, but if I just push Tang Tang Nade to the opposite side for the sake of a sense of justice, the current situation cannot afford this price."

"However, Tang Tang Nade's layout might have problems, and I can't even say if he really has a plan," Harry changed the subject. "I think maybe we can try to give Hermione some help, secretly."

"On the contrary," Zhang Qiu shook her head. "Now William has stood on the side of the Death Eaters, and Tang Tang Nade actually hasn't decided to stand on your side. He is closer to a neutral faction."

"The only help the Magical Congress can give the Order of the Phoenix is Krest? I think this is unreasonable and shouldn't be. Clearly, a considerable amount of resources are in Tang Tang Nade's hands, and he hasn't truly chosen his position," Zhang Qiu sighed. "We want to win him over, so when we discover that this might be something beyond Tang Tang Nade's expectations, we should instead inform him and attach some remedial measures to let him see our sincerity."

"I've always said we can sell Hermione to Tang Tang Nade," Zhang Qiu added emphasis to the word "sell," "because I know Tang Tang Nade can give a very high price, high enough that you can't refuse."

"For example?" Harry was a bit dissatisfied. "He can't directly clear the Death Eaters and suppress the Soviets, unless he really has an Iron Man suit."

"Ha, so an Iron Man suit is enough to buy you," Zhang Qiu said happily. "I remind you, this kind of armor is not hard to realize in the magic world."

"I'm just making an analogy," Harry spread his hands. "I don't trust him."

"Then I can let him show a little sincerity," Zhang Qiu straightened her body. "Because of Cassandra, China can act as a relatively credible third party to truly facilitate this deal for you."

"Of course, I want to remind you," seeing Harry's face become a bit ugly, Zhang Qiu smiled and made up for it, "we are just allowing him to pursue Hermione; we didn't put Hermione in a sack and sell her to him directly, right?"

"The feeling you give me is that if his price makes you dissatisfied," Harry muttered with dissatisfaction, "don't think about it, let's talk about something happy."

"Are you ready with your dress?" she asked. "I picked a white cheongsam with lotus flowers."

"Cheongsam again?" Harry was in a bad mood now, so he had no enthusiasm for the ball.

"Hey, you have to know about the dress," Zhang Qiu explained. "Although there are many styles of Chinese dresses, only the cheongsam can adapt to the concept of European balls. You can't say I'll give you a whole flower hairpin and traditional court robes; that's too flashy."

"Then I'll write to the butler and ask him to send a tailcoat." As soon as Harry finished speaking, he couldn't help but start worrying about Luo En. "Oh, right, there's also Luo En. In case Alina changes to another dress, he will be embarrassed. I have to remind him."

"Go quickly," Zhang Qiu pushed his shoulder. "Don't think too much about Hermione's matter; I'll study it."

When Harry returned to the dormitory and started talking to Luo En about the dress, he had indeed thrown Hermione and everything else to the back of his mind. Because clearly, Luo En showed no feelings for Hermione at all at this time; he had been talking about Alina.

"... She told me her new dress is called 'Treading Wings and Riding Light,' also in blue and white," he introduced with excitement. "It is said that the design concept is based on a pigeon, and there will be a fluffy feeling of feathers."

"So you're going to choose a dress that matches the pigeon this time?" Harry didn't come back to his senses for a while.

"Yes, Mom will buy me a new one." Luo En didn't feel awkward because of his tight budget this time. After all, Mr. Weasley was about to be promoted, and their family should be in a happy and celebratory atmosphere at this time.

"There will be that kind of fluffy big lace bow tie. Percy said it's called 'Claba' something, which was also a very popular style. I think it will be a perfect match," Luo En said excitedly. He was full of anticipation for the ball at this time.

"By the way, Alina is also preparing to spend Christmas here. Will you stay at school? Should we continue to let her live in the Chamber of Secrets or—"

"Oh, right, I still have to hand in the list of students staying at school," Harry realized he had forgotten this. "I'll go tell Ivy. Actually, you also have to tell Ginny, right?"

The two walked out of the dormitory, came to the common room, and easily found Ivy and Ginny chatting by the fireplace.

Harry asked, "Hey, are you staying at school this year?"

"There will be those fluffy, large lace bow ties; Percy said that style is called a cravat or something, and it used to be a very popular style. I think it will be a perfect match," Luo En said excitedly, already full of anticipation for the ball.

"By the way, Ailina is also planning to spend Christmas here. Will you be staying at school? Should we continue to let her live in the Chamber of Secrets or—"

"Wait, you just said, he's coming back on the morning of the 24th?" Harry suddenly realized he had misunderstood. "He's coming back before the holidays?" ===== CHAPTER 313 =====

The two walked out of the dormitory, arrived at the common room, and easily found Ivy and Jin Ni chatting by the fireplace.

Harry asked, "Hey, are you two staying at school this year?"

"Oh, yes," Ivy said, "Old Sir is expected to return from Albania on the morning of the 24th."

"He's out there again, ha," Harry said nonchalantly; Old Sir never came home for Christmas, and he was almost used to it.

"Wait, you just said he's coming back on the morning of the 24th?" Harry suddenly realized he had misunderstood, "He's coming back before the holiday?"