Chapter 548 Fengqi Liangmu

Chapter 548 Fengqi Liangmu
At this time, there was a blind spot in the corridor on the eighth floor.

Katie Bell leaned against the cold stone wall, holding her wand tightly in her hand, and looked at the two members of the Justice Picket Team in front of her warily. She was trapped in this corner and had nowhere to escape.

"Don't struggle, Bell." Marcus Bell smiled sarcastically, "As long as you are willing to admit that you have joined Dumbledore's Army and confess everyone you know, we can consider letting you go."

"What if not?" Katie asked coldly, the wand in her hand trembling slightly - not because of fear, but because of anger.

Eddie Carmichael sneered and pointed his wand at her. "Then wait for Professor Umbridge to interrogate you personally. I heard that her methods have become more and more severe recently. Many people even cried for mercy."

Katie gritted her teeth, her eyes firm: "I will not betray my friends."

"That's not up to you." Marcus shrugged and was about to chant a spell, but suddenly he heard hurried footsteps approaching from afar. The next second, a red light suddenly shot over. Before Marcus and Eddie could react, they were knocked away and hit the wall heavily, falling unconscious!

Katie was stunned and looked up suddenly - Zhang Qiu was standing at the other end of the corridor, the wand in his hand still emitting a faint red light.

"Zhang Qiu?" Katie opened her eyes wide, full of surprise.

Zhang Qiu walked forward slowly, glanced down at the two people lying on the ground, and snorted: "What a boring guy."

She waved her wand casually and cast a full body binding spell on the two people on the ground, then turned her head and her eyes fell on Katie.

"Are you okay?" she asked calmly.

Katie shook her head, her face full of gratitude: "Thank you... I didn't expect you to come to save me."

Zhang Qiu raised his eyebrows: "Why thank me? This was not my idea."

Katie was stunned: "What do you mean?"

Zhang Qiu's eyes darkened slightly, and he said softly, "Xie Lin ordered it."

Shaylin Malfoy… the uncrowned king of Slytherin, the legendary pure-blood prince, but also the most formidable rival of Gryffindor… Katie frowned slightly, obviously having some complicated emotions about the name.

"Why did he—"

"Because you are someone worth saving." Zhang Qiu interrupted her and looked at her calmly, "Katie, we grew up together. You should know that I will not do anything meaningless."

Katie was silent for a while, and her eyes softened slightly: "...Indeed, we haven't seen each other for a long time."

Zhang Qiu nodded, and suddenly changed his tone: "Katie, Dumbledore's Army has no future. Hogwarts has changed now. The Justice Pickets are rampant all over the campus, Umbridge's power is growing, and the Ministry of Magic even wants to take complete control of this place. Do you think that Harry Potter and his two followers can really change all this?"

Katie bit her lower lip and didn't answer.

Zhang Qiu said calmly: "Everything you went through tonight proves that you have no real ability to fight against Umbridge. You can be expelled at any time as long as she wants."

Katie pursed her lips, a struggle flashing in her eyes.

"Think about it," Zhang Qiu continued, his voice softened but more direct, "how would your parents react when they knew you were expelled?"

Katie's hands trembled slightly. Her parents had high hopes for her. Although she wanted to become a professional Quidditch player, if she was expelled from Hogwarts, this dream would probably never come true. Even her future would be overshadowed, and her parents would be very disappointed.

Zhang Qiu saw that she was wavering and softened his tone, "But Xie Lin is different. He has a noble birth and a strong background. He has already proven his strength in the Triwizard Tournament, the Potions Championship, and the Alchemy Conference. Don't forget, he is also the youngest member of the Wizengamot and the leader of the Diagon Alley Business Alliance. Even the Ministry of Magic doesn't dare to provoke him easily."

Katie lowered her head and pondered for a while, and the scenes of her and Zhang Qiu when they were young emerged in her mind - they competed in flying speed in the air, they were scolded by their family for making trouble together, and they competed with each other in Quidditch games...

She once regarded Zhang Qiu as her best friend, but after entering different colleges, they became more and more distant from each other, and now... Zhang Qiu stood on the opposite side of her.

Katie raised her head, looked directly into Zhang Qiu's eyes, and said sharply: "Qiu, did you save me today because we are friends, or because you want to recruit me to join Xie Lin's organization?"

Zhang Qiu met her gaze without dodging it. Instead, he answered more seriously, "Both."

Katie's eyes widened slightly.

"We are friends, so I will definitely save you, whether Xie Lin asks me to do so or not." Zhang Qiu's voice was firm, "But Xie Lin's order is equally important to me. I can save you once, but if you refuse me, this will also be the last time I treat you as a friend."

Katie's heart skipped a beat.

She had already vaguely felt that Zhang Qiu was no longer the girl she knew when she was a child. She was now in Shaylin Malfoy's camp, and she had her own position and loyalty.

If she refuses – they may never be friends again.

The air froze for a moment. Zhang Qiu did not urge her anymore, but waited quietly for Katie's decision.

Katie's hand was still tightly holding the wand, and her knuckles were a little white. She was not a fool. Zhang Qiu saved her not just out of "friendship". She knew very well that her current choice would determine her future path.

"Qiu, tell me honestly, why did Malfoy want me to join his forces?" Katie asked cautiously. Zhang Qiu looked at her and smiled slightly: "Because you are important."

Katie frowned. "Me? Important?"

"You probably don't know yet, but our influence has already infiltrated Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin, leaving Gryffindor alone." Zhang Qiu said slowly, "You will be the first."

Katie's breath hitched.

This information was too much of a shock for her.

She had always thought it was amazing that Harry was able to organize Dumbledore's Army to fight against Umbridge's Justice Squad, but she had never imagined that there was such a hidden organization lurking in Hogwarts, whose scale had already covered the three major colleges, and from Zhang Qiu's tone it seemed that the number of people was even larger than that of Dumbledore's Army.

"You have a high status in the Gryffindor Quidditch team and you are very strong. You understand the atmosphere of the school better than most people." Zhang Qiu continued, "If you are willing to join, Xie Lin will arrange an important position for you - you will not be an ordinary follower, but our bridge in Gryffindor."

Katie was silent for a moment, then sneered: "It sounds good, but you asked me to betray my own school and friends."

Zhang Qiu was not surprised when he heard this, but shook his head slightly: "Katie, you overestimate them."

Katie's frown deepened: "What do you mean?"

"Potter is impulsive and stubborn, and never considers the overall situation. His so-called 'leadership' is nothing more than relying on courage to charge forward." Zhang Qiu sneered, "And what about Ron Weasley? He is cowardly and incompetent, and is completely Harry's vassal."

Katie gritted her teeth. She wanted to argue, but she couldn't deny it - Harry and Ron did have these obvious character weaknesses. Although they were brave, they were not suitable to be good leaders.

"Where do you think they can take you? Harry even became a clown in the Triwizard Tournament." Zhang Qiu sneered, "He even got his chance to participate by accident, and he survived the whole process by luck. If Xie Ling hadn't saved him at the last moment, he wouldn't be alive today."

Katie's fingertips turned a little white, and she didn't even realize that her grip on the wand had tightened.

Zhang Qiu noticed her hesitation and continued, "What's more, what about your own future?"

Katie was shocked and looked up at her: "What... do you mean?"

Zhang Qiu smiled: "I remember you said when you were a kid that your dream was to become a professional Quidditch player, right?"

Katie was stunned.

Zhang Qiu sighed softly: "Katie, you have good talent, but talent alone is not enough. The competition for positions in the professional Quidditch league is fierce. You may not be able to get a good position just by relying on your strength."

"Sherin can help you."

"...How can he help me?" Katie's voice was a little dry.

"He owns two teams, Tutshill Tornado and Puddlemere United, and he also has a good relationship with Holyhead Harpies." Zhang Qiu said slowly, "As long as you are willing, he can definitely help you enter the professional league after graduation."

Katie's breathing quickened.

Born into a middle-class family, she understood for the first time the gap between a real pure-blood family and her own. Her lifelong dream was just to join a decent mid-level team, but they already owned two teams.

And they are Tutshill Tornadoes and Puddlemere United, two of the traditional strong teams in the Anglo-Irish League, two of the four strongest teams. The Holyhead Harpies are also one of the best up-and-coming teams, and their captain Jones is the idol of all female players.

"This is not a 'deal', but a recognition of you." Zhang Qiu said softly, "Xie Lin is a visionary man. He will not waste resources at will. He is willing to help you because he believes that you are worth investing in."

"Katie," Zhang Qiu thought for a while and finally spoke out his heart, "Maybe you think courage and friendship are important now, but that's what the imaginary fairy tales taught you. In reality... a real phoenix will always choose the most luxuriant tree to live in."

Silence hung between the two.

Katie's heart was filled with mixed emotions. Her mind told her that joining the Order of the Dragon meant betraying Gryffindor, betraying Dumbledore's Army, and betraying the friends she had fought alongside.

But her intuition told her that what Zhang Qiu said made sense.

Harry's bravery is indeed admirable, but his leadership ability is indeed worrying. Ron is even less worthy of mention.

On the contrary, Shaylin Malfoy has already proven his talent to the world, and his recent actions have also demonstrated his leadership charisma that is enough to lead society. Most importantly, the Ministry of Magic has been helpless against him until now.

Zhang Qiu did not rush her, but waited quietly for her answer.

After a long time, Katie finally took a deep breath, raised her head, and looked at Zhang Qiu with a changed look in her eyes.

"...Okay, I'll join."

Zhang Qiu raised a satisfied smile and extended his hand: "Welcome to join the Mianlong Society."

Katie held her hand and they smiled at each other for the first time in a long time.