Chapter 974 New Prank Idea
The history of the Malfoy family is not difficult to find. There are some records in the "Pure-Blood Register" written by Cantankerus Nott.
Like the Lestranges and the Rosiers, their family also originated in France.
The difference is that the Malfoys at that time could not be called a family at all. Their ancestor Armand Malfoy actually came to Britain as a member of the Norman army and followed the Duke of Normandy, the first King of England, William I.
Armand provided William with untold magical services, and in return he was given a fertile piece of land in Wiltshire that had originally belonged to a local landowner but had been confiscated and given to the Malfoy family.
The record in the Pureblood Directory ends here. It is obvious that a family cannot be developed rapidly with just a piece of land.
Among the information that Lupin had obtained through the black market intelligence network, there was actually a top-secret history of the Malfoy family's rise to wealth.
Regardless of whether it was true or not, Sirius was watching with great interest.
The descendants of the Malfoy family have lived on that land in Wiltshire for ten centuries.
Their ancestor Armand was not as glorious as he seemed. He possessed all the characteristics of the Malfoy family, such as cunning.
He flattered people at the source of power and wealth, and although he preached pure-blood values to wizards and believed in the superiority of the magical world, in real life, he never minded currying favor with the non-magical community.
His descendants inherited his traits perfectly, and over the centuries they continued to expand their territory in Wiltshire by annexing neighboring Muggle lands.
Their relationship with the royal family enabled the Malfoy family to collect many Muggle treasures and artworks, and later successfully entered the field of Muggle currency and assets, becoming one of the richest wizarding families in the British wizarding world at that time.
It is a great irony that the wealth that the Malfoy family is so proud of comes from the very thing they despise.
In the 16th century, their family produced another famous figure, Lucius Malfoy I.
He was once a suitor of Queen Elizabeth I of England. After the Queen rejected him, he cast a curse on the Queen in anger, causing her to remain unmarried for the rest of her life.
The royal family at that time was helpless against him, which shows how powerful the Malfoy family was in the Muggle world.
But in 1692, the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy came into effect, and their good days seemed to be over.
Naturally, the Malfoy family strongly opposed the bill. Withdrawing from the Muggle social circle that they enjoyed meant that the family's wealth would stop growing, and it also meant that the family would decline.
However, the reality proves that they have found a new way to make money, and hundreds of years later, they are still at the top of the wizarding family.
Sirius put down the parchment with a look of disdain. "They change their attitude so quickly. One moment they were vehemently against the Statute of Secrecy, and the next moment they became staunch supporters of the bill, trying their best to deny that they had ever dated or married a Muggle. How shameless."
After the Malfoys lost the jewels and possessions they had received from the Muggles, their disdain for them grew genuine.
Compared with the Weasley family who are close to Muggles, they are actually the real shame of pure-bloods.
Lupin picked up another piece of parchment. "I also found out about some of their current businesses, but many of them were sold at a low price some time ago."
Why should profitable industries be sold at a low price? Isn't it because more profitable industries have emerged?
Sirius glanced at the magical communicator on his wrist.
It seems that Lucius, the old fox, is determined to have a big bite of the cake. If that is true, there is a way to deal with him.
Most of the Malfoy family's assets are real industries, such as a dragon farm in Romania and a herb plantation in cooperation with a French wizard family.
They also have a lot of hidden assets. They own shares in the three major flying broom companies, namely, Sideswipe, Nimbus and Comet.
The shares in Sideswept have been sold, and they still own several prime shops in Diagon Alley.
After reading it, Sirius told Lupin the information he had learned from the powerful people.
In recent years, the Malfoy family has frequently organized charity fundraising events.
According to what old Abbott and old Foley said, Lucius' grandson was actually in cahoots with the bastard Fudge, making a fortune under the guise of charity.
The Ministry of Magic did not announce how much donations were raised, nor did it disclose where the donations went. Even a fool would know that the money was swallowed up by the two of them.
"Old Shafiq has a lot of issues with them, maybe we can take advantage of that."
Aibo, Foley, Shafik and others are all among the twenty-eight sacred families, and none of them can get along with those masters.
If we propose to join forces to deal with the Malfoy family, I believe they will be happy to do so.
Lupin looked at Sirius in surprise, "Padfoot, you seem to have changed? If it were before, you would definitely rush straight forward without considering the twists and turns."
Sirius lowered his head silently, his eyes revealing deep sadness, "I have been in Azkaban for a full 12 years, and I have seen too much of the dark side of human nature."
Those imprisoned on the same floor with him were all the most heinous Death Eaters.
Even though they can do whatever they want to the outside world, there is still a strict hierarchy within the organization.
But once you are imprisoned in Azkaban, no one cares what your past identity was.
Not full? Then go grab someone else's.
Can't grab it? Then join forces to grab it together.
Sirius shook his head violently, throwing all the unpleasant memories out of his mind.
He raised his right hand, revealing the magic communicator on his wrist. "Remus, this thing invented by Vincent is much more advanced than any magic TV or magic computer. This kid never wants to suffer a loss. The Malfoys will definitely suffer a great loss."
Lupin chuckled and nodded, "Indeed, the wizard cards of the past few years have proven that plagiarism and borrowing do not work. Now they plan to follow behind and share the cake peacefully, but I am afraid that they will spit out more in the end."
Sirius' eyes brightened. "Remus, if we team up with Shafik and the others to form a new brand, do you think Malfoy and the others will get nervous?"
“You want them to invest more?”
"Yes." A sly smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. "I want to spit out everything they have swallowed over the years, but before that, we have to make him suffer a big loss first."
Lupin was in a trance for a moment, recalling his distant student days.
He had that smile whenever Sirius came up with a new idea for a prank.
"It makes me miss it." Lupin, as always, neither agreed nor disagreed.
If James were still here, he would definitely agree with it.
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