Chapter 420
As Fudge said, Wayne and he were old acquaintances, and the two had dealt with each other many times.
Even from Wayne's perspective, the two could barely be called friends.
Even if he looked down on Fudge's intelligence and vision, he did help a lot.
Wayne readily accepted his invitation, and the two took a car that had been prepared long ago and came to the Richmond area on the outskirts of the city.
The two got off at the door of a single-family villa, and the driver drove away.
"No. 64, Fife Road." Fudge read the door number, and the scenery in front of Wayne changed.
The narrow door suddenly widened, the villa quickly retreated, and then became nearly twice as large, and the surrounding houses were almost crowded together.
After a few seconds, the change stopped, and the originally luxurious single-family villa became a magnificent manor.
Fudge extended his hand as an invitation: "Few people come to my house as guests, Mr. Lawrence, you are the first distinguished guest this year."
"After all, as the Minister of Magic, if many people know my address, it is unsafe in itself."
Wayne was not afraid of any ambush inside, and went in first, and said casually:
"It is indeed my honor, but are you not afraid that I know your address and I will come to kill you directly once we have a conflict?"
Fudge took two quick steps to the front to lead the way. The manor was very large, with acres of gardens, streams, and a large tennis court in the front yard alone.
"In this respect, you are very similar to Dumbledore, but completely different."
"Dumbledore seems to abide by the rules, but in fact he is the one who least believes in the Ministry of Magic."
"But Mr. Lawrence, you are different. You never care about the rules, but you are the one who makes and maintains the rules."
Wayne looked at him in surprise.
Just based on those two sentences, his evaluation of Fudge should be improved a few points.
That's true.
Whether it's the Order of the Phoenix or the planting of an insider in the Ministry of Magic, it shows Dumbledore's attitude towards the Ministry of Magic.
07 disdains and doesn't care, but rigidly wants to act according to the rules like everyone else.
But Wayne is different. He gathers forces and expands his influence in order to control this authority and use it for his own benefit.
Fudge felt Wayne's eyes and his face darkened slightly, but he recovered quickly.
He was not in a hurry to take him into the house to talk about business, but instead invited Wayne to appreciate the flowers and plants he planted.
All of them are gorgeous varieties that look good but are useless.
If Professor Sprout were here, he would definitely feel sorry for such good land, but he actually planted a bunch of waste.
Fudge was patient, and Wayne was even less anxious. He discussed with him which of these flowers was more beautiful, and asked for some seeds, ready to go back and plant some in the small world.
It was not until night fell that the two came indoors.
"Hope!" Fudge shouted, and a house elf appeared in front of him.
"You can serve the meal."
"Yes, sir."
Fudge led Wayne to a smaller restaurant, and when the two sat down, the food appeared on the table.
No matter which country you are in, there is actually a habit of talking about things at the table.
However, Fudge did not ask too sensitive questions, but just talked to Wayne about some interesting things he encountered in the Department of Magical Hazards before he became Minister of Magic.
In terms of the ability to liven up the atmosphere, Fudge is not bad at all, and Wayne was attracted by the stories he told.
"In fact, I miss those days." Fudge shook his head with emotion and drank the whiskey in the glass.
"No one cared about my department at that time. Because of the mysterious man, the Disaster Department became a place to clean up the mess. When an attack occurred there, all we could do after arriving was to clean up the mess."
"It was from that time that I often dealt with Dumbledore. I didn't expect that he would vote for me and let me jump two major classes and become the Minister of Magic."
"It shows that you worked hard at that time." Wayne commented very pertinently: "Everything was handled well, at least not too many Muggles discovered the existence of Voldemort."
Fudge's body trembled unconsciously.
"Merlin, please don't say that name in front of me."
After complaining, he smiled contemptuously again.
"Seriously? Of course, I was just a small clerk at that time, leading less than 30 subordinates. He was Dumbledore, the only one in the magic world who could fight against You-Know-Who."
"At that time, Dumbledore's words were more effective than Millicent (former Minister). Everyone was waiting for him to walk out of the castle and turn the tide."
"If you were me, would you dare not listen to his advice?"
Fudge put emphasis on the word suggestion, and even gritted his teeth.
"It was fine at the beginning, I was an insignificant role, but what about now?"
"I am the Minister of Magic! Why do I have to listen to his advice on everything!"
"Do I have to obey him when he makes decisions?"
"Since you have such a big opinion, then come and run for election. It's nice to push me to the front and hide behind to control it!"
Fudge completely burst out his dissatisfaction with Dumbledore. Wayne listened quietly and did not express his attitude.
He didn't agree with Fudge, but that didn't mean he didn't understand.
Just like the emperors in ancient times, even if he was a waste, he didn't want people under him to tell him what to do. This was human nature.
Fudge's mistake was that he became a minister at a bad time.
If it was a few years before Harry entered school, maybe his reputation would be very good.
At that time, the wizarding world was calm and peaceful. Even a pig could get more than 60 support rates.
After a lot of venting, Fudge finally calmed down. His hair became messy due to the violent fluctuations just now, and he was panting.Rough breathing:
"Mr. Lawrence, is the mysterious man...really resurrected?"
After going around in circles for so long, he finally got to the point.
Before coming, Wayne could guess what his purpose was, which was nothing more than to win him over and make him not stand on the side of Dumbledore.
After adjusting his suit, Wayne leaned back, found a comfortable posture, and looked at Fudge across from him leisurely:
"Minister, Dumbledore told you that you didn't believe it, so do you think you would believe it if I told you?"
"Or do you want to use other means to get more reliable information from me, such as truth serum, Legilimency?"
The air seemed to stop flowing at this moment, and Fudge's forehead was covered with cold sweat: "Lao, Mr. Lawrence, don't misunderstand me, I just want to confirm again, I think you are more reliable than Dumbledore."
Wayne slightly reduced his pressure: "Reason."
"No one knows what Dumbledore is thinking, but you are more like a true noble. You are more generous and wealthy than pure bloods."
"Like I said before, you will follow the rules."
"I agree with your evaluation of me." Wayne nodded slightly: "I do like to act within the rules. If I break the rules recklessly, it will be unfair to those who make the rules in the future, and the credibility will be greatly reduced."
"Mr. Lawrence, that's a good idea." Fudge nodded in agreement.
"Then don't have unrealistic fantasies." Wayne played with his fingers: "Voldemort has indeed resurrected, and there are two of them, one old and one young."
"The old one is brainless, and the young one is powerless, but they are both very difficult to deal with."
Fudge's face was pale: "How, how could there be two...Didn't he die more than ten years ago..."
"Cornelly." Wayne suddenly relaxed, "Since the killing curse didn't kill him thirteen years ago, then the impossible thing will become a reality."
"You can turn back now, it's not too late."
Fudge's face was pale: "I can't go back. ..”
“The Ministry of Magic has always preached peace and security. If I tell the public that You-Know-Who is back now...”(To read exciting novels, go to Faloo Novel Network!)
He smiled bitterly: “Believe it or not, I will definitely step down at the first opportunity to calm the public’s anger. Even if it has nothing to do with me, the ending will not change at all.”
“With your family education, you should understand the reason.”
Wayne nodded: “That’s true, but you can’t deny the facts. If this can prevent You-Know-Who from appearing, you should pretend to be a fool for the rest of your life.”
Fudge lowered his head and remained silent, as if thinking.
Wayne didn’t urge him, waiting for him to make a decision.
This is different from the original situation. This time, not only did Fudge see part of the facts, but he and Dumbledore also had proof. If he continued to pretend to know nothing,
Wayne should really doubt whether he was ambushed.The Imperius Curse of the Demon.
The atmosphere in the restaurant was extremely depressing. Fudge was silent, not knowing what he was thinking.
Wayne was looking at the layout of the room.
Besides anything else, Fudge must have made a lot of money in the past few years as the Minister of Magic.
Many things are luxury goods in the wizarding world. The dragon tooth placed in the closet is a full meter long.
With the salary of the Minister of Magic, it is estimated that he will have to work for two or three years to afford one of them.
"Mr. Lawrence, I want to make a deal with you."
Just as Wayne looked through all the things and was silently estimating how much Fudge had greedily taken, he finally spoke.
"Hmm?" Wayne moved his eyes away from a unicorn horn and looked at him: "Let's not talk about the deal first, can you give me this horn?"
Fudge choked, but still nodded.
"Small problem."
Wayne waved his hand happily and put the things away.
"So you believe that Voldemort has returned?"
"It doesn't matter whether I believe it or not." Fudge said in a deep voice, "Even if I don't believe it, with your cooperation with Dumbledore, I will step down sooner or later. If you believe it, I will step down now."
"Instead of this, it's better to pretend that you know nothing. Before leaving, give Dumbledore a hard blow!"
Fudge looked fierce and gritted his teeth. Wayne frowned and said, "You want me to deal with Dumbledore?"
" Don't ask me for this kind of shit."
He'd be crazy to fight Fudge
"Of course not, I'm going to fight him as the Minister of Magic!" Fudge straightened his chest: "He despises the Ministry of Magic, but he wants to command it."
"He despises power, but he wants it to be used for his own benefit. Then I'll show him how much power he can exert when he sits in that position!"
Fudge waved his arms excitedly, and Wayne grinned. How much he hated Dumbledore.
"What's your deal then?"
"It's very simple."
"Mr. Lawrence, please don't interfere in the matter between him and me, and arrange a decent exit for me in the end."[]
"Where are the chips?" Wayne was still calm and composed.
"The headmaster is my beloved relative, brother."
Fudge's round face twitched fiercely: "Lawrence, Dumbledore is more than a hundred years older than you."
Wayne retorted righteously: "His brother is my elder brother, do you think he is my brother?"
Fudge was surprised: "Dumbledore has a brother?"
"It doesn't matter." Wayne waved his hand: "Tell me what you can bring to me."
"I pave the way for you." Fudge said word by word: "You prepare a way out for me."
"Lawrence, I know that many people in the Ministry of Magic are yours now, Greengrass, Diggory, Vaughan, Wharton... These people are all inextricably linked to you."
"I can arrange them to the positions they like, and I can also help youPlace people in the Law Enforcement Department, or even the Auror Office."
"Even if I retire, the next Minister will most likely be your man."
"Don't settle accounts with me, let me live my retirement life in peace."
Fudge's eyes were full of begging.
It's normal to make small mistakes.
Taking some gifts from pure-blood families, and collecting some gold from ordinary favors, these are not big things.
Then what is a big thing?
It's a big thing if someone finds out.
He has a lot of bad debts under his butt. If the previous Minister doesn't get along with him, putting aside the Voldemort issue, it's enough to send him to Azkaban for a few years.
"Is it that simple? " Wayne was a little surprised.
Fudge's conditions were a little too generous. It was definitely more legitimate for a minister to arrange the succession than for him to find someone to do it.
"I also need a decent exit."
Fudge's face was bitter, "I don't want to be mentioned decades later and used as a negative example of the Minister of Magic."
Wayne smiled: "Minister, I admit that I underestimated you before. You are not the worst politician. You are a little better than them."
"No, it's much better."