Struggling to survive at Hogwarts

Chapter 152 Crouch's Self-Salvation

If Lucius knew that Thea could still remember him, he wouldn't know whether to be terrified or relieved.

Let's move on to the day Thea left Malfoy Manor.

When Narcissa returned from a tasting event, she keenly sensed that something was amiss in the atmosphere at the manor.

"What happened, Lucius?" Narcissa's calm voice made Lucius freeze in place.

After a long while, Lucius turned around from behind his desk, his expression calm. But Narcissa knew her husband so well that she could see the deep apprehension and fear in his eyes.

“He’s back…Cissy…”

Lucius spoke in a hoarse voice.

He immediately lowered his head, no longer looking at his wife's suddenly pale face; his heavy heart made him unable to face her.

“We need to get ready, Cici.”

"...And what about Thea?"

"...She has already set off..."

Narcissa immediately covered her face helplessly and let out a sob of despair.

Lucius wanted to go over and comfort his wife, but a wave of self-reproach washed over him, so heavy that he could not move.

“...Nadraco…”

"...Let's leave it to fate. We can't disobey that person's orders, can we?"

Lucius closed his eyes with difficulty; that was his son…

Hopefully, Thea can... at least help Draco...

"uncle?"

The greeting and knocking at the door startled the two of them awake.

The two quickly covered up their earlier embarrassment before letting Gail in.

"This is the plan that Thea has prepared."

Gella pretended not to see their red eyes and simply handed a stack of parchment to Lucius.

After Gella left, Narcissa asked, "Should this plan still be carried out?"

"Of course!"

Lucius said firmly.

Thus, Thea's lawsuit became the starting point of the war, and with the Malfoy family in charge, an operation against Barty Crouch was officially launched.

Although the Crouch family is also a pure-blood family, the Malfoy family is really serious this time.

Furthermore, given that Barty Crouch has always been at odds with other pure-blood families and has consistently been a representative of the hardliners, the Nott family and others would naturally not let go of this opportunity to strike at him.

Besides, they're not the main force. They just need to cheer for the Malfoy family, and they'll naturally reap the benefits once things are done.

Who would want to miss such a highly profitable opportunity?

If you were to ask who's the happiest right now, it would probably be Fudge.

The feeling of watching one's political enemies fall without having to lift a finger is exhilarating.

At the same time, he once again benefited from his keen eye for talent. Who would have thought that a little girl who was only 14 years old could make a director so embarrassed?

Umbridge's rise to her current position is undoubtedly due in no small part to her keen observation skills. Seeing the minister's recent success, she naturally held Miss Black in even higher regard.

In contrast to Fudge's smugness, Crouch was almost driven to a state of rage.

"Crackling and popping!"

As the sound of a teacup shattering echoed through the office once again, Percy Weasley, the new secretary, frowned slightly.

Crouch's current predicament is actually beyond his control.

Dead knowledge from books couldn't help him come up with a solution.

This inexperienced young man could only return to his job, handling some mail while keeping an eye on what was happening in the office.

"How dare she!"

"He's just a kid!"

"Are those people crazy?"

Crouch paced restlessly on the carpet like a bull in a fight.

Suddenly, his gaze fell on a certain document...

If I can accomplish this, even if Voldemort were to be resurrected, I will not fall!

In the spacious office, Crouch flipped through the documents, his smile growing wider.

A short while later, Posi heard the sound of the door opening and looked up.

The previously anxious boss had tidied himself up, and the radiant look he usually sported in the newspapers was back on him.

"Alright... young people should learn to be more mature!"

Crouch couldn't recall Possy's name at first, so he could only vaguely cover it up.

"Yes, Director."

Percy's submissive attitude only intensified Crouch's excitement. Ever since the indictment was filed, he felt that everyone else in the Ministry of Magic was looking at him differently.

"Let's go, we should go see the minister!"

Crouch rushed toward the minister's office, and Posi quickly followed.

Inside the office, Ms. Burns and Fudge were briefly summarizing the results of their discussion about the Quidditch World Cup.

"I believe that I, as the Director of the International Transport Department, have the right to participate in the Quidditch World Cup!"

Crouch said firmly.

Fudge was initially annoyed by Crouch's uninvited arrival, but when Crouch proposed to participate in the Quidditch World Cup, his annoyance instantly turned into disappointment with those pure-blood families.

Why are there so few methods?

Why don't we get this bastard off the stage?

Even though Fudge was furious, the other party was still the director, so he could only patiently try to stop him:

“Crouch, after discussion within the ministry, given the indictment… we do not believe you can still fulfill the responsibilities of a Transport Director.”

"A lawsuit?" Crouch scoffed, then said arrogantly, "It's just a lawsuit. As long as I haven't resigned from my position as Director of the International Transport Department, I have the obligation to fulfill my responsibilities!"

Crouch's words were resounding and powerful.

"This one……"

Fudge tried to get help from Ms. Burns, but only saw her lower her head, clearly not wanting to get involved.

He couldn't help but curse the other party's cunning, but Crouch's aggressive approach clearly indicated that he intended to use the Quidditch World Cup as leverage to turn the tables.

Fudge couldn't do anything about it for the time being, so he had no choice but to agree to let them participate in the Quidditch World Cup.

Burns calmly sipped his tea until the argument between the two ended, at which point he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Although the Malfoy family has been putting pressure on Crouch to remove him from power, the Crouch family still has the strength to put up a fight.

This created a stalemate. The Crouch family had the lawsuit sealed and attempted to indefinitely postpone the trial of Barty Crouch, who also had connections within the department…

Thus, Crouch remained the Director of International Transport, and Burns was unable to prevent him from participating in the Quidditch World Cup.

Barty Crouch's first step in saving himself was a success.