Harry Potter and the Candy Factory

Slowly putting down the letter in his hand, Charlie shifted his gaze back to the two seemingly plain pillows. For a moment, his mood became inexplicably complex, unsure of where to even begin complaining... …

You have to know, unicorn hair is not some ordinary trinket. Google it. It's the most famous magical material in the entire magical world... Even if it's not the highest quality tail hair, just a simple tuft, you could easily sell it for a few Galleons in Knockturn Alley!

And Hagrid, using unicorn hair as the core, filled two pillows to the brim. Don't even mention Charlie; even if Lucius Malfoy saw this, he would exclaim, "Amazing!"

Thinking of this, Charlie couldn't help but shake his head, a hint of helpless smile on his face.

After pondering for a long time, he first carefully put away Hagrid's letter, placing it in the drawer where he always kept his letters.

Then, he picked up a cushion from his desk and placed it behind his office chair, positioning it perfectly against his lower back.

After adjusting it, he tentatively leaned back—and sure enough! The next second, an invisible force instantly supported his lumbar vertebrae, gentle yet firm, calm yet with undulations... …

“Huff…” Charlie closed his eyes and took a deep breath, without anything to say. He only felt an unparalleled sense of comfort, making his years of strained back feel as relaxed as in his youth.

After enjoying this wonderful feeling for a while, he slowly opened his eyes and looked at the remaining pillow.

With a crisp “snap!” of his fingers, Russell was instantly summoned to his side.

“I heard that Grandpa Dulu accidentally injured his muscles and bones during strenuous exercise yesterday?”

As Russell stood still, looking at him, before he could say anything, Charlie took the initiative to ask.

Russell was first stunned. Soon, he recalled what had happened yesterday in his mind.

For a moment, the corner of his mouth twitched. After hesitating for a moment, he had no choice but to reply with a complicated tone:

“If you're talking about strenuous exercise, Grandpa Dulu's exercise yesterday was indeed quite strenuous…”

Charlie nodded upon hearing this, as if he hadn't heard the implied meaning in Russell's words, and casually said,

“That's true, at such an old age, he still doesn't pay attention to recuperation… Go, Russell, help me deliver this to Grandpa Dulu.”

“Yes, Master.”

Russell honestly took the pillow from Charlie's hand. Although he clearly felt the specialness of the object in his arms at this moment, he didn't say anything.

He simply assumed that Master Charlie had specially taken the trouble to find a precious item for Grandpa Dulu. Moved, he turned his head to deliver it.

Just as he was about to flash away, Charlie suddenly seemed to have thought of something and called Russell to stop.

“Hey, wait…”

Russell's ears twitched twice. His foot, which had just taken a step forward, hadn't landed yet. He asked with a puzzled expression.

“Is there anything else you need me to do, Master Charlie?”

“How is Peng Peng doing? He should have started working in the workshop today, right?”

Hearing Charlie's question, Russell paused for a moment, thought for a while, and then replied,

“Yes, that's right… I saw Kobe pulling him to the workshop this morning.”

“Although the expression on his face still showed unwillingness, he still went in in the end, so there shouldn't be any problems.”

“I see… It's good if there are no problems.” Charlie stroked the armrest of his office chair, raised his head as if thinking about something. He just muttered to himself and didn't say anything else.

“Master… Actually, there's something I don't understand.”

Russell hesitated and gently put the pillow in his hand back on the desk. Then, while speaking, he took out the small notebook he often carried with him from behind.

After flipping through it skillfully a few times, he found the place where the latest information was recorded, and then couldn't help but ask,

“Is it really appropriate to send Peng Peng to work in the workshop where those Muggles are?

I think you also know… Peng Peng, because he has suffered so much abuse before, is probably the house-elf who is most resistant to humans among us. I'm afraid… ”

Speaking of this, Russell paused, not continuing to speak, but raised his head, his eyes filled with a hint of worry as he looked at Charlie, who was particularly leisurely in his office chair… The meaning was self-evident.

“You're worried that something will go wrong. For example, Peng Peng will clash with the Muggles, and it will eventually escalate into a vicious incident, something like that?”

Charlie's smile was kind, no different from usual. He casually saw through Russell's thoughts, and then cast his gaze over.

Seeing that Russell didn't refute, but nodded, acknowledging it,

“I have no doubt that he would do such a thing… ”

Charlie didn't directly answer him, but stood up and stretched lazily.

Listening to the familiar “crack, crack” sound of his bones, he then put down his arms with satisfaction and said unhurriedly,

“It's precisely because he hates humans that I will put him in the Muggle factory… ”

Charlie patted Russell on the shoulder, his tone carrying a hint of inexplicable melancholy.

“You have to know, the factory cannot forever divide Muggles and house-elves into two different areas and isolate them… This was decided from the very beginning when we agreed to recruit Muggles to work here.”

“Therefore, we have many things to overcome. Not only the attitudes of Muggles towards house-elves, but also the thoughts of some house-elves towards humans!”

Russell raised his head, looking at the familiar face blurred by the glow of the sunset, and nodded thoughtfully.

“The house-elves should remember that their enemies are only those aristocratic wizards who enslaved their souls, not ordinary lower-level wizards, let alone the Muggles in the same factory. The goal of the house-elves is to strive to gain a certain social status, not to be enemies with all of humanity, do you understand?”

“Understood.” Russell nodded seriously, while his hands kept moving, beginning to quickly record what Charlie was saying now as a golden rule, intending to find an opportunity to spread it out in the future.

“Only by clearly defining the goals, who the enemies and friends are, will our previous efforts be worthwhile… ”

After saying these words, Charlie sat back in his chair and then, looking at Russell who was writing non-stop with a “swish, swish, swish” sound, said word by word,

“To be honest, if this time, Peng Peng can really learn something from the Muggle factory, then my original intention will be achieved. At that time, I will let him return to the technical department and be his supervisor again.”

“Of course… if not, then the result is also predictable.”

Russell's pen, which was writing quickly, came to an abrupt stop. He raised his head in disbelief, his round eyes widened, and looked at Charlie.

It wasn't until he saw the seriousness in his eyes that Russell confirmed that his master wasn't joking this time.

“I understand, Master Charlie.”

… … … … … … … … … … … … …

As evening approached, and the sun began to set, the factory's closing bell rang, signaling the end of the workday, and the conveyor belts that had been running continuously came to a halt.

One by one, the Muggles, who had been working hard all day, put down their candy, stretched their backs, and walked away from their workstations, chatting casually and laughing softly, heading towards the factory's main exit.

“Hey! Vernon, let’s go for a drink!”

Across the assembly line, Andrew unbuttoned his cuffs and called out to Dursley.

“Coming!”

Vernon turned around and waved to his companion as usual. He was about to leave when he suddenly remembered something.

He turned his head and couldn't help but glance at the little elf beside him. After hesitating for two seconds, Dursley tentatively called out the elf's name.

“Um… Pongo?”

“What?”

Pongo was still the same as ever. Although he didn't react as strongly as he had at first, he still responded gruffly after glancing at the extraordinarily fat human.

Dursley didn't mind Pongo's tone. After all, he was approaching the elf with a purpose and could tolerate his attitude.

With a smile still on his face and his eyes narrowed to slits, he continued to ask,

“Do you have any plans for tonight?”

Hearing this, Pongo didn't pay much attention. He hopped off the thing he was using as a cushion. After looking Dursley up and down, he casually said,

“None of your business.”

With that, he clapped his hands and swaggered into the bustling crowd, heading towards the exit.

As the short, skinny figure disappeared into the crowd, Dursley took a deep breath and said nothing more.

He couldn't help but think that this plan wasn't going to be easy…

Just as he was sighing to himself, Andrew, who had been calling out to him from across the assembly line, had already reached his side.

“What are you doing?!”

Andrew raised his eyebrows, first looking at Dursley, then following his gaze to Pongo's disappearing back, and then scratching his head in confusion, asking,

“Isn't that the little elf named… Ding-Ding or Pongo or something? What do you want with him?”

“Hmph…”

Dursley returned to reality from his thoughts. Hearing Andrew's question, he first let out a muffled grunt.

His thick fingers habitually rubbed the dense mustache below his nose, and then he replied inscrutably,

“…If I remember correctly, you don't have any children, do you?”

Although he didn't understand why Dursley would suddenly ask this question, Andrew was stunned for a moment before honestly nodding and replying,

“No… we're not planning on having children so early.”

“In that case, there's nothing to say!”

Hearing Andrew's answer, Dursley proudly raised his fleshy chin, adjusted his collar, and swaggered towards the exit, imitating Pongo's earlier manner.

“There's no point in talking to someone like you who doesn't have children! I'll wait until I get to the pub and talk to Old Jordan!”

Unsurprisingly, Andrew was a little frustrated and had to quicken his pace to catch up with Dursley, muttering incessantly.

“What's going on? Are people without children being discriminated against now?!…

“It's not my fault! It's Julie who insists on joining that Ministry of Magic as a civil servant, otherwise she doesn't want children… but she's been taking the exam for almost five years and still hasn't gotten in!”

“What can I do? I'm also very desperate…”

… … …

… … …

… … … … … … … … … … … … …

The Leaky Cauldron was still as smoky and noisy as it had been for centuries.

But after several months of working in the candy factory, these Muggles had long adapted to these characteristics that distinguished it from ordinary society, and their openness was even greater than that of some wizards.

“Old Tom! Two more drinks for this table!!”

Andrew, his face flushed with alcohol, waved his arms to signal to the gaunt and thin Tom behind the bar.

Jordan, as always, wore his hood, the purpose of which was unknown, and chatted with Dursley, slurring his words.

“I heard… Andrew say that a… house… elf came to your workstation today?”

Although he was drinking, Jordan was still clear-headed where he needed to be, and along with the factory workers, he referred to them as elves, dropping the word “house.”

“Yes!” Dursley took a swig of his drink, nodded sharply, and then pouted rather aggrievedly, as if he had suffered a great injustice.

“A damn racist! He looks down on us…”

Dursley's words stunned Jordan, who held his glass suspended in mid-air, unsure whether to drink or put it down.

After a long while, he couldn't help but exclaim,

“An elf who discriminates against humans is indeed rare… but it's not impossible in Charlie Black's Candy Factory.”

“But I still plan to maintain a good relationship with him.”

Ignoring the meaning in Jordan's words, Dursley indulged in his own world, continuing to narrate his plan.

“Because I can only rely on him… He's related to Mr. Black… If I want to turn my son back to normal, it seems I can only go down this path.”

Jordan took a sip of his drink and pondered Dursley's words. After a while, he nodded and raised his glass, clinking it heavily against Dursley's glass.

The wine splashed, landing on the linen robes, turning into drops of wine stains, and falling on the floor, creating some foam. But no one would pay attention to them.

“Good luck, my friend. Although I've heard that Charlie Black is a strange fellow… but I think, no matter how strange a person is, he will be moved by your fatherly love! What's your son's name again?”

“Dab… Dudley Dursley.”

“Okay! Let's raise a glass to Dudley Dursley! May he not be mistaken for a roast pig on Christmas, hahaha…”