Let's turn back the clock a little and listen in on exactly what Hagrid had to say.
Naturally, he didn't have much new information—after all, the incident had only just happened. His investigation was straightforward, just as Dumbledore had suggested the previous night: he'd gone to ask a few old friends in the Forbidden Forest.
"…I tried talking to the centaurs first…" Hagrid began.
"Centaurs?!" Harry blurted out, eyes wide.
Everyone's attention snapped to that word. Centaurs! Real centaurs! Who would've thought such creatures actually lived in the Forbidden Forest?
Qin Yu, who knew a bit more than the others, chimed in, "I remember during the Quidditch match two winters ago, you mentioned some trouble among the centaurs. Did you go to the same group this time?"
"Yeah, yeah, the very same," Hagrid nodded eagerly.
"How'd it go?" Qin Yu pressed.
"Bah, same as always!" For once, the gentle giant sounded genuinely disgruntled. "Those bad-tempered blokes just said they hadn't seen anything and sent me packing."
"…Well, that's still something," Qin Yu said, not at all surprised. He nudged the conversation along. "Did you ask anyone else?"
"Aragog," Hagrid said.
Aragog—the infamous old Acromantula.
Not waiting for questions, Hagrid continued, "Now that the weather's warmer, he doesn't need us to bring food anymore. He sends his children out hunting. Two of them happened to pass near the area last night. They heard some awful racket and saw a shadowy figure. But, you know, spiders don't see too well—not much detail. They only caught a rough shape, but judging by some other signs, they suspect it's the same person who killed Aragog's children last winter."
"I see…" Qin Yu nodded thoughtfully.
It all fit together.
Piecing together what he knew, Qin Yu mapped out the whole affair in his mind:
[First, for reasons unknown, Quirrell desperately needed Acromantula venom, so he hunted down the spiders during the winter.
Then, the Weasley twins and Hagrid struck a "supplies for venom" deal with Aragog, accidentally cutting off Quirrell's source in the Forbidden Forest. But fate has a funny way—Quirrell found another supply in Diagon Alley, not realizing it was still sourced from Aragog through the new trade.
After Qin Yu noticed something fishy about the apothecary, he had the Weasley twins stop supplying venom altogether. Soon, Quirrell reacted—he started digging for the source.
Sensing trouble, Qin Yu set a trap: he laced some Acromantula venom with Devil's Snare extract, hoping to mislead Quirrell.
Last night, in some desperate state, Quirrell used that doctored venom in the Forbidden Forest, causing a massive commotion.
The result? Quirrell survived, but definitely suffered—debuffed, weakened, whatever you want to call it.]
That was the gist of it, as far as Qin Yu could tell.
Of course, there were still some wild guesses he couldn't confirm. For example: Why did Quirrell need venom in the first place? Maybe it was related to "wizard blood"—his symptoms were disturbingly zombie-like. And why would he risk drinking a suspicious bottle of venom? Either he didn't realize it was tampered with, or he knew but had no choice. Qin Yu leaned toward the latter—neither Quirrell nor Voldemort were fools.
In any case, after this fiasco, Quirrell was left weakened and would probably be more cautious. As for "little brats" like the Weasley twins and Qin Yu, well, they'd hardly register as threats to Quirrell or Voldemort. They weren't Harry Potter, after all.
…
For now, the crisis on their end was over—but Qin Yu knew better than to let his guard down completely.
These thoughts swirled in his mind as the conversation drifted to lighter topics.
"…I just hope this won't affect the Quidditch match," Harry said, still fretting over the points he'd lost and determined to make it up on the pitch.
But Hagrid couldn't offer much reassurance. "I hope so too, but it all depends on what Dumbledore decides about the situation."
Harry and Ron looked crestfallen.
Luckily, Hagrid added, "But I believe, as long as Dumbledore is here, nothing's ever truly a problem!"
It was clear the gentle giant had unshakable faith in the headmaster.
"Exactly. With Dumbledore around, there's nothing to worry about," Qin Yu agreed, completely straight-faced—never mind that he was the one who'd started this whole mess.
If you've got a powerful backer, you'd best hold on tight.
If the sky falls, Dumbledore will hold it up for you.
With great power comes great responsibility, after all. And Qin Yu was perfectly happy to let someone else shoulder it.
Hearing this, Harry and Ron perked up again. Dumbledore really was the pillar of Hogwarts—just thinking of him made everyone feel safe.
…
They ate and chatted, and before they knew it, most of the "rock cake porridge" was gone.
When all that was left was an empty pot, Hagrid looked deeply satisfied—nothing said "success" like an empty dish, even if he'd eaten half of it himself.
"That was delicious! Way better than my mum's veggie stew!" Ron declared, utterly sincere.
"Ha! Really? How does Mrs. Weasley make hers?" Hagrid grinned from ear to ear.
"Er, I'm not sure of the details. She just throws a bunch of chopped veggies into a pot with some flour, boils it all up, and that's what we get," Ron said, scratching his head.
Qin Yu couldn't help but recall a farming livestream he'd seen in his previous life—this was exactly how the streamer made pig slop. In summer, they even fed the pigs watermelon, much to the envy of viewers from neighboring countries.
Then, out of nowhere, Harry piped up, "Hang on—if Mrs. Weasley uses flour, and rock cakes are made from flour, and Hagrid grinds rock cakes back into flour… Why not just use flour from the start?"
It was a bit roundabout, but the logic was sound—why bother with the extra step?
Everyone understood his point immediately, and the lively hut fell silent.
Only the soft rustle of leaves in the Forbidden Forest drifted in through the window.
Harry and Ron looked awkward, Adam was deep in thought, Hermione fixed Qin Yu with a pleading stare, and Qin Yu just rubbed his nose, resigned.
He could read the message in Hermione's eyes: "Say something—quick!" Hagrid looked lost, as if his brain had just crashed.
Time for Qin Yu to step in.
He cleared his throat and spoke with gentle conviction, "You know, ingredients treated differently yield completely different flavors. It's like tomatoes—sometimes you use them fresh, sometimes as tomato sauce, and each makes a totally different dish. It's the same with flour and rock cake powder—using one or the other gives you two unique foods. Different experiences give things different meanings. That's the true magic of cooking!"
The group looked as if a light had dawned—rescued from their awkward silence.
Especially Hagrid, who broke into a relieved grin.
Harry and Ron shot Qin Yu grateful looks, Adam's eyes lit up as he finally got it, and Hermione just smiled, as if to say, "I knew you'd handle it."
Qin Yu thought to himself, Thank you, A Bite of China and all those cooking shows—those hours weren't wasted after all.
And so, thanks to Qin Yu's timely save, the mood lightened once more. Laughter returned, dishes were cleared, and everyone took another turn at the stone mill just for fun. The hut, inside and out, was filled with warmth and cheer.
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