In the second week after the Christmas holidays, the young wizards witnessed a scene in Hogsmeade Village that they had never seen before.

The originally petite and exquisite Hogsmeade Village seemed to have been quietly subjected to an Enlargement Charm. The number of shops and houses had multiplied several times, like Screaming Beans burrowing into the soil. In contrast, there were also unfamiliar foreign wizards wandering through the streets and alleys.

American wizards, Russian wizards, French wizards…

There were even a few wizards from Romania, Africa, and Japan…

Even Diagon Alley in London might not be this lively.

More importantly, judging from their conversations, this group of foreign wizards who suddenly appeared after Christmas would be staying here for a long time.

On the outskirts of Hogsmeade Village, distinct residential areas emerged. Unlike the ordinary wizarding families' doorplates, next to their respective surname plaques was a line of small print indicating their nationality, affiliated magical organization, department, and position.

After several rounds of negotiations, Cornelius Fudge unequivocally stated his bottom line.

Anyone intending to participate in the "division" of Hogwarts' academic dividends must pay the basic price recognized by everyone.

Among these, the number of resident wizards, the supply of materials, and the number of Muggle invitations were the "entry conditions" or the establishment criteria of the "Council Hall" that everyone would recognize. In the words of Albus Dumbledore (played by Grindelwald): as a magical place that would not be interfered with by any country and could keep secrets, Hogwarts, from this moment on, became a sanctuary jointly protected by magical civilization.

As for those magic officials who were unwilling to send Aurors or participate in the "inviting Muggles," they would naturally be quickly replaced.

Hogwarts offered the first irresistible gift: joint jurisdiction, distribution, pricing, and coinage rights of "magical Galleons."

Gringotts Wizarding Bank was reduced from its original model to a special privilege of single bookkeeping rights.

The goblins taking the initiative to hand over the coinage rights was the most unexpected thing.

That was something they regarded as their lifeblood, a racial obsession rooted deep in their souls, an important existence they would even give up their lives for.

Under this unexpected "Christmas gift," the Magical Congress of the United States of America did not hesitate to agree to draw a line between itself and the "Goblin Civil War." Compared to those greedy, cowardly, and cruel adherents, wizards undoubtedly had more faith in the power they held in their own hands.

Of course, that was if Gringotts Wizarding Bank truly kept its promise and completed the handover of the "coinage rights" to the wizards.

…

Gringotts Wizarding Bank.

The torches in the underground council hall were fully lit.

Griphook led a small number of clerks above to maintain banking operations.

Risk Investment Department, Funds Operation Department, International Business Department, Comprehensive Business Department, Legal Department, Auditing Department, Management Consulting Department… All the senior heads of Gringotts Wizarding Bank's core departments received a notification from Douglas early in the morning, putting aside their current work to attend a meeting in the council hall.

Before noon, the supreme Goblin Queen would return to her loyal Gringotts Wizarding Bank to issue an important resolution.

As the chief financial officer of Gringotts Wizarding Bank, Douglas arrived at the hall before the start of the meeting to ensure that nothing went wrong with today's meeting.

As time passed, senior heads of various departments arrived at the underground council hall one after another. Most of them were accompanied by their confidants, walking into the hall in groups of three or five, sitting in their respective positions with solemn expressions, and occasionally lowering their voices to have brief conversations with the goblins around them.

In the thousands of years of goblin civilization, any event that involved the use of the council hall was a major decision that affected the fate of the race.

If they remembered correctly, at least three times before now, they were all the starting points of "Goblin Total Wars."

However, soon, each senior head received a thick document.

They immediately saw the black title written on the cover of the document: "Abandoning Single Coinage Rights and Exclusive Monopoly of Global Bookkeeping Rights."

The agenda of today's meeting was clear at a glance. The Goblin Queen was preparing to completely change the bloodline of Gringotts Wizarding Bank and start a new era.

The senior head of the Funds Operation Department instinctively wanted to stand up and question, but another goblin sitting next to him immediately tapped the idiot's head with his cane, and pointed to the guards on both sides and the group of people on the right side of the front of the council hall.

Unlike the responsible persons who were discussing in the back, the reorganized Goblin Elders' Council, honorary advisors, and senior vice presidents were calm.

Obviously, at least in the top-level secret meetings, everyone had reached an agreement.

If anyone dared to make trouble at this time, the surrounding guards would swarm up and directly solve the problem person.

When each new era begins, ideological conflicts are inevitable. Those fools who try to force others to give in through violence will only be met with violence.

All they could do now was open the documents, read carefully, and prepare for the Gringotts "Supreme Council" question-and-answer session later.

Originally, these agenda items should have been consulted by rounds of the Elders' Council, and high-level managers would hold meetings. After multiple assessments, it would be judged whether to open the Council Hall. However, because the Goblin Queen was at the height of her power, the stubborn old men had almost been cleaned up last time, and because this change was of great importance, so many links were omitted, and directly entered the final step of the general meeting.

This was different from the relatively conventional financial decisions before. If it had not gone through a large-scale council process, it might have directly led to division.

In fact, even now, the atmosphere in the council hall was gradually becoming suffocating.

Ellie stood behind Douglas, sighing softly.

"The financial atmosphere of Gringotts is quite pure and beautiful..."

Douglas had just finished answering a goblin's question when the voice behind him startled him.

He subconsciously prepared to kneel to salute, but Ellie grabbed him - the goblins' too careful flattery would also make her uncomfortable.

"So... sorry..." The middle-aged goblin bowed apologetically, "I didn't notice you had arrived at the venue..."

"I just dispelled the illusion," Ellie waved her hand indifferently. "Looks like everyone is here?"

Douglas glanced at the sign-in roster in his hand, nodded seriously, with a bit of worry in his expression.

"Except for the 'traitors' who have lost contact, the senior risk specialists who cannot leave abroad, and the 'destined goblins' who maintain order and operation in various places, all the senior members, honorary advisors, and the Elders' Council of the core departments under Gringotts Wizarding Bank have arrived, but this situation..."

"Thank you for your hard work, Mr. Douglas, I know the efforts you have made these days—"

Although Ellie was not a "pure-blood goblin", almost all the elites in the financial field in the future were "human-shaped goblins" who played with people's hearts.

She still understood some management attempts of large companies. Although Douglas said it easily, she knew very well that gathering all the senior executives of a super-large financial enterprise, and also holding a special emergency meeting for them, was not a very easy thing to do and had the opportunity to repeat it many times - the fable of the boy who cried wolf was not just a warning for the non-magical world.

"I... I am ashamed, I have only done a little bit of work."

Hearing Ellie's praise, the expression on Douglas's face was a bit complicated and ashamed.

"Although I may have some specialties in persuading elders and communicating with various departments, my control of the overall situation and my perspective on grand plans are still too shallow to truly share the pressure on your shoulders. As the chief financial officer of Gringotts Wizarding Bank, I have not even proposed a feasible financial project plan so far... Your sensitivity to money is far better than mine by dozens of times..."

"It's just a temporary period of transition and confusion. After pushing open 'that door', you will have to follow up..."

Ellie frowned, looking around the gradually quiet council hall, thoughtfully.

She was very sure of the future financial situation and the pattern of the financial world in the next few decades, but all she could do was take the lead in opening that "capital world." As for how to seize survival in it, it was up to these goblins who had been immersed in finance for decades.

In the economic field, the first-mover advantage would last for a maximum of three to five years, after which it would be a free-for-all.

If the Gringotts goblins could not gain a firm foothold and absorb the latest market rules as soon as possible, then she would be cooking herself into a delicious meal.

"It seems that everyone should have finished reading the document in their hands—"

Ellie did not continue to chat, and walked quickly to the center of the hall under the gazes of the goblins with different expressions.

There was no bronze throne in the center of the semicircular underground council hall, only an ordinary-looking stone platform.

Different from other places in Gringotts Wizarding Bank, in the ancient traditions of the goblins, the underground council hall was not the place where the Goblin King issued orders, but only the Goblin King was qualified to stand in the center of the stone platform - she must accept the questions of everyone present, and on that stone platform that "cannot deceive herself", she must directly defeat all accusations against her, without the slightest evasion or ambiguity.

In the Goblin King's competition hundreds of years ago, this was the final test.

Of course, Ellie never thought this was a challenge from the beginning, after all, she was considered to have gotten on the bus first and then made up for the ticket.

More importantly, all capital behavior is a continuation of war and politics - as the "Demon King" of the new era, she now has the right to decide when the war begins, and when and how the war ends.

"Time is money, my friends—let's start directly."

"You should know what the agenda is, it is written clearly in the title, so..."

Ellie stood on the stone platform, looked around the goblins around her, and raised her eyebrows.

"Who is against it, who is in favor—"

————

————

Yay!