Sword and Magic and Taxi

The items in the shops on both sides of Diagon Alley are dazzling, and there is a wooden sign next to each product with the price. The group of people walked over slowly and looked around to get an idea of ​​the prices here. The self-stirring crucible costs about 20 gold, and a gorgeous wizard robe that can change colors costs 25 gold.

These are already somewhat of a concept of high-end items or luxury items, while ordinary items are still relatively cheap. A pair of protective dragon skin gloves with five gold coins was much cheaper than Zhao Mai thought, but he seriously doubted whether the material used in it was real dragon skin. The owl that gives you credit is four gold coins. They have been specially cultivated and trained to be extremely sensitive to human breath. When Zhao Mai passed by, the owls all stared at him with their eyes wide open, as if they were on guard.

Zhao Mai felt that if he transformed into a strange ghost here, he would have to scare these birds to death.

Although the owner of the Leaky Cauldron said that only Gringotts could exchange gold coins, Zhao Mai still wanted to give it a try. He was greeted when he entered the store, but that welcome ended when he heard he had something to sell. We don't accept old things here, go find the gnomes!

It seemed that Gringotts Wizarding Bank was the only option. And this building is indeed unmissable. The white marble house is much higher than the surrounding shops. Next to the bronze door and dark red carpet, a gnome stands to welcome guests.

Goblins are magical creatures that seem to be seen in any fantasy world - except for Atas, only the Witch King can completely kill the goblins. The goblins here have dark faces, clever little brown eyes, pointed beards, and slender fingers and toes. They are very adaptable and can even adapt to kindness, which is contrary to their nature.

But it would be absolutely chilling to hear what's going on in these goblins' heads. They secretly believe that all wizards work for them and are their slaves. As long as they hold on to the three magic wands of savings, fees, and interest rates, they can control the entire wizarding world. Valuation of wizards and wizarding families is their favorite pastime, and making (scamming) super profits from contracts is as popular with the goblins as grand holiday celebrations. Fortunately, they haven't learned the colorful financial methods of the Muggle world, otherwise...

By the way, it is only 1918, many economic methods have not yet been invented, and many famous companies have not yet been established. Zhao Mai thought for a while and decided to forget it. I don't really need ordinary banknotes, I just need destiny gold coins. This time I go to Gringotts to make sure if there are destiny gold coins here.

As soon as they stepped onto the first step, a goblin rolled down in front of them. He was wearing lead-gray metal armor and made a crackling sound as he rolled on the ground.

Stop lying to people with your stuff! Two strong goblins who were obviously security guards snorted: We still have to serve outstanding big shots here!

My twin wands will become popular in the wizarding world! Any wizard can see the benefits, but you stupid goblins can't. I'm really ashamed of you! The goblin got up from the ground. He looked around and saw that Zhao Mai happened to be beside him, so he had an idea and came over. Master Wizard, are you troubled by the Expelliarmus spell? Do you want to avoid being harmed by this spell forever? I created a method that perfectly solves this problem!

Zhao Mai was about to move to the side, but the goblin stood first and blocked him: I won't delay you long, just half a minute. I am Levi Ross (from Book Club), the wizard's loyal friend and guard, You can think of me as a Paladin! He raised his eyebrows, picked up two sticks from the ground, and strung the ends of the sticks with chains. See my dual wand system!

Nunchucks? Zhao Mai was stunned for a moment. It would be strange if he didn't recognize this kind of thing again. When he was a child, he loved this kind of cool and handsome weapon. He made his own weapons with ropes and wooden sticks, and invited the children to play with them, vying to become a hero. However, because the quality was not up to par, they often hurt people or broke other people's windows when thrown out, and they were often punished for this.

No, a two-wand system. At any time, there is always one wand hanging down, so when someone chants the Expelliarmus spell, when one wand flies out, just use the bottom one, and it will still stay good. Combat power! Goblin Leviros stretched out all four fingers of one hand: You only need 4 gold coins to modify it! It's absolutely affordable!

Try it for me. Zhao Mai remembered his childhood, so he took the double wand system, weighed it in his hand, tried the length of the chain, and it worked. Split, sweep, hit, pump, lift, and pull, switching hands in front of and behind the body, and finally after two turns, he threw one of the sticks under his arm and clamped it.

Goblin Levi's eyes have never been so wide! Zhao Mai put the nunchaku in his hand, and the goblin took it blankly, seeming to be still immersed in the electric flash of realization just now. Zhao Mai was finally able to get around the goblin.

When the group of them entered the gate, the goblins on both sides bowed to them, as did the second gate. Just like Zhao Mai's car, the inside of Gringotts is much larger than the outside. In the marble-paved hall, more than a hundred people were sitting quietly on the high stools behind the counter, nervously dealing with the mountains of food in front of them. Account books, documents and transaction slips. About ten goblins were pushing carts back and forth behind the counter, constantly transporting various documents and account books back and forth.

There were only two wizards in the hall, talking to the goblins at two windows. Zhao Mai found a window that was not occupied - it was too simple - and said to the goblin: Good morning, I need to change things into money.

We are not a store, we don't buy anything! The goblin said directly without raising his head.

“You can’t do it, can’t do it, or don’t want to do it?”

The goblin finally raised his eyes and looked at Zhao Mai with a frown. He rarely saw oriental faces, especially such pure oriental faces. He made a ferocious expression, but Zhao Mai remained calm. Finally the goblin had no choice but to say: Go to the end and find our vice chairman.

The vice chairman of the Goblin Bank is an old goblin with white fur behind his pointed ears. He has a pair of small glasses on his big nose and is tied to his ears with a chain. You want to exchange things for money? We don't do business here.

All the stores outside say that only Gringotts can convert things into money. What's going on?

The wizard's shop only serves wizards. You two don't even have wands, so naturally they won't accept your things, because no one can guarantee that there is no Muggle stupidity in them. The goblin sat on a high stool and said condescendingly: You can go to the wand shop to buy a wand, and then pass the wand carrying test or the universal wizard level test. Once you understand the difference between wizards and Muggles, wizards will serve you.

But... Tolkien said: If we don't have wizard's gold coins, we can't buy wands. Isn't this back to square one?

You don't even have money for a wand? the goblin chuckled: Then there is only one way left: a mortgage. You may become a wizard, or you may not. Before you become a wizard, Gringotts borrows money To give you money, of course we also need your collateral. If the money is not paid, the bank will confiscate the collateral.

What can be used as collateral? Zhao Mai said: Are gold and gems acceptable?

This is okay. The goblin scratched his white fur with his sharp claws: Let me see what there is!

Zhao Mai took out some gold and gems. The goblin put on his glasses, then took out a magnifying glass to examine carefully, weighed a few pieces on the scale, and quoted a price that was too low. This is Muggle gold, and the mortgage rate is calculated as 20% (a mortgage of 100 yuan is 20 yuan).

Twenty percent? What's the interest rate on the mortgage?

The annual interest rate is 35%. The goblin smiled and looked very happy.

Is there any difference between Muggle gold and wizard gold? Tolkien asked with a frown.

Of course there is a difference, one is Muggle and the other is wizard. The goblin opened his eyes and told lies. He made sure that these two people came to the wizarding world for the first time, otherwise they would not exchange wizard money specifically. According to the regulations of the Ministry of Magic, Muggle products cannot be allowed to destroy the wizarding market, so the 20% discount is already the biggest discount.

What if I can prove that the thing belongs to a wizard? What is the mortgage rate? Zhao Mai asked.

You can get up to 30% off, as long as you can prove that this golden gem belongs to a wizard, and there is no possibility that it is a Muggle. The goblin chuckled. Gold is gold. It has no Muggle or wizard attributes. How can it prove its origin?

No, I pledged something else, it must be a magic item. Zhao Mai already understood the trick. The goblins used the regulations of the Ministry of Magic to deliberately set up such a threshold to embarrass those who first arrived in the wizarding world. Low valuations, heavy discounts, and high interest rates turn a mortgage into a strong buy! This is a city gate tax collected on a per capita basis.

Zhao Mai naturally has a way to deal with it. With a casual draw, he created a White Walker ice sword, but it looked as if it had been taken out from under his robes. The cold air made all the nearby goblins sneeze, and some security goblins had already gathered around nervously.

This is an ice crystal long sword, which has a strong destructive effect on metal objects. Zhao Mai swung the long sword and slashed towards the iron fence of the counter. There was only a crackling sound, and the iron railings turned into broken ice and fell to the ground.

The ice crystal sword has a restraining effect on different metals. Even a heavy steel door will be turned into ice and broken. With a bang, Zhao Mai inserted the ice crystal sword on the goblin table, and then Said: You estimate the price!

Strong and extreme ice power began to penetrate along the incision, and the wooden table froze, dehydrated, turned black, and began to shatter. The goblin stretched out its slender fingers, eager to touch the ice crystal sword, but they couldn't bear the cold.

The vice chairman thought for a moment and solemnly took out a pair of blue-gray dragon leather gloves from the drawer under the counter. After putting them on, he finally picked up the ice crystal sword, but his teeth were still chattering. He waved the weapon and struck it hard on the high stool next to him: crashing, ice shattered all over the ground. He slashed his sword at the passing metal cart again: crash, there was another piece of ice, and even some gold coins were chopped into pieces.

This... The goblin tried his best to hide his surprised expression, coughed, and then said: How many such weapons do you have?

Tell me the unit price. Zhao Mai said to the goblin: You have already seen the things. You should make an offer instead of asking again.

By taking the form of mortgage, you can... The goblin rolled his eyes: Fifteen gold coins!

I will give you two swords at a unit price of twenty gold coins. Or I will give you all the swords at a unit price of thirty gold coins, allowing you to obtain a product monopoly. Zhao Mai said: Otherwise, I will find a private collector. Although it is more troublesome, I If you don’t believe it, you can’t exchange it for some gold coins. This is a real magic item, so it’s not illegal to trade it anywhere.”

Thirty? The goblin looked to both sides. Many goblins sitting behind the counter nodded secretly, thinking that this business can be done, but they must also pursue maximizing profits. Twenty-two, all swords!

You want to control the quantity and shoot them one by one, right? If I have time, I can do this slowly. Zhao Mai smiled and said to the goblin: Twenty-eight.

We will pay immediately, and the contract will be strict and honest. Twenty-three!

I heard that many places that store high-value items use metal gates. Gringotts too, right? Many people will definitely like this sword. Twenty-seven!

In the end, the long sword was sold for the unit price of twenty-four gold sailing ships and eleven silver sickles. Zhao Mai asked the goblins to sign a contract. After careful inspection, he modified several things that might be disadvantageous to him, and the two parties signed the contract.

Then, under the excited eyes of the goblin, he took out a total of fourteen ice crystal swords, together with the previous one. Put it away, don't put it in a place that is too hot. Zhao Mai rubbed his hands: Give me the money!

369 gold coins and 12 silver coins (in the wizarding world, 1 gold is equal to 17 silver and 493 copper), and there is actually a destiny gold coin among them! Zhao Mai remained calm, but already regarded Gringotts as a key target in his heart. It is said that countless wealth is stored here in the form of gold coins, which will definitely solve a large part of Zhao Mai's need for destiny gold coins!

He and Tolkien each opened half of the money and deposited it in separate accounts, leaving only one hundred each with them. Gringotts felt that the money was still in his vault after being transferred around, and as long as Zhao Mai could not pay back the interest of 129 after one year, or could not repay all the principal and interest after three years, these fifteen magical magic swords would be Gringotts. It’s in the pavilion!

Zhao Mai didn't even think about paying back the money! He planned to just let the goblins be happy! Once the ice crystal sword left his hand, it would start to melt after being stored for at most half a year. Even if it is placed in a cold place, it will turn into ordinary ice within a year. Zhao Mai left a way out in the contract, handed over the custody responsibility to the goblins, and got out of it.

It's time to go shopping. Tolkien opened the admission notice, and the first item on it was the wand.