When Professor McGonagall arrived, Snape was talking to Professor Quirrell, who was wearing a turban.
Despite his greasy hair and sallow complexion, Snape was still very unhappy about talking to the stuttering Quirrell.
Professor McGonagall's arrival saved him: "Alright, Professor Quirrell, let's leave our conversation here for now. I need to think about what Dumbledore wanted to see me about."
Because a student was involved, Professor McGonagall didn't explain it clearly to Quirrell, which conveniently gave Snape an excuse.
Once all the food on the table had disappeared, Dumbledore stood up and said, "Now that everyone has eaten and drunk their fill, I have a few points to make."
Ethan Jones perked up slightly and listened to what this self-proclaimed greatest wizard was saying.
"Attention first-year students: Students are strictly prohibited from entering the wooded areas on campus."
"Furthermore, Mr. Filch, the caretaker, also asked me to remind everyone not to cast spells in the corridor during breaks."
"Quidditch players'..."
Dumbledore paused, then said solemnly, "Finally, I must tell you all that anyone who does not wish to suffer an accident or die a painful death should not enter the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side."
Ethan Jones knew the reason for Dumbledore's warning, and he was also curious about what the magical creatures in the Forbidden Forest looked like, and what kind of magical thing the legendary Sorcerer's Stone was, wanting to see it for himself.
However, because of the mystery surrounding his origins, he had lost all interest and just wanted to finish as soon as possible so he can go back to his dorm and have some peace and quiet.
"Now, let's sing the school song together!" Dumbledore shouted happily.
A long golden ribbon floated out from Dumbledore's wand, winding out lines of text, which the first-year students sang along with, led by the school's teachers and older students.
Ethan Jones's mouth kept opening and closing, but not a sound came out.
After this part was over, they were led by Prefect Marcus Flint through the dungeons and came to the back of a hidden entrance.
"Glory!"
"This is our password, you must remember it."
They passed through a stone door in the damp stone wall and entered a long, narrow, and low basement.
The walls and ceiling were made of rough stone, and round, green-glowing lamps were chained and hung from the ceiling.
Beneath an exquisitely carved fireplace, a fire burned, and beside it sat several carved chairs.
The window of the common room overlooked the Hogwarts Lake, and a huge aquatic creature just swam past the window, eliciting gasps of amazement from the new students.
It was getting late. Although Marcus still wanted to show off his authority as a Prefect, seeing the freshmen yawning, he had no choice but to put aside his own thoughts and lead the male freshmen toward their dormitory area.
Looking at the room with the nameplate, Ethan Jones went in and saw his luggage piled on a bed.
His roommates were Draco, Gregory Goyle, and Vincent Crabbe, the Slytherin trio.
While the three were still packing their luggage, Ethan Jones simply carried his suitcase down, and without even changing his clothes, lay down on the four-poster bed with its silver-green striped flannel hangings.
He opened his eyes and stared at the silver-green striped velvet fabric on the ceiling.
He carefully recalled his father and mother's appearances, and then, combined with his own appearance, he began to confirm in his mind that he was most likely not his parents' biological son.
"It was my carelessness. Although it's possible for blue-eyed and green-eyed parents to have a child with black eyes, the chances are obviously slim according to the laws of heredity. And the fact that my parents never suspected it means they must have known, but they just kept it from me."
He never expected that the first time he would apply Mendel's laws of inheritance, knowledge he had learned in his previous life, outside of academic papers, would be to his own life.
"If a DNA test could be done, it would be even more convincing."
He had basically accepted this conclusion in his heart, but he was confused.
In his previous life, he was an orphan. He thought he would have a happy family in this life, but he never expected that he was likely adopted. In terms of status, he was still an abandoned orphan.
Compared to his happy life, he found it hard to accept this fact.
He accepted being abandoned in his previous life, but he couldn't swallow the insult of being abandoned again in this life.
He wanted to find the person who abandoned him and confront them, asking why.
Ethan Jones hurriedly opened his suitcase, changed into his pajamas, washed up, and lay down on the bed.
He couldn't accept this fact for a while, which kept him tossing and turning, unable to fall asleep, and he could only endure the bombardment of Crabbe and Goyle's snoring.
After the banquet, Snape and McGonagall went to Dumbledore's office.
Professor McGonagall recounted in detail her process of bringing Ethan Jones into the fold and raised her own questions.
"You mean a Muggle-born wizard has entered our Slytherin? Professor McGonagall, you should know that's impossible." Snape was the first to object.
"Severus, calm down. What Minerva means is that there's a high probability this child isn't Muggle-born. You know, in those years, many parents of young wizards lost their lives because of that person. Maybe he was one of them?"
Dumbledore gave Snape a meaningful look.
"That's exactly what I mean, but how can we find out the truth? Professor, do you have any good ideas?" McGonagall couldn't think of any good ideas, so she could only turn to this old man who had lived for over a hundred years.
Dumbledore stroked his beard: "I think Nicolas must have some magical alchemical items that can help us do this. I'll write to him tomorrow."
Snape said, "That's none of my business, so I'll take my leave."
"Wait a minute, Severus. You need to keep a close eye on the two children. Besides Ethan Jones, which Minerva mentioned, you should know who the other one is."
"I know." Snape gave him a deep look, then, like a large bat, wrapped himself in a black robe and left.
"You've worked so hard, Minerva, not only presiding over the Sorting Ceremony but also worrying about the children. Would you like some Cockroach Clusters?" Dumbledore grabbed a few candies that looked like cockroaches, opened his palm, and placed them in front of McGonagall.
"No need, I should be going too." Professor McGonagall glanced at the candy, which was still crawling around, and with a serious expression, she strode away from the Headmaster's office.
Dumbledore was left alone, stuffing several Cockroach Clusters into his mouth and muttering, "What a person who doesn't know how to enjoy life."