"Jero, you only need to do your best!" Victor Emmanuel II said to Jero Bonaparte, "If Franz Joseph really doesn’t want to abandon the investigation, then we are also willing to cooperate with their actions as much as possible.
At that ti, we would ask the French Empire to stand from a fair perspective and investigate together with the Austrian Empire!"
"Hmm!" Jero Bonaparte nodded and solemnly responded to Victor Emmanuel II, "If it really cos to that point, I will definitely ensure a fair and just investigation for the Kingdom of Sardinia!"
Afterwards, Jero Bonaparte took Augusta’s hand and, after the elegant music stopped, they walked into the dance floor.
When everyone in the dance floor saw the arrival of Jero Bonaparte and Augusta, they all made way for them.
As the music resud, Jero Bonaparte and Augusta danced gracefully to the music, and the surrounding crowd also began to gradually disperse and dance.
After the dance ended, Jero Bonaparte and Augusta left amidst the enthusiastic applause of the surrounding crowd. Victor Emmanuel II gave a thumbs up to Jero Bonaparte after he returned to his seat and praised, "Great dancing!"
Jero Bonaparte smiled modestly and replied, "Thank you!"
In the following period, ladies and gentlen continuously invited Jero Bonaparte and Augusta to dance.
However, all these invitations were declined by Jero Bonaparte and Augusta.
After being refused several tis, the remaining participants almost stopped inviting them to dance.
anwhile, Victor Emmanuel II welcod all cors, and throughout the ball, he danced with dozens of ladies.
So much so that Empress Augusta quietly whispered in Jero Bonaparte’s ear, complaining that Victor Emmanuel II was truly an indiscriminate monarch.
The ball at the Turin Royal Palace lasted until 11 PM before it finally ended.
Despite Victor Emmanuel II’s enthusiastic invitation for Jero Bonaparte and Empress Augusta to stay a night at the Turin Royal Palace, the two still did not agree.
Victor Emmanuel II had no choice but to let Jero Bonaparte and Augusta leave. Under Victor Emmanuel II’s farewell, Jero Bonaparte and Augusta took a carriage and left the Turin Royal Palace under the dark night sky.
When Jero Bonaparte returned to the hotel, Empress Augusta softly asked Jero Bonaparte, "Jero, what do you plan to do?"
"What do you an?" Jero Bonaparte tilted his head and asked in confusion.
"I an how to handle the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Empress Augusta explained to Jero Bonaparte.
"Oh, you an that!" Jero Bonaparte imdiately reacted, shrugged his shoulders, and said, "What else can we do! Of course, convince Franz Joseph to end it as soon as possible!
It’s been almost four months since Orsini was assassinated, it’s ti to end!
Moreover, we have already obtained what we wanted!"
"Oh!" Empress Augusta responded faintly.
"What’s wrong? Are you not satisfied with this result?" Jero Bonaparte asked Empress Augusta.
"Hmm!" Augusta nodded and replied to Jero Bonaparte, "I don’t know why, but I always feel that the Kingdom of Sardinia will still cooperate with those guys (referring to nationalists)!"
"You don’t need to guess!" Jero Bonaparte said leisurely with his hands behind his head, "The Kingdom of Sardinia certainly will still cooperate with them, only this ti their cooperation might be conducted secretly!"
"Then why would you abandon the investigation!" Empress Augusta asked Jero Bonaparte in bewildernt.
"Because Victor Emmanuel II gave up Savoy and Nice!" Jero Bonaparte answered Empress Augusta flatly, "If Victor Emmanuel II hadn’t given up Savoy and Nice, then I would certainly choose to pursue it to the end until the extre forces are completely eradicated.
However, now I can’t do that!"
"Are Savoy and Nice really that important to you?" Empress Augusta asked.
"Savoy and Nice are not important to !" Jero Bonaparte shrugged and replied to Augusta, "These two regions rely allow France to maintain geographical advantage, preventing a sudden attack from Apennine Peninsula states, yet a fragnted Apennine Peninsula state cannot pose the slightest harm to France.
But for the entire France, these two regions are relatively important. I can say without hesitation that even if we expand more territories on the African Continent, it’s not as winning the French people’s hearts as expanding in Savoy and Nice, in the Luxembourg region.
In the hearts of these people, only expansion in Europe is comndable."
"But won’t this provoke the Kingdom of Britain’s suspicion?" Empress Augusta asked worriedly.
"Augusta, everything has two sides! France’s expansion is bound to co with other nations’ suspicion!" Jero Bonaparte sighed in response to Augusta. From the very beginning, his reluctance to annex Savoy and Nice was not only because he was unwilling to help the Sardinians seize the opportunity but also because he did not want to provoke the Kingdom of Britain’s suspicion.
However, as the conditions from the Sardinian Kingdom changed from helping unification to maintaining Sardinia from being completely annexed, Jero Bonaparte, after weighing the pros and cons, had no choice but to reluctantly take Savoy and Nice.
After all, no matter how hostile the Kingdom of Britain might be, they wouldn’t consider using their army to invade France. At most, relations between the two countries would slightly deteriorate, while Savoy and Nice would beco tangible gains for Jero Bonaparte.
Moreover, the possibility of repairing relations between the Kingdom of Britain and the French Empire is not out of the question,
as international relations are never set in stone.
Perhaps, if Alexander II intensifies his moves in the Central Asia region one day, the relations between Britain and France can be nded once again.
Thinking of this, Jero Bonaparte suddenly recalled that Duke Golitsyn had not yet replied whether he would spare the family of Alexander II.
So, Jero Bonaparte asked Empress Augusta, "Before you ca, did you receive any news from the Russian Empire?"
"Which Russian Empire?" Empress Augusta asked in return.
"There are two Russian Empires!" Jero Bonaparte said to Empress Augusta.
Augusta shook her head to Jero Bonaparte, saying, "No!"
"It seems Duke Golitsyn is unwilling to let go of Alexander II’s family for the ti being!" Jero Bonaparte sighed.
"Well..." Empress Augusta furrowed her brow and worriedly said, "Do you think Golitsyn might order their assassination before his defeat?"
Empress Augusta’s words made Jero Bonaparte think of Soviet Russia decades later, when the then-unstable Soviet regi secretly killed the entire family of Nicholas II.
"It shouldn’t be possible!" Jero Bonaparte replied to Empress Augusta in an uncertain tone, "After all, Duke Golitsyn is still a noble. If he directly kills the Tsar’s entire family, I fear no country in the world would tolerate him!
I estimate that Duke Golitsyn, as he approaches failure, might release the Tsar’s entire family.
Or the nobles within Golitsyn’s regi, seeking survival, might secretly release the Tsar’s family in hopes of Alexander II’s rcy!"
"That’s true! Let’s hope so!" Empress Augusta’s eyes also mirrored sadness.
"Enough of this! We should go to sleep!" Jero Bonaparte yawned and began to take off all the clothes he was wearing.
"Yes, let’s sleep!" Augusta decided to stop thinking about these issues and climbed into bed to rest.
After a while, the light in Jero Bonaparte’s room went out.
In the dark, there were soft sounds resembling the chirping of nightingales from ti to ti.
The following day, Jero Bonaparte and Augusta visited the residences of Count Cavour and Pri Minister Rama Moore.
Cavour and Rama Moore similarly expressed to Jero Bonaparte the hope that he could persuade Emperor Franz Joseph to investigate the Sardinian Kingdom.
Jero Bonaparte agreed to them while subtlely asking Cavour when the conditions discussed earlier in Paris would be fulfilled.
Faced with Jero Bonaparte’s "debt collection," Cavour could only once more assure Jero Bonaparte: as long as the Sardinian Kingdom could completely weather the crisis, then Savoy and Nice would beco part of the French Empire’s territory.
"No, Mr. Garibaldi, these two lands are not forcibly annexed!" Jero Bonaparte corrected firmly, "Instead, we respect the choice of the people in these areas and are willing to let them freely choose by ans of a public referendum whether to join France or remain in Sardinia!"
Jero Bonaparte stated this sincerely, but Count Cavour’s heart was filled with disdain, seeing the so-called public referendum as rely a way to embellish forced annexation.
Cavour could only reluctantly express that if the people of Savoy and Nice were to hear that Jero Bonaparte was willing to respect their wishes, they would surely weep with joy (in disgust).
Jero Bonaparte left Cavour’s residence very satisfied.
Soon, it was the third day. Under the farewell of Victor Emmanuel II and a group of Sardinian ministers, Jero Bonaparte and Augusta left Turin.
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