CHAPTER 338: CHAPTER 333: CAVOUR’S HONEY TRAP

Jerome Bonaparte used brief words to directly shut down all of Cavour’s remarks that could be detrimental to the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Since his own boss regarded the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies as a harmless country, what reason did he have to prevent his boss from continuing to recruit followers?

Cavour certainly couldn’t simply make unfounded claims against the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, insinuating they had ulterior motives!

Now, the only thing Cavour could do was to leave a good impression on Jerome Bonaparte, striving to have Jerome Bonaparte lean as much as possible towards them.

"Your Majesty, we did not come here to compete with the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. On the contrary, we are pleased to see more and more countries building friendly relations with you. Ensuring peace in Europe is indispensable without the cooperation of European countries. Meanwhile, we deeply regret not having witnessed your coronation ceremony!" Cavour skillfully congratulated Jerome Bonaparte with impeccable political language.

"Thank you, Sardinian Kingdom, for recognizing the French Empire! The French Empire sincerely wishes the Sardinian Kingdom to thrive!" Jerome Bonaparte casually replied, his attitude evidently more indifferent compared to the last meeting.

If not for the proactive flattery of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, Jerome Bonaparte might still have entertained Cavour with false pretenses.

Currently, the French Empire’s dependencies on the Apennine Peninsula were not limited to just the Sardinian Kingdom, lowering the Sardinian Kingdom’s significance in Jerome Bonaparte’s mind by a notch.

Besides, the Sardinian Kingdom itself occasionally liked to make big headlines, and Jerome Bonaparte really didn’t want to be cornered into a confrontation by the Sardinian Kingdom one day.

Jerome Bonaparte was quite willing to recruit followers, but he could not be led by them.

Cavour also detected the indifference in Jerome Bonaparte’s words, further intensifying his anxiety.

Should the French Emperor truly be won over by the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, what awaited the Sardinian Kingdom and the Italian nation would only be eternal division.

Cavour was a staunch nationalist for the Italian nation, but he was also a loyal moderate monarchist, convinced that only the Sardinian Kingdom could unify the Apennine Peninsula.

To complete the Apennine Peninsula blueprint in his heart, he was willing to sacrifice everything.

Thinking of this, Cavour decided to bring out his "secret weapon," and gritting his teeth, he said, "Your Majesty, our king has specially ordered me to present you with a gift as an apology for not being able to attend the coronation!"

Emphasizing the word "gift," Cavour unintentionally piqued Jerome Bonaparte’s interest a bit.

Although the Sardinian Kingdom was only a medium-strength kingdom, the Savoy Clan was indeed a royal family with a long history, and perhaps they possessed rare treasures.

However, Jerome Bonaparte still didn’t hold much hope that the Savoy Clan could present something that would genuinely capture his interest.

For Jerome Bonaparte, whether it be marriage with the Savoy Clan or vying for the throne for the Bonaparte Clan, it was not as important as the throne beneath him.

Excessive expansion would only draw the gaze of Europe back onto France, making France’s progress difficult.

Moreover, what right did he have to use his throne (the French Empire) to contend for the Bonaparte Clan’s throne (Central Italy Kingdom)?

The absurdity of the Bonaparte Clan should just switch early on to being idle parasites.

Jerome Bonaparte suddenly realized that since he became the Emperor of the French Empire, the ambition of the entire Bonaparte Clan had also grown, with many members of the Bonaparte Clan starting to harbor unrealistic fantasies that Jerome Bonaparte could invade the Rhine Land, flatten Italy, and reclaim the throne they had lost once more.

For such people, Jerome Bonaparte was simply too lazy to pay attention.

Those not destined to be kings, yet forcibly attempting to become kings, would only lead to a dead end.

"You truly shouldn’t have gone to such expense!" Jerome Bonaparte continued to fully express his "shamelessness" and said, "Please convey my gratitude to King Victor (Emmanuel II)!"

Afterward, Jerome Bonaparte displayed an eager expression, impatiently wanting to see what the "gift" looked like.

"Your Majesty, please wait a moment! The gift will arrive at your ball tomorrow!" Cavour replied to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Good!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded and replied to Cavour, "I’m looking forward to your gift!"

Subsequently, Jerome Bonaparte and Cavour had a further conversation about the Apennine Peninsula, during which Cavour continually probed Jerome Bonaparte’s attitude towards the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, and even subtly hinted at the connection between Henry V and the Bourbon-Two Sicilies Branch.

For such a clumsy incitement by Cavour, Jerome Bonaparte merely smiled it away.

Between national interest and monarchical sentiment, Jerome Bonaparte had reason to believe that Ferdinand II would place the former above the latter.

Otherwise, Ferdinand II would not have dispatched the crown prince to communicate with the French Empire at all.

In the realm of orthodoxy, Jerome Bonaparte is still a complete usurper.

In this exchange under the guise of "literature," Jerome Bonaparte and Cavour did not reach any substantial exchange of opinions, spending most of the time merely perfunctorily dealing with each other.

A fatigued Cavour, after bidding farewell to Jerome Bonaparte, took a carriage back to the high-end hotel next to the French Embassy where Sardinia’s diplomatic mission was staying.

All members who came to France this time were staying in this hotel. As he just entered his hotel room without changing out of his tight, painful suit, he heard a knock on the door.

Cavour had to change back into his suit to open the door. Standing there was a slightly petite girl about 13 or 14 years old, dressed in a light blue dress with a pink feather in her hair. Despite her young age, she possessed an unusually beautiful face, a slender waist, and breasts that seemed inappropriate for her age, driving mature men wild with desire.

"Cousin!" She gracefully saluted Cavour, who was nearly 30 years her senior, addressing him as cousin.

Indeed, she was Cavour’s "secret weapon" and an essential part of his plan for the revival of a unified Italy.

This "secret weapon" was originally intended to be presented to Jerome Bonaparte a few years later, but it seemed that he had to use it now.

"Cousin!" Count Cavour looked solemnly at his 13-year-old distant cousin. "The time has come for the Sardinian Kingdom to need you! I will send you to the Tuileries Palace tomorrow, before the Emperor!"

"I understand!" The "cousin" nodded, and in a voice like a warbler’s, responded to Cavour.

"I wish you success, my cousin, you must succeed by any means..." Count Cavour’s expression was unusually dignified, as if his "cousin" was about to accomplish something great.

The "cousin" nodded once again to indicate understanding.

The next evening, the ball at the Tuileries Palace officially began. Jerome Bonaparte arrived wearing the Emperor’s casual attire, and beside him was Francesco II, dressed in a magnificent Rococo-style costume.

Recently, the Emperor of the French Empire frequently enjoyed having this foreign prince by his side, imparting knowledge from time to time.

If not for the relatively small age difference between the two, many might have mistaken Francesco II as Jerome Bonaparte’s illegitimate son.

Under the guidance of Jerome Bonaparte, Francesco II indeed showed some improvement, at least no longer as timid as before, with growing respect for Jerome Bonaparte in his heart.

Jerome Bonaparte was also pleased to maintain this master-disciple-like friendship, for the friendship of monarchs was often just like this.

"Remember, all the actions of a monarch must align with his position! For instance, I am now attending a non-typical aristocratic ball!" Jerome Bonaparte, paying no heed to others’ views, pointed to some attendees at the ball and told Francesco II, "Most of them are France’s industrial and commercial giants who rose during the Empire period! When dealing with them, there’s no need to be overly complicated. Just understand their needs.

When you can’t meet everyone’s demands, you must sacrifice the interests of some to satisfy others. That’s the key to maintaining stability!"

Francesco II gazed at these people clad in various types of "strange costumes," seemingly gaining some insights.

"Go! Try to immerse yourself with them, you might gain something from them!" Jerome Bonaparte gestured generously with his hand to encourage him.

After parting ways with Francesco II, Jerome Bonaparte soon met Cavour again, and he approached him casually, saying, "Mr. Cavour, we meet again!"

"Your Majesty," Cavour responded respectfully, "The gift has already arrived at the ball!"

"Hmm?" Jerome Bonaparte showed a puzzled expression, seeing nothing but people around, "You can’t possibly mean that your prepared gift is among the crowd!"

"Your Majesty, please look!" Cavour gestured to the distance.

Following the direction of Cavour’s hand, Jerome Bonaparte seemed to see a fairy in a blue dress slowly walking towards him.

For a moment, Jerome Bonaparte doubted whether he had entered a different world.

Could he have suddenly been transported to some fantasy world?

With her stunning appearance and curvaceous figure, the "cousin" successfully attracted Jerome Bonaparte’s attention, as well as that of all the gentlemen at the ball.

Many men wanted to invite her to dance, but they were politely declined.

The "cousin" approached Jerome Bonaparte and extended her soft, fair hand to introduce herself, "Your Majesty, my name is Virginia Oldoini!"