"Jerome, you only need to do your best!" Victor Emmanuel II said to Jerome 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 time, we would ask the French Empire to stand from a fair perspective and investigate together with the Austrian Empire!"

"Hmm!" Jerome Bonaparte nodded and solemnly responded to Victor Emmanuel II, "If it really comes to that point, I will definitely ensure a fair and just investigation for the Kingdom of Sardinia!"

Afterwards, Jerome 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 Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta, they all made way for them.

As the music resumed, Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta danced gracefully to the music, and the surrounding crowd also began to gradually disperse and dance.

After the dance ended, Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta left amidst the enthusiastic applause of the surrounding crowd. Victor Emmanuel II gave a thumbs up to Jerome Bonaparte after he returned to his seat and praised, "Great dancing!"

Jerome Bonaparte smiled modestly and replied, "Thank you!"

In the following period, ladies and gentlemen continuously invited Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta to dance.

However, all these invitations were declined by Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta.

After being refused several times, the remaining participants almost stopped inviting them to dance.

Meanwhile, Victor Emmanuel II welcomed all comers, and throughout the ball, he danced with dozens of ladies.

So much so that Empress Augusta quietly whispered in Jerome 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 Jerome 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 Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta leave. Under Victor Emmanuel II’s farewell, Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta took a carriage and left the Turin Royal Palace under the dark night sky.

When Jerome Bonaparte returned to the hotel, Empress Augusta softly asked Jerome Bonaparte, "Jerome, what do you plan to do?"

"What do you mean?" Jerome Bonaparte tilted his head and asked in confusion.

"I mean how to handle the Kingdom of Sardinia!" Empress Augusta explained to Jerome Bonaparte.

"Oh, you mean that!" Jerome Bonaparte immediately 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 time 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?" Jerome Bonaparte asked Empress Augusta.

"Hmm!" Augusta nodded and replied to Jerome 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!" Jerome Bonaparte said leisurely with his hands behind his head, "The Kingdom of Sardinia certainly will still cooperate with them, only this time their cooperation might be conducted secretly!"

"Then why would you abandon the investigation!" Empress Augusta asked Jerome Bonaparte in bewilderment.

"Because Victor Emmanuel II gave up Savoy and Nice!" Jerome 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 extreme 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 me!" Jerome Bonaparte shrugged and replied to Augusta, "These two regions merely allow France to maintain geographical advantage, preventing a sudden attack from Apennine Peninsula states, yet a fragmented 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 commendable."

"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 come with other nations’ suspicion!" Jerome 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, Jerome 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 become tangible gains for Jerome 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 mended once again.

Thinking of this, Jerome Bonaparte suddenly recalled that Duke Golitsyn had not yet replied whether he would spare the family of Alexander II.

So, Jerome Bonaparte asked Empress Augusta, "Before you came, did you receive any news from the Russian Empire?"

"Which Russian Empire?" Empress Augusta asked in return.

"There are two Russian Empires!" Jerome Bonaparte said to Empress Augusta.

Augusta shook her head to Jerome Bonaparte, saying, "No!"

"It seems Duke Golitsyn is unwilling to let go of Alexander II’s family for the time being!" Jerome 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 Jerome Bonaparte think of Soviet Russia decades later, when the then-unstable Soviet regime secretly killed the entire family of Nicholas II.

"It shouldn’t be possible!" Jerome 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. 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Or the nobles within Golitsyn’s regime, seeking survival, might secretly release the Tsar’s family in hopes of Alexander II’s mercy!"

"That’s true! Let’s hope so!" Empress Augusta’s eyes also mirrored sadness.

"Enough of this! We should go to sleep!" Jerome 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 Jerome Bonaparte’s room went out.

In the dark, there were soft sounds resembling the chirping of nightingales from time to time.

The following day, Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta visited the residences of Count Cavour and Prime Minister Rama Moore.

Cavour and Rama Moore similarly expressed to Jerome Bonaparte the hope that he could persuade Emperor Franz Joseph to investigate the Sardinian Kingdom.

Jerome Bonaparte agreed to them while subtlely asking Cavour when the conditions discussed earlier in Paris would be fulfilled.

Faced with Jerome Bonaparte’s "debt collection," Cavour could only once more assure Jerome Bonaparte: as long as the Sardinian Kingdom could completely weather the crisis, then Savoy and Nice would become part of the French Empire’s territory.

"No, Mr. Garibaldi, these two lands are not forcibly annexed!" Jerome Bonaparte corrected firmly, "Instead, we respect the choice of the people in these areas and are willing to let them freely choose by means of a public referendum whether to join France or remain in Sardinia!"

Jerome Bonaparte stated this sincerely, but Count Cavour’s heart was filled with disdain, seeing the so-called public referendum as merely a way to embellish forced annexation.

Cavour could only reluctantly express that if the people of Savoy and Nice were to hear that Jerome Bonaparte was willing to respect their wishes, they would surely weep with joy (in disgust).

Jerome 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, Jerome Bonaparte and Augusta left Turin.