"I understand. But if we want to shatter the new Vienna System the Austrians have built, we cannot rely on ourselves alone—just as the Austrians' efforts to contain us do not rely entirely on themselves."
Napoleon III spoke as he stroked his chin.
"I agree with you, Your Majesty."
Alexander Colonna Walewski affirmed Napoleon III's assessment, but then added, "But Britain is not the only force whose strength we can borrow."
Napoleon III immediately perked up.
"You mean...?"
Alexander Colonna Walewski continued.
"Your Majesty, this so-called new Vienna System may appear watertight, but it is actually riddled with contradictions. We can make full use of them.
Take Prussia, the Netherlands, Denmark, Hanover, Belgium, and Bavaria in Germany. They have merely been forced into a patchwork union.
Austria's self-righteous merger of kindred states has greatly strengthened the princely states, while also giving those smaller nations many options.
In Italy, both the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies possess considerable strength, and neither is truly of one mind with the Austrian Empire.
The storm of 1848 rose from Italy; who is to say the next storm will not begin there as well?
Within Spain, there is little genuine confidence in Ferdinand II, this king who descended from nowhere, while the uprising in Catalonia has never ceased.
And the Austrian Empire itself is plagued with problems. What kind of bandits require over a hundred thousand troops to suppress? It is plainly a small-scale civil war!"
Alexander Colonna Walewski paused before continuing.
"Your Majesty, there is no need to belittle yourself. Your reforms have yielded remarkable results, and France's economy is recovering. I believe it will not be long before we return to the summit of the world.
Back then, His Majesty was equally underestimated in Italy. Everyone believed the