The Paris Conference, disrupted by Austria, ended with near-lightning speed after the Kingdom of Sardinia lost its bargaining capital. Such a thing was exceedingly rare even in the history of diplomacy.
The French, who had stolen the limelight, once again became the focus of public opinion. Before the Kingdom of Sardinia had even been swallowed, the theory of the French threat had once more drawn everyone's attention.
Naturally, the Paris Government paid no heed to such minor issues. Talk of the French threat had not persisted for merely a day or two, but for decades; everyone had heard it until they were numb.
Let them talk. It would not cost them a pound of flesh anyway. At this moment, the French were still celebrating this diplomatic victory.
Franz could only attribute it to the French obsession with Italy, much like the House of Habsburg's obsession with Switzerland. They always wanted to annex these regions.
In his view, aside from emotional satisfaction, these regions offered very limited practical benefits.
Of course, what the French were doing suited Austria's interests. With them taking the lead, the United Kingdom and Russia's wariness of Austria dropped by a notch.
Human thought was complex, and people often judged based on subjective impressions. In terms of overall national strength, Austria was no weaker than France, yet in everyone's subconscious, the French were still seen as the greater threat.
This was not something that could be changed in a day or two. In history, Bismarck had exploited this very subconscious perception to isolate the French.
Had William II not later ruined everything and made the London Government realize that Germany posed the greater threat, the Entente could never have been formed.
The French were currently basking in triumph. They probably could not imagine even in their dreams