Ariosto's eyes immediately lit up. "You mean, the Security Organization will...?"
Talleyrand smiled and nodded again. "The moment Lucca declares war, the Security Organization will begin mustering its forces. If the Neapolitans dare to strike back, the army will immediately enter Abruzzo."
Abruzzo was an important town northwest of Naples, barely more than 150 kilometers from the capital, Naples City.
Yet Ariosto remained uneasy. "Your Grace, what if Ferdinand IV asks Austria for aid?" Naples appeared to follow Spain, but in truth it had always pursued a pro-Austrian policy.
Talleyrand glanced at him. "If he still remembers General Córdoba's words, he will not choose to do that."
He was referring to the early sixteenth century, when the Duchy of Milan, angered by Naples's interference in its succession, decided to join forces with France to attack Naples. King Ferdinand II of Naples could not hold out and appealed to Spain for aid.
Spain's famed General Córdoba swiftly led a great army into Naples and went to war with France. Then the Duchy of Milan suddenly switched sides; the French Army suffered a crushing blow and was forced to retreat.
Enraged, French King Louis XII secretly reached an agreement with Spain to divide Milan and Florence between them.
Córdoba's army promptly turned and occupied Florence, while the reigning King Frederick IV fled into exile. Florence was thereafter ruled by Spain for nearly two hundred years. Only later, because of the War of the Polish Succession, did it regain its independence through the Treaty of Vienna.
How could Naples dare invite the wolf into its house again?
Talleyrand added coldly, "If Naples truly asks Austria for help, that may even be a good thing."
Back then, the Austrians could not even hold Mantua Fortress. Asking them now to take a fortress defended by