Napoleon the Great:

It might have been a classic Napoleonic bluff, but the Piedmontese couldn’t take the risk. The armistice
was signed immediately. Tortona, Alessandria, Coni and Ceva were handed over to the French, along
with the route to Valence and all the territory between Coni and the Stura, Tanaro and Po rivers. In a
smart ploy, Napoleon insisted on a secret clause giving him the right to use the bridge over the River Po
at Valenza, knowing the news would be leaked to the Austrians and that Beaulieu would send troops to
cover the bridge. He actually planned to cross the river near Piacenza, 70 miles further east.