the recurring phrase "the useless precaution" seems weird and forced in Rossini's Barber but in Paisiello's it's part of the dark satire underpinning the whole thing. In Rossini's the Count's victory comes from Figaro intercepting the notary before Basilio, then the Count getting Basilio to cooperate at gunpoint. In Paisiello's, the Count bribed Basilio and the Notary ahead of time. He was always destined to win because he's rich, everyone else only had the illusion of control of the outcome