The Count of Monte Cristo

Reading of the Marriage Contract

The two notaries arrive and lay their scrawled documents on the gilt table, covered with gold-embroidered velvet and supported on lions’ claws, prepared for the signatures. As the reading begins, the crowd falls silent; once the long enumeration of settlements, dowries, wedding presents, and Eugénie’s diamonds is finished, an excited buzz spreads through the rooms, magnifying the brilliant figures and sharpening envy. Andrea, courted by his friends, almost begins to believe in his own dream, while the notary flourishes his pen and formally announces that the contract is about to be signed.

Pre-Signing Remarks

The baron is to sign first, then the representative of Cavalcanti senior, then the baroness, and finally the future couple. After Danglars and the representative have signed, Madame Danglars, leaning on Madame de Villefort’s arm, remarks on the vexatious absence of M. de Villefort, which she attributes to the murder and theft affair at the Count of Monte Cristo’s house. Monte Cristo steps forward and, with studied politeness, expresses his fear that he is the involuntary cause of the prosecutor’s absence.

第九十六章 The Contract

During the signing of the marriage contract between Andrea Cavalcanti and Mademoiselle Danglars, Monte Cristo recounts the discovery of Caderousse’s bloodstained waistcoat and the damning letter found in its pocket, implicating Baron Danglars. The revelation, coupled with the sudden arrival of police led by a commissary, exposes Andrea as an escaped galley-slave and the accused murderer of Caderousse; Andrea flees, the drawing party collapses into panic, and the engagement is shattered. The chapter serves as the culmination of Monte Cristo’s long-planned revenge against Danglars, while also bringing Andrea’s true identity and crimes to light.