The Red and the Black Part 2, Chapter 35 Summary

A Thunderstorm

  • Julien gets ready to leave Father Pirard's one day when Pirard gives him a huge wad of money from the marquis. The man doesn't want anything about Julien's life to reveal his lower class status.
  • Julien gets along swimmingly when he first joins the army in his new post. Everyone likes and respects him.
  • Out of nowhere, he gets a note from Mathilde telling him to come to her immediately in Paris. It's an emergency.
  • When Julien gets to Paris, Mathilde tells him that her father has run a background check on Julien and found out about his affair with Madame de Rênal back in the day.
  • Madame herself wrote a letter to the marquis talking about how Julien seduced her. It doesn't look good. In fact, it sounds like exactly what he did with Mathilde.
  • Julien runs away in shame. He heads all the way back to his hometown of Verrières. The first place he goes is the local gun shop, where he buys a pair of pistols.
  • He goes to the Verrières church, where mass is happening. He walks into the pew directly behind Madame de Rênal's and shoots her twice in cold blood for ratting him out.
  • Things just got real.