Plot Summary:Two poor families live side by side: the Tuvaches and the Vallins. Mathilde d'Hubières, a rich woman from the city, is desperate because she doesn't have any children. She comes to the Tuvaches to buy their youngest son, but is refused and sent to their neighbour. The Vallins agrees to give her their son. Time passes, and all the time, The Tuvaches critic their neighbour, who live better because of the annual pension. The Tuvache kid falls in love with the daughter of a nobleman, but she chooses the Vallin kid, who is rich and educated. The Tuvache kid starts to blame his parents for not selling him in the first place. This event leads to the death of the Tuvache mother.