Petite ville

The Bourrat name has long anchored the quiet province of Valleyres, their lineage rooted in modest bourgeois values and careful marriage alliances. After two generations withdrew from the bustling market town, the family settled on sprawling estates at Prévoux and Vermand, where daily life revolves around stocky farms, meticulous bookkeeping, and the rhythm of seasons. Ferdinand Bourrat, a stoic landowner, and his austere wife manage the household with a rigid eye for detail, while their children attend schools in the regional capital or a convent far to the south.

At eighteen, the young Mademoiselle Bourrat returns from the convent, her presence stirring the sleepy community with whispers of a suitable match. Yet the Bourrats, though comfortable, lack the grand connections of families like the Durets, and many local suitors have already fled for the anonymity of larger cities. As rumors swirl and the prospects of marriage loom, the family must weigh tradition against the uncertain futures of its scattered heirs.