The ardent and disinterested love of citizen Bridau gave carte blanche to the perfidious doctor, who made the most of his son-in-law's blindness, as the following history will show.
Madame Rouget, or, to speak more correctly, the doctor, inherited all the property, landed and personal, of Monsieur and Madame Descoings the elder, who died within two years of each other; and soon after that, Rouget got the better, as we may say, of his wife, for she died at the beginning of the year 1799.

So he had vineyards and he bought farms, he owned iron-works and he sold fleeces.

His well-beloved son was stupidly incapable of doing anything; but the father destined him for the state in life of a land proprietor and allowed him to grow up in wealth and silliness, certain that the lad would know as much as the wisest if he simply let himself live and die.

After 1799, the cipherers of Issoudun put, at the very least, thirty thousand francs' income to the doctor's credit.

From the time of his wife's death he led a debauched life, though he regulated it, so to speak, and kept it within the closed doors of his own house.