A mysterious old man, accompanied by a young woman, stopped at a village hotel “The Blue Dragon”. They are a rich man, Martin Chuzzlewit senior and his foster child, Mary. His distant relative Pecksniff lives in the same village.
Pecksniff summons the relatives: he knows that Martin is out with his grandson Martin junior, so he is bothered that Mary might inherit everything. Pecksniff manages to get Martin junior as a student to his boarding school: he hopes to get to Martin senior through his grandson...