Okay. She falls in love with him, and the whole family makes it clear that if he doesn't return her love she might kill herself (she's already tried it twice), and then he sort of accidentally ends up proposing to her, only his comrades hear of it and make fun of him because they're sure he's marrying her for the money, and he tells them he's totally not engaged to her at all... and then she hears of it and kills herself.

None of this would have happened if he had just a little backbone somewhere in there. Don't let them chivvy you into an engagement you don't want, Hofmiller! Or at least stand by your engagement once you've made it! Gaaaah.