fortune hunting

Noun

fortune hunting (uncountable)

1. The act of seeking wealth without working to earn it, especially in an unscrupulous way such as through marriage.
   • No doubt the fellow was very useful to her. But you could have knocked us all down with a feather when, three months ago, she suddenly announced that she and Alfred were engaged! The fellow must be at least twenty years younger than she is! It’s simply bare-faced fortune hunting; but there you...1920 October, Agatha Christie, “I Go to Styles”, in The Mysterious Affair at Styles […], New York, N.Y.; London: Grosset & Dunlap, published March 1927, page 12