Two noblemen from the Grand Duchy of Lithuania clash because one refuses to free his servant - a girl. The second joins a peasant revolt and takes over the castle.

Teleplay based on same-titled drama by M.Yu. Lermontov.

Military journalist Igor Vladimirov turns to his longtime friend — intelligence colonel Sergey Matveev — for help. Fifteen years have passed since they last met. A quarrel over a woman named Zhenya, whom Igor eventually married, drove them apart. Reluctantly, Matveev agrees to let go of past grievances and visit Vladimirov at his country house.