In the first months after the war, a period of confusion and fratricidal fighting, a Warsaw whack-job drafted into the ranks of the KBW gains the first life experiences that make him an informed citizen. Marian, a boy from Targówek, is serving in the KBW. His unit is sent to a village plagued by a band of NSZ. Marian becomes involved with a young teacher, Anka, whose brother is a member of the NSZ. During the final trial, Stefan is killed and Marian is seriously wounded and taken to the hospital. An investigation is carried out in the village. Marian does not admit that he knew about Stefan and his contacts with his sister. When he leaves the hospital, he does not find the girl, but their son, who is being cared for by Anka's parents. He takes the boy and returns to Targowek.

In 1943, a drunk cook is mistaken for a secret agent and sent on a special mission from London to Nazi-occupied Poland.

Wiktor Wiarecki is an unsuccessful writer. He is also not successful in his personal life: Wiktor's marriage is in crisis, and his adult son wants nothing to do with his father. The turning point is the death of his friend Wiarecki, an outstanding writer Stefan Przewłocki. A literary widow gives Wiktor the materials for the deceased's last novel.

Michał is among the soldiers quartered in a village near Lublin. By accident, he goes to the palace and visits the magnificent building, where he meets a widow Maria. Meanwhile, local peasants do not want to wait for the start of land reform. They appoint their own committee and want to deal with the division of property themselves.