Professor Karas is widely known as enthusiastic propagator of the motto "Morality Above All Else". He guides his students as well as his own family to live a morally decent life. One day he has an unexpected visit. It's his illegitimate daughter Vera, who is proof of his thoughtless youth. Mr. Karas know that she can ruin his image, thus he decides to keep her a secret and asks her to leave. Instead of leaving she takes a position of a governess in his own family without letting him know. Mr. Karas realizes that he must reveal the truth sooner or later, but he doesn't have enough courage to do so. As he postpones it, he is more and more scared to come to his own home.

An old peasant from Chodský, Záhor, claims to the young Podestát that he returned three hundred gold pieces to his father before the old Podestát died. Out of greed, Záhor even decides to perjure himself in court. The indignant creditor warns him of God's wrath. Záhor's sons, Matěj and Vondra, are vying for the same girl - the daughter of a blacksmith, Nana.

Teacher František Kmoch is suspended because he plays at dances or composes at night. He forms a band in Kolín and his supporter Baron Hrubý helps him perform in public. His music is popular not only at home but also around the world...

Seventh form pupils at a grammar school in Přívlaky are preparing for a secondary school sports competition. Class creep Krhounek gives the class teacher Lejsal a copy of the seventh form’s magazine Roar. Most of the teachers insist on severe punishing the culprit. The author does not own up and consequently the whole class is punished by being banned from taking part in the schools competition. The most gifted pupil, Benetka, rather sharply criticises the school in a homework essay on a subject of his choice. The strict Czech language teacher is convinced Benetka is the author of the school magazine. Benetka denies the charge but his expulsion from school is proposed anyway on account the views he expounded in his essay. Eventually, Boukal, the author of the school magazine comes forward and admits to writing it. The pupils are allowed to take part in the contest and thanks to Benetka they win. In the meantime however the teachers vote to expell him.

Orphaned Zdeňka Štěpánová helps her foster parents in Moravia at an inn. One day she learns that she is to be taken in by the owner of a toy factory, Miloš Kavan, who will fulfill her father's last wish. At the same time that Kavan and his housekeeper Mrs. Julie are expecting Zdeňka, their caretaker's little niece Hanička arrives. Mrs. Julie initially considers her her protégé, because she has no idea that Zdeňka is already a grown-up girl...

In a small village in the Chodsko region, people live with daily worries about making a living. Many are dependent on work on the estate. Only the priest Jiří is able to stand up against the undignified conditions here, but he receives no gratitude, because the steward turns the villagers against him. Staněk, an engineer whose son Ondřej is studying at a grammar school, also works on the estate. The boy would like to continue studying law in Prague and is very surprised by his mother's wish for him to become a priest. His mother relies on the priest to talk Ondřej out of it. However, Jiří was once in the same situation, so he knows how difficult it is to perform well a mission that one has not chosen for oneself...