In one of the remote provinces in his estate Tugilov lives a retired guardsman Ivan Petrovich Berestov, a widow who has long been widowed and has not gone anywhere. He is engaged in farming and considers himself to be “the smartest person in the whole lumber”, although he does not read anything except the “Senate Gazette”. The neighbors love him, although they consider him proud. Only his closest neighbor Grigory Ivanovich of Murom does not get along with him. Muromsky set up an English-style house and household in his Priluccine estate, while the conservative Berestov does not like innovations and criticizes the neighbor’s anglomania.
The son of Berestov, Alexei, having finished the course at the university, comes to the village to his father. The county girls are interested in him, and most of all - the daughter of Murom Lisa, but Alex remained cold to the signs of attention, and everyone explained this to his secret love. Lisa’s confidante, the serf girl Nastya, goes to visit Tugilovo’s friends and courtyard of the Berestovs, and Lisa asks her to take a good look at the young Berestov. Upon returning home, Nastya tells the young lady how young Berestov played burners with yard girls and how he kissed every time he was caught, how good he was, handsome and blush. Lisa is obsessed with the desire to see Alexei Berestov, but this cannot be done in a simple way, and Lise comes up with the idea to dress up as a peasant.The next day, she begins to implement the plan, orders to sew a peasant dress for herself and, trying on an outfit, finds that he is very to her face. At dawn the next day, Lisa in a peasant outfit leaves the house and heads towards Tugilov. In the grove a barking dog rushes at her with a bark, a young hunter arrives in time and recalls the dog and reassures the girl. Lisa perfectly plays her role, the young man volunteers to conduct it and calls himself the valet of the young Berestov, but Lisa recognizes him as Alexey and convicts him. She gives herself away as the daughter of a Priluzhinsk blacksmith, Akulin. The sharp-witted peasant woman really likes Alexei Berestov, he wants to see her again and is going to visit her blacksmith father. The prospect of being caught scares Lisa, and she invites the young man to meet the next day at the same place.
Upon returning home, Lisa almost regrets that she gave Berestov a reckless promise, but the fear that a determined young man will come to the blacksmith and find his daughter Akulin, a fat and pockmarked girl there, is even more frightening. Inspired by a new acquaintance and Alex. Before the appointed time, he arrives at the meeting place and eagerly awaits Akulina, who is depressed and is trying to convince Alexey that the acquaintance should be stopped. But Alexei, fascinated by the peasant woman, does not want this. Lisa takes his word from him that he will not look for her in the village and seek other meetings with her, except for those that she herself will appoint.Their meetings continue for two months, until one circumstance nearly destroyed this idyll. Having gone on horseback riding, Murom meets old Berestov, who is hunting in these places. Discarded by a horse-carrying horse, Muromsky ends up in Berestov’s house. The fathers of the young people parted in mutual sympathy and with the promise of Berestov to visit the Muromskys with Alexei. Learning about this, Lisa becomes confused, but together with Nastya develops a plan, which, in her opinion, should save her from exposure. Taking a promise from her father not to be surprised at anything, Lisa goes out to her guests densely whitewashed and overbred, ridiculously combed and extravagantly dressed. Alexei does not recognize in this cutesy young lady a simple and natural Akulina.
The next day, Lisa rushes to the meeting place. She is impatient to find out what impression the young lady of Priluzhinsk made on Alexei. But Alexei says that the young lady is a freak freak compared to her. Meanwhile, the acquaintance of the elderly Berestov and Murom develops into friendship, and they decide to marry the children. Alex meets his father's message about this with a spiritual shudder. In his soul a romantic dream arises of marrying a simple peasant woman. He goes to Murom to decisively communicate with them. Entering the house, he meets Lizaveta Grigoryevna and believes that this is his Akulina. Misunderstanding is permitted to the satisfaction of all.
“Readers will relieve me of the excessive obligation to describe the denouement,” the author concludes the story.
