: The period of the first world war. The girl helps many people in the village and punishes those guilty of long-standing crimes. Of the two boys in love with her, she chooses one and informs her mom about the engagement.
Several years have passed since the Arsenyevs moved to Kiev. During this time, many events happened: Nikich died; arrested Aleksandr Dmitrievich, condemning him to ten years of solitary confinement in Samara, followed by life imprisonment; with the beginning of the First World War, Vasily, the groom of the Mouse, went to the front; she married a man alien to the Arsenyev family and left for Alina in the Far East; After graduating from high school with a gold medal, he entered the University of Lenya; after seven classes of the gymnasium, Mouse completed nursing courses and got a job in a military hospital.
Having moved to the eighth grade, Dinka and Myshka move to the beloved Arsenyevy family near Kiev. While the girls have to live alone: Marina left to visit her husband, and Lena was given a party assignment.
At the farm, Fedork is looking forward to his city girlfriend. People in the village are concerned about the situation at the front. Fedorka’s childhood friend, Dmitro, allowed a lone soldier to live, having lost a leg at the front. Fedorka worries that the soldier is conducting dangerous talks with Dmitro about the war. Dinka believes that the soldier is speaking correctly: for whose land are the soldiers laying their heads?
In the forest, on the site of an old tavern, there is a hut in which a forester once lived with his daughter. He prepared the money received for logging in a dowry to his beautiful daughter, who, contrary to her father’s will, married the poor cobbler Jacob, who played the violin at village weddings. Soon, Yoska's son was born to the young, and the forester bequeathed to leave money to his grandson for teaching. When the boy was four years old, his mother died. Mad with grief, Yakov, playing the violin, often switched to sad melodies or to his favorite waltz “On the hills of Manchuria”. For this, people began to call him "malacholny" and often kicked out of the holiday for inappropriate music.
Once Dinka, having fallen with Fedorka at a village wedding, heard a musician play near which a frightened Yoska stood. Suddenly, the musician switched from fun to mournful music, the guests screamed, and the child, crying, began to ask his father to "cheat on the fun, they would expel him." The girl's heart sank. She indignantly reprimanded her friend that Jacob has a huge talent, how dare people insult him, seeing his grief and the crying boy?
Dink learns the scary news: in the fall, the violinist was killed. The first rich people of the village, the Matyushkin brothers, having learned that Jacob had the money left by Yoske’s grandfather, hacked the musician with an ax. By that time, Jacob hired his son a student student living nearby. When the boy returned home from school, he found a dying father who told him who the killers were. A student filed with the police, but was soon found dead in the forest. The killers were not found, since the Matyushkins bribed the police. Yoska village women were taken to the city to aunt Jacob, who soon died. Where is Yoska now - no one knows. Rumor has it that he is running around with tramp on the market. Nobody goes to the forest now either: there exactly at midnight the violin plays the deceased's favorite waltz.
Arriving at the farm in the fall, Lenya and Vasily learned about the terrible news, but decided not to tell her at home.
Dinka does not believe in superstition and goes to the forest, to Jacob's hut. In the crushed house she sees a portrait of Yoska’s mother. On it, the girl swears to find the son of the deceased.
Fedorka tells Dinka about her grief: a rich widower marries her, and her mother makes her marry him, although she loves Dmitro. Dinka promises to help her friend push off her groom.
The owner of the economy, near which the farm is located, Pan, greets Dinka affably. Seeing that she rides a horse bareback, he offers her a lady's saddle and riding lessons, which Dinka refuses.
The girl learns his story. A young handsome young man was eager for village girls. He often arranged festivities in economy, and took the girl he liked for several days, after giving her good gifts and celebrating her wedding. But once the pan brought to his estate a village girl who sang like a nightingale. He was going to take her abroad to learn music. Pan left for the city for tickets and passports, and the manager of the estate, his milk brother, whom the whole village hates, told the girl to go home, as the pan would get married and come with his young wife. The girl, in desperation, ran to her mother, but she decided that, most likely, this was true: the poor servant of the pan was no match. With grief, the girl drowned. Yefim, who was then working with the pan, heard the conversation between the steward and the drowned woman and told the pan the truth, but the villain over the girl’s coffin swore that it was a lie. Pan, who believed his milk brother as himself, kicked Yefim out of work. Since then, all the festivities have stopped, and the pan never married.
At one of the city bazaars, Dinka met the leader of the tramp, Gypsy. A teenager tells her that Yoska was killed. The girl takes offense at Vasily with Lena, who did not tell her about the murder. Lenya is now not the same as before. He became an adult and looks at Dinka as a child. The mouse also often takes the side of adults. The girl has one friend left - neighbor Andrei.
Dinka wants to know what kind of mysterious violin plays in Jacob's hut. At night she goes to the forest. At midnight, the melody of the familiar waltz is heard, but Dink feels that this is not played by Jacob. Guessing that only Yoska could know his motives, she runs into the hut, but a brick falls on her head.
Waking up, Dinka sees next to him a Gypsy, Yoska and a long-familiar tramp named Ear, whom she once saved from the merchants. Realizing that Dinka is their friend, Gypsy warns her not to tell anyone about them, and the children decide to take revenge on Matyushkin together.
One morning, Lenya returns from a trip and Andrei arrives. Dink tells Andrei about Yoska. He promises Dinka help and leaves without saying goodbye. Lenya is unhappy - he wanted to know what was happening at the Arsenal plant, where Andrei and his father work, connected with revolutionary work with Marina.
Upset Mouse starts a conversation about mother. Since she left, there is no news. Dinka recalls that today Fedorka is being married, and runs away to help her friend out.
Dinka is trying to convince the groom that Fedork is not a couple for him, but seeing that he is aggressive, pours a pot of sour cream on him. Dink hides the frightened Fedorka on the farm, and Fedorka tells her new mother that her daughter tried to commit suicide in despair. Appearing unexpectedly, Dmitro declares that he has agreed with the priest, and they will be married to Fedorka, despite the protest of the bride's parents. The girl's mother resigns herself, seeing her daughter happy.
The mouse is outraged that the sister thinks about everything except the family. She is also unhappy that Andrei, a serious adult, rushes to fulfill any of her whims. Dinka is offended: Andrey is the only person whom she can trust. She recalls how she once looked at a young gypsy at a fair and decided to learn how to dance like that. She spent all night in a gypsy tent, and Andrei was always there. Meanwhile, the alarmed family members reported the missing children to the police and ran around the fairground all night. Dinka was drunk with hot tea at home and put to bed, and his father, who did not say anything to Andrey, was beaten severely.
A long-awaited letter comes from Marina, in which she reports about her father's illness. Marina wants to be transferred to a prison hospital.
Lenya is unhappy with Andrei’s friendship with Dinka.Perplexed Dinka Lyonya recalls how once she was jealous of him for a girl who brought home forbidden literature to them, and drove her out. Then Lenya told Dinka that he needed only her. Having learned about Yoska, Lenya is horrified and promises Dinka his help.
Dink is in heavy thought: she loves Lenya, but she cannot betray Andrei. Fedorka advises her friend to choose one.
Pan decides to sell his cows. The village poor wants to buy them together, but the manager does not want to listen to them; he is going to sell the cows to his fists. Yefim asks Dinka to speak with Pan, since he will not listen to him.
Pan kindly accepts Dinka, but his manager deals with the sale of cows. The outraged Dinka tells Pan that the manager is a murderer, the whole village and the mother of the unfortunate know the truth. Sincerely loving girl pan still can not calm down. He calls up Efim, goes to the mother of the drowned woman and expels the manager, who will now live with the Matyushkins, his wife’s brothers.
Pan refuses fists and sells cows to peasants. He goes abroad, before leaving, giving Dinka a lady's saddle. Angry Matyushkin, Dink points to a violin playing in the forest.
Arriving Andrei Dinka reports that he loves Lenya, and they can no longer meet. Andrei leaves, but promises to return if she calls him. To calm Dinka upset, Lenya suggests visiting Yoska.
The boys joyfully welcome the guests. Lenya wonders if they are stealing. Gypsy says that they live honestly, working on loading. Yoska, who they picked up at the bazaar, led them to the basement of the ruined hut and took the word not to steal, offering money left by his grandfather. In winter, they will move to the city to the mother of the murdered student, who treats them like relatives. The gypsy asks to keep their secret, and offers help if you need to hide someone.
The returning Marina brings with her forbidden literature. She reports that she received a letter from Alina, who left an unworthy person. Dinka and Lena solemnly announce to her their engagement.
Embittered fists take the purchased cow from the peasants. An intruding soldier who lives with Dmitro is taken to the police as a rebel, raising people against the government. The peasants beat off the soldier, and the Arsenyevs hide him on the farm.
The Arsenyevs are waiting for the arrival of the railroad worker, who must bring a typographic font for the newspaper. Lenya leaves on behalf of the party. The person accompanying him at the Dinka station notices how a man gets off the train and meets with a local policeman. Having sent the arrived railwayman to the farm, Dinka tries to detain the lard, pretending to have mistaken him for a relative whom she had been waiting for a long time.
Gypsies and Ear are watching. Watching the lard, they find out that a search is planned on the farm. The warned Arsenievs send a soldier and a railway worker with forbidden literature to the forest. Efim finally learns the secret of playing the violin. The soldier, making friends with the guys, stays with them.
The search does not produce the expected results. Since the integrity of the farm is violated, the Arsenyevs decide to return home. Before leaving, Dink and Gypsy ponder Matyushkin’s revenge. Having changed clothes in a shroud, Dinka knocks on a window of murderers, warning about retribution. In the distance, the sounds of a violin are heard. The frightened Matyushkins call the priest to consecrate the hut, to which the alarmed people have come running. Dinka feels guilty, because people are so superstitious. She swears that this was her last mischief, and says goodbye to her childhood.
On the train, Dinka thinks that in the courtyard of a city apartment she might accidentally meet Andrei.
