The eve of World War I. After finishing a gymnasium in Petersburg, Varia devotes herself to teaching peasant kids. The remote village she comes to hardly displays any warmth towards the young teacher. Soon Varia meets her old friend, the Bolshevik Martinov, who serves his time in Siberia. Varia marries him. Then the revolution bursts out. Martinov, who has been holding a post of a commissioner, is killed and Varia is going to undergo many severe trials struggling against the kulaks.