11-year-old Volodya is sent to the city to advance his studies. The woman he is to live with can't afford to feed him, so his French teacher tries to help but cunningly. The school principal learns about it and consequences ensue.

Post-war years. 11-year-old Volodya is sent by his mother from the village to the regional center to study. The boy settles with a woman who lost her husband at the front and was left with three children. A young French teacher Lidia Mikhailovna tries to help Volodya. Under the pretext of additional classes, she tries to feed the boy, but he refuses to eat. And then the teacher resorts to a trick: she invites him to play "wall" for money, and, of course, plays along with Volodya.