“The smoking-room is alive ...”, Cola shouts to his friends who have come to see if he died from the plague. But no, Cola Bruyon, “an old sparrow, of Burgundy blood, vast in spirit and belly, not of his first youth, struck for half a century, but strong”, is not going to leave his beloved land and still revels in life, even finds it “more delicious than before. " Kola is a carpenter, he has a house, a grumpy wife, four sons, a beloved daughter and adored granddaughter Glodi. Armed with a chisel and a chisel, he stands in front of a workbench and makes furniture, decorating it with intricate patterns. True artist. Cola hates grayness and vulgarity, each of his products is a real work of art. Having worked hard, Brunion eagerly pays tribute to the old burgundy and delicious food. Kola enjoys every day he lives, he lives in harmony with himself and also tries to live with the whole world. But alas! the latter is by no means always successful. Recently, the good king Henry IV died in France, his son Louis is still small, and the widow-regent queen Maria Medici rules the country along with her favorite Italians. The enmity between Catholics and the Huguenots, which had calmed down under Henry, flares up with renewed vigor. “Let everyone live for themselves in our France and do not interfere with others!” - says Cola. He agrees with all the gods and is ready to drink a barrel of good wine with both the Catholic and the Huguenot. Politics is fun for princes, and peasants need land. Peasants make the land fertile, grow bread, look after vineyards, and then drink good wine.

Spring is approaching, and again the heart of old Bryunion is aching - he can never forget his youthful love, the red-haired beauty Selina. He was not the only one in love with this quick one for work and a sharp-tongued girl, nicknamed Lasochka. Then Kola even had to measure his strength with his best friend, but in vain: the lively Lasochka got a fat miller. Here, after many, many years, Cola sets off to look at his little Laska. And although she is already an old woman, in the eyes of Brunion she is beautiful, as before. Only now Kolya learns that Lasochka loved him more than anyone else in the world, but she was only stubborn, and she married another. But the past cannot be returned ... But will Cola “sulk to life like an old fool, because this is not so? Everything is good as it is. What I don’t have, damn him! ”

In the summer, in the town of Klamsi, near which Cola lives, an epidemic of plague flares up. Brunion sends his family to the village, and he remains to eat, drink and have fun with his friends, confident that the plague will pass by his side. But one day he discovers with himself the signs of a terrible disease. Fearing that his house will be burned, like all the houses where the plague visited, Kola, having captured his favorite books, moves to a hut in his vineyard. The vitality of Kola, the healing power of the earth defeats the disease, Kola is recovering. "The smoking room is alive ..."

In the village, at that time, the wife of Brunion fell ill with the plague, and then the beloved granddaughter of Glodi. What Cola did not do in order to save the girl, even carried her to the forest - so that the old woman would turn her off. Death retreated from the child, but tidied up Brunion's wife. After burying his wife and putting his granddaughter on his feet, Kola returns home - to the ashes. As soon as the plague began, the elders left the city, giving it to the scoundrels of crooks, we hunt to the good of others, And under the pretext that it was necessary to burn houses where there was a plague, the bandits began to host in the city and its environs. Kol’s house was empty, and they started from it: they completely plundered everything, and then burned down both the house and the workshop, and all his works that were there. Nothing remained with Brunion. But he does not lose heart - otherwise he would not be Brunion! Kola resolutely goes to Klamsi - it's time to restore order in the city. On the way, he meets his apprentice, who, risking his life, saved one of the works of Brunion, the figure of Magdalene, from the burning workshop. And the master understands: not everything is lost, because the best of his works remained - the soul of the apprentice boy, to whom he managed to instill the same love for the beautiful as he had.

Brynon raises the inhabitants of Clamsay to fight the robbers. When they make another raid on the wine cellars, armed townspeople, led by Kohl, give them a decent rebuff, and most of the robbers die under burning ruins. And then the royal justice arrived in time, just in time. But Kohl’s opinion is: “Help yourself, the king will help”.

Autumn is coming. Bryunion, who remained homeless, spends the night with one friend, then with another - a joint struggle with the robber gang rallied the townspeople. But life is getting better, everyone has their own worries, and Kola has to live with his daughter, who has been calling him to her for a long time. But he wants to have his own corner, and he begins to slowly rebuild his house - he picks a stone in a quarry, he himself puts down walls, not disdaining, of course, with the help of his neighbors. But once he stumbled, falls from the woods, breaks his leg and is bedridden - "caught by the paw." And so the "old grunt" Cola falls into complete submission to his daughter Martina. And imperceptibly rules everything in the house. And the whole Cola family is going to Epiphany at Martina - the mistress herself, the four sons of Brunion, numerous grandchildren. And although Kol did not have a stake or a yard, he is still rich - he sits at the head of the table, on his head there is a cake-form, he drinks and is happy. Because “every Frenchman was born a king. Here I am the master, and here is my home. ”