All the inhabitants of the village were called Yegor Polushkin a scavenger. Where the first two letters disappeared - no one remembered. Even Polushkin’s wife, Kharitin, called her husband “an overseas inhuman” and a “damned poor guy.” Kharitin was born in Zaonezhye, and her grievances began in early childhood, when a drunken priest gave her this impossible name. The sister called her Tina, and the good neighbors called her Hare. Sister Maritsa also lured the Polushkins to this village, built at a woodworking factory. Once upon a time, endless forests rustled around the village. For several decades they were cut down. They realized that when there was only one grove at the Black Lake. She was recognized as "reserved" and assigned to the forester - husband Marytsa and cousin Polushkin, Fedor Ipatovich Buryanov. Buryanov became the richest and most respected man in the village.
The Buryanov’s house consists of five-walled mansions cut down by Polushkin’s golden hands. When Egor with his wife and children - son Nikolai and daughter Olga, moved to the village. Buryanov gave his cousin his old, plain-looking hut, from where he even brought the floors and logs out of the cellar. In return, Yegor built a solid five-wall wall for Fedor Ipatovich, skillfully carved a cock on the roof.
The son of Polushkinna, Kolka, "a clean-eyed peasant," went all over to his father. The boy was sharp-witted, patient, but very clean and trusting. He rarely cried, and not because of resentment or pain, but only because of pity and sympathy for others. And Kolka was most offended when his father was called a scumbag. But Vovka, the son of Buryanov, was offended often and strongly, and roared only because of his own insults.
On his collective farm, Yegor Polushkin was in good standing, but he was not working out in a new place. All the troubles of Polushkin came from the fact that he could not work without a soul. The first two months, when Yegor Fyodor Ipatovich built his house from dawn to dawn, he worked in joy, "as the heart commanded." The cunning Buryanov knew that rushing masters was more expensive for himself. Then they took Polushkkin to the carpentry construction team - and an endless black streak began. Egor, a skilled carpenter, could not work in haste. He did everything in a hurry, as "for himself," and frustrated the construction team.
After going through all the construction crews of the village, Polushkin fell into a laborer, but he also did not stay here for a long time. Once, on a warm May day, they ordered Polushkkin to dig a trench under a sewer pipe. Yegor worked joyfully. The trench turned out to be straight, like an arrow, until an ant hill met on its way. I regretted Polushkin's industrious goosebumps, put a trench around, only she realized that there were no crooked sewer pipes. This incident became known to the whole village, and finally strengthened Polushkin’s reputation as a poor bearer. Kolka began to come from school all bruised.
The next place of work of Egor was the boat station. She stood by a small lake, which appeared on the site of a dammed river. The station served tourists who reached this revived corner not only from the regional center, but also from Moscow itself. Yegor’s golden hands came here by the way. The head of the boat station, “an elderly, very tired from life,” peasant Yakov Prokopych Sazanov, was pleased with Egorova’s work and diligence, and Polushkin himself liked the work.
But Fyodor Ipatovich Buryanov, meanwhile, was summoned by a new forester and demanded from him all the acts of cutting the forest. And what acts, when Buryanov has a new hut, a five-wall on the whole village glows.
Yegor tried his best at a new job as he could.Only once did he anger his boss - instead of the black numbers laid out according to the charter, he painted on the bow of each boat a cheerful, bright little animal or flower. Seeing the Egorov "art", Yakov Prokopych became angry and ordered this mess to paint over. The real trouble, however, was not long in coming. The first group of tourists arrived at the boat station this year - “three men, and two butterflies with them.” Sazanov allocated Polushkin a valuable motor boat and ordered tourists to be transported across the river. Yegor took Kolka with him to help. Tourists were transported, they chose a place for the camp, but here's the trouble: there was a huge anthill nearby. Yegor suggested transferring the camp to another clearing, but one of the tourists said that the ants weren’t an obstacle, but “man is the king of nature,” he doused the anthill with gasoline and set it on fire.
After the tourists spread a tablecloth, laid out a meal, began to treat Yegor and Kolka. Although they accepted the treats of Polushkina, burning ants still stood before their eyes. Polushkin had never abused alcohol, but now he has taken it beyond measure, he began to dance and fall. Tourists amused, coddled. Shame was Kolka for his father. He tried to stop Yegor, and for the first time Polushkin raised his hand to his son. Kolka escaped, and Yegor trudged to the shore. He started to start the engine in the boat, but did not start it, he turned it over. So, upside down, and dragged along a rope along the shore.
Fedor Ipatovich was worried and confused: he demanded a new forester Yuri Petrovich Chuvalov pay for the logs that they went to the house. Buryanov had money, but there was no strength to part with it.
Yegor dragged the boat to the station empty - neither oars, nor motor. He came to his senses only two days later and rushed to search, but only in vain. Everything was gone: the motor, and the buchek and oarlocks, and the tourists. Kolka left the house; for several days he lived with the teacher Nonna Yuryevna. Polushkin had to pay three hundred rubles for the lost good - money unprecedented for him. Buryanov didn’t lend money, he had to cut a piglet and bring it to the city for sale. And from the tourists those Buryanov "got the money." In search of Kolka, Vovka was sent. He wandered to the tourists and found out not only about Yegor’s "demonstration performances", but also about the fact that they did not go fishing. So the Buryans took them for 30 rubles to the Black Lake, to the conservation area.
In the city of Polushkin, they deceived, and for the piglet he helped out only 200 rubles. And then an announcement was posted on the procurement office: regional procurers buy soaked linden bast from the population and pay 50 kopecks per kilogram. While Polushkin was thinking and taking permission from Fedor Ipatovich, Buryanov himself did not lose time. Arriving a few days later in the forest, I saw Polushkin completely peeled and ruined linden grove.
Haritina Polushkina all this time went to the courts and still knocked out a nursery for her daughter and work for herself. She began to work as a dishwasher in the dining room. Egor, after a failure with a bast, waved his hand at himself and washed down. Friends appeared, the Shard and Filya, taught Polushkin to scribble, to deceive people and to take money out of the house.
At one of these covens, Polushkin and Nonna Yurievna met. Kolkina teacher was from Leningrad. She got into this remote village after graduation. Nonna Yurievna lived here like a gray mouse, but rumors about a young and unmarried teacher still crawled - they were spread by the hostess, whose teacher lived. Then Nonna Yurievna showed perseverance and knocked out a separate housing for herself - a hut-pit with a perforated roof. Nonna hired three coaches, Polushkin, a crock and Filia to repair this roof. Egor did not deceive the teacher. And Haritina gave the money, which was not enough for repairs.
The new forester Yury Petrovich Chuvalov, like teacher Nonna Yuryevna, was from Leningrad. His parents died a year after the victory, and a little Yura was raised by a neighbor. Chuvalov learned about this only at the age of 16, but the woman who raised him remained mother for Yuri Petrovich.Of course, Fedor Ipatovich didn’t know all this when he was going to the regional center to hand in the forest ranger a certificate of payment for the forest, which went to build the Buryanovskaya five-wall building. Here are just a little help from this. Yuri Petrovich needed permission to cut down a combat pine forest. In vain Fyodor Ipatovich bustled and twisted - Chuvalov was adamant, and kept daddy with Buryanov's certificates at home.
Chuvalov was not going to give this folder to anyone, he simply “could not deny himself the pleasure of leaving Fyodor Ipatovich with fear alone.” However, Yury Petrovich was still going to visit this far corner of his farm, fortunately there was a reason: to hand over a package from his mother to the local teacher.
In the life of Polushkin, the “fast streak” began again. He helped Nonna Yuryevna from the bottom of her heart and did not bother her with "building" problems. He decided everything. Kolka helped his father, although all his thoughts were about Olya Kuzina and the puppy. Olga Kolka was in love with a classmate, but only Cousin herself looked exclusively at his cousin Vovka. And Kolka’s puppy was exchanged by Vovka for a new compass, saved when Buryanov Jr. decided to drown the animal. Now the puppy lived with the Buryanovs, and Vovka fed him a day later, but he didn’t give Kolka, he demanded the “real price”.
In the midst of this turbulent activity, a new forester appeared in the house of Nonna Yuryevna. Upon learning that the Chuvans were going to Black Lake, Nonna Yuryevna advised taking Yegor as a guide. Yuri Petrovich took not only Yegor and Kolka to Black Lake, but Nonna Yurievna herself. The forester gave Kolka a special assignment: to write in a notebook all the animals he had encountered along the way. Nonna Yurievna, a city resident, managed to get lost along the way, but everyone reached the Black Lake safe and sound. Yuri Petrovich said that earlier this lake was called Lebyazhy.
An old camp of tourists was found near the lake, and Chuvalov ordered to carve out a new pillar marking the reserved place. Just not on the pillar worked Egor, when everyone dispersed. One day he saw Nonna bathing in a lake in the morning, and cut out a naked woman from a crooked trunk. He cut it out - and got scared: the forester scolded him for unauthorized art. However, Chuvalov did not swear - the figure was a real work of art.
Fyodor Ipatovich, meanwhile, found out that Yegor had taken the forester to Black Lake, and held a grudge - he decided that Polushkin was aiming for him. Buryanov frowned at two bottoms, "turned over his cast-iron thoughts," and then smiled viciously. Well, Yegor was happy. Nobody had ever talked with him so respectfully, Egor Savelich did not dignify and did not take him seriously. Kolka was also lucky: Chuvalov gave him a real spinning.
After this campaign, Chuvalov realized that no one would look after the conservation area better than Polushkin. So Yegor became a forester instead of Buryanov. Polushkin got down to business zealously. The forest was cleaned, and instead of “prohibitory” tablets, hung billboards around the reserve with verses “on the order” of the Kolkin essay. Egor drove out of the woods and Philu with the Skull, who illegally felled the forest.
Nonna Yurievna, meanwhile, gathered in the regional center - she contracted to buy a globe, maps, and sports equipment for the school. Arriving in the city, she called Yuri Petrovich, who invited her to dinner. Nonna discovered that “until now, two completely opposite creatures have coexisted peacefully in her” - an adult, self-confident woman, and a cowardly girl. It was the woman who spent the night with Chuvalov, and after Yuri Petrovich admitted that he was married. Chuvalov’s marriage was strange. When he worked in the Altai forestry, a young intern Marina came to him from Moscow. After spending the night with her, Yuri immediately married, and three days later the young wife drove off to Moscow. Two months later, Marina reported that she “lost” her passport with a marriage stamp and received a new, clean one.Chuvalov did not lose his passport, but tried to forget about this story. A few years later, Yuri found out that Marina gave birth, but did not say whether he was his child. He didn’t have time to explain anything to Nona - having heard about the marriage, she dressed and left. Arriving in the village a few days later, Chuvalov found out that Nonna had left for Leningrad.
Chuvalov did not come to the village for a reason - he brought in a boss who really liked the Kolkin’s compositions. Then Chuvalov told Polushkin "the story of his family life." A week later, a call came from Moscow - Yegor Polushkin was invited to the All-Union meeting of forestry workers. But Buryanov’s affairs did not go at all - the threat search became interested in him.
Egor went to Moscow through the regional center, but did not find Yuri Petrovich there - he left for Leningrad. In the capital, Polushkin “participated in the debate” and visited the zoo. He came to Moscow with the money of almost all the inhabitants of the village and a list of “orders”, but, being in the zoo, he forgot about the list and bought two pairs of live swans. Polushkin wanted the lake to become Swan again. And also Polushkin found Marina, the wife of Yuri Petrovich, and found out that she had a different family for a long time.
Polushkin arranged swans in a house near the Black Lake, and placed two more birds on the sides of the house made of light wood. Yuri Petrovich returned from Leningrad alone. Nonna refused to return, and Polushkin was already thinking: should he go to Leningrad?
That night, when Polushkin heard a strange noise in his forest, "was wonderfully robbery." On the eve of the village store Kolka met the same tourist that the anthill set fire to, with a full bag of vodka. That's why Yegor drove his horse through the night, autumn and wet forests, even Kharitina could not restrain. Explosions came from Black Lake - there jammed the fish. Having run out into the light, to the fire, Egor saw a bowler over the fire, from which swan paws peeped. The rest of the swans, already plucked, lay near the fire, and the fifth wooden swan burned in the fire. These poachers were brought to the lake by Phil and Skull, and they also beat him, and someone the third dog got the dog. We found Yegor by the evening of the next day. He crawled to the house, and a bloody trail stretched behind him from the lake itself.
At the hospital, Polushkin was interrogated by an investigator, but Yegor did not extradite those whom he recognized. And he recognized not only former friends, but also Fedor Ipatovich. Buryanov came to the hospital to apologize, brought a bottle of expensive cognac. Yegor forgave, but didn’t want cognac, and Fedor Ipatovich seemed bitter about an expensive French drink. Polushkin closed his eyes and "stepped over pain, sadness and longing," and then galloped on a horse "to where the endless battle is going on and where the black creature, wriggling, still spews evil." And Kolka gave Vovka a spinning for a puppy.
From the author
Once in the forest, the author each time recalls Yegor and those who knew him. “The shard fell under the decree,” and Filya still drinks and covens. Every spring, he paints a tin obelisk on the grave of Polushkin. Fedor Ipatovich’s house was taken away, and he left with the whole family. On the Black Lake - another forester, so Kolka does not like to go there. Yuri Petrovis Chuvalov received an apartment and married a pregnant Nonna Yuryevna. Almost the entire largest room in the Chuvalovs' apartment is occupied by the figure of a woman carved by Egor. But Black Lake did not become Swan, "it must be now up to Kolka."
