In the old Moscow apartment lives Claudia Vasilievna Savina. She has four children, everyone lives with her. Senior Fedor, a chemist, Ph.D., recently married. His wife's name is Lena. Daughter Tatyana - she is nineteen years old - is studying at the institute. Eighteen-year-old Nikolai works in repair shops. The youngest, Oleg, is fifteen.
In the morning, Lena hurries to sell Czech sideboards. They should soon be given a separate apartment, and therefore Lena is idle for days waiting in lines for beautiful, expensive furniture. The room in which the action of the play takes place is full of furniture already purchased. The furniture is covered with covers and rags, and no one touches it, since Lena is afraid to “spoil” something. She speaks with her husband only about furniture and money, "sharpen it and sharpen it."
Ivan Nikitich Lapshin and his son Gena come to the Savins. For several years now they have been coming to Moscow to the brother of Ivan Nikitich, who Savin is a neighbor. Lapshin came to ask for "tea leaves." Gene is embarrassed. He is in love with Tanya and is shy of his father, who prefers to borrow from another than to spend his own. Ivan Nikitich is trying to marry his son and for this purpose bought him an accordion to “lure the girls”, as with the instrument “there will be respect”. He believes that young people are growing too smart, began to reason a lot. At breakfast, he laughs at his son, telling various funny and absurd details about him. Oleg sympathizes with Gene and, when Lapshin tries to lecture him too, explodes and makes a remark to Lapshin. He is offended and leaves.
Oleg apologizes to Gena and says that he does not tolerate when people are insulted. Gena says that over time Oleg will get used to it. He talks impassively that his father beats him and his mother. Oleg is terrified, and Gena says that “there is no wear to the tanned skin,” he pulls out a hundred from his father’s jacket, hides it. Oleg is horrified again, but for Gena, everything is in order.
Leonid Pavlovich comes to Fedor. He is thirty-two years old, he is a graduate student, earns well, his parents are now in China. Leonid takes care of Tanya. Gene, seeing him, wants to leave, but Oleg stops him so that he looks at the fish, the aquarium with which is standing on the window. Walking away from the window, Oleg jumps over a new desk, at which Fedor allowed Tanya to work out, and overturns the ink bottle. Ink fills the table. Oleg is terrified. He and Gena try in vain to wipe the puddle. Gene is going to take the blame on himself, but Oleg does not agree: Lena must understand that he did it by accident.
Lena brings a sideboard. She shines, admires the thing and talks about what she endured because of him. Oleg tries to talk to her, but she brushes aside, starts a conversation with Tanya about Leonid, persuades her to marry him, since he is a brilliant party. Oleg finally manages to tell everything. Before that, he takes the word from Lena that she will not scold him. But Lena seems to break loose, calls Oleg a "reptile" and a "bully", and when he finds out that this happened because of the fish, he grabs the aquarium and throws it out the window. Oleg rushes after them into the yard, but does not have time: cats eat fish. Returning, he weeps, tears off covers from furniture, grabs a saber hanging over a sofa, and begins to chop things. Then runs away. Gena and Kolya rush after him. Lena, like crazy, rushing from thing to thing. Fedor runs confusedly after her.
Some things endure. Lena is bad. Uncle Vasya, a Savinykh neighbor, promises to repair damaged furniture. Claudia Vasilyevna is worried that Oleg ran away from home. Leonid and Tanya are left alone. Leonid uses the moment to once again remind Tanya about his feelings. Tanya does not listen to him: she needs to talk. She recalls how friendly and happy they once lived. Now all this has changed, since Fedor, whom everyone loved very much, has changed. Tanya is interested in how Fedor is treated at work. Leonid says that their team is an eternal squabble, a struggle. Fedor "dances at the same height, wanting to take everything from her." They began to envy him. According to Leonid, Fedor develops his behavior in life. Tanya is amazed and disappointed.
Fedor is trying to calm Lena. She reproaches her husband that he is used to living in a “bedbug with a whole kagal”, that he doesn’t give a damn about her, that everyone insults and hates her and that she doesn’t want to live here any more. leaves. Fedor is trying to justify Lena in front of his mother. But she only regrets that her son is becoming a different, tradesman, that he has long since abandoned his "cherished" business and it is unlikely that he will have the strength to continue it. He says that a good wife should first of all take care of the human dignity of her husband. Fedora is calling Lena. The conversation is interrupted.
Oleg and Gennady come, who hid Oleg in his room, until the scandal subsided. Gena is taken away by his father - to get home. Fedor and Lena enter. Lena is trying to beat Oleg. Fedor takes them apart. When Lena leaves, Oleg says that he will give all the money for the furniture when he grows up, and notices that Fedor is crying. Gene comes and gives Oleg a new aquarium. Oleg at first rejoices, but, recalling that the fish were bought for a stolen hundred, he refuses the gift.
Lena asks Leonid to let them live with Fedor until the fall to live with him. Leonid agrees. Fedor is not happy to move. Gene asks Fedor to borrow a hundred rubles. Lena refuses him, but under the persuasion of her husband still gives money. Gene pledges her an accordion.
When Gena and Tanya are left alone, he gives Tanya perfume and confesses his love. Tanya is surprised by the eloquence of Genes. She calls him and his father to have tea before leaving. Suddenly, Gene confesses to his father that he stole money from him, and gives him a hundred. Oleg runs into the corridor and brings an aquarium donated by Gena, puts him in his place. There is an argument again at the table. Claudia Vasilyevna is sure that Lena sells the best human qualities for things, that life is too short to leave everything that we strive for, only to furnish the apartment. Tanya calls Lena a breakthrough. Lena, however, says that they will never understand her and that they are better off living apart. Claudia Vasilievna against Fedy moving. Fedor hesitates, but under pressure from Lena and Leonid yields to them. He gives his main manuscript to his mother and asks to keep it.
Lapshin, in his anger that Gene confessed about money to everyone, wants to beat him, but for the first time he is resisting him. Gene is stronger than his father and from that moment forbids him to beat himself and his mother. Lapshin is surprised and very proud of the behavior of his son. Tanya calls Gena to Moscow next year, promises to write. Leonid, Fedor and Lena are leaving.
