Amable Houlbreque, the owner of a miserable farm in the Pays de Caux objects to Césaire, his son, marrying Céleste, a brave and beautiful farm girl. All this because Céleste had a son from a farm hand and the old miser refuses to bring up a child who is not his. All the same, Césaire end Céleste settle down at the farm and the young man works tirelessly to feed the household.