Pave, Hese, Timppa, and Viiksi have ended up in Hell, where the heat makes them feel as comfortable as in a sauna. The bosses there don't like this, so they send the boys on vacation to their home country, Finland. They are given a briefcase full of money to live a life of luxury. The only condition is that they are not allowed to do honest work, and to make matters worse, they are told that alcohol will not go to their heads.

A new steward, agronomist Paul, arrives at the Siltala estate. The self-assured steward causes tension among the gentry, especially among the estate's owner, Captain Lilli's widow. The flamboyant Lieutenant Hugo courts the owner of Siltala, but Lilli and Paul find common ground.

In the rural landscape of southern Häme, the lost will of the recently deceased Ojala is being sought. In its absence, Olli, the master's nephew, takes possession of the house. The devious Olli tries to win over Anna, the daughter of the Roinila family, who is fond of Mauno, the farmhand.

Sten Lehtoja, a married, middle-aged businessman, picks up a young hitchhiker, Elsie, while driving to his summer home. Elsie spends the night and becomes his mistress. Later during the summer, Elsie also begins an affair with Reino, the teenage son of a local storekeeper. Sten offers to divorce his wife, and Elsie, attracted by the prospect of a secure social position, agrees to marry him when the divorce becomes final. One night when the couple are in bed, Reino climbs a ladder and attempts to force his way into their room; he falls and breaks his neck, and to avoid scandal Sten hides the body. But the strain of guilt ruins the romance, and Elsie contacts the police, who arrest her lover.

Adalbert "Mussu" Koikkalainen inherits 9,000 marks from his uncle. To buy a milk shop, Koikkalainen needs another thousand marks and work experience, so he applies for a job at the department store Sampo, where he is hired as a scapegoat to receive customer complaints. The saleswoman Irja Salo, who is under threat of dismissal, falls in love with the general manager Vaara, whom she thinks is a traveling salesman.

Paavo and Eeva, two young people who have moved from the countryside to the city, meet a gang led by Kalle, who spend their time loitering and committing petty crimes. A fateful evening on a motorboat irrevocably changes the young people's lives.