At the inn, several travelers take refuge from the weather. One of them claims that “every saved person ... an angel guides”, and the angel himself drove him. He pronounces the following story, kneeling, because everything that happened is "a very sacred and terrible thing."

Markusha, an “insignificant person” born in the “old Russian faith”, serves as a bricklayer in the Luka Kirillov artel, the most wonderful icon in which is the image of an angel. On the Dnieper, the artel builds a stone bridge with the British and lives for three years with a "peaceful" spirit and feels the "predominance of divine nature". But after the ignorant and reminiscent of the “camel” Mara invents a special way to break the strongest bolts, fame goes about the Old Believers. Pimen Ivanov, who, unlike the “real power old believers”, does not shy away from communicating with officials, meets with the wife of an “important person,” who asks the Old Believers to beg her daughter. Pimen does not tell the Old Believers anything about this, nor about subsequent assignments, but they are all being fulfilled. Having paid with Pimen money “for candles and oil,” the lady expresses a desire to look at the guardian angel, and Pimen has to tell the Old Believers about everything. The next morning, after the lady’s arrival, the wife of Luka Kirillov, aunt Mikhailitsa, says that at night the angel came down from the icon. At this time, the husband of the lady, for whom Pimen is “praying”, receives a bribe from the “Jews”, but they deceive him and demand more. The lady demands this money from the Old Believers. Old believers do not have that kind of money, and gendarmes attack their home, “seal” the icons, including the face of an angel, with wax, take them away and dump them in the basement. The icon with the angel is being watched by the bishop, and she is placed in the altar. The Old Believers decide to change the keeper - “to steal and print,” and “to fulfill this determination” they choose the narrator of this story and the well-meaning lad Levontius.

Meanwhile, according to Pimen, “the pegota went” suddenly, and the Old Believers were attacked by “pure longing,” and with it an eye disease, which could only be cured by the guardian icon. Such piety touches the eldest among the British, Yakov Yakovlevich, to whom Markusha explains that an artist from the city will not be able to execute an exact copy, to imagine "the type of person is not heavenly." And the icon is that of Stroganov’s drawing, and it is very different from other scriptures. And today, "the type of high inspiration is lost" and "in the new schools of art, the widespread corruption of feelings is developed and the hectic mind obeys." “Scripture is not given to everyone to comprehend, and the heavenly glory depicted greatly helps to think about money and all the glory of the earth as nothing but an abomination to the Lord.” The Old Believers themselves pray "the Christian death of the abdomen and a good answer at a terrible trial." The Englishman and his wife are so moved by such speeches that they give Markush money, and he and the “silver-haired” Levontius set off in search of an isograph.

They reach Moscow, the “ancient Russian society of the glorious tsarina,” but they are not comforted by it either, believing that antiquity in Moscow is not based on “good nature and piety, but on single stubbornness”. And the masters in art are sloppy, everyone stands before each other or, “combining gangs”, drink wine at taverns and praise their art “with puffed arrogance”. Boredom attacks Markusha, and Leontius is afraid that he can “hold off the temptation”, and expresses a desire to see the angry old man Pamva and understand what the “grace” of the ruling church is. To all the protests of Markushi that the church "coffee" drink and eat hares, Leontius responds with his education. From Moscow, travelers go to Suzdal to search for the isograph of Sevastyan, and are lost on the road chosen by Markusha. Levontius looks sick and refuses to go. But a small old man who appeared from the forest encourages him to get up and leads the travelers to his home. Markusha understands that this is Pamva angry.

Pamva releases the soul from Levontius, “like a dove from a cage,” and the lad dies. Markusha cannot be blamed for the elder: “this man is irresistible with such humility,” but he decides that “if there are only two such people in the church, then we are lost, for this is animated with love.” When Markusha walks through the forest, Pamva again appears to him and says: “An angel lives in the soul, but is sealed, and love will set him free.” Markusha flees from the old man and meets isographist Sevastyan, with whom he returns to the artel. To test the ability of the isographer, Yakov Yakovlevich asks him to write an icon for his wife, Sevastyan learns that the Englishwoman is praying for children, and writes the icon with such a subtlety of a "petty-copy" letter that the English did not hear about. But she refuses to copy the portrait of the Englishwoman into the ring so as not to "humiliate" her art.

Yakov Yakovlevich asks Vladyka to return the angel to the artel for a while in order to gilt the riza on the sealed angel and decorate the crown. But the bishop gives only the robe. Sevastyan explains to the Englishman that a genuine icon is needed. He first expels the isograph, but then he volunteers to commit the theft and agrees that while the all-night bishop goes, they write a copy, remove the old icon from the old board, insert fakes, and Yakov Yakovlevich was able to put it again on the window, as if nothing had happened . The Englishman takes with him the strong-willed Kovach Maroy, so that he takes all the blame and “suffers death” if the Old Believers deceive. The contract is held on the basis of "mutual trust."

The action is successful, but Sevastyan refuses to stamp the copy, and the Englishwoman has to do it. At this time, the ice starts to move, and in time to cross to the other side, Luka, under the singing of the Old Believers, crosses the river along the bridge chain. Mara sees over him a glow and protection by angels. Sealing wax disappears on a copy of the icon, and Luke confesses to the bishop, who replies that the Old Believers “removed the seal from his angel with a bundle, and the other took it off himself and brought you here.” The Old Believers requested by the bishop “of the body and blood of the Savior are introduced to the mass of poverty”. And with them, Markush, who, after meeting with the old man Pamva, "has the attraction to animate together with the whole of Russia."

To the amazement of travelers about the disappeared seal, Markush says that the English seal was paper and dropped out. Against the fact that everything happened in the usual manner, the Old Believers do not argue: "anyway, in what ways the Lord will seek a person, if only to seek it." Markusha wishes everyone a Happy New Year and asks forgiveness of Christ for his own sake, ignorant.