"Goodness me, madam! The people don't complain. They give alms to strangers. Should they refuse a mite to their own master's son?"
"I'll teach them to give mites! I'll have the blockhead deported to your estate, and the community will have to maintain him at its own expense."
"As you command, madam."
"What? What did you say?"
"As you command, my lady. If you order it, we shall feed him."
"That's better. But talk sensibly."
A pause ensued. Then the bailiff, true to his nature and his nickname, lost patience and began to shift from one leg to another, obviously burning with the desire to unburden his mind of something.
"He's a clever one, though," he finally blurted out. "People say he brought back a hundred rubles from the campaign. It isn't a fortune, but still one can live on it for a time."
"Well?"
"He thought he might improve his situation and went in for a shady business."