Yesirkep opened the door, Zhumat jumped out of the office, as if on cue, and smiled at the boss apolo- getically. ‘Shut it off!’ commanded Yesirkep. ‘What? ‘The engine.’ ‘How did we break down? Is the cylinder jammed? ‘Say it’s broken, that’s all!’ ‘Will do.’ The people standing in the back made a ruckus: ‘Yeah! Let’s go! Zhumat will shut it down himself as well. Yesirkep got in the car and slammed the door with a crack. There was indeed a wedding going on at the house behind the gate. The young man, having dropped Ye- sirkep off at his house, drove away quickly. He took the key from the hand-washing stand and entered the house. ‘The poor woman,’ he decided, ‘must be staying with the neighbours; she cannot have fun at the wedding because of me.’ He suddenly felt pity for his wife and children. He was deeply moved and lay down to listen to the sounds from the street… He woke up to loud voices. ‘Oh, I think your dad’s here! That’s right, his suit- case!’ He heard his wife’s voice and finally woke up. ‘Well, where do you go, you little foals!’ He got up from the cushions, fumbled with the children in the dark and kissed them. ‘Why are you lying in the dark? Shall I turn on the light?’ said the wife. ‘We’ll talk about that later… There will be no light today,’ said Yesirkep. ‘Light the paraffin lamp.’ ‘What do you mean “later”?’ What happened to the lights? Come on!’ His wife flicked the switch, and the bulb on the string under the ceiling flashed dazzlingly. ‘Oooh, the dog! Still not jammed!’ Yesirkep frowned and began to put on his boots. ‘Where are you going? You’re crazy!’ His wife snapped her hands in a sorrowful voice. Yesirkep, wasting no time, jumped out into the street. The village was flooded with bright light. Ye- sirkep listened… The diesels were silent. He staggered on, lost in thought, when suddenly, like lightning, an idea flashed into his mind… ‘Listen, those four were giggling suspiciously when they came to the wedding,’ Kamasiya said thoughtful- ly. ‘Maybe they are up to something again…?’ ‘Who are you talking about?’ The wife said who she was referring to… Yesirkep stood in one place for a long time. Then, exhausted, he sank down on the block and wept. At dawn he knocked