Lazzaro (Adriano Tardiolo) is an adolescent peasant living in the isolated village of Inviolata, where he and his fellow workers in the tobacco fields are ruthlessly exploited by Marchesa Alfonsino de Luna (Nicoletta Braschi).
Lazzaro strikes up a close relationship with the marchesa's son Tancredi (Luca Chikovani), who decides to fake his own kidnapping to end his mother's exploitation of her workers and enlists his new friend's help.