Four friends - young scientists - Oleg Ignatiev, Alexey Sorokin, Gennady Shagayev and Veronika come to rest in Crimea. The guys are passionate about diving, and Veronika, who has long been in love with Oleg, is keenly experiencing her lover's betrayal. After all, his bride Ksenia comes to visit Oleg. Ignatiev’s friends are also surprised - they were sure of the fortress of the union between Veronika and Oleg ... Two years later, Oleg’s friends and his wife Ksenia listen with horror to the court’s sentence: Ignatiev receives a sentence for robbing a jewelry store. Despite the efforts of Gennady, who hired a friend to a lawyer, Oleg refuses the possibility of parole. Friends still do not know about Oleg’s plans through his acquaintance felon to earn money on a “lightning rod” - to serve someone else’s term for an authority named Bars. In the chamber, Ignatiev meets the pinch thief Gavrilych. Upon learning of her husband’s decision to remain in prison, Ksenia filed for divorce.
With the help of Gavrilych, Oleg meets Bars himself in a prison bath and confirms his desire to take on the “lightning rod”. Now Ignatiev will have to study the habits of prison authority and the laws of the thieves' world. Bars instructs Gavrilych to go with Oleg to the strict-security zone to help the newcomer get comfortable in an unfamiliar environment. After all, now Oleg will have to serve eight years instead of the year set for him. Bars orders his people to prepare an operation to replace criminal cases. The price of Oleg’s heroic deed - a million dollars - is confirmed by Bars.
Oleg agrees with Bars on a "lightning rod." But he makes a condition: Gavrilych must go to the "Lake" with Oleg. Gavrilych is frightened - the area in which it will be necessary to go is considered to be “rotten” and dangerous for prisoners. Oleg and Gavrilych are transferred to the same cell with Bars. Meanwhile, police officer Vasily Belobrovy, who was bribed by Barca’s people, is given the task of swapping documents in the criminal cases of Oleg and Bars. To do this, Vasily begins to look after an employee of the prison archive.
Belobrov is able to change the documents of Oleg and Bars. But when the task is completed, the Barca people clean it. Gavrilych, on the other hand, makes an attempt to avoid being escorted along with Oleg to Ozerny, imitating a stomach ulcer attack, but Bars quickly returns him to the cell, hinting that an old thief could sign a death sentence with his refusal. In the meantime, Ksenia receives Oleg’s fee from the organizers of the “lightning rod”. According to her husband’s plan, she gets a merchandiser in a bookstore, from which they are allowed to send parcels to Ozerny. Soon Oleg according to the documents of Barca goes to the stage with Gavrilych. Already on the train, it was discovered that Oleg’s new tattoo, made to achieve complete resemblance to Bars, was inflamed. Gavrilych understands that Oleg is one step away from exposing the "lightning rod" in Ozerny.
Oleg and Gavrilych were transferred to Ozerny. An inflamed tattoo can ruin everything, but Gavrilych finds a way out, although this way out requires Oleg to show willpower. Together, friends have a fight in a prison bath, and Gavrilych deliberately puts a burn on Oleg in place of an inflamed tattoo. The deputy camp chief Rokhlin has his first suspicions of Oleg’s personality. He calls Oleg to himself and finds out that the reason for the conflict is that Oleg’s favorite rosary was taken from him during the search. Finally, the meaning of all the actions of Oleg is revealed: in this colony he is not the only one of the four friends. Among the prisoners of Ozerny, his friend Aleksei Sorokin, who has taken the lowest position in the prison hierarchy — has become a “snitch” is serving his sentence.
The head of the camp, Kolosov, decides to use Oleg to rock the criminal environment of the colony, and sends him in one detachment to Feda Kvas, a young but overly cruel watchman of the third detachment. Too much to help Alexei, Oleg went through too much, and the confrontation with Kvass will definitely not stop him. For the leadership's refusal to place him in the same squad with Gavrilych, Oleg went on a hunger strike, demanding that his rosaries be returned. Gavrilych does not approve of such a decision, but he supports his comrade in everything. The prisoners in the squad, by order of the thief in law Gosha Liver, give Oleg a worthy welcome - as the authority of Bars. But Fedya Kvas is dissatisfied with the appearance of the coolest in his squad.
Having declared a hunger strike because of the rosary taken away, Oleg puts himself against the whole existing order. Rokhlin personally watches him. Using "criminal concepts", Oleg forces Fedya Kvass to punish his own henchmen. Under pressure from Oleg Gavrilych, they are transferred to the third detachment, and Ignatiev himself, after a hungry fainting, ends up in a punishment cell for violating the regime. Oleg recalls the beginning of their collapse with the Gennady Science Laboratory. At an early stage of testing, Oleg began to suspect Gennady of uncleanliness. After all, the ambitious Shagayev almost immediately began to negotiate with foreign businessmen from China on the sale of the invention, which Oleg, Alexey, Veronika and Tsygelnik worked together on. It was Gennady, according to Oleg, who had a hand in closing the state support for their trials, so that with the help of officer Melchalov, the father of graduate student Maxim, gain control of the new invention.
Kolosov orders the rosary to be returned to Oleg, and he stops the hunger strike. Due to the incident with the rosary, Oleg’s authority in prison increases, and prisoners from his squad invite him to become a watcher. However, Rokhlin can not calm down and arranges a total check at the post office, fearing that some of Oleg’s complaints could reach higher authorities. Soon Oleg returns to the hut. The prisoners are happy for his release and welcome the new beholder. But Feda Kvas is not to his liking, and he begins to prepare to kill the opponent. Meanwhile, Gennady, in his laboratory, is trying to finish the series of experiments that he had begun together with his friends, but nothing comes of it. After Alexey killed Maxim and Tsygelnik and was arrested, Oleg was imprisoned, and Veronika began to drink too much, the work of the laboratory was almost paralyzed. Gennady decides to take Veronika out of hard drinking to continue research - after all, his business partner, Melchalov Sr., is rushing to conclude a deal.
Fedya Kvas makes an attempt to kill Oleg, but the meeting ends in a different way. Oleg offers Kvass to “make a breakthrough” together - to organize an escape from Ozerny, a prison from which no one has managed to escape. To develop his plan, Oleg instructs Kvas to drag Alexei into their squad. Rokhlin begins to dig under Kolosov in order to capture his position. Gradually, he convinces all his subordinates to collect incriminating evidence against the head of Ozerny and tighten the prison regime on his behalf. In order to strengthen his power, Oleg softens the laws in his squad. In addition, he convinces the thief Hamsan, whom he had known from the pre-trial detention center, not to “lower” Alexei, who was guilty of Hamsan. Meanwhile, Veronica is gradually emerging from binge. Life in the camp goes on as usual - the son of one of the guard officers Lesha Evgrafov takes care of the young daughter of Rokhlin, Anya.
Alexei is transferred to a detachment controlled by Oleg. Now Alexey and Oleg are together, and no one can humiliate Alexei. In anticipation of the upcoming audit Kolosov tightens the regime in the "Lake". Mass searches and seizures of items prohibited for storage are carried out. During these events, a common fund of the third detachment falls into Kolosov’s hands. But at the request of Gosha Liver Kolosov returns part of the common fund. In addition, subordinates report to Kolosova on the success of Oleg sending letters to international human rights organizations. Kolosov still does not realize that this information is a "linden" transmitted to him according to Rokhlin's plan. Meanwhile, Ksenia, following her husband’s instructions, sends a book with the money hidden in it to Ozerny in the name of Alexei. Gradually, Oleg learns from Alexei the history of the laboratory after his voluntary exit from the project.
Alexei shows Oleg and Kvass his plan of digging for the camp. Rokhlin’s suspicion creeps in that Oleg, for a reason, dragged Alexei to his detachment. Oleg, on the other hand, begins to process the head of the regime and offers him a bribe for organizing mobile communications for convicts. Having learned about this from his subordinates, Kolosov gives the go-ahead for acquiring a telephone for Oleg, hoping in this way to learn all the news of the life of prisoners. In addition, Oleg begins to collect incriminating evidence on the head of the prison depot Margosha to replace him with his man - Alexei. Aleksey sets out to Kolosov his plan for optimizing production in prison. Meanwhile, Ksenia is preparing a new book with money for transfer to the zone. Veronica is alarmed by the "disinterested" help of Gennady. Suddenly, she realizes that all these years, Gennady, like Alexei and Oleg, was in love with her.
Sorokin investigator Meshcheryakov meets with Oleg’s lawyer. Meshcheryakova is concerned about the activity of Xenia, constantly sending letters asking for a review of the Ignatieff case to various authorities. However, the meeting of the lawyer with Xenia does not give anything - he is sure that the girl will not interfere with the investigation. But Meshcheryakova is alarmed by the fact that in the prison of Oleg - that is, Bars instead of him - is considered a geologist, although he is a physicist by profession. Oleg and Alexei continue to plan an escape when a tattoo artist from the Putridtooth jail appears in the camp, who made a tattoo of the leopard Ignatieff. The situation is sharply aggravating - after all, only he can expose Oleg and reveal the substitution of Oleg and Bars. But with the help of Gavrilych, Oleg manages to persuade Rot-Tooth not to give him away.
Rokhlin demands Kvass to tell why Oleg got Aleksey to be transferred to his squad, but Kvass, realizing that he can be punished for tricking, decides to refuse and ends up in a pre-trial detention center on the personal orders of Rokhlin. Oleg is perplexed why Alexey pleaded guilty to double murder, but after Alexey’s story everything falls into place. It turns out that after the murder of the scientific adviser Tsygelnik and graduate student Melchalov, the notebook with the records of the experiments conducted by the entire scientific group disappears without a trace. Rokhlin decides to substitute Oleg, using the informer Margosh. Having promised to close his eyes to violations at the warehouse, Rokhlin gives Margosha drugs for stuffing to Oleg. In the meantime, Ksenia enters into a contract with a lawyer Ufimtsev, under the pressure of which she decides to restart her attempts to get Alexei out of prison. Having returned home after meeting with a lawyer, Ksenia discovers that the million dollars received for the lightning rod disappeared.
In a panic, Ksenia arrives at the Dispatcher’s house in the hope of finding money. Going against the will of the Dispatcher, his assistant Gayun agrees to help her in the search. After examining the rented apartment of Xenia, he concludes that only the landlady Galina, who had come to Xenia the day before, could take the money. Left to the mercy of fate, Ksenia appeals for help to the director of the bookstore with a request to lend her the necessary sum of money for the next sending. However, the director begins to persuade Xenia to intimacy, and the girl is forced to refuse his help. Oleg is puzzled by a new problem: how to do so that thieves can go to the industrial zone, but at the same time do not lose their status.
The head of the camp, Kolosov, decides to tighten the regime in Oleg’s squad: the goal is to find the one who regularly sends letters to human rights organizations. After a conversation with Oleg, Liver decides to check the information himself about what exactly the Dispatcher sent to Oleg's camp under the guise of Bars. Meanwhile, Xenia enters Galina’s house in search of stolen money, but she does not manage to find it right away. Suddenly, the mistress with her nephew and sister returns, and Xenia has to spend the whole night in the underground of someone else's house. Fortunately, the trials are not in vain - in the underground Ksenia discovers part of the stolen money and successfully hides, having rented a new apartment. Having received news from Liver, the Dispatcher arrives at the camp. Together with him, he forcibly brings a friend Oleg - a former prisoner named Artist ...
After a conflict with the owner of the bookstore, Ksenia is fired. The ability to transfer money to the zone is lost. The artist finds Ksenia and with her help settles the conflict with the owner of the truck. In gratitude, the Artist meets with Galina and her family and demands that Ksenia be left alone. Oleg exposes the sharpie to Bonaparte, and in fear of being at the very bottom of the camp hierarchy, Bonaparte agrees to cooperate with Oleg. Ksenia receives a new task from Oleg - to contact Bonaparte and find a witness Zavyalov, who testified against Alexei. Melchalov is furious with the lack of results from Gennady, he is ready to set the Dispatcher again on him. But, fortunately, Gennady manages to provide a successful example of heavy-duty material to both Melchalov and Chinese customers. It seems that the efforts of Veronica in the laboratory were successful, but as a result of the experiment at the stand, it became clear to her and Gennady that this sample was another failure.
Rokhlin, with the help of the snitch Zipper, reveals Ksenia’s trick with transferring money to the zone. However, when checking the next book ordered by Alexei, it was not fortunate to find money in it - after Ksenia's dismissal, another store employee takes them out of the prepared copy and sends an empty book to the zone. Meanwhile, according to Oleg’s plan, Gavrilych makes a copy of the key to the gate of the prison administration. Gavrilych is getting worse - he is applying for hospitalization to the district hospital, but Kolosov, who suspects the old man from Rokhlin’s submission of documents to human rights organizations, refuses Gavrilych’s request. Kvass is released from the BUR. From the prints of wiretapping of Oleg’s mobile phone, the head of the camp, Kolosov, learns that an escape plan appeared on the thieves in the area. The question arises: what kind of plan is this and who developed it? ..
Ufimtsev tells Xenia that the main witness in the Sorokin case Zavyalov was killed. Fearing Melchalov’s wrath, Gennady hides from him that the prototype is not yet ready, and requires Veronica to speed up the work. But Veronica is convinced that no one except Oleg is able to bring the test to the end. Ufimtsev appeals for help in the release of Oleg and the investigation of Alexey’s case to investigator Meshcheryakov and shows him the documents stolen from the laboratory. Soon Barca was informed that a lawyer had come to him to prepare a conditional release. Realizing that the lightning rod can open, and to avoid this meeting, Bars provokes prison guards, and he is placed in a punishment cell. Meanwhile, according to Oleg’s plan, Ksenia arrives at the camp allegedly on a date with her future stepson Bonaparte. In fact, Oleg with his help plans to personally meet with his wife.
Ufimtsev informs Melchalov of his suspicions regarding the involvement of Gennady Shagayev in the murder of Melchalov’s son. As a result, Melchalov asks the Dispatcher to understand this matter. From Ufimtsev Ksenia learns that Bars is leaving the prison on parole. She worries that the substitution can open up, and turns to Gayun for help, who reassures her and promises to solve this problem. Rokhlin is getting closer and closer to unraveling who is the instigator of the planned escape. He suspects that the idea of escape comes from the convicts of the third detachment, in which Oleg and Kvass are serving their sentences. However, during interrogation Oleg refuses to admit his connection with the Dispatcher, who, according to Rokhlin, is in dire need of a swindler to solve his problems in the illegal trade in gold. Meanwhile, Ufimtsev finds out from Meshcheryakov that Shagaev’s partners are dangerous Chinese mafiosi specializing in the purchase of scientific inventions.
After meeting with the Dispatcher, Bars realizes with whose tip he was locked up in prison. This is what the assistant dispatcher Gayun tells him about, who sympathizes with Oleg and is ready to side with Barca. After all, now the Dispatcher wants to crush the illegal gold trading business with Bars, and then get rid of his former partner. Meanwhile, with the filing of a guard officer, Balaev, who is in love with Anna Rokhlina, the ring-maker Gnilozuby lures her chosen one Yevgrafov Jr. into the boiler room, where the prisoners scald the young officer with boiling water. The security officer Evgrafov Sr. finds out the circumstances of the incident and brutally beats Rot-Tooth, trying to get the names of the instigators of violence out of him. Oleg, Aleksey and Kvass continue to prepare for the escape - they send news to their acquaintance, the convict Gavrilych, so that he prepares fake documents for them, while Gosha Liver decides to organize a riot in the camp for thieves ...
After the riot, a commission from the federal center arrives at the camp and conducts an audit, during which all subordinates, at the direction of Rokhlin, blame the camp leader for what happened. Kolosov is removed from his leadership position, and Rokhlin takes his place with enthusiasm for a long time. Oleg provokes Rokhlin and seeks punishment in his own cell. In the next cell with Oleg is Liver, who suddenly received a message from the will about the need to eliminate the Speckled. The dispatcher discovers information about the true killer Tsygelnik and son Melchalov. The life of Gennady exposed in these crimes due to a lucky chance is in the hands of Bars, who, having bribed the people of the Dispatcher, kills Melchalov. Continuing the investigation into the case of Alexei, Ksenia with the help of Veronica finds in the country of the deceased scientist Tsygelnik's notebook with all the notes about the development.
Alexei in a panic: Oleg was locked up in a heavy-duty hut, so there will be no escape? But Kvass reassures him and offers to act in the same way - letting authoritative thieves dig digs into the industrial zone. With the help of the planned denunciation by Alexei Rokhlin, he discovers a trench in the warehouse and convinces the detainees in the act of thieves that they were handed over by Oleg. Veronika gives Tsygelnik’s notebook to Gennady, but his meeting with the Chinese once again ends in failure - in Tsygelnik’s notebook pages are torn out with the most important part of the rationale for the formula of heavy-duty nanomaterial. Bars understands that further cooperation with the Dispatcher is impossible - an extreme measure remains. Killing the Dispatcher with the help of Gayun, Bars finally takes control of the business of Gennady. Meanwhile, Alex and Oleg continue to prepare for the escape.
The escape begins. Leaving the pursuers on a false trail, Oleg, Aleksey and Kvass, with the help of the Artist, are selected from the island by truck. But Rokhlin quickly guesses about their plan to go most of the taiga in a cart along the pipeline under construction. However, only Kvas can be detained, and Oleg and Alexey are hiding from the persecution. Upon learning of the escape and fearing punishment from the Dispatcher, Liver orders to send Bonaparte soon to be released from the camp in search of Oleg. Hoping to get the missing pages from the notebook, with the help of assistant Barca Anton, Gennady finds Veronika and Ksenia, but in revenge to the former comrade, the girls are burned part of the manuscript of Tsygelnik right before his eyes. Then Gennady goes to the camp to Oleg, this is his last chance to complete a deal with the Chinese. He is sure that Oleg will cooperate - after all, Ksenia and Veronika were held hostage by Bars.
Gennady discovers that Oleg and Alexey fled from the colony. Bars is sure that the fugitives should be expected at Xenia’s apartment. Oleg has a conversation with Bars, from which it becomes known that Bars works for the FSB. Going to sign an agreement with Chinese partners, Gennady, together with Alexei, are ambushed by the FSB special group. Gennady manages to escape, and Alexei is detained. Arriving at the house of Gennady in the hope of saving Xenia and Veronica, Oleg kills him in a shootout. Soon, the FSB special department takes control of the development of Tsygelnik, and Oleg and Alexei were invited to head the research laboratory. Bars and Gayun for cooperation with special services receive new documents and go abroad. In the meantime, Bonaparte was released from the camp, forced to find and eliminate the Spotted one for losing the cards by order of Gosha Liver. After all, Oleg was indebted to his brother ...
