Hayase, a schoolteacher, assists Sakai in editing a German-Japanese dictionary. Hayase owes much to Sakai, as Sakai raised him for 13 years after Hayase lost his parents in a war. Hayase has been secretly married to Otsuta, a former geisha, and has been unable to tell Sakai of the marriage, aware as he is that Sakai wants him to marry his daughter, Taeko. Otsuta wants Hayase to tell Sakai about her, but understands the difficulty of his position. At a festival, Otsuta is mistaken for a pickpocket and taken to the police. Because of her background as a geisha, newspaper reporters eagerly delve into her past and report that she has been married to Hayase. Unaware of what has been printed in the papers, Hayase decides to tell Sakai about his marriage. Sakai shows the newspaper to him and orders Hayase to part with Otsuta. Given no chance to explain, Hayase accepts Sakai's order.

По мотивам одноименного сентиментального романа Кёка Идзуми, опубликованного в 1907 году. О-Цута расстаётся с жизнью гейши ради любимого Хаясэ. Её возлюбленный - настоящий учёный, он помогает знаменитому профессору Сакаи в работе над первым немецко-японским словарем. О-Цута такая необразованная, но она вовсю старается стать настоящей женой для любимого. Однако Хаясэ пока не решился попросить у своего учителя разрешение на брак, поэтому влюбленным приходится прятаться от общества.