In the middle of the night Giovanni, Alfonso's servant, a stingy and neurotic gentleman, is woken up by two of the master's friends who, drunk, offer him help in carrying out a prank against him. The mockery is cruel but the reward is high and after many hesitations Giovanni accepts. The two gentlemen, however, do not take into account the conflicting feelings that inhabit the servant, and the joke, so well planned, turns into tragedy.