The reader may remember that the father of Vikenty Irtenyev, the hero of the novels “The Viennese Tale”, “Between Time” and “The House in the Back Street”, was an officer of the Russian General Staff. But he was also a scout! This book tells about two unusual, complex and dangerous raids against the enemies of the Empire, undertaken by Irtenyev Sr. on the eve of the upheavals that befell our Fatherland.