Čičikovljeve pustolovine ili Mrtve duše

The main character, Pavel Ivanovich Chichikov, comes up with the idea that he could buy a list of dead peasants from the ruler, on which they paid taxes, and thus he would buy dead souls, they start asking about him and suspecting him.

It can be seen as an unfinished novel, but it is the best depiction of Russian rule, so critics consider it completed.