Austra arrives to a small Latvian town to work for a state institution and faces disinterest and carelessness from her colleagues. Her other troubles include a difficult relationship with her daughter and a sudden falling in love.
Poor countryside girl Elza has been unsuccessfully looking for a job in Riga before she gets help from an acquantance. After that, fortune seems to turn and rich aged factory owner Ķikulis wants to marry Elza. Reluctant at first, she finally agrees but the marriage doesn't go smoothly.
