The third quarter of the XIX century., The era of the Second Empire, Paris. In the poorly furnished room lies an old woman - Mademoiselle de Varandale. Near the bed on her knees is her maid - Germini Lacerte. Rejoicing in the recovery of the mistress, the maidservant flashes her memories - after all, the young lady de Varandale is so much like her mother! And Germini's mother died when her daughter was only five years old, and after her death, the life of the family did not work out. My father drank, the elder brother became the breadwinner, one sister worked in service, the other sewed with wealthy gentlemen. But then his father died, and his brother followed him. The sisters went to work in Paris, where Germini was soon sent. She was then fourteen years old ...
The old woman listens in silence, comparing her life with the life of a servant. Joyless memories overcome her ...
In childhood, Mademoiselle de Varandale was also deprived of parental affection: neither her father nor her mother, the opera diva, cared for her. On the eve of the revolution, the mother escaped, leaving her husband with her daughter and son. During the Terror, the family lived under the vigorous fear of death. At the request of his father, who wanted to show loyalty to the regime, the revolutionary authorities performed a civil baptismal ceremony over Mademoiselle de Varandale and called it Sempronia. The girl was the pillar of the family: she stood in lines for bread and looked after her father and brother. During the period of the Empire, when the financial situation of Mr. de Varandale improved, he still treated his daughter as a servant, did not consider it necessary to dress her and bring her to light. The brother of Sempronia went to America.
Mr. de Varandale spent all the money on the purchase of paintings, hoping then it would be profitable to sell them. However, speculation failed: the masterpieces he bought were in fact rude fakes. The ruined Mr. de Varandale left for the province and settled in a small house, leaving his daughter to do all the dirty work in it. When he finally hired a maid, he immediately made her his mistress, and she soon began to push him around. Then Sempronia told her father to choose: she or her lover. The old man was frightened, calculated the maidservant, but, holding his grudge, began to petty revenge on his daughter, not letting go of her and constantly demanding her presence in the house.
Shortly before the death of his father, the brother of Sempronia returned from America with his mulatto wife and two daughters. When Mr. de Varandale died, the sister offered her brother part of her small inheritance from the bottom of her heart. Together they settled in Paris. Jealous of brother to sister, the wife began to plague the unfortunate old maid.
Then Mademoiselle de Varandale rented a separate lodging for herself and resumed acquaintances with relatives: “she hosted those to whom the Restoration had regained influence and power, went to visit those whom the new government left in shadow and poverty,” and her life flowed once and for all routine. ” If some of the acquaintances had trouble, she immediately ran to and remained in the house as long as there was a need for her help. She lived more than modestly, however, she allowed herself the luxury of showering the children of acquaintances with sweets and seeing joy on childish faces in response.
The long-suffering life of the old virgin taught her to neglect human weaknesses. She was cheerful, full of kindness, but devoid of the gift of forgiveness.
Years passed, the Mademoiselle de Varandale family, everyone she loved died, and the only place for her walks was the cemetery, where she took care of expensive graves ...
Lost in memory, Mademoiselle no longer listens to the maid. Therefore, we continue the simple story of Germini Lacerte ...
Arriving in Paris, she works in a seedy cafe where waiters pester her. The girl begs the sisters to pick her up from there, but they do not want to listen to her. An elderly waiter, being alone with her, rapes her.
Shocked Germini begins to be afraid of men. Soon she realizes that she is pregnant. The sisters in every possible way plague her, and the child is born dead. Germini is again served, she is constantly starving. As soon as she died of starvation, she gets to the former actor, and he begins to take care of her. But the actor soon dies, and Germini, having been tormented in search of a place, finally arrives at Madame de Varandale, who has just buried her maid.
At this time, Germini falls into deep piety, giving the unclaimed tenderness of her heart to a young kind-hearted priest. However, when the priest realizes that Germini's reverence is directed primarily at him, he passes it on to another priest, and Germini completely stops going to church.
Family misfortunes direct her thoughts in a different direction. Her sister dies, and her husband, leaving her sick three-year-old daughter, leaves the city. Germini hires the old woman, settles her together with her niece in the house where Mademoiselle de Varandale lives, runs every minute to look after the baby and literally saves her from death. But then, before leaving for Africa, Germini visits her other sister and offers to take the girl away: after all, Germini cannot take the child to her, for Mademoiselle is old and she needs peace, Germini only needs to give her niece money for the trip.
Arriving in Africa, the sister dies. Her husband sends letters of complaint, demanding money for the maintenance of the girl. Germini wants to drop everything and leave for her niece, but she suddenly finds out that the girl has long passed away, following her sister. And Germini immediately forgets about her desire.
Near the house mademoiselle is a dairy shop, which is bought by fellow countrywoman Germini, the thick and talkative mother Jupillon. Germini often comes to her place to buy food and remember her native land. Soon she begins to spend all her free time there, goes with her mistress to her son, who is studying at a boarding school for "common children and illegitimate children." When mother Jupillon falls ill, Germini herself visits the child, brings him gifts and buys clothes. Fat Jupillon is happy: she got a free handmaid, who, in addition, spends her own money on her child.
But Jupillon, the headman, leaves the guesthouse. Germini's maternal feelings for a young loafer gradually develop into a love passion. Taking advantage of the fact that Mademoiselle’s service is not burdensome, she spends all day in the dairy, admiring her handsome. "Pungent and impudent," Jupillon is ready to drag around for every pretty face. Having mastered Germini, he quickly gets fed up with it. All and sundry make fun of the novel "old woman" Germini. Until recently, Germini was the most respected servant in the quarter, and now any merchant considers it her duty to foist her a rotten product, confident that she will not complain to the mistress, for she carefully hides from her all her adventures.
Begging for the love of the arrogant youth, Germini sells her few jewelry, buys him a workshop and furnishes it. Accepting this gift, Jupillon does not even find words of gratitude.
From Jupillon, Germini has a daughter. Hiding this event from the mistress, she arranges a daughter in the country at the nurse's side and every Sunday, together with Jupillon, visits her. Suddenly news comes that the child is sick. Fearing that Mademoiselle will reveal her secret, Germini is waiting for the end of the week. Procrastination is fatal: the child dies.
Germini falls into stupid despair. When the first grief passes, she begins to drink, carefully hiding it from Madame de Varandale.
Unable to withstand the treachery of his lover, Germini confesses to all his mother. She, of course, takes the side of her son, and when Germini timidly asks her to return the money spent on the workshop, she is accused of trying to "buy" the poor boy and ruin his life.
Germini breaks with the dairy and, for all her hardships, recoups herself with Mademoiselle: she dares her, runs the farm through her sleeves. The lonely old woman suffers everything, since she has long looked at Germini as "a man who will ever close her eyes." She is ready to console the maid, but, knowing nothing about her life outside the home, cannot help her.
Jupillon draws lots. To pay off the soldiers, you need money. Mother and son decide to circle Germini around her finger and make her fork out. Having met Germini on the street, Jupillon pretends that she is in a quarrel only with his mother, and he still treats her very well. He leads her into the dairy, mother Jupillon sheds crocodile tears, and Germini is silent, but from the look of her, Jupillon becomes scared.
A week later, Germini returns, carrying the money collected on a penny in a scarf. She borrowed from everyone she could, and now is in bondage around the entire block, for her salary is barely enough to pay interest. She understands that Jupillon does not love her, but the thought that he will fall on the battlefield terrifies her.
Germini herself is surprised at how low she fell, but can not help herself: she is ready to do anything to keep Jupillon, who again became her lover - solely because of the money, because her wallet is always at his service. Germini drinks, lies Mademoiselle, and, despite the "almost reverent feeling" she has for the landlady, she steals money from her, confident that she is unlikely to find the loss. Germini dresses in rags, gets weaker, stupid in front of her eyes, turns into a “slaughterhouse,” and Juupillon leaves her.
The unfortunate woman suddenly concentrates all her overwhelming love on mademoiselle. She again becomes a quick and quick-witted servant. However, the idea that the mistress finds out about her debts torments her; no less suffering brings her body desires.
Unable to withstand the love of longing, she enters into a relationship with the master-dagger. He, having decided that Germini has savings, invites her to marry him. Germini refuses to part with Mademoiselle, and her lover abandons her. Fueled by lust, at night she wanders the streets and surrenders to the first comer. Inadvertently, she encounters Jupillon, and a former passion flares up in her with renewed vigor. But her health is finally undermined, and she is seriously ill. And yet she continues to work, for she is afraid that all her sins will immediately come out if the hostess hires another maid. Finally, she becomes so ill that she is taken to the hospital. The hostess visits her, takes care of her. And then one day Mademoiselle comes to Germini, and she is asked to identify the corpse.
To the shocked death of the maidservant Mademoiselle, creditors with Jermini's receipts begin to flock. Paying the debts of the deceased, Madame de Varandale learns about the side of her servant’s unknown life. From surprise and anger, the old maid falls ill. But gradually her anger passes, only pity remains. She goes to the cemetery, finds a common grave and kneels where, along with the other poor people, the sorrowful remains of Germini now rest. "... Fate wished that the body of the sufferer would remain underground as homeless as her heart was on earth."
