Old Grandpa Meiners has to shout every word into his old-fashioned earpiece if he is to understand anything at all. That's why he doesn't notice the false friendliness of his daughter-in-law Bertha at first. All that matters to her is that the old man finally hands over the farm to Jochen, her husband, who is completely under her thumb. Only her niece Elke and the farmhand Bernd can see through the false game. But all attempts to open the old man's eyes fail because Bertha has succeeded in making Elke look bad to the old man. At the last minute, Bernd manages to play another ear trumpet into the old man's hands. Although it resembles the old ear trumpet on the outside, its built-in electric hearing aid makes the old man so perceptive that he not only hears the ticking of the clock, but also finds out what his daughter-in-law is up to.