This story is set in May 1959 and starts in Scotland Yard, the headquarters of the Metropolitan Police in London. The department is the Special Branch that handles crime investigations of all government departments and embassies, including the Royal Hong Kong Police Constabulary. A telex arrives in the department of the special branch, which Commander Joseph Watson runs. He sees it, and it tells him that a Foreign Office manager and his Assistant have been killed in a road accident. Joseph orders the Special Branch officers in Hong Kong to investigate and report to him. However, within forty-eight hours, they are murdered. The Deputy Commissioner is asked to attend a meeting at the prime minister's office at Ten Downing Street. Then Commander Joseph Watson is summoned to see the Prime Minister after that meeting. The story unfolds, and Joseph is sent with his team to Hong Kong by the Prime Minister, and he is to report back to the cabinet on what he finds. The story takes him back to the UK and involves the police and Royal Family in the UK. How does Joseph deal with it, and where does he get help to crack the most extensive police investigation in its history?