"Death plays backgammon tirelessly: we are checkers..." The wise merchant Rakhmatullo knew these lines of the great Ibn Sina well. But the merchant did not know - after he accidentally finds himself at a poetry competition in the Khan's palace, he will have to investigate the death of the ruler's favorite poet, the sweet-sounding nightingale of Bukhara, find out the dirty secrets of the deceased and enter into a real game with the killer, the stake in which will be the life of an innocent person and well-being of your hometown.