May 1867. A secret package disappears from the office of the Vice-Chancellor of the Russian Empire, Prince Gorchakov. If the text of the agreement on the sale of Alaska is not found in the near future, an international scandal will break out, and the prince himself, as a man of honor, will be forced to resign. The senior investigator of the District Court, collegiate assessor Charov, takes on the case. During the investigation, he reveals criminal connections between Foreign Ministry employees and a British intelligence resident who is ready to do anything to cover his tracks... The book contains obscene language.