For millions of people, the countdown has begun. In 1997, Britain must hand over Hong Kong to Communist China, with incalculable repercussions for the balance of power in the Far East. For China, it is the fulfillment of a dream - and the elite of Chinese Central Intelligence, the Mahjongg Brigade, has perfected a plan that will make China's position in Hong Kong unassailable. But the Russians are intent on destroy8ing the financial structure of Hong Kong so that in 1997, China will inherit an empty shell.

A powerful English businessman who has made Hong Kong his home finds himself in the middle of a life-and-death struggle between the KGB, who plot to thwart the present plan for China's repossession of the territory, and the Chinese Secret service, who have a daring counterplan of their own. The thrilling adventure moves from the inner sanctums of China's all-powerful intelligence agency and Hong Kong's commercial empires, through the teeming alleys of Singapore, to the brothels and boardrooms of the rich and powerful, and, eventually, to a peasant village in rural Sichuan that has remained unchanged for centuries.

Caught in the epic sweep of this gripping story are Simon Young, determined to keep his corporation in Hong Kong after others are ready to leave, and his strange adversary, Qiu Qian Wei, a brilliant Chinese intelligence officer who has been charged with pulling off the coup of the century by using the powerful Englishman. Simon has personal problems as well, for his wife Jinny, is not what she seems, and his entire family becomes insidiously entwined in and threatened by the international power struggle taking place around them. Whatever else, Simon must learn the rules of the game. And, above all, he must remember the old maxim: Owe your bank a thousand and it has you at its mercy; owe it a million and you have it at yours.

This hardback book is in good condition and weighs 1 lb and 11.4 oz.