Yinzhen and Yintang arrived in Huzhou, the hardest-hit area, after a long and arduous journey.

Along the way, everyone, regardless of age or gender, had anxious eyes, cracked lips, and thin bodies; they looked like they were starving and miserable.

Yinzhen felt a pang of pity and scattered the pastries and food prepared in the carriage along the way, causing a large group of disaster victims to follow behind their convoy.

If it weren't for the soldiers guarding the area, Yinzhen had no doubt that they would have dared to storm the vehicle and rob it.

In stark contrast was the prefect of Huzhou's prominent belly, which even his large official residence couldn't conceal, playfully peeking out in front of everyone.

Yinzhen's expression gradually turned cold, while Yinjiu's lips curled into a wicked smile. He put his arm around the prefect's shoulder and patted the prefect's large belly. "The memorial Father Emperor received said it was extremely urgent. The rice-producing areas of Jiangnan and Zhejiang have been flooded, and the people have lost this year's harvest and are short of food. But looking at you, you don't seem to have suffered any disaster."

Upon hearing this, the prefect subconsciously tightened his stomach and chuckled, "Ninth Master is joking. This is just my natural body shape; I gain weight even from drinking cold water. I've been worried day and night these past few days, and I've already lost quite a bit of weight."

"Then I misunderstood you," Ninth Master said with a grin. "I wonder where Fourth Brother and I will be staying this time?"

The prefect glanced at Yinzhen, who appeared to be on vacation, and thought for a moment: "The temporary palace would have been just right for the two gentlemen, but it was flooded and is now uninhabitable. If the two gentlemen don't mind, perhaps..."

"Let's go to your house then," Yinzhen interrupted him. "We brothers didn't come here to cause trouble or waste money. We'll stay at your house for a while. Hope you don't mind the inconvenience."

The prefect's face stiffened. Although he was unwilling, this situation was within his expectations, and he still led Yinzhen and his entourage to his residence.

As expected of the residence of the prefect of a prefecture, the guest courtyard was so large that it could accommodate their group of over a hundred people. Not to mention the meticulous and thoughtful arrangements, everyone could take a hot bath, as if no major disaster had occurred.

After settling in briefly, Yinzhen and his entourage discussed their course of action with Yintang.

"Later, we'll split into three groups. You and I will each lead a group to conduct an open inspection. The prefect will definitely send people to accompany us, and they'll even have pre-arranged routes for the places we'll go. Xu Qing, while we're gone, disguise yourselves as disaster victims and get a deeper understanding of the situation."

"Was the granary in Huzhou really washed away by the flood?" Yinzhen asked. "We brought relief grain and funds, but the officials in Huzhou Prefecture are not to use them. Anyone who dares to lay a hand on them, I'll chop them up!"

Yin Tang said angrily, "This prefect is obviously no good official. I'll wait until I find something on him."

Over the next few days, Yinzhen and Yintang toured almost the entire Huzhou area. Along the way, they saw groups of disaster victims gathered in small groups, and some charitable organizations were distributing porridge in their own names. Although the bowls were mostly rice water with hardly any rice grains, they were still a lifeline for the people of Huzhou.

Yinzhen had seen people repeatedly queueing up only to be punched and kicked away. They were hungry, cold, and still getting beaten. If this continued, Huzhou would inevitably descend into chaos sooner or later.

Some elderly men and women, who looked very simple and honest, would kneel down when they saw the prefect, calling him "Your Honor, the Upright Official."

After listening to several people's accounts, Yinzhen roughly understood that the large number of merchants in Huzhou Prefecture distributing porridge was due to the efforts of the prefect.

The prefect looked very troubled: "Reporting to the Fourth Prince, I took it upon myself to reduce the taxes of these merchants by two percent next year, and that's why they responded so enthusiastically. Otherwise, they all said they had no grain at home. Our official grain has been destroyed, and the court's relief grain has not yet arrived. If I hadn't taken this drastic measure, the number of people who would have starved to death in the past few days alone would have been this many."

The prefect gestured wildly, looking utterly heartbroken.

The situation was similar for Yinzhen and Yintang; they followed the same pattern and had grateful people.

Even lying feels like a perfunctory act.

Back at their lodgings that evening, Yinzhen dropped his joking demeanor and looked puzzled: "Fourth Brother, do we look like fools?"

Yinzhen, who had been holding his breath all day, was amused by Yintang's words: "We're not stupid, and they're even less stupid. It's just that they feel they don't need to care about us."

"Does Fourth Brother mean that behind him?" Yin Tang realized.

"That's enough grain to last the entire Jiangnan region for at least half a year. How big of a stomach does the prefect have to swallow such a large sum of money?" Yinzhen sneered. "With grain prices soaring these days, it's a rare commodity, and you can make several times the profit just by reselling it."

"Those merchants who distributed porridge are also their people!" Yinzhen realized. "They said they would reduce next year's taxes, which would be a large sum of money."

"Even fleecing sheep wouldn't be this clean!" Yin Tang muttered. "Then what do we do, Fourth Brother? These are all just guesses, there's no evidence."

Yinzhen pondered for a moment and said, "Let Lord Xu handle the matter of finding evidence. We'll open the granaries tomorrow to provide disaster relief and appease the victims first. Let's detain the prefect for now. If he's truly incorruptible, then I'll personally apologize to him."

Yin Tang was taken aback: "Just shut it down?"

"close!"

Yin Tang took back the words he was about to say. If he were imprisoned so directly, there would inevitably be impeachments from officials, but his fourth brother didn't seem to be afraid at all.

Yinzhen seemed to know what Yintang was worried about, but he did not explain.

Given the current situation, if he no longer wants to rely on the Crown Prince, then he has to become a lone minister in the eyes of his father, the Emperor.

******

Honghui resumed his daily routine of going to the Hall of Mental Cultivation. When Kangxi had time, he would personally teach him to read. When he didn't have time, he would put him in the Imperial Study to study with his uncles.

Honghui was young, not yet six years old, so he did not formally study in the palace like Hongxi.

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