Crown Prince of the Empire, I quit!

"Watertight?" Qin Ming's lips curled up in a cold arc. "I want to see whether his network is more dense or my sword is sharper."

He walked to the window and looked at the dark night outside.

"Where are the people from the Audit Department?"

"Your Majesty, three teams from the Audit Department are currently patrolling the Hedong and Hebei Canal Transport Offices, verifying last year's accounts. They have not yet headed south."

"Order: The main force of the Audit Department, immediately turn around! Secretly march south and attack Huai'an Prefecture, the seat of the Grand Canal Governor's Office! Investigate for me! Thoroughly investigate! Investigate every account, every grain of grain, every penny of tax since Lu Yuandao took office! I grant them... the power to make arbitrary decisions on the spot. Anyone who obstructs may be arrested first and then reported to the emperor!"

"Here!"

"Also," Qin Ming's eyes were sharp as an eagle's, "instruct the Censorate to immediately select... no, select that grain transport inspector Lin Hao, known for his uprightness, and issue an imperial decree to inspect the 'effectiveness' of the new policy on grain transport in the south of the Yangtze River. Have him go with great fanfare, the bigger the better."

Ying Qi was slightly startled: "Your Majesty, this move might alert the enemy..."

"I'm going to alert the enemy!" Qin Ming said coldly, "How could Lu Yuandao not have spies in the capital? If the Audit Department secretly goes south, he might be able to cover it up. But if I send a censor known for his stubbornness, he'll definitely lose his composure! The more he moves, the more flaws he'll have!"

"I understand!" Ying Qi understood.

"Also," Qin Ming pondered for a moment, "I want to pass on my secret order to Li Gan... no, to the new Protector General of Beiting, Zhou Sima. Have him select a team of absolutely reliable veteran scouts with clean backgrounds from the army. Disguise them as a merchant caravan and travel south along the Grand Canal to secretly investigate the tragedy of the boat trackers and the truth behind the 'new grain tax'. I want... a confession from the lowest level!"

"Here!"

The three instructions, light and dark, intertwined, were like a dragnet spread across the canal.

……

A few days later, at the Grand Canal Governor's Office, Huai'an Prefecture.

In the official residence's study, a fire roared, and the aroma of tea wafted in the air. The newly appointed Governor-General, Lu Yuandao, dressed in a brand-new crimson robe with a peacock patch, his face gaunt and his demeanor composed, was sipping tea and discussing matters with several trusted officials. Their conversation was filled with official documents about new regulations for the canal, dredging the river, increasing efficiency, and reducing waste, exuding the air of a capable and competent official.

An old man who looked like a butler walked in quietly and whispered something in his ear.

Lu Yuandao's hand holding the cup paused slightly, his smile unchanged. He said to his subordinates, "Everyone, please go and do your work first. I have some mundane matters to attend to in the hall. I'll be back soon."

The officials tactfully withdrew.

As soon as the study door closed, the calmness on Lu Yuandao's face vanished, replaced by a gloomy haze. He quickly walked to the desk and lowered his voice to the old man, "Is the news confirmed? Is that troublemaker Lin Hao really coming?"

"It is absolutely true, sir. An urgent letter has arrived from the capital, and the decree has been issued. I'm afraid it is on its way."

Lu Yuandao's brow furrowed, his fingertips unconsciously tapping the table. "Lin Hao... this guy is stubborn and a nuisance. If he really investigates all along the canal... even if the accounts are fine, those idiots under him will inevitably be exposed..." He pondered for a moment, "Send word immediately: all 'new grain taxes' will be temporarily suspended! All granaries across the country must strictly check the quality of rice and absolutely no stale rice is allowed to be stored! Also, the families of those boat track leaders who caused trouble earlier... give them ample compensation to shut them up! We must clean up all this mess before Lin Hao arrives!"

"Yes, sir!" The old man responded quickly and left in a hurry.

Lu Yuandao remained alone in his study, pacing to the window. He gazed out at the boats plying the canal, his eyes flickering. The Emperor's new policies were pressing, and the Audit Department was a hanging sword. And now, Lin Hao had been sent in again...was it a routine inspection, or...was he specifically targeting him? He reasoned that his methods since taking office had been discreet, his accounts impeccable, and he should be impeccable...but why did he feel a lingering unease?

He took a deep breath, forcing down the slight throbbing in his heart. No matter what, he had to hold on. As long as he could survive this storm...

……

However, Lu Yuandao would never have imagined that while he was strictly ordering his men to clean up the traces, a team of elite auditors, disguised as clerks from the Ministry of Revenue checking old accounts, quietly entered the Huai'an treasury. Another team, disguised as merchants buying local products, penetrated into the villages and markets along the canal.

Farther away, a group of dusty, eagle-eyed "old merchants" were walking silently along the difficult waterway pulled by trackers...

Along the canal, the setting sun shone like blood, tinting the murky water surface with a bleak orange-red. A group of elderly merchants, disguised as veterans of Beiting, led a few skinny horses laden with cheap goods as they silently advanced along the muddy towpath. The air was filled with the distinctive fishy odor of river water and the sour smell of sweat. In the distance, the heavy call of a horn echoed intermittently, like the whimpering of a wounded beast, carrying a heart-wrenching sense of exhaustion and despair.

The veteran leading the team was named Han, a former scout captain under Li Gan. His face was covered in scars, but his eyes were as sharp as an eagle. He raised his hand to signal the team to slow down, his gaze casting towards the river.

A massive canal boat, with a deep draft, like a rolling hill, was seen slowly moving upstream. On the bow deck, several tax collectors and canal workers in silk shirts stood with their arms folded, their expressions arrogant, even a touch of mockery. But the real force driving this behemoth forward were the hundreds of nearly naked boatmen on the shore!

Their bronze backs were burnt to a slick shine by the setting sun, the rough ropes digging deep into their flesh, almost fused to their bodies. Each man desperately leaned forward, his legs trembling violently from the sheer effort. With each step, he sank deeply into the muddy riverbed, only to struggle to pull himself free. Sweat streamed like streams from their shaved heads, sunken cheeks, and jagged ribs, dripping onto the scorching earth and evaporating instantly.

"Hey-yo! Hey-yo!"

The chants were hoarse, broken, and dissonant, more like a dying gasp squeezed from the lungs. Their eyes were mostly empty and numb, as if their souls had long been drained of endless hard labor, leaving only mechanically struggling bodies.

Captain Han's eyes were fixed on the tow rope. It wasn't a solid hemp rope, but rather a haphazard patchwork of countless old strands. It was badly worn, riddled with burrs and cracks. One could imagine that if it snapped, the immense recoil would be enough to break bones and tendons.

"Brother, take a break and have a drink of water." Captain Han approached, speaking in a stiff local accent, and addressed an old man sitting on the riverbank not far away, smoking a pipe. The old man was dressed in rags, his eyes were cloudy, and at his feet lay a tattered wooden barrel and a few chipped bowls, as if he was delivering water to the boatmen.

The old man looked up at them, a flicker of alertness in his cloudy eyes, but it was quickly replaced by numbness. He pursed his lips and gestured towards the barrel.

An old soldier scooped a bowl of water and handed it to Captain Han. The water was murky and had a fishy smell.

"Thanks, brother." Captain Han, having just taken a sip, asked casually, "This boat... looks really heavy. How much can we earn from towing it?"