## 1 Introduction  
Soils are one of the main sources of metal(loid)s in crops. Soil metal(loid)s can easily move through soils, have a long residual time, can be difficult to detect, and have high toxicities. They can be absorbed by crops and then enter the food chain. Alternatively, metal(loid)s can enter water bodies or the atmosphere and threaten human health and animal reproduction [1; 2; 3; 4; 5; 6; 7; 8; 9]. Therefore, the treatment of soils contaminated with metal(loid)s is a significant, yet challenging, research topic around the world. Metal(loid)s in contaminated soils are considered to be among the greatest risks to food safety and human health in China. According to the National Soil Pollution Investigation Bulletin, the environmental quality of cultivated soils in China is worrying. A survey found that 16.1% of soil samples were polluted and that 82.8% of the pollutants were inorganic toxins [10]. These pollutant levels are above the standard rates and are primarily Cd, Hg, As, Cu, Pb, Cr, Zn, and Ni. Crops (such as wheat and corn) absorb excessive metal(loid)s, such as Cd, Hg, and As, from the soil [6; 7; 8; 11; 12; 13]. These metal(loid)s are easily absorbed and accumulated by crops in edible tissues, depending not only on the species, but also on the soil properties. Moreover, a high enough level of bioconcentration can lead to harmful effects on human health [11; 12; 13; 14; 15; 16]. Dietary habits are thought to be the main pathway by which metal(loid)s accumulate in the body. Wheat and corn are the main crops in the world, especially in northern China, where wheat and corn are staple foods. The annual consumption of wheat and corn is very large. The per capita annual consumption of grain is 120 kg, of which wheat consumption is 80 kg. Wheat consumption is much higher in northern than in southern China. Metal(loid)s that have accumulated in the body over a long period can lead to chronic diseases and cancer, with As, Cr, and Cd being considered as carcinogens [17; 18; 19; 20; 21; 22; 23; 24]. Many studies have reported that basic soil characteristics, including pH, organic matter, cation exchange capacity (CeC), and soil clay content, affect the absorption of metal(loid)s by wheat and corn crops. However, most of these studies were conducted within carefully controlled environments using potted plants or field plots, and focused on relevant variables in specific fields [20; 25; 26; 27; 28; 29; 30]. A smaller number of studies have been conducted on a regional scale examining spatial variability and the relationships of metal(loid)s with soil and crops. Because wheat and corn crops are affected by the external environment throughout the growing season, the relationships between soil properties and metal(loid)s are more complex. On a relatively large scale, the information from previous studies cannot adequately explain the complex relationship between soil and wheat or corn crops. Geostatistical analysis that includes multiple variables is an effective method to clarify these complex relationships [31; 32; 33]. Geostatistical methods have been widely used to study the spatial relationships between soil and plants. General ordinary kriging (OK) prediction of geochemical maps can provide a visualization of geological information and directly identify problem areas. Principal component analysis (PCA) has been widely used in environmental ecology. PCA has the advantages of reducing the loss of original data, simplifying the data structure, and avoiding subjective randomness. Meanwhile, a principal component scores multi-regression (PC\({}_{\text{S}}\)-SMLR) analysis solves the problem of collinearity of independent variables and ensures the accuracy of the results. Thus, it provides a theoretical basis for the treatment of metal(loid) pollution in local agriculture. In this study, the concentrations of metal(loid)s in crops and surface soil were measured at the same point on the Hebei plain. Basic soil properties were also measured.