## 1 Introduction  
The Pearl River Mouth Basin is a paramount oil-and-gas-rich area in the northern South China Sea. Subsequent to over four decades of extensive exploration and advancement, the primary area of investigation within the Pearl River Mouth Basin has evolved, transitioning from shallow sedimentary layers to deeper geological formations. The shallow sedimentary strata are the Middle Neoproterozoic Miocenee--Hanjiang and Early Neoproterozoic Miocenee--Zhujiang Formations. The deep sedimentary strata comprises the Palaeocenee--Zhuhai, Late Palaeocenee--Enping, and Early Palaeocenee--Wenching Formations [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]. The explored area for exploration has also gradually changed from the Zhu I Sag to Zhu II Sag. Among them, the water depth of the Zhu I Sag is 30-50 m. The water depth of the Zhu II Sag is 100-200 m [6; 7; 8; 9]. The Zhuhai Formation in the Baiyun Sag, located in the Zhu II Sag, has gradually become the hotspot and focus for exploration [9; 10; 11]. Oil and gas have been discovered in the north and south of the north slope in the Baiyun Sag. The distribution and magnitude of sedimentary phases on the north slope of the Baiyun Sag influence the distribution of sedimentary systems and sand bodies in the south. Investigating the link between the sand body distribution and fault on the northern slope of the Baiyun Sag is beneficial to researchers when digging into the distribution of sediment in the deep water area to the south. It lays a solid foundation for the investigation of deep water in the Baiyun Sag. As evidently suggested by previous studies on the Zhuhai Formation in the Baiyun Sag, the sediments of the Zhuhai Formation are supplied from three directions: the Palae--Pearl River in the north, the southern uplift, and the Dongsha Uplift [11; 12; 13; 14]. Among them, the Palae--Pearl River is the uppermost source of sediment [15; 16; 17; 18]. During the deposition of the Zhuhai Formation, the continental shelf break occurred near the southern low-lying area of the Baiyun Sag and the southern uplift zone [18; 19; 20; 21; 22; 23; 24; 25]. A large shallow-water delta covering the entire region developed on the continental shelf break of the Baiyun Sag. Various sedimentary microfacies such as an estuary, submerged distributary channel, and sheet sand are found in the delta-front subfacies. Arenaceous rock and argillaceous rock are interbedded, with a broad planar distribution and an amazing thickness. In the southern low-lying of the Baiyun Sag, a submarine fan fed from the continental shelf break delta has formed near the shelf break zone [26; 27; 28; 29]. As already demonstrated by the associated exploration, a considerable amount of oil and gas resources exist in the deep-water fan of the southern low-lying area of the Baiyun Sag. The Pearl River Mouth Basin is a double-layered tectonic basin with a fault system at the bottom and a sedimentary depression at the top [30]. The Palaeocene--Zhuhai Formation was deposited during a rifting phase involving the Pearl River Basin (the Baiyun movement to Nanhai movement period), during which the Baiyun Sag was formed, as controlled by a set of extensional faults, E-W trending. The development of faults can change the direction of the sand body transport. It not only can create sediment-rich areas but also affects the horizontal distribution of sandstone. At present, research has rarely probed deep into the fault-controlled deposition of the Zhuhai Formation in the explored area. On that account, the clear control of the fault on the sand body can better predict the distribution of the sand body in the shelf area. Concurrently, the position of the deep-water fan can be predicted in accordance with the direction of the sand body transport.