Luo Xin arrived at Xiao He's residence. The entire Marquis of Zàn's Residence had been cleaned several times, inside and out, until it was practically spotless.
The Xiao Clan was certainly one of the foremost noble houses in Great Han, but it could not compare with the Luo Clan. The two were simply not on the same level.
The Xiao Clan had attained its current position almost entirely through Xiao He's intelligence. Once Xiao He died with no capable successor, it would instantly become an ordinary noble family. In the words of later generations, it lacked a moat that could guarantee the family's lasting wealth and prosperity.
The Luo Clan, as it stood now, could remain wealthy and honored for centuries even without Ji Zhao, relying on its immensely rich tradition of family learning and its sound family ethos.
That was the enormous gulf created by the foundations of the two clans.
These meritorious officials understood this themselves, so, without consulting one another, they all began doing the same thing-forming marriage alliances!
In Great Han today, which family held the most power was a matter of debate.
The imperial Liu Clan needed no introduction, while the Lü Clan, as maternal relatives with the regent Empress Dowager behind it, even faintly overshadowed the imperial family.
The Luo Clan went without saying. Not only did talented people emerge from its ranks generation after generation, but the invincible Great General Han Xin was also one of its people.
But one point was beyond dispute: the Meritorious Officials Group was the most illustrious, holding almost all the high offices and exalted titles of the Han Court. Every one of these men had a county as his fief.
Over the past two years, as commoners scattered by the wars gradually returned to their homes, fiefs