Ever since Great Emperor Ziwei Xuandu, the Great Qian Imperial House had spawned so many descendants that no one knew how many there were.
As power shifted hands, branches that had once been direct lines would gradually decline into collateral branches. And among those fallen collateral branches, an exceptionally gifted descendant might occasionally emerge, allowing that line to rise again.
As Great Qian's largest aristocratic clan, the Wu Clan, like other ancient clans, possessed an enormous population base. Yet the vast majority of them could hardly be called promising. At most, they relied on the imperial family's name to occupy a few more resources or help manage some imperial enterprises.
But the imperial house was still the imperial house. Its foundations were deep and its strength formidable. There were currently no fewer than eleven living princes, while the number of prefecture princes was even greater.
Among them, Prince Dexin's line was presently the strongest branch of the imperial house. It alone had two princes at the Divine Ability Realm, and as many as eighteen prefecture princes.
Moreover, this line's momentum was still fierce, and its future potential was far from exhausted.
Prince Kang, one of the Quasi-Imperial Sons, was one of the outstanding young members of this line.
The young Princess Xuening, currently deeply favored by His Majesty, also came from Prince Dexin's line. Her grandfather was Prince Rong, cousin to Prince Yong'an. Though Prince Rong was not as peerlessly gifted as Prince Yong'an, he had at least attained the rank of prefecture prince.
Prince Rong's small branch was not especially populous, and most of its members were mediocre. For a long time, no one had managed to reach the Purple Mansion Realm and inherit his mantle. By now, Prince Rong was already six hundred and fifty years old, and