Why is the surname Qian ranked second in "Hundred Family Surnames"?

The first sentence of "Hundred Family Surnames" written in the early Northern Song Dynasty is "Zhao Qian Sun Li". The surname Zhao is in the first place. This is because the founding emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty was Zhao Kuangyin. The Northern Song Dynasty was the regime of the Zhao family. Zhao is the surname of the country, so it must be ranked first. The surname Qian is not a common surname among all the surnames, so why is it ranked second? Bit?

It turns out that this was related to the Wu Yue Kingdom that controlled Jiangsu and Zhejiang at that time. The founder of the Wuyue Kingdom was Qian Liu. Qian Liu was a king with great talents and strategies and was diligent in political affairs. Under the governance of him and his descendants, the Wuyue area became a prosperous area. When Zhao Kuangyin came to China, he wiped out 8 countries. Only Wuyue Kingdom was not wiped out. At that time, the king of Wuyue was Qian Jiao, a descendant of Qian Liu. When Zhao Kuangyin's troops came to the city, Qian Jiao took the initiative to cancel the throne and respect Zhao Kuangyin as the emperor in order to save the country from destruction and the people from disasters.

After Zhao Kuangyin unified China, he gave the Qian family some privileges and adopted a protective policy for Jiangsu and Zhejiang, so that the economy and culture of Jiangsu and Zhejiang could continue to develop. Qian Jiao's decision was supported by the people. Coupled with the Qian family's original status and influence, the Qian family became the most influential surname at that time except the imperial surname Zhao. The author of "Hundred Family Surnames" was an old Confucian from Qiantang, so he naturally ranked the Qian surname second. In September 1989, the famous scientist Qian Weichang also gave this explanation when answering a question from a foreign reporter.

Recently, people discovered the "Qian Family Tree" in "Miyuanzhai" in Wayao Village, Jiaocheng County, Shanxi. According to expert research, this "Qian is Genealogy" was compiled by Qian Liu, the founder of Wuyue Kingdom, in 910.

Qian Liu had six wives and concubines and 33 sons. When he ruled the Wuyue Kingdom, he sent his sons to various places to be the masters of one party, which spread the Qian family's descendants throughout Jiangsu and Zhejiang. Qianjiao surrendered to Zhao Kuangyin, and was later taken by Zhao Kuangyin to settle in Bianjing. In this way, there are descendants of the Qian family in Henan.

Now Qian’s descendants are spread all over the world. What is amazing is that the Qian family has produced numerous celebrities since ancient times. The famous scientists Qian Sanqiang, Qian Xuesen, and Qian Weichang were all descendants of the Qian family. Qian Sanqiang is the 33rd generation grandson of Qian Liu. According to statistics, there are more than 100 Qian celebrities who are academicians or above in the scientific community at home and abroad, distributed in more than 50 countries around the world. Some of them have a brother and sister who are all scientific and technological talents. The Xianheng Hotel in Shaoxing, Zhejiang mentioned in Lu Xun's famous article "Kong Yiji" is named after Qian Xianheng, the 12th generation grandson of Qian Liu.