Emperor Gaozong of Song was the ninth son of Emperor Huizong of Song. In the second year of Jing Kang, the Jin army invaded the south and captured the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, Fenjing, the Northern Song Dynasty fell, and Emperor Huizong of Song and Emperor Qinzong of Song (father and brother of Emperor Gaozong of Song) were plundered. As a result, Zhao Zhuo moved south to Lin'an to establish the Southern Song Dynasty, but he was in a corner of the city and became a capitulationist monarch of beg and Gou An in history.
Why was Emperor Gaozong of Song willing to steal peace, but he was unwilling to welcome back the Second Emperor Hui Qin in the Northern Expedition? In fact, in the early days of Emperor Gaozong's reign, he originally used the anti-war faction Li Gang as his counterpart, and Zong Ze stayed behind in Tokyo to launch a military and civilian resistance against Jin. Soon after, however, he deposed Li Gang, used the capitulating factions Huang Qianshan and Wang Boyan, and negotiated peace with Jin, and moved the Song army's defensive line from the Yellow River to the south to the Huai, Han, and Yangtze lines, thus reversing the situation of the War of Resistance.
Whether now or in the past, historians generally believe that The peace between Emperor Gaozong of Song and Jin was unwilling to welcome Hui hui in the Northern Expedition and the shame of the Second Emperor of Qin, mainly because Emperor Gaozong of Song was worried about the legitimacy of his throne and was afraid that Hui and the Second Emperor of Qin would return to Luang to compete with him for the throne.
Some scholars have questioned such claims. In fact, Zhao Shuo was worried about the legitimacy of his throne, but as an emperor who established a new regime (Southern Song Dynasty), would it be difficult to keep the throne? In Chinese history, the best solution to such a problem is Zen Rang, and Tang Taizong Li Shimin is the best example.
The usurpers of the throne can all engage in a hypocritical Zen concession ceremony to legitimize their usurpation, why didn't Emperor Gaozong of Song bring the Second Emperor back first and control it in his own hands and engage in a Zen concession ceremony of imperial power, is all this completely orthodox and legitimate? Not to mention that Emperor Gaozong of Song was much more legitimate than those thieves. Therefore, Zhao Zhuo was unwilling to go north and welcome back the Second Emperor Hui Qin, which was not as simple as we imagined.
The Southern Song Dynasty regime was actually a new regime established with the support of the southern warriors, and in such a regime, Zhao Zhuo's imperial authority was limited, which was fundamentally different from that of the emperor who immediately attacked the country or sat firmly in the world with a complete bureaucratic system. Such an emperor, for the local magnates, is more of a tablet, with more symbolic meaning than actual power. Therefore, although Zhao Zhuo was an emperor, his power was very different from that of previous kings. Therefore, for his behavior, we must deeply understand the power environment in which he is actually located.
The reason why Zhao Zhuo was able to establish political power in the south, in addition to his superiority in blood, was more important because he was able to maintain the balance between the various powerful forces at that time. In this context, if the Second Emperor is welcomed back, such a power constraint relationship will definitely be broken. If the Second Emperor returned to the imperial court, Zhao Was sure to be able to control them. However, if the Second Emperor fell into the hands of some scheming warlord or powerful man, and then came to blackmail the Son of Heaven to order the princes, the problem would be troublesome, the domestic political balance would be completely broken, and civil strife would be inevitable.
Under such circumstances, the return of the Second Emperor was no longer a question of Zhao Cuo being the wrong emperor, but an internal contradiction between the group that vainly wanted to control the Second Emperor and other groups that supported Zhao Cuo. Even if Zhao Zhuo himself did not want to be emperor, those groups that supported him were not allowed. The winner is the king and the loser is Kou, and Yu Qian in the Ming Dynasty and Emperor Yingzong is the best example.
What did Emperor Gaozong of Song really think? No matter how future generations speculate, the ultimate reason for this may only be understood in his own heart.