The misunderstood Emperor Zhao
In Chinese history, Zhao and Ming Yingzong have similarities but differences. The so-called similarity lies in the fact that the life stains of the two are related to the killing of the wrong person: Zhao Zhuo unjustly killed Yue Fei, while Ming Yingzong wrongfully killed Yu Qian. And both Zhao Zhuo and Ming Yingzong were regarded as dimwitted and incompetent emperors. The difference is that Zhao Shuo's ability may not be as high as the public expects, but from the fact that Emperor Gaozong of Song was able to rely on the remnants of the Song Dynasty to establish the Southern Song Dynasty after the change of Jing Kang, and finally resist the Jin Dynasty's blows, Zhao Shuo's ability, at worst, was also considered to be the level of the middle lord, and did not reach the point of fainting. Ming Yingzong, on the other hand, was a man of great talent, and shengsheng tossed the dominant Ming Dynasty to the brink of extinction.
For Zhao Shuo, in his life, the most feared forces are divided into three parts:
Jin Dynasty. From the time Zhao Became Emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, the Jin Dynasty continued to conquer the Southern Song Dynasty. For Zhao Zhao, the Jin Dynasty was his number one enemy, and once he was caught by the Jin Dynasty, his fate would only be worse than that of the Second Emperor Hui Qin.
Warlord. During Zhao Shuo's reign, he was deposed because of the Miao Liu Mutiny. Later, Zhao Zhuo developed a jealous mentality towards the military generals, killing Yue Fei and relieving Han Shizhong of his military power, which was also related to this factor to a certain extent.
Qin Juniper. Many netizens believe that Zhao Zhuo and Qin Juniper have a close relationship. But in fact, as the Southern Song Dynasty submitted to the Jin Dynasty, the Jin Dynasty reached an agreement with the Southern Song Dynasty: without the approval of the Jin Dynasty, Zhao Zhuo could not revoke Qin Ju's position. Qin Jun's work once had the attribute of supervising the "Lord of the Great Golden River". And compared with the military generals who had no political means, Qin Ju was Zhao Shuo's biggest opponent within the Southern Song Dynasty. But even so, Zhao Zhuo successfully regained power before and after Qin Ju's death and eliminated Qin Ju's influence in the imperial court, and it is not difficult to see from this that Zhao Huo's means of playing with power.
Zhao Shuo died at the age of 81 in his lifetime, but at the age of 56, he chose the Throne of Zen to the crown prince, after which Zhao Shuo became the Emperor Taishang for more than twenty years. From the point of view that Zhao Cuo is good at power struggles, Zhao Cuo should be attached to power, but he chose to zen early, what is the reason for this?
Personally, I think:
Idleness
Although the throne was a dream of all in ancient times, once you became an emperor, it meant taking on unprecedented responsibilities. In particular, emperors like Zhao Shuo are even more exhausting: foreign enemies, military generals, and powerful subjects, and Zhao Zhuo needs to deal with them.
Therefore, after the relationship between Song and Jin was basically stable, and the problems of power and military generals were solved, Zhao Zhuo also felt that it was boring to be an emperor. Moreover, Zhao Zhuo inherited the literary and artistic genes of his father, Emperor Huizong of Song, and was keen on calligraphy and painting. Therefore, in order to relax himself and make time for hobbies, Zhao Zhuo chose a Zen position.
Auxiliary administration
In addition to idleness, due to the particularity of Song Xiaozong's relationship with himself, Zhao Zhuo needed to assist Song Xiaozong for a period of time.
Zhao Shuo was the adoptive father of Song Xiaozong, who belonged to the descendants of Zhao Kuangyin and was already far away from Zhao Shuo in terms of blood relations. Zhao Zhuo worried that if he waited for Emperor Xiaozong of Song to succeed to the throne after his death, Emperor Xiaozong of Song might be hindered by blood problems, which would cause the Southern Song court to fall into turmoil. Therefore, the early establishment of the throne of Emperor Xiaozong of Song was beneficial to the stability of the future situation of the Southern Song Dynasty.