In May of the fifth year (1194) of the Southern Song Dynasty, Emperor Taishang (Song Xiaozong Zhao Xi) died of illness, and after the death of Emperor Taishang, he had to hold ceremonies such as burial, mourning, and sacrifice, requiring his son (i.e., Song Guangzong Zhao Huan) to preside over, but Song Guangzong was instigated by Empress Li Shi, on the grounds that he was ill, refused to preside over the ceremony, resulting in the failure of Emperor Taishang's funeral ceremony to be completed, and finally, it was Emperor Taishang's nominal mother, Song Gaozong Zhao's successor Empress Wu (also Emperor Xiaozong's adoptive mother), who presided over the ceremony at the age of eighty. Emperor Xiaozong's funeral ceremony was barely completed.
For the emperor's such unfilial behavior, the courtiers could not bear it, and after completing the funeral of the emperor Taishang, they secretly discussed and reached a consensus, and united to prepare to launch a "more standing", so that this "crazy emperor" who was not filial and afraid of the inside quickly retired and gave the throne to his son. In July of the fifth year of the Southern Song Dynasty (1194), after the funeral of Emperor Taishang, Emperor Zhao of Song (a descendant of Emperor Taizong of Song's eldest son Zhao Yuanzuo the Prince of Chu), the ruling (privy councillor) Zhao Ruyu and song relatives, han nongxin (great-grandson of Han Qi, great-grandson of Emperor Wu of the Northern Song Dynasty, nephew and nephew son-in-law of Empress Gaozong Wu), and others, with the tacit support of Empress Dowager Wu (i.e., Empress Gaozong Wu), "requested" Song Guangzong to "give up" the throne to his own son Zhao Kuo, and honored Song Guangzong as Emperor Taishang and retired to Tai'an Palace." Recuperate with peace of mind". Zhao Kuo was the fourth emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, Emperor Ningzong of Song. In August of the sixth year of the Qingyuan Dynasty (1200), Emperor Guangzong of Taishang fell seriously ill and died.
Before and after emperor Ningzong of Song ascended the throne, he had nine sons, but all of them died inexplicably at a very young age, and even their names were posthumously given: Zhao Yuan, Zhao Tan, Zhao Zeng, Zhao Qi, Zhao Qi, Zhao Yuan, Zhao Yuan, Zhao Yuan. Song Ningzong also had three cousins: Zhao Ting, Zhao Ting, and Zhao Yu, and one brother: Zhao Yu. However, Zhao Ting, Zhao Yu, and Zhao Yu all died young and did not leave any descendants, and although Zhao Yu was still alive after Emperor Ningzong of Song ascended the throne, he only had one only son, Zhao Yuan, and he also died young, and he never gave birth to other heirs.
Therefore, although Song Ningzong's grandfather Song Xiaozong had four sons, five grandsons, and ten great-grandchildren, in Song Ningzong's generation, only two grandsons, Zhao Kuo, the King of Song Ningzong and Zhao Xuan, the King of Wuxing County, were still alive, and there were no living great-grandchildren (and there would be no future ones). ）
Therefore, in the fourth year of the Southern Song Dynasty (1198), in order to stabilize the foundation of the country and keep the imperial family from being cut off, Song Ningzong had to emulate his great-grandfather Song Gaozong (nominally), and from among the sons of Emperor Zhao song in Nandu, he selected Emperor Taizu's eldest son, the ninth grandson of Zhao Dezhao, the king of Yanyi, and the six-year-old Zhao Youyi to enter the palace, as an imperial heir, and to inherit the throne in the future (Song Xiaozong was originally the adopted son of Emperor Gaozong of Song, and the descendants of Emperor Xiaozong had broken off the inheritance, and he could no longer give birth to a prince. Song Ningzong, who could not find an heir from the near branch of the sect, had to choose the imperial heir from the far branch of the family). At the same time, he also chose an heir to Zhao Guihe, the ninth grandson of Zhao Defang, the youngest son of Taizu' younger son, Zhao Defang, the Prince of Qin Kanghui, in order to inherit the title and sacrifice.
In fact, although the descendants of Song Xiaozong have disappeared, there are still many descendants of Song Xiaozong's biological father, Zhao Ziwei, the Prince of Xiu'an. Song Xiaozong's de facto brother Zhao Bogui had a total of nine sons, more grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and the Zhao Bogui family was the closest to the Southern Song Dynasty royal bloodline than other clans, but Song Ningzong still chose heirs for himself and his cousin Zhao Yu from other distant descendants, and did not choose from the most recent lineage of The Prince of Suixiu.
This is because the descendants of King Sixiu are too prosperous and powerful, and if they choose heirs from among them to succeed to the throne, it is likely that there will be an ending similar to "Pu Discussion" in the future. And if you choose a descendant of a clan with a distant bloodline and a low status to succeed, the heir will certainly be grateful and respectful to his adoptive father because he is grateful for the emperor's (adoptive father's) kindness (Song Xiaozong himself is proof). Therefore, Emperor Ningzong of Song would give up the near and far, abandon the descendants of The Closest Heir apparent to him, and look for the imperial heir from other distant branches.
After Zhao Youyuan was chosen by Emperor Ningzong of Song as his heir, he changed his name to Zhao Yue. In the first year of the Kai Jubilee (1205), Zhao Yu was officially made crown prince and renamed Zhao Yuan. However, Zhao Xiang was destined to have no chance of the throne, and after serving as crown prince for sixteen years, Yu Jiading died of illness in the thirteenth year (1220) without leaving any heirs, and Song Ningzong was so sad that he gave his adopted son the title of "Prince Jingxian".
The crown prince who had worked hard to cultivate for more than ten years said that it was gone, and Song Ningzong was frustrated, but it was too late to temporarily re-select the candidate for the imperial heir, so Song Ningzong took up the idea of zhao jun (that is, Zhao Guihe, who was renamed Zhao Jun) who had been selected for his cousin Zhao Jun, the prince of Yijinghui, and ordered that Zhao Jun, the prince of Yiyi, be taken to the palace and raised as a prince. In the fourteenth year of Jiading (1221), Zhao Jun was made crown prince and renamed Zhao Zhu.
After the original heir Zhao Hu was taken away by Song Ningzong as the imperial heir, Zhao Yu, the prince of Yijing Hui, had no heir, and the sacrifice and inheritance were about to be interrupted, and Song Ningzong was very guilty of his cousin, so he again chose an heir for Zhao Yu, this time zhao Dezhao, the ninth grandson of Zhao Dezhao, the king of Yanyi, and the eldest son of Zhao Xixuan, the lieutenant of Shanyin County, who was elected, and succeeded to the Yijing Huiwang, becoming the second heir of Zhao Yu, and changing his name to Zhao Guicheng. Emperor Ningzong of Song clarified Zhao Guicheng's status as an imperial nephew and asked him to succeed King Jinghui of Yi.
In the seventeenth year of Jiading (1224), Song Ningzong was seriously ill and about to die, and the relationship between shi Miyuan, the chancellor at the time, and the crown prince Zhao Hu were very bad, fearing that after the death of Song Ningzong and the ascension of the crown prince to the throne, he would be liquidated and attacked. Therefore, Shi Miyuan secretly colluded with Empress Yang (the successor empress) of Ningzong, who also had a poor relationship with the crown prince, and when Song Ningzong died, he deposed Zhao Hu's title as crown prince, falsely passed on the emperor's will, and established Zhao Guicheng, the nephew of Emperor Ningzong of Song and the Prince of Yi, as the new crown prince, and took control of the palace inside and outside the palace, put Zhao Hu under house arrest, and took Zhao Guicheng from the palace to the palace and installed him as the successor emperor. After Zhao Guicheng ascended the throne, he changed his name to Zhao Yun, which was the fifth emperor of the Southern Song Dynasty, Song Lizong.
Emperor Lizong of Song, on the other hand, was never treated as an imperial heir during Song Ningzong's lifetime, and Song Ningzong had only two adopted sons in addition to his sons who died prematurely: Zhao Qian, the Prince of Jingxian, and Zhao Zhen, crown prince. Although Emperor Lizong of Song inherited the throne of Emperor Ningzong of Song and called Emperor Ningzong of Song the "Imperial Examination" after he ascended the throne, this was nothing more than the use of conspiracy and trickery imposed on his heirs by The Chancellor Shi Miyuan and Empress Yang after the death of Emperor Ningzong of Song, and Song Ningzong himself did not know it (if there was knowledge underground, he would not be willing).