Chapter 27: Could It Really Be My Third Brother Who Became Emperor?

Upon hearing Zhao Kuangyin ask that question, Li Cheng felt his very heart tremble.

It was not fear, but excitement!

He had been holding in his resentment toward that scoundrel, Zhao the Second—the "Donkey-Cart War God"—for far too long. To be honest, reading the history of the Song Dynasty had often left him half-dead with rage. Other dynasties had their glorious peaks, but the Song was different; it could be said that it lived in humiliation from beginning to end. Things were fine while Zhao the First was in charge, but after his passing, it was truly infuriating. The various maneuvers of the "Donkey-Cart War God" were enough to make anyone cough up blood.

Generally speaking, a dynasty is at its most vibrant during the reigns of its first or second emperors, or perhaps extending to the third. If the first three emperors failed to establish a solid foundation or complete the great cause of unification, it was almost impossible for subsequent emperors to do so. There were many emperors who failed to achieve unification, so why the unique hatred for Zhao the Second?

On one hand, the Song Dynasty lasted a long time, and its history was profoundly stifling. On the other hand, Zhao Kuangyin, the founding emperor, had laid a perfect foundation—he truly possessed the groundwork to unify China and establish a grand, unified empire. Yet, after that piece of work, Zhao Guangyi, usurped the throne through conspiracy, his relentless string of foolish decisions effectively squandered the wealth and stability his elder brother had painstakingly accumulated. Furthermore, the series of disastrous policies he implemented severed the possibility of any future unification for the Song Dynasty at its very roots.

To make matters worse, this individual was incredibly thick-skinned. After committing so many shameful acts, he remained smug, always believing he had done a marvelous job. And now, his servant had even tried to steal his perfume and strip him of everything he had. The old grudges and the new had truly piled up. From the moment he revealed his identity, Li Cheng had resolved that he and such a creature could not exist under the same heaven; he was determined to see this wretch suffer.

When Zhao the First passed away, that man became emperor and did whatever he pleased, sacrificing countless soldiers and skillfully shifting the blame onto others. But now that Zhao the First was still alive and the man was merely a younger brother, the thought of how Zhao the First would react upon learning the truth was truly something to look forward to.

"It was the Prince of Jin, your third younger brother, who became emperor," Li Cheng answered without hesitation. Naturally, he knew that the "Donkey-Cart War God," Zhao Guangyi, was the third-born in the family.

In reality, Zhao the First was actually the second-born; the true eldest, Zhao Kuangji, had died young. However, due to the habits of later generations, Li Cheng was accustomed to calling Zhao Kuangyin "Zhao the First" and Zhao Guangyi "Zhao the Second."

So it really was the third brother! Zhao Kuangyin was not particularly surprised upon hearing this. There were only two candidates for the succession: Rixin and his third brother. As for Defang, who was much younger, he was never even in consideration; no matter how one calculated it, it would never be his turn. If even Rixin didn't become emperor, it certainly wouldn't be Defang—it had to be his third brother.

Facing this outcome, his heart felt heavy. It wasn't that he couldn't accept it; after all, he had genuinely considered letting his third brother take the throne. Whether Dezhao (Rixin) or his third brother ruled, it would still be the Zhao family’s empire. His third brother was a man who valued family ties, and if he passed the throne to him, he would surely treat his own descendants, Dezhao and Defang, with kindness. They were his own nephews, and with him—their elder brother—still present, his brother could not and would not dare to treat Rixin and the others poorly. He would only take good care of them. Zhao Kuangyin had confidence in this; he was certain he wouldn't misjudge that.

Yet, he was filled with curiosity and confusion. Logically, deep down, he favored Rixin and intended for him to be the emperor; he was certain he would have done so in the future. What, then, caused such a massive deviation that led him to pass the throne to his third brother instead of Rixin?

"Did Rixin commit some grave error in the future? Did he do something so outrageous that he became a deep disappointment? Or did he suffer some accident, such as a severe illness or a physical disability?" After a moment of silence, Zhao Kuangyin looked at Li Cheng and asked. This was the most plausible truth he could imagine. As a founding emperor, he was the master of choosing his heir; he could pass the throne to whomever he pleased. If he clearly favored Rixin yet didn't pass the throne to him, something must have gone wrong. He assumed the most likely scenario was that Rixin had made a catastrophic mistake, making him believe Rixin could not hold the empire together.

Therefore, he would have chosen his third brother. Such things were not impossible. Rixin was sometimes not steady enough in his actions—for instance, this very time, after meeting Li Xiaolang, he had immediately brought him forward just because the man could accurately predict a solar eclipse, without conducting any further investigation. Although it had now been proven that Rixin was right—that Li Xiaolang was indeed a "transmigrator," a miraculous person never heard of before—it still highlighted Rixin's lack of caution. It was plausible that he might have suffered for this in the future, stumbled, and consequently been passed over for the throne. Moreover, in terms of prestige among the ministers and generals, Rixin was inferior to his third brother. Under such circumstances, if Rixin committed further mistakes or suffered from illness or physical injury, it was not impossible that he would miss his chance at the throne. Out of concern for Rixin, the Song Dynasty, and the Zhao family, he surely would have let his third brother ascend to stabilize the situation. His third brother, after all, did not lack talent.

"Your Majesty, the Second Prince did not commit any mistakes in the future, nor did he do anything to incite the wrath of heaven or men. On the contrary, if we are to speak of it, he actually rendered significant service." The "service" Li Cheng referred to was, of course, the Battle of Gaoliang River, where Zhao the Second had very stylishly drifted away in his donkey cart, abandoning his vast army to the Liao forces. It was Zhao Dezhao who had steadied the morale and led many of those soldiers back to safety.

Zhao Kuangyin was stunned once more. He hadn't guessed it right? If none of those things had happened, why would he have passed the throne to his third brother instead of Rixin? He truly could not fathom it. Something felt fundamentally wrong.

"Then why did I not pass the throne to Rixin, but instead to the Prince of Jin?" Unable to figure it out, Zhao Kuangyin gave up on the thought and looked directly at Li Cheng, asking for the correct answer. He hoped that Li Xiaolang could provide him with a reasonable explanation.