Chapter 113

【The Fourth Place on the Top Ten List of Dim-witted Emperors — Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou】

The golden light of the celestial screen reappeared, and a new title emerged, with the words "The Most Calculating Runaway Emperor in History" prominently marked beside it.

The scene depicted the panic-stricken procession fleeing south, and the bleak wind and cold rain of the Fengbo Pavilion.

Finally, there was the text of the humiliating peace treaty, and the scene of Zhao Gou living a life of dissipation and seeking temporary ease by the West Lake in Lin'an (which is modern-day Hangzhou).

"Emperor Gaozong of Song? Zhao Gou? Another one from the Song Dynasty?!"

Emperor Taizu of Song, Zhao Kuangyin, leaned against his imperial couch. Seeing the celestial screen, his pupils shrank suddenly, and a sense of foreboding mixed with monstrous rage surged into his heart once again.

The previous one, Emperor Huizong, had already angered him to the point of vomiting blood, and now here comes another Gaozong?

And "The Most Calculating Runaway Emperor"—is this damn thing a compliment or an insult?!

Zhao Guangyi's expression was also extremely ugly. What kind of evil had the Great Song committed to have its emperors appear on the list of dim-witted rulers one after another?

And each one more "distinctively characteristic" than the last?

"Runaway Emperor... breaking the backbone of the nation..."

Zhao Kuangyin chewed on these words, and his chest began to feel stifled again.

Running away? He, Zhao Kuangyin, won the world on horseback; when had he ever thought of running away?!

Breaking the backbone? This made him feel even more humiliated than the fall of the nation!

【Reason for making the list: Zhao Gou is the most calculating "Runaway Emperor" in history. For the sake of his own power and position, he did not hesitate to break the backbone of the entire nation.

With his own "wisdom," he personally extinguished the raging fire of recovering the lost territories and set the national policy of seeking temporary ease for the Southern Song Dynasty for a hundred years.】

"For the sake of his own power and position... breaking the backbone of the nation... extinguishing the fire of recovery... seeking temporary ease..."

Every time Zhao Kuangyin heard a sentence, his face turned a shade paler.

This evaluation was even more ruthless than directly calling him dim-witted!

This was accusing him of being selfish, cold-blooded, and a traitor to his family and country.

What on earth did this Zhao Gou do?!

"Southern Song... Sure enough, the Northern Song fell, and they fled south to linger on in a dying state..."

Zhao Kuangyin felt desolate in his heart, but what made him even angrier was that this emperor who fled south seemed not to want to restore the Central Plains, but instead only wanted to "seek temporary ease."

"Others are (The Son of Heaven guards the national gate), he is (The Son of Heaven runs away, never leaving the gate open)."

Liu Bang savored this sharp comment from the netizens and was amused.

"Runaway Emperor? This nickname is apt! But to be able to run away so righteously and even set it as national policy, he is also quite a talent."

"It seems the creativity of this Song Dynasty is also quite prominent in running away and surrendering."

A cold light flashed in Ying Zheng's eyes: "For his own selfish interests, this person abandons the world; how is he any different from a tyrant?"

Liu Che was furious: "Run? My Han sons only move forward; when have they ever retreated?"

"I once led Wei Qing and Huo Qubing to strike the Xiongnu in the north and sealed the mountains at Langjuxu; when did I ever think of running?"

"This Zhao Gou actually set running away as national policy? Shame! A supreme shame! If I had such descendants in later generations, I would personally eliminate them!"

Li Shimin's expression was grave: "Calculating... sober selfishness... such monarchs are often more harmful than muddled, dim-witted ones."

"Because they appear smart, but in reality, they use all their intelligence on how to preserve their power and how to seek temporary ease. To the country and the people, it does a hundred harms and no good!"

Wei Zheng said sternly: "Your Majesty! You should take this as a warning. A ruler should keep the world's common people in mind and take the survival of the state as their responsibility."

"If one only has selfish interests in their heart, even with talent, it is the source of the country's ruin! This Zhao Gou is the clear proof!"

Zhu Yuanzhang cursed even more loudly: "I despise this kind of spineless person the most. When the enemy comes, they run, and after running, they don't think about fighting back, just thinking about living a small life on their own little plot of land."

"When I think of this Zhao Gou killing Yue Fei, who was loyal to the emperor and patriotic, it makes me hate him even more than that Zhao Ji!"

"Zhao Ji is stupid, but this Zhao Gou is evil! Evil to the bone!"

Zhu Di also said angrily: "With such a monarch, what face does he have to stand between heaven and earth? What face does he have to see his ancestors? If my Great Ming had such unfilial descendants in later generations, I would be the first to refuse!"

Three Kingdoms plane.

Cao Cao looked at the four characters "Calculating," his eyes playful.

"Oh? This person does not seem mediocre, but... selfish to the extreme, soberly choosing the path most beneficial to himself, even if this path is walked on one's knees."

"It is interesting, but unfortunately, his vision is too small; he only sees the dragon chair in front of him and not the infamy behind him."

Guo Jia laughed: "My Lord, this person is more like a shrewd merchant, only he treats the throne and the country as goods that can be discarded and traded."

"It's just that this business was done at a loss, losing the ancestral heritage and eternal reputation."

Hearing this, Liu Bei said angrily: "Such behavior, how is it different from a beast?!"

"A subject should be loyal, a son should be filial, and a ruler should be benevolent! This Zhao Gou possesses none of these—loyalty, filial piety, benevolence, or righteousness. He favors treacherous officials, unjustly kills the loyal and good, and kneels to surrender to the enemy country... Is such a person worthy of being a ruler? Is he worthy of the surname Zhao?!"

He was a member of the Han imperial clan, and although he had no sense of belonging to the "Zhao Song," as an emperor himself, seeing such base behavior, he also felt the same indignation.

Zhuge Liang shook his fan and sighed: "With such a ruler, even with a peerless military talent like Yue Fei, it is difficult to turn the tide. It is not that Heaven does not protect, but that human planning is flawed."

"This Zhao Gou places his own desires above the fate of the nation. His dim-wittedness lies in his heart, in his morality, and even more in his irredeemable selfishness and cold-bloodedness."

【The reason for Emperor Gaozong of Song, Zhao Gou, making the list is not because of simple stupidity, but stems from a kind of extreme, sober selfishness.

His core logic is: Throne > Father and Brother > Territory > Subjects.

Any person or thing that threatens his personal power, even if it is recovering lost territory or welcoming back the two emperors (his father and brother, Emperor Huizong and Emperor Qinzong of Song), must be eliminated.】

【Netizens bestowed the name: "Wanyan Gou." This satirizes his degree of submission to the Jin Dynasty (the imperial surname was Wanyan), as if the Jin Dynasty were the "best agent" in the Southern Song.】

"The throne is greater than father and brother, greater than territory, greater than subjects... sober selfishness... Wanyan Gou?!"

Zhao Kuangyin was trembling with rage, and another mouthful of blood surged into his throat, which he forcibly suppressed.

This evaluation simply stripped Zhao Gou bare. What Son of Heaven, what ruler of a country—in his heart, there was only that dragon chair.

For the sake of the dragon chair, father and brother could be abandoned, territory could be discarded, and loyal ministers and good generals could be killed.

And "Wanyan Gou"? This is cursing him for recognizing a thief as his father and willingly acting as a lackey for the Jin people!

"Beast! This thing is worse than a beast!!"

Zhao Kuangyin could no longer hold back and hissed in rage,

"How could I, Zhao Kuangyin, give birth to... no, how could my Great Song choose such a degenerate who forgets his origins, is cold-blooded and selfish, to be emperor?!"

"Wanyan Gou... Hahaha, what a good Wanyan Gou. The face of my Zhao family has been completely lost by him, thrown under the feet of the Jin people!"

Zhao Guangyi's face was also ashen. This infamy was truly too heavy, too poisonous, and too accurate.

"Wanyan Gou? Hahaha!"

Liu Bang didn't laugh this time, just had a strange expression.

"This nickname is sharp! But it hits the nail on the head. This Zhao Gou, I'm afraid he wishes he had the surname Wanyan, right?"

Ying Zheng's eyes showed undisguised contempt,

"Such a monarch, how is he different from a slave? To preserve his power, he fawns upon the enemy country and slaughters the pillars of the nation. He is truly a disgrace to emperors and a sinner through the ages."

Li Shimin was heartbroken: "Consumed by selfish desires to such an extent! His father and brother are covered in dust, yet he does not think of rescuing them; the territory is lost, yet he does not think of recovering it; loyal ministers and good generals are slaughtered instead."

"This is not a ruler of men, but a traitor to the country. He will carry the name 'Wanyan Gou' for ten thousand generations and never be able to turn things around."

Wei Zheng was furious: "Your Majesty! The actions of this scoundrel are hated by both heaven and man. A ruler should govern the world with filial piety, control subjects with loyalty, and treat all people with benevolence."

"This Zhao Gou is unfilial, disloyal, and unbenevolent, gathering all the evils of the world in one body. He is truly the ultimate dim-witted emperor and a tyrant rare in history."

Cheng Yaojin was stunned: "My goodness, to be an emperor to this extent, even abandoning his father and brother? Just to sit firmly on the throne?"

"And helping the enemy kill his own best general? Is this damn thing human? He must be a spy sent by the Jin people, right?"

Zhu Yuanzhang was so angry he paced back and forth in the hall,

"Kill! He should be killed! Keeping such an emperor is a disaster."

"What Wanyan Gou, just call him Zhao Dog. No, he's worse than a dog; even a dog knows how to protect its home. He personally tore down his home and gave it to robbers, and even helped the robbers bite his own people."

Zhu Di also felt deep contempt,

"With such a disposition and such actions, he simply tarnishes the word 'Emperor'."

"If my Great Ming had such a dim-witted emperor, I would definitely act in accordance with Heaven to pacify the south, clear the side of the emperor, and rectify the court!"

Cao Cao sneered: "What a sober selfishness. He is a clear-headed person, but unfortunately, he is clear-headed in the wrong place."

"Using all his intelligence on how to kneel comfortably and how to kill cleanly—such 'wisdom' is better off without. 'Wanyan Gou'? A name that fits perfectly."

Guo Jia said: "This monarch no longer has the slightest demeanor of a ruler, only naked power lust and fear."

"The death of Yue Fei was not the fault of the war, but because the ruler could not tolerate him. Sad, truly lamentable."

Liu Bei stood up and slammed the table: "Disloyal, unfilial, unbenevolent, and unrighteous! With such a person, what face is there to live in this world?"

Zhuge Liang said: "If the ruler suspects the subject, he executes him; if the country has no good generals, it is in danger. Zhao Gou destroyed his own Great Wall and cut himself off from the hearts of the people of the world."