Du Taihou died, but this affidavit signed by Zhao Pu was kept by Zhao Kuangyin, and no one else could know it. However, a few years later, Zhao Pu was dismissed because someone accused him of taking profits illegally. Zhao Kuangyin, however, kept adding officials to Zhao Guangyi. Of course, adding officials was adding palaces, but he was not allowed to go out to lead troops to fight, which blocked his contact with military commanders. However, how could Zhao Guangyi be at his mercy? He still managed to make friends with generals.
in October of the ninth year of Kaibao (976), Zhao Kuangyin was seriously ill. On the 2th night, Zhao Kuangyin summoned Zhao Guangyi to have a long talk in the candlelight, and then Zhao Kuangyin took off the column axe hanging on the wall, jabbing at the ground and banging. But no one knows what they are talking about. Shortly after Zhao Guangyi's departure, Zhao Kuangyin died suddenly, leaving an eternal mystery for future generations. However, according to historians, Zhao Kuangyin probably died of a cerebral hemorrhage.
When Zhao Kuangyin died, Zhao Guangyi preempted the throne for Taizong. From then on, it seems that the Song Dynasty wants to change the system of inheritance of the eldest son, and change it to the system of brotherhood. After Emperor Taizong acceded to the throne, he did a very important thing, that is, he named his younger brother Guangmei as the official of Kaifengfu Yin and Zhongshu. This official position is exactly the same as that before Emperor Taizong acceded to the throne, which shows that he will also be transferred to Guangmei in the future. At the same time, he sealed De Zhao and De Fang, sons of Zhao Kuangyin, suggesting that after Guangmei came De Zhao and after De Zhao came De Fang, so as to eliminate the dissatisfaction of the DPRK ministers with his indecent assault on the throne. However, it is not clear whether Taizong really has the sincerity to preach in Guangmei.
In any case, these three heirs are ultimately denied the throne. In the fourth year of Taiping and Xingguo (979), Emperor Taizong attacked the Northern Han Dynasty, and Zhao Guangmei and Zhao Dezhao went with him. After the Northern Han Dynasty was pacified, Taizong went his own way and tried to attack Youzhou, but he was defeated. In the chaos, everyone disappeared from Taizong, thinking that it was run. At this time, someone proposed to make Zhao Dezhao emperor, but it was soon discovered that Taizong fled back in a donkey cart. Although Zhao Dezhao was not made emperor, Emperor Taizong was particularly unhappy when he heard about it. Just at this time, Zhao Dezhao came to urge Taizong to give awards to those who had made contributions to pacify the Northern Han Dynasty as soon as possible. Taizong was angry and said angrily, "You should reward them, right? When you become the son of heaven yourself, you can just reward them!" This sentence gave Zhao Dezhao a fatal blow. He felt that Emperor Taizong was clearly suspicious of his plot. In desperation, he committed suicide. Two years later, at the age of 23, Zhao Defang also died. In this way, only Guangmei is left among the three heirs.
Zhao Guangmei seems to have a premonition that bad luck is coming, and she is in constant fear. Sure enough, soon someone in the DPRK will report that Zhao Guangmei is going to make an insurrection. Of course, several people who report him are the cronies of Taizong. Since someone has reported it, someone has to try it to get a conviction! At this point, Taizong thought of Zhao Pu. When Mao was in office, Zhao Pu was banished from the capital because of his shallow knowledge and cronyism, and of course because he was involved in the succession to the throne. However, Emperor Taizong valued Zhao Pu's ability to handle affairs, and revived him. After seeing Emperor Taizong, Zhao Pu played the affidavit of succession that Du Taihou asked him to record. It is said that Emperor Taizong found the affidavit and immediately felt that he was an emperor. Naturally, he was very grateful to Zhao Pu and immediately reused Zhao Pu. Of course, this affidavit is only known by these relevant people, and it is impossible to find out whether it really exists.
Zhao Guangmei spent a few months in a state of anxiety, but she was eventually inexplicably removed from Kaifeng and moved to Xijing to stay. Originally, Zhao Guangmei was driven out of Beijing, and this matter should come to an end. However, Zhao Pu, who has been promoted to prime minister, wanted to take the opportunity of Zhao Guangmei's case to crush Lu Duoxun, and a case that had been settled was getting bigger and bigger by him. He made a big fuss about Lu Duoxun's association with Zhao Guangmei, and the conclusion of the trial was that Zhao Guangmei and Lu Duoxun cursed the emperor, and the result was unimaginable. Lu Duoxun and his family were exiled, and several people involved in this case were also demoted, punished and dead. Zhao Guangmei also moved to the remote Fangzhou (now Fangxian County, Hubei Province) from the King of Qin to Fuling County. Zhao Guangmei, who was frightened, became ill and died in Fangzhou soon. At this point, the chain of succession to the throne designed by Du Taihou was completely cut off.
At this time, Taizong could only be transferred to his own son, but Taizong was very cautious about it. Originally, he was going to preach to his eldest son, Yuanzuo, but unexpectedly Yuanzuo was crazy. When he was the craziest, he set fire to the palace. So he had to change his second son Yuan Nuo. However, Emperor Taizong was too late to establish the Crown Prince, and only appointed Yuan Xi as the Kaifeng Prefecture Yin. This is a very sensitive official position. Both Emperor Taizong and Zhao Guangmei were Kaifeng prefects. In fact, courtiers knew that Yuan Nuo was about to be the heir to the throne. Who knows, before Yuan Nuo was made a prince, he suddenly fell ill and died. Yuan Zuo was crazy and Yuan Nuo died, which caused a series of things to be discussed by the court. In order to quell the rumors, Taizong finally made up his mind to establish Yuan Kan as the Crown Prince and held a grand ceremony to establish the Crown Prince. At this point, Taizong finally completed the transition from brother to brother and from father to son.
In fact, the succession of China's ancient throne was always accompanied by blood, no matter whether it was a brother-in-law system or a father-in-law system.