Chapter 13 Section 3 Liquor Tax

Chinese brewing has a history of more than 5,000 years.Wine was originally used for sacrifices, celebrations or festivals, and later gradually became people's daily consumption.During the Xia, Shang, and Zhou dynasties, wine had become an important drink for the ancients.During the Shang Dynasty, from the nobles to the common people, drinking alcohol was common.It is said that an important manifestation of the licentiousness of Shang Zhou, the last monarch of the Shang Dynasty, was indulging in wine and sex: "Using wine as a pool, hanging meat as a forest", "drinking for a long night" ("Historical Records·Yin Benji").During the Western Zhou Dynasty, wine had already entered the market and became an important commodity. "The Book of Songs Xiaoya Logging" says: "If there is wine, I will drink [xu], but if there is no wine, I will drink it." There is no record of wine tax in the "Zhou Li" text about wine, but since wine has entered the market, selling wine should naturally pay the city tax like buying and selling other commodities.

During the Warring States Period, when Shang Yang was reforming the Qin State, he advocated that "the price of expensive wine and meat should be paid more attention to the rent, and the order should be ten times more simple" ("Shang Jun Shu · Reclamation Order") to limit the consumption of wine and prevent ministers and people from indulging in alcohol. For wine, it affects the governance of the country and the development of agricultural production.It can be seen that the state of Qin not only taxed wine at that time, but the tax was extremely high, which was 10 times the actual cost of wine.However, Shang Yang's starting point for advocating a heavy wine tax was not mainly for financial purposes.

In the early Han Dynasty, in order to save food and prevent "evil" things, a ban on alcohol was issued, but it was only a temporary policy.In the Han Dynasty, the winemaking industry was very developed, and the wine market was also very prosperous. Tongyi Dadu was not only full of small and medium-sized wine shops, but also had large-scale hotels that employed many bartenders (helpers).If a big wine merchant can sell a thousand wines a year (one wine can produce six dendrobiums and six buckets of wine), he can make a profit of 200,000 yuan.At that time, the tax on the wine market was not included in the national finance.During the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, the country changed the tax policy on wine.In the third year of the Tianhan Dynasty (98 B.C.), under the auspices of Sang Hongyang, it was decided to "build wine to support the border" ("Salt and Iron Theory · Worrying about the Border"), that is, to implement a monopoly of wine and use the income from the monopoly to supply frontier soldiers. military spending.From then on, the production and sales of wine were controlled by the government, and the official brewing and official selling were implemented, and private brewing and operation were not allowed.After 17 years of implementation of the liquor monopoly, it was abolished due to opposition from the virtuous and literary at the Salt and Iron Conference, and private liquor production was allowed again, free trade, and the state taxed liquor at four qian per liter.After Wang Mang usurped the Han, he implemented the "five equalization and six management" system, and implemented a monopoly system for wine, but this policy ended with the collapse of Wang Mang's regime.The subsequent Eastern Han Dynasty still implemented a taxation system on wine, and often apologized for floods and droughts, and announced the ban on wine making to save food.

During the period of the Three Kingdoms, Jin and Southern and Northern Dynasties, each short-lived dynasty had different policies on wine tax.During the Three Kingdoms period, Wei and Shu banned wine making, while Wu State practiced wine monopoly.In the Western Jin and Eastern Jin Dynasties, wine was taxed, and wine was sometimes banned due to disasters.The Liu Song regime in the Southern Dynasties began to ban alcohol, then implemented a monopoly, and soon changed to a taxation system.Southern Qi levied a special wine tax, and Nanliang also implemented a tax collection system.At the beginning of Chen, the tax collection system was implemented, but later due to insufficient national use, he switched to wine monopoly.The Northern Wei Dynasty began to implement alcohol prohibition to prevent alcoholism; the Eastern Wei Dynasty implemented alcohol prohibition and implemented a taxation system.The Northern Qi Dynasty also implemented alcohol prohibition at one time, and taxation system was implemented at other times.The monopoly system was once implemented in the Northern Zhou Dynasty.

At the beginning of the Sui Dynasty, wine monopoly was also implemented. In the third year of Emperor Wen's reign (583 A.D.), the wine monopoly was abolished, and no tax was imposed on wine. In the early Tang Dynasty, there was no tax on alcohol.In the first year of Emperor Suzong's Qianyuan (758 A.D.), because wine was expensive in the capital and grain was scarce, he issued an edict to ban wine in the capital, and stipulated that no wine should be prepared for non-sacrifice and banquets.In the second year of Emperor Daizong Guangde (764 A.D.), in order to increase fiscal revenue, the Household Law was promulgated, the number of liquor sellers was approved, and liquor taxes were paid to the state on a monthly basis.Except for the approved wine, no one is allowed to brew and sell wine, regardless of public or private.In the sixth year of Daizong Dali (771 A.D.), the households were divided into three classes, and taxes were paid by classes.In the first year of Jianzhong (780 A.D.) of Dezong, private wine brewing was stopped.In the third year of Jianzhong (AD 782), in order to raise military expenses, the government set up wine shops to brew and sell, charging 3,000 per dendrobium; private wine making was prohibited.Since then, the wine tax in the Tang Dynasty has a monopoly nature.But soon stopped the capital to discuss food.In the second year of Zhenyuan (786 A.D.), private wine sales in the capital and suburban counties were prohibited.The people who set up shops and sell wine in various places paid 150 qian for each bucket of wine, which was half of the 300 qian per bucket of the wine price at that time.In Huainan, Hedong and other places, Ququ is implemented, that is, taxes are imposed on distiller's koji, the raw material for winemaking.In the sixth year of Emperor Xianzong Yuanhe (811 A.D.), the monopoly of wine in the capital was stopped, and the amount of money spent on wine was divided into two taxes and young crops money, so that the wine tax became an additional tax of the two taxes.In the sixth year of Huichang Emperor Wuzong (846 A.D.), Yangzhou and other prefectures were ordered to implement Ququ, set up official stores to sell liquor, and paid for liquor on behalf of the common people;

Discussing wine money is an important item of the Tang government's fiscal revenue.In the eighth year of Wenzong's Yamato (834 A.D.), the national wine monopoly income was 1.56 million min, and after deducting 1/3 of the cost, the net income was still more than 1 million min, second only to the salt monopoly income. During the Five Dynasties, the Later Tang Dynasty also levied wine tax in the form of levy money.In the third year of Tiancheng in the Later Tang Dynasty (AD 928), it was stipulated that the population of all provinces, prefectures, and prefectural villages should pay five Wen per mu for the summer and autumn taxes.At the same time, it is stipulated that those who buy official koji wines in towns and grasslands can sell their own koji wines and sell them, and they will be paid 20% according to the amount of wine made in the previous year.In the second year of Changxing (931 A.D.), the quqin was abandoned again, and the officials still made tunes and sold them to the common people to make wine.Anyone who composes music privately, no matter how heavy it is, is punishable by death.Private songs were banned in the later Han and later Zhou dynasties.In the latter week, the ban was slightly relaxed, and those who committed private songs weighing more than five catties were sentenced to death; in fact, it was also very harsh.

In the Northern Song Dynasty, the method of "discussing wine" was still practiced, and the specific method was as follows: in the cities of various states, official brewing was implemented, and the tax was included in the price.In counties, towns and villages, people are allowed to brew and sell wine, but they have to collect wine tax.Kaifeng in Tokyo, Henan Prefecture in Xijing (now Luoyang), and Yingtian Prefecture in Nanjing (now Shangqiu) practiced koji monopoly. The government made koji, Xu Min bought koji to make wine, and the wine tax was included in the price of koji.Later, Beijing Daming Mansion also implemented the music monopoly system.In the Northern Song Dynasty, the income from drinking wine was very high. In the second year of Emperor Taizong Zhidao (AD 996), the income from selling wine in the two capitals and Zhuzhou was more than 1.214 million copper coins, more than 1.565 million iron coins, and more than 480,000 coins were sold in the capital.At the end of Zhenzong Tianxi (1021 A.D.), the income from selling wine was more than 9 million guan of copper coins, nearly 3 million guan of iron coins, and more than 770 thousand guan of selling music coins.In the tenth year of Shenzong Xining (AD 1077), the Northern Song Dynasty set up more than 1,800 liquor businesses across the country. The annual income of Tokyo’s liquor sales was more than 400,000 guan, and Qinzhou and Hangzhou were more than 300,000 guan. The total wine class this year was about 13.6 million. The money for selling music is about 1 million guan, which is higher than the commercial tax revenue in the same period.

The prohibition on bootlegging in the Northern Song Dynasty was also very strict. In the second year of Jianlong Emperor Taizu (AD 961), it was stipulated that selling illicit music up to 15 catties, and entering the city with illicit wine up to three buckets, would be punished by capital punishment. In order to increase fiscal revenue, the Southern Song Dynasty continued to increase the tax on alcohol and encouraged people to drink alcohol.In the early Southern Song Dynasty, the slot separation method was used.This method was created by Zhao Kai, who was in charge of Sichuan's wealth at that time, in the third year of Emperor Gaozong's Jianyan (1129 A.D.).The specific method is: abolish the national monopoly system, and the government will keep the wine koji and wine-making utensils, and manage the brewery. 30 wen and 22 wen for the chief's money, the wine made can be bought and sold freely by the common people.After the implementation of the method of separating slots, the tax on alcohol increased greatly, and later it was implemented in various places. There are 400 official slots in the country, and the tax on alcohol has increased to more than 6.9 million yuan per year.

The Southern Song Dynasty also practiced the method of rushing to buy wine, also known as "pull buying workshops and wine profits", which divided regions in the countryside, calculated the amount of wine tax in the area, recruited people to contract, and allowed people to increase the price to seize the purchase.Even if the production and operation of the local wine is closed to lose money, the buyers still need to pay taxes. In addition, in the Southern Song Dynasty, there was additional wine money, which was the price of wine increased by the state to increase income.In the fourth year of Emperor Gaozong Jianyan (1130 A.D.), on the grounds of the high price of rice koji, it was stipulated that the price of premium wine should be increased by 20 Wen per liter, and that of inferior wine should be increased by 18 Wen per liter.In the first year of Shaoxing (1131 A.D.), Liangzhe Distillery added 5 cents of net profit to the buying puff, which was delivered to the household department, and the price of wine was increased by 20 renminbi and decreased by 10 renminbi.If the states and the army lose money from selling wine, they can increase the price at any time to make up for it; one part of the increased wine money will go to the state and army, one part will be used for the grain plan, and one part will be handed over to the economic system department.In the past, there was a fixed price for wine, and the court had to be consulted to increase the price.Since then, the state and the army can increase the price on their own, resulting in different wine prices in different places.In the fifth year of Shaoxing (1135 A.D.), it was also stipulated that the wines in each state should be equal, and each liter would increase by five Wen.

In the Southern Song Dynasty, the income from drinking wine, in the second year of Xiaozong Qiandao (AD 1166), the annual income was 1.4 million yuan, 1.6 million interest money, 20,000 yuan money, and 200,000 yuan (later increased to 500,000). important financial revenue. In the early years of the Yuan Dynasty, wine was sometimes monopolized and sometimes taxed.In the second year of Emperor Taizong of the Yuan Dynasty (1230 A.D.), the wine tax rate was fixed, and the interest rate was one out of ten; in three years, it was changed to a monopoly system; in eight years, it was changed to a tax system, with a tax rate of 1/10.During the reign of Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty, it was stipulated that people must approve the government to make wine, and pay taxes to the country. The tax amount is one tael per stone.In the 21st year of the Yuan Dynasty (1284 A.D.), Lu Shirong, the right minister, suggested the "discussion" method, and then implemented a monopoly system for wine, official system, official collection, and official sales, and added wine classes, with ten guan notes per stone class. Nine times higher than the old amount.After Lu Shirong was punished, it was changed to a civil system, official collection, and official sales, and the banknotes per stone were changed to five taels.In the twenty-ninth year of Zhiyuan (1292 A.D.), the law of decoction was restored, and the official system was sold by the official.

In the Yuan Dynasty, wine was also taxed at a rate of 1/30. Liquor tax was an important item of fiscal revenue in the Yuan Dynasty. The revenue from the liquor tax was 469,159 yuan ingots and 17 taels per year, and 201,117 yuan [baba, shell coins]. In the early Ming Dynasty, wine making was prohibited, and people were prohibited from growing glutinous rice to plug the source of wine making; however, folk wine making did not really stop.Therefore, the state still taxes the brewing and trading of wine as in the previous generation.The wine tax in the Ming Dynasty was divided into wine yeast tax and sales tax.In the second year of Hongwu, Emperor Taizu of Ming Dynasty (1369 A.D.), the common people made wine and drank it at home without taxation.If wine is made and sold, you must purchase taxed wine koji, and at the same time the wine you make must be taxed before it can be sold.If you use your own koji to make wine, you must also pay koji tax. Liquor tax rates vary from generation to generation.In the second year of Emperor Daizong Jingtai (1451 A.D.), it was stipulated that the 10 yuan tax bills for distiller's yeast, the tooth bills, and the collapsed house bills were 340 coins each.During the Chenghua period of Emperor Xianzong (AD 1468), the Zhunqu tax was 2%.In the Ming Dynasty, the wine tax was collected by the local government.In the seventh year of Yingzong Zhengtong (AD 1442), it was stipulated that wine departments in various places should be collected and stored in prefectures and counties for their use; the wine tax became a local tax. In the early Qing Dynasty, wine making was also prohibited for the purpose of saving food; therefore, the prohibition on alcohol was especially strict in famine years.However, in the cold frontier areas, and for personal use, wine is not banned, and the ban on wine in good years is also relaxed accordingly. During the period when winemaking was allowed, the wine tax was not high, and it was not included in the national finance.Liquor tax in the Qing Dynasty had several forms: vat tax, song tax and customs levy wine tax.The vat tax is a wine tax levied on wine-making vat households.Tank households have to go to the government to get tooth stickers for wine making, and the government collects tank tax according to the tooth stickers.There are fixed quotas for vat taxes in various places. For example, during the reign of Emperor Qianlong, Xuanhua Mansion collected 616 taels of vat tax each year, and nine stones, three buckets and two liters of grain.Qu tax is a tax levied on the koji used in wine making. In Zhili, the government still has restrictions on the number of koji, and each household generally cannot exceed 300 catties; in the twenty-fourth year of Kangxi (AD 1685), all provinces collected Liquor yeast tax 1686 taels.Customs wine tax is the tax levied when transporting wine through the customs; in the twenty-fourth year of Kangxi, Zhili Customs collected a total of 2,050 taels of silver; during the Qianlong period, the customs tax on wine was generally 2 cents of silver for 10 altars of wine (about 200 catties).In the Qing Dynasty, due to the small amount of wine tax, most of the income was left to the local government for office expenses.