On the New Proof to the Land Taxation System in Han Dynasty ——As my reply to Mr Li Hengquan

By his royal decree Restore the past noble titles, lands and estates, Emperor Liu Bang completely copied the systems of land granting and of taxation according to qing. The Ordinance in the Second Year, recorded in the Zhangjiashan Bamboo Slip Writings of the Han Dynasty, shows that, in West Han Period, the standard area of mu was 240 bu2; the system of land granting according to the resident registration was strictly adhered to, and the amount to each adult was one qing (100 mu), with the additional award of land to the new nobles with military exploit; the tax to Chu and Gao (grass and feedstuffs) were also collected according to qing, with the same tax rate as that of the Qin Dynasty but focused on material tax while currency was also collected; grain, Chu, and Gao were the different forms and components of land tax. Land tax collection according to qing is undoubted, and it was one of the reasons leading to quick bankruptcy of the peasantry in the early Han period.