Son of Song Dynasty

Chapter 35 Fighting with the Ministers
"Deed tax is collected." Zhao Dezhao answered briefly with a smile on his face.

The so-called "deed tax" is the "stamp tax" that Zhao Dezhao knew in his previous life. It refers to a tax that is specifically levied on contracts, certificates, licenses, etc.
In the 21st century, all countries in the world are collecting this kind of tax. For example, bulk commodity transactions such as real estate sales and transfers, vehicle and ship transfers, etc., all need to go to the relevant government departments to go through the formalities, and at the same time pay a "handling fee", which is actually quite The government imposed a tax on the transaction.

In addition, there are annual inspection fees for motor vehicles, and stock transactions are also taxed at one-thousandth of the transaction value, etc. These are actually a kind of "deed tax".

In Zhao Dezhao’s memory, the “deed tax” hadn’t been invented until hundreds of years later, at the beginning of the 17th century. The "Deed Tax" option was selected among the options.

Because the deed tax has obvious advantages such as easy collection, low collection cost, wide collection range, and relatively mild tax burden for the people, it has been gradually imitated and implemented by governments of various countries. It can be said to be an excellent tax that can stand the test of practice.

"What is deed tax?" Ma Shangshu, who is in charge of the imperial court's money bag, immediately regained his energy when he heard the word "tax", and immediately jumped out to ask Zhao Dezhao.

"Where there are large-scale private transactions, such as land property, houses, vehicles and ships, the sale and purchase of bulk rice, grain, wine and vinegar, as well as the transfer of vehicles and ships, house leasing, and large-sum loans, in order to avoid disputes, the two parties to the transaction will often sign a contract. You must go to the government to notarize and stamp, and collect taxes from it according to the deed, which is convenient and beneficial to the people!"

As soon as Zhao Dezhao finished speaking, there was a commotion in the courtroom. The ministers had different expressions and objections, but they all had a common feeling in their hearts: this kind of tax law is extraordinarily novel, it is simply unheard of, and I don’t know that it is so young. How did the light Tianshui County King come up with it!

Immediately afterwards, the first minister who sang a different tune jumped out.

"It's really ridiculous! Buyers and sellers have their own customs to make a contract in private transactions. Why do they rush to the government office to pay an extra tax! Does the government office have to send arresters to investigate and arrest the deed but not Can't you be a taxpayer?"

As soon as this remark came out, there was a burst of suppressed laughter in the hall, obviously many ministers deeply felt the same.

Zhao Dezhao glanced at the person who came first, and recognized him as a censor surnamed Zhang from Yushitai, who could be regarded as Zhao Guangyi's hardcore.

But because this Zhang Yushi is just a lip service official with a low rank, he is not qualified to be a hardcore partisan, but can only be regarded as a hardcore running dog. Before Zhao Guangyi gave a signal, this person rushed forward to bite someone up.

Zhao Dezhao looked calm, and responded lightly: "This problem is very easy to solve: as long as the contract is not notarized at the government and the deed tax is not paid in full, the contract will be deemed invalid. Once a dispute arises between the two parties to the transaction, they will go to the government at the Yamen. The government will not It’s enough to admit that the agreement in the contract is valid.”

"In this way, in order for the effectiveness of the deed to be recognized and guaranteed by the government, those businessmen are naturally willing to pay the deed tax on their own initiative. Why do they need to send people to investigate and arrest tax evaders?"

After a short pause, Zhao Dezhao cast two eyes on Zhang Yushi's face, and said coldly:

"Zhang Yushi, since you are short-sighted, you should have self-knowledge. Don't jump out and say that this king is ridiculous! Dare to ask who is ridiculous?!"

Zhang Yushi blushed immediately, speechless, quietly moved his body back two steps, and hid in the crowd.

But this is clearly just the beginning.

Zhao Dezhao caught a glimpse of Jin Wang Zhao Guangyi's wink, and immediately several speech officials and censors stepped forward, and the leader among them was Tang Jixian, the head of speech officials and the censor Zhongcheng.

Yushi Zhongcheng has a distinguished status, equivalent to the top leader of the Disciplinary Committee in later generations. This Tang Zhongcheng is naturally much higher than Zhang Yushi, and he is qualified to be called Zhao Guangyi's "partner".

Tang Zhongcheng took the lead and fired the first shot at Zhao Dezhao:
"Your Highness said: If you don't pay the 'deed tax', the government will not recognize the contract as valid. Then this so-called 'deed tax' is just trying to force the people and burden the common people? For no reason, the common people have to go to the Yamen to pay more A sum of money, wouldn't it cause troubles for nothing? How can it be said that it is convenient for the people?!"

Zhao Dezhao smiled, this Tang Zhongcheng's rank is not low, and the headshot he fired was still a bit level.

But Zhao Dezhao was already prepared for this, and retorted with a cold face:

"First of all, daily buying and selling, such as buying and selling one or two buckets of rice grain, is all about money and goods, or an oral agreement is enough. Who will make a contract? If you can do a large transaction, you need to make a contract, and you probably don't It will be ordinary people! So this king’s deed tax is to only charge the transaction tax of households above the middle level, or wealthy businessmen and tycoons. So where does the so-called burden on the people come from?!”

"Furthermore, when a private transaction is signed, the China Witness is invited to be a witness. According to the usual practice, both buyers and sellers need to give the China Witness a thank-you gift, which adds up to two thank-you gifts. This cost is not small. Isn’t it a burden for the common people? Rather than letting the successful witness bear witness, why not let the government notarize the deed? The government is more reliable than the successful witness, right?”

Tang Zhongcheng was at a loss for words for a while, but immediately the censor relayed to his boss, and fired a second shot aggressively:
"These remarks of His Highness are nothing more than rhetoric and sophistry!"

"Initiating a contract for a private transaction requires the China Securities Regulatory Commission to give a thank-you gift, but how much is a mere thank-you gift, and how much is it worth? Can it be compared with the government's tax revenue? Isn't this adding to the burden on the common people?!"

Zhao Dezhao smiled slightly, and said: "My king's deed tax is not high, but it's just one out of a hundred. For example, if you buy a house in Tokyo, you agree to a one-hundred-period transaction, and the deed tax is nothing more than a one-time deal. The two thank-you gifts from the buyer and the seller to the witnesses should be less, right?"

The censor was stunned for a moment, he didn't expect the tax rate designed by Zhao Dezhao to be so low!

Only one out of a hundred is chosen, not to mention it is placed in this dynasty, even if it is compared with all kinds of miscellaneous taxes in the past dynasties, it is the lowest tax rate, none of them!

Even in the Han Dynasty, which was known to have the lowest taxes in history, the tax rate was only one in thirty!

(End of this chapter)