that the list of prominent merchants during the Warring States compiled in Sima Qian's Shiji (Grand History) during the Han dynasty does not include a single merchant from Qin. Rebellions occurred soon after the death of the first Qin emperor, and by 206 BCE, the Qin had collapsed. Han dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE) The Han dynasty is remembered as the first of China's Golden Ages. The Han reached its peak size under Emperor Wu (141-87 BC), who subdued the Xiongnu and took control of the Hexi Corridor, opening up the Silk Road in 121 BC. The economy boomed during the Han, who had a registered population of 58 million. Large-scale enterprises emerged, some which were later temporarily nationalised during the Western Han. Technological innovations, such as the wheelbarrow, paper and a seismograph, were invented during this period. Western Han dynasty The reigns of the Emperors Wen (180-157 BC) and Jing (157-141 BC) were a period of peace and prosperity. During their reigns, state control of the economy was minimal, following the Taoist principle of Wu wei (無為), meaning "actionless action". As part of their laissez-faire policy, agricultural taxes were reduced from 1/15 of agricultural output to 1/30 and for a brief period, abolished entirely. In addition, the labour corvée required of peasants was reduced from 1 month every year to one month every three years. The minting of coins was privatised. Both the private and public sectors flourished during this period. Under Emperor Jing, ... the ropes used to hang the bags of coins were breaking apart due to the weight, and bags of grain which had been stored for several years were rotting because they had been neglected and not eaten. Severe criminal punishments, such as cutting off the nose of an offender, were abolished. The Han taxation system was based on two taxes; a land property tax and a poll tax. The average individual's tax burden consisted of one-thirtieth of the output on land, and a poll tax of 20 coins paid for every person between 7 and 14, with another poll tax for those above 14. Late in the Han dynasty, the taxation rate for agriculture was reduced to one-hundredth, the lost revenue being made up with increased poll taxes. Merchants were charged at double the individual's rate. Another important component of the taxation system was Corvee labour. Every able-bodied man, defined as a man