Liu Xiaoqing is a household name in China. She has starred in films such as “Rose Town,” “Wild Field,” and TV series like “Empress Wu,” earning titles like “Queen of the Screen, Billionaire Sister, and Queen of Topics.”
However, in 2002, Liu Xiaoqing was infamous for being involved in a tax evasion case and was thrown into the notorious Qin City Prison, where she even feared being executed by a firing squad.
Liu Xiaoqing claimed innocence, stating she had never acted immorally and ended up in jail due to her youthful arrogance, which offended someone.
So, who did Liu Xiaoqing offend back then?
In 2015, Liu Xiaoqing published an autobiography titled “Not Afraid to Start Over in Life,” in which she narrated her journey from the peak of success to the depths of despair and incarceration.
Before being imprisoned, Liu Xiaoqing was a successful entrepreneur with multiple companies under her belt. She proudly mentioned, “In the first year of the Forbes China Rich List, I ranked 42nd, which made me proud. In the second year, I was 43rd, and in the third edition, I was arrested.”
In April 2002, Liu Xiaoqing’s brother-in-law Jingjun and sister Xiaohong were arrested by the police. Jingjun was a key figure in Liu Xiaoqing’s companies and managed them for her.
A few days before the incident, a friend warned Liu Xiaoqing about a major event in the artistic community involving hundreds of people, which turned out to be their arrest.
On the fateful day, Jingjun was taken away by dozens of police officers under the guise of a tax audit visit.
It dawned on Liu Xiaoqing that she was the central figure in this major case.
After Jingjun’s arrest, Liu Xiaoqing tried to flee to France but was intercepted at the border. From then on, she was closely surveilled by plainclothes officers, turning her daily life into a movie scene.
Describing her situation, she humorously stated, “Every minute, I enjoy the top-level protection like a head of state: rooftops, hallways, elevators, lobbies, and parking lots are filled with plainclothes officers. When I go out, vehicles follow me from all sides, like a president on a state visit.”
Surely, she must have realized by then which powerful figure she had offended.
The ability to mobilize a large number of Chinese police, tax authorities, and investigators to monitor and investigate a top celebrity is a rare feat.
Her house in Beijing’s Changping Rose Garden was under 24-hour surveillance with layers of agents both inside and outside the premises.
She had two pet dogs, one of which was poisoned. The other dog, witnessing its companion’s tragic and sudden death, became cautious and hesitant, even waiting several minutes to eat, even when fed by Liu Xiaoqing.
Shortly after the pet was poisoned, her sister Xiaohong was also arrested.
Three days later, on June 19, 2002, Liu Xiaoqing herself was arrested.
In her autobiography, Liu Xiaoqing shared that the prison guards would refrain from calling her name in her cell, likely to prevent nearby inmates from hearing. Each time she had a break, she was isolated.
In July 2013, the People’s Daily published an article revealing that Liu Xiaoqing’s cell measured a mere 5 square meters, without windows, forcing four inmates to squeeze in together on the floor during summer nights.
The food was meager, with her lawyers often buying a 10 yuan meal box, which she finished every time they visited her.
On the second day in Qin City Prison, Liu Xiaoqing was interrogated.
She adamantly maintained her innocence, stating, “With so many accountants under me, I couldn’t even instruct them to evade taxes. Tax evasion requires skill. Do you think I’m a math genius?”
She mentioned being recognized for several years as a tax model in Beijing’s Chaoyang District before the incident.
She tearfully recalled running to the tax authorities to pay her taxes and fines after Jingjun’s arrest, offering all her properties in China as collateral, but the tax officers refused.
Frustrated by the injustices, she vowed not to cry anymore and perceived malicious joy in the eyes of her interrogators.
Believing someone wanted to tarnish her reputation, she faced baseless accusations that led to her incarceration without evidence.
Under the belief that in Western countries, post-arrest suspects have rights to remain silent until in the presence of a lawyer, she confronted the realities of the Chinese prison system, where such privileges didn’t apply.
Official reports of Liu Xiaoqing’s tax evasion case stated that following an investigation by Beijing Municipal Taxation Bureau in April 2002, Liu Xiaoqing and her companies were found to have evaded taxes amounting to 14.583 million RMB, with an additional 5.73 million RMB in overdue taxes, totaling over 20 million RMB. The Chaoyang Court determined that 6.68 million RMB constituted tax evasion, imposing a fine of 7.1 million RMB.
By the end of 2002, the special task force informed Liu Xiaoqing that her 19 properties would be publicly auctioned, demanding her signature on consent forms.
Furious, as she had not yet been convicted, she realized someone wanted to strip her of the fruits of her labor over the years, leaving her with nothing even after leaving prison.
After vehement protests, the task force reluctantly allowed her to keep one property.
Days later, she stumbled upon a newspaper headline on a prison officer’s desk stating, “Liu Xiaoqing’s 19 properties auctioned for 6.611 million RMB.”
Her reaction to the news was one of indifference instead of shock, fear, or anger, as her properties were estimated to be worth nearly 10 million RMB each.
In the summer of 2003, the task force visited her and offered release conditional on signing a guarantee.
The guarantee stipulated that she would remain silent post-release and acknowledge her tax evasion.
Resolute, Liu Xiaoqing retorted, “What’s the point of a guarantee? I won’t talk about it. You know I didn’t evade taxes. Let me write the guarantee. It’s useless. Those who will talk will talk, and those who won’t won’t, even if they sign.”
On August 16, 2003, Liu Xiaoqing was released on bail after 422 days in prison. Her sister Xiaohong was also released at the same time.
For many years after her release, Liu Xiaoqing refrained from mentioning her prison experience in public until 2015 when she published her autobiography.
She attributed her downfall to youthful arrogance and unintentionally offending someone.
Who did she offend? Reports from overseas revealed that she offended Jiang Zemin.
In the 1990s, Jiang Zemin had just ascended to the position of General Secretary of the CCP, exploiting the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square protests. Fearing Deng Xiaoping might depose him due to incompetence, Jiang made frequent visits to Deng’s home in those initial years.
Deng Xiaoping, a native of Sichuan like Liu Xiaoqing, enjoyed her company during her peak fame in China. Liu Xiaoqing was a regular guest at Deng’s place, cherished by his family. Her witty comments enlivened every gathering she attended.
Despite being over twenty years her senior, Jiang Zemin, oddly, addressed her as “Xiaoqing Little Sister.” Feigning ignorance, Liu Xiaoqing playfully called Jiang Zemin “Uncle Jiang,” thwarting his advances and earning his ire.
To add insult to injury, claims from sources stated that Liu Xiaoqing publicly mocked Jiang Zemin at Deng’s residence once. Having served in the Sichuan military, she witnessed Jiang trembling when handling firearms, despite being apprehensive herself.
Teasing Jiang, she joked about his military experience as the Chairman of the CCP Military Commission, advising him against firing a weapon, lest he hurt his belly.
The incident led to laughter among guests, but Jiang harbored a grudge, planting the seeds of retribution.
Liu Xiaoqing’s arrest coincided with Jiang’s consolidation of power in the mid-90s, marked by subtle manipulations within Liu’s company by key figures like Wang Jianzhong and a female accountant named Li.
According to a report from the Chongqing Commerce Daily in December 2003, Wang Jianzhong played a crucial role in Liu Xiaoqing’s tax evasion case. Wang hires a lawyer to pursue an outstanding debt case against Liu Xiaoqing, disclosing that Li was the key figure providing incriminating evidence. But where did Li get this evidence from?
It was revealed that upon joining Liu Xiaoqing’s company, Wang Jianzhong immediately took charge of the accounting while the new recruit Li meticulously documented the company’s finances daily.
The lack of issues in 1993 contrasted with discrepancies appearing in the company’s bookkeeping from 1996 onwards. The identity of this Li remained shrouded in mystery.
Why did Liu Xiaoqing dare to publish her autobiography and disclose her story in 2015? By then, Xi Jinping had been in power for several years, cracking down on corruption throughout the country, possibly making her feel more secure in sharing her experience.
Liu Xiaoqing reiterated numerous times, “I’m not someone who seeks sensationalism. I can proudly say that I have never acted immorally or engaged in corruption.”
This led many to believe that her imprisonment was a consequence of rejecting Jiang Zemin’s advances.
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