Chapter 108: Plundering the Population

To the south of the State of Lu lay a small state called Ju. Originally, the State of Ju was not weak; it had once engaged in continuous outward expansion. When Duke Huan of Qi, then known as Xiaobai, was in exile, he had sought refuge in Ju. After returning to the State of Qi to ascend the throne, he was frequently reminded by his advisors, including Guan Zhong, not to forget the sanctuary he had been granted. This gave rise to the idiom, "Never forget the time in Ju."

With the backing of the State of Qi, the State of Ju became increasingly ambitious, repeatedly invading its neighbors. This led to highly strained relations with the State of Lu and, consequently, a rapid deterioration in its ties with Qi.

Yunyi had originally been territory of Ju, seized by Lu after defeating them. Later, after Ju was twice defeated by Qi, it had no choice but to become a vassal state of the latter. The current ruler of Ju was Ji Kuang, the son of Duke Zhuqiu of Ju, Ji Quji. He was a cold, ruthless, and licentious man. No sooner had his father, Ji Quji, passed away than he began to sing and dance beside his father’s corpse, celebrating his ascension to the throne.

After reigning for only a year, he was expelled by his uncle, Ji Zhanyu. This Ji Zhanyu was no better; he had originally been the crown prince but was deposed for his extreme cruelty, which led to his younger brother, Ji Quji, becoming the heir instead. Ji Zhanyu had a penchant for forging swords, and whenever he acquired a fine blade, he enjoyed using people as test subjects. This behavior incited the wrath of the entire state. As the saying goes, between two evils, one chooses the lesser; for the people of Ju, having to endure either of these two rulers was a calamity.

Eventually, the people of Ju revolted, driving out the deposed ruler Ji Zhanyu and welcoming back the exiled Ji Kuang. With such men at the helm, the fate of Ju was sealed; it never recovered and dwindled into a minor, peripheral state. Ji Zhanyu fled to the State of Wu, and his former partisans, seeing the tide had turned, defected to the states of Qi and Lu, handing over vast swathes of territory that Ju was powerless to reclaim.

However, Meng Di was considering the fact that if he were to attack Ju now, the potential gains would be limited. The most critical factor was the attitude of the State of Qi. In a sense, Ju had become the backyard of Qi, and its eventual annexation was only a matter of time. Frowning, he spoke: "Master Ji, do you mean to suggest an attack on Ju? If we do so, Qi will certainly not sit idly by. At that point, conflict between Qi and Lu will inevitably flare up again. Time is our most precious resource right now; I fear the gains would not justify the cost."

Upon hearing this, Ji Ran smiled with an inscrutable expression and said softly: "My Lord, you are overthinking. In the current situation, if Qi were to invade Ju, they would first have to consider how the State of Lu might react. Furthermore, Lu is currently riddled with internal strife. By marching to punish Ju now, we can conveniently sidestep internal issues and avoid placing yourself in a dilemma."

"As for the State of Qi, that is easily resolved. As long as we do not occupy Ju’s territory but merely seize their population and resources, Qi will surely not intervene. Of course, you may privately negotiate with the Tian and Guo clans to ensure the situation does not escalate."

After some deliberation, Meng Di concluded that this plan was viable. Since Qi had attacked Lu first, his counter-offensive against Ju could be seen as a tit-for-tat response, perhaps even forcing Ju to seek protection from Qi directly. In this way, Qi would gain vast territories for nothing. If managed correctly, not only would it not provoke Qi, but it could establish a tacit understanding between them.

Having made up his mind, Meng Di smiled and said to Ji Ran: "With Master Ji by my side, it is worth a hundred thousand soldiers. Since that is the case, I shall return at once to write to Tian Chang and Guo Yuan to discuss how we might divide the spoils of Ju."

After the letters were dispatched, Meng Di began training his troops personally in preparation for war. Naturally, his first priority was to attract more recruits. He erected a high platform outside the city of Feiyi and announced that he would be rewarding the soldiers who had participated in the previous campaign. Attracting a large crowd of townspeople, Meng Di stood upon the platform and declared in a loud voice:

"When the Qi army invaded, my men did not fear their superior numbers, braving danger alongside me. They showed the State of Qi the fighting strength of Mengyi, ensuring they would not dare to invade lightly again. This is the art of ending war through war."

"Today, I am here to distribute rewards to those brave soldiers. Based on their performance in battle, all who participated shall receive varying amounts of currency, cloth, and grain."

These three items were universal currencies. The surrounding populace, hearing this, became visibly excited, their eyes lighting up as they began to whisper among themselves.

"The land tax in Mengyi is already so low, yet Lord Meng does not force us to conscript, only asking that we practice regularly to defend against bandits. Such benevolent governance is rare indeed; I never expected he would also distribute rewards."

"Indeed. I thought we would be forced into service during the great battle, yet Lord Meng achieved a resounding victory with only three thousand men. He is truly no ordinary man."

"I want to see what rewards these soldiers receive. If the compensation is generous, I will consider joining the army. It must be better than toiling in the fields from dawn till dusk."

"I have the same thought. Compared to the fiefs of other grandees, we already live quite well; it is just that we have little cash, and life remains tight."

Meng Di then began the distribution. Han Zhan, as the leader of the cavalry, received the highest reward: five thousand in currency, ten bolts of cloth, and thirty dan of grain—a substantial sum. Following him, others were rewarded in turn, with even the lowest-ranking soldiers receiving five hundred in currency, one bolt of cloth, and two dan of grain. The crowd was stunned into silence, their eyes fixed greedily on the goods being distributed.

Seeing this, Meng Di knew his goal had been achieved. In this era, the status of a commoner was barely higher than that of a slave, and when war broke out, they were expected to provide their own weapons and food, with little compensation for those who died. They had never seen such rewards before. Their interest was piqued, and once Meng Di departed, many began using their connections to inquire about how to join the training.

Meng Di chuckled and turned to Han Zhan, who was following behind him: "Continue recruiting tomorrow. But bring more help so you aren't overwhelmed—especially clerks. And make sure to prepare plenty of bamboo slips; we must not let haste lead to errors."