During the Spring and Autumn period, Jin's commander-in-chief Xi Ke led a coalition of Lu, Wei, and other states to attack Qi. Duke Qing of Qi personally led his troops to meet the enemy, but outnumbered and outmatched, he was soundly defeated by Xi Ke.
Duke Qing of Qi realized that continuing the battle would only lead to greater losses, so he sent his senior minister, Bin Meiren, to the Jin army with precious jade, treasures, and land registers to sue for peace.
Before departing, Duke Qing of Qi instructed Bin Meiren, "I am sending you to seek peace with the Jin army. Seeking peace is not surrender. If the Jin army makes unreasonable demands, it is better to fight them to the death than to submit to humiliation."
When the Qi diplomat Bin Meiren arrived at the Jin camp, he was granted an audience with the haughty Jin commander Xi Ke. Xi Ke, brimming with the arrogance of victory, deliberately made outrageous demands that he knew Qi would never accept. Bin Meiren immediately retorted, "My lord instructed me before I left: 'If Jin does not seek to destroy Qi and wishes to restore our friendship, we will not begrudge our ancestral treasures or lands. But if you reject our peace and press forward, we will rally our broken troops, mobilize every citizen, and pour all our resources into a fight to the death!'"
At that time, the commanders of Lu and Wei both believed that since Qi had already conceded, they should agree to their request for peace. Xi Ke heeded their advice, accepted Qi's surrender, and signed a treaty with Bin Meiren representing the two states.
Later, the idiom "fight to the death" came to describe an unyielding, life-or-death battle.
Source: *Zuo Zhuan*, "Duke Cheng's Second Year"
Meaning of the Idiom: Later, the Chinese idiom "决一死战" came to describe an unyielding, life-or-death battle.