On the pillage thing, I think maybe the amount pillage also depends upon the amount of troops pillaging. I remember from the Mongol campaign that when I used an army of 1920+, the amount pillaged would usually be in the thousands, whereas with a smaller army more like the mid- to low-hundreds. Another thing that affects it most definitely is the amount of buildings in the province. That's why when I reconquer a province, there's much less to pillage.