Chinese President Xi Jinping’s tea cups and the staff who served him tea took the spotlight at the “two sessions” — the annual meetings of China’s legislature and leading advisory body — and have sparked the latest round of speculations about the state of the country’s politics.

Netizens pointed out that Xi had two tea cups in front of him at the meetings while all other officials, including Premier Li Keqiang, had only one cup each. There was also a male staffer who was dedicated to serving the president tea. The arrangements were seen to be symbolic, reflecting the superior, unchallenged status of Xi as the country’s almighty leader.

The media also observed how the tea arrangements have changed throughout the years. Female staffers used to serve the leaders tea during the two sessions meetings, but this changed in 2015 when male staffers were deployed instead, according to a report in the South China Morning Post. In addition, during last year’s two sessions, instead of refilling tea into Xi’s cup directly, a staff member would take the president’s cup away and replace it with a new one.

Xi’s tea cups have long been a symbolic feature in his public meetings. Previously, when he had tea with former United States Presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump, the media noticed that his tea cups did not match the surroundings and were specially made.

The frequent changes of Xi’s tea cups during the current two sessions may be an integral part of strengthened security arrangements, according to Deutsche Welle’s analysis. Having a dedicated staff member handle his tea could be a tactic to prevent poisoning, the analysis said. The male staff could also be a highly trained bodyguard who could protect the leader in case of emergencies.

Other analysts, however, suggested that the arrangements were to avoid embarrassing situations. Former leader Jiang Zemin was once photographed gazing at a young female server in public. The photo was taken by foreign media and was widely circulated.

Click here for Chinese version

---------------------------------

Apple Daily’s all-new English Edition is now available on the mobile app: bit.ly/2yMMfQE

To download the latest version,

iOS: bit.ly/AD_iOS

Android: bit.ly/AD_android

Or search Appledaily in App Store or Google Play