The main hall wasn't spacious enough, so only the leading government officials and the Li Zheng were seated, while the rest of the people scattered, resting in the courtyard and under the corridor, attended to by others offering them tea, candy, and sunflower seeds.
Sang Pingliang and Mrs. Li had been intentionally blocked and jostled to the back by the crowd earlier, unable to find an opportunity to show off. Now unobstructed, they had already slipped into the room, smiling and inviting the officials to sit down with an endless stream of empty pleasantries, and loudly commanding, "Hurry up with the tea, get the tea leaves ready!" In doing so, they sought to assert their presence.
