Rizhao: For those wanting to get business done in China, the baijiu banquet is a rite of passage. And so, after downing the obligatory shots of the fiery sorghum-based liquor, Northern Territory Chief Minister Adam Giles wrapped Ye Cheng, the billionaire boss of China's Landbridge Group, in a tight hug.

"In Australia businesspeople who take a risk are often criticised, but they're the people who make jobs," Mr Giles told his Chinese counterpart during the lavish 12-course dinner on Saturday night in Rizhao, Shandong province, where he kicked off his five-day China trip. "You're not just an honorary Australian, you're an honorary Territorian.

NT Chief Minister Adam Giles at a "friendship" dinner with Chinese billionaire Ye Cheng. Credit:Sanghee Liu

"You are a good friend, a brother and a good partner," replied Mr Ye, who might well feel he has not been embraced the same way by the rest of Australia.

The 99-year lease over the Port of Darwin to Landbridge Group, signed in October, made headlines last month after questions emerged over the private enterprise's ties to the central government and the People's Liberation Army. The company's Communist Party secretary, He Zhaoqing, is a former military officer.