Austerity makes banquet guru focus on speechmaking

Lavish meals loaded with booze have long been the mainstay of Chinese business meetings for long, but for many they are more a source of anxiety than joy.

For some, salvation has come in the form of a middle-aged former wedding planner.

At the "Art of Communication School" in Harbin, capital city of Heilongjiang province, businessmen and officials are taught to drink themselves up the social ladder.