On October 28, the "Why China: Living by the Yangtze River" media tour kicked off in Wuhan, delving into the city's cultural tourism vitality and innovative momentum. Under the autumn sun, dappled light filtered through plane trees onto the red-brick walls of Li Huangpi Road in Jiang'an District. Guangdong tourist Wang Yu leaned against the railing of the "Bagon Building," snapping a signature check-in photo before uploading it to social media. "Touching these patterned floors feels like hearing history's echo," she wrote, describing the weight of time emanating from the 115-year-old Russian-style facade.
A century ago, the triangular Bagon Building stood as Wuhan's landmark, hosting merchants and elites in its then-state-of-the-art apartments. Today, after systematic preservation and adaptive reuse, it has reemerged as a social media sensation, drawing comparisons to Shanghai's Wukang Building for its 99% architectural resemblance. During the recent National Day holiday, daily visitors exceeded 100,000.
That afternoon, the tour shifted to Wuhan Economic & Technological Development Zone, where robotic arms at Voyah Auto's smart factory assemble vehicles every 118 seconds. This contrast between quietly reborn heritage and roaring智能制造 epitomizes Wuhan's dual strengths in cultural soft power and industrial硬实力.
**Breathing New Life into Old Walls** At the intersection of Li Huangpi Road and Dongting Street, colorful "Wuhan" balloons flutter beneath the Bagon Building's dome. Completed 14 years before Shanghai's Wukang Building by Russian tea merchants, this structure witnessed Hankou's heyday as the hub for 86% of China's tea exports. Restoration followed "minimal intervention" principles, with 80 artisans spending a year manually restoring bricks through 10+ processes. The 2021-2023 renovation earned Berlin Design Award's silver medal in architecture. Now a 45-room boutique hotel retaining original wooden staircases, it houses a tea-trade exhibition and rooms blending古典与现代设计.
This is just one chapter in Li Huangpi Road's revival. The街区 unfurls like a historical scroll: Spanish-style villas that hosted revolutionary meetings coexist with cafes in century-old buildings. Nearby, the 6.02 sq km Hankou Historic District safeguards 62 cultural relics, 169 heritage buildings, and 18 preserved alleyways (里份), anchoring over half the city's revolutionary sites. Through "space再造," the government has injected new业态 like首店 brands (79 in Xian'an Alley, 81% of tenants) and nightlife hubs (Jiqing Street's "Music+潮玩" zone), driving 21% YoY tourism growth to 3.945 million visits this National Day.
"Preservation isn't the end goal," said Xian'an Alley's manager Guo Honglin, noting how文创 spaces and light餐饮 now draw locals and tourists alike, transforming relics into "time bridges."
**Innovation at Full Throttle** As heritage breathes anew, Wuhan's tech engine accelerates. Ranked top-5 nationally in innovation for two consecutive years by WIPO and 9th globally in科研城市 (Nature Index), the city is transitioning from "education hub" to "innovation高地."
Voyah Auto exemplifies this shift. Its digital孪生 technology缩短 development cycles while boosting quality by 10%. The company's self-developed hybrid system addresses range anxiety with 360km pure-electric range and 12-minute fast charging—setting industry benchmarks. With deliveries up 85% YoY (Jan-Sept) and expansion into 40+ countries, Voyah is China's only state-owned premium NEV brand deeply entrenched in Europe.
Behind this lies Wuhan's thriving ecosystem: high-tech firms surged from 6,259 to 16,630 in four years; tech contract values nearly tripled. H1 2025 saw 11.1% industrial investment growth (19 straight months of double digits), 5.4% industrial value-added growth, and private economy contributions surpassing 50% for the first time. With GDP hitting ¥1.05928 trillion (+5.5% YoY), Wuhan has entered the "half-year trillion" club.
"We're steering toward the future," a Voyah executive remarked, capturing the city's dual-track revival of heritage and innovation.
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