Nanchang City, abbreviated as "Hong" or "Chang", is a prefecture-level city and provincial capital under the jurisdiction of Jiangxi Province. It is an important central city in the middle reaches of the Yangtze River, a national historical and cultural city, and a national comprehensive transportation hub city approved by the State Council.

Jinhua City, a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Zhejiang Province, is located in the central part of Zhejiang Province. It is adjacent to Taizhou City in the east, Lishui City in the south, Quzhou City in the west, and Shaoxing City and Hangzhou City in the north. It belongs to the hilly basin area of ​​central Zhejiang Province, with high terrain in the north and south and low terrain in the middle. It has a mid-subtropical monsoon climate with distinct four seasons, moderate annual temperature, abundant heat, and heavy rainfall. The total area is 10,942 square kilometers. [2] [33] As of the end of 2023, Jinhua City has jurisdiction over 2 districts, 3 counties, and administers 4 county-level cities. [5] As of the end of 2024, Jinhua City has a permanent population of 7.209 million. [101] Jinhua City is a central city in central and western Zhejiang Province, a national historical and cultural city, an inland open national comprehensive transportation hub city, an important innovative smart manufacturing city in the Yangtze River Delta region, an important growth pole in the southern wing of the Yangtze River Delta, and an inland open hub center city. [1] Jinhua (Wushang County) has been established for more than 2,200 years. It was originally part of the Yue Kingdom and was incorporated into Kuaiji County during the Qin Dynasty. It was named because it was "located where the two stars Venus and Wu Nu compete for brilliance". Since the establishment of Dongyang County in the first year of the Wu Baoding Period (266 AD) during the Three Kingdoms Period, it has a history of more than 1,800 years and a splendid culture. It is a national historical and cultural city. [2] [11] Jinhua City is known as "a historical and cultural state, a place where celebrities gather, a city with flourishing literary style, and a beautiful hometown with clear waters and beautiful mountains". [2] Scenic spots in the city include the national scenic area Shuanglong Cave and Huang Daxian Ancestral Temple. On October 1, 1949, seven outstanding Jinhua people, including Chen Wangdao, Shi Fuliang, Feng Xuefeng, Yan Jici, Wu Han, Qian Jiaju and Ai Qing, went up to the Tiananmen Gate Tower together with Mao Zedong, Liu Shaoqi, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and other founding leaders to participate in and witness the birth of New China. [104]

Shenyang City, formerly known as Shengjing and Fengtian, is a prefecture-level city, provincial capital, sub-provincial city, and megacity under the jurisdiction of Liaoning Province. It is the core city of the Shenyang metropolitan area and an important central city in Northeast Asia approved by the State Council. Shenyang is known as the birthplace of the Qing Dynasty.

Xi'an, formerly known as Haojing, Chang'an, Jingzhao, Xijing, and Yongzhou, is the capital city of Shaanxi Province, People's Republic of China. It is located in the central part of China, in the south-central part of Shaanxi Province and in the middle of the Weihe Plain. It is a megacity, a national central city, and the core city of the Guanzhong urban agglomeration. Xi'an is a sub-provincial city and the political, economic, cultural, transportation, medical, and educational center of Shaanxi Province and even the northwest region[4][5][6][7]. The total permanent population is 12.9959 million. The Municipal People's Government is located in Weiyang Square, Fengcheng 8th Road, Weiyang District. Xi'an is a famous cultural and tourist city in China and even in the world. It has a very profound historical and cultural heritage and is well-known at home and abroad. It is the first city in Chinese history to be called Jing. It has a history of more than 3,100 years of city construction[8][9] and more than 1,070 years of capital history. In history, many prosperous dynasties, including Zhou, Qin, Western Han, Sui, and Tang, had their capitals here [10], which made Xi'an witness the peak period of openness, extroversion, martial spirit, and prosperity in Chinese history, and left a huge amount of relics. Xi'an currently has two of the six world cultural heritage sites and is also the starting point of the Silk Road [Note 1]. The main urban area of ​​Xi'an still retains the complete Ming Dynasty city walls and gates, moats and bridges, corner towers, urn cities, arrow towers and other facilities. In and around the city, there are a large number of ancient cultural relics such as the Mausoleum of Qin Shihuang, the Han Yang Mausoleum, the ruins of the Han Chang'an City, and the ruins of the Tang Daming Palace, which are of extremely high archaeological research value. In terms of geography and transportation, Xi'an is located in the middle of the Weihe Plain in Guanzhong. The Weihe River, the largest tributary of the Yellow River, flows from the north of the city from southwest to northeast. There are also rivers such as the Chanhe River, the Bahe River, and the Jinghe River in the north and west. It is known as "Eight Rivers Surrounding Chang'an", all of which are ecological protection areas. It is adjacent to the northern slope of the Qinling Mountains in the south and is also close to the intersection of the climates of northern and southern China. Due to its geographical location in the center of the country, Xi'an is a gateway city and an important transportation hub for the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River Delta, and the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei region to the northwest and southwest. It is also a must-go place for the northwest region to go to the eastern and southern regions of the country. Xi'an Railway Station is located on the Longhai Railway and is a hub station with huge transportation volume. Xi'an currently has the 4F-level Xi'an Xianyang International Airport and domestic high-speed rail transportation hubs such as Xi'an North Station. In terms of urban transportation, Xi'an currently has 11 operating subway lines with a total mileage of 403 kilometers. It also operates the Xihu Line of the urban rail and the tram Gaoxin Yunba. Xi'an is one of China's national central cities, an important city in the Silk Road Economic Belt, the New Eurasian Continental Bridge and the Yellow River Basin, and the economic, technological, educational, energy, financial, cultural and commercial center of the Guanzhong Urban Agglomeration. Its Yanliang District is an important aviation industry base in China. In 2009, the State Council approved the "Development Plan for the Guanzhong-Tianshui Economic Zone", proposing to build Xi'an into an important national science and technology research and development center, a regional trade, logistics, exhibition center, a regional financial center, a world-class tourist destination, and an important national high-tech industry and advanced manufacturing base, and strive to build Xi'an into an international metropolis. In 2013, the State Council approved the establishment of Xixian New Area, becoming China's seventh national new area. Most of the areas under the jurisdiction of the China (Shaanxi) Pilot Free Trade Zone established in 2017 are located in Xi'an. In February 2018, the National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development issued the "Development Plan for the Guanzhong Plain Urban Agglomeration" to support Xi'an in building a national central city, an international comprehensive transportation hub, and an international metropolis with historical and cultural characteristics. In terms of administrative divisions, it currently has jurisdiction over 11 districts and 2 counties and fully administers Xixian New Area, with a total area of ​​about 10,700 square kilometers (including Xixian New Area), and several officially designated economic management zones such as the High-tech Zone, Qujiang New Area, and Economic Development Zone. The Xi'an Municipal Party Committee, Municipal Government and other party and government agencies are located in the administrative center of Weiyang District.

Nanjing City (English: Nanjing City), abbreviated as Ning, also known as "Jinling", "Jiankang" and "Stone City", is a prefecture-level city under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province, China, the capital of Jiangsu Province [284], a sub-provincial city, and a megacity [403]. It is located in the southwest of Jiangsu Province and the lower reaches of the Yangtze River. It is a city in the central area of ​​the Yangtze River Delta [1]. Nanjing City has a northern subtropical humid monsoon climate, with distinct four seasons, abundant rainfall, short spring and autumn, long winter and summer, and a large annual temperature difference. It is known as the "natural geological museum". There are many geomorphic units such as Yangtze River floodplain, water-rich soft soil, hills, and karst [9]. The total area is 6587.04 square kilometers. As of December 2023, Nanjing City has 11 districts [499]. At the end of 2024, Nanjing City has a permanent population of 9.577 million [493]. The Nanjing dialect is Jianghuai Mandarin [462]. Nanjing is an important central city in eastern China approved by the State Council, a national historical and cultural city, an international comprehensive transportation hub, a national advanced manufacturing base, an eastern industrial innovation center, a regional science and technology innovation highland, an eastern modern service industry center, a regional shipping and logistics center, and the headquarters of the Eastern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army. Nanjing is known as the "ancient capital of six dynasties" and the "metropolis of ten dynasties". The cultural influence of the city reaches the entire East Asia [284]. There were ancient human activities in the Nanjing area 1 to 1.2 million years ago. Nanjing was built in the late Shang Dynasty more than 3,100 years ago [461]. Nanjing was established as the capital in the first year of Huanglong in the Eastern Wu Dynasty (229 AD). On April 23, 1949, Nanjing was liberated. In 1953, it was designated as the capital of Jiangsu Province, and in 1994 it was designated as a sub-provincial city [6]. The four pillar industries of steel, petrochemicals, automobiles, and electronics are the "basic plate" of Nanjing's economy. Nanjing is one of the top ten cities in the country in terms of economy and manufacturing. It is a “nationally important regional financial and business center” as defined by the National Development and Reform Commission. It is the only pilot city in the country for comprehensive reform of the science and technology system and the first “Chinese Software City” in China. [327] In 2024, Nanjing will achieve a regional GDP of 1,850.081 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 4.5%.

Ningbo, abbreviated as "Yong", is a prefecture-level city, a sub-provincial city, and a state-planned city under the jurisdiction of Zhejiang Province [127]. It was formerly known as Siming and Mingzhou [234]. It is located in the northeastern coastal area of ​​Zhejiang Province [188]. The terrain is high in the southwest and low in the northeast. It is mainly plains and low mountains and hills. It has a subtropical monsoon climate [201]. As of the end of 2024, Ningbo has jurisdiction over 6 districts, 2 counties, and 2 county-level cities, with a total area of ​​9,816 square kilometers and a permanent population of 9.777 million [75] [229] [231]. Ningbo is a national historical and cultural city [1] and the cultural capital of East Asia. It has prospered because of its port since ancient times. It is the starting point of the "Maritime Silk Road" and one of the earliest cities in China to open ports [203]. It gave birth to the Siming School, Yangming School, and Zhejiang School. Ningbo Tianyi Pavilion is the oldest existing library in Asia [192] [236]. The Ningbo Gang is the largest business gang in modern China [198]. The number of Ningbo-born academicians ranks first in the country [195-196]. Ningbo's history can be traced back to the Hemudu culture 7,000 years ago. The Jingtoushan site pushes the history of Ningbo's humanities back to more than 8,000 years ago. In the first year of the Changqing period of the Tang Dynasty (821), the Mingzhou prefecture was moved to Sanjiangkou and a sub-city was built, marking the beginning of the construction of Ningbo. In the 14th year of the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty (1381), it was renamed Ningbo, which means "when the sea is calm, the waves are calm" [202]. Ningbo is an important central city in the Yangtze River Delta region, a modern marine city, a national comprehensive transportation hub, a national advanced manufacturing base, a regional science and technology innovation highland, a national shipping and logistics center, an important node city for the "Belt and Road" port and shipping cooperation [1], an important member of the Shanghai metropolitan area [131], the first National Civilized City [239], the first pilot demonstration city of Made in China 2025 [110], and has the world's third largest container port and the world's largest port in terms of cargo throughput, Ningbo-Zhoushan Port [205]. Ningbo has formed a modern industrial system dominated by digital industries, green petrochemicals, and high-end equipment, with new functional materials, new energy, key basic components, smart home appliances, fashion textiles and clothing, and modern health as its features, as well as a number of emerging and future industrial clusters with forward-looking layout [235]. In 2024, Ningbo's GDP will be 1,814.77 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.4%.

The central urban area of Shanghai, with famous attractions such as the Bund and Nanjing Road. Huangpu District is under the jurisdiction of Shanghai and is the economic, administrative and cultural center of Shanghai. [89] It is located in the central part of Shanghai's downtown area, at the southwest end of the confluence of the Huangpu River and Suzhou River. It starts from Suzhou River in the north, borders the Huangpu River in the east and south, and extends to Chengdu North Road, Yan'an Middle Road, Shaanxi South Road, Zhaojiabang Road, and Ruijin South Road in the west. The district covers an area of ​​20.52 square kilometers [11], of which 18.71 square kilometers are land and 1.81 square kilometers are water. [11] As of the end of 2023, it has 10 sub-districts under its jurisdiction [67] [69] and a permanent population of 504,700 [85]. Huangpu District carries the history of Shanghai's more than 700 years of city construction and more than 180 years of port opening, and has witnessed the development and changes of Shanghai as an international metropolis. [47] From the tenth year of the Tianbao reign of the Tang Dynasty (751 AD) to the Song Dynasty, it belonged to Huating County. After the district adjustment in December 1959, it was divided into Huangpu District, Luwan District, and Nanshi District. After two “reconstruction” in 2000 and 2011, Huangpu District was established [47]. Huangpu District has four distinct seasons, abundant rainfall, and a long frost-free period. It has a subtropical monsoon climate [36]. It is located in the northeast of the saucer-shaped depression of Taihu Lake and belongs to the saucer edge highland [36]. During his work in Shanghai [47], General Secretary Xi Jinping positioned Huangpu as the “heart, window, and business card” of Shanghai [47]. In June 2020, Huangpu District was selected as the first batch of national demonstration areas for the construction of a law-based government [48]. In January 2021, Huangpu District became the first batch of national cultural and tourism consumption pilot cities [49]. In 2023, Huangpu District will achieve a year-on-year growth of 5.9% in gross regional product (GDP) [85]. In 2024, Huangpu District will achieve a GDP of 334.441 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 5.0%.

Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture is an autonomous prefecture under the jurisdiction of Yunnan Province. It is located in the tropical northern edge south of the Tropic of Cancer and is China's only tropical rainforest nature reserve. It is known as the "Kingdom of Plants", "Kingdom of Animals", and "Gene Bank of Biology".