The Ximen area in Yiwu is a Rosetta Stone of China’s economic success. The design was trying to appreciate its current urban status rather than demolish it entirely and to build to a certain ‘old-time’ style, which might best represent its “glory”. Respecting the present is the best memorial to the past, and introducing cutting-edge, new buildings into the old environment is the best way to facilitate the future. The development set up a futuristic vision while highlighting the real history that people have experienced. It turned a once private housing area into a public destination.