During a 2003 visit, Xi was briefed on the status of the preservation of the site — a hub for a rice-cultivating and jade-worshiping culture dating back 4,300 to 5,300 years.

　　“The Liangzhu archaeological site is a sacred testament to China's 5,000-year civilization and a rare, invaluable treasure. We must ensure its preservation with the utmost care,“ Xi said during the visit.

　　He ordered the expansion of the preservation zone, halted nearby quarrying and called for the site to be prepared for nomination as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Over the next decade, archaeological work accelerated alongside policy, legal and ecological support, and in 2019, Liangzhu was inscribed on the World Heritage List.

　　Preservation of intangible heritage was also elevated under Xi's tenure in Zhejiang.

　　In 2005, when he visited a Kunqu Opera troupe in Yongjia county, the troupe had been struggling to survive since losing public funding in the 1980s.

　　After watching the performance and speaking with veteran actress Lin Meimei, Xi initiated a provincial-level plan to rescue the centuries-old Kunqu Opera.

　　The troupe was granted heritage status and allocated funding of 1 million yuan per year. Today, it stages more than 200 shows annually and has worked with a vocational college to train new performers.

　　“We are full of gratitude,“ Lin said. Now recognized as a national inheritor of Kunqu Opera, she added: “The flame of Kunqu Opera in Yongjia has not gone out. We've lived up to the legacy entrusted to us by our forebears.“

　　Innovation matters

　　Xi's emphasis on cultural innovation also extended to the animation and gaming sectors.

　　In 2005, he visited the China Academy of Art, where he highlighted the broad potential of the animation sector and the strength for Hangzhou to build a “city of animation“.