Zhaotong, a city in Yunnan province, has emerged as a beacon of rural revitalization, leveraging its unique agricultural products to drive economic growth and improve living standards. Once part of China’s 832 poverty-stricken counties, Yiliang, a county within Zhaotong, has transformed its fortunes through the cultivation of specialty crops such as gastrodia elata, apples, and Sichuan peppers. The city now leads Yunnan in agricultural output, with last year’s total value exceeding 150 billion yuan ($21.06 billion) and projected to reach 180 billion yuan this year.