'Gentrification', also known as gentrification, refers to the movement of people with higher incomes from an old neighbourhood that was originally populated by people with low incomes to one that has been redeveloped and where rising land prices and rents have caused people with higher incomes to move in and replace those with low incomes. The aim of this talk is to explore how the phenomenon known as 'gentrification' in other parts of the world is manifested in China. Based on fieldwork in different regions of China, the lecture outlines how these multiple and contradictory roles were played by the government at a particular point in time, and examines why 'gentrification' in China is a natural product rooted in national development rather than an adjunct to urbanisation.