In a third-tier city in Hunan province stands a local government building that looks like a copy of the United States Capitol in Washington. Over in Chengdu, in Sichuan province, the city authorities were more inspired by flowers – they approved the construction of a cluster of grand buildings that collectively resemble a lotus bloom when viewed from the air. 

Today, these look like monuments to excess at a time when global attention is on China’s economic struggles – in particular, the ructions caused by its property sector, given its outsized influence on the economy.

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