A group of CGTN reporters departed on Wednesday from the headquarters in Beijing aboard a bus refurbished to double as a studio on wheels. For the next 10 days, they'll make their way through the length of China, from Beijing to Shenzhen, the birthplace of the country's economic miracle.

"Real Time China" is a special series to mark the 40th anniversary of the country's reform and opening-up policy. Joining the ride is CGTN's Digital Reporter Yang Xinmeng who is documenting her road trip across cities, highways and tunnels.

For the second day, we were touring only within the northern Hebei Province. Our first stop is Xiong'an New Area, which was set up in April last year, to help spare the non-capital functions of Beijing. It's my first time visiting here. First impressions? Smart. It is a model of what a future city will look like. To get into the Xiong'an Civilian Service Center, we had to switch to a new energy shuttle bus. It brought me to an unmanned supermarket, where face recognition technology is used for anyone entering and checking out. Each product has a special price tag which can be scanned at the exit. Since the account is connected to WeChat Pay at registration, no password is needed, it is indeed a grab-and-go shopping experience.

Moreover, inside the civilian service center, the government services section has been designed to use passive green and energy-saving technology to trap heat from the sun, lights, people and electronic appliances in order to provide a constant temperature and humidity. They also use robotic vehicles to deliver packages, and unmanned vans are taking passengers to every corner in the zone.

In the afternoon, I arrived at Baoding. In a traditional village there called Dajidian, I came across a small shop making Zhu Ma – bamboo hobby horses. The shop owners were really hospitable, that they invited me to try it on, and taught me what to do. Local kids from the village gathered around me, and gave me candies in exchange for an chance to try the toy. That was an unexpected highlight of my day.

Day two is over, with eight more days ahead as we are exploring the cities that have played a crucial role in China's reform and opening-up journey.