Abstract: Historic urban areas function as the core spatial and cultural substrates for the conservation of renowned historic cities. The protection and renewal of these areas serve as a pivotal lever in fortifying the preservation and transmission of historical and cultural heritage, advancing the building of a culturally powerful nation, and implementing the people-centric urban development paradigm. By conducting an in-depth analysis of the characteristics and dilemmas faced by historic urban areas at the county level in China, this paper identifies four emerging trends in the protection of such areas: a people-oriented perspective that gives priority to 'enhancing people's livelihoods', a holistic conservation approach that champions 'all-encompassing protection', an organic renewal concept that underscores 'adaptive and sustainable regeneration', and an inheritance outlook that focuses on 'fostering preservation through utilization'. Moreover, through the integration of practical research, the paper puts forward the construction of an organic renewal model that integrates the 'trinity' of 'heritage conservation, livelihood improvement, and inheritance-oriented development'. It explores widely applicable technical methodologies and strategies for organic renewal, with the aim of providing innovative concepts and approaches for the protection and development of historic urban areas at the county level in China.