do I get for a visa-free transit

Hi,

I have looked over your website about visa-free transit in China, but I'm still confused and I'm wondering do I qualify for it? Here is my itinerary:
12/29/19: I fly from IAD (Washington DC) to PVG (Shanghai) arriving there on 12/30 with United Airlines. This ticket is a roundtrip ticket because I fly back from PVG to DC on 1/29/20, BUT I will not be stepping out of the airport at all.
12/30/19: I fly with a different airline than United; I fly with Cathay Pacific. I fly from PVG to layover in HKG to CNX (Chiang Mai, Thailand), which is my final destination and arriving there on 12/31/2019. Then, for the rest of the month, I will be traveling throughout Southeast Asia, BUT not stepping into China until.
1/29/20: I fly from TPE (Taiwan) to PVG (Shanghai) with China Airlines and arriving there the same day.
On that same day, (1/29/20), I fly back from PVG to IAD (Washington dc). This is the roundtrip ticket from United that i mentioned before. What I am asking from this itinerary is do I qualify for visa-free transit? Since I have a roundtrip ticket and I bought with a separate airline. I will not be stopping out of the airport at all in China. And China is not my final destination. If so, What are the steps do I get for a visa-free transit and do I need to go through Customs? Or do I need a tourist visa?