If you want to work you will need a work permit; to live in the country long-term you need a resident permit.

I can't see any reason why you would need a work permit if you are not planning to work.

One of my pet projects here, and also one reason to visit this site, is to make sure people call a spade by its proper name, spade.

That said, if by a permanent resident permit (and it is not resident, but residence) you mean the one issue by PSB while you are in China for various reasons, I would tell you that there is not such a thing as a permanent one.  The proper name is temporary residence permit, issued for periods of 6 months up to 5 years, normally granted for 1 or 2 years at a time.

and if you mean a resident visa (D type), those are very hard to get, and in order to do so you must already have about 5 years minimum of residence in China, and not only married to a local but have made significant contributions for the betterment of China in their opinion, not yours.  One of the requirements is economic investments, and as I heard last, to the tune of $ 3 to $5 million US dollars.

And for your question now, it is my understanding that for a foreigner to work legally in China, the foreigner ,must have a work permit and a residence permit.  Since even with the D visa you are not a Chinese national. but a foreigner, some officials may say you do need a work permit, and others may say you do not.  The Law so far does not say clearly if you do or not, so I can't give you a definitive answer. 

Remember, a visa allows you to enter China, a residence permit allows you to live in China for a period of time, a work permit allows you to work in China.  It does depends on what you plan to seek the proper visas and permits.

Seeing how others have done an excellent job of answering this question seriously, time for me to come along with an improper offering such as:

"Not unless you want to be staying under a bridge, relaying on the good graces of those who pass you by."

How do I get a work permit?

Gemma, to get a work permit you need an invitation letter offering you a job from a company that is authorised to employ foreigners. You then take that, and associated paperwork to a Chinese embassy (outside China) and they will issue you a Z visa. Once you have a Z visa you can enter China with the intent to work (for the stated company), you then have 30 days to apply to the PSB for a Foreign Expert Certificate (FEC) which will entitle you to work for that listed company, to get the FEC you need your Z visa and some paperwork from the company that is employing you. This will also get you a residence permit.