Looking for Urban Life Novels That Feel Close to Reality 求都市生活，接近现实的
Translated by GPT-6 Luna
In this list
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965
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801
Love and Cases: My Boss Has Been Plotting to Win Me Over 谈情说案：上司他对我蓄谋已久
Three cases involving kidnapping, murder, and corpse destruction leave the criminal investigation bureau at a loss. Psychologist Ruan Qingwu is attacked on her way home one night, and the next day, her mother is framed and sent to prison. To raise money to save her mother, she hastily marries a stranger, but her mother dies by suicide in the detention center. Determined to uncover the truth, she persuades a criminal investig
11Reads—Score—Shelves
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802
The Pretty Widow of Peach Blossom Creek, Loved by a Young Man 桃花溪的俏寡妇，小年轻爱上她
The night twenty-two-year-old Li Yuchuan returned to his village, he stumbled upon a woman bathing by Peach Blossom Creek. In the moonlight, her skin glowed white. Water slid from her collarbone to the small of her back. She tipped her head back to toss her hair, then flicked out her tongue to lick a drop of water from the corner of her mouth. That one little movement nearly made his soul fly away. Later, he learned she was the “jinx” everyone in the village talked about. Jiang Yuwei. Thirty-fiv
2.5kReads—Score133Shelves
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803
Overnight, the Uncle's Life Bounced Back from Rock Bottom 一夜之间，大叔的生活触底反弹
Gao Weiguo, a middle-aged man born in the 1970s, had thought he would retire from his insurance company in quiet mediocrity. Little did he know that an opportunity that suddenly came his way would completely change his life…
8.9kReads8.7Score645Shelves
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804
Power and Ambition in the Underworld: The Road to a Comeback 权欲江湖：逆袭之路
He Yu Hui started out as nothing more than a humble doctor. What opportunities did he encounter? What did he do? How much did he accomplish for the people? How high did he rise in government? What kind of story did he live as a man? This heartfelt work will show you one man’s path to growth and the rise of an honest official! [Grounded + Beauty + Political Career + Smart Protagonist] The early chapters are a bit cautious, but the later ones are incredibly satisfying. A must-read gem from Tomato
21Reads8.5Score—Shelves
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805
The Insider 内部人士
In the early 21st century, China’s real estate economy was booming. Many ordinary people caught a favorable wave amid the great tides of history and amassed considerable wealth. The protagonist is an average person with no particular gifts, but as he grows, he continually learns from the wisdom of those around him, including some truly remarkable people. Through constant learning and reflection, he eventually develops a unique kind of wisdom and achieves success of his own. It seems as though fa
8Reads—Score—Shelves
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806
The Phoenix Woman Marries a Phoenix Man 凤凰女嫁给凤凰男
This is an inspirational story about Yan Yan and Liang Liang, two top students who make their way from the countryside to Beijing. Through their own hard work, they put down roots there, buy a home and a car, and raise a family. Their journey is filled with hardships and laughter, as they keep facing new challenges and growing along the way.
277Reads—Score—Shelves
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807
The Sins of Love: The Past Is but Smoke 情罪：往事不如烟
A work of realistic fiction about life in a Shenzhen factory. After celebrating his birthday in a faraway city, the protagonist, Qing Sheng, encounters all kinds of lives and comes to understand more deeply that the world is not simply black and white. Many people are searching for a third bank of the river.
197Reads9.0Score101Shelves
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808
Moonlight over Goddess Lake 女神湖的月光
As modern pollution encroaches on the home of the gods, a Mosuo girl who refuses to accept her fate and a young man who relies on science must join forces. By bringing modern science and technology into harmony with traditional culture, they must restore vitality and help humanity and nature thrive together.
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809
The Story of Fei Xin’s Daughter 飞新的女传
[Marriage + Domestic Abuse + Divorce + Blind Date + Online Romance + Finding True Love + Sweet Romance + Silent Treatment] At twenty, Fei Xin was set up by her parents, went on a blind date, got married, suffered domestic abuse, and divorced. At twenty-three, she met an online boyfriend five years younger than her. They got married and had a child! Married Life + Sweet Romance + Silent Treatment
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810
Those Years Working in Lingnan 岭南打工那些年
This work is a realistic urban novel based on my own experience of heading south to Guangdong for work in the late 1980s. It might be more accurate to call it a memoir of migrant work than a novel. The characters are all based on my colleagues, fellow villagers, and friends I knew well! I chose to write in the first person so that everyone in these pages would feel vivid and real, with a soul of their own. I hope readers will find the voice warm and familiar as they read or listen in their spare
17.3kReads9.3Score1.7kShelves
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811
Martial Arts School Graduate 武校毕业生
Martial arts school / traditional martial arts / realistic / passionate / brotherhood / jianghu Adapted from real experiences. No fantasy, no System, and no cheats. A true-to-life portrayal of what life at a martial arts school is really like. A boy defies his family's objections to pursue his martial arts dream. Day after day, he trains relentlessly at school, enduring the long, monotonous years of practice alongside his fellow students and brothers. After graduation, he enters the wider world,
543Reads—Score—Shelves
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812
Shenzhen, Whom Will You Forget? 深圳，你将忘却谁
The global financial crisis hit, and his wife turned out to be a “brother-obsessed” woman. Shenzhen Shijie Garments Co., Ltd. collapsed, and his wife cheated on him and divorced him. Tang Shijie plunged from the peak of his life to rock bottom. He nearly suffered a mental breakdown, but luckily, he met a beautiful woman along the way. She stayed by his side and supported him through it all. From then on, Tang Shijie rose above adversity and found strength in setbacks. Starting over and rebuildin
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813
Why Don’t We Start Over? 不如我们重新来过吧
Ji Haoran had reached middle age without accomplishing anything when he unexpectedly transmigrated back to his college days. He decided to start over with his relationships, career, and life. This is not a feel-good power fantasy, there is no golden finger, no formulaic plot, and no harem. It features the struggles of starting a business and an unconventional sweet romance, and is best enjoyed one word at a time.
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814
Our Long River of Years 我们的岁月长河
Our Long River of Years is divided into three parts. Following the ordinary lives of three generations of Zhao Jiafu’s family, railway workers, it spans from the 1950s to the 2020s. It recounts the joys and sorrows, happiness and heartbreak, and everyday troubles experienced by the three generations of the Zhao family and the ordinary people around them over the long river of time. It depicts the turbulent lives of ordinary people as the times change and society develops. Time flows like a river
134Reads—Score—Shelves
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815
Working in Dongguan: Starting Out as a Footwasher 东莞打工：从洗脚做起
After my girlfriend hooked up with a short, rich, and ugly guy, I was so disheartened that I decided to become a male escort. At the club, I met all kinds of female clients and became entangled with them in relationships, some more serious than others.
223Reads9.1Score—Shelves
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816
The Fall of New York: A Former Congresswoman's Wife Wanders in Search of Redemption 纽约陷落：前议员夫人的流浪救赎
International student Aili meets a wealthy young gentleman from a political dynasty, with blond hair and blue eyes, impeccable manners, and every advantage in life. They fall in love, but class is far from the only thing standing between them. Can they make it work?
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817
Summer's Not Warm Yet 夏阳未暖
During his junior-year summer break, Xia Yang is in Tianjin with his girlfriend Wen Qing, preparing for their internships, when news arrives that his younger sister, Xia Qian, has been in a car accident back in their hometown. Grief-stricken, Xia Yang has no choice but to return to the northwestern city that holds so many memories. In the stillness of the night, his thoughts drift back ten years...
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818
I Refuse to Marry into a Wealthy Family. I'll Take My Child and Marry a Country Man 拒入豪门，我带娃嫁给乡下人
An IT engineer from a small town studies hard, works diligently, turns down a wealthy family’s marriage proposal, and goes abroad to study. Even after unexpectedly becoming a single mother, she never stops growing. She makes a dazzling transformation into an investment banking star… The only thing that drives her crazy is the child’s father, a young man from a small town who’s two years younger than her. He pursues her relentlessly, but what can she do? Love isn’t something you can achieve just
1.2kReads8.9Score103Shelves
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819
The Caregiver Who Came to Repay a Debt 还债的保姆
Yan Yan had always lived a pampered life, but when her husband was in a car accident, everything fell into hardship. She spent all her savings and racked up a mountain of debt. Their two children needed money for school, and her husband required ongoing treatment. With no one to turn to, she went alone to the big city to find work and earn a living.
69Reads—Score—Shelves
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820
Damn, How Did a Couple of Complaints Turn Me into Silly Zhu? 靠，吐槽两句怎就成傻柱了
Modern chef Wu Mingfu had merely grumbled before bed about his “awful” neighbors in the courtyard, lamenting that Silly Zhu had superb cooking skills but lived such a miserable life. He mused that if he transmigrated there, he would marry the virtuous Yu Li, have a bunch of chubby kids, and build a prosperous, peaceful life. Who would have thought that when he woke up, he really had transmigrated into the Red Star Steelworks of 1958, becoming the famous “older brother of He Yushui,” who was alwa
88Reads5.5Score100Shelves
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821
Miss Cheng, Do You Plan to Stay Single Forever? 程小姐，你打算一直单身吗？
[Elite Family] [Cute Child] [Workplace] [My Life Is on the Line, and My Rich Boyfriend Has a Secret Identity] [Stay Single or Become a Rich Wife? That's the Question] [Clearheaded, well-behaved female engineer * sharp-tongued, flirtatious heir cast out by a wealthy family] [He nearly cost her life back then. For the rest of his life, all he wants is her.] Volume One, Seven Days of Grace: The leads reunite overseas because a piece of equipment needs servicing. Over the course of just seven days,
354Reads8.7Score—Shelves
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822
Sand in the Palm 掌间砂
[Elegant, handsome bureau director] VS [Landlady with hidden depths] [Second chance romance] [Each other’s first love] I could give up the whole world. You alone are the cinnabar mark in the palm of my hand. When he returned, he was no longer the young office director who had once written her an entire guide to the civil service exams. After years of rising steadily through the ranks, he had become a bureau director who helped bring peace and prosperity to the land. But an unexpected turn of e
2.6kReads9.2Score294Shelves
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823
Chronicles of Mountains and Rivers 山河志
His beautiful mother was nearly assaulted by a village lout, but she tearfully begged the man who rescued her not to call the police. Young Gao Yuan couldn’t understand why at the time. Only when he reached his thirties and looked back on the past, with those scenes flashing through his mind, did he realize that the lives of countless rural people together form a chronicle of the mountains and rivers of China!
104.7kReads9.6Score11.4kShelves
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824
Snowfields and Seaside City: A Female Cadre from the Sanmen Has Her Springtime Too 雪域与海城：三门女干部也有春天
Su Man was on top from the start, beginning her career as a deputy section chief, only to plummet to rock bottom at breakneck speed. Her new boss sent her to a grassroots office, where she got a harsh lesson in the art of human relationships. On her journey back from rock bottom, she had the ever-present strategist Luo Ziqing by her side, offering advice and teaching her how the official world operates. She also had Ji Zizhou, a highly skilled career mentor who protected her from the open and hi
26.9kReads9.4Score2.9kShelves
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825
The Fool Next Door 隔壁傻柱
My new work is out! You can read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you enjoy it. Your support inspires me to write, and I'll do my best to tell every story well!
7.2kReads5.6Score278Shelves
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826
Ten Years: From Lost to Awakened 十年：我从茫然到觉醒
This book recounts, in chronological order, the author's real-life experiences over the decade or so after graduating from university and entering the working world. Through the many big and small events in his life, he hopes to find common ground with readers, and help them discover a direction of their own amid the confusion and cutthroat competition of today's society!
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827
Silly Zhu Is Reborn and Takes Down the Whole Flock of Beasts 傻住重生虐众禽
Reborn Silly Zhu: No Longer a Parasite, He Turns the Courtyard Upside Down Silly Zhu gave the Qin Huairu family his whole heart and everything he had, only to meet a miserable end. Once age and frailty left him with nothing more to offer, Qin Huairu's three children ruthlessly abandoned him, leaving him beneath a bridge to die of cold and hunger. As he lay dying, consumed by despair and hatred, he made a solemn vow: if he ever got another life, he would never again be a parasite for others to e
3.3kReads—Score111Shelves
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828
Day and Night Together 日夜相对
At work, they are each other's superior and subordinate. At home, they live one floor apart. A few nights each week, they share a bed but dream different dreams. [Devoted couple + mutual salvation + a fairy tale for adults] [A self-serving heroine who pretends to be proper x a reserved, cultured hero who is deeply devoted]
103Reads8.2Score—Shelves
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829
A Good Match for Marriage 宜嫁宜娶
Welcome, drama fans! Two storylines: [son of a bureau chief x daughter of a deputy director] & [high-ranking official’s family x heiress] Ji Yunjia found Song Jiming holding her camisole, looking puzzled. “How is this so padded when you haven’t even put it on?” His gaze drifted to her chest. It wasn’t big, but it didn’t look small either. He chuckled. “Ms. Ji, you’ve got quite a lot of padding there.” Ji Yunjia’s face burned. She hurriedly snatched it from him. “What do you know?” She was wearin
25.6kReads9.0Score2.3kShelves
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830
A Scumbag's Life After Reincarnating as Sha Zhu 魂穿傻柱的渣男人生
My new work is here! You can read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you'll enjoy it. Your support inspires me to write, and I'll do my best to tell every story well!
7.5kReads—Score414Shelves
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831
If I Could Do It Again, I'd Only Love Le Yao 如果再来一次，我只爱乐瑶
A My 26-Year-Old Female Tenant Fanfic Jian Wei’s Diary Le Yao’s Confession Li Xiaoyun’s Plea for Him to Stay What if the ending began again... If I had shown Le Yao a little more favoritism, would that lonely island in the sea have merged with the crystalline city?
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832
The City on the Mountainside 半山倾城
[Love at First Sight + Fated Love + Mutual Firsts + Happy Ending] Wen Xiangnuan and Fu Qichen first met in Xilou Village. She was struggling to save herself in the water, and Fu Qichen was the one who rescued her. On the first night they cooked together, Fu Qichen shared his knowledge of astronomy and pointed out the brightest star in the night sky: Sirius. Fu Qichen asked Wen Xiangnuan to agree to one thing: she couldn't let any men get close to her. Wen Xiangnuan playfully replied, "What abo
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833
Reborn in Silly Zhu’s Body: A Good Life Is What Really Matters 魂穿傻柱之过好日子才是真
He Yuzhu, a modern man who never married, devoted his life to raising his stepson, He Xiao. Wanting him to “be a real man for once,” He Xiao dragged him to a nightclub. Amid the glittering lights and revelry, a hostess who looked just like Qin Huairu in her youth sat down beside him... When he awoke, He Yuzhu was shocked to discover that he had transmigrated into Silly Zhu in 1965! And the woman beneath him, whom he had mistaken for a nightclub hostess, was none other than twenty-three-year-old
4.1kReads—Score147Shelves
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834
A Lover’s Longing 妾意郎情
A love that crosses the bounds of marriage, a longing that tears at the heart and shatters the soul. Tormented love, unrequited love, secret love, obsessive love, anguished love, infatuation, devotion, tragic love, and a love you can't bear to let go; Romance, passion, friendship, family, deep affection, fervor, devotion, heartlessness, and tenderness without end; The tangled complexities of the modern workplace meet an unexpected affair, creating a longing, a doomed relationship, a lifetime
250Reads9.5Score—Shelves
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835
Love on the Down Low 苟爱
There’s plenty of lovey-dovey romance, so don’t read this if that bothers you! Sweet love, tender passion, both sweet and heartbreaking. An age gap, but it’s not a CEO romance. After a painful misunderstanding that leaves a deep scar, she chooses to run away. When they meet again, he says, “I remember we never broke up.” She says, “I thought we were over when you decided to marry Third Sister.” She keeps him at arm’s length, while he clings to her like a stubborn plaster, taking every chance to
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836
My Girl from Porcelain City 我的瓷都姑娘
My new work is out! You’re welcome to read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you enjoy it. Your support motivates me to write, and I’ll do my best to tell every story well!
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837
Transmigrated to the Siheyuan, Where I Married Huaihua 穿越四合院之我娶了槐花
Modern young man Tian Xuyang is betrayed by his girlfriend and humiliated by his rival, but in his darkest hour he fights back and makes his enemies pay dearly. Just as he is sinking into a luxurious life supported by a rich woman, he suddenly discovers that his "sugar mommy" is actually Yu Li, the restaurant owner from Love in the Courtyard. He has accidentally transmigrated into a book and landed in a Beijing courtyard in the early 1980s! Among the gray tiles and brick walls, the sounds of Sil
3.3kReads—Score126Shelves
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838
Everyday Life on a Global Journey 全球旅行的日常生活
As the New Year bells rang in 2025, the twenty-eight-year-old protagonist drifted off to sleep. When he woke, he had been reborn as his twenty-two-year-old self in 2019. Just as he began imagining what he might do with his future, a Global Travel Sign-In System suddenly appeared. Since he was an orphan anyway, Qian Jingze set off on a life of traveling the world, shooting short videos, and working as a travel blogger!
5Reads—Score—Shelves
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839
Reborn in Silly Zhu's Four-Sided Courtyard 魂穿傻柱之烟火四合院
Siheyuan: A Tech Giant Is Reborn as Silly Zhu and Learns to Enjoy the Simple Pleasures of Life Li Jiaqiang devoted his life to scientific research and serving his country. He poured his life's work into China's drive to become a technological powerhouse. Constantly on the move and racking his brains, he never once took the time to enjoy life. At last, exhaustion took its toll, and he passed away, carrying with him a lifetime of toil and regret. When he opened his eyes again, he had unexpectedly
1.2kReads—Score—Shelves
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840
Drowning in Her Tender Prison 溺于她的温柔囚笼
Imprisoned in the cage of her tenderness
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841
Reincarnated as He Daqing, I Marry Huairu and Change My Foolish Son's Fate 魂穿何大清娶淮茹为傻儿子改命
“Seven-character Regulated Verse: Reflections on Transmigrating into He Daqing” Within the courtyard, schemes bring both warmth and woe; Reborn, one hand can turn grief to joy. With clever plans, grain and meat nourish a thousand heirs; Careful mending brings two phoenixes together beneath love’s sky. Hidden talents flourish amid the bustle of the streets; A home rich in virtue opens a new path. Looking back at the lights and kitchen smoke, The He family’s branches thrive, leaning on the railing
3kReads6.6Score102Shelves
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842
Reborn as Qin Huairu: A Woman Must Stand on Her Own 魂穿秦淮茹之女人当自强
After waking up, Qin Ru, a business queen worth billions, found herself turned into Qin Huairu, the timid, tragic heroine of Love in the Courtyard! Fresh from tearing into a cheating jerk and his mistress, she faced the whole courtyard full of shameless parasites and sneered, “Let's see how you like playing with me.” In the technical workshop, she modernized the production process and quickly rose to become a senior-grade worker. In management, she led sweeping reforms with an iron fist, stampin
591Reads—Score—Shelves
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843
Xu Damao, the First-Blood Champion 一血达人许大茂
**Crossing Between Worlds: Xu Damao's Modern Comeback** Xu Damao, a top literature student, couldn't find a job after graduation and became obsessed with the TV drama Love in the Courtyard. He especially envied the womanizing, cunning “Xu Damao,” jokingly calling him a master of getting women into bed. Then one day, he transmigrated and became the very Xu Damao he “admired,” just as he was about to marry the wealthy Lou Xiao'e! Faced with a courtyard full of beastly neighbors, including the calc
2.1kReads5.6Score118Shelves
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844
Peeping: The Butterfly Effect 偷窥之蝴蝶效应
The male lead is a complete loser. By chance, he discovers a female colleague's secret, turning his work and personal life upside down. Two mature adults with sharp minds and social skills engage in an intense game of push and pull. Love begins for reasons unknown and grows deeper with every passing day: they love and are loved, hurt and are hurt, grow through their pain, then fade from one another's memories. This is also the story of an ordinary worker's growth.
243Reads6.7Score—Shelves
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845
A Carefree Life After Soul-Transmigrating as Silly Zhu 魂穿傻柱的恣意人生
He Zhipeng, a minor government office clerk in the modern era, has spent his whole life being cautious and conscientious. For years, his section chief has ordered him around at will, and he has lived timidly, swallowing his grievances. He thought he would spend his whole life putting up with it, but a cancer diagnosis shattered all his restraint. Knowing he didn’t have long to live, He Zhipeng finally cast off his shackles. He stopped trying to please everyone, openly stood up to his section chi
2.2kReads—Score102Shelves
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846
Out of Control: Emotions Run Wild 失控：情绪蔓延
The biggest problem in a secularized society is its lack of spiritual belief. When faith is lost, so is reverence. Without reverence, there can be no restraint. True happiness is like a gentle, unbroken stream, and can only be achieved through restraint. There is little sincerity and even less purity in a city of desire, only a host of problems that defy easy answers. This is just a fictional tale. If it’s not for you, don’t read it, and don’t take it too seriously!
2Reads—Score—Shelves
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847
A Country Bumpkin’s Triumphant Comeback 山村匹夫强势逆袭
[Period] [Mountain Village] [Daily Life] [Realistic] [Comeback] Everyone says coptis root is bitter, but his childhood was even more bitter. A mountain village, a beautiful young widow, and a boy: together, they write a new chapter in their fates.
16Reads—Score—Shelves
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848
A Long Road for a Lifetime 长路终生
The untold stories of the modern underworld, filled with love, family bonds, and friendship. This is the story of someone who endures a life of hardship and trials. I hope you'll show your support. I'm a new writer, so please be patient and offer advice on what I've done well and what I can improve.
121Reads6.8Score—Shelves
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849
The Guixu Teahouse 归墟茶馆
The Guixu Teahouse: Make peace with yourself at the end of a dream At the end of a narrow alley, open only in moments of despair, stands the Guixu Teahouse. Its proprietress, Huang Qingyan, offers you a cup of tea in exchange for a story you dare not face. Here, a man tormented by regret drinks the “Wangchuan Draught” and returns to the scene of a car accident, only to hear his wife’s final words: “It wasn’t your fault.” An influencer drinks from the “Mirror of Suchness,” sheds layer after layer
1Reads—Score—Shelves
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850
Memories of the Future 未来可忆
The company is ruled by an all-powerful clique! The higher-ups are corrupt! There are too many old hands who know how to game the system! The procedures are rigid! A fresh graduate just out of college takes on the workplace big shots. Watch me grow into a domineering female CEO!
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