Novels like The Trade Route
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Trade Route, best match first.
- 51 When the Phoenix Blossoms: The Phoenix's Rebirth 凤凰花开之凤凰涅槃 She once believed her entire life consisted of her husband's coldness, her mother-in-law's scorn, and the silent world of her daughter, who had cerebral palsy. Then the “pig-butchering scam” struck, and their 800,000 yuan in savings vanished in an instant. Her long-silent husband, Long Qishang, dropped his final mask: a divorce agreement that left her with nothing, while even their daughter became a burden he was eager to cast off. The city left her with nothing but debt and despair. Dragging a 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 52 Rising Step by Step in Middle Age 人到中年：步步高升 Cheng Dawei has offended his beautiful boss and is constantly being targeted by her. He never expected that one good deed would turn his luck around and send him climbing the career ladder. From a nobody in the company whom everyone bullied, he rises to become the darling everyone fawns over and curries favor with... 822Reads8.7Score106Shelves
- 53 They Stole My Credit, So I Slacked Off and Made the Whole Industry Panic 抢我功绩？我摆烂后卷哭全行业 When your boss takes credit for your work, when the results of your all-nighters become someone else's reward, what do you do? Lin Zhou's answer: he slacks off on the spot! He refuses 996 work schedules and empty promises, and vanishes the moment quitting time comes. Everyone thinks he's washed up, but little do they know that the instant he smashes the sign proclaiming him a "workaholic," he awakens the [Anti-Grind God-Tier System]! The harder he slacks off, the bigger the rewards! He uses a te —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 54 A Director’s Workplace Musings 总监的职场碎碎念 Lin Feng has just parachuted into the role of general manager at an auto trading company, only to find himself mired in financial obstruction, salespeople taking credit for his work, and factional infighting. He carefully plans his moves and fights back, striving for results, holding to his principles, and winning people over amid the undercurrents of the car business. From being besieged on all sides to finding his footing, he writes a story of workplace battles and rising from the bottom. 50Reads—Score—Shelves
- 55 A Heartbeat Beyond Calculation 算不尽心动 [A battle of equals + reunion after a long separation + love that goes unrequited] Lin Zhixu is a cool, beautiful, and brilliant quantitative trader who has made her own place in the highest echelons of finance. She spends her days navigating high-pressure rivalries and contests for fame and fortune, living with sharp clarity and never showing a weakness. Focused entirely on reaching the top of her career, she keeps her ambition hidden and shoulders every burden and lonely moment alone. Her pr 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 56 A Physiological Obsession 生理性贪恋 [Both leads are devoted to each other + simmering tension + evenly matched + love grows over time] By day, Ye Jingqiu and Fu Jingshu are coworkers who can barely manage a word to each other. At night, he kisses her again and again, calling her name over and over as he loses control and goes mad for her. (Luring her step by step vs. falling deeper step by step) (Urban professionals / not a tragedy / happy ending / female-oriented / female lead’s perspective / romance-focused) (Bedtime readin 36.6kReads8.9Score3.2kShelves
- 57 Stop Eating, My Demon King! 别吃了，我的魔王！ What’s it like to cook for the Demon King? Su Xiaowan: Thanks for asking. I’m currently raising hell in the Underworld. If the Demon King wants “stone-slab barbecue from the Bridge of Helplessness,” I can make the River of Forgetfulness smell like a barbecue joint. When he points at the Book of Life and Death and says, “This person’s lifespan smells delicious,” I know it’s time to get the Underworld IPO on the agenda! From then on, the Black and White Impermanence compete over KPIs, and Meng Po’ —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 58 Do You Know How a Romance Scam Starts at a Blind Date? “你知道相亲局里的杀猪盘，是怎么开场的？” “Do you know how a romance scam at a matchmaking date gets started?” 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 59 An Illustrated Guide to Love 爱情图鉴 Changing jobs is risky, and changing careers calls for caution. The workplace is a battlefield, and though victories and defeats are part of the game, should you really quit just because things don't go your way? Meng Chunqiu is a 29-year-old office worker in the city. She has no connections and lives in someone else's city, far from her parents' love, with no husband or boyfriend to protect her. Her boss can't stand her, her colleagues have ulterior motives, and the partner organization she wor 3kReads9.2Score276Shelves
- 60 Fishing for the Moon 捞月记 [Grounded and realistic, imperfect characters, long-planned romance, not a sugary wish-fulfillment story, but with a happy ending] [A clear-eyed Cinderella + an unconventional rich heir] On the day she agreed to be with Xu Weisen, Lin Zhiwan thought: Life is only a little over thirty thousand days. When it’s over, we become a handful of dust in a small box, scattered by the wind. So why not be brave and let herself suffer for love at least once? After all, memories aren’t erased; they’re sealed 100Reads6.8Score—Shelves
- 61 My Years at a Foreign Company 我的外企岁月 On a battlefield without gunfire, enemies are everywhere. In a workplace without compassion, everyone is a schemer. And in a game of love where feelings have no place, who can find even a little warmth… Gao Ge is like a little lion, fighting her way through a foreign company, charging ahead and getting battered along the way. Only in the end does she realize she’s really a little deer, the one who can run wild in his heart. 729Reads9.3Score129Shelves
- 62 After the Year-End Bonus Was Canceled, My Boss Knelt Outside My Door 年终奖取消后，老板在我家门口跪下了 After the Year-End Bonus Was Canceled, My Boss Knelt Outside My House 5Reads—Score—Shelves
- 63 My Perfect Attendance Bonus Became a Project Bonus, and I Was Slammed on the Headlines 全勤奖改项目奖金，我被骂上头条 They Replaced Perfect Attendance Bonuses with Project Bonuses, and I Got Blasted All Over the Headlines —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 64 After My Credit Was Stolen, I Slacked Off, and My Toxic Coworkers All Lost It 功劳被抢后我摆烂了，极品同事集体破防 After My Achievements Were Stolen, I Started Slacking Off and My Toxic Coworkers Totally Lost It 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 65 Bargaining Chips on the Road to Promotion 升职路上的筹码 Song Minghui is like a spider at the center of a web, maintaining relationships with three women in different ways. A 26-year-old workplace newcomer, a 35-year-old sales director, and a 41-year-old corporate executive: the web is beginning to unravel as its three “bargaining chips” awaken. - The rules of survival in the workplace's dark forest - How the “prey” turns the tables from a male perspective - The growth of three women, from being used to awakening - Emotional manipulation and counterma 2.3kReads6.3Score145Shelves
- 66 The Accounting Game 账目游戏 A transfer of 400,000 yuan dragged me into the dirtiest power struggle of a wealthy family. Gu Wan said, “You belong to me.” Gu Chengye said, “If you don't help me, I'll destroy you.” He Man said, “All you need to do is obey.” Only Shen Yu said, “Don't die.” They weren't fighting over me, but over that ledger. And all I wanted was to get my life back. A double agent, carefully plotting every step. No golden finger, just an information advantage. She isn't anyone's pawn. She's the one who flips —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 67 This Is a Serious Novel 这是一本正经的小说 [Completed] (Originally titled: So This Is What HR Is Like) Chen Ying thinks she might be bad luck for bosses. She joined a perfectly good financial firm, and the very next day, the boss got “taken away.” She joined a perfectly good engineering company that was on the verge of being acquired by a state-owned enterprise, and then the boss went bankrupt. She joined a perfectly good internet company, practically a local industry leader. Then a rival company showed up, and the business went into a s 613Reads9.2Score108Shelves
- 68 The Female Property Manager 女房管 [Comedy + Inspiration + Self-Redemption + A Working Person's Handbook + Workplace] [Comedy + Inspiration + Self-Redemption + A Working Person's Handbook + Workplace + Career Advancement] Following a working girl from age twenty to fifty, this story reveals the hardships faced by ordinary workers. This novel gives working people a voice. If you love hardship, there will always be more hardship to bear. If you want to turn your life around, you can build a good life. Looking back on those years of 19Reads6.9Score—Shelves
- 69 After Work, I'm a Whole Different Person 下班后，我判若两人 Lin Xiao, an ordinary 28-year-old office worker, is the quiet, dependable “office pushover” who gets dumped on by her boss and shut out by her coworkers. No one knows that after work, she becomes a mysterious, free-spirited star: sometimes she's “Siren,” the genius DJ hailed as the “elf of the night” in the underground music scene; other times, she's “Ghost,” a fighter feared in the ring. She handles these two wildly different lives with ease, until Cheng Yu, the company's new president, a sharp —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 70 After I Was Made Redundant, My Former Company Begged Me to Return and Put Out the Fire 被优化后，前司跪求我回去救火 After I Was Laid Off, My Former Company Begged Me to Return and Put Out the Fires 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 71 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 10Reads—Score—Shelves
- 72 Ma Feifei’s Career Ascension 马菲菲职场飞升记 Ma Feifei, the department belle of Bingcheng University of Technology, can’t stand living in a cramped Dongguan urban village with her first love, Xu Hui. After seeing the duplex mansion of Jiang Qingshan, a section chief at a Taiwanese-funded factory, the thought of “saving herself twenty years of hard work” takes root in her mind and grows wild. In the name of love, she gets Xu Hui “transferred” to Foshan, then launches a precise “late-night campaign” to win over Jiang: late-night requests for —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 73 Where Mountains Meet the Sea 樾见山海 Everyone at the company thinks Ran Qingyue and Yu Jianshan are rivals. On her first day, he rejected her proposal, so she turned around and held on to every candidate he wanted. Later, they gave presentations together, conducted due diligence, ferreted out moles, and worked on projects. Everyone then decided they were, at most, work partners. Until he said at an industry awards ceremony, "The first person I have to thank for this project's success is her." Later still, when he proposed, he ha 45Reads—Score—Shelves
- 74 Between Breaths 沉息之间 Hoping to start a new life, Ran Lin secretly pursued her career in the laboratory. When she returned to the manor with the results of her research, she was eager to reclaim her identification papers and assets. Instead, she discovered that Su Qin, who had raised her for thirteen years, had disappeared, and his illegitimate son had taken his place as the new master of the manor. Who exactly was this strange new master? Why had he suddenly appeared here? He seemed to have known Ran Lin for a long 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 75 Su Yue’s Promotion 苏樾升职记 Throughout Su Yue's career, there were several people she could never leave out: One was the celebrity Jiang Yiyuan, who became her emotional anchor after she lost her parents, yet when he was assassinated, she was made the scapegoat and humiliated, then forced to resign; One was Xie Zhilei, the planning manager at Yishi Real Estate, who had made her take the blame. He shattered the once-innocent young woman she had been and drove her into a corner; One was Ye Qian, general manager of Housing Fa 77Reads9.4Score—Shelves
- 76 Reborn to Win! The Red Sleeve's Scheme 重生中奖！红袖之谋 [Strong Female Lead + Strong Male Lead + CEO + Workplace Romance and Marriage + Business Rivalry + Urban Suspense] In her previous life, she won 800 million in the lottery, only to be betrayed by everyone and subjected to endless humiliation. Reborn, she vows that the people who hurt her won't get a single cent of that 800 million. She buys luxury homes and cars, letting those people look but never touch, until they’re sick with envy. She enjoys tea in the office and serves as a director. It’ 313Reads5.4Score—Shelves
- 77 Office Schemes: Mr. CEO, Don’t Kiss Me 职心计：总裁别吻我 [Workplace inspiration + domineering CEO + sweet romance in a wealthy family + power-couple love story + friendship and growth] Song Yucheng should have been celebrating a promotion and raise on her thirtieth birthday. Instead, a misunderstanding while catching a homewrecker cost her the opportunity, and she now faces harsh punishment from the company. Her coworkers mock, discriminate against, and make things difficult for her at every turn. An unexpected helping hand from the company's domineer 11Reads—Score—Shelves
- 78 Ningbo Tangyuan King: The Socially Anxious Heiress Takes on Japanese Capital 宁波汤圆王：社恐千金爆锤日资 [A strong female lead’s journey of growth] [Not an effortless power fantasy] [No romance] [Some relationship drama] [Multiple arcs featuring realistic business rivalries] When the fourth-generation head of Zhang’s Tangyuan suddenly dies, his socially anxious daughter Zhang Muke, still a junior in college, is forced to take over the company. The company’s senior executives and outside organizations alike doubt her abilities. They challenge her again and again, hoping to seize the family business 4Reads8.0Score—Shelves
- 79 Bold Pursuit, Secret Indulgence 强撩与暗宠 On one side, his female boss pulls him into an emotional tug-of-war. On the other, the female dean offers him a healing companionship. Caught between them, he doesn't want to give up his stable job, but he can't bear to let go of the peace and comfort she brings, either. Choosing between them becomes his greatest dilemma. 4.5kReads7.1Score396Shelves
- 80 My Angel Investor Is My Adorable Husband 天使投资人是我的小娇夫 Told from the heroine's perspective, this story follows her journey from an innocent, inexperienced newcomer to the working world to a successful professional woman. Fang Yuwei and the hero, Lin Peifeng, meet on campus. He falls for her at first sight and takes care of her and stays by her side, but Lin Peifeng's identity is not so simple. As the heroine makes her way through the workplace, she encounters all kinds of unwritten rules, both obvious and hidden. She changes jobs several times and m 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 81 Yunluo Weiguang: A Winding Career Path 云落薇光：职场逆旅 [Career comeback + women's growth + face-slapping wish fulfillment + power struggles + romance] Yun Luowei is focused on making money when her company ruthlessly fires her for her outstanding performance and withholds the bonus she is owed! Injustice at work drives her to the brink, but it also ignites her fury, and she resolutely takes up the law as her weapon. This is not only her fight against injustice, but the beginning of her transformation. How does the pushover who was once at the mercy 20Reads8.8Score—Shelves
- 82 Professor, You’ve Got Your Hand in the Wrong Place 教授，你的手伸错位置了？ A fresh take on dark, sweet romance that blends suspense with business warfare: This story breaks free from the usual school romance formula, deftly weaving together three elements: revenge, corporate intrigue, and suspense. The heroine infiltrates a school to investigate her sister’s death, only to enter a dangerous battle of wits with the hero, a man who is both a professor and a financial magnate. The plot is tightly interwoven, with hidden currents running beneath their sweet exchanges. It d 151Reads—Score—Shelves
- 83 After Tearing Up the Exam Prep, I Chased the Light 撕掉押题卷后我追光 After Tearing Up the Exam Prep Paper, I Chased the Light —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 84 After Going Bankrupt, I Became the Female CEO's Special Assistant 破产后，我成了女总裁的特别助理 A bankrupt young master vs. an icy female CEO. He came to Yun Jing to investigate the cause of his father's death. She uses him to stabilize the boardroom. A partnership built on mutual exploitation, from the archives to the boardroom, from buried cases to life-or-death struggles, from testing each other to fighting side by side. Twenty-five years of old scores, two generations of grudges. He takes a knife for her, and she helps him turn the tables. Love between equals is the most moving of all. 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 85 Suddenly Rich, I Lie Flat at a State-Owned Enterprise 乍富，躺平国企 Life rushes by. Thirty years have passed, but has he managed to stand on his own two feet? For the first thirty years, a man honors his father; for the next thirty, his son honors him! Like the sound of his name, Lou Yi is just one of countless insignificant ants in this world! At thirty, with no career to speak of and no family of his own, he returned home for the New Year and looked at his aging parents, their backs bent and their hair half white. His heart was filled with bitterness and helpl 11.4kReads7.0Score467Shelves
- 86 The CEO’s Secretly Married Employee 总裁的隐婚小职员 Lu Jingchen, the ruthless business tycoon feared across the internet, is cold, aloof, and in control of the city’s capital. Until one night at a lavish gala, when a young woman working there temporarily mistakes him for a miserable guy who’s just been dumped. Qin Qinghuan hands him a glass of orange juice and says earnestly: “Bro, if they say bye, just say bye. The next one will be even sweeter.” Because of that corny consolation, Lu Jingchen searches the entire internet for all 347 people named 28Reads—Score—Shelves
- 87 Split: Brotherhood and Feuds in the Advertising World 裂变：广告江湖里的兄弟恩仇录 [Workplace + Brotherhood + Corruption + Personal Growth] Yesterday’s brothers, today’s wolves! A bloody business saga that lays bare the fracturing of human nature! Yang Jun and Da Feng, Li Fei, and Liu Jinsong grew up together and were as close as brothers. When Yang Jun first joined Northern Advertising, his impressive results and sharp ambition made him a target of repeated harassment from Wu Dazhi, a manager parachuted in from outside. Forced to resign, he left behind Lin Xue, the designer h 18Reads9.2Score—Shelves
- 88 My Company Refuses to Pay, So I Fight Back 公司赖账我反击 I simply fronted 9,999 yuan for a proposal on behalf of my company. My manager said to pay it first and claim reimbursement later. The company used the project, but then said I hadn't gotten approval. When my contract expired, they pressured me into signing a blank form, trying to make it look like I'd left “for personal reasons” and “resigned voluntarily.” Worse, they told prospective employers during background checks that I'd had a dispute over expenses, was difficult to communicate with, and 64Reads8.2Score—Shelves
- 89 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. 472Reads6.7Score—Shelves
- 90 Mastering the Business World 智驭商海 A former software engineer specializing in foreign-trade OA systems was laid off as technology moved on, and had no choice but to make a living as an unlicensed driver. The day his tank ran dry and he had only twenty yuan left, he gave a ride to a CEO caught in a million-yuan contract deadlock. With logic as precise as a line of code, he tore apart her opponent’s trap and turned the million-yuan payment around on the spot! She hired him for 500 yuan a day, bringing him into a cutthroat business —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 91 After the Top Sales Rep Checked Out, the Director Begged Me for Forgiveness All Night 顶级销冠摆烂后，总监连夜跪求我原谅 After the Top Sales Champion Slacks Off, the Director Begs on His Knees for Forgiveness All Night 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 92 Dream of Snow in the Mortal World, Sea of Clear Skies 红尘雪泥晴海梦 A cool exterior hides a burning heart in this extraordinary man; a fair-skinned female employee stands out with her striking presence; a successful, confident real estate tycoon is shrewd and domineering; a seductive actress is consumed by insatiable desire; a ruthless financial magnate revels in extravagance; and a flight attendant moves between the wealthy and the ordinary. In this tumultuous world, among men and women caught in the currents of life, how could love be the only story? Amid the 21Reads—Score—Shelves
- 93 I Only Wanted My 10,000 Yuan Back 我本来只想要回一万块 I used to be just an ordinary programmer. In 2019, I moved to Chengdu and joined a company that didn’t look like much, but would change the course of my life. At first, I thought I’d simply run into a poorly managed small company that couldn’t keep its promises: my probation period dragged on, my salary was changed, they failed to pay my social insurance, mishandled my housing fund, and kept putting off raises until next month, the second half of the year, year-end, or after the company reforme 10Reads8.5Score—Shelves
- 94 Building a Career at a State-Owned Enterprise 混国企搞事业 I was coasting along at a state-owned enterprise, and suddenly I was about to lose my job! After thirty years of hard work, I finally realized that the theme of this era is to lie low, then embrace dreams that seem forever out of reach! But just as I settled down, fate sent me an incredible opportunity! So, these days, maybe all you have to do is lie low and wait for opportunity to find you! 29Reads7.3Score—Shelves
- 95 My Slob of a Boss 我的抠脚领导 The workplace is full of surprises. My name is Wei Guoguo, and my boss, Feng Cheng, is one of the strangest people around, a true standout among abstract thinkers. "Learning" is his catchphrase. Rolling up his trouser legs is how he gauges the temperature. Tattling is his favorite hobby. Every day at work feels like a comedy. How can someone like that be a boss? Maybe that's just the absurdity of life. 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 96 The Company Went Public and Gave Me a $500 Grocery Gift Card. After I Quit, the Boss Went Mad With Regret 公司上市只给500元超市购物卡，我离职后，老板悔疯了 The Company Went Public and Gave Us a 500-Yuan Supermarket Gift Card. After I Quit, the Boss Was Beside Himself with Regret 6Reads—Score—Shelves
- 97 Reporter Su, I Like You 苏记者，我喜欢你 [Hong Kong Elite Families + Realistic Workplace + Female Growth + Office Romance + Age Gap] [Devoted Love + Mutual Pining + Powerful Man Bows for Love + Hopeless Romantic Male Lead + Both Leads Are Each Other’s First] [Clear-Eyed, Sharp-Witted Journalist × Cool-Headed, Aloof, Elegant Young Gentleman] Su Jinyou idolized Qin Size and was determined to work hard and stand beside him. When she first entered the workforce, she ran into obstacles at every turn. Qin Size was endlessly patient with her 110Reads—Score—Shelves
- 98 Reborn, I Only Want to Build My Career, but I Keep Finding True Love 重生后我只想搞事业，偏偏遇真爱 Rising from the ashes, she leaves old dreams behind. She devotes herself to business and breaks free of her confines. She never meant to fall in love, but love found her anyway, and both her career and romance flourish. That year, Su Wan was reborn with the regrets of her past life and vowed to escape her tragic fate and focus on building her career… “In my past life, I let love ruin everything. In this life, I’m chasing money and never looking back.” Drawing on her knowledge of the future, she 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 99 That Year, Because of the Campus Belle, I Ran Off to Guangdong to Become a Handsome Lad 那年因为校花，我跑路广东当靓仔 [Jianghu]+ [Workplace]+ [Romance]+ [No System]+ [Not reborn] [Based on the author’s real experiences working in Guangdong, this is a story about migrant workers in cities like Dongguan and Shenzhen. This is not a wish-fulfillment novel, so don’t read it if that’s not your thing!] In 1997, Zhang Zaiye, Li Yaocong, Jiang Xinyue, and others met while working summer jobs in Guangdong, and formed a deep friendship. At the time, Dongguan’s economy was growing at a breakneck pace. Workers poured in fr 7Reads—Score—Shelves
- 100 Women on the Career Ladder 职场路上的女人们 Amid the shifting tides of the crowded world, people are always boarding ships and leaving them behind. When they came riding the waves, they carried unspoken obsessions. When they turned away, the hems of their robes swept up the stars, while the warmth frozen in their palms seeped forever into the course of the voyage. 836Reads7.1Score104Shelves
