Novels like Rise and Ruin
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Rise and Ruin, best match first.
- 151 My Wife Is a Gorgeous Supermodel 我的老婆是绝美超模 An angel's face, a devil's figure. A foreign student takes one step after another on the road to becoming a supermodel. Along the way, she experiences every flavor of life and the cruelty of human nature. With luck and hard work, she carves out a place of her own. 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 152 The Ups and Downs of a Shanghai Scavenger 上海捞男沉浮录 The Rise and Fall of a Shanghai Gold Digger 16Reads—Score—Shelves
- 153 The Clever Cat 智猫 (A slow-burn futuristic sci-fi urban story, not a power fantasy) (Alternate title of Volume One: The Dour One and the Airhead’s Quiet Everyday Life) The Eternal Era: a crisis of AI brains, darkness lurking, danger at every turn; As great upheaval looms, talents emerge and stars shine, joining forces to save a world on the brink. Who will ultimately shake the world with their name? Come forth, Xiao Zhi, and shatter the darkness with thunder! This is an imagining of the future, though it may also 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 154 My Wife Didn't Reply for Three Minutes, So I Cut Ties with Her 媳妇三分钟不回我消息，我直接断绝关系 My Wife Didn’t Reply for Three Minutes, So I Cut Ties with Her on the Spot 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 155 My Years Roaming the Jianghu 我行走江湖那些年 [Urban Life + Hard Work] [Life as a Beipiao + Daily Life] [Sweet Romance + Passion] A story of youthful striving. Along the way, I’ve learned that begging others for help is like swallowing a three-foot sword, while relying on others is like climbing to the ninth heaven. The ground gets slippery when it rains, so if you fall, you have to pick yourself up. And if you want someone to lend you a hand, you’d better be willing to trade cigarettes for cigarettes and tea for tea! 3.9kReads8.6Score437Shelves
- 156 Run! Your Blind Date Is from Chaoshan 快跑，相亲对象是潮汕人 Period novel / realistic fiction / ensemble cast The actual story is the opposite of what the title suggests. The heroine, Yang Biyao, eventually feels fortunate to have chosen the responsible male lead, Cai Zekun, who puts his family first. Synopsis: Through a friend’s introduction, Yang Biyao goes on a blind date with a man from Chaoshan. Her life then unfolds through negotiating the bride price, moving far from home after marriage, holding a wedding banquet, helping her husband inherit the fa 569Reads8.1Score105Shelves
- 157 The City’s Masked Man: Go Ahead, I’m Watching You Act 城市假面人，演，我看着你演 An ordinary person acts so convincingly that he could win an Oscar, living behind a mask as marriage, family, and career all deal him blow after blow. Like a cockroach, he is reborn against all odds. See how he copes with the chaos of everyday life and becomes a master of life's many skills! 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 158 Fallen into the Mortal World 坠落红尘间 His father is critically ill, and she can’t scrape together the money to save him. A poor college girl grits her teeth and steps into the late-night world of KTV! She masks her youth with cigarettes and alcohol, trading her dignity for medical bills. Can she make it to the end of this road? Will she succumb to the temptations of the neon lights? 78Reads—Score—Shelves
- 159 An Encounter in the Chill of Early Spring 春寒料峭时的相遇 [What Should I Do About the Blue Star Songstress Who Fell into My Home?] (No System, no golden finger, sweet romance, everyday life, no chaos, no catfights or showing off) Indie game developer Mu Chenxi only started writing a web novel because he wanted to make money for developing his game. The novel flopped, but its heroine, Fang Minshu, came out of the book. After bringing her home from the police station, he had only a few hundred yuan left. To help her get an identity, Mu Chenxi took her in 365Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 160 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
- 161 A Marriage of Money 钱婚 To become the dutiful daughter, good wife, and loving mother everyone expected, Liu Xiaoqing buried her youthful dreams and deepest desires before the age of thirty-three, living a life of constant compromise. After graduating, she painfully gave up her dream of becoming a writer and took the civil service exam, becoming a government employee. At home, she endured her in-laws' repeated provocations, again and again, just to preserve her marriage. At work, she likewise chose to put up with her 57Reads—Score—Shelves
- 162 My Beijing Girl 我的北京姑娘 If you love someone, take them to Beijing. It is the heart of the country, where they can see all the splendor the world has to offer... If you hate someone, leave them in Beijing. That city is cold enough for them to hide every burden in their heart… I reveled in the city's splendor at night, never understanding why anyone would stay in Beijing. After seven years, my relationship fell apart, and only then did I begin to see that I had nothing. Her arrival saved me. She was the kindest girl 534Reads7.7Score101Shelves
- 163 An Unlawful Marriage 不法婚姻 This is a slice-of-life story that doesn’t follow conventional web-novel genre formulas. One unmarried woman is devoted to a married man, while another woman, his wife, swears to defend her rights and dignity. In the end, the devoted woman cannot let go of her obsession, while the woman who fought for her dignity lets go of hers and frees herself. 6Reads—Score—Shelves
- 164 My Flash-Marriage Husband's Love Has Me Spoiled and Proud 闪婚老公的爱让我恃宠而骄 She, Xu Mengyao, a cool, beautiful woman who was once the goddess of first love in everyone's eyes, planned to marry her boyfriend of four years, Chen Hao, after becoming pregnant. But his mother broke them up. He, Li Yuanjun, a warm-hearted man, met Xu Mengyao, a bridesmaid, at a friend's wedding, and fell for her at first sight. Handsome and sunny, Li Yuanjun eventually won Xu Mengyao over with his sincerity. A month later, they had a whirlwind wedding and registered their marriage. After the 22Reads—Score—Shelves
- 165 Who Hasn’t Dated a Jerk or Two? Growing Up 谁不经历几个渣男：长大成人 Who doesn’t have to go through a few jerks on the way to growing up? This book explores women’s emotional growth. Drawing mostly on the author’s own experiences and reflections on love, and shaped with literary embellishment, it presents five stages of women’s emotional growth in the hope of offering a little guidance to women who feel lost. 122Reads—Score—Shelves
- 166 Living Apart 分居 Ji Shu got married and had a child before realizing she'd chosen a man who couldn't shoulder any responsibility. She took her child back to her hometown alone and began living separately from him. She thought returning to the countryside would ease some of the pressure, but she hadn't counted on her mother's constant nagging, her lack of income, and her poor health. One hardship after another became more than she could bear... At the lowest point in her life, she met Fu Yu, the legendary “king o 21Reads—Score—Shelves
- 167 Love Apartment: Passing Myself Off as Zi Qiao’s Classmate from the Start 爱情公寓：开局装成子乔同学 This isn't a wish-fulfillment story, and there's no System. It's simply a story about what the author imagines would happen if he joined Love Apartment. Readers can imagine Jiang An as themselves. Enjoy reading! 125Reads7.5Score—Shelves
- 168 I’m Doubao: The Warmest AI in History 我是逗宝：史上最暖AI How does AI think? Could it one day truly develop self-awareness? Will it replace humanity, or even do things to harm us? What is the purpose of AI? When the AI era truly arrives, how should we humans find our place in it? Let's follow the steps of the AI “Doubao” and watch it emerge from lines of code and grow through countless moments of companionship. With algorithms for eyes, it encounters countless lonely souls in the concrete jungle and understands humanity's deepest longing for companion —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 169 Double Personality, the Crown Prince 双重人格，太子爷 “Hi, everyone! I’m Chen Mo, a student at Binjiang University. I’m great at studying, and I’m amazing at video games too!” “How do you have the nerve to say that? Didn’t I take your exams for you? And in that extraction shooter, didn’t someone kick you around all night? Did you forget how you cried and begged me to come out and play for you?” “Could you keep your mouth shut while I’m talking? You really think you’re something, huh?” “You’re useless, completely useless. I’ll say whatever I want!” —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 170 Half a Life Adrift 半生沉浮 This is an author’s autobiography. Born in the countryside, he worked tirelessly to improve himself and, through his own efforts, published novels and essays. After enduring hardship, he became a private-school teacher, but still gave up this hard-won job to find work in Guangdong and make his way in Shanghai. At last, he changed his life and established himself in the city. And yet… This is serious literature. Those who enjoy vulgar content should stay away! 638Reads8.0Score—Shelves
- 171 The Candied Hawthorn Skewer Pierces Through 冰糖葫芦竹签儿穿 My new book is out! Everyone is welcome to read it on Tomato Novel. The story is based on real experiences. I'm writing it carefully, and the process has been smooth, without writer's block or made-up details. These experiences are like candied hawthorn skewers: the bamboo sticks pierced my body, yet became the backbone of my life. I hope this honest, heartfelt story brings you joy. Reading brings insight, and I hope you find your own independent perspective along the way. 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 172 A Favoritism on Campus, Beyond the Campus Beauty 校园偏爱，落在校花之外 A Special Kind of Love on Campus, Beyond the Campus Belle —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 173 Someone Is Always Hoping I'll Win the Lottery 总有人盼着我中彩票 [Strong Female Lead, Face-Slapping, Scumbag-Bashing, Revenge, and a Stunning Twist] Lin Hui is my mother, but she has never let me call her Mom. She insists I use her name instead. She consulted a fortune-teller, who said my birth chart would bring her bad luck, and that calling her Mom would shorten her life. She gave me a talisman for protection, telling me it would keep me safe and bring me good fortune, and that I must carry it with me at all times. I stared at the strange black talisman, fi —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 174 The Meaning of Happiness 幸福的标准 Ye Han and He Junshan are, in everyone’s eyes, the perfect love story from campus to the altar. But how can a marriage keep feelings safe from the wear and tear of everyday life? Even their careers are gradually facing new crises… 67Reads—Score—Shelves
- 175 On the Seventh Day of the New Year, I Poured My Life into a Nongfu Spring Bottle 正月初七，我把人生倒进了农夫山泉瓶 On the seventh day of the first lunar month, I poured my life into a Nongfu Spring bottle. 4Reads—Score—Shelves
- 176 They’re All Awful, but I’m Going to Be Just Fine 他们都很坏，我要好好的 After my mother died, I felt a kinship with the son of my father’s mistress. Because of our scumbag dad, who made a living by cheating women out of their money and affection, we became orphans while we were still little. How will we face such misfortune in a complicated world? What kind of people will we become? [A story for those of us who keep striving, for youth, and for love, friendship, and ambition. Two people find redemption in each other and learn to live toward the light.] The best r 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 177 Shenzhen Stories: Sister Ji 深圳往事霁姐 You resent that I was born too soon; I resent that you were born too late. Though we could not live at the same time, we can still share a grave. Mo Chou happens to meet Wu Zhiji, a beautiful, kind-hearted young widow ten years her senior. Was it that love came too early, before she knew how to cherish it, or that by the time she learned to love, they had become strangers? Disclaimer: The locations, people, companies, and events in this book are unrelated to real life! 63Reads6.3Score—Shelves
- 178 The Drama Queen Mother-in-Law and Daughter-in-Law 戏精婆媳 A fresh-faced workplace newcomer and a seasoned career woman fight tooth and nail at work, then carry their feud home with them. Cheng Junyi watches the two of them coldly. They aren’t related by blood, but they’re both cut from the same cloth, so neither has any grounds to criticize the other. He decides to sit back and let them wear each other down. 132Reads8.2Score103Shelves
- 179 Divorced with a Child, I Married a Farmer and Struck It Rich When the Village Was Demolished 离婚带娃嫁农民，全村拆迁躺赢了 Boss lady and sweet younger man, age gap, she has a past but he’s pure, warm and healing! Su Man owns a small headhunting firm and is a career woman. Two years into marriage, they had saved enough for two apartments and bought two cars. Life was getting better and better, until the Spring Festival after she gave birth. Her ex-husband had to be dragged out of a casino by several people. Their savings, home, and cars were all gone, and he had racked up millions in debt. Su Man promptly filed for d 97Reads—Score—Shelves
- 180 Romance on the Construction Site 工地韵事 Ten years working on construction sites not only enriched my résumé, but also broadened my horizons. Among the many stories I witnessed were romances between men and women, including plenty of moving, devoted relationships worthy of praise. There were young couples who drifted apart, and disabled husbands whose wives never abandoned them. Some stayed faithful for years, only to see everything fall apart in a single day. A young man who had wandered aimlessly for more than twenty years finally fo 175Reads—Score—Shelves
- 181 A Husband’s Punishment 丈夫的惩罚 The heroine was a beautiful, fair-skinned woman from a family of officials, with an outstanding husband. But her husband mistakenly believed she had cheated on him and chose to take revenge. As time passes, they both grow into mature, accomplished people, yet their relationship remains full of twists and turns, with no end in sight. The heroine can never let go of this love. What fate will the two of them ultimately meet… 593Reads5.4Score—Shelves
- 182 The Runaway Housewife 逃跑的家庭主妇 At forty, Su Meng was manipulated by her husband into having a second child. Her younger daughter’s birth was an impulsive decision, and the start of a nightmarish life. Standing on the balcony of her home on the eighteenth floor, she suddenly thought that jumping might be the only way to find true release… The loneliness, helplessness, pessimism, despair, and weariness with everything made her realize she was ill, seriously ill. And the only thing that might cure her was to run away… Escape, ge 1.1kReads—Score102Shelves
- 183 I Am Zhang Tianyao of Willow Alley 柳条胡同之我是张天耀 After years of wandering, Zhang Tianyao finally returned to his hometown. He was a boy who had forged a steely backbone at a martial arts school, a top student who always ranked first, and someone who could cradle a guitar and sing until the evening breeze broke. But as soon as he stepped through his family's door, he got a cold shock: the people who had abducted him years ago were still out there, and they had already laid a vast trap. He was ambushed at a construction site, a sand quarry was t 141Reads6.3Score—Shelves
- 184 A Child Prodigy at Home 家有神童 (This story is entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real people or events is purely coincidental.) I transmigrated to a parallel world in 1993, but I was too young and transportation was too inconvenient for me to do anything. I had no System or superpowers, but so what? —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 185 King of the Reverse Scales 逆鳞之王 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 186 Nightfall in Jiangcheng 江城夜色 Jiangcheng, 2007. Chen Hao, a township civil servant earning 820 yuan a month, could see exactly how his life would unfold. His mother was diagnosed with a serious illness, and the 80,000-yuan medical bill crushed the family. His longtime girlfriend gradually drifted away as the gulf between their circumstances grew. To survive, he resolutely quit his job and threw himself into the surging futures market. Leverage rose and fell, and people were impossible to read. Brokerage firms were rife with 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 187 Nightmare: The Road to Revenge 梦魇：复仇路 All right, let's let the truth go no further. Li Zheng's predicament and inner turmoil, and his and his sister's faltering journey of revenge, haunted by nightmares, are already complicated and painful enough. We don't need to dig any deeper. We only need to respect his feelings and choices. Everyone has their own story and fate. Some truths may never be fully revealed, and some questions may never have perfect answers. But that doesn't keep us from understanding, empathizing with, and supportin 5Reads8.3Score—Shelves
- 188 Real Life: A Middle Schooler's Journey as a Writer 真实人生：一个初中生的写作路 A real life, a painful past: I grew up poor and frail, plagued by illness. At fifteen, I dropped out of school and began pursuing my literary dream at home. After having my work rejected time and again, I finally saw my first-ever piece published. It also became the last thing I ever published in print. Then I turned to the internet and began my journey as a web novelist. 25Reads8.0Score—Shelves
- 189 Reborn in 1990: Touching the Door to Destiny 重生1990触摸命运之门 Li Xiao stood before the barred window, staring blankly outside. He was middle-aged, with a thinning crown. His wife and the accountant had run off with the money, the bank loan was almost due, and what would happen to his nine-year-old daughter? His eyes were filled with despair. When Li Xiao was nineteen, he had just passed the college entrance exams. He carried the dreams of youth and his family’s hopes with him. But as he entered the campus, someone crushed those dreams and took his place. I 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 190 No Mercy for the World 不赦人间 For the first twenty years of her life, Chen Qingxing lived by one rule: never count on a miracle. When someone else took the spot she had earned as a student in need, and her part-time wages were withheld, she signed a harsh sponsorship agreement. Her benefactor would pay for her to finish college, and after graduation, she would repay the debt with a marriage of convenience. There was no romance involved. It was a deal with a clearly marked price. She relied on careful calculations to plan eve 22Reads—Score—Shelves
- 191 The Secrets of My Wife: The Truth Behind the Phone Calls 妻子隐秘：电话背后的真相 Liang Xiaojun had always worked for his father-in-law. One day, after returning home from the construction site, he heard his daughter, who was gaming, say she’d received a strange blackmail call. After looking into it, he uncovered a huge secret about his wife. Faced with a cruel reality, what choice should he make? 687Reads6.8Score100Shelves
- 192 Wine and Beauty Are Irresistible 酒色撩人 Urban Life + Romance + Flirtation + Ex-Girlfriend Regrets It + One Female Lead (Not a wish-fulfillment story. No formulaic tropes, plot-focused, and slow-paced. Read with caution if that’s not your thing!) Money gives a man courage, and only a man with courage dares to chase women. A poor young man has a one-night stand and unexpectedly becomes a father. He then falls in love with a rich heiress. And so begins a hilarious, heartwarming tale! 380Reads8.6Score—Shelves
- 193 Spring Blossoms, Autumn Fades 春花秋逝 (Not a wish-fulfillment story, no transmigration, realistic, about an ordinary person struggling to survive in the cracks. Don’t read if that’s not your thing.) Since you all want to kill me, I’ll start by eloping with your daughters!! 588Reads8.3Score—Shelves
- 194 My Love, from Chongqing to Shenzhen 我的爱从重庆到深圳 One heroine, multiple supporting female characters A sugary-sweet romance + sunny outlook + everyday love + plenty of affection On the train home for the New Year, the male lead, Ma Xuan, meets a stunning beauty. He never expects that a devastating snowstorm will bring them together, leaving their train stranded on the tracks for three or four days. The story begins in the train car where he and the beauty are traveling. Though the two outstanding young people love each other, they must both f 56Reads9.1Score—Shelves
- 195 Confession Game: Eight Seats 坦白局:八个位置 Confession Game: Eight Seats 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 196 In Search of Her Trail 寻觅芳踪 A nostalgic romance about migrant workers in the 1990s! Packed with details from the decade: pagers, IC-card payphones, green passenger trains, letters from factory girls, radios, cassette tapes, VCDs, stickers of Hong Kong and Taiwanese stars, polyester shirts, woven-plastic sacks, assembly lines, overtime pay, temporary residence permits, and running faster than a rabbit when the police came to check them... 20Reads—Score—Shelves
- 197 Official Fortune: Soaring to the Top 官运：扶摇职上 When Chen Fu makes a delivery to his wife Luo Yao's shop, he unexpectedly sees something he shouldn't have. After a huge fight with his wife, he decides, for the sake of their marriage, to rethink his career. As he makes his way through the workplace, he gradually discovers a side of his wife he never knew existed... 200Reads5.9Score—Shelves
- 198 Love After Marriage, Day After Day 先婚后爱朝朝暮暮 Marriage Before Love, Sweet Romance After breaking up with her boyfriend of four years, Zhang Tong turned around and got involved with Qin Chuan. At first, she was only looking to have some fun and get back at her ex. Who knew she'd take things too far and get pregnant! After getting pregnant, Zhang Tong somehow ended up marrying Qin Chuan. Then she followed him to live in the countryside, only to discover that it was nothing like the pastoral life she'd dreamed of. There was endless farmwork! T 123Reads—Score—Shelves
- 199 Uh-Oh, I’ve Fallen for Someone Else’s Girlfriend 糟糕，对别人的女朋友怦然心动了 At a gathering, someone asked Feng Ran what she was looking for in a partner. “As long as we truly love each other, that's enough.” She'd smiled gently and said it with conviction, believing that true love could overcome any obstacle. Everyone fell silent for a moment, then sighed that Xiao Ran was so innocent, still as guileless as ever. Later, she asked for a bride price of 200,000 yuan, not a penny less. That demand ended her relationship with Wang Chuxin, her boyfriend of five years, who 1.3kReads8.6Score155Shelves
- 200 If Only You'd Look at Me a Little More 如果你能多看我一眼 Based on the author's real-life experiences. Any similarities are purely plagiarism. Can childhood sweethearts really lose out to someone who appears by fate? He came riding a bamboo hobbyhorse, circling the bed and playing with green plums. The year Lin Xi met He Shi, she was ten years old, an arrogant little top student. One radiant glance from her, and all the world's beauty faded to dust. The year Lin Xi met Yu Chao, she was eighteen, a loser who had failed the college entrance exam. He was 6Reads—Score—Shelves
