Novels like I Once Promised You a Golden Age of Joy
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as I Once Promised You a Golden Age of Joy, best match first.
- 1 After I Died, Everyone Was Left to Regret It 我死后，全员火葬场 After I Died, Everyone Held a Cremation for Me 40Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 I Only Hope We Won't Know Each Other in the Next Life 惟愿来生不相识 On the seventh day after her father's death, she learned she had terminal stomach cancer. Seven months pregnant, she begged him not to make her donate blood to his first love, but he cruelly shoved her to the ground anyway. She would never forget the icy look in his eyes... He thought the document she sent him would be divorce papers. He never imagined it would be her last letter... 82Reads5.8Score—14d adds
- 3 Turns Out Every Ending Is Filled with Longing 原来结尾都相思 How do you hurt someone who loves you until they’re utterly broken? Perhaps you throw their love on the ground and trample it again and again, until it’s shattered, until it’s gone. 125Reads6.2Score—14d adds
- 4 Forget Longing, Forget You 忘了相思忘了你 Qian Rong's love for Jin Hengbei is a conviction that even illness cannot destroy. 112Reads6.2Score—14d adds
- 5 You Are the Only Light in My Life 你是我生命里唯一的光 You are the only light in my life 37Reads5.1Score—14d adds
- 6 Nothing Hurts More Than Loving You 最痛不过我爱你 Zhou Ansheng killed himself, just as she wished. He gave Mrs. Xiao's place to the woman he cherished most. She loved him for so many years, and lost everything: her self-respect and pride, her closest family, her family business, and even the child she had yet to carry to term... Blood from her wrists stained the flowers along the road to the underworld, and every blossom knew how deeply she had loved him! She said, “I hope there is no next life. I hope we never meet again. The most painful thin 25Reads5.4Score19914d adds
- 7 Love That Came Too Late 迟来的痴爱 Yan Xizhi had always loved someone, keeping her feelings locked away in her heart. She didn't dare reveal them. She thought the two of them could never be together and would never cross paths, but she never expected one incident to bring them together and make her his wife. He was cold and indifferent toward her, and even resented her. Later, a checkup revealed that she had terminal cancer. His first love happened to return from abroad around the same time, so she chose to divorce him. After the 136Reads5.4Score—14d adds
- 8 One Fleeting Glance, and I Knew Love Had Faded 蓦然一顾知阑珊 She married him without hesitation in the prime of her life, but couldn't escape the seven-year itch. As her life entered its final countdown, she could no longer find the young man who had once loved her so deeply. She devoted her entire life to him, and only at the very end did he finally realize what he had lost... 57Reads5.6Score—14d adds
- 9 The Illness Called Love 病名为爱 Lin Chi has cancer, and the doctor says she has only six months to live. As she grieves, Lu Shenyuan tells her he’ll give her a grand funeral. Sick with love for him, Lin Chi is willing to give him everything, even though her life is about to end. But all he gives her in return is, “Do you think you deserve me?” Whether or not they are a good match, she chooses to love him with all her heart. So when her time finally runs out, she can only forgive him for not loving her. 123Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 10 You Never Once Chose Me 你从不曾偏爱我 Throughout their three years of marriage, she kept hoping he would turn around and look at her. But his heart belonged only to the woman he cherished most. When he caused their child’s death, she turned away in despair. Yet he grabbed her hand and said, “I don’t want a divorce!” 78Reads6.5Score—14d adds
- 11 I Just Want to See You Again, in Heaven or Hell 只想再见你，天堂或地狱 Sui Ning’an loved Feng Yunze with a surging tide of passion she kept hidden, but he loved her younger sister. After an accident left no trace of Sui Ning’an, Feng Yunze finally lost the wife he had treated like dirt. In his grief and madness, he announced to the world that there would only ever be one Mrs. Feng. When news of her surfaced again, Feng Yunze was overjoyed. He smashed open the door in the dead of night, his bloodshot eyes glaring at the man in her bed as he demanded, “Are you really 32Reads5.7Score—14d adds
- 12 Sinful Love 罪爱 Chen Lin loves her. That is Ye Zhiqiu's only leverage for taking revenge on him. Making Chen Lin watch her die day by day is Ye Zhiqiu's way of getting even. Chen Lin: “Can you live for me?” Ye Zhiqiu: “No.” 164Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 13 A Marriage at a Crossroads 婚途陌路 Strangers on the Road to Marriage 49Reads—Score714d adds
- 14 After I Gave Up Loving Him, My CEO Husband Regretted It 我放弃爱他后，总裁老公后悔了 After I Gave Up on Loving Him, My CEO Husband Regretted It 33Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 I Love You, I Deserve to Die 我爱你，我该死 Song Xixi spent more than a decade loving a man. In the end, she died at the hands of the person she loved most. He wanted her kidney, and she gave it to him. He wanted her life, and she gave it to him. He wanted her to turn back and love him once more, but she knew there was no going back... 166Reads5.0Score—14d adds
- 16 Bloodstained Roses on Our Wedding Anniversary 结婚纪念日的带血玫瑰花 The day I decided to divorce my husband, Gu Yuran, I caused a scene at the Gu family’s old mansion. Right in front of my husband, Gu Yuran, and my mother-in-law, I stuffed a mouthful of raw pig brains into the mouth of Xu Lu, Gu Yuran’s first love, his unattainable dream girl, and his CEO’s assistant. Then I flipped the dining table and, before Gu Yuran could even finish shouting at me, tossed down a divorce agreement. “I’ll leave with nothing. I agree!” 12Reads—Score214d adds
- 17 Fallen Blossoms Still Drift Toward the Jade Steps 乱红犹向玉阶飞 Xiao Seru said to Wen Jinchub: “A Chu, I know you still think of Miss Lu. I'm envious, but I'm not jealous. I don't expect you to truly let her go. I only hope you'll let me stay by your side... I may not be as talented or beautiful as Miss Lu, but my love for you is just as true!” Xiao Seru also said, “A Chu, I'm so happy I can be your wife. A Chu, I like you. I really, truly like you!” But later, Xiao Seru said to Wen Jinchub: “Wen Jinchub, she pushed me!” “Is Lu Liulian's child the only one w 120Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 18 The Camellia Tree 山茶花树 “A Huai, the camellias on the mountain back home are blooming. I really wish you could go see them with me again.” “The camellias on the mountain bloom and wither, then bloom again, but the camellia in my heart will never fade.” 89Reads—Score—14d adds
- 19 In the End, Deep Love Leaves Nothing but Heartbreak 情深终负尽 After five years of dating and three years of marriage, Qin Yue underwent IVF more than a dozen times, but in the end Gu Yanzhi still rejected her. “You can't have children. You're not fit to be my wife.” Later, Gu Yanzhi saw another man tenderly holding Qin Yue, whose belly was swollen with pregnancy... 166Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 20 Half a Letter in Winter 冬天的半封信 They met in winter, grew close, parted ways, and found each other again. “See you in winter.” I’ll see you in winter. It turned out to mean goodbye until winter comes again. 70Reads—Score—14d adds
- 21 The Rest of My Life Is You 余生皆是你 It wasn’t until the moment she was shoved in front of a bullet meant for the woman he loved that Yan Xi finally believed she truly meant nothing to him… She had risked everything and given him all she had, but all he gave her in return was endless pain. He used her as a human shield for that woman and trampled all over her feelings. He even used her, pregnant with his child, to trade for his kidnapped fiancée. As she hung beneath the blazing sun, waiting for the organization to execute her, he w 270Reads6.1Score—14d adds
- 22 Love Is Colder Than Death 爱比死更冷 Her father ruined his family for the sake of profit. Years later, he returned for revenge, and she was sold to him to pay off the debt. She thought he hated her to the core, never knowing he loved her with all his heart. When their child died in an accident, she lost the only reason she had to keep living. Like a fluttering butterfly, she leapt into the abyss. “Li Wenyi, do you like... this... ending...?” 442Reads6.5Score—14d adds
- 23 Mr. Bo, We’re Nothing but Strangers Now 薄先生，你我情同陌路 [Short Story Contest] After seven years of marriage, she has suffered endless torment at his hands. She has angina and only a year left to live, but he ignores it and plans to marry her younger sister. No one knows she is the real Mrs. Bo. Forced to kneel before her own sister and admit she is a shameless mistress seeking attention, she endures his bloodthirsty sneers and his endless humiliation and trampling of her dignity. After losing her child, she goes mad with despair and leaps from the up 131Reads6.2Score—14d adds
- 24 North of Beicheng, the Sea Has Yet to Sleep 北城以北海未眠 Ever since she was twelve, she had followed him around, always calling him “Brother Beicheng.” There was no turning back time. All the years had left her with were coldness and cruelty. She lost a kidney, and she lost her child. In the midst of that terrible fire, she watched the man she loved most carry another woman away. As she closed her eyes, she thought, Gu Beicheng, if I could turn back time, I would never have met you. 505Reads6.1Score—14d adds
- 25 Love Has No Return 爱无归期 When Yun Sheng married Li Xijue, she was determined to keep trying until she hit a brick wall. She couldn't believe he could simply forget her completely. Later, the wall crumbled, and her heart died. The three-year marriage she had staked everything on fell apart. When she woke from her dream, her family was ruined and she had lost spectacularly. Only then did she finally understand: the man who never once looked her way, even when she was terminally ill, had always wanted to send her to her de 172Reads6.7Score—14d adds
- 26 I Once Loved the Stars Above 也曾属意漫天星辰 He led his troops into battle and returned victorious, but came back with a woman in his arms. She never fought back or fought for attention, yet people kept framing her at every turn. “We promised to be each other's only one for life, but you broke your word.” “I don't love you anymore. Let me go.” 59Reads5.0Score—14d adds
- 27 Tearing My Heart Apart for You 为你撕心裂爱 What does it mean to love deeply? To be doomed beyond redemption, or ground to dust? Ruan Zhenzhen's heart died at the moment she lay dying, her child was lost, and her grandfather was grieved to death. After rising from the ashes, the man who regretted everything knelt before her and begged for forgiveness. But how can a dead heart come back to life? “Huo Sinian, the only way I'll forgive you is if you die!” 188Reads5.7Score—14d adds
- 28 Brother, I’m Done Getting Treatment 哥哥，我不治了 Big Brother, I’m Done with Treatment 1.4kReads—Score7614d adds
- 29 Beautiful Years 景年 [Angst! Angst! Angst! Angst!] My name is Jiang Nian. I was born in the height of summer and died in the depths of winter. Fate was always fleeting, and even meeting you was a blessing. We were destined to meet in this life, but not to be together. May we continue our bond in the next. The debts of this life must be repaid in this life. On the road to the afterlife, don’t look back. May we have a better fate and grow old together in the next life! I still remember the words Lin Anjing said to 511Reads8.1Score—14d adds
- 30 Who Says Longing Is Silent? 谁说思念无声 She knelt in the pouring rain, begging him to give her father a proper burial. All she got in return was: “You should've been the one to die!” Her hatred burned fiercely, while her love slowly faded away. She said, “I spent my whole life loving you, but you hurt me, hated me, and ruined my life. You said I owed you. Now I've paid you back!” A knife pierced her chest. She smiled, proud and desolate. “Don't cry at my grave. You'll soil my path to the afterlife!” 166Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 31 Han Jinshen, We Lost Our Baby! 韩晋深，我们的孩子没了！ On the day of the first snowfall, Han Jinshen received two packages. One contained the ashes of the baby in Wan Yin’s womb. The other contained… Wan Yin’s ashes… Cradling the ashes of mother and child, Han Jinshen began to vomit blood! 1.3kReads7.0Score—14d adds
- 32 A Broken Mirror Cannot Be Mended 破镜难重圆 Childhood sweethearts, married for ten years. Fu Shiyu came back with Shen Jiaman in his arms and forced Xia Ran to design her wedding dress. Xia Ran had poured her heart and soul into Fu Shiyu, yet could only watch helplessly as he caused their child’s death... Fu Shiyu, in the end, you and I were never meant to find happiness together. 22Reads5.5Score—14d adds
- 33 Love Warmed the Chilling Boy 是爱暖了少年凉 July 7, clear, Wednesday This is the most desolate and helpless day in my memory, a day that leaves me trembling with fear. Today marks ten years since you began hating me. How should I celebrate it with you, Lin Luo? On this summer night, you and I finally went our separate ways for good. Perhaps this sorrow was destined from the start: when I was abandoned on the Ferris wheel at seven, when I was adopted by your family, and when your mother’s blood stained the hatred in your eyes. Back then, I —Reads8.6Score—14d adds
- 34 For the Rest of My Life, Loving You Is My Illness 余生，爱你成疾 Eleven years ago, Lu Tingchen promised that Su Nian would be the only woman in his life. Eleven years later, he had become the powerful president of the Lu Corporation, surrounded by countless beautiful women. She was nothing but his gravely ill, worn-out wife, forced to watch him fool around outside their marriage for three years. When his mistress got pregnant and moved into their home, Su Nian became the clingy nuisance everyone accused of refusing to divorce him. “Lu Tingchen, you said I wou 289Reads6.6Score10114d adds
- 35 When the Pear Blossoms Fall, Longing Turns to Ash 梨花落，相思烬 A misunderstanding in their youth made Bai Jinhan hate Chu Lihua to the core. When he returns, he forcefully keeps her by his side, all so he can get even. What he doesn’t know is that she has already given everything for their love... Later, when every pear blossom has fallen and longing turns to sorrow, Chu Lihua slips away without a sound, while Bai Jinhan goes mad in a way that shakes the world... 110Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 36 Waiting for Wind and Rain, But Never for You 等风等雨，等不到你 Xu Zhengxi believed that as long as she held on, love and marriage would eventually lead her to brighter days. She gave up studying abroad, threw away her future, and abandoned her dreams, all to be the person he could confide in. He called her cruel and coldhearted. She once smiled and replied, “Because I love you.” Later, when her life hung by a thread, he remained as indifferent as ever. She took off her ring and returned it to him, smiling faintly. “Let’s get divorced.” She had compassio 312Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 37 After I Gave Up on Him, My Boyfriend Regretted It 我不要他后，男友后悔了 My boyfriend regretted it after I stopped wanting him 39Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 You Still Haven't Confessed to Me 你还没跟我告白 [Hot-tempered, possessive troubled boy & sweet, gentle girl] A tragic ending, an angsty campus romance. When they first met, Chi Wen was an exemplary student at No. 16 High School, excelling in both academics and conduct. Bian Qingye, meanwhile, was the fearsome “Ye-ge” from the vocational school next door. Everyone said he was exactly what his name suggested: wild, and wild in everything he did. He changed girlfriends faster than he changed clothes. At that age, what girl wouldn’t want to leav 62Reads6.4Score—14d adds
- 39 You Said Love Wouldn’t Hurt This Much 你说爱情那么伤 Shen Siting never imagined that Gu Xixi would die. He was furious at her schemes and hated her betrayal. He tortured her like a madman and drove her to flee. He thought all he felt for her was disgust and hatred, but the moment he found her body, his heart felt as if it had been torn apart. Blinded by hatred, he became a prisoner of love. How fortunate Shen Siting was, and yet how tragic; he was hateful, pitiful, and deserving of pity. An Yang said she cursed him to lose the person he loved fore 988Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 40 I’m Sorry, I Don’t Dare to Love You Anymore 对不起，我不敢再爱你 Ning Anran loved Bo Yeting so much that she lost herself. But Bo Yeting didn't love her. The woman in his heart was Mu Junya, who had once risked her life to save him. But when he lost Ning Anran, and the whole truth was laid bare before him, he regretted it. He searched the entire world for Ning Anran, who had disappeared, like a madman. But she no longer dared to love him. 339Reads6.3Score—14d adds
- 41 Goodbye, With Tears in Our Eyes 再见只能红着眼 [A Tearjerker of the Highest Quality] He was a poor student who fell for a well-behaved girl with perfect grades. To give her a happy life, he worked hard at his studies. He tried, and he struggled, but in the end, the happiness he had fought for was forced into someone else's hands. When the two lovers met again, they should have blushed, but all they could do was look at each other with tear-filled eyes. Standing by the roadside, he cried like a child, more like a madman: “I don't want anythin —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 42 Mr. He, Stop Torturing Me. Your Wife Is Really Dead This Time 贺总别虐了，夫人这次真的死了 Two years ago, she was found guilty of deliberately injuring the woman he loved. So he sent her to prison, crippled one of her legs, and crushed all her pride. Two years later, she believes she has escaped from hell and vows never to have anything to do with him again. But it turns out the Devil of Hell would never let her go so easily. 55Reads8.5Score—14d adds
- 43 My Dearest, on the Seventh Day of the Seventh Month 七月七日卿 Huo Shaoqing hated Qiyue and wanted nothing more than for her to disappear from his world. Qiyue loved Huo Shaoqing. After loving him for seven years, she finally understood that some kinds of love mean letting go. When death came calling, Huo Shaoqing finally realized that he had fallen deeply in love with her long ago. 283Reads6.7Score—14d adds
- 44 Red Eyes Across the Street, Vermilion Outshines Snow 隔街红眼，朱砂胜雪 Red eyes across the street, cinnabar brighter than snow. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 45 A Heart Torn Without a Trace, an Endless Farewell 裂心无痕，终无期 She plunged a knife into her own heart and smiled with heartbreaking sadness. “If I cut out this heart that loves you, it won't hurt anymore.” Only then did Qi Liangnian understand what it meant to have your heart torn apart. It hurt so much... 390Reads5.4Score—14d adds
- 46 An Unbroken Bond 藕断丝连 Tangled Affection 327Reads—Score10814d adds
- 47 The Bellflower Is Not White 桔梗不白 Every moment spent near him was full of telltale slips. A performance called unrequited love is the hardest one to pull off. - (The male lead doesn't cheat. He appears as a ghost, hoping the heroine will finally give up on him and stop grieving. He also sacrifices his reputation so netizens will stop attacking her. If someone has to be swallowed up by public opinion, he wants it to be him. It's a self-destructive attempt to save her: he gives up his life and his good name, as long as she's all r 122Reads8.1Score10514d adds
- 48 A One-Minute Goodbye 一分钟的告别 On New Year’s Eve, Yan Shu and I held our engagement party. He walked into the hall holding the hand of his long-lost orphanage sister. When Fu Qingqian pretended to trip and shove me, Yan Shu’s livestream had just passed one million viewers. I hit the floor hard. A warm red stream soaked through my white dress. Fu Qingqian wore a mocking smile. “Big Sis, why didn’t you get ready ahead of time if your period was due?” Yan Shu had started to reach out to help me, but he pulled his hand back, his 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 49 With Terminal Bone Cancer, I Was Driven to Despair by My Cheating Husband 骨癌晚期，我被出轨丈夫逼上绝路 Jiang Shaocheng cheated on me, but I was dying. A pregnant woman moved into our home. I shoved her, and he had me locked up. My bone cancer flared up, the pain unbearable, but I could hear him fooling around with her outside. When she went into labor, they took me away to give her a blood transfusion. I couldn’t hold on any longer. I died on the operating table. By the time they found me, my body had gone cold. I was dead, but Jiang Shaocheng went mad. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 50 My Husband Lost His Memory After a Car Accident 老公车祸后失忆了 Han Ziyou and I grew up together. He once loved me with all his heart and wanted to lay the very best the world had to offer at my feet. But then he forgot. He fell in love with someone younger and more radiant. Until one day, he got into a car accident while protecting her and suffered a head injury that left him with amnesia. His memories stopped ten years ago. Ten years ago, when he loved me more than anything. 4Reads—Score—14d adds
