Novels like Looking Toward Jiangnan
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Looking Toward Jiangnan, best match first.
- 1 Lovers in the Heart of the Sea 爱人海中央 [Secret crush] [Tragic romance with a tragic ending] Meeting doesn't always lead to a future, but it always means something. In the fanfare of youth, Lu Zisu and I had something beautiful. Though it was full of regrets, neither of us ever regretted starting. In the sea of love, let's swim against the current! 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 Paper-Thin Family Ties 纸薄亲情 The female lead was born at a time her parents resented. They believed she had ruined their lives, and from then on they neglected her and doted only on her younger sister. Throughout ten years of favoritism, she never knew what it was like to have a loving family. Even her death failed to earn her parents’ attention. She never imagined that after dying, she would be able to watch her family as a spirit. Nor did she expect what she saw to be even more despairing than anything she had witnessed w —Reads—Score114d adds
- 3 Summer Has Passed, and You Have Not Returned 夏去人不还 Summer is gone, but the one who left has not returned. 28Reads—Score114d adds
- 4 The Dream I Can Never Return To 再也回不去的梦 “A guitar, a white shirt, and my boy” Lu Huai, my love is pure. Lu Huai, you are like my shelter from the storm. Lu Huai, you are the only person I want to love for the rest of my life. “Then, goodbye.” The boy woke from his dream, and I disappeared too. 5Reads—Score214d adds
- 5 Spring Breeze Never Comes 春风不至 [Proud, privileged Li Chang’an] VS [Timid, insecure He Suiyu] [Bittersweet, tragic romance] They say the person you meet at sixteen is the hardest to forget. He Suiyu met that person in the bright days of March. The first time she saw him, the boy was giving a speech, bathed in sunlight, as if a god had descended. From then on, she could never take her eyes off him. The boy said he wanted to study medicine, and from then on, she dreamed of going to medical school, too. But their happiness did 471Reads—Score10214d adds
- 6 Tenderness Missed Its Appointment 温柔失约了 Top student Wen Ran × gaming boy Jiang Che “I've liked that person for a very, very long time. I guess you could say that love begins without you knowing when, then grows deeper and deeper.” At first, she always felt constrained by the voices around her: “A top student should like another top student. Only a top student is good enough for Wen Ran… Wen Ran wouldn't like someone like him, would she…?” What kind of person was he? After Wen Ran did one small thing, her presence followed him in every 20Reads—Score—14d adds
- 7 Spring Hadn't Come When I Arrived 我来时不逢春 Spring Was Gone When I Arrived 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 8 Giving You Back Last Winter 还予去岁冬 [School bullying + a dream of a lifetime + unrequited love + dream sequences + one-sided love + tragic ending + female lead suffers] Someone has always lived in Huan Qudong's dreams. If Song Zhifei had not died, they would have had a wonderful life together, despite all the hardships. But she died, bullied to death. The lively girl in Huan Qudong's eyes. Song Zhifei x Huan Qudong Unrelenting angst, a drawn-out plot, and a slow pace. Tragic ending. Don't read if that's not for you. 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 9 Evening Primrose and Daisies 月见草和小雏菊 Years later, someone asked Xie Yu'en, “Dance or Jiang Yan, which would you choose?” Xie Yu'en tightened her grip on the cup, her expression serious. After a moment's thought, she replied, “Both.” Years later, someone asked Jiang Yan, “What does it feel like to finally bring a five-year secret crush into the open?” Jiang Yan curled his lips and gave a scornful laugh before correcting them. “Six years.” [Considerate, warm, tsundere puppy-like boy × gentle, adorable dancer] [Mutual devotion, mutual 9Reads6.2Score—14d adds
- 10 Never Failing to Keep a Promise 不失允 [School + society + tragic ending + loyal puppy + younger male lead + mutual secret crush + sweet and angsty + contrast] Shi Qi × Yun Si Shi Qi was born into an oppressive family, an unexpected presence. Frail and often sick, she was loved by her parents, but they always used her poor health to keep her in check. When she was hospitalized at thirteen, she saw a bold, carefree person in the ward. A mutual secret crush, a school romance, a younger male lead, and a tragic ending. Proceed with cauti 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 11 If After the Bitter Comes the Sweet 如果苦尽甘来 [Mutual pining + love that grows over time + school life] One day, He Shulan discovered that there really was someone who loved every unworthy part of her with such sincere passion, carefully protecting her sensitivity and vulnerability. She thought that maybe her time in this world hadn't been for nothing. Theme: The effects of childhood experiences often stay with us for life. A happy childhood can heal us for a lifetime, while those who had an unhappy one spend their lives healing from it. 9Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 12 Mountains and Seas, Different Schemes 山海不同谋 Dedicated to the memory of my friend. A heroine who seems strong but is actually sensitive and introverted x a hero who seems cold but is actually gentle. Tragic ending. “Why is Qingchuan called Qingchuan?” “I confessed to you long ago. In every glance I gave you.” Maybe we should all be a little braver in our youth. “Can we take a photo together?” “Wu Cangting, goodbye forever.” 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 13 The Last Snowfall in Zurich 苏黎世的最后一场雪 Lin Xigu once believed that staying by Wen Anning's side could dispel the gloom hanging over her and save her from depression. They promised to travel to many places together, letting the world's beauty soothe the scars deep in her soul, and letting the winds atop the snow-capped mountains bear witness to their long-overdue confession. But the storm of fate struck without warning. The last snowfall in Zurich took Wen Anning away and crushed all of Lin Xigu's hopes. Only when Lin Xigu found the 40Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 The Day Before My Wedding, the Real Heiress Imprisoned Me 婚礼前一天，我被真千金囚禁了 The Day Before My Wedding, the Real Heiress Imprisoned Me 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 After Reuniting Years Later, I Thought We'd Be Together 久别重逢后，原以为我们会在一起 “Sensitive girl | Devoted boy” “Reunion after years apart | Mutual secret crushes | Bittersweet campus romance” The first time Ye An saw Ji Nian, he knew their paths would cross more than once. But so many hardships kept him from being there for her throughout her childhood. The girl became the only light in the boy’s darkest days. At last, after overcoming countless obstacles, he returned as a transfer student and saw her again. But she… She seemed different. Everything about her had changed. W 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 16 When the Golden Rain Trees Bloom 栾树花开 Campus tragedy × mutual healing An ordinary girl with heart disease × a dazzling young artist In 2014, during high school, an ordinary girl who had been abandoned by her parents and suffered from heart disease since childhood met Li Yi’an beneath a golden rain tree at a bus stop. He was eighteen, full of youthful spirit, and dazzling with his sketchpad. After all our twists and turns, you had already taken root and blossomed in my life, 95Reads—Score—14d adds
- 17 My Friend, Mr. Zhong 我朋友的钟先生 From school days to the real world, a doomed unrequited love 1. Mr. Zhong belongs to my friend, not me. I have always been a despicable person, secretly in love with my friend’s boyfriend. So I deserve whatever punishment fate has in store for me. 2. Li Ying would always remember that day. In the filthy bathroom, a carefree, languid young man suddenly appeared before her like a god. Without hesitation, he took off his own jacket, looked away, and held it out to Li Ying, whose clothes were in dis 113Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 Until Winter 【止于冬】 Qu You has a childhood sweetheart named Xu Nanshan. Xu Nanshan has someone he likes: Qu You. “I'm Xu Nanshan. The ‘Nan Shan’ in ‘Leisurely, I gaze at the southern mountain.’” “I forgot to mention, she's Qu You. The ‘Qu You’ in ‘Leisurely, I gaze at the southern mountain.’” 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 19 The Phoenix’s Summer 不死鸟的夏 The gardenias bloomed, but the person watching them with me wasn't the boy who had dazzled my youth that summer long ago. He had gone to protect another girl for the rest of his life. I love white magnolias in summer. They usually bloom during the season, and their fragrance, like that of orchids, evokes an image of pure, jade-like beauty. After meeting Xu Yue, I fell in love with gardenias. They bloom every year around the summer solstice, their petals a pure white that symbolizes a promise to 27Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 20 The Sky Will Clear Eventually 天终会晴朗 [Based on a true story + mutual unrequited love + everyone gets a bad ending + regrets + growth] Reserved girl × sunny boy Twelve-year-old Xiang Jin spent every year of her life in a world of damp, endless rain, until a boy named Fang Ji barged into it. “I hate the rain.” The boy grinned. “I know how to make it stop raining in your world.” Suddenly the sky cleared, and the rain really did stop. At fifteen, she casually remarked that someone else's wedding candy tasted so sweet. The boy ran his 1kReads—Score23014d adds
- 21 The Rainy Season Is a Secret Signal 雨季是潮湿的暗号 [Mutual first love | Campus | Bad ending] “I hope your wish comes true, that everything in the world becomes the backdrop to your life. May you go anywhere you want and become the bravest person of all.” “Qi means a prayer, and Zhao means light. It’s a beautiful name.” The rainy season at seventeen is long enough to leave an indelible mark. The boy who leapt down carried mud all over him, but angels would catch them and cleanse their purest souls. “Zhaoqi, you idiot.” “I love you.” “May the ligh 31Reads—Score—14d adds
- 22 I Know Sorrow and Autumn 我知悲与秋 [College campus + youthful angst + reunion after years apart + sweet at first, then heartbreaking + BE ending + realistic + female coming-of-age] (The main story is complete. The latest bonus chapter has been posted in the Stories section on the homepage.) One autumn, Jiang Nian saw her eighteen-year-old self at the other end of the road. She held the eighteen-year-old girl tight, as if she had returned to that autumn five years ago. That day, nineteen-year-old Jiang Yiming stood amid the crowd 35Reads8.1Score—14d adds
- 23 Your Name Is Farther Away Than the Stars 你的名字比星星遥远 Angst! Angst! Angst! That's how important it is, so we're saying it three times! [Double top students × mutual salvation × tragic ending] A bright, fragile ray of sunshine suffering from a serious illness vs. a cold, merciless class monitor who can't feel pain “Xu Xingxia, you're crossing the line.” “Xu Xingxia, know your limits.” “Xu Xingxia, are you always like this?” “Xu Xingxia, Song Qichi is yours and yours alone.” “Xu Xingxia, without you, this life would be far too long...” Dying for 4kReads8.4Score85114d adds
- 24 Beneath the River of Forgetfulness, A Cherry Blossom Promise 忘川河下，赴一场樱花之约 Beneath the River of Forgetfulness, keep an appointment beneath the cherry blossoms. 19Reads—Score—14d adds
- 25 I Made Myself a Boyfriend, and Somehow I Fell for Him Despite My Alexithymia 亲手造了个男友，患述情障碍的我竟动了心 I made myself a boyfriend, and somehow, despite my alexithymia, I fell for him. 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 26 Gu Nian's Deep Love 顾念情深 He said, “Gu Nian, wait for me a little longer. I promise I’ll make you happy.” She remembered what he had said so many years ago. Four years later, he came back. He returned as Jiangcheng’s most powerful man. Pinning her against the cold wall, he gritted his teeth and said, “Love me? You’re not worthy!” “Why don’t you just die?” And she really was going to die. 109Reads6.0Score—14d adds
- 27 A Tortured Love Between Human and Ghost: The Bricklayer 人鬼虐恋之泥瓦匠 A Tragic Love Between a Man and a Ghost: The Bricklayer —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 28 I Designed Your Bride's Wedding Dress with My Own Hands 我亲手为你的新娘设计了婚纱 Cover image source: XHS, Snowy Day Originally titled “Out of Focus” A secret crush is one person out of focus; loving someone you can’t have is two people on parallel lines. When you appeared, the whole world went out of focus. The first time we met, I tripped in front of you. From then on, I’ve always stumbled right where you are. Jian Lushun, goodbye forever. 20Reads—Score—14d adds
- 29 The Light of the Thirteenth Month 第十三月的光明 Hello, my name is Ji Xiaochuan! Hello, my name is Su Li! From now on, I'll call you Su Pear, sweet and juicy! Ji Xiaochuan, look! The light is here. My light is here! Little Pear, if there's another life, I'll spend it making it up to you! Ji Xiaochuan, if I could do it all over again, maybe I'd choose never to meet you! I walked through a dark abyss, and seemed to smell something rotten. Instinctively, I looked back. Countless wolves and tigers charged toward me, their sharp fangs 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 30 The Wind Kisses the White Rose 风吻白玫瑰 A cheerful girl with depression vs. a lonely, gentle top student Chen Yan meets a strange person at the hospital. That day, he sees many sides of her. One moment she is chatting away, the next she is silently crying. Since high school, she has called herself “Young Master Xiao Jiang” and become everyone’s mood-maker. Everyone thinks that is just who she is, but Chen Yan is the only one who has seen the side she keeps hidden. So he says, “Don’t be afraid. I’m here to save you.” He has seen her at 79Reads8.9Score—14d adds
- 31 Maybe He Once Loved Me 或许他喜欢过我 [Gentle girl × calm, sharp-tongued guy] [secret crush · tragic ending] [Two super-sweet supporting couples]+ [A pair that leaves you wondering what might have been] Even though I knew a secret crush was a road with no return, I still walked down it without hesitation. At first sight, there was only one photograph. When they met again, she didn't know that the person at the stairwell corner was him. Zhao Jin posted her first ever social media update for him and tried all kinds of new things. Bu 647Reads8.1Score14114d adds
- 32 The Wind Will Remember Him for Me 风会替我记住他 [School life + mutual crushes + healing + Be] Don't look at my embarrassing past. Don't make me beg you. “Gentle and sensitive” Qi Zhiyou x “sunny and outgoing” Cheng Weizhui Ten years after Qi Zhiyou died, Cheng Weizhui learned of her death. He spent a year in a daze before finally taking his own life. Scenes from his life replayed in his mind. Early autumn. When they first met, he had smiled and asked her, “What are you doing here?” Later, at a temple, he had sincerely prayed, “May my girl liv 55Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 33 The Day the Wind Blew 风吹过的那天 He Lin, congratulations on your wedding. On the day you got married, the wind blew. I thought I was finally ready to let go. 174Reads8.0Score3814d adds
- 34 Letting Go 割愛 [Short tragic ending + obsessive male lead] After my mother remarried, my stepbrother, who shared neither parent with me, was always finding new ways to bully me. But after our parents died, he changed completely. He stopped bullying me and instead stayed by my side, taking care of me without ever giving up on me. It was as if he’d become a different person. 62Reads8.1Score—14d adds
- 35 I'll Meet Her Again When Summer Comes 无夏再逢她 (Just received a rating; completed) [Heartbreak Youth Fiction | BE | Schoolyard Secret Crush | Healing] Cheng Wang had loved Lin Yiwan for years and years. He secretly wrote twenty-one letters, each one holding a piece of his heart. After the college entrance exams, Lin Yiwan suddenly kissed him of her own accord. But on the very day Cheng Wang planned to confess his feelings, she took her own life. All she left behind was a notebook containing every one of her secrets. Cheng Wang: “What’s the w 245Reads8.3Score10514d adds
- 36 I Want to Pat You on the Shoulder 想拍拍你的肩膀 [Athletic school heartthrob x Cool, sensitive girl] A three-second spark can be enough to make you love someone for three years, or even longer. Xu Lexin's first flutter of the heart: In front of everyone, he was the only one who praised her, even though she wasn't anyone special. Xu Lexin's second flutter of the heart: On a sweltering summer day, he called out to her to turn around. When she did, there he was, full of confidence and vigor. Xu Lexin's third flutter of the heart: He proudly showe 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 37 Fish Do Not Venture into Deep Woods 鱼不赴深林 Fish Don't Head for the Deep Woods 45Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 Keep Moving Forward, Don't Look Back 向前走，别回头 At 18, Zhao Xingyang fell in love with someone. To her, the boy was a ray of light in her life, the best gift heaven had ever given her. He was brilliant and flamboyant, carefree and unrestrained. Unfortunately, he didn't know she existed, and she was too much of a coward... Perhaps because she'd met someone so dazzling in her youth, it took her a full ten years to let go. At 28, Zhao Xingyang told herself: “Keep moving forward. Don't look back.” 132Reads8.2Score2114d adds
- 39 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
- 40 One Last Rainfall Before We Part 最后一阵诉别雨 [Mutual pining | A little campus romance | Short BE | Male lead dies, female lead finds peace] The sky waits for the rain, and I wait for you. Song Ting'an never got to see his rain. From that song by Jay Chou, with lyrics by Vincent Fang. “The sky waits for the rain, and I wait for you.” He listened to it again and again. Song Tianqing, the character in Song Ting'an's book, got to meet his Yue Yuyu. But Song Ting'an never got to meet his Li Yanyu. His chance of survival was only twenty perc 377Reads8.0Score11914d adds
- 41 Wait for Me, Come See Me 等你，来看我 “Will you miss me?” “I will.” “Will you come find me?” “I will.” “If I came to see you, would you be happy?” “I would.” “You’re lying.” Years later, Zhao Yan, who has spent half her life quiet and careful, always following the rules, sets off to wander just like her friend Xue Ni. She once fell in love with a boy she shouldn’t have loved. As fireworks filled the sky, she was too embarrassed even to confess. When they meet again after years apart, she chooses to run away on her wedding day. - Xue 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 42 The Eighth Winter 第八年冬 The first time the sensitive Li Xiting fell in love, it was with Chen Nian, the boy who seemed to glow as he stood in the crowd. She carefully held on to every interest they shared, and eventually turned those interests into a goal: getting into Nan University and being with him. But life is always cruel. She got into Nan University, but she didn't get him. She was like Cinderella in a fairy tale, except she didn't have the right glass slipper. Without that slipper, she could never enter his wor 211Reads8.3Score10114d adds
- 43 Rose and Lychee Candy 玫瑰荔枝糖 [Love at First Sight, Two Academic Stars] [Tsundere Demon King x Tough Little Airhead] [If They Both Die, It’s a Happy Ending] On the first day of school, Lu Ziyao fell in love with Shi Nian at first sight. All Lu Ziyao remembered was that the weather was beautiful that day, so beautiful he couldn’t remember it clearly, because he had met her. The boy approached her cautiously, afraid of frightening the girl he liked. He just didn’t know that once you get close to some things, they can stay with 61Reads6.7Score—14d adds
- 44 A Winter’s Last Letter 冬日遗书 [Mutual Secret Crush + Angst + Youth and School Life + Both Leads Die | Slow-Burn Style | Hero's Secret-Crush Diary] When Fang Li was sixteen, her mother remarried, and she transferred to Nanshi No. 1 High School. There she met Jiang Zheng, the “bad boy” everyone talked about. As she got to know him, she realized this quiet boy wasn't as bad as everyone said. On the contrary, he was wonderful. So wonderful that Fang Li would never forget him for the rest of her life. The boy wasn't a savior, but 2.1kReads8.2Score54714d adds
- 45 Thoughts and Longing 念与望 Campus | Mutual pining | BE A gloomy boy plagued by misfortune | A sensitive girl always afraid of losing what she has The breeze swept past the window, lifting an orange-yellow journal that shimmered in the sunlight. On the first page, someone had written: “If you can't forget, your feelings will be answered.” Jiang Wang, the name that ran through Shen Nian's teenage years. Her first crush, at eight. Then, at fourteen, she saw him again. She stayed by Jiang Wang's side in silence. She didn't da 35Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 46 No Roses in Midsummer 盛夏无玫瑰 [Troubled, obsessive boy × warm, healing ray of sunshine] Unrequited love × love at first sight × bittersweet school romance Roses are a byword for romance, the beginning of regret, and the end of a midsummer... Romance let the roses pierce the whole summer, allowing them to take root and bloom in the pain of her wounds. In the end, they secretly became the only thorns in the time machine of her life, letting every unfinished kiss grow into an epitaph here, bringing every regret to its close. “A 78Reads—Score—14d adds
- 47 Alley Number Seven 七号巷 Campus + BE + unrequited love Free-spirited, honest boy vs. well-behaved girl “May the free and honest sun never set. Someone will always take my place and keep loving you. Happy birthday, Jiang Si.” “She died on the day he turned eighteen. His coming-of-age day became her death anniversary.” “Jiang Si, don’t cry.” Beep The ECG line went flat. The room fell silent for a moment, then sobs swept through it. “I won’t cry anymore. Please, just look at me, okay?” The boy tried to hold back his sobs s 744Reads—Score19214d adds
- 48 So Love Has an Expiration Date 原来爱有期限 Shao Ning: Everyone says love can overcome any obstacle. It’s not that I don’t believe in love, but love can change in an instant. The only thing that lasts is... a 15-year limit... Maybe Mom, you and Dad were right. In the end, a man and a man just can’t be together. 1.8kReads—Score19314d adds
- 49 Midsummer Is Eternal 盛夏是永恒 A girl with heart failure × a cold, short-tempered boy Mutual salvation [School-life tragedy] An eternal, unchanging love, yet it was in the brief span of my life that an eternal love was created... The little sun warmed everyone, but in the end, she couldn't escape the endless cycle of summer. Under the stars, she made a wish: "May my Luoluo have peace year after year." Little scenes: "Hey, would you be interested in dating?" "Why are you such a stick-in-the-mud?" "Why is my darling so cute?" " 309Reads8.4Score10114d adds
- 50 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
