Novels like A Regrettable Outcome
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as A Regrettable Outcome, 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 A Confession Made First 先声告白 Bad ending (completed) There was a melody that should never have belonged to the past. When she was young, Wu Siqing searched all over the internet, but never found any information about it. Only later did she understand. It was the dawn that fate had destined them to recognize too late. I liked you so much that I confessed first. But only at the very end I realized that you had always been the one to confess first. “Do you know another name for He Shou Wu?” “No.” “Another name for He Shou 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 3 I Died at the Age of Twenty 我死在了二十岁那年 An Ning never imagined that someone would appear before her. He was an excellent student, came from a good family, and stood out from the rest. She was insecure and timid, unloved by her parents, and accustomed to abuse. Her beloved grandmother died, and her best friend from high school ended her own life with a rope. She had doubted the point of living. When she wanted to keep stumbling forward, she had no courage left. Her life came to a standstill that year. She would never be tired again. 12Reads8.7Score—14d adds
- 4 Can You Come Back? 你可以，回来吗 Please don’t read this. It’s my cringey middle-school-era writing. orz Please don’t read it, it’ll make you cringe for sure. Please don’t read it, please don’t. I’m begging you. Middle-school-level writing + a painfully clichéd plot. orz orz orz 14Reads—Score—14d adds
- 5 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
- 6 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
- 7 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
- 8 Spring Hadn't Come When I Arrived 我来时不逢春 Spring Was Gone When I Arrived 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 9 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
- 10 Beneath Daocheng 稻城之下 (A collection of seven short, tragic stories) Story One: Thoughts of Yunshu The tears he shed unwittingly drenched her entire summer. Story Two: Beneath Daocheng “Little Freckles, I have to give you back to this world now.” Story Three: Xu Xi Because he loved her, he let her go. 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 11 May the Lights Never Go Out 只愿灯火长明 May the Lights Never Go Out —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 12 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
- 13 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
- 14 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
- 15 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
- 16 If We Had, Back Then 如果那时我们 [Secret crush + missed chances + regret + tragic ending] Su Yiran: If I'd been brave enough back then to love you with all my heart, and hadn't lost all those years with you, would we be happier than we are now? Han Niancheng: If I'd realized sooner that you had a crush on me, we wouldn't have wasted all those years out of touch. Maybe we would be the ones who got married and had children in the end. Ever since you left, whenever the wind rises, I think of you and feel as if you're still right h 467Reads—Score10214d adds
- 17 The Woods Are Too Deep to See the Deer, and Love Spreads When Imagination Runs Wild 林深不见鹿，爱在臆想蔓延时 [Sweet at first, then heartbreaking x angsty school romance x fantasy romance x making up for regrets...] [Devoted Mr. Lin vs. sweet, self-conscious Miss Bai] On every quiet night, Longing grows wildly like a vine, winding around my heart. Like a sealed spell, It has never been spoken aloud to the world. Whenever leaves drift down, Whenever snowflakes fall, That surging emotion Rises wildly within me. I would use every bit of warmth in the world to shield you from the cold of fate. I would se 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 Fairy-Tale Graveyard 童话坟 [Secret crush + bittersweet tragedy + twists] When Tan Yuan was sixteen, her mother remarried and took her along. Forced to transfer from a small southern town to Jingbei No. 1 High School, she realized that in the vast city of Jingbei, she was just another ordinary face in the crowd. Yu Zhili, the famous boy at Jingbei No. 1 High School, had beautiful silver-white hair. He was reckless, unruly, and arrogant. He seemed like a rebellious troublemaker, yet he won countless awards during his time a 48Reads—Score—14d adds
- 19 The Last Art Exhibition 最后一次的画展 [Sweet Campus Romance × Angst] They met at an art exhibition. The exhibition ended. “We met in the height of summer, and parted in the height of summer.” He was about to become a police officer, but illness kept him at eighteen. She was about to become a painter, but for him, she stayed eighteen. 14Reads—Score—14d adds
- 20 The Ninth Autumn 第九个秋 [Innocent and carefree Mi Yicheng vs. taciturn Shen Jingjun] Everyone talks about meeting again in the next life, but he is a firm materialist. Love may bring partings and reunions, but there is no next life. On a rainy autumn day, Mi Yicheng waits beneath her office building for the rain to stop. As she gazes at the curtain of rain before her, an image of Shen Jingjun comes to mind. The dashing young man in a dark blue jacket stands across the road, smiling at her. He waves, the corners of hi 85Reads—Score—14d adds
- 21 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
- 22 Thirty Blossoms 三十次花开 There are only two possible endings to a secret crush: Either be brave once and give your feelings an answer, or quietly step aside and keep your tenderness for yourself. Neither choice is right or wrong. Those who speak up have fewer regrets; those who stay silent carry a little more longing. Confessing isn’t about forcing the other person to answer or demanding a relationship. It is this: I’m placing the feelings I’ve kept hidden for so long in front of you, with all sincerity, and telling you 3Reads—Score114d adds
- 23 Spring Had Passed by the Time I Arrived 我来时春散 Spring Had Passed by the Time I Arrived 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 24 A Love Across Eras 跨纪元之恋 A Love Across Eras 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 25 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
- 26 Giving Up on Someone You Love 放弃一个自己喜欢的人 [School-life unrequited love + tragic ending + an ordinary girl falls for the most popular boy at school] The sweet story of two neighbors who secretly loved each other is complete. Go check it out! Years later, two photos appeared on No. 2 High School’s confession wall. One showed “Xu Xingran likes Lu Jingwen” carved into a desk, and the other showed “Cheng Hao likes Xu Xingran” carved into a desk. They supposedly came from the same class, on desks at the front and back of the classroom. Everyo 311Reads8.0Score10214d adds
- 27 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
- 28 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
- 29 Even If This Love Disappeared from the World 就算这份爱恋从世界上消失 All the love in this world, gathered in twelve short stories. Even if that love disappears from the world, it once burned our souls with fierce heat. "Seven Days" "Because of Daishan" "Remember to Translate It Twice" "A Sea Hidden in My Heart" "He Just Doesn't Like You" "Even Their Names Are a Perfect Match" "Pain So Bad I Can't Breathe" "Spring Never Comes" "Oh, the Mist" "A Missing Heartbeat" "I Hear Poetry in the Mist" "Forty-Two Years" 27Reads7.9Score10414d adds
- 30 Ten Thousand Years from the Moonlight of That Year 我离那年的月光一万年 “I thought that childhood sweethearts who grew up together, innocent and carefree, could live a peaceful life by each other's side. Lu Jinqi, it seems our ending was written in the stars, but there's nowhere left for us to go.” A happy ending is the best ending. They were never meant to have one. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 31 In the End, I Long for Freedom 我终究向往自由 [Youthful campus romance + secret crush + mutual devotion + tragic ending] The first time Shen Huai saw Xu Xiawei, it was as if something struck him in the heart. In an instant, he was certain that Xu Xiawei was the person destined for him. He loved Xu Xiawei, but love made him timid. He was always careful, constantly afraid of disturbing her. Shen Huai said, “I don’t want my feelings to become a burden to her.” Yet he was always sneaking glances at Xu Xiawei. When he wanted to give her a card, 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 32 Waiting for the Next Clear Day 等不到下一个天晴 "Mutual secret crush + tragic ending + ensemble cast" [Cool and reserved He Wanqing] [Reckless and uninhibited Lin Zhifei] Her life was always drenched in the rainy season. She had seen a sunny day, but it had appeared only once in the drifting downpour of her youth. After Lin Zhifei left, she never saw a day like that again. He Wanqing could no longer wait for Lin Zhifei, nor could she wait for the skies to clear again. There was a rumor at Experimental High School: the beautiful top student He 273Reads—Score10614d adds
- 33 Once, the Sun Shone on Me 曾被阳光照耀 What is a secret crush? For Yang Zhi, a secret crush is a little flower suddenly blooming in a barren wasteland, a ray of sunlight appearing out of nowhere in endless darkness, and him barging into her world before she could even react. But... he is a dazzling light, the moon in the distant sky, someone forever beyond her reach... So, as long as... as long as she can gaze at him... from afar... she is content. 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 34 One Last Time, Tell Me You Love Me 最后一次说爱我 The Last Time I Told You I Loved You 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 35 A Touch of Pink in Summer 夏日的那抹粉 Secret crush / redemption / sweet at first, then angsty He died on the day she hated him most. Shao Yiliang: “You know what a backup is? That's all you are to me.” Lu Yue: “They're right. You're a walking disaster. No wonder nobody loves you!”... Later, on the day Lu Yue starts college, Chen Zhao, a pervert and the story's antagonist, who was also the fat bully at the beginning, calls Shao Yiliang and says he has kidnapped her. Chen Zhao: “Shao Yiliang, meet me at the usual place, or Lu Yue's go 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 Youth Is a Grand Illusion 青春是一场盛大的幻梦 Youth is a magnificent dream. Those first meetings, growing closer, and keeping one another company shimmered like stars, drawing us into the dream called youth. Looking back, the once-burning promises have scattered on the wind, and those deep, tender feelings have become regrets too painful to touch. On quiet nights, when memories drift through our minds like smoke, we may smile or we may cry, because that was our youth, true and unvarnished. [A Dream of Youth: My Twelve Years with Him] Cheng 41Reads—Score—14d adds
- 37 A Confession Hidden Away 告白难藏 [Redemption + healing + tragic ending + unrequited love + reunion after a long separation + lingering heartbreak + slice of life] A gloomy, aloof girl x a brash, sunny boy They first met when Chi Zhiyu mistakenly thought she was about to kill herself and saved her. He said a lot of things. She wasn’t wearing her hearing aids then, so she couldn’t hear him. From Qing Yi’s perspective, that was their first meeting. The second time they met, she smelled smoke in the alley on her way to school. She 80Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 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
- 39 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
- 40 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
- 41 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
- 42 Secretly Stashing Candy Wrappers 偷藏糖纸 [Mutual secret crush + school life + tragic ending] Wen You played the role of a friend throughout her entire youth. She liked Xu Xiao, but could only get close to him as a friend. The gentle boy with the lovely voice appeared at the very moment Wen You felt most anxious and afraid. At that moment, sunlight fell across his face, dazzling and warm. She kept the candy wrappers he gave her, wrapping her true feelings in the guise of friendship. She secretly savored those rare, sweet moments, h 19Reads—Score—14d adds
- 43 Secret Love Is an Untitled Poem 暗恋是一首无题诗 When you're young, don't meet anyone so dazzling that you'll never forget them for the rest of your life... Everyone meets certain people along the way as they grow up. Some make your heart flutter, some bring you grief, some seem destined from a past life, and some you've met long ago. I hope these little stories will resonate with you! 78Reads—Score—14d adds
- 44 I’ve Been Chasing Be for Years 追了Be好多年 [Bittersweet youth, years of secret love, love that goes unreturned] Easygoing, laissez-faire female lead with bipolar disorder × sharp-tongued but soft-hearted, emotionally detached male lead Meng Qingli × Chen Ran A thoughtless gesture from him during high school military training made her remember him. They shared a desk for three months. She thought of him for five years. Four years of secret love, one year of openly loving him. She laid bare every last shred of pride, but still couldn’t 61Reads—Score—14d adds
- 45 Her White Dress 她的白纱裙 [Cool girl + oblivious male lead + unrequited love + campus + mild angst] Ye Junqing comes from a poor family. With the help of Mu Chen, the favored son of heaven, she gradually emerges from the darkness, but in the end, they never get together. A story of unrequited love. At the beginning, he ruffles her hair. "Then it's a promise. We'll go see the sea together." At the end, he stands alone in the sea breeze, tears tracing his cheeks. "Junqing, where are you? Won't you come back to me?" 41Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 46 A Coward's Secret Crush 胆小鬼的暗恋故事 The insecure and sensitive An Lan secretly loves Chen Yu, a dazzling boy who shines like a beacon. “Because he shines, I want to do my best to get closer to him.” Throughout her three years of middle school, An Lan struggled forward through pain and hope. At fifteen, Chen Yu was so outstanding that he earned an early admission to the Beiqing class at Qingnan Affiliated High School. But fifteen-year-old An Lan defied her parents, shouting, “I don’t want to go to City No. 1 High School. I want to 65Reads—Score—14d adds
- 47 Loving You Through the River of Time 在时光长河里爱你 [ANGST! ANGST! ANGST!] You shouldn’t meet a boy who dazzles you too much when you’re young, or you’ll love him for a very, very long time. Seventeen-year-old Xia Qianye met twenty-year-old Jiang Bo’an. She thought he was her salvation. As it turned out, he had come to take her life. - For seven years, she loved him and waited for him. Then she finally got to see him again, only to die in the year he loved her most. The year they met, she was at her best, seventeen, and he was twenty, at his most 16Reads5.8Score—14d adds
- 48 Like Spring Water 如春水 At sixteen, Ji An’an transmigrated. In Ningshui Town, she met He Linchao. They came to know each other, understand each other, and fall in love. Ji An’an gave the best three years of her youth to this one time and place. Time turned back. When she awoke again, Ji An’an had returned to 2022. Those three years had been like a dream. Everything around her made it clear that she was still only sixteen. Had those three missing years really been spent in a dream? But the pocket watch against her chest —Reads—Score314d adds
- 49 Fourteen Blades 十四刀 Fourteen Blades 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 50 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
