Novels like Reborn 20 Years Ago: From Street Tough to Upstanding Young Man
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Reborn 20 Years Ago: From Street Tough to Upstanding Young Man, best match first.
- 101 Reborn in 1979: Ex-Wife, Please Behave Yourself 重生1979：前妻请自重 {Traditional period setting} + {a vivid portrayal of society before the crackdown} + {the darkness of human nature}... Pei Jichang is reborn in 1979, but into the body of a poor peasant who happens to have the same name. That year, his beloved gets into university, his father-in-law is exonerated and promoted, and everyone in the village envies him. The Pei family is finally going to live well. But then... His beloved turns on him and demands a divorce, swearing to report to the brigade that Pei 4kReads8.6Score30014d adds
- 102 A Cruel Mother, a Broken Home, and Me, Unbroken 狠心的妈，破碎的家，不屈的我 [Male-Oriented, Rural, Family, Comeback, Power Fantasy, Inspirational] Abandoned by his own mother, abused by his stepmother, and struck by his father's sudden misfortune. Su Yang, a poor boy from the mountains, has been left battered by his family's cruelty. With no one to lean on and no support to count on, he can only fight his own way to survival. He studies hard, weathers turmoil on campus, and makes his way in the business world. His heartless relatives come crawling back to latch onto his 28.8kReads8.2Score2.3k14d adds
- 103 A Motherless Child, Cared for by His Sister-in-Law 没妈的孩子，嫂子疼 [Period drama + No System or storage space] After my adoptive parents died in a car accident, my older brother Zhang Dakui and I depended on each other. Ever since Dakui brought my sister-in-law Liu Chunmei home, our lives changed. And so did my life... 92Reads6.2Score2914d adds
- 104 Those Years Working in Lingnan 岭南打工那些年 This work is a realistic urban novel based on my own experience of heading south to Guangdong for work in the late 1980s. It might be more accurate to call it a memoir of migrant work than a novel. The characters are all based on my colleagues, fellow villagers, and friends I knew well! I chose to write in the first person so that everyone in these pages would feel vivid and real, with a soul of their own. I hope readers will find the voice warm and familiar as they read or listen in their spare 18.9kReads9.3Score1.7k14d adds
- 105 Xu Fei's Wild Life 徐飞的浪荡人生 Just after the Lunar New Year, Xu Fei returns with a simple pack to the small northern city where he was born and raised, after three years away. He'd planned to find any wife and settle down to an ordinary life, but fate has other plans. He is pushed onto a path unlike any other, and begins a life far from ordinary. 807Reads6.7Score11114d adds
- 106 Half-Mad 半痴 Meeting you was the best fate of all, so why spend the rest of my years pining for you? I awoke halfway through my life as if born anew. Reborn, I returned, and my boat had already sailed past a thousand mountains. This is my first full-length novel, so it has plenty of shortcomings. I hope you’ll feel free to offer advice, and I thank you in advance. With your support and encouragement, I’ll work even harder. Let’s go! 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 107 Reborn in 1982: This Rogue Refuses to Become a Street Loafer 重生八二：浪子绝不做街溜子 Chen Weiguo is reborn on October 24, 1982, the day before his family falls apart. In his previous life, he was a no-good drifter: idle and irresponsible. He caused his wife and daughter to die tragically, and after his family was shattered, he had no choice but to leave home. He worked hard all his life, only to die alone. This time, he has the chance to start over. Life may be tough, but he's determined to shake off his reputation as a drifter and give his family a good life. Once despised by e 44.2kReads8.0Score4.1k14d adds
- 108 Back to 1982: Casting Nets to Save the Village Belle and Make the Whole Village Rich 重回82：撒网救村花带全村致富 Back at the age of twenty, he's known throughout the village as a no-good loafer. But no one knows he's returned carrying the regrets and memories of his previous life. He catches and sells fish, hunts in the mountains, and earns his first fortune through hard work. Before the flood hits, he even issues an early warning and organizes an evacuation, saving countless lives. From the village to the county, from small-time trading to grand strategies... In this life, he won't just clear his name. He 28.4kReads8.3Score1.9k14d adds
- 109 Aunt Mei 媚姨 Male Lead: Ding Yuan Female Lead: Liu Meiyi No one is reborn, and there is no System. This is an era of struggle belonging to the older generation! That year, Ding Yuan earned top marks in the imperial examinations, only to have his life stolen from him when his stepmother conspired with her family to switch his results. His father, unaware of the truth, set out on a rainy night to sell goods in the mountains and raise money for Ding Yuan to retake the exams. But the tractor overturned in a ravi 5.6kReads8.8Score48014d adds
- 110 Reborn in the 1960s: I Find Myself a Stepmother 重生60年代：我给自己找后妈 When Chen Guoping died of lung cancer, his mother was busy having a grand old time gossiping with the neighborhood women! In his previous life, she had kept him under her thumb since childhood: she wouldn’t let him take the college entrance exam, forced him to hand over his wages, and criticized every woman he wanted to marry. Ignoring the nature of his work, she insisted that he and his wife risk having a third child. In the end, he was fired for exceeding the birth quota, and his family of fiv 21.7kReads8.4Score1.3k14d adds
- 111 Daring to Act 大胆作为 She was as beautiful as a celestial maiden. Raised in a remote mountain village, she became famous far and wide for her beauty, but she was neither delicate nor dependent on men. With an excellent memory, high emotional and intellectual intelligence, and a stubborn refusal to give up, she carved out a place for herself in the world. She studied opera, ran a stall, worked odd jobs, and did business, eventually making her mark in the commercial world. Because of her unusual birth, her life was far 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 112 The Rugged Man Next Door Is Too Wild, and the Village Beauty Blushes in His Embrace 隔壁糙汉太野，村花害羞怀里娇 [Rugged Hero + Pure Romance + Marriage Before Love + Sizzling Chemistry + Sweet Married Life + Building a Fortune] [Delicate Village Beauty VS Cold, Rugged Neighbor] The night Song Qingshan returned to the village, he heard cries coming from next door before he had even entered his own home. He climbed onto a haystack and stole a peek. Poor Wen Sui was bent over a millstone, being beaten. She trembled with pain and sobbed pitifully, looking utterly heartbreaking. The sight set Song Qingshan’s bl 18kReads6.5Score63614d adds
- 113 Rural Chronicle 乡村纪实 The little details of life, all those everyday moments, come together to paint a picture of a changing countryside. Generation after generation pursues its dreams, working hard in the mountain valleys. They make it through the winter, then the hills turn green in spring. Summer crops blanket the mountains, and autumn is always a season of joy. 249Reads8.4Score1414d adds
- 114 Back to the 1970s, Spoiling Grandma and Taking Down Scumbags 重回七零，傍着奶奶肆意虐渣吃瓜 (1970s setting + space ability + superpowers + food + reborn + transmigrate into a book + face-slapping + broken engagement + true and fake heiresses + everyday family life + stockpiling + building wealth + punishing scumbags + gossip-watching + strong female lead + feel-good + old lady + comedy) Timid and spineless Lin Xiaoxi spent two whole lives meekly struggling to survive. After blowing herself up at the end of the world, she thought she was done for good. Instead, she was reborn in the sum 56Reads—Score—14d adds
- 115 Reborn: You Keep Grinding, I'll Take It Easy 重生：你们卷，我躺赢 Period setting + no System + one female lead + chips + lithography machines + smartphones + Bitcoin + new energy vehicles + game development + esports + internet + AI + data services + real estate + business warfare + face-slapping Reborn in 2008, he had only a few hundred yuan in his pocket. That year, Bitcoin was still worth less than a cent, Jensen Huang was still selling graphics cards, no one knew what AI was, the mobile gaming market was a blue ocean, the golden decade for real estate had 668Reads7.0Score4614d adds
- 116 A 37-Year-Old Man's Dating Diary 37岁老男人的相亲笔记 A 37-Year-Old Man's Dating Diary 8Reads—Score—14d adds
- 117 Your Childhood and Mine Were Actually the Same 你的童年，我的童年，其实都一样 Your childhood and my childhood were really just the same 11Reads—Score—14d adds
- 118 In 2034, I Became the World's Richest Man with Just One Game 2034年，我成为了世界首富，只用一款游戏做到的 In 2034, I Became the World's Richest Person with Just One Game 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 119 90: Reborn, I Let My Husband Go and Pursued My Career, Then Married an Army Doctor 90：重生让出老公搞事业嫁军医 [Rebirth] [Period Setting] [Child of a High-Ranking Cadre] [Both Leads Have No Past Relationships] [Military Marriage] [Everyday Family Life] [No Space-Based Golden Finger] After ten years of living apart, Bai Yulan was still divorced, and her child was taken away by her ex-husband, who had gone into business and made a fortune. At last, her son graduated with a PhD and found a good job, only to call her over to look after his child. She worked herself to death. When she opened her eyes, Bai Yul 967Reads6.5Score10914d adds
- 120 Quick Transmigration: The Art of Splitting into Clones 快穿之：分身有术 The most important thing in life is not where you stand, but the direction you face. In the real world, some people laugh, some cry, some shout, and some remain silent. Life is, in essence, an exercise in endurance. Beauty and ugliness, good and bad: everyone has their own feelings about them. Faced with this tumultuous world and the countless selfish thoughts crowding our minds, we often find ourselves wanting to do more than we can, because there simply aren’t enough hours in the day. But what 60Reads8.6Score—14d adds
- 121 Wrongly Married in 1975: The Rugged Man and the Sophisticated Beauty 错嫁1975：糙汉与御姐 [Period setting + military marriage + marriage first, love later + farming + cuisine] [Realistic and down-to-earth + slice of life + light comedy + heartwarming] Qiao Yujie, a 34-year-old elite doctor. During the Qingming tomb-sweeping festival, she bowed nine times to her ancestors, and five thousand strings of firecrackers burned to ash Then she was gone. When she opened her eyes again, it was 1975, and she was being "packed off" to marry a man in a military district. Her fiancé had gone fro 181.2kReads8.3Score25.7k14d adds
- 122 Reborn in the 1960s: I Became Grandma’s Little Sister 重生六零：我成了外婆的妹妹 [When an ordinary person is reborn in a rural village in the 1960s, forget about getting ahead or making grand plans. First, stay alive.] [1960s rural life + family and neighborhood affairs + education and growth + ensemble cast] [Not a wish-fulfillment story, not a wish-fulfillment story, not a wish-fulfillment story. Please don't read if that's not your thing. Thank you.] When Zhu Yan wakes up in the body of her grandmother's second-youngest sister, who died young, she vows to change her grand —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 123 A Billionaire Boss Goes Broke and Starts Selling Egg Pancakes 亿万老总破产后卖鸡蛋饼 Billionaire Boss Goes Broke and Starts Selling Egg Pancakes 15Reads—Score—14d adds
- 124 The Freezer 冰柜 In today's restless society, people's innate kindness can easily be lost amid rampant materialism. Sometimes, love and devotion are repaid with betrayal, or even death. Based on real cases, this book warns readers that the dark side of human nature is always present, and that desire and dissatisfaction can corrode even the deepest bonds. 42Reads—Score—14d adds
- 125 My Second Brother: Two Young Men Venture into the Northeast 我的二哥之二小闯东北 My second older brother ran away from home when he was twelve, heading northeast with a child from the neighbors’ family. The two of them endured countless hardships to make it there, only to find themselves in the wolf’s den and the tiger’s lair. And so began a story no one could ever forget. 11Reads—Score—14d adds
- 126 Back to 1975, and Everything Is Just Right 重回1975，一切刚刚好 "I transmigrated!" The good news: I got a second chance and returned to the day I would regret for the rest of my life. The bad news: I came back to avoid misfortune and lie flat for the rest of my life. You only get one life, and a beautiful life is hard-won. The only way to do myself justice is to enjoy it. But with all those money-making ideas in my head, I just can't sit still. My poor wallet, I've won the people's hearts, so I have to do right by them and help them all get rich and prosper. 14Reads—Score—14d adds
- 127 Tiezhu's Fate 铁柱的命 In the 1990s, the twenty-year-old Tiezhu, whose given name was Gao Fei, was handsome, dashing, and well educated. He studied hard, hoping to change his fate through knowledge and escape the countryside. But fate kept playing tricks on him, making him fail time and again. Disheartened, he found the courage to face life again with encouragement from Yanhua, the village beauty. His excellence always won him admirers. After meeting different women, he gradually realized who loved him most. Sadly, by 5.2kReads6.8Score22614d adds
- 128 The Brash Stepmother from the Eighties Becomes a Nobody 八零泼妇养母成了路人甲 Liu Peiyun was ready to enjoy a quiet retirement, but instead transmigrated into a book as Lu Xuebi, a village girl whose engagement had been broken off in the 1980s. Since she was already here, Lu Xuebi decided to make the best of it. She studied for college entrance exams while leading her whole family to seize the opportunities of the times. Only later did she learn she had transmigrated into a book: she was the heroine’s shrewish adoptive mother, an obstacle on the heroine’s road to wealth a 646Reads5.8Score11614d adds
- 129 The Beautiful Educated Youth and Her Stylish Mom 漂亮知青，时髦妈 [Period Setting + Educated Youth + Sweet Romance + Everyday Family Life] In 1979, Jiang Jingshu returns to the city with the last group of educated youths, going back to Tongxiang County, a place both familiar and strange. After years away from home, she expects an emotional reunion. Instead, she is met by awkward, distant parents, an indifferent older brother, and a younger sister who treats her with hostility... There is no place for her in the family anymore. Even her room has been taken over 3.9kReads8.4Score20714d adds
- 130 The Awakening of a Middle-Aged Woman 一个中年女人的觉醒 [Family of Origin vs. the Fortress of Marriage] Chen Qingchen, an only child, is madly in love. She steals her household register and marries Lin Jiaxin, a man from a poor family who has made it on his own, unaware of what awaits her: a sharp-tongued mother-in-law who makes her life difficult, her father’s sudden death, her mother being forced out of the home, and underhanded attacks at work. When she hits rock bottom, two women become her lifelines. Her tough mother stands firmly behind her, wh 7.6kReads8.5Score72214d adds
- 131 Foolish Mother 傻娘 My father was dead, my mother had gone mad. The day I came home, I saw someone destroying it... 43.1kReads9.0Score1.3k14d adds
- 132 Reborn in 1990: The System Forces Me to Become the Village Tyrant 重生90：系统逼我当村霸 [Period setting + System + village bully + reborn + farming and business + face-slapping wish fulfillment] In 2026, overworked office drone Zhou Ye dies suddenly after staying up all night. When he opens his eyes, he's back in 1990. He's become the bully whom all 3,000 villagers are chasing around to curse. His family is so poor they're starving. His older sister has to drop out of school, a supposedly good man in the village is running a scam, and an orphan girl is about to be sold. System: [St 98Reads—Score614d adds
- 133 Marrying a Playboy in the 1980s 八十年代嫁纨绔 [Period setting]+ [no golden finger]+ [both leads are chaste] This is the story of my parents. These days, it would be called a classic hero-rescues-beauty, straight-out-of-a-romance-drama kind of romance. Back then, it was the kind of pairing that left everyone speechless, and made them sigh that a beautiful flower had been stuck in a pile of cow dung! My mom: beautiful, kindhearted, and long-legged. My dad: tall, and otherwise just fierce. My mom: one of the first college students after the na 4.2kReads9.0Score37014d adds
- 134 The Swapped Brides: Whose Fault Is It? 替嫁姐妹，谁的错！ This book has been adapted into two comic dramas: "The Swapped Brides, Whose Fault Is It?!" and the brand-new version, "Sisters Breaking Free." In a poor, remote village in the 1980s, the Tang family favors sons over daughters. Their three girls are nothing but bargaining chips for bride prices. One absurd bride swap and three exorbitant bride prices send the sisters into three difficult marriages. Struggling through the mud, bound by entanglements for half a lifetime. The long-suffering Tang s 41.5kReads8.4Score1.7k14d adds
- 135 Somebody Somewhere in the Crowd 行走在人海中的某某某 There is only one true heroism in the world: to see life as it is and still love it. Whether it’s the wind blowing through a valley, clouds drifting over the sea, poplar trees by the roadside, foxtail grass on a hillside, or people, Zhao Xiaoqiu thinks they’re all much the same, aren’t they? 2.1kReads9.2Score13314d adds
- 136 Building Terraced Fields on the Loess Plateau 黄土高原开梯田 [No System] [Period Novel] [Upright Values] He carved out a place for himself with his own hands. He made the yellow earth bloom with his sweat. This is a farming novel about changing the whole world through hard work! 4.5kReads8.2Score26214d adds
- 137 Living Life to the Fullest in the 1960s 六零年代恣意活着 [Transmigration + Two Strong Leads + Period Setting + Daily Life] A career woman from the new century transmigrates as Ruan Mianmian and escapes her family of origin. When she reaches the right age, she marries Chen Yuan'an, a handsome, well-built regiment commander. They bicker in the early days, but later settle into a sweet life together: her husband dotes on her, and their son is clever and adorable. Both leads know how to enjoy life. In an era of scarcity, they use money to make sure they n 1.9kReads6.9Score10014d adds
- 138 Reborn: From the Start, I Can Hear the Young Intellectual’s Inner Thoughts 重生，开局就偷听女知青心声 [The rating just came out and will keep rising!] [Period rebirth, farming, pure romance, slow-paced and not violent] If you like this kind of story, come take a look! If you don't, head on over to Tomato Book City, where plenty of great books are waiting for you! Su Yun is reborn in 1974 as an educated youth sent to the countryside. From the start, the educated youths' dormitory collapses, so he has no choice but to board with a local family. By chance, he ends up under the same roof as Lin Qing 1.6kReads6.2Score—14d adds
- 139 Heading South at the Turn of the Millennium: Rolling Coins 千禧南下：翻滚的钢镚 During the rainy season of the millennium, torrential rain poured down on Ruili. Bai Hao and his group sped along National Highway 556 in a four-wheel-drive Toyota Prado, relying on their off-roader’s powerful performance to plow through the terrible road conditions. As they drove past the embankment in Leiyun Village, they came across Burmese border residents moving supplies across the border. They learned that it was legitimate border trade. The group stopped to watch, unaware that danger was 39Reads—Score—14d adds
- 140 Her Walled-In World 她的围城 This book is based on a true story. It's not a wish-fulfillment novel, and it is slow-paced. In the 1990s, Jing An gets married. Unsure yet hopeful about marriage, she endures her in-laws' schemes and her sister-in-law's attempts to drive a wedge between her and her husband. At last, she and Jiuguang make it through their difficult adjustment period, and she thinks a brighter future is finally within reach. But that light is stolen by another woman. And so begins a battle of schemes and rivalr 29.1kReads9.2Score78514d adds
- 141 Tales of Nanyang’s Old Town 南阳老城往事 Memories of a bizarre and absurd era, somewhere in the 1980s and 1990s. A girl vanishes into thin air; two murders over a pair of corneas, with a condemned woman repaying her debt at the execution ground; a thousand-year-old pottery shard traps a rich heir for life; a murder in a narrow alley shrouded in mystery; a disfigured old man fishes for ghosts by the river; a family’s secret history spanning half a century... These stories offer more than an eerie atmosphere. They focus on the suffering, 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 142 The Rise and Fall of Boss Fan 范老板的沉浮人生 This story follows 1980s entrepreneur Fan Chenhui through the ups and downs of the business world in Shenzhen. It explores real-world issues including financial crises, family conflicts, workplace rivalries, and tangled relationships, portraying human nature and the changes of the times in vivid detail. 114Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 143 Day After Day 日子一天又一天 In the 1980s, two families lived across the street from each other: the Sun family, led by Sun Lanying, and the Chen family, led by Chen Guangtian. On a snowy morning, a teacher from Zicheng No. 1 High School arrived at the Sun family’s home, disturbing their usual peace. The eldest daughter, Ding Hong, ran away with Gao Yong, a married man, and her younger sisters were drawn into the fallout… Across the street, Chen Guangtian suddenly died of a heart attack. His wife, Liu Jinfeng, clashed with 8.7kReads9.3Score89314d adds
- 144 A Lifetime of Humiliation, All for the Day of Reckoning 半生忍辱只等清算时刻 As a child, he lost his mother, who called him a good-for-nothing, and his father, who was useless alive. He barely survived the beatings and abuse from his stepfather and the others. Later, he discovered that his father hadn't actually died by suicide. He endured countless humiliations, and over 37 years, through patience and cunning, rose from an insignificant nobody to a wealthy power broker. He pulled off a breathtaking comeback! He spent half his life enduring humiliation, not just to survi 32Reads—Score—14d adds
- 145 Granny Lin Is Reborn, Takes Control of Her Whole Family, and Goes on a Rampage 林老太重生，拿捏全家杀疯了 [The rating is low because the book just came out, but it’ll rise later. Dear readers, please don’t worry.] [Reborn] [The 1980s] [Ensemble cast] [Feel-good revenge] [Everyday life] [Ordinary people] [Family squabbles] The hardworking Lin Fengying raised seven children and helped bring up her grandchildren. She devoted her whole life to her family, but in her twilight years, she and her elderly husband had no one to look after them. While her husband’s body was barely cold, her cold-hearted ch 4.1kReads8.0Score22014d adds
- 146 Transported to 1980: I Have an Iron Rice Bowl from the Start 穿到1980，开局就有铁饭碗 [A career-focused heroine with a government job + 90% career storyline + a male lead who is weaker than the female lead] Lin Ruxin, from 2026, transmigrates into the body of Lin Ruxin in 1981. The original owner was not only ungrateful, but also hopelessly lovesick. As one of the first college graduates, she should have focused on her career, but instead devoted all her attention to men. Lin Ruxin can't stand it. Watch her kick her scumbag boyfriend to the curb and leave her coworkers stunned. W 36.5kReads8.7Score3.7k14d adds
- 147 Transmigrate into a Book Set in the 1970s: Even a Slacker Has to Hustle 穿书七零，咸鱼也得卷起来 Yun Shu transmigrated into a book, becoming a supporting character in a period novel. She didn't need to be sent to the countryside because she was already there. She didn't need to deal with horrible people because she was one of them. She didn't want to go back to school, but had to hide there to stay alive. She didn't want marriage to change her fate, yet rumors about her never stopped. She didn't want to attract attention, but kept getting thrust into the spotlight... She thought she had alw 2.6kReads8.9Score18414d adds
- 148 Rust and Blossoms 铁锈与繁花 1990s + inspirational realism + female awakening + a determined comeback + making a life far from home + workplace transformation + family ties + sincere romance + friendly neighbors At seventeen, she never imagined that the peachwood talisman her mother pressed into her palm would accompany her through so many storms: from the crowded sleeper cars of a green train to the fluorescent-lit workshop of an electronics factory; from an old night-school building overgrown with ivy to the desk in her o 575Reads—Score—14d adds
- 149 Reborn in 2000: The Road to Becoming a Real Estate Mogul Worth Trillions 重生2000，万亿地产大亨之路 Yi Wangxi spent his whole life in real estate, working in many roles and eventually becoming the city general manager of a property group. But his personality cost him many opportunities to advance. In the end, he led an unremarkable life and died full of regret. On the brink of death, overwhelmed by reluctance and remorse, he drew his last breath. Then, as a streak of lightning flashed across the sky, a thunderclap jolted him awake. December 2000, Gangxia Village, Pengcheng. Yi Wangxi opens his 155Reads5.9Score1414d adds
- 150 The Fierce Middle-Aged Man 大叔凶猛 “I've realized I'm liking you more and more.” Looking at the radiant beauty beside him, Lin Feng felt his heart clench. He wasn't single, and faced with such unexpected candor, he felt not the slightest bit of joy. If anything, his scalp prickled. As soon as Lin Feng took over the Jiangdong branch of Wansheng Plaza, all kinds of temptations came pouring in. What followed was a dangerous struggle of wits, without a single flash of blades. The Game of Thrones, the realities of the workplace, and t 1.6kReads6.1Score10414d adds
