Novels like Old Liu and His Daughter
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Old Liu and His Daughter, best match first.
- 1 The Failing Farmer 不及格农民 The Failing Farmer 13Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 Heartache 心灵之痛 Heartache 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 3 The City of Woven Sand 织沙之城 [The first online novel set in Nansha District, Guangzhou, the heart of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. A 2023 key project supported by the China Writers Association] A heroine’s coming-of-age story + the gentle flow of everyday life + women’s entrepreneurship What is home? What does one’s hometown mean? As the Pearl River rushes toward the sea, Mai Jiaying, a post-90s small-town exam ace, grows tired of her salt-scented, out-of-the-way hometown. All she wants is to fly to the ca 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 4 An Unlawful Marriage 不法婚姻 This is a slice-of-life story that doesn’t follow conventional web-novel genre formulas. One unmarried woman is devoted to a married man, while another woman, his wife, swears to defend her rights and dignity. In the end, the devoted woman cannot let go of her obsession, while the woman who fought for her dignity lets go of hers and frees herself. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 5 Non-Artificial Intelligence 非人工智能 Not Artificial Intelligence 9Reads—Score—14d adds
- 6 The Pure Wife Awakens 纯妻觉醒 [Romance]+ [Family and everyday life]+ [Self-awakening and ambition]+ [Urban life] Pure-hearted Liu Zi married Yu Feipeng, a classmate she'd had a crush on for years. She thought their marriage was solid, but her masseuse, Xiao Ling, had her eye on her husband. Yu Feipeng fell deep into Xiao Ling's gentle trap and went out of his way to trample on and humiliate Liu Zi… When Liu Zi finally fought back, she discovered that the pure, innocent flower her husband saw in Xiao Ling was actually filthy 40Reads—Score—14d adds
- 7 Everyday Life as a Woman Living Alone 独居女性日常 A first-person daily-life story about a group of women who live alone. My name is Li Yu. I was different from other children from the start. I was terribly unlucky: I was abandoned as a baby, and I only have one eye! But I was incredibly lucky to have adoptive parents who love me more than anything. They love me, and they still urge me to get married. They love me, and once they're done urging me, they accept that I live alone. Living alone doesn't mean being lonely. It's a romantic date wit 458Reads8.1Score10914d adds
- 8 Fireflies in Daylight 荧火虫的白昼 A great period drama. Ignore the awful title: this realistic work comes from a seasoned writer, about a woman from out of town living in Shanghai, in the vein of Blossoms Shanghai. Neighborhood gossip and jokes that hit you right in the heart. No mystery, no wish-fulfillment, no fantasy, nothing added. Just the daily grind: food, rent, petty squabbles, and family affairs. 8Reads—Score114d adds
- 9 The Scumbag Takedown 擒渣记 Based on a true story: a woman escapes a marriage marred by infidelity, defeats the shameless homewrecker who knowingly became the other woman, and goes on to live life with her head held high. No golden finger, no miraculous help from above. She wins through her own efforts! 326Reads6.8Score—14d adds
- 10 From Street Stall to Success 打工仔从地摊开始 In his parents' eyes, Chen Guang is a good kid, reasonably handsome, and his biggest flaw is that he's poor. Life is pretty rough for a poor kid. He has to shoulder the crushing weight of life while smiling and pushing forward. Heaven never cut him any slack, so he started out selling goods at a street stall and finally turned his fortunes around. 27Reads—Score—14d adds
- 11 My Deskmate Is the One I Adore 同桌是白月光 Mutual Secret Crushes + Reunion After Years Apart + Both Leads Are Chaste A year after graduation, novelist Liang Jiawan decided to take the civil service exam so she wouldn’t lose touch with society and could have a stable job. To improve her chances, she signed up for a civil service prep course. On her first day, she was stunned: her deskmate was Gu Mingchang, who had sat beside her in high school. The two had been on the verge of something back then. If she hadn’t turned down his confession, 12Reads—Score—14d adds
- 12 The Working World: A Close-Up Look at 10 True Workplace Stories 职人江湖：直击10段真实职场故事 A look at the hidden side of all kinds of modern professions: a restaurant chef’s secrets, a bar hostess’s romance, a down-and-out painter’s means of survival, online scammers’ traps and lies, a tour guide’s life in chains, counterfeit money production, beauty and ugliness beneath the surgeon’s scalpel... Beneath those glossy surfaces may lie a stubborn struggle, covered in mud! Told in the first person, this takes you face-to-face with lives that are both harshly real and fiercely alive. 96Reads9.3Score—14d adds
- 13 The Story of Fei Xin’s Daughter 飞新的女传 [Marriage + Domestic Abuse + Divorce + Blind Date + Online Romance + Finding True Love + Sweet Romance + Silent Treatment] At twenty, Fei Xin was set up by her parents, went on a blind date, got married, suffered domestic abuse, and divorced. At twenty-three, she met an online boyfriend five years younger than her. They got married and had a child! Married Life + Sweet Romance + Silent Treatment —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 The Candied Hawthorn Skewer Pierces Through 冰糖葫芦竹签儿穿 My new book is out! Everyone is welcome to read it on Tomato Novel. The story is based on real experiences. I'm writing it carefully, and the process has been smooth, without writer's block or made-up details. These experiences are like candied hawthorn skewers: the bamboo sticks pierced my body, yet became the backbone of my life. I hope this honest, heartfelt story brings you joy. Reading brings insight, and I hope you find your own independent perspective along the way. 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 The Victor Becomes King, the Loser a Bandit: The Story of Today 成王败寇话今朝 This book tells the story of three generations from the Chen and Liu families of Chenjiashan, Liuyang County, in northern Sichuan, from 1958 to 2007, tracing how their fortunes rose and fell amid the country’s development and changing times. Through the eyes of two ordinary families, it records the migration of people brought about by rural urbanization, beginning with the First Five-Year Plan. It recounts the course of reform, from the rural household responsibility system and the contracting o 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 16 The Bittersweet Trials of Marrying Far from Home 远嫁的那些酸甜苦辣 Marrying far from home is a gamble. You may never feel at home with your in-laws, yet be unable to return to your own family. Amid the chaos of childbirth, raising a child, and life with a second baby, marriage becomes a mirror that reflects the most honest truths about human nature. Marital happiness has nothing to do with whether you marry far from home. It depends on whether the person you marry truly loves you and understands you. The joys and sorrows of marrying far away are part of the exp 2.2kReads8.2Score11814d adds
- 17 There's a Girl in the Village Named Xiaofang 村里有个姑娘，叫小芳 This is not a love story. It's the life of an ordinary woman from the countryside. Xiaofang's story may well be the story of someone close to us. She once longed for a life in a prosperous big city. Later... 65Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 A Beauty Like a Flower, Years Flowing Like Water 如花美眷似水流年 This is the story of Fang Fei’s growth as love and fate intertwine. From the innocence of her first love to complicated emotional entanglements, Fang Fei experiences betrayal, loss, and being reborn. Her relationships with three men reveal the tolerance and devotion love can inspire. In the end, Fang Fei finds herself through love and responsibility, showing that love means far more than romance. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 19 Running Toward the Exit 寻着出口奔跑 In life, everyone has to grow sharp horns and iron hooves, and put on armor. Even if you’re weak, you have to try to become stronger. There are too many things in this world that can hurt you. Even if you never learn to hurt others, you must learn to protect yourself, so you can protect the people you care about. No matter how many difficulties you face, don’t back down. Summon every last bit of fighting spirit and make sure those who have always wanted to see you fail never get the satisfaction 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 20 Youth's Mistake: To Our Gloomy Yet Radiant Selves 青春错：致阴郁又明媚的我们 Have you ever met a woman who can make all her own decisions and handle everything by herself? You might think she was born a tomboy, the kind of person nothing could stump. But in truth, most of them have no one at their side, so they have no choice but to force themselves to put on a hard shell of “strength.” If you really think of them as superheroes and just watch for fun, you've got it wrong. Who doesn't feel pain? Realistic coming-of-age + left-behind children + small-town underachiever 11Reads—Score114d adds
- 21 A Single Mother’s Road to Redemption 一个单亲妈妈的救赎之路 I was a woman left single, and by the time I reached middle age, becoming a single mother was bound to turn my life upside down. At the halfway point of life, I’ve been through everything you can imagine, and even things you can’t. So what? The middle of life is a battlefield, and I am a shield, guarding a corner of tenderness amid the chaos. Halfway through life, I’ll be my own rock, pressing forward through disorder, gentle yet strong. Through half a lifetime of storms, I give it everything. A 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 22 A Season of Green, with Drizzling Rain 见青时节疏雨绵绵 The first time Guo Shuyu, the daughter of a landlord, saw Xu Jianqing, the beggar, he was beating his wife, a hulking man like a black bear. Guo Shuyu thought any man would be better than that black bear. Better to be anyone’s wife than Xu Jianqing’s. How pitiful to be scolded and beaten every day. But life is full of surprises, and the Matchmaker in the Moon muddles the red threads. Some inexplicable stroke of bad luck sent everything awry. Like a thunderclap from a clear sky, Guo Shuyu married 49Reads—Score—14d adds
- 23 Slightly Downcast: Deleting My Love-Brain 轻颓：删除恋爱脑 [Period Novel] [Realistic Fiction] [Women’s Growth] [Family Life] [Literary] Northeast China at the end of the last century. Su Qing (Qing), a 26-year-old cashier at a state-owned enterprise, is burned badly by her obsession with romance: blind dates bring one oddball after another, and her husband cheats on her. Her in-laws find fault with everything she does, the state-owned enterprise undergoes restructuring and offers buyouts of years of service, and she faces constant trouble at work. In th 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 24 Our Long River of Years 我们的岁月长河 Our Long River of Years is divided into three parts. Following the ordinary lives of three generations of Zhao Jiafu’s family, railway workers, it spans from the 1950s to the 2020s. It recounts the joys and sorrows, happiness and heartbreak, and everyday troubles experienced by the three generations of the Zhao family and the ordinary people around them over the long river of time. It depicts the turbulent lives of ordinary people as the times change and society develops. Time flows like a river 180Reads—Score—14d adds
- 25 A Flower in the Dust, Blooming Toward the Sun 尘埃里的花，向阳而生 This story follows Shi Xiaoying, beginning at eighteen when she elopes for love. It traces her marriage through sweetness, betrayal, and endurance, culminating in her awakening. Woven through the story are her children’s perspectives and the kindness of those who watch from the sidelines. It portrays a woman struggling between betrayal and perseverance before finally breaking free and embracing a new life. Exploring responsibility and self-worth in love and marriage, it reveals the resilience th 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 26 The Bill for Time 时间的帐单 Set in a modern city, this story focuses on the clashes and eventual reconciliation between two generations of the Jiang family over their views on love and marriage, painting a realistic picture of contemporary society: elders rush their children into romance and marriage, while the younger generation prefers to take things slowly. The two generations struggle with love, marriage, and life choices, then look back on their lives, ultimately finding acceptance and insight in middle age. Everyone —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 27 Drifting in Shenzhen 深漂 The brash young Lin Qiang comes to Shenzhen for the first time and happens upon Huaqiangbei. The gears of fate begin to turn for Zhang Ruoying, a female business owner… At the end of 2003, college student Lin Qiang and his girlfriend were facing their graduation internships. She went to Dongguan, while Lin Qiang headed to Shenzhen to build a career, and they gradually drifted apart. After their breakup, Lin Qiang gained a whole new understanding of relationships between men and women. In Shenz 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 28 Shenzhen: The Wave Breaker 深圳，破浪者 This story pays tribute to the grand vision of “Made in China 2025,” with its plans for breakthroughs in new energy, smart cockpits, chips, and other fields. It also salutes all the brave souls on the road to starting their own businesses! 🫡🫡🫡 The sequel to "Shenzhen Drifter", "Riding the Waves": In 2010 Shenzhen, Gao'e Capital invests in Yingke Navigation Group, which has only just emerged from the financial crisis. Founder Lin Qiang feels that capital has stripped him of his power, so he reso 57Reads—Score—14d adds
- 29 The End of Ordinary 平凡的尽头 The story began in 2019. It was a turbulent time, and I stopped writing after a hasty 50,000 words. Then, in May 2020, I finished it. At 250,000 words, it is too short to cover all the joys and sorrows of this bustling world through the changing years. It tells only of several years spent wandering through life. The story is based entirely on real events. Freedom, marriage, career, money, family, friendship. As someone born in the 1990s, I have always questioned the world. I hoped to find answer 36Reads—Score—14d adds
- 30 A Stepfather Is Like a Dog 继父如狗 A love story about a man who gives everything for love. Newly married, he takes a second-hand wife with a son, and from then on, muddles his way into becoming a man treated like a dog. Based on a true story, this book perfectly captures the awkward position of a stepfather, as well as human selfishness and the sorrow of marriage. 49Reads—Score—14d adds
- 31 The Neighbors on Either Side of Xingyao 星遥的左右隔壁 Shen Song Xingyao is a girl whose name carries the story of her parents' unusual relationship. She grew up in a unique family arrangement, with her parents living in apartments next door to each other. Her father, Shen Yizhou, is a carefree, laid-back editor, while her mother, Song Qingru, is a meticulous, rational accountant. They never had a marriage in the traditional sense, yet through an unspoken understanding few outsiders could comprehend, they raised their daughter together. From her inn 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 32 The One Who Returned Home 返乡的人 An ordinary young man with no education, connections, or family background, going from the countryside to the city and then back again. We are the ones born in the seventies and eighties, running as fast as we can... The accident seemed to have been foretold, but so much still took us by surprise. For example: losing our jobs... 19Reads—Score—14d adds
- 33 Dustbound Love, Nan Nan 尘缘楠楠 The marriage between Chen Yuan and Nannan, the everyday business of rice, oil, salt, soy sauce, vinegar, and tea, and all the twists and turns of life, its sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, and salty moments, a jumble of emotions... [Urban Life] [Married Life] [Ordinary Lives] 9Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 34 AI Meets Longevity AI撞上长寿 What will the world be like when robots are everywhere and can think just like humans, while people everywhere begin to live longer? Will robots rule the world, or will humans control the robots? —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 35 Lin Xiaomin’s Old Days in the Village 村姑林小敏的旧时光 A girl's coming-of-age story in a rural family bound by feudal traditions. Her father calls her a slut, and her best friend betrays her. Family, friendship, love... If she isn't defeated, she will be reborn. 145Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 After the Divorce, My First Love and Ex-Boyfriend Won't Leave Me Alone 离婚后，初恋前男友上蹿又下跳 Xu Yuanchun's first marriage lasted only a year and a half. Because she was infertile. It's no big deal. Infertility isn't life-threatening, and even after her divorce, she can still live freely. But as soon as the divorce was final, Feng Jianqiu, her ex-boyfriend and first love, came shamelessly crawling back, making a scene at every turn. She really had no idea what game he was trying to play. Whatever. She might as well slap him first. · Two ordinary people in their thirties stumble through a 254Reads—Score—14d adds
- 37 Zhao Jiji’s Love Story After Divorce 赵吉吉离婚后的爱情故事 To be loved is an extension of self-love! I thought I'd shut myself off from love for good, but I never expected to meet him in my forties... After her son takes the college entrance exam, Zhao Jiji divorces her ex-husband. She delivers food, works as a real estate agent and caregiver, and writes novels, doing her best to make a life for herself. While working as a caregiver, she meets a man she once went on a blind date with, and the two begin a beautiful relationship. 71Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 Two Abnormal Humans and a Motorcycle 两个非正常人类与摩托车 Love that defies social norms has often been seen as a symbol of courage and freedom, admired and celebrated. This is the one kind of love people will always despise. This is not a novel, just a story from real life. There are no thrills, no climaxes, no pacing, only despair and oppression. It might be of some small help to people who truly love motorcycles, but be prepared to be mocked. This story has an unconventional outlook on life, values, and the world, and portrays a world of abnormal peo 2.2kReads—Score38114d adds
- 39 The Silent Battlefield Between Mother-in-Law and Daughter-in-Law 婆媳没有硝烟的战场 The conflict between Lin Xiao and her mother-in-law, Zhang Cuilan, keeps escalating. Then Lin Xiao undergoes a dramatic transformation, becoming independent and self-reliant. She lives life on her own terms and rewrites her future, until the road ahead finally opens up... 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 40 Simple-Minded Ni 憨妮 Hanni is a woman who seems a little dim-witted to outsiders. She marries three men: the first is an ordinary man, the second a tycoon, and the third a young hoodlum. This is the story of her and the people around her, and how Hanni changes her fate... 77Reads7.0Score—14d adds
- 41 The Good Girl Who Became a Clear-Eyed Force to Be Reckoned With 乖乖女熬成了清醒的悍妇 [Women's Growth + Married Life + Everyday Life + Comeback] A slow, warming story, not a wish-fulfillment novel. Drawn from the realities of everyday life. At thirty, Lian Fangfang still got to marry for love. She could hardly believe her luck. But this well-behaved girl, who had grown up surrounded by praise and applause, never expected that when faced with her domineering mother-in-law, her husband Wang Wenbo would choose to stay silent. What does marriage really bring women? Is it a descent in 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 42 Who Hasn’t Dated a Jerk or Two? Growing Up 谁不经历几个渣男：长大成人 Who doesn’t have to go through a few jerks on the way to growing up? This book explores women’s emotional growth. Drawing mostly on the author’s own experiences and reflections on love, and shaped with literary embellishment, it presents five stages of women’s emotional growth in the hope of offering a little guidance to women who feel lost. 124Reads—Score—14d adds
- 43 My Mother-in-Law Has Gone Mad 婆婆疯了 My Mother-in-Law Has Gone Mad 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 44 Single Piggy 单身猪猪 A deeply nuanced style, and an unconventional portrait of marriage and love. If corrupt officials are not punished, it is an injustice to ordinary people. A work of realism, peeling back the layers to examine the truth and reflect with cool, unflinching insight. 24Reads—Score—14d adds
- 45 At Fifty, She's No Weed, She's a Treasure 50的她不是草其实她是块宝 [Silver-haired wish fulfillment + No rebirth + No System + No pocket dimension + A story focused on positive values] #A 50-year-old farmwife seeks a new beginning# After Lin Meiru discovers her husband has been cheating, she insists on getting a divorce. “You can’t even earn money. How will you survive without me?” Lin Meiru defies the odds and learns to sell things from a street stall after her divorce. The wheels of fate begin to turn... 52Reads7.5Score—14d adds
- 46 A Post-90s Mountain Girl's Starry Sky 90后，山里姑娘的星空 [Diary] [First person] [No contrived twists] [Not a wish-fulfillment novel] [No overpowered protagonist] [Traditional] [Realistic] [Period] [Countryside] [Hardship] [Marriage] [Family bonds] The 1990s were full of life and energy, but they were also a Period when weeds grew unchecked. Many people born in the 1970s and 1980s went to the cities in pursuit of their dreams. Some worked hard for everything they had, while others lost themselves in the glittering world around them. This is a story a 193Reads8.3Score—14d adds
- 47 The Three Madwomen in the Village 村里的三个疯女人 [Completed] Three women in Fang Family Village have been branded “crazy.” Three women, three different kinds of “madness,” and three very different lives and fates. The futures of their children quietly take shape amid their mothers’ lives, whether muddled, broken, or clear-eyed, and turn out entirely different. 76Reads7.0Score—14d adds
- 48 I Decide What Happens at My Own Funeral 我的葬礼我说了算 I died. As I watched other people hold my funeral, I thought it was terribly unsatisfactory. I decided to hold my funeral my way. It should be my funeral, so I should get to call the shots. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 49 The Door to Vault Three 三号库的门 The Door to Storage Room Three 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 50 Great-Aunt Xile's Happy Life 姑奶奶喜乐的幸福生活 Home is a sheltered harbor, and family is always there to support you. This is a story about three generations of the Song family living happily in an old building on Tianjin's Five Avenues. It features Tianjin's delicious food, as well as the family's joys and sorrows over the past thirty years. 730Reads9.1Score10414d adds
