Novels like A Way Forward Through Mountains and Rivers
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as A Way Forward Through Mountains and Rivers, best match first.
- 151 The Beautiful First Half of Her Life 美艳的前半生 The story takes place in a rural village in Hebei in 1999. Meiyan has been sweet, beautiful, and clever since childhood, and everyone in the village agrees she's the local beauty. After failing her university entrance exams on her second attempt, she has no choice but to face the path fate has laid out for her. Swept up by Li Gangqiang's relentless pursuit, she gives him everything. But on the very day he steps through the gates of college, he gets together with another woman. Betrayed, Meiyan s 8.2kReads7.1Score16714d adds
- 152 Li Dongyuan, the Golden Essence Divine Doctor 金元神医李东垣 Synopsis: In the chaotic years of the Jin and Yuan dynasties, Li Gao abandoned commerce to study medicine under Zhang Yuansu. He developed the Spleen and Stomach theory and founded the School of Nourishing Earth. Through his writings and the many students he trained, his ideas had a lasting influence and remain relevant to modern disease treatment. "The Renowned Jin-Yuan Physician Li Dongyuan" takes you on a journey through his remarkable medical career. 9Reads—Score—14d adds
- 153 The Little Bridge Cave Family Compound 小桥洞家属院 [Period Setting] [Ensemble Cast] [Everyday Life] The results came out a few months after it was completed. This novel is fantastic! Zhang Yan and Deng Yang were born in the Xiaoqiaodong factory compound and grew up beneath the chimneys of the State Chemical Plant. There was no glamour or respectability here, only the bustle of daily life, sweat, arguments, and warmth. In 1997, as firecrackers exploded to celebrate Hong Kong's return, they still thought their parents would wear their work uniform 645Reads8.1Score10214d adds
- 154 The Sun and Moon in the Steamer 蒸屉里的日月 Set against the changes sweeping the northern countryside in the 1990s, this story follows an ordinary rural woman as she spends half her life juggling household chores, conflicts with her sisters-in-law, small business ventures, and her children’s education. With only an elementary-school education, she supports her family with her skill at making steamed buns, putting her son through college and helping him build a life of his own. She lives through the transition from earthen houses to brick 307Reads—Score—14d adds
- 155 The Wang Family in the 1990s 老王家的九十年代 (Period setting + courtyard homes + ordinary folks + small businesses) After reading Reborn in the 1960s: Back at the Factory as a Cook, you can treat this book as a sequel, but it also works fine on its own. Against the backdrop of state-owned enterprises going into decline in the 1990s, the everyday lives of a young couple serve as the thread connecting a colorful cast of ordinary people and their bustling neighborhood. There are local police officers, state-enterprise employees, people with r 3.4kReads8.9Score26114d adds
- 156 The Head of the Household in the 1950s 五零年代当家主妇 Bai Baozhu awoke from a dream in a daze. In it, her children had died or been scattered, none of them had found a happy ending, and the whole family had met a tragic fate. It all began when the family was branded with that fatal class background. Waking with a start, Bai Baozhu trampled her enemies, crushed her foes, and step by step escaped their schemes, making sure her family would never suffer the same tragedy as in her dream. But who could have guessed that the deadbeat husband who never ap 4.8kReads8.7Score30114d adds
- 157 Sweet Military Marriage: Starting Over in the Seventies 甜蜜军婚，我在七零年代重开啦 Jiang Zitong, a highly accomplished young woman who has just graduated in the modern era, unexpectedly finds herself reborn in the body of Lin Fang in the 1970s. In an age built on stacks of ration coupons, her parents force her to marry a soldier to pay off their debt. Faced with a reality where she needs a permit just to go out and coupons just to eat, she has no power to resist. She thinks she is in for a miserable life, but instead she unexpectedly finds a treasure of a family and husband, a 860Reads8.9Score10114d adds
- 158 I Came to the 1960s for a Life, Not Mere Survival 穿六零，我要的是生活，不是活着 Jiang Shushu was an ordinary girl with a short life. Because of a drop of the King of Hell’s son’s virgin urine, she died six hours early. To make it up to her, the King of Hell gives her three choices. 1: Be reborn along her original path, into the animal realm. (The King of Hell can guarantee she’ll have someone to feed and care for her all her life.) 2: Have her wish granted and become a billionaire. (She’ll be an 80-year-old rich woman with only six days left to live.) 3: Become an 18-year-o 2.1kReads8.8Score13714d adds
- 159 Reborn: Thriving in the 1970s 重生后，我在70年代混得风生水 In her previous life, Shen Yan was deceived by a scumbag. Blinded by love, she defied her family and insisted on marrying him. After the wedding, she cut ties with her relatives and worked tirelessly, serving her husband's family like a beast of burden. Her mother-in-law tormented her, her sister-in-law bullied her, and her husband turned a blind eye. In the end, she died a miserable death... Reborn, she decides to stay away from scumbags and cherish her life. She will build a fortune alongside 496Reads7.1Score—14d adds
- 160 The Charming Village Girl Doesn't Give Her Heart Away 俏村花她不走心 People say that a widow’s doorstep invites trouble, but Chunfang isn’t afraid. She goes out of her way to surround herself with men. After years of struggling in the dirt, she’s seen through it all: you can’t rely on a man’s heart, but you can rely on his money and connections. So she smiles as she plays several men against one another. One helps her come up with the cash, another finds her a market for her goods. The villagers call her shameless. Chunfang sneers. “How much is a reputation worth 21.5kReads8.0Score1.3k14d adds
- 161 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
- 162 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
- 163 The Rules of the Children's Home 儿女家的规矩 To help their children raise the grandchildren, a couple in their sixties were forced to live apart. From the day Zhao Youlin moved to the city to help care for his son's child, he became a “guest” in his son's home. A man from a small town, he couldn't fit into life in the big city. He had to speak softly, keep the TV muted, and even watch his son's expression before giving his grandson a piece of meat... Though Zhao Youlin was careful about everything, he still couldn't avoid falling into conf 11kReads8.6Score53414d adds
- 164 What's Got You So Proud? 你牛什么牛 Also known as The Yueyue’s Terrible Mother-in-Law. Through the story of an unusually strong-willed woman’s life, this novel offers a profound look at the dialectical relationship between personality and fate. From many angles, it examines the rise of extreme feminism in contemporary society. It also gives serious thought to marriage and romance, raising children, and human relationships in the modern world. It offers important guidance for a new generation in the twenty-first century on developi 12Reads—Score—14d adds
- 165 Reborn, Yet Still Unable to Resist 重生，依然无法抗拒 [A solemn statement from the author] This is a fictional work set in a bygone era. All characters and events are artistic inventions. Any portrayals of historical figures or events are imaginative, entertainment-oriented speculation based on publicly available information, and do not constitute factual statements. They have no connection to any real people or events. Please do not assume otherwise. 1.7kReads—Score—14d adds
- 166 Reborn in 1984: I Cut Ties, Split the Family, and Awakened a Daily Intelligence System 重生84：断亲分家觉醒每日情报 [Also known as: Reborn in 1984: I Have a Money-Picking System] In his previous life, Yang Zaijun's wife and daughter disappeared. His adoptive parents, younger brother, younger sisters, and the whole lot of them were leeches, treating him like an ATM and draining him dry. He raised the younger ones and supported the older ones, too. Reborn, he cuts ties with them, splits up the family, and sends them on their way. Yang Zaijun awakens a Daily Intel System and starts building his fortune. Daily In 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 167 I Escaped the Mountains 我逃出了大山 I Escaped the Mountains 9Reads—Score—14d adds
- 168 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
- 169 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
- 170 Love Between Two Generations: An Inescapable Bond 两代情之逃不出的羁绊 A bloody maelstrom was set in motion by a marriage swap in the late 1980s. One bride died, and the other fled. The humiliation Hua'er endured on her wedding night is enough to make anyone blush with shame, while the hardships Zijun faced as she fled her marriage are deeply moving. Though the story is named for two generations, it is really about three generations and the sweeping changes in their views on love, marriage, and life. It also shows China's tremendous economic boom and the profound s 5.4kReads9.0Score73114d adds
- 171 A Lone Boat by the River 河边的孤舟 Chen Shan, a young woman born into a middle-class family during the Republic of China era, fell into poverty after her father died. She weathered the tumult of the War of Resistance, the civil war, and the founding of New China. 13Reads—Score—14d adds
- 172 The River’s Song Never Sleeps 江声不眠 Set during the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, this epic tells the story of progressive journalist Lin Yu and refined young lady Su Yao. They meet, come to understand and love each other amid the turmoil, and join forces in pursuit of their ideals and their cause. 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 173 The 1950s: Starting Out as an Apprentice 五零：从学徒工开始 [Period setting + native protagonist + daily life + career + no golden finger] [An ordinary story about ordinary people] Her parents wanted Baolan to take her eldest brother's place in an arranged marriage. Baolan refused. Baolan passed the worker recruitment exam. Starting as an apprentice, Baolan attended night school, got promoted, bought a watch, bought a bicycle... Little by little, she built herself a good life. 34.1kReads9.0Score3.7k14d adds
- 174 The Courtyard Compound: The Warmth of Everyday Life 大杂院：人间烟火气 [Period setting + family drama + everyday life] If you're young and inexperienced, take this as a warning and steer clear. This book probably isn't for you. It has none of the usual wish-fulfillment tropes and no imaginary cheat powers. It's simply an ordinary story about people in northern China. [No transmigration, no System, no pocket dimension, no being reborn, and none of the modern-novel elements you know.] It records the ordinary life of a northern town in the 1980s, capturing the memorie 8.8kReads9.1Score76714d adds
- 175 The Road to Promotion in the 1980s: She Made Her Mark Through Her Own Ability 年代升迁路：她凭实力出圈 [Period] [Career] Dai Xinghua wakes up in 1972 in the body of an orphan who shares her name. Her parents died in the line of duty, and their home is about to be repossessed. Looking at the hand she’s been dealt, former “career star” Dai Xinghua takes a deep breath. Stay calm. I can win! She sticks firmly to her principles: What does it matter how much you work? We’re all just cogs in the machine. Don’t compete, don’t fight. But when it comes to my job, I’ll do it to the best of my ability 13.1kReads8.8Score1.4k14d adds
- 176 Transmigrating to the Seventies: The Young Educated Youth Is Dumbfounded 穿越七零，小知青她懵圈了 (Everyday life of sent-down youth, not a strong female lead, a touch of an ensemble cast, unhurried pacing, with a couple) Gu Xiaoman, from the twenty-first century, dies suddenly after getting drunk while celebrating landing a job. She wakes up aboard a green-painted train carrying sent-down youth in the 1970s. No space, no System, no golden finger, and not even the original owner’s memories. She’s definitely the most wretched transmigrant in history, with none of the usual perks. Good heavens! 11.7kReads8.7Score1.2k14d adds
- 177 Back to the 1970s: A Village Girl's Path Beyond the World 重回七零年代，村女的破界之路 [Elderly woman + reborn + 1970s + dumping a scumbag + no romance + family life + spatial storage] After being angered to death at the age of seventy, Zhou Qiuying is reborn in 1975. In 1975 in her previous life, Zhou Qiuying was an eighteen-year-old country girl. She gave up her secure job as an elementary school teacher to marry an educated youth sent down to the countryside. In return, her husband cruelly abandoned her after passing the college entrance exam, and her loved ones died tragical 179Reads—Score—14d adds
- 178 The Long-Suffering Younger Sister 苦妹 This is a bloodcurdling, suffocating epic of female suffering. It tells the tragic story of a woman called Ku Mei, whose life was mercilessly crushed by fate over more than half a century, from the early 1960s to the beginning of the twenty-first century. In 1960, during a famine-stricken winter, she was born the second daughter in her family and named Pan Di, “Hoping for a younger brother.” From then on, her grandmother saw her as a “jinx” and branded her Ku Mei, “Bitter Girl.” In a family that 3.7kReads8.8Score43214d adds
- 179 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
- 180 The Great Pagoda Tree at the Village Entrance 村口那棵大槐树 The 1960s: too few clothes and too little food! In remote Tianshui Village, everyone was struggling to stay alive! Every character is a vivid reflection of that era. They have no golden fingers and they don't transmigrate... so they can only fight tooth and nail against life and fate just to survive! Girls especially had a harder time of it in those days. Listen to the names: Dai Xiao, Huan Xiao, Zhaodi... You can tell at a glance they were named by parents hoping for a son. Back then, many girl 62Reads—Score—14d adds
- 181 A Middle-Aged Woman's Reckless Years 中年荒唐的女人 The story is about Yang Liu, an ordinary woman from the bottom of society. Hardworking and capable, she refuses to settle for an ordinary life, but ends up making a complete mess of things, surrounded by chaos and constant commotion... 2.7kReads8.6Score23014d adds
- 182 The Woman with Five Marriages 五婚女人 Among contemporary Chinese literature's portrayals of rural women's lives, Zheng Guozhen's story grips readers with its astonishing realism and tragic depth. Through an ordinary rural woman's five failed marriages, this novel sketches the hardships of rural women's lives and inner worlds during China's social transformation in the 1990s. From an arranged marriage imposed by her parents to a self-serving union built on dependence on power, from an emotional wasteland scarred by violence to a brie 1.9kReads7.9Score23814d adds
- 183 The High-Heeled Shoe Mystery 高跟疑云 My wife works at a joint-venture company and was recently promoted to head of the human resources department. Lately, she has been working late all the time. I couldn't understand it. What was there to keep HR working overtime for? Yesterday, I went to Guangzhou on a business trip. I was supposed to be gone for several days, but something urgent came up at the company, so I returned early. I wanted to surprise her and didn't tell her. When I got home at eleven that night, the house was empty. I 514Reads—Score—14d adds
- 184 I Became the Cannon Fodder Ex-Wife of the Male Lead in an Era Novel 穿成年代文男主的炮灰前妻 Shen Yi’an was an orphan who made a living writing web novels. She never expected a stroke of incredible luck to win her five million yuan. After buying a house, she still had four million left. Just as Shen Yi’an was ready to lie flat, she woke up to find herself in the middle of childbirth. What kind of nightmare was this? Not only was she giving birth, it was the 1970s. Unmarried and in labor, she experienced the agony of being torn apart, then realized she had transmigrated into a book. The 62.5kReads8.2Score5.6k14d adds
- 185 After My Biological Brother Was Reborn, the Real Heiress Returned 亲哥重生后，真千金回归了 Lin Yanhui is miserable. Her paternal grandparents favor boys over girls, her father is taciturn, and her mother has a sharp tongue and a sharper heart. And now her name is Huang Zhaodi. In the middle of her chaotic life, she never imagined that one day a group of people would show up at her home and tell her she was their biological daughter! Lin Yanhui: !!! - It wasn’t until three days before Lin Rui died in the line of duty that he learned his family had raised someone else’s child. When they 35.9kReads9.0Score4.1k14d adds
- 186 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
- 187 An Eighties Gofer Marries into a Family of Lovers 八零工具人嫁入恋爱之家 I was one of the heroine’s many useful sidekicks, the one who walked three thousand kilometers to bring back a stone for her. If the heroine thinks it looks nice and wants it, she can have it. If that’s not enough, I’ll go pick up more. The heroine wants to use me as a foil, claiming city folk can’t compare to country folk, and educated people can’t compare to illiterates? Fine, you win! When my mother tried to brainwash me into being a sucker, I put a stop to it with one clean strike. My abusiv 4.8kReads8.0Score27214d adds
- 188 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
- 189 The Good Life in the Sixties: Farming with Adorable Pets 六零好生活，跟着萌宠忙种田 [Transmigration + a child’s growth + strengthening the nation through technology] Lying flat in the 1960s with an interstellar System? Just as Daya and her star-beast companion Hongge had settled into a comfortable life, the System…crashed! Her star-beast companion was forced to transmigrate into a sickly boy from the capital, and even became her nominal “little uncle”? Her golden finger worked only sometimes, her body was frail, and the circumstances were pressing. They had no choice but to re 68Reads—Score—14d adds
- 190 At Dusk 人到黄昏 Family love, romance, friendship, and neighborly affection. The ordinary, uneventful lives of everyday people; the changing times reflected in rural life; the differences between two generations in their views on elder care; and how the elderly and children of the new era should face the twilight years of life. 45.4kReads9.1Score4.2k14d adds
- 191 Finding True Love Inside and Outside Marriage in Midlife 人到中年婚姻内外寻找真爱 Yang Duo is a flower in full bloom. Though she’s forty, she’s still young and beautiful. A woman in pursuit of true love, she yearns for romance and has spent her life exploring and experiencing it. A passionate love affair that nearly cost her life in her youth, a joyless marriage in middle age, and an unexpected encounter outside her marriage: whenever she falls for someone, she loves with wild abandon and suffers heartbreak that tears her apart. Her three close friends have very different l 637Reads8.7Score10114d adds
- 192 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. 698Reads9.1Score10414d adds
- 193 1973: Starting with Educated Youth Sent to the Countryside 年代1973：从知青下乡开始 [Sent to the Countryside in the 1970s + Lighthearted Humor + Everyday Family Life + Cunning Old Fox] On the day Lu Yuan is sent down to the countryside, he saves the village’s five-year-old little matriarch. From then on, even the village dogs salute him... ... ... (From the start, there’s no stealing houses or jobs, an abusive stepmother, or cheating followed by revenge. Read with caution if that’s what you’re looking for!) 3.6kReads7.6Score15314d adds
- 194 The Playboy and the Five Golden Flowers 风流之子与五朵金花 [Completed] If you happened to click on this, please read a few more pages, or even a few dozen, and help boost my stats. Thanks for your support! This is the story of a group of people who came from elsewhere to work and put down roots in Zhuhai. They fall in love, get married, buy homes, and have children. The first half covers their lives up to marriage. The second half explores marriage, human nature, changes in society, and growing up in middle age. This novel has a calm and gentle tone, pe 75Reads—Score—14d adds
- 195 The Dust of Mortal Life 尘事 This book chronicles a family across a hundred years. An illiterate country woman is forced to abandon her newborn child, then wanders from place to place amid the chaos of a turbulent era, struggling to survive in the cracks. Told as a work of documentary fiction, this story depicts the joys and sorrows of several generations of an ordinary family, bringing a long-buried past to light. Let posterity decide who was right and who was wrong! 2.1kReads8.9Score18314d adds
- 196 Fate Is a Sunny Day 缘是晴天 Memories of youth, growing up, and heartbreak, buried by time and kept close to the heart. May the love shared by Xie Qiyuan and Jiang Ziqing touch your heart. Because they loved each other so deeply back then, their love turned into countless tears. Even so, at a fork in the road with no hope in sight, they would keep waiting for him to come. 19Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 197 Transmigrating to the 1970s, I Lie Flat! 穿越七零我躺平了！ A 48-year-old man who’d chosen to lie flat transmigrates into the body of 18-year-old Li Changshun! He becomes one of the sent-down youths heading to the countryside in 1973. In Kaoshan Tun Brigade, Dongfang Commune, Dong’an County, Danjiang City, he lies in bed, keeping a low profile as he waits for the new era to arrive. (This is simply a story about the ordinary life of a sent-down youth. The writing is unassuming, and the plot moves at a fairly slow pace. It’s steeped in everyday life, not a 62.2kReads7.1Score4.8k14d adds
- 198 An Ill-Matched Marriage 不般配的婚姻 After Cheng Ruojia, a small-town girl, married her boss, Tang Yixuan, she spent the next ten years as a housewife, looking after Tang Yixuan and their daughter, Tang Qi. But as Tang Yixuan's business grew and his handsome looks drew attention, a marital crisis crept closer and closer... 628Reads5.8Score—14d adds
- 199 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
- 200 I Became a Billionaire, but They Sent Me to a Mental Hospital 成了亿万富翁，我却被送进精神病 In the early 1980s, Dugu Feng's father lost his iron rice bowl, and the family was so poor they could barely put food on the table. With no other choice, Dugu Feng gritted his teeth and took his whole family out to do backbreaking labor, starting by taking on the small construction jobs no one else wanted from contractors. He was an honest man who never cut corners, and his work was excellent. Little by little, he made a name for himself in the trade. From a small-time contractor to founding a 269Reads7.7Score13814d adds
