Novels like Tales of Liangzhou: Underworld Turmoil
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Tales of Liangzhou: Underworld Turmoil, best match first.
- 1 Northeast Storm: A Gangster Legend 东北风云之黑道传奇 With my brothers by my side and blades and guns in hand, I’d like to see who in this underworld gets to call himself the boss! If we don’t enter the underworld, so be it. But once we do, every thug will bow to us and every boss will clear the way. We’ll become the... heavens of this underworld. 122Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 Undercover: If I Don’t Close the Net Soon, I’ll Really Become a Godfather 卧底：再不收网，我真成教父了 [Underworld|Undercover|Ruthless|Revenge|Gang-on-Gang Warfare|Anti-Drug] The Lone Wolf undercover operation ended in disaster. Jiang Chen was betrayed and shot dead. When he opened his eyes, he had been reborn in 2015, on the very day the Lone Wolf Plan was launched! This time, he had five years of memories from the future. Crush the drug lords, expose the dark secrets, clean up the underworld, and root out the moles! From a low-level street thug, he would fight his way to becoming the godfather —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 3 Tales of Longcheng’s Underworld: My Years in Black Gold 龙城黑道往事之我的黑金岁月 In the 1990s, Longcheng had seven major criminal gangs. The locals came up with this couplet: First came Ding, then Wei, Cao the Third was Fat; Mao the Fourth, Guai the Fifth, and Monk the Sixth; The banner line: Manlin rules them all. But not one of these utterly wicked people met a good end. This book will unveil that dark and chaotic era, and the bloody turmoil that once unfolded across Longcheng. (All names and places in this story are fictional. Any resemblance to real people or places is p 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 4 Dongjiang County: The Invisible Hand 东江县：无形之手 Li Jing, deputy head of the provincial investigative team, has barely arrived in Dongjiang County when she encounters a bizarre case: Zhang Meng, a construction contractor, beat a man to death in the street, yet at trial the victim’s family all changed their testimony. In a rundown teahouse in town, she runs into the boy she secretly loved back in school. Now he stoops, his fingernails caked with tea stains. When Li Jing takes out the graduation photo she has treasured for years, a flicker of em 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 5 The Old Days of Northern Jiangsu 苏北社会往事 This is not just a school story. It is a snapshot of an entire generation’s coming of age: On dignity: When fists become the “rules,” can books still defend our dignity? On choices: In the gray areas, how do we draw the line within ourselves? On leaving: That train ticket to Nanjing is the coming-of-age rite shared by every boy from northern Jiangsu. 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 6 Judgment on a Rainy Night in the City 都市之雨夜裁决 Judgment on a Rainy Night in the City 3Reads—Score—14d adds
- 7 Twenty Years on the Edge of a Blade in Southwest Shandong 刀口之鲁西南二十载春秋 (First person, period setting, not a wish-fulfillment story, underworld) When I was young, I couldn't accept things as they were, so I resolutely set out on the path of the underworld. I thought the road ahead would be smooth, never realizing it would be even more treacherous. I witnessed countless big brothers rise to glory, then fade into decline. All that brotherhood and bravado in the underworld was nothing but an illusion! My name is Zhang Hui, and I'm a man who refuses to accept his l 437Reads—Score10014d adds
- 8 The Underworld: The Wild Years We Shared 黑道江湖：一起走过的疯狂岁月 An accident, a confrontation. A sudden upheaval at home. They pushed Shen Yao to a crossroads of fate. From then on, Shen Yao embarked on a path in the jianghu with no way back... 99Reads8.0Score—14d adds
- 9 Wrong Turn: Northeast China’s Underworld in 1998 歧途：九八年东北黑道风云 [Urban Underworld] [Ensemble Cast] [Underworld Crime Lord] In 1998, Gao Zhengbei, a young man from Northeast China, heads south to find work with three fellow villagers who have criminal records. Their boss has withheld a year’s wages. To stand up for his brother, Gao Zhengnan “kidnaps” the boss’s child without laying a finger on him, forcing the man to pay up by “teaching him a lesson.” Rather than seek revenge, Shan Dabin respects his courage and restraint. Gao Zhengbei glimpses the underworld 17Reads—Score12414d adds
- 10 Xie Wenyuan: Rise of the Underworld 谢文渊：黑道崛起 [Violent Underworld] [Suit-Wearing Thug] [Cultured Scum] “Adjusting my glasses is a habit. Slitting throats is my profession.” Xie Wenyuan has always believed himself to be a reasonable, respectable man. Even when issuing an order to wipe out an entire family, he would still gently push up the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose, a harmless smile playing at the corners of his mouth. It began in a dark, damp alley in H City, reeking of rot; It began with a ballpoint pen piercing a local gangster’s pa 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 11 From Prisoner to Undercover: Playing Both Sides 从囚徒到卧底之黑白通吃 Wang Hao is a fourth-year student at the Law Enforcement Academy. His father was killed on a mission two years ago. His mother, the only family he had left, was buried when gangsters forcibly demolished their home. With justice nowhere to be found, Wang Hao accidentally left someone crippled and was sent to prison. By a twist of fate, law enforcement officials selected him and promoted him to undercover agent. Walking the line between black and white, he gradually became a major figure in both w —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 12 Tainan Underworld: Tales of the Past 台南黑道往事 Lin Qing is a promising business management graduate, always impeccably dressed in Taipei, until a letter from home pulls him back to the heart of the storm: Anping, Tainan. His father, Lin Shuisu, rules the docks with an iron fist as the gang boss of the Shuishu Gang. This world reeks of the sea, rust, cheap betel nut, and unrestrained violence, a stark contrast to the orderly life of Taipei. His first lesson after returning home is watching his father hack off the fingers of a debtor named A S 32Reads—Score—14d adds
- 13 Gray Zone: Embers 灰域：余烬 A school-set gang story with one female lead. Not a wish-fulfillment power fantasy. No absolute good or evil. Set in a parallel world with no connection to reality. The world has never been simply black and white. Most people live somewhere in the middle, neither thriving nor dying, in a gray zone. We hold knives in our hands and softness in our hearts. We can be neither saints nor demons, only struggle to live in endless gray until we're reduced to ashes. 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 The Years I Wandered the Jianghu 我走过的江湖岁月 The day I went to the city with the 3,000 yuan the whole village had scraped together to seek help from my cousin, I caught him kneeling and kowtowing in his rented room, calling a burly man with a fierce face “Boss.” My first lesson in society: I thought my cousin was a respectable man who'd made it in the city. Turns out he was a thug who acted like a dog for others, and he wanted me to serve them tea and water too? I thought the city meant factory assembly lines and shared dormitories, a stab —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 The Jianghu's Point of No Return: My Years as the Big Brother 江湖不归路：我做大哥那些年 What is the jianghu? Passion, sorrow, parting, and regret: that is the jianghu. Where is the jianghu? Wherever there are people, there is the jianghu. Drunken indulgence is its outward face, brotherly loyalty its innocence, life-and-death partings its core, and deceit its way of survival. This is a story of the jianghu, a story unique to that era. 196Reads7.1Score—14d adds
- 16 Tales of the Northeast Underworld: The Millennium 东北江湖往事之千禧年 With the arrival of the new millennium, society began developing at breakneck speed. A particular era shaped a particular group of people, each with a particular livelihood. Some seized the opportunities of the times and prospered, while others stubbornly clung to their ways and lost both their lives and their names... 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 17 Undercover, the New King of the Underworld 卧底，江湖新龙头 [Hot-Blooded Jianghu] [Multiple Male Leads] [Multiple Female Leads] Features many memorable scenes from films and TV series, including Infernal Affairs and Election. Chen Feng heads south to Wancheng to find the girl he left back home. In Shenzhen, he joins the underling of an undercover cop and becomes his lackey. His big brother takes him to Hong Kong, where he gets caught up in a bloody conflict. After his big brother dies, Chen Feng avenges him and becomes the new boss of Hong Kong Island.… 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 Tales of Bloodshed 血色往事 [Wuxia World + Period Setting + Passionate + Realistic Ensemble Cast, Not First Person] Keep someone oppressed long enough, and they’ll get sick! Keep them sick long enough, and they’ll start eating people! My name is He Xiusheng, but my friends all call me Xiucai! I’m one such sick man... I wandered into the jianghu decades ago. Looking back now, the world has changed beyond recognition... 55Reads6.9Score214d adds
- 19 Memoirs of a Bad Kid 坏孩子回忆录 A true story I made up, told in an ordinary tone. A boy's coming-of-age story, a record of a group of teenagers' youth. I dedicate this book to my wild and reckless youth. (A new author with a new book. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 20 The Jianghu Road Leads Nowhere Home 江湖路不归途 My name is Wang Xiao. I was the toughest guy at my middle school back home. I had a mean streak, and nobody dared mess with me. On my first day after transferring to a lousy vocational high school, someone tried to give me trouble. On the second day, the drill instructor ordered me to do two hundred push-ups. I finished them. On the third day, someone called me Brother Xiao. On the fifth day, the toughest guy in the third year sent someone over. “I graduate in three months. Do you want to take o —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 21 My Years in the Gray Market 我干灰产那几年 After spending two years in prison for illegal business dealings, I picked up my pen in 2025 and wrote about my own experiences. After only two chapters, I went back in for another six months. Now, speaking as someone who’s been through it, I want to lay out the truth about how I went astray and make clear the hard lessons I learned from falling twice. I hope my personal experience can serve as a warning to others: know your limits and stay on the right path. Don’t let greed or wishful thinking —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 22 I Founded the Mafia in College 我在大学创立了黑手党 I’ve spent my whole life playing games. I hit a wall, and no matter what I did, I could only ever come in second. [Can you live as yourself, under your own nickname?] King of the Underworld: People can survive even if they can’t eat! Then I suddenly received a message, and a game possessed me. I was the good-for-nothing son of a mob boss! “Yes, bloodline is a kind of power too, as long as you know how to use it. My ability is ‘Family.’” Game addicts never disappear. Overwhelming violence, endles 4Reads—Score—14d adds
- 23 Vocational High School Jianghu 职高江湖 In a corner of a bustling city, this vocational high school is a miniature society. Its students come from every social stratum, with different family backgrounds and life experiences. Rapid social change and a clash of cultures have swept through the campus, creating an atmosphere where the drive to succeed exists alongside the spread of bad influences. The school administration works hard to maintain order, but complicated relationships and cliques make vocational school life full of challenge —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 24 Southwest Turmoil: The World of Muye 西南风云：天下牧野 (The author isn't Er Ge, just a fan. Don't get them confused.) What is the jianghu? I think there's a saying that puts it well: Wherever there are people, there are grudges. Where there are grudges, there is the jianghu. People are the jianghu. Everyone has a jianghu of their own. For some, the jianghu is a matter of having no choice. For others, it's a world of fighting and killing. And for some, it's all about human relationships and worldly affairs. My jianghu, though, is more like a stage. T 5.7kReads6.5Score36414d adds
- 25 The Number One Underworld Boss 黑道天下第一 My new work is here! You’re welcome to check it out on Tomato Novel. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Your support is what keeps me writing, and I’ll do my best to tell every story well! 17Reads—Score114d adds
- 26 The Black Owl 黑枭 The jianghu is full of fighting and killing, but also human relationships and worldly affairs. More than anything, though, it's a place where people have no say in their own fate. Once you enter the jianghu, you're bound to have a short life. My name is Lin Yu. You can call me Lao Yao, too. I'm just another short-lived soul in the jianghu. 15Reads—Score—14d adds
- 27 I Started Factory Work at Eighteen and Met the Boss's Mistress. After He Broke My Ribs, I Made a Comeback and Became His Father! 十八岁进厂邂逅老板情人，被打断肋骨后我逆袭当他爹！ I Started Working in a Factory at Eighteen and Met the Boss’s Mistress. After He Broke My Ribs, I Made a Comeback and Became His Dad! —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 28 Underworld Brawl: Hunting Crimes Across the Land 黑道大乱斗之猎罪天下 The Dragon Roars Across Japan, Conquering the World! Hunt Down Sin Across the Land, and the Gates of Hell Swing Open! Stamp Out Petty Evil, Wage War on Great Sin! Build a Hall to Govern the Underworld! When the United Nations issues the Global Ban on Weapons, the world is thrown into an uproar! America and Japan join forces, seeking to dominate the underworld and rule the world by other means! When a young man from Longguo crosses the border and a hundred-man team sets foot in Japan, all-out cha 10Reads—Score—14d adds
- 29 The Legend of Lin Chusheng 林楚生的传奇 A fortune-teller once predicted that he would be a doormat. Then, on one rainy night, he chose a path of no return and carved a road to greatness through blood and fire. The price was his brothers and his own name. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 30 From the Start: Sentenced to Prison, I Begin a Jianghu Legend 开局：我被判入狱，开启江湖传奇 [Dongguan] [Multiple Women] [Underworld] [Feel-Good] Prisons are full of hidden talents. The jianghu is a world of bloodshed and turmoil. Lin Yang went to prison because of a woman, then fought his way through the jianghu for another. Please give it a read. Thank you. —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 31 Border Town of the Past: Don’t Call Me a Vegetable Seller 过往边城：别叫我卖菜佬 The unfairness of fate has never been a reason for us to bow our heads. Human nature is nothing more than these two words split apart: some people have humanity, and some just have sex. I can't choose where I was born, but at least I can make sure they stop calling me a stinking vegetable peddler. The only constant is change. On this one-way road I'm destined to walk to the end, you can laugh at me all you want, but you can't stop me from dancing to my heart's content in this ill-intentioned age —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 32 Honor Among Gangsters 黑道有义 My new work is out! Come read it on Tomato Novel. I hope you’ll enjoy it. Your support motivates me to write, and I’ll do my best to tell every story well! 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 33 The Thirteen Guardians of Tang City 唐市十三太保 The Tang City Underworld Duology, Part One: The Thirteen Guardians The bigwigs of Tang City’s martial world fell one by one during the 1983 crackdown. But wherever there are people, there will always be a martial world, and new forces are already stirring! Who will become Tang City’s next underworld boss? The story of the Thirteen Guardians of Tang City begins after Qin San, Wang Wu, and Ma Liu witness their father’s execution by firing squad! 965Reads—Score—14d adds
- 34 The Game of Fortune: My Life in the Underworld with the Girls of Dongguan 富贵棋局：我和东莞姐们的江湖路 In the 1990s, who ruled Shenzhen’s underworld? That would be Shenzhen King Jia Dai! I was just a hotheaded rookie fresh to the scene, but to protect my beloved Sister Qingshuang, I beat up Zuo Shuai, who was in a wheelchair. Zuo Shuai was Jia Dai’s lifesaver and sworn brother. He’d just had his legs crippled in Macau, and now I’d gone and beaten him up too. Jia Dai promptly put out a hit on me... 2Reads—Score—14d adds
- 35 I Didn’t Stab a Man, I Stabbed This Rotten World 老子捅的不是人，是世道 [Urban Underworld | Reborn Comeback | Brotherhood and High-Octane Gang Battles] 1991. Fu’an. Heavy snow. Fang Xiao knelt on the storeroom’s concrete floor, Zhao Changshui’s blood still on his hands. He was reborn, carrying memories of his brothers’ horrific deaths and his family’s ruin in his previous life. This time, he wouldn’t take the blame for anyone or be anyone’s lackey. He would wade through the filth and lead a band of brothers who had been dragged through the mud, determined to make 7Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 I Tore Open the City's Dark Curtain 我撕开了都市黑幕 [Ensemble cast + underworld] This isn’t a power fantasy or a mindless story. Every character is fleshed out, and there are no absolute heroes or villains. People can be good and evil alike. All that matters is human nature and self-interest. If that bothers you, don’t read. A seemingly ordinary workplace dispute pushes a group of everyday people into the eye of the storm. Caught in the depths of this vast, dark whirlpool, where will they go from here? —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 37 Black, White, and Gray? How Can You Get Ahead Without Getting Your Hands Dirty? 黑白灰？不涉灰怎么出人头地 Brotherhood + slow-burn ensemble cast + one female lead + not overpowered + first-person perspective Some people say black is black and white is white, and anyone who falls into the underworld is a bad person. I wanted to be a good person. I never wanted to fall into the underworld. But does being a good person mean being looked down on? Does it mean being powerless when trouble strikes? Only later did I realize that society isn’t simply black or white. The world’s true colors are black, white, 22Reads—Score—14d adds
- 38 Wolf Hunt 狼狩 Lin Qiwen watches his honest, hardworking parents get beaten right before his eyes. As a boy, he’s falsely accused and sent to juvenile detention. Five years later, he walks out and stirs up the underworld. Revenge is only the beginning. He wants far more than that. Watch Lin Qiwen climb step by step to the very peak of power! 624Reads6.6Score10214d adds
- 39 Tales of the Underworld 黑道风云往事 This story is entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual people or events is coincidental. This book urges people to choose the right path and serves as a warning to those who have gone astray. At eight, backed by my uncle, I planted the seeds of violence with a kitchen knife and blood. At sixteen, yearning for the world of the underworld, I plunged headfirst into its maelstrom. I saw its filth and darkness, its betrayals and its worship of profit, with only the faintest trace of loyalty. I s 61Reads—Score214d adds
- 40 Bro, You’re Such a Jerk! 哥，你真的好渣！ Lin Hai was forced to leave his village, and his good buddy Erwa followed him. He had worked many jobs, but because he was handsome and naturally carefree, his bosses would dismiss him for no reason. Then local thugs started giving him trouble. To protect himself, Lin Hai had no choice but to embark on a path of no return, making the major players in the underworld submit to him and winning the hearts of countless beauties... 302Reads7.6Score—14d adds
- 41 From Scavenger to Underworld Kingpin 从捡垃圾到黑道枭雄 The boy who scavenges for food in the garbage is destined to become a king through blood and fire. Lin Bei, an orphan abandoned by the world, curls up on a park bench. His only chance to survive is rummaging through foul-smelling trash cans. With winter approaching, he sets his sights on the “garbage mountain” in the west of the city, the place no one dares touch because it’s “Brother Gou’s” lifeline. When more than a dozen dark figures surround him and cold fists rain down on his head, the wild 1.5kReads7.3Score13214d adds
- 42 Dream City’s Underworld: I’m the Most Innocent of Them All 梦城风云：整个黑道我最白 [Underworld mole] [Multiple female leads] [No System] [Not mindless] [The struggle between good and evil] His girlfriend is kidnapped by a ruthless crime boss from the Cangming Society and made a hostage and plaything, at their mercy. To save her from this living hell, Yi Fanfeng swallows his pride and pretends to join the dark side. In secret, he teams up with both the police and the rival Tianshu Hall, becoming a double agent playing both sides. Starting out as a low-level food delivery worker 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 43 Bloodsoaked Underworld: Gangland Storm 浴血江湖之黑道风云 By a stroke of fate, Wang Tian embarked on an extraordinary path: the road of the underworld! An older brother who was like a father and mentor, and five brothers who would share life and death with him. He has been gravely wounded and left on the brink of death, and he has also enjoyed immense wealth and a life of extravagance! This is the story of an ordinary man’s hard-won rise, a cry of defiance from those at the bottom! Wang Tian is determined to create a legendary life! P.S. Wang Tian and 18Reads—Score10614d adds
- 44 The Jianghu Never Sleeps: Song of a Madman 江湖不熄：狂人歌 [Not a power fantasy, not invincible] [Passionate] [Brotherhood] [Youth] A jack can’t hold up a shattered home, and a wrench can’t stop a gang’s blade. The days spent with fingertips stained by grease come to a bloody end! Brothers stand together with burning hearts, enemies tremble at their name. Bai Hao’s dictionary has no word for forgiveness, only the laws of iron and blood! Anyone who stands in his way will be crushed beneath a boulder. No mercy! 428Reads—Score—14d adds
- 45 I Didn’t Tell You to Join the Underworld, Yet You Became the Boss 没让你混社会，你却当了大哥 [Not invincible, not brainless, no System, and full of passion] In the early 1990s, Li Luoyang was sentenced to three years in prison for accidentally killing a street thug while acting in self-defense. After his release, he chose to stay in the urban village, waiting for news of his girlfriend. Instead, he was unexpectedly drawn into one gangland feud after another. From disputes over table fees at a mahjong parlor to life-or-death fights at construction sites, he was repeatedly thrust into the 48Reads—Score—14d adds
- 46 Flowers Blooming in the Mud Will One Day Turn Toward the Sun 泥泞里的花朵，终会向阳开 Watch an ordinary man rise step by step from a pathetic weakling to a godfather of the underworld. Feel the thrill of every bone-crunching punch and experience the ruthless art of scheming for power. There are no absolute protagonists, and no absolute supporting characters. 1Reads—Score—14d adds
- 47 The Underworld: I Make the Rules 黑道：我才是规矩 Two years in prison, and nothing is as it was. Wherever there are people, there are rivalries and power struggles. Schemes and betrayals are everywhere, and one careless move can destroy an entire family. No matter what, the strong can turn the tables against the odds. Starting today, I make the rules in Philadelphia! 2.4kReads—Score10414d adds
- 48 The Fire Usurper: Ship Without a Shore 篡火者：无岸之舟 The flames of war left Chen Hao an orphan. San Francisco’s Chinatown in 1985: a land of chaos and gold. His second uncle took him in and looked after him. But in a foreign land, he endured scorn and humiliation! Should Chinese people really let others walk all over them? No! No! No! Stir up the storm, and turn into a dragon when the waters rise! Witness a Chinese man’s rise to godfather! —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 49 A Pot of Liquor in Dongguan, Jimei, Come with Me 东莞一壶酒，集美跟我走 [Passionate Wuxia] [Love and Romance] [Humorous and Funny] Chen Hao’s wife died young, and he was so consumed by grief that he couldn’t pull himself out of it. Seeing how much he was suffering, his parents-in-law urged him to head south to Dongguan and seek help from his sister-in-law. But when he arrived in Dongguan, he discovered the shocking reason she had always been single... To save her from this living hell, Chen Hao had no choice but to raise his fists. After spending a while here, h 8.3kReads8.8Score1.4k14d adds
- 50 South City's Fierce Eagle: No Way Out 南城雄枭：上天无门 The son of a dockworker starts with nothing but the grief of his father's murder. Over ten years, amid the blood and fire of a southern port city, he builds an underground empire with his own hands. Then, in the sweeping tide of the crackdown on organized crime, he makes the most difficult choice of his life. 5Reads—Score—14d adds
