Novels like Private Investigation
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Private Investigation, best match first.
- 51 A Lottery Whiz Goes Undercover, Catching Crooks and Making Money 彩票高手当卧底，既抓坏人又赚钱 He’s an informant. You know what an informant is? Someone who provides the police with information. He roams the underworld and is no slouch in a fight, but to outsiders, he seems like an ordinary guy. He can predict lottery numbers and get into brawls. He can drive all kinds of vehicles, often makes little mistakes, and is frequently hauled into the local police station. But his true identity remains a mystery... 1.8kReads9.2Score331Shelves
- 52 What's There to Fear About Divorce at 40? My First Love Has My Back 40岁离婚怕什么，还有初恋兜底 [A levelheaded housewife who knows when to retreat and when to advance + an icy doctor who advances by retreating] [Midlife struggles + parent-child relationships + redemption + mutual healing] Her husband is having an affair with his boss. Her son is a high school senior and has started dating. Zhu Yi, who quit her job three years ago, feels as if her world is collapsing. Then she unexpectedly runs into Yang Yiqing, her first love, whom she had lost touch with years ago. Suddenly, time speeds 102Reads—Score—Shelves
- 53 My Tenth Year as a Simp 我当舔狗的第十年 Mo Ziyan screamed because Yang Dun had knocked her to the ground, and the fall hurt. Yang Dun screamed because he had accidentally pressed his hand against Mo Ziyan’s chest... Embarrassed, Yang Dun quickly scrambled to his feet, then awkwardly helped Mo Ziyan up. But Mo Ziyan thought Yang Dun had knocked her down on purpose. “Team Leader Yang, how could you be so naughty? You told me to stand right here and not move, but it turns out you were lining me up so you could knock me over!?” —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 54 Leave Some Space, My Humble Abode 留白，寒舍 A diary about love, written from a wife’s perspective and addressed to his wife. Some people love flowers simply for their blossoms, and love watching them bloom. Others love a flower from the moment it is still a seed, anticipating what it will become. They watch it sprout, break through the soil, and keep growing upward. Its trunk grows ever sturdier, while leaves seem to appear from nowhere, one after another. They watch the leaves turn from pale green to deep green, then from deep green to a 29Reads—Score—Shelves
- 55 It's Only Fifty 不过是五十而已 An inspirational, unyielding story of midlife crisis, workplace struggles, bank managers and tellers, married life, and everyday urban life. This book tells the story of Huang Wenxue, a bank manager facing a midlife crisis. She is at that awkward age when she is considered too old to find a new job, yet still too young to retire. How will she answer the unavoidable questions surrounding her career, marriage, family, children, and caring for her aging parents? Even in middle age, even when confro 452Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 56 A Hibiscus Love Story 木槿之恋 The tangled loves and hatreds of three couples: Mu Jin and Zhang Chaoyang, Wen Qiongfang and Lin Shiyuan, and Fang Yuan and Peng Guangyuan. How long can love last? What holds a family together? Love, marriage, family, and money intertwine in an intense tangle of feelings and desire. Who is right? Who is wrong? Fate lends a hand in everything, yet every choice is our own… There are no perfectly faithful couples here, only human nature. 21.1kReads9.3Score2.6kShelves
- 57 A Love Triangle in Marriage 婚姻里的三角恋 [Contemporary realistic fiction + the married life of ordinary people in Beijing + love triangles in marriage + real struggles] Bai Xue and Wang Yang are a young married couple living in Beijing. Wang Yang is a typical “phoenix man,” a country boy who made it big in the city. After ten years of marriage, he cheats on her. After they divorce, Bai Xue meets another man, and her new life begins… What makes this book special: A woman faces betrayal in her marriage, but after the hardship comes 1.4kReads8.8Score139Shelves
- 58 After Tricking My Husband into a Divorce, I Was Fleeced for a Million by a Puppy-Like Boy 骗夫离婚后，我被小奶狗掏空百万 Urban suspense + sham marriage + a gentle trap + younger puppy-like man + a battle of wits Her marriage was cold, her life suffocating. Liang Qiuyue struggled through half her life, asking only for a peaceful existence. Then the gentle, warm-hearted Jiang Zhihao appeared, doting on her, protecting her, and helping her support the family. Believing she had found salvation, she bravely divorced and was reborn. Little did she know... He seemed mild-mannered and harmless, but behind the scenes he 96Reads—Score—Shelves
- 59 A Good Match Has Yet to Be Found 良辰未许人 On her thirty-second birthday, Liang Chen met Chen Qian in person after chatting online for three days. She expected another case of someone looking better in photos, but her ideal type was sitting right across from her: a year younger, tall and handsome, romantic and funny. Even the curve of his smile was exactly to her taste. They fell passionately in love in no time. But amid all the sweetness, they both found themselves wondering: One of us is beautiful and clever, the other is gentle and ha 50Reads—Score—Shelves
- 60 The Chinese Bodyguard 国产保镖 54Reads6.3Score877Shelves
- 61 My Online Romance Didn’t Go Horribly Wrong When We Met 网恋奔现没翻车 A minor sweet-romance author x the aloof campus heartthrob at a media college I fell in love with him at first sight, went after his looks, and did everything I could to win him over. But he rejected me, and not just once. So I decisively called it quits. But to my surprise, he now wants to go through hell to win me back! 698Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 62 Better Late Than Never. There's Still a Long Road Ahead 迟到但无妨，来日且方长 Chu Mingxi thinks of herself as a piece of charcoal and Li Cheng as a spark. Only when she meets Li Cheng does she grow warm and begin to shine. She was late to their promise, but in the days ahead, she’ll make a living from the simple pleasures of life and find love through poetry. She once thought beauty lay in partings and reunions, but in the end, even life’s everyday necessities are poetry. 506Reads9.4Score—Shelves
- 63 A Love Story in Chaoshan 潮汕情事 In the old homes of Chaoshan lie the wildest lives and the warmest hearts. In the 1970s and 80s, a group of Chaoshan people who refused to give up fought their way through poverty, loved through storms, and lived by the bonds between people. Some dared to fight and forge ahead, dragging their lives up out of the mud. Others were loyal and true, unwilling to betray anyone even when it cost them. Love brought tangled relationships, family brought its share of strain, and neighbors argued, but when 396Reads8.2Score—Shelves
- 64 Her Secret Thoughts: A Young Man’s Hidden Diary in a Small Village 致她的心事：小村青年的隐秘日记 No formulaic plot | Not a wish-fulfillment novel | Realistic fiction | Zhou Zhiqiang grows up amid poverty and chaos in her birth family, with her father instilling in her the survival rule that “you have to please people to survive.” She gets into college and lands a job at a bank. A well-off man, Ke Qingyan, pursues her, but as the truth about her family comes out, she gradually loses her self-respect and her relationship. Later, burdened with debt, she returns to her hometown and, under he 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 65 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... 2.7kReads8.6Score224Shelves
- 66 The Fire Chief’s Sweetheart 消防队长的甜宠女孩 [Tough firefighter captain x sweet, soft-spoken college student] [Sweet romance + devoted couple + slow-burn love] An Ran was chased by a big black dog and nearly fell from a rooftop, but luckily a firefighter scooped her up just in time. She’d never fallen for anyone before, yet she couldn’t stop thinking about the warmth of his arms. She pursued him and flirted with him. Surely even a block of ice would melt, but his heart was set on the firefighting work he loved. After falling afoul of some 870Reads7.8Score140Shelves
- 67 Little Seedling Beneath the Shade 树荫下的小禾苗 Miao Yihe loses part of her memory in a car accident, including memories of her high school deskmate, who always looked out for her. But the connection between two people never really goes away. After all the twists and turns, they meet again. Lin Mingyue says he's the shade beneath a vast forest; Miao Yihe says she's a little seedling striving to grow. It was all meant to be. Lin Mingyue cherishes his little seedling, and she loves and supports herself too. They don't ask for much: a cozy littl 166Reads9.4Score—Shelves
- 68 The Old Woman Killed by Her Eldest Daughter Is Reborn 那个被长女干掉的老妇重生了 In her previous life, Chunhua was muddleheaded and unlucky. She spoiled her younger brother, favored boys over girls, and grew estranged from her husband. After her eldest son went missing, she spent the rest of her life in a daze. It wasn’t until she lay alone in a hospital bed, ignored by everyone, and saw her badly injured eldest daughter scream at her in despair that she finally understood how terribly wrong she had been. When she opened her eyes again, she had returned to the day her eldest 248Reads8.1Score—Shelves
- 69 Middle Age: City of Desire 人到中年：欲望之都 [Urban] + [Everyday Life] + [Special Agent] + [Sound Values] The story begins when the male lead, Li Wujiao, retires from service and comes home late at night, hoping to surprise his wife. Instead, he discovers that his wife, Jiang Zhirou, hasn't come home, and someone is harassing her... What? You say your grandfather was once a big shot in the Magic City? And your father is a financial tycoon there, too? No need to panic... Watch a retired agent prove that retirement hasn't dulled his skills. 6.1kReads9.0Score605Shelves
- 70 Late at Night, I Fell Under His Spell 深夜，对他着了魔 Their late-night story… It’s thought-provoking, and leaves you filled with regret. Was she too devoted, or was he too heartless? What can you even say about love? 229Reads—Score—Shelves
- 71 The Urban Hunt 都市围猎 This story follows the tangled struggles over power, profit, and desire within modern corporations. Everyone is a hunter, and everyone is prey. In the end, justice catches up with them: each person is destroyed by the consequences of their own actions. Then a new hunt begins somewhere else. The novel features a large cast of characters, and the author has done their best to pack a miniature society into its pages. 8Reads—Score—Shelves
- 72 Love Delivered with Your Takeout 外卖送来的爱情 [Rugged construction foreman x struggling livestreamer] [Strong leads x mutual healing x trashy boyfriend at first, doting romance later] Gu Yueji was so broke she livestreamed for over ten hours a day to sell goods and pay off her debts. Still, she felt sorry for the delivery guy whose shoes were worn out and clothes were shabby, and who had to squat by the roadside to eat every meal. So she provided him with food, clothes, and a place to stay. Later, Gu Yueji discovered that the delivery guy’s 3.1kReads9.0Score269Shelves
- 73 The Domineering Village Chief Gets Caught 霸道村长落网记 [Rural] [Period Drama] [Tragedy] Synopsis: The domineering village chief Hu Gang, backed by his family, bullies men, preys on women, and commits every kind of evil. After Hu Ying, the heroine, is abused by Hu Gang and his son, she escapes. With Yang Jun's help, she ultimately brings down the entire Hu family. Yet Hu Ying's tragic fate is only just beginning... (You won't believe it until you read it!) 1.3kReads7.5Score103Shelves
- 74 My Years in the Wedding Business 我干婚庆这些年 [Life's Big Events + Wedding Industry + Northeastern Comedy + Everyday Family Life + Rich Older Women + Older Sisters] Jin Ge is a male makeup artist and photographer. After personally reporting his biological father and sending him to prison, he returned to his hometown to protect his mother from his father's enemies. He took over the family wedding business, and because of his professional makeup skills, many couples hired him to handle their weddings. The work also gave him a chance to see wh 7.9kReads8.8Score873Shelves
- 75 Sand in the Palm 掌间砂 [Elegant, handsome bureau director] VS [Landlady with hidden depths] [Second chance romance] [Each other’s first love] I could give up the whole world. You alone are the cinnabar mark in the palm of my hand. When he returned, he was no longer the young office director who had once written her an entire guide to the civil service exams. After years of rising steadily through the ranks, he had become a bureau director who helped bring peace and prosperity to the land. But an unexpected turn of e 1.5kReads9.2Score184Shelves
- 76 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 1.5kReads6.1Score104Shelves
- 77 The Little Housekeeper at Lawyer Mao's Home 毛律师家的小保姆 For the sake of the man she loves, who is ill, college student Lü Chenchen gives up her white-collar office job and chooses the better-paying work of a nanny. After a few twists and turns, she ends up in Mao Yuanning’s household. The Mao family has a complicated history. Mao Yuanning’s stepmother isn’t his biological mother, but his maternal aunt. His wife is the daughter of his stepmother’s first love, spoiled into a willful, delicate young woman. After more than ten years of marriage, the coup 4.8kReads9.5Score723Shelves
- 78 You Came to Me on a Sunny Day 你从晴天来 4.1kReads9.2Score334Shelves
- 79 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... 695Reads5.8Score—Shelves
- 80 His Insatiable Desire, Her Ordeal 他的欲壑，她的劫难 Shen Yu risked her life to give birth to a son. Seven years later, Qiao Feng still cheated on her. Shen Yu’s best friend, Du Xiaoyun, had gradually found peace of mind in her sexless marriage. She asked Shen Yu, who had decisively divorced: If that woman hadn’t seduced him, would he have betrayed your marriage? He would. Why? Because he has no principles… A person with no principles when it comes to marriage will never be faithful to it. Does marriage require fidelity? It does. Getting married 2.1kReads8.1Score162Shelves
- 81 The Sinkhole Buyer 天坑买手 Miao Tian, a purchasing specialist at a real estate group, is sent to Mountain City on an urgent assignment. Thus begins a tumultuous, high-stakes battle in the real estate business. How will he face the deception, the ambushes, and the relentless pursuit? How will he emerge from the fog and be reborn through the flames? This book gradually unfolds a sweeping portrait of the real estate underworld. Remember: If you can't live the way you want, in the end you'll have to convince yourself to want 112Reads8.7Score—Shelves
- 82 Breaking the Bottom Line 打破底线 In the eyes of others, he has it all: an executive title at a branch company and a happy family. But he also has plenty of secrets he can’t let see the light of day… A routine audit at the head office becomes the turning point in his fate… 14.1kReads8.2Score678Shelves
- 83 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 646Reads5.8Score116Shelves
- 84 Marrying a Twice-Divorced Uncle: Who's the One Marrying Up? 嫁给二婚大叔，谁高攀了谁 When Lu Ming thought the whole world had abandoned her, Cheng Yuting appeared. At thirty-three, Cheng Yuting is divorced with no children, refined and handsome, a perfect gentleman. Most important are the Cheng family's influence and his own abilities. So what if he’s divorced? Single women, and even their parents, would be thrilled to have a man like Cheng Yuting be divorced or widowed. And Cheng Yuting seems to drift from flower to flower, enjoying himself. He seems like a flame that beguiles 2.8kReads9.0Score221Shelves
- 85 Our Brief Separation, Our Long-Awaited Reunion 短别重逢的我们 [A woman's journey of growth | Railway nostalgia | Tales of the Northeast | An ensemble cast in Beijing] They first meet on Yangcheng's antique street. He looks down at her, hesitating as he asks, “Are you... Si Lian?” The ever-joking Young Master Dou is completely thrown off balance. Much later, Si Lian brings up this awkward moment to impeach Dou Xiao, asking why he couldn't even speak when he saw her. Dou Xiao lifts his snow-white bare foot and cheekily taps Si Lian's face, which is covered i 225Reads8.9Score—Shelves
- 86 Before Him, After You 在他之前，在你之后 “Maybe you think too highly of me,” she said. He looked into her eyes. “No one is loved because they’re that wonderful.” “Then why?” “Because they’re the right fit!” 1.4kReads9.2Score161Shelves
- 87 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 10.8kReads8.6Score520Shelves
- 88 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... 98Reads6.2Score112Shelves
- 89 Like You in Early Spring 初春如你 An office romance was a strict taboo Shu Xinran had set for herself, especially with Ji Ran, who was ten years younger. She had finally escaped her broken marriage and spent eight years enjoying her solitude. By now, she saw love as a luxury and wanted nothing to do with it. For the rest of her life, she only wanted a peaceful, steady existence. She didn’t want anyone disrupting her rhythm again. This early spring should have been just like any other. But she never expected that this spring woul 100Reads—Score—Shelves
- 90 Qin Zheng 秦峥 He loves her. She is the eternal sun in his heart. For a long time, he was too insecure to look directly at her dazzling light. When the sun finally shone on him, he hesitated and wavered, but in the end, he couldn’t resist the love in his heart. He drew her into his arms. At last, she became the sun that shone for him alone. 3.4kReads9.3Score243Shelves
- 91 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 640Reads8.7Score101Shelves
- 92 Let Me Build You a Home 我来给你装个家 Who would lose the house they worked so hard to earn just because they fell in love? Jiang Ning. Who would scrimp on everything, from food and clothes to housing and travel, just because they fell in love? Yang Wu. They were both willing to do it for each other. The road may have been hard, but together they were always happy. In the end, they found a home and a life together, sharing three meals a day through all four seasons. 1.5kReads9.4Score149Shelves
- 93 Loving You from Afar 站在远处爱 Liang Qingtong is new to the workplace and deeply admires Lu Chengyang, an industry role model. That exceptional man is her idol, her dream guy. By chance, she becomes his subordinate, and before she knows it, she seems to have fallen for him. He is decisive and efficient at work, but when it comes to love, he has no idea what he’s doing! We’re all just a bunch of unfortunate people: we can’t have the ones we love, we don’t cherish the ones we have, and when we’re together, we suspect each other 74Reads—Score—Shelves
- 94 My Parents Are a Handful, Can They Let the Counselor Have Some Peace? 活爹活妈，让辅导员安生会吧 [No System, pure urban campus life, the heroine can wait until later, not a power fantasy, not a power fantasy, not a power fantasy] I’ve been working as a graduate student counselor since I was in grad school. I never imagined it would be so hard to pass the counselor exam. After finally getting the job, this bunch of little troublemakers won’t give me a moment’s peace. All I want is to lie flat in peace. Could you please stop giving me so much trouble? 3.4kReads9.2Score237Shelves
- 95 The Spring Mountains Are Just Like You 春山如你 [Clear-headed, independent female doctor]& [devoted, faithful CEO] SC; HE [Reunion after years apart + groveling pursuit + career-focused heroine / love-focused hero] Change her surname; Become a top-notch surgeon; Live well; Those were the three most important things in Lu Xinyi’s life. She accomplished the first easily once she came of age, and the second was steadily taking shape. The third seemed the simplest, but was actually the hardest. Staying alive was easy, but “living well” was anoth 3.6kReads8.9Score358Shelves
- 96 A Novelist Becomes a Housekeeper 女作家去做保姆 This is a story about a housekeeper in Northeast China. A female writer can’t write anything new, and her pension is meager, so she applies for a part-time housekeeping job at an employer’s home. She works there nervously and carefully, afraid of making a mistake and getting scolded by her employer. At the employer’s home, she meets all kinds of people, different housekeepers and all sorts of employers. Her employer is chivalrous and generous, but also gets caught up in petty everyday matter 34.8kReads9.3Score1.1kShelves
- 97 The Absolute Man 绝对男人 [Traditional] [Realistic + hardship + inspirational] [Some angst] His mother died, his father was paralyzed, his stepmother suffered a mental breakdown, his older siblings kept running into trouble, and his younger siblings were still minors. At just sixteen, this outstanding student had no choice but to become the family’s sole support, shoulder his father’s enormous debts, and endure all kinds of unfairness and setbacks. Still, he refused to give up... This isn’t a wish-fulfillment story. Ther 22.2kReads9.2Score2.2kShelves
- 98 A General Introduction to the Apocalypse 末日概论 Please read the preface before starting this book! This is not an ordinary novel. It is deeply depressing and places extreme emphasis on detail. It is practical and hardcore. Please decide whether to continue based on your own interests and priorities, so you can save your precious time. This book is divided into two parts, “An Introduction to the Apocalypse” and “Advanced Studies of the Apocalypse.” The first focuses on material matters, objective facts, and details, while the second explores h 1.2kReads—Score286Shelves
- 99 The Plains' True Colors 平原底色 Beginning in the twenty-first century, this novel follows Fang Lizhu, a child of the post-80s generation growing up in the rural Jianghan Plain of central China. Through Fang Lizhu's education, work, and the many people he meets and events he experiences, the novel portrays how life has changed for people across the plains since the start of the new century. It also depicts the many ways ordinary people respond to sweeping changes in a new era and a shifting social landscape: the choices they ma 17Reads—Score114Shelves
- 100 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 253Reads7.7Score124Shelves
