Novels like Imperial Exam Comeback: From Farmer’s Son to First-Rank Grand Secretary
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Imperial Exam Comeback: From Farmer’s Son to First-Rank Grand Secretary, best match first.
- 101 The Struggles of a Poor Family in the Song Dynasty 宋代寒门的奋斗史 In the blink of an eye, a history PhD from the 21st century becomes the second son of a farming family outside Bianliang City. His family is dirt poor, the elders are shortsighted, and they even have a “precious heir” whom the whole family must support. As the second son of a branch family whom no one takes seriously, watch how Chen He works his way up, crosses class boundaries, and leaps from the farm into a new life. 1.7kReads7.6Score14714d adds
- 102 The Imperial Exams? Just Another Way to Take the Civil Service Exam! 科举？不过是换个地方考公罢了！ [Civil Service + Imperial Exams + Humble Origins + Transmigration + Slow-Paced + Historical + No System + Not Brain-Dead] Lin Shuheng spent years grinding away at an entry-level civil service job. He had just passed his evaluation and was about to be promoted to deputy section chief. While imagining how he’d climb the ranks step by step, he died suddenly from overwork and transmigrated into the body of a poor scholar in ancient times. With the imperial exams looming, the original owner had been —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 103 Imperial Exams: The Qilin Son of the Liu Family Shines 科举，柳家的麒麟子发光啦 Liu Yu was a modern man from the 22nd century. After an accident, he found himself in the Fengliang Dynasty, a kingdom that had never existed in recorded history. Hu Jiu: This great king is in the middle of a heavenly tribulation! Don't come any closer, or I'll blast you to bits!!! Liu Yu: If I don't come, how am I supposed to save you? When are you going to repay my kindness? Hu Jiu: Meow~ What are you talking about? This king doesn't understand. The imperial examination road that followed 38Reads—Score—14d adds
- 104 I Took a Master, Then Rose to the Highest Office Through the Imperial Exams 拜了个师父，我靠科举位极人臣 Ma Chengli was born into the Ma family, a clan of veterinarians, and grew up in the womb before being born into this world. Then, one day, the newly founded Great Ying dynasty suddenly announced that it would resume the imperial examinations, just eight years after its founding. His father, Ma Dawei, suddenly discovered: “Could my son really have the makings of a child prodigy?” His mother, Lady Zhang, declared with confidence: “My son has been clever and bright since he was little. He should ta 404Reads7.5Score—14d adds
- 105 Awakening the Learning System at Three: Study, Take the Imperial Exams, and Become an Official 三岁觉醒学习系统，读书科举做官 [Imperial exams + study System + farm boy + one heroine] (The ratings have only just come in, and the book is still growing. Don’t let them fool you! It’s good, really good, really, really good.) Wang Yuan had just passed the entrance exam for a master’s program at a top university, but before he could bask in the admiration of his whole village, an accident sent him into the womb of a peasant family in ancient times. Fortunately, an earlier transmigrator had established a new dynasty and encour 4.4kReads7.5Score32714d adds
- 106 Turning the Tables in the Imperial Exams: A Cat Swapped for the Crown Prince from the Start 科举逆袭：开局狸猫换太子 [One-on-one romance + System + imperial examinations + historical fiction + transmigration to an alternate world] Chen Xiao was once the head of a modern family of martial arts practitioners. Who could have imagined that his fiancée and younger brother would betray him? After dying, he was born into the Great Wei dynasty and became the crown prince who had been switched at birth! On the road to success in the imperial examinations, Chen Xiao pushed forward with his indomitable spirit, repeatedly 11Reads7.1Score—14d adds
- 107 The Ming Dynasty’s Literary Champion 大明文魁 In the third year of the Xuande reign, Lin Wenyuan, a top history student, unexpectedly transmigrated into the body of a poor scholar in Kunshan County, South Zhili, Ming China. When he woke, he found himself in a home stripped bare, with a frail body left behind by the original owner's high fever after being caught in the rain. In an era when the imperial examinations were the only path to success, he had neither an illustrious family nor exceptional talent. All he could rely on was knowledge f 136Reads—Score—14d adds
- 108 Reborn as an Exiled Prince, I Take the Imperial Exam in an Enemy Kingdom 穿成流浪皇子，在敌国考科举 [Light fantasy wuxia + irreverent imperial examinations + political intrigue + decisive killing + princes + golden finger + no romance] Yan Guijin has always been convinced that there's something wrong with him. Yan Shengyong never imagined that the abandoned baby he took in would one day become a radiant beacon in this prison of a world. [One] Taxes and forced labor are fiercer than a tiger, while the yamen runners are as greedy as wolves. How is a landlubber supposed to survive in a sea that s 6Reads—Score—14d adds
- 109 I Was Already Eight When Grandpa Finally Passed the Provincial Exam 我都八岁了爷爷才中举 The transmigrator has a smaller role in the early chapters. The protagonists are Liu Lin and the transmigrator Liu An. I, Liu An, have been transmigrated for eight years, and only now has Grandpa passed the provincial civil service examination! In the thirteenth year of the Wanli era of the Great Ming, forty-two-year-old Liu Lin passes the provincial examination. Years later, Liu Lin gazes at the plaque reading “Four Jinshi from One Family” and falls into deep thought. Follow the protagonist’s g 2.8kReads6.9Score22414d adds
- 110 The Farmer's Eldest Daughter: I Bound a System to Revive My Family Through the Imperial Exams 农家长姐：我绑定科举兴家系统 [Completed novel + imperial examinations + farming + born to be a teacher + romance later on + slow burn + feel-good story] Xie Linghe was mistakenly claimed by the underworld and transmigrated into a book. Unfortunately, this whole family was made up of villains and cannon fodder. Luckily, the underworld made it up to her by giving her a System. A System for bringing honor to the family through the imperial examinations? ! I'm a woman, and you want me to take the imperial examinations in anc 466Reads7.2Score10814d adds
- 111 The Unparalleled Illegitimate Son 绝代庶子 [Alternate World + Transmigration + Ancient Setting] After transmigrating, he finds his mother brutally murdered and his younger sister unconscious beside her. When she wakes, she has developed a split personality. He heads to the capital to find his biological father, only to discover that his father's family is the source of all the hatred. Watch as a concubine-born son avenges his mother and drives his father into an inescapable corner, step by step. Once his revenge is complete, where will h 412Reads7.3Score—14d adds
- 112 You Were Supposed to Take the Imperial Exam, Not Read the Examiners’ Minds 让你考科举，没让你透视考官心思 [Mind Reading + Antiques Appraisal + Imperial Exams + Power Over the Court] From the start, he is just five years old, with a destitute family and a wicked grandmother who forces his mother, on the verge of giving birth, to die, all to repay his uncle's ten-tael gambling debt? Lin Zhao waves his little hand, and his head smacks into an overpowered golden finger! With a single glance, he sees through people's hidden schemes. He hears every greedy thought, and can even see through all things to id 647Reads7.5Score10014d adds
- 113 My Whole Family Supports My Imperial Exams, and I Rise to Great Heights 全家供我科举，而后青云直上 One heroine + no System + lighthearted pacing A bird must flap its wings before it can soar; a person must study before they can get ahead. Huang Zhiwen unexpectedly gets another chance at life, bringing the memories of his previous life with him as he slowly adapts to this new world. Here, he finds new people to care about and a new family. The Huang family is warm and close-knit, and they will do everything they can to support Huang Zhiwen in the imperial examinations. That leaves all the pres 783Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 114 A Farmer's Son, the Imperial Exams, and Officialdom 农家子，科举，做官 [Born into the womb + imperial examinations + farming + daily life + public works and infrastructure, with a couple, little romance] [No pocket dimension, no System, no golden finger] [He starts looking for a teacher in Chapter 38. If you’re short on patience, you can start reading there.] Shen Huai is born into an ancient world and becomes the only boy in his family. The good news: he can take the imperial examinations. The bad news: they’re poor, very poor, desperately poor. Born into a 5kReads8.5Score38814d adds
- 115 I, San Mao, Will Take the Imperial Exams 我，三毛，要科举 [Alternate world + farming + imperial examinations + everyday family life] One brick was all it took to turn Chen Ping'an into a poor farmer’s son. Farm the land? The taxes are too high. He shakes his head and gives up. Go into business? He’d still be stuck with corvee labor. No, that won’t work either. That leaves only one path. Fortunately, as he pursues his studies, he has the support of a teacher and several like-minded friends by his side. Along the way, Chen Sanmao overcomes one challenge 1.1kReads7.4Score10014d adds
- 116 After Years of Hard Study, I Rise Ninety Thousand Miles Into the Sky 寒窗苦读多年，扶摇直上九万里 [Male POV, born into a new life as a baby, farming, imperial examinations, court politics] When the second son of the Chen family died unexpectedly, he left behind an unborn child. Zhao, who had already given birth to three daughters in a row, hoped this time for a son. The day she gave birth, the baby arrived prematurely, and there were twins. The villagers all said the children wouldn't survive. They waited and waited, and the child grew up. They named him Dongsheng. Dongsheng went to school. 42.7kReads6.5Score3.4k14d adds
- 117 Transmigrated as the Fake Young Master in an Imperial Exam Novel 穿成科举文里的假少爷 [Imperial examinations + fake and real young masters + alternate dynasty + transmigrate + transmigrate into a book + everyday life] [Male protagonist's perspective, no CP, no female lead, and the true heiress has little page time] Yuan Kunyu transmigrated after a celebration banquet for getting into a 985 university's gifted youth program. The good news: he had become a young master from a prestigious family. The not-so-bad news: he was the fake one. So, at the age of ten, Yuan Kunyu returned to 54Reads—Score—14d adds
- 118 The Great Traitor Is Reborn: What’s the Point of Becoming the Top Scholar in the Imperial Exams? 大奸臣重生后，科举当状元算什么 [Alternate Universe] [No Female Lead] [Book Transmigration] [Reborn] [Villain] [Slow Burn] [Not a Wish-Fulfillment Novel] [Light Ensemble Cast] [Early: Imperial Exams] [Middle: Infrastructure] [Late: Political Intrigue] Content warning: There is no female lead, but there is a political marriage. It involves no romantic entanglement, only an alliance of interests, and the person I marry will die. (For details, see the author’s note at the end of Chapter One.) [The blurb is in first person; the 37Reads8.2Score—14d adds
- 119 A Pure Heart Climbs the Ranks 赤子登阶 [Alternate World + Reincarnated as a Baby + Imperial Exams + Martial Arts + Everyday Life + No Golden Finger] Yang Yuan never imagined he’d wake up one day as a swaddled baby in ancient times. He never imagined that in this strange world, with no System, no pocket dimension, and no golden finger of any kind, he’d have to rely on himself, one step at a time: rolling over, crawling, standing, then memorizing the Thousand Character Classic. He began his studies at three, learned martial arts at fou 14Reads—Score—14d adds
- 120 The Imperial Exams! After Ten Years of Study, I Pass and Take Down the Nobility 科举！寒窗十年，上岸就斩勋贵 “The autumn wind howls in August, sweeping three layers of thatch from my roof!” The moment Mei Cheng'an opened his eyes, he found himself facing a catastrophe. Framed and cast out of the marquis's household by his own father, he was now being hunted, with his life hanging by a thread. He chose to fake his death and flee south to seek refuge with family friends. On the way, however, he ran into an imperial inspector investigating a case. From the inspector, he learned that his family friends had 7.9kReads8.1Score41614d adds
- 121 The Imperial Exams: A Poor Scholar's Journey 科举，寒门读书郎 [Imperial examinations + lighthearted + everyday life + one heroine] Li Chengping transmigrated to Daqian, a strange dynasty. He had planned to live off his family in a scenic spot by the mountains and water, but the backbreaking labor service of ancient times terrified him. If he didn't want to work, he'd have to find another way to live. This is the story of a farmer's son who studies for the imperial examinations. Zhang Erniang: “If you could put in the effort to memorize your books while eat 6Reads6.9Score—14d adds
- 122 Farming Didn’t Work Out, So I Made My Fortune Through the Imperial Examinations 种田不成，只好科举发家 After being transmigrated into a womb, Song Yingzhi was reborn too. In his previous life, Song Yingzhi had been born into the body of a child in a dirt-poor farming family. During the day, he worked in the fields with the men of the household. At night, he slept in the pigsty. When he was sixteen, his grandmother decided to sell the family’s pigs so Song Yingzhi could marry a wife, then cleaned out the pigsty and turned it into his bridal chamber… After getting married, Song Yingzhi became even 3.8kReads7.4Score44814d adds
- 123 The Long Road to the Imperial Exams as a Farmer's Son 穿成农家子的漫漫科举路 He dies unexpectedly, but by Heaven's grace, Zhang Ze is given a new life and born into the womb of a peasant woman. At just five years old, Zhang Ze solemnly tells his parents, “Father, Mother, your little Ze wants to go to school...” Living a decent life in ancient times is incredibly difficult. A simple chill can take your life, not to mention the crushing taxes and forced labor. Zhang Ze understands better than anyone that only earning an official degree can improve his family's life. Even t 2.6kReads7.3Score14214d adds
- 124 The Imperial Examinations: Rising to the First Rank of Officialdom 科举之官居一品 Synopsis: A scholar in the morning, admitted to the imperial court by night. The protagonist begins as a young scholar from a farming family and rises step by step through the imperial examination system. In the end, he earns a place on the honors list, becomes a jinshi, and enters the ranks of officials. After becoming an official, he works his way up through the bureaucracy until he reaches the highest rank and governs the realm as chief minister, guiding Chinese civilization to become the mos 1.9kReads7.6Score10114d adds
- 125 The Exam-System Bargain Hunter Accidentally Wins the Whole Empire 科举捡漏王，一不小心捡了个天下 [Imperial Exam Fiction] [Alternate History] [One Heroine] [No Golden Finger] Xie Qi thought he had died, but one day he woke up to discover that he had transmigrated into the son of a poor farming family in an alternate dynasty. The only way to change his fate was to take the imperial exams! After finally passing the exams and becoming the top scholar, Xie Qi was badly set up by the emperor. He was sent straight to the most remote prefectural city. Since he was here, he might as well make the be 66Reads7.0Score—14d adds
- 126 My Stepfather Set Me on the Road to Success 继父扶我青云路 His scholar father died when Xie Qingshan was three. His widowed mother took him and remarried that very night, and he thought a hard life under someone else’s roof lay ahead. But his stepfather was kindhearted, his step-grandmother warm and caring, and they even gave him the sweet little name Xu Chengzong. The whole family doted on him! With a modern soul in his body, he helps his family eat well and stay warm, then returns to his studies, hoping to pass the exams and become a minor official. 26.3kReads8.1Score1.9k14d adds
- 127 You Asked Me to Ghostwrite a Love Letter, So Why Did My Words Make a Great Scholar Weep? 让你代写情书，你落笔惊哭大儒？ [Imperial Exams] [Poor Family] [Love Letter Ghostwriting] [Farming] [Ensemble Cast] [Political Intrigue] Gu Ci, a PhD in Chinese Language and Literature, opens his eyes to find himself transmigrated into the body of a nine-year-old boy in the Great Feng Dynasty. His family is destitute from the start! His father and uncle have both failed the county exams. His little sister is crying for food, while his mother and older sister toil away weaving cloth! With nowhere else to turn, Gu Ci grabs a wri 110.1kReads8.5Score8.7k14d adds
- 128 When the Clan Got a Cheat 当宗族开了外挂 In 1841, the twenty-two-year-old scholar Mo Wenhua of Ning Tan Town in Lingnan accidentally binds himself to the Doubao System. The Taiping Rebellion is already brewing in the shadows, and the small Mo clan is in grave danger. Tailored to the realities of mid-to-late Qing-era Lingnan, the System provides plans for agricultural improvements, resource management, military training, and anticipating crises. With its help, Mo Wenhua begins by resolving the clan’s struggle to survive, then gradually 63Reads—Score—14d adds
- 129 On the Imperial Exams, Who Knows Who'll Be the One Sweating? 论科举，谁卷谁还不知道呢 In his previous life, he was visiting Dujiangyan with his mentor to draw up reinforcement plans when one misstep cost him everything. When Zhang Shi’an opened his eyes again, he was holding a little stick, facing a golden field of rice. The rice looked unusually small, though. Before he could figure out what he was doing, he spotted several sparrows feasting on the rice. His hands reacted even faster than his mind. He raised the stick and swung it at them. The thieving sparrows soon flew up into 482Reads7.7Score—14d adds
- 130 My Clan Funded My Exams, So I Won My Dog an Imperial Title 全族供我科举路，我赠族犬诰命身 In her previous life, Fang Ziqi was a PhD in science at one of China’s top five universities. In this life, she transmigrates into a farming family in the Great Liang dynasty! A poor household, a father who secretly studies, a biased grandfather, and an uncle who has failed the exams ten times… In an age when everything is inferior to studying, Fang Ziqi has no choice but to tighten her belt and embark on the imperial examination path! She begins her studies at six! Takes the exams at eight! Pas 22.1kReads7.8Score2.2k14d adds
- 131 Reborn in the Womb, I Play at Revenge in an Imperial Exam Novel 胎穿后我在科举文里玩复仇 [Humble Origins + Daily Life + Revenge + Imperial Examinations + Political Scheming + Cunning + No CP + Small Pocket Space (Though I guess a dozen cubic meters still counts)] The orphan Chen Zhijing is born into another life and becomes Chen Shijiu. At last, he has a grandmother who loves him more than life itself, along with parents and an older brother. Just when he thinks he can spend this life happily with his family, working together toward a comfortable life, he is forced onto the path of 302Reads7.3Score—14d adds
- 132 A Scholar from a Humble Home 寒窗读书人 Bystanders: Xu Sandan’s life is over (watching the drama unfold…) Family: What’s going to become of Sandan? (worrying…) Xu Heng (Xu Sandan): My fate is mine to decide, not Heaven’s (striving…) A story about Xu Heng, who transmigrates into a desperate situation from the start. With a disabled body and a poor family, he fights against a cruel fate step by step through his own efforts, ultimately turning his life around. An uplifting story about farming, cozy everyday life, and hard work. P.S. Ther 4.2kReads8.6Score33114d adds
- 133 A Farm Boy's Road to Turning His Life Around Through the Imperial Exams 农家少年科举翻身路 In his previous life, Hang Yan had always been a top student, but he never managed to make anything of himself. He went from being a beloved prodigy to a wage slave everyone pitied. People said good grades were useless, but then he was reborn in the womb and returned to an era when studying could change your fate. A dilapidated home, a doting family, I, a genius boy, will pass all six imperial examinations and rise to power over the whole court. Go ahead and tell me studying is useless again. I 129Reads8.6Score—14d adds
- 134 Poor-Born Child Prodigy: At Five and a Half, I Face-Slap My Entire Clan in the Imperial Exams 寒门神童：五岁半科举打脸全族 [Genius child from the start, satisfying comeback, putting every skeptic in their place!] Xu Fei is a five-and-a-half-year-old farm boy who was born into an ancient era, yet is treated as a “nobody” by his family. His biased grandmother makes him work and feed the chickens, while every egg goes to his thirty-year-old uncle, a licentiate who has yet to pass the imperial exams, and his “child prodigy” cousin! Xu Fei is furious: Pretend to be a prodigy? I can do that, too! He recites poetry in publ 4.5kReads8.0Score32614d adds
- 135 Born into a Farmer's Family as Their Late-Born Son, I Change Our Fortunes Through the Imperial Exams 胎穿农家老来子，靠科举改换门庭 [Imperial Examinations + Daily Life + No Golden Finger] Just after passing the civil service exam, Song Xi was sent by a cement truck trying to meet its quota to an ancient dynasty called Great Qi. He was reborn as a farmer's son, and his mother gave birth to him at an advanced age, drawing plenty of ridicule from those around them. His family owned nothing but four bare walls, and they could afford meat only once or twice a year. Fortunately, his family loved him, and he had something to look f 19.7kReads8.3Score1.8k14d adds
- 136 The New Dynasty's Turmoil Begins with a Poor Scholar in Yuezhou 新朝风云，从岳州寒门开始 Lin Yue, a graduate student and a battle-hardened special forces king, dies in the line of duty and awakens in a war-torn era reminiscent of the late Yuan. He is now a poor young man on the verge of death in Yuezhou. In his previous life, he excelled in both letters and arms; in this one, he has nothing. He studies ancient characters and goes into business; he recites the classics and strengthens his body. Drawing on both his knowledge and his own abilities, he rises through the county, prefectu 37Reads—Score—14d adds
- 137 A Traditional Chinese Medicine Doctor in Ancient Times: My Frail Husband Works His Way Up to Grand Secretary 中医穿古代：病弱夫君卷成首辅了 [A romance-averse, emotionally steady physician of traditional Chinese medicine x an unlucky, beautiful, fragile scholar] [Transmigration + System + Medicine + Imperial Examinations + Heartwarming + No awful characters] Li Nanxing transmigrated as an ancient girl with the same name as her own, and even got bound to a medical System. Thanks for asking. I'm in ancient times, just transmigrated, and from the start I've been given a “skinny dog” of a fiancé. His father died young, his mother died of 2kReads8.8Score28714d adds
- 138 Reborn as a Cannon-Fodder Man in a Broken Engagement Face-Slapping Story 穿成退婚打脸文里的炮灰男 [Imperial Exams, One-on-One Romance] [Not a Power Fantasy] (The rating just came out, so it might go up later?) At first, Lu Heming thought he had transmigrated, or perhaps there had been water in Granny Meng’s soup, allowing him to be reborn with memories of his past life. It wasn’t until he turned six that he realized he had transmigrated into a women’s novel about a broken engagement and face-slapping revenge. But he was neither the male lead who would join hands with the heroine and reach th 608Reads8.4Score—14d adds
- 139 A Farmer's Son's Road to the Imperial Exams: Defying Fate to Become a Hanlin Scholar 农家子弟科举路：逆袭命运翰林郎 [Alternate History + Imperial Examinations + Transmigration + Farming + Exams + Pocket-Space System] There's a romance, and the male and female leads are childhood sweethearts. The story mainly focuses on the imperial examinations. A simple, honest father, a mother who won't put up with being mistreated, a henpecked grandfather, and a difficult grandmother make for all kinds of everyday family drama. Through hard work and good luck, the male lead gradually rises through the ranks. The pocket-spa 408Reads7.5Score—14d adds
- 140 A Humble Scholar in Commoner's Clothes 布衣小书生 He went up the mountain to look for a sheep, accidentally fell off a cliff, and woke up to find himself reborn as a baby in an unknown dynasty. He looked around and discovered that his family was dirt poor: they had too little to eat, too little to wear, and lived in a mud house where rain poured outside and dripped inside. He had an older sister and a younger sister. He had thought that, with his modern soul, he could surely make a brilliant life for himself, but he never expected fate to deal 908Reads7.4Score11414d adds
- 141 I'm a Seven-Year-Old Prodigy, and I'll Earn Six Honors in the Imperial Exams 我七岁神童，科举路上六元及第 In his previous life, Su Mingli was a genius with a photographic memory. In this life, he was born into a poor family in the Great Zhou Dynasty and awakened the wisdom of his past life at age seven! Just look at this family: bran porridge every day, an honest older brother and sister-in-law working themselves to the bone, a good-for-nothing cousin, Su Mingzhi, who has failed the children's imperial exam six times, and parents nearly driven mad by the imperial examinations! Su Mingli: ...I can't 34Reads8.8Score—14d adds
- 142 The Imperial Exam's Oxherd Class: A Young Scholar's Teacher Produces Three Thousand Successful Candidates 科举放牛班，童生夫子教出进士三千 A paradise for exam failures, and a graveyard for renowned scholars. A group of spoiled officials’ sons has become the century-old academy’s newest headache. The old scholar was so furious he suffered a stroke. Chen Fan, a licentiate serving as an assistant instructor, activated the god-tier imperial exam teaching System and was appointed head of the academy in its hour of need. The mischievous magistrate’s son mastered the Five Classics in four months. The unruly prefect’s son became the top sc 1.9kReads8.9Score17314d adds
- 143 The Daily Life of a Minor Official's Son Preparing for the Imperial Exams 小官之子科举日常 [Woman Transmigrates into a Man + Imperial Exams + Farmer's Son + No Problematic Family Members + No Pocket Dimension + No Golden Finger] Lin He, a graduate student in history, transmigrates into the Great Qi, a dynasty that never existed in history, and goes from being a woman to a man. His family has nothing to its name: his father is a catlike academic prodigy, his mother a tigerlike farmer, and Lin He's life is a constant struggle. Fortunately, his father earned the jinshi degree early on, a 1.7kReads8.8Score12514d adds
- 144 The Su Family's Castoff Tops the Imperial Exams, and the Whole Clan Begs for His Protection 苏家弃子中状元，全祖哭求我庇佑 [Historical fiction + humble beginnings + imperial examinations + power plays + satisfying revenge + intellectual duels + high-IQ protagonist + cunning + ruthless] On a snowy night, I, Su Yan, was cast out of the family and expelled from the grand estate, abandoned like a pawn. I was an illegitimate son who should never have been born, a thorn in my legitimate mother’s side and dirt beneath my elder brother’s feet. They thought I would freeze and starve to death that winter. Little did they know 79Reads6.7Score11114d adds
- 145 Rising from Poverty: From the Imperial Exams to the Officialdom 寒门崛起，从科举入仕开始 (The rating just came out, so it's normal for it to be a little low. Don't worry, enjoy!) [Farming + Imperial Examinations + Alternate History + Ancient Setting] After an accident, Wang Bo, a farmer's son in ancient times, absorbed the memories of his previous life. The good news: His mind held thousands of books from the twenty-first century, and he had a photographic memory. The bad news: His family was so poor they lived on bran, and they still had to scrape together every last bit to fund hi 2kReads8.5Score18014d adds
- 146 I Became the Uncrowned King Through the Imperial Exams, So I Won't Take the Throne 科举卷到无冕之王，老子就不登基 [A reading guide: Imperial examinations + solving cases = a promotion guide to ancient criminal investigation] Huang Dingzhou is reborn in the Jin dynasty as the thirteenth legitimate son of the Duke of Protecting the State's household. Yet as the youngest legitimate son, he is neither loved by his father nor cared for by his mother, and is kept under strict supervision. By a twist of fate, he discovers that he is not truly a legitimate son. After finally passing the imperial examinations, he re 29Reads8.6Score—14d adds
- 147 Transmigration: From the Imperial Exams to Chief Grand Secretary 穿越：从科举开始的内阁首辅之路 An ordinary university student transmigrates into the son of a small landowner in ancient times. He takes the imperial exams and enters government service under the Great Feng dynasty, rising through the ranks step by step. Of all pursuits, study is supreme. “What? Young Master Wang has passed the county-level scholar exam!” “Young Master Wang really is impressive!” “Scholar Wang has passed the provincial exam and become a juren!” “I hear Wang, the top scholar in the provincial exam, passed the 38Reads—Score—14d adds
- 148 Taking My Father’s Place in the Imperial Exams, Starting at Six 替父科举！从六岁开始 No corvee labor, no land tax. Crossing the class divide feels amazing! No wonder my father was willing to do anything to pass the imperial exams! The exams broke the aristocratic clans' monopoly on official careers under the Nine-Rank System, which had been in place since the Wei and Jin dynasties. With examinations at their core, they gave ordinary scholars a way to rise above their station. The appeal of the exams went straight to the heart of people's everyday concerns. Once scholars passed t 700Reads7.3Score10014d adds
- 149 The Imperial Exams: Soaring Ninety Thousand Miles 科举之扶摇直上九万里 Li Yanqing transmigrated to the Great Qi, a fictional dynasty. He told himself, “No need to worry. I’m a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine. I can make a good life for myself anywhere.” But his father died, leaving behind a final wish: Li Yanqing should study, take the imperial exams, become an official, and make something of himself. To fulfill his father’s wish, Li Yanqing embarked on a decade of arduous study. Li Yanqing thought that since fate had brought him here, he ought to make use o 2kReads8.7Score14614d adds
- 150 After Rewriting the Family Tree, Smoke Rose from the Ancestors' Graves: I'm Rich! 重开族谱后祖坟冒青烟，发家啦！ [Business] [Imperial Exams] [Alternate Setting] [Everyday Life] [A Touch of Romance] Modern intangible cultural heritage video editor Li Yanning is in a car accident and transmigrates into the body of Li Yanning, a frail five-year-old boy. His biased grandfather and sharp-tongued step-grandmother are ready to let him die! Luckily, his reliable birth parents go all out to protect him. So touching... But after the family splits up, they're left with nothing. His parents are bullied, and his greedy 3.6kReads8.6Score32714d adds
