Novels like Shanghai's Spies and Bandits
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Shanghai's Spies and Bandits, best match first.
- 1 Shadows of Spies in Shanghai: I Can Analyze Anything 淞沪谍影：我能解析万物 In a city rife with undercurrents, I’m the most inconspicuous apprentice. By day, I work with machines; By night, I keep company with the shadows. They call me “Ghost” because I can always work miracles. But only I know that I’m just a mechanic trying to protect the small haven behind me. 26Reads—Score—Shelves
- 2 The Three Great Campaigns: Pingjin (Encircling and Annihilating the 35th Army at Xinbao’an) 三大战役之平津（新保安围歼35军） The Three Great Campaigns: Pingjin (Encircling and Destroying the 35th Army at Xinbao'an) 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 3 World War II: The Invasion of Sicily (The Show Begins) 二战风云之西西里岛登陆（好戏登场） The Second World War: The Landing in Sicily (The Show Begins) —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 4 World War II: The Invasion of Sicily (Operation Mincemeat) 二战风云之西西里岛登陆（肉馅行动） The Second World War: The Landing in Sicily (Operation Mincemeat) —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 5 The Sichuan Army Corps: A Bloody Fight Against the Japanese! 浴血川军团，血战日寇！ A Sichuan Army story about resisting the Japanese, from the Battle of Shanghai to the jungles of Burma. This novel won’t give its characters overwhelming cheats, and aims to portray the brutal reality of history as faithfully as possible. The Japanese invaders must be wiped out to the last man. I also hope all my esteemed readers never forget our nation’s humiliation! Readers who enjoy War of Resistance stories are welcome to give this one a try. We won’t return home until the Japanese are defea 197Reads8.4Score—Shelves
- 6 Reborn in 1935: National Hatred and Family Feud 重生1935国仇家恨 A foreign-language translator is reborn in Northeast China in 1935. After watching his entire family die at the hands of the Japanese, he sets out on a path of revenge. Of course, he has to have a cheat: a Sumeru space that grows alongside him. 91Reads7.1Score—Shelves
- 7 This Ragtag Crew Is Surprisingly Fierce 这伙草台班子有点猛 220Reads6.5Score—Shelves
- 8 Building a Reputation in Republican China 我在民国刷声望 Synopsis: When Gu Zhangge opened his eyes, he had become a fourteen-year-old raw recruit amid a hail of bullets atop Nanchang’s city walls. His comrades were on the brink of death, and the charge signal sounded shrill and piercing. At this desperate moment, the “Battlefield Prestige System” suddenly activated. The braver he performed, the higher his prestige and the better his rewards! But the System was stingy and brutally practical: want a first-aid kit? Earn enough prestige first! Want a good 10Reads—Score—Shelves
- 9 The Three Great Campaigns: Pingjin (Breaking Through Tianjin’s Defenses) 三大战役之平津（速破天津城防） The Three Great Campaigns: Pingjin (Breaking Through Tianjin's Defenses) 1Reads—Score—Shelves
- 10 World War II: The Bombing of Chongqing (The One-Armed Bandit Case) 二战风云之重庆大轰炸（独臂大盗案） The Second World War: The Bombing of Chongqing (The One-Armed Bandit Case) 2Reads—Score—Shelves
- 11 King of Spies: Shanghai from the Start 谍战之王：开局上海滩 Parallel World! Parallel World! Parallel World! [Spy thriller + Military Statistics Bureau + Cheat powers + Feel-good story] On the eve of the 1937 Incident. Lin Feng, a young agent newly returned from studying abroad, awakens a telepathic ability and sets out to destroy the Special Higher Police. Don't lie to me. I can hear the spy inside you. The overall course of history will remain unchanged. —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 12 The Dead Man's Stand-In 替死人 On the verge of death, actor Gu Changsheng picked up the face of a dead man. From then on, he lived in place of the dead and died in place of the living. Wearing the face of a Japanese interpreter, he infiltrated the Special Services Section, serving the Nationalist intelligence service while passing information to the underground Communist Party. In the three-way struggle, he turned Shanghai upside down, one borrowed face at a time. 14Reads—Score—Shelves
- 13 War of Resistance: Starting as a Routed Soldier in Shanghai 抗战：从淞沪溃兵开始 “A modern person transmigrates into the War of Resistance against Japan. Any problem with killing Japanese invaders?” “No problem. Just get on with it!” “What if you start as a cannon fodder foot soldier?” “Doesn’t matter. Dying on the battlefield is a worthy death!” “What if you’re given a military game System and a three-dimensional tactical map?” “Then what are we waiting for? I can fight my way to the Japanese mainland!” Liu Hansheng transmigrates to the anti-Japanese battlefield. He’s there 5Reads7.1Score—Shelves
- 14 1860: The Rise of China 1860：中华崛起 In 1861, the United States plunged into civil war and began its rise to global dominance. In 1868, Japan's Meiji Restoration let the demon show its claws. In 1870, Italy unified and began its path to power. In 1871, the German Empire was founded and embarked on its iron-blooded campaign. Britain and France still basked in their glory, while the tsar's greed remained undiminished. Into this age of fierce rivalries, Ning Han arrived in 1860. He defeated the Hunan Army, crushed the Huai Army, pacif 291Reads6.5Score—Shelves
- 15 Espionage: You'd Better Come Clean 谍战：你最好老实交代 In this dark forest where everyone is acting and everyone is lying, Jia Derang serves his country with a unique ability. Whenever someone lies in front of him, their body glows red. Other people use torture to interrogate suspects. Jia Derang just “reads their faces.” Whether he’s dealing with Japanese spies who deny everything or collaborators who weep and beg for mercy, Jia Derang always greets them with a smile: “Relax. You’d better come clean.” After all, when the red glow from your body is 530Reads—Score104Shelves
- 16 The Infiltrator: Spy Hunter 潜伏者【猎谍】 A young man named Chen Heng is accidentally swept into a turbulent era by a copper pocket watch. Watch as he lies low in the shadows, builds an intelligence network, hunts spies, and works step by step toward the ideal he holds dear. 108Reads—Score103Shelves
- 17 War of Resistance: My System Is Incredibly Powerful 抗战：我的统子很强大 Synopsis: An utterly ordinary man surnamed Wu loses his job, then his phone explodes and sends him hurtling into a parallel world of wartime dramas. A system arrives just in time to save Wu De, who is shivering in the freezing wind. Unfortunately, his system is a cut-down version, but at least it’s powerful and very generous. With his cheat activated, Old Wu declares: “I don’t know any other tactics. I’ve got one: blow them up, keep blowing them up, and blow them up some more!” The problem of in 8Reads6.9Score—Shelves
- 18 War of Resistance Commander: Rebuilding the Sichuan Army from the Start 抗战团长：开局重整川军团 A true man serves his country today! In 1942, at Zhandan, the Nu River roars and the Japanese invaders bare their fangs! Chen Li arrives at a wounded soldiers' holding station, where the place is crawling with retreating troops, the few survivors left after bloody battles. A single order from their superiors could turn them into cannon fodder, worthless and expendable! Chen Li is furious. He has to change their fate! Brothers, let's share a meal of cabbage and pork stewed with glass noodles! Bro 333Reads6.8Score—Shelves
- 19 A Republican-Era Private 民国大头兵 These events all truly happened in history, and now they are replaying before your eyes. Pick up your weapon and fight like a true soldier. Everything you do comes from the most instinctive call within you. The protagonist, Ma Chenggong, transmigrates to the Republic of China era as a common soldier and fights the Japanese. 98Reads6.4Score—Shelves
- 20 War of Resistance: Sniping Through the Flames of 1937 抗战：1937烽火狙击 Synopsis: In 1937, by the Marco Polo Bridge, the land was shattered and the nation faced disaster! The Japanese invaders advanced relentlessly, and Beiping stood on the brink of falling! Liu Ziye, China’s finest sniper, returns without hesitation at this moment of national peril. With a lone city as his battlefield, he vows to fight the invaders to the bitter end! No supplies. No reinforcements. Only the rifle in his hands and a heart burning with patriotism! From the streets and alleyways to t 361Reads6.4Score—Shelves
- 21 War of Resistance: Flames Across the River 抗战：烽火焠川 Flames of War, 1932: My Industrial Base for the War of Resistance Liu Yishou, a young man from the modern era, unexpectedly transmigrates to Sichuan in 1932 and becomes a member of a local family. China is in turmoil and foreign threats are looming, yet Sichuan remains mired in internal strife and hardship. Faced with a nation in peril, Liu Yishou resolves to do his part in the struggle for national survival that may lie ahead. Drawing on his foresight and steadfast convictions, he starts in a 8Reads—Score—Shelves
- 22 Shadows on the Jianghu 江湖谍影 A traditional spy thriller, with no transmigration and no golden finger for the protagonist. Please don't flame me if that's not your thing. A legendary espionage tale set during the War of Resistance, starring Du Yunfan, a Shanghai street punk, and Shen Peiyao, a Communist agent. After an accident draws Du Yunfan into a deadly clash between the Military Statistics Bureau and Japanese spies, he is forced to pose as Shen Peiyao's husband. Little does he know she is the childhood sweetheart he los —Reads—Score—Shelves
- 23 Espionage: Finding Life in Desperate Straits 谍战之绝处逢生 Against the enemy, he is a sharp sword. To destroy them, he must endure humiliation and bear heavy burdens. He longs to live beneath the "sunlight," but his duty confines him to the "shadows." This story is dedicated to the unsung heroes who gave everything for their country! 82Reads7.4Score114Shelves
- 24 War of Resistance: The More Japanese Soldiers I Kill, the Stronger I Get 抗战：从杀鬼子开始，越杀越强 He transmigrates into the world of Snow Leopard and becomes Zhou Weiguo. Jinling has just fallen, and he gathers men to fight the Japanese, rescue Xiao Ya, and save countless soldiers and civilians. 301Reads6.6Score—Shelves
- 25 Espionage in the War Against Japan: Code Name God of Wealth 谍战抗日：代号财神爷 The orphaned child of an elder of the Tongmenghui joins our organization as an undercover operative while studying in Japan. Sent to Shanghai to procure supplies for the War of Resistance, he is unexpectedly recruited by the Juntong as an intelligence agent. Song Zhiren awakens the “Espionage Supplies Assistance System,” and a legendary tycoon takes his place on the stage of history. 46Reads—Score—Shelves
- 26 A Tangled Web of Espionage: I’ll Be the Ninth of the Eight Guardians! 谍综重重：八大金刚我行九！ [From Juntong bigwig Brother Jiu to Marquis Ju, and then to Springtime in Hong Kong!] [Female lead Li Ningyu + turning Japanese loyalists into capable servants] Everyone knows that Dai Li’s most capable men in the Lixing Society are known as the Eight Vajras. But who says the Eight Vajras can’t have a ninth member? Here he comes, walking straight toward you! The Nationalist government’s intelligence community’s god of fortune! A trusted confidant of the Japanese Central China Expeditionary Army, 21.7kReads7.5Score2.3kShelves
- 27 The Flames of Songhu 烽火淞沪 Chen Zhe is in a car accident and arrives in 1937, during the Battle of Shanghai on August 13, taking over the body of another man with the same name. This Chen Zhe is a platoon leader in the artillery battalion of the 521st Regiment, 261st Brigade, 87th Division of the Nationalist Army. He comes from a prominent family and possesses knowledge from the future. See how he strikes at the Japanese invaders, keeps himself safe, and lives to see the end of the War of Resistance. 86Reads7.2Score—Shelves
- 28 Espionage Shadows on the Shanghai Bund 谍影上海滩 During the War of Resistance Against Japan, under the Wang Jingwei puppet regime, an engineering student transmigrates into the body of Yu Xia, director of the Special Operations Department at No. 76. Yu Xia, also known as the Smiling Tiger, is infamous as a living King of Hell. His ruthless methods make people tremble with fear at the mere mention of his name. See how Yu Xia, with blood on his hands, seeks redemption while trapped behind enemy lines. The story is full of twists and turns, so fa 532Reads8.2Score104Shelves
- 29 Espionage: Too Many Identities? How Many Undercover Jobs Are You Working? 谍战：身份太多？你卧几个底啊 I'm Lin Tiannan, the son of a wealthy family in Jiangshan, Zhejiang. I'm an agent for the Red Organization, codename Deep Sea. I'm the Military Statistics Bureau's ace agent, Foolish Old Man. I'm also Lord Nan, a Shanghai underworld boss; a special adviser to the Central Statistics Bureau; a spy for the Special Higher Police; chief inspector of the Maillane Police Station in the French Concession; and a major general and division commander in the puppet government. It all began when my handl 29.4kReads8.6Score2.9kShelves
- 30 War of Resistance: Flames of War Across Ten Thousand Miles 抗战之烽烟万里 [Transmigration] [Ruthless War Against Japan] Li Hong transmigrates to 1937 and becomes a company commander on the front lines. He fights his way through bloody battles against the invaders, building factories, promoting education, and pushing reforms to forge a powerful, battle-hardened army. Leading his forces east, he defeats one powerful enemy after another, sweeping all before him and annihilating countless foes. He helps his nation rise anew from the flames of war and makes the world look 163Reads6.8Score115Shelves
- 31 Spy War: Three Reckless Men Match Wits at Jianghan Pass 谍战，三莽汉斗智斗勇江汉关 Zhang Fei, Cheng Yaojin, and Li Kui gather at Hankou’s Jianghan Customs House. Amid all the noise and commotion, they fight the Japanese, kill collaborators, and pass along intelligence, offering a reading experience unlike any other. See how these three brawny heroes match wits and courage! 3Reads—Score—Shelves
- 32 Espionage: Telling Jokes in Republican-Era China 谍战：我在民国说段子 After staying up all night ranting about spy dramas, 996 office drone Cheng Ming wakes up having transmigrated to Shanghai in 1938, now under occupation! From the start, he's an abandoned pawn of the military intelligence service, pursued by traitors at No. 76 and surrounded by Japanese agents. He just transmigrated, and already he's about to get himself killed? Fortunately, he awakens a historical-commentary golden finger. While others rely on marksmanship and strategy to go undercover, he uses 51Reads—Score—Shelves
- 33 Shadows of Espionage: Operation Rat Hunt 谍影重袭：猎鼠行动 This is the second espionage novel following Shadow in the Clouds. It is about a “mole's nest” that has infiltrated the upper ranks of the Ministry of State Security, and the series of life-and-death struggles between Luan Jianglong, Zhou Yutong, and the “mole's nest”… 18Reads—Score—Shelves
- 34 From the Start, I Merged with Yan Shuangying and Tore Through the Espionage World 开局融合燕双鹰，我把谍战杀穿了 [Spy thriller + System + feel-good power fantasy + high ratings + a veteran author with ten million words who never leaves a story unfinished] Shen Qingshan accidentally transmigrates to the twenty-fifth year of the Republic of China and becomes cannon fodder in the Lixing Society's action squad. Just as he hesitates over whether to run for it, he gains all of Yan Shuangying's abilities. From then on, his fate is in his own hands, not Heaven's! 387Reads6.7Score—Shelves
- 35 War of Resistance: Starting in Western Hubei 抗战：从鄂西开始 [Battle of Zaoyi] + [Battle of Yichang] + [Aerial combat] + [Defense of Changsha] In 1940, smoke chokes the skies over the Battle of Zaoyi. The entire eastern Xiangyang front collapses, General Zhang Zizhong dies for his country, and the main Japanese force advances straight toward Yichang. Honghuatao, the western gateway to Hubei, is a vital route for the Japanese advance. The isolated 185th Division faces certain death, with no hope of reinforcements. The newly appointed division commander, Li 5.6kReads6.1Score238Shelves
- 36 Spycraft in the War of Resistance 抗战谍门 Shen Mobei has a secret: he can travel freely between the Republic of China era and 2026. Using modern supplies and his foreknowledge, Shen Mobei maneuvers among the various factions. He rescues the Red Party and joins the Military Statistics Bureau, becoming a mysterious figure everyone wants to recruit and eliminate. Dai Li calls him "Ghost Fox": a ghost for his uncanny comings and goings, a fox for his cunning and intelligence. The Japanese want to uncover where his supplies come from. The Wa 84Reads7.0Score160Shelves
- 37 The Whampoa Campaign 黄埔征程 Cheng Yuanzhi, the son of a wealthy merchant, refused to accept the marriage his family had arranged for him. He stole the family's treasured copy of The Art of War and ran away from home, heading south to apply to Huangpu Military Academy and begin his military career! 72Reads6.4Score—Shelves
- 38 War of Resistance: From Snow Leopard to Bright Sword, I Am the Warlord King 抗战：从雪豹亮剑，我是军阀之王 [Drawing Sword + Warlords + Republican Era + Military Industry + Patriotism] Zhou Weiguo transmigrates to 1933 and becomes one of the Hunan warlords. He also obtains the Ultimate Enemy-Slaying System, which grants unlimited rewards for every enemy he kills! Ding-dong! Kill three thousand invaders, and receive ten thousand Barrett rifles! Ding-dong! Put down the unrest in Fengtian, and receive ten thousand rocket launchers! Zhou Weiguo continues killing invaders and restoring order. Weapons p 5Reads5.8Score—Shelves
- 39 Spy-Battle Match-Three 谍战消消乐 A modern-day special police officer transmigrates into the puppet state of Manchukuo as a low-ranking policeman. Li Bai unexpectedly acquires a match-three System, and thus begins a winding, eventful career as an undercover agent. Completing missions expands an enormous pocket dimension and can even grant him unique special abilities. The System’s astonishing bonus rewards turn out to be all kinds of beautiful women. Li Bai is having the time of his life. Keeping a low profile in enemy territory 9kReads8.2Score718Shelves
- 40 A Lane Boy's War of Resistance 弄堂小子的抗战 Chen Agen grew up in the alleys of Shanghai and learned extraordinary martial arts from the reclusive master Lu Zijian, known as "Ghost Shadow." Carrying the simple ideal of upholding justice, he joined the police force. But after he unexpectedly saved Wu Siba, a powerful officer in the Japanese puppet organization known as Unit 76, he was forced into the den of evil and became a member of the collaborationist secret service headquarters. There, he witnessed the invaders' brutality and endured 140Reads—Score—Shelves
- 41 War of Resistance: Ballistics Leave No Trace 抗战：弹道无痕 Resistance War: The Invisible Bullet A lone rifle and a talking donkey write an immortal legend behind enemy lines. Synopsis: Li Gousheng, an international shooting champion, accidentally transmigrates to the Taihang Mountains in 1938. There, he discovers that he has the memories of a modern sniper and a mysterious Enemy-Hunting System. Dressed in camouflage and armed with a Kar98k sniper rifle, he becomes the “Ghost Gunner” feared by the Japanese army. His companion is Qingyun, a gray donkey wh 441Reads8.2Score—Shelves
- 42 You Were Supposed to Infiltrate, Not Become a Japanese Colonel! 让你潜伏，没让你当鬼子大佐呀！ [Smart Protagonist]+ [Corrupting the Japanese Army]+ [Decisive and Ruthless]+ [Master of Disguise] Transmigrate into a Japanese cannon-fodder soldier on the Songhu battlefield? No problem, I have a complete knowledge of history! A lost little agent from the Military Statistics Bureau infiltrates the Japanese army, planning to keep his head down until victory. Instead, he kills a sergeant, sells weapons, passes along intelligence, and accidentally becomes a Japanese general. Director Dai of the M 5.1kReads6.1Score328Shelves
- 43 A Book by the Dance of the Storm 风暴之舞的一本书 After transmigrating, Lin Ming makes the Japanese pirates his prey, vowing to leave the invaders lying in heaps. With no System to help him, he develops a tank industry, builds an aviation sector and a powerful fleet, and raises a formidable mechanized army. Then he launches a counterattack on enemy soil, joins the war, and restores the eternal glory of the Jiuzhou Continent. 26Reads7.4Score—Shelves
- 44 Beacon Fires: Whether the Capital Falls into Chaos Is Up to Master Wen 狼烟：四九城乱不乱文爷说了算 Wen San, the little top from Beiping, makes a comeback as Master Wen and stirs up the chaos of a turbulent age! Light power fantasy + multiple female leads + a moderate golden finger + plot-focused + genuine patriotic spirit A crossover with the anti-Japanese war universe: Zhou Weiguo and Chen Yi from Snow Leopard; Mu Wanchu and Cuiping from Lurking; Tian Jiatai and Ding Yujiao from Eight Thousand Miles of Clouds and Moon; Li Dashiben, Sai Diaochan, and Camel Xiangzi... Wen San rises to become a 2.5kReads—Score190Shelves
- 45 Espionage: Shadow Without a Trace 谍战：无间谍影 A story about a modern man who transmigrates into the espionage-ridden Republic of China. The first hundred chapters mainly cover some spy cases in Jinling. I feel like the protagonist hasn't really had a chance to show what he can do yet. My initial plan is to send him into enemy-occupied territory after the first hundred chapters, where he can finally unleash his full potential. Art is a big explosion. 200Reads—Score—Shelves
- 46 War of Resistance: Starting with the Battle of Shanghai 抗战之从淞沪会战开始 “I'm going to Songhu?” Xu Zhixing somehow ends up in Songhu. He demonstrates his “abilities” in front of Alexander von Falkenhausen, thinking he'll rise to success. Instead, success sends him straight to Songhu. He wanted to be a staff officer, but they drag him off to the front lines. 25Reads8.4Score—Shelves
- 47 I Sign In to the Republic-Era Spy System From the Start 我，开局签到民国特务系统 After transmigrating to the Republican era, I started out with the Japanese chasing me down. At the critical moment, the System activated. Sign in: obtained fluency in Japanese and a pistol. I fired back and killed them on the spot. From then on, Peking gained a living King of Hell whom everyone feared. I kill collaborators, steal weapons, infiltrate the Japanese military, and turn beautiful female spies to my side... Other people rely on their brains to play spy games. I rely on sign-ins. As lo 1kReads—Score116Shelves
- 48 Espionage: I Am a Parrot 谍战之我是鹦鹉 Not a bleeding heart, not invincible, a master of keeping his head down. A model citizen born under the red flag and raised in the spring breeze, he suddenly finds himself in the war-torn year of 1938. He has plenty of passion but no courage, and has always believed that keeping a low profile is the way to survive. After gaining a parrot double, he thrives in the secret service. You think I'm Juntong? You think I'm a traitor? You think I'm with the Red Party? No! I'm a parrot. 634Reads5.9Score—Shelves
- 49 Why Should I Put Up with This? I'm Zhou Weiguo 为何要忍，我是周卫国 While carrying out a mission, special forces soldier Zhou Weiguo was ambushed by a traitor and killed by a sniper's bullet. He unexpectedly transmigrates into the world of Snow Leopard, taking over the body of Zhou Wen, the Zhou family's second young master, who shares his name. Thus begins an extraordinary journey. Since this is such a passionate era, Zhou Weiguo decides he will live an extraordinary life and never back down. 47Reads6.5Score—Shelves
- 50 The National Defense Army's God of War in 1937 国防军神在1937 Xie Peng, a postdoctoral researcher at the National Defense University, woke up as a junior adjutant in Jinshanwei in 1937. With just 25 days until the Japanese army landed and massacred the locals, he had only four hundred poorly equipped soldiers. While everyone else fled, he led the people in digging traps, planting mines, and making explosives. The System simulated every bloody battle in his mind: eight thousand enemies killed in the first battle, nine thousand in the second, and in the thir 659Reads—Score—Shelves
