Novels like Cliffhanger: The Butterfly at Dawn
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as Cliffhanger: The Butterfly at Dawn, best match first.
- 1 The Nameless Reverse Blade 逆刃无名 Spy thriller + Republican-era China + agents + mystery and deduction + careful planning + high-IQ mind games + undercover work + no romance In 1934, Shanghai was shrouded in turmoil. Shen Yan, a proofreader at a small newspaper, was an ordinary man with just two extraordinary qualities: a photographic memory and an unmatched talent for keeping his abilities hidden. A circle-shaped coded message, a ragtag team of five, and an assassination that would shake the world. He killed the traitor in thre 112Reads—Score—14d adds
- 2 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—Score10314d adds
- 3 Republican-Era Espionage: The Winds of Change 民国谍战之风起云涌 For the shame of the nation and the pain of our families, we will never rest until the Japanese invaders are defeated. Our blood soaks the scorched earth. We are sons of China, brave and true. This is a true story from the years of resistance against Japan. The King of Espionage emerges, reminding us never to forget the heroes of the unseen front. 15.2kReads8.8Score1.6k14d adds
- 4 Four Hundred Men Held the Rear, and for 14 Years, No Order to Retreat Came 四百人断后，14年没有撤退命令 Dedicated to the 90th anniversary of the Red Army's victory in the Long March, and to the brave souls who risked everything in the people's war. You laid down your lives to pave the road to a brighter future. With a devotion that will never fade, we honor every undying spirit of loyalty. I believe the opening chapters will draw huge traffic, because the story is even more explosive. [War of Resistance Espionage · History · Spy Thriller · Special Forces · No Female Lead · Power Struggle · No Ha 1.3kReads—Score—14d adds
- 5 Code Name: Migratory Bird 代号候鸟 A heart-pounding covert war, as deep as the ocean! The most enduring declaration of love in the world is staying by someone’s side… 1kReads7.7Score10314d adds
- 6 Glory in the Dust 尘埃里的荣耀 Anti-Japanese War spy intrigue + espionage, history + agents, powerful figures + power struggles, face-slapping Late autumn, 1948. The operations room of the Xuzhou Suppression Headquarters. Just as Section Chief Guo Zhun, a major general, reaches for the gun in his desk drawer, Shen Xingzhi, a special agent from the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics, walks in. He says he’s there for a cup of tea, but his eyes are fixed on Guo Zhun’s shoes. Hidden in the heel is a roll of microfilm that co 4.1kReads8.0Score31714d adds
- 7 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—Score10414d adds
- 8 Lone Hero of Yingxiong 孤胆雄英 Tags: Republic of China era, espionage, passionate, mind games, ruthless, warlord rivalries, love of family and country [Ruthless hero returns + espionage and mind games + decisive and ruthless + beauties of a chaotic age] Shanghai, a city awash in blood and turmoil. Chen Moyan awakens to find his fellow agents dead and himself a “lone ghost” with the Juntong’s guns trained on him. Kill his colleagues to earn their trust? He becomes Juntong’s sharpest blade, earning the nickname “Chen the King o 1.8kReads8.6Score16814d adds
- 9 Espionage: I Have a Phantom Express Van 谍战，我有一辆幽灵快递车 [Espionage] + [Behind Enemy Lines] + [Multiple Identities] + [Spatial Powers] + [The Green Gang]... The moment Yu Yang opened his eyes, he found himself in Republican-era Shanghai, a low-level Green Gang thug tasked with watching over a venue. He was also the Military Statistics Bureau's most peripheral informant, so peripheral he wasn't even worthy of a code name... One intelligence handoff caught the attention of the bureau's headquarters. Dai Li said, "From now on, his code name will be Lon 42.7kReads7.9Score4.2k14d adds
- 10 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 84Reads7.0Score16014d adds
- 11 Espionage: I Took Out the Tokko Chief from the Start 谍战：开局就干掉了特高科科长 (Spy thriller + Transmigration + System + Saving the nation and its people + Ruthless action + Feel-good power fantasy) A homebody transmigrated into the body of an ace agent codenamed Viper. As soon as he arrived, fate played a joke on him: almost as if in a dream, he killed the head of the Special Higher Police. He was thrown straight into the military police prison. But there was always a way out. With his life hanging in the balance, he turned the tables and walked out in spectacular fash 43Reads—Score—14d adds
- 12 Code Name: Wick 谍战代号灯芯 Espionage · play the pig to eat the tiger · battles of wits · cool-headed and composed · fake marriage · love of country In 1936 Shanghai, everyone at the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics station knew Lu Xingzhou was a “deadweight”: he dozed at work, was always the last to handle a case, went weak in the knees at the sight of blood, and ranked dead last in every annual performance review. No one knew that he had quietly handed over half the “meritorious achievements” on Director Dai’s desk 13kReads7.5Score1.4k14d adds
- 13 The Nameless Long River: Thirty Years Behind Enemy Lines 长河无名，敌营三十载 Japan, the Military Statistics Bureau, the Chinese Communist Party, the Soviet Union, the United States, and South Korea: six identities at once, and thirty years embedded in enemy ranks. From the covert battles in Shanghai and the Hangzhou Incident to code-breaking intrigues, the smoke of Nomonhan, espionage in the Far East, and power struggles in a world at war, he hides his real name and bears the burden of his country and people under an assumed identity. His name is absent from the history 21Reads—Score—14d adds
- 14 Espionage: Starting in 1936 谍战：从1936开始 In 1936, the land lies shattered, and dark clouds gather over the nation. Modern special police officer Wang Xinjie transmigrates to the Shanghai concessions and becomes the most unremarkable Chinese constable, awakening a portable storage space from the start. A Japanese ronin kills someone in broad daylight? He snaps the man's wrist and sends him flying with a shoulder strike! A foreign superior sides with the Japanese invaders? He exploits public anger to put the man in his place, leaving him 5Reads—Score—14d adds
- 15 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—14d adds
- 16 Shadows of Espionage: The Sleeper Agent's Hidden Move 谍影：潜伏者的暗棋 He was a disposable pawn marked for execution in place of someone else, but he reversed his fate under the guns. In three days, he went from an abandoned pawn to a name on the Special High Commissioner's desk. In half a month, he had the head of a Military Statistics Bureau station requesting a meeting. How would a criminal psychology graduate student who transmigrated into the past navigate the tides of espionage and turn himself, a dead piece, into the only living eye on the entire board? Repu 39Reads—Score—14d adds
- 17 Espionage: From Agent to Japanese Aristocrat 谍战：从特工到鬼子贵族 “Who am I? …Chen Lin? …Or Konoe Ichiro? …Chinese? Or Japanese?…” “You are Konoe Ichiro, heir to Japan’s Konoe family, one of the Five Regent Houses, and Konoe Fumimaro’s eldest grandson. You are Japanese!!!” “That’s right, I’m Konoe Ichiro… Konoe Ichiro… I am Konoe Ichiro… I’m Japanese… Then who are you?” “Me? My name is Chen Lin! I’m Chinese… Chen Lin!” 68Reads—Score—14d adds
- 18 The Fog of Espionage 谍战迷雾 Liang Tianzhou, a medical intern who returned from studying in Japan, transmigrates to the Republic of China era and becomes one of our underground agents. Faced with misunderstanding from the woman he loves, the expectations of a young girl, and the passionate advances of a beautiful agent, what should he choose? You have one sinister plot after another, but I have a divine sword for breaking them apart. Amid truth and lies, illusion and reality, he skillfully outmaneuvers the enemy. With myste 209Reads6.4Score—14d adds
- 19 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 5.1kReads6.1Score32814d adds
- 20 Espionage: A One-Man-Army for the Military Statistics Bureau 碟战：军统特工一刀流 [Espionage + Multiple Secret-Agent Identities + System + Transmigration] Qian Fei transmigrates to the twenty-seventh year of the Republic of China, taking over the body of a language prodigy named Qian Fei. His original body was a member of the Military Statistics Bureau. His transmigration comes with a game System that lets him use Investigation to uncover people's identities. Investigating... Identity confirmed. Windstep activated... Essential for making a getaway. Deadly Strike unleashed... 787Reads5.6Score11614d adds
- 21 Unfettered in the Underworld 无间纵横 [Traditional spy thriller + intricate schemes + chaotic battles + no golden finger + no transmigration + high-octane] Concealing my edge amid slaughter, I play my pieces in the hell of espionage. I stake my life to protect my faith, tearing open a path to survival through layer upon layer of traps. I am the King of Hell who walks through the underworld; I am the Guigu who protects the Communist organization. 45Reads7.3Score—14d adds
- 22 Twin Blades: Impostors in the Demon Cave 双星齐刃：魔窟伪装者 After the victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan in 1945, Liu Mingzhang, a secret Communist Party member codenamed Qiming, and Zheng Yaoxian, codenamed Kite, navigate the treacherous environment of the Bureau of Investigation and Statistics. With intelligence and courage, they pass along information and match wits with their foes. After a series of grueling challenges and brushes with death, they obtain vital intelligence and help the organization strike at the enemy. At last, they witne 219Reads6.5Score—14d adds
- 23 Kite: Spy Games in Shanghai with Zheng Yaoxian, the Military Intelligence Agent 风筝：与军统六弟郑耀先谍战上海 Just scored! Republican-era setting + passionate ensemble cast + espionage + Military Statistics Bureau + undercover operations + battles of wits + no System + not reborn + the Military Statistics Bureau’s Sixth Brother In 1939, Chen Gongxing, a lieutenant colonel and deputy station chief in the Military Statistics Bureau, defected. At the time, the Shanghai Mei Agency and Wang Jingwei’s puppet regime’s Special Services Headquarters, Number 76, were opening their doors. Chen Gongxing became Num 5.1kReads7.4Score32314d adds
- 24 No One Knows Your Name 你的名字无人知晓 This is a “book of darkness” for hardcore fans of historical spy fiction. If you’re hoping for someone to transmigrate or be reborn, or for a System that gives them cheat-like powers... there’s still time to leave. But if you long to sink into the real, filthy quagmire of espionage from 1930 to 1949, rife with conspiracies, schemes, and betrayal, and to witness with your own eyes how an ordinary man is forged by the Soviet NKVD into a nameless phantom, shaping the course of war from the shadows —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 25 King of Espionage: Four Identities, Dancing on the Blade's Edge in Shanghai 谍战之王四重身份上海滩刀尖跳舞 [Espionage + Feel-Good Power Fantasy + Multiple Heroines + Fourfold Identity] After I transmigrate to Shanghai, I take on four undercover identities: one with the Japanese army, one with 76, one with the Juntong, and one with the Red faction! On a stormy night, all four sides close in on me. With a gun pointed at my back, I use a single badge to drive off a Juntong sniper, talk circles around a 76 agent, and exploit the Japanese army’s power to break out of a deadly trap! Other people risk their —Reads—Score—14d adds
- 26 Espionage: Superpowered Agent 谍战：超能特工 The protagonist is Li Mo. Time: The War of Resistance Against Japan Location: Shanghai Workplace and position: A major in the Mei Agency, with his rank still rising... Read on, and you’ll find he is also the head of an intelligence team directly under the Juntong headquarters, known as “Qingpu and Hong Qigong.” Keep reading, and he’s also a member of the underground Communist Party! Read a little further, and he’s a transmigrator with a System at his side! Complete missions to earn money and sup 19Reads—Score—14d adds
- 27 Undercover at No. 76: My Female Boss Wants to Marry Me 在76号当卧底：女上司想嫁我 Shanghai, 76 Jisifei'er Road, 1943. I am Shen Tingbai, the youngest interrogation section chief at the Wang Jingwei regime’s secret service headquarters, codename Judge. No anti-Japanese agent in my hands can hold out for more than seventy-two hours. They say I’m a loyal dog of the Japanese, a traitor among traitors. No one knows that every time I pry open someone’s mouth, I’m gambling with my own life: extracting the enemy’s intelligence while protecting comrades who haven’t yet been exposed 258Reads—Score—14d adds
- 28 Espionage: I Can See the Labels on Other People 谍战：我能看到别人身上的标签 My name is Qi Sheng. Sheng, as in “to triumph over Heaven by half a move.” I can see the labels other people give me. Some call me a “handsome young man.” Others call me a “cold-blooded killer.” And some call me a “living King of Hell.” If anyone asked what label I’d give myself, I’d choose “Blood Crow,” the name that makes the Japanese invaders tremble at the mere mention of it. 204Reads7.5Score—14d adds
- 29 Night Hawk: Espionage in Shanghai from Five Factions 夜鹰，五方谍战上海滩 He is the manager of a trading company in the foreign concessions, a smooth and well-connected socialite, a codebreaking expert courted by the Military Statistics Bureau, a welcome guest at No. 76, and even a sworn brother to a Green Gang boss. Beneath all those layers of disguise, he has only one true identity: an underground Communist Party operative, codenamed “Night Hawk.” Shanghai in 1941 is an isolated island, but it's also a living hell. The Japanese collaborators, the Special Higher Poli 6.3kReads7.2Score49214d adds
- 30 Cracking Codes and Capturing Spies: From Prisoner to the Military Intelligence Bureau's Seventh Brother 破密码擒间谍，从囚犯到军统七哥 Ye Mingyuan, a modern criminal investigation graduate, wakes up to find himself a murder suspect in the Republic of China era. In a Military Statistics Bureau prison, a whip is dipped in water and a branding iron glows red. His interrogators have only one demand: "Sign the confession." Someone else might have caved. But Ye Mingyuan has read thousands of case files in his previous life, and forensic science, forensic medicine, and criminal psychology all come naturally to him. In just one night, 720Reads6.3Score10414d adds
- 31 Undercover Diary: Bureau 76 76号卧底日记 He has ears that can hear death in the radio waves. She can't read, but she can memorize anyone's face with a single glance. Nanjing, 1943. Chen Ze'an, deputy head of the communications office at No. 76, is a Wang Jingwei regime agent on the surface and an undercover Communist operative in secret. His only weapon is his extraordinary hearing: he can anticipate death from the static in radio transmissions and detect lies from the sound of a heartbeat. The organization assigns him a “wife”: Cuipin 135Reads—Score—14d adds
- 32 At Headquarters 76: One God-Tier Trait Every Day 人在76号：每天一个神级词条 After transmigrating to Shanghai during the isolated-island period, Su Chen became a low-ranking spy in the 76th, with no connections and no backing. The moment he arrived, he was already facing a brutal purge by the Japanese invaders! At that very moment, the Daily Keyword System activated. [Today's Keyword: Lockpicking] He could turn the Special Higher Police's classified archives into his own backyard. [Today's Keyword: Firearms Master] Even an old, battered pistol could make a precise shot f 15Reads—Score—14d adds
- 33 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—14d adds
- 34 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—14d adds
- 35 Shanghai, 1941: Code Name Crane Ferry 抗日上海1941：代号渡鹤 [Spy thriller + based on true events + mind games + no System + high-stakes game] In 1941, Shanghai was an isolated island surrounded by Japanese-occupied territory. The city was a crossroads of power, with undercurrents running deep. On the surface, it was the “Paris of the East,” a glittering world of pleasure and luxury. In truth, it was a city of spies where every faction vied for power. Shen Mo was a rising star in Shanghai, deputy chief inspector at the French Concession police station. Da 119Reads—Score—14d adds
- 36 The Hidden Game: A Silent Contest 暗局：无声的较量 [Espionage + Based on real events involving General Li Kenong + Mind games + No System + High-stakes intrigue] In 1930, Shanghai is rife with undercurrents. Li Yin, a Communist underground agent using the alias “Skylark,” is ordered to infiltrate the Kuomintang’s secret service, the Fuxing Society. There he joins forces with Qian Zhuangfei, codename “Night Hawk,” and Hu Di, codename “Green Snake,” to form a special party cell codenamed “Zhulong.” Their mission is to obtain the Kuomintang’s plan 149Reads6.6Score—14d adds
- 37 Espionage: From the Start, I Personally Betrayed My Comrades 谍战：开局我亲手出卖了同志 Shanghai, 1942. On the first day Shen Gui was dragged into Unit 76, bamboo splinters were driven beneath his fingernails. For three days and three nights, he didn't give them a thing. On the fourth day, he confessed. The contact station was destroyed, and six comrades were killed. Overnight, he went from an underground Party member to a traitor despised by everyone. The organization wanted him dead, and the enemy didn't trust him. He became a wandering ghost with nowhere to go. But no one knew t 1.5kReads6.8Score10514d adds
- 38 Espionage: The Days I Slacked Off at the Military Statistics Bureau 谍战我在军统摆烂的日子 We live in a peaceful era, but how many nameless heroes sacrificed their lives for this country and its people? History books are too thin to contain their greatness. Turn a page, and you've got their whole lives! History books are also too thick. We can't remember their names; we only know that they are heroes! He transmigrates through time to China during the War of Resistance Against Japan and takes the place of the original owner. Following his elders' arrangements, he joins the Juntong as a 74Reads6.1Score—14d adds
- 39 Espionage: Daybreak 谍战：破晓 When night falls over the newly born land, two fated adversaries are forced to join forces. The brilliant Lin Nan is a forgotten gem from the old era, versed in criminal psychology and codebreaking. The battle-hardened Zheng Feng is the blade of the new order, devoted to discipline and absolute loyalty. This is a war that begins with conspiracy and ends in faith. When the enemy holds the city’s pulse in its grasp, and humanity’s fate hangs by a thread, they wield their wits as spears and their c 150Reads—Score—14d adds
- 40 Espionage: A Thousand Faces, Sword Unsheathed 谍战：身份百变，利剑出鞘 An eight-year veteran transmigrates into the world of the War of Resistance. The country is engulfed in flames, but faith cannot be broken. He is an underground intelligence agent for the Red Army, supplying intelligence to Red Army forces in three provinces and keeping the enemy at bay! He is a Japanese merchant, moving freely among the Japanese and sowing division within their ranks! He is a Juntong agent, pouring in millions until Juntong becomes his home turf! He is also a sharp blade, invin 31Reads6.0Score—14d adds
- 41 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! 82Reads7.4Score11414d adds
- 42 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, 21.7kReads7.5Score2.3k14d adds
- 43 The Hidden Frontline III: The Strange Mysteries of Jinling 隐蔽战线三：金陵诡谲 After the August 15 victory, the Kuomintang launched frenzied attacks and plundered the revolutionary bases in an attempt to spark a civil war and seize the fruits of victory. It recruited large numbers of Japanese collaborators to serve its cause. Ye Yunsheng, a member of our Party who had infiltrated the Japanese Bamboo Agency's Special Higher Police, was among those targeted for recruitment. Both the Investigation and Statistics Bureau and the Military Statistics Bureau admired Ye Yunsheng's 587Reads9.5Score10714d adds
- 44 Shadows of Espionage: Enemy Agents in Action! 谍影重重：敌特在行动！ In the twenty-eighth year of the Republic, the whole nation was engulfed in the flames of the War of Resistance. Liu Zezhi had graduated from the Military Statistics Bureau's Qingpu training camp just over a year earlier when he was ordered to keep watch on Li Shiqun, who was suspected of planning to defect. Just as expected, Li Shiqun defected, and by a twist of fate, Liu Zezhi accidentally saved his life. Li Shiqun became the head of the 76th Division, the secret police organization of Wang Ji 3.7kReads8.8Score33214d adds
- 45 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—Score11614d adds
- 46 The Hidden Front of the War Against Japan 抗日之隐蔽战线 Kudo Yuan is the head of Japan’s spy agency, yet no one ever imagined he was Chinese! His adoptive father is an Army lieutenant general, and his uncle is a Navy admiral. Can he complete his covert mission in the face of temptations from a seductive femme fatale and challenges from old devils and clowns? 173Reads6.8Score—14d adds
- 47 Espionage: My Codename Is Demon-Mirror 谍战：我代号照妖镜 After a car accident, Shen Qingyun, a university psychology student, woke up in 1939 in someone else's body, that of a clerk in the Military Statistics Bureau's interrogation department. In the Zaosibao torture chamber, a Japanese spy kept his mouth shut, refusing to confess even under severe torture. With the section chief and director at their wits' end, Shen Qingyun used microexpression psychology to find the spy's weak spot and pry open his ironclad lips! When Dai Li heard about it, he was d 1.2kReads6.3Score10714d adds
- 48 The Wind Raider 掠风者 In the winter of 1938, the Japanese occupied Tianjin. Zhou Chufeng, a trusted aide to the notorious traitor Shen Fuxing, rescued Gu Caiwei, a female intelligence agent for the Nationalists. The two pretended to be lovers, using each other as cover to conceal their identities from Shen Fuxing and Hirota Ryoichi, the commander of the Japanese garrison. During an interrogation, Zhou Chufeng was activated as “Kindling,” a Communist agent planted deep undercover. At the same time, both received order 14Reads9.1Score—14d adds
- 49 The Con Artists’ Guild: Tales of the Old Guard 老千门之千门旧事 In those days, the world aboveboard was run by the government, merchant guilds, and the military. Beneath the surface lay an underworld order: The Three Teachings set the rules, the Nine Sects roamed the land, the Thousand Gates set their traps, and the Eight Generals wielded their blades. A young man was drawn into the game by a con on the snowy plains of the Northeast. He witnessed the Thousand Gates and Eight Generals firsthand at the docks of Tianjin, and eventually became a man who could se 146Reads—Score11114d adds
- 50 Return to the Nest: Code Name Lone Goose 归巢：代号孤雁 In 1946, during the Central Plains Breakout, dawn rose red with blood. Lu Huaijin, our Party’s top undercover agent, codenamed “Lone Goose,” carried a top-secret list that held the lives of hundreds of comrades. Amid the chaos, he lost contact with his only superior, “Star Shepherd,” and vanished without a trace. Within the organization, his file was stamped “suspected defector” and sealed away in a fog of uncertainty. Twelve years later, in 1958, an old-fashioned coded message that seemed to be 26Reads6.9Score—14d adds
