Novels like The Pillar of the Nation
Books Chinese readers most often put in the same booklists as The Pillar of the Nation, best match first.
- 1 Madness at the End of the Ming Dynasty 明末疯狂 At the end of the Tianqi era, Wu Shigong, whose memories had been infused with those of a modern man, found himself unwillingly aboard Wei Zhongxian’s sinking ship. In the late Ming, factional strife raged within the court, rebellions flared beyond it, and Later Jin forces eyed the borders hungrily. In this perilous world, he couldn’t use his knowledge of history to speculate on events, had no invention-making golden finger, couldn’t rely on a kingly aura to win over heroes, and couldn’t plagiar 0Votes40.2kRecs43kFans
- 2 A Commoner in the Late Ming 明末小平民 In the chaotic final years of the Ming, nine out of ten commoners perish, and the traditions of the Han people are on the verge of extinction. A modern small-business owner transmigrates into this era. To survive, to protect his loved ones, and to pursue the conviction in his heart, he must defy f 0Votes31.3kRecs39kFans
- 3 The Great Shun 顺明 A discharged soldier arrives in the Ming dynasty. While he was in the military, he was merely a noncommissioned officer. After leaving the service, he became an employee of a financial courier company. What can he do? Will he drift with the currents of history, or defy heaven, change his fate, and alter the destiny of this age... 0Votes562.7kRecs548.4kFans
- 4 The Royal Entertainment Guide 皇家娱乐指南 [A work signed by Qidian’s Fourth Editorial Team] The five great pleasures in life: To see all the world’s beauty, hear its wondrous music, dress in fine and colorful clothes, and enjoy clever, delightful conversation: this is the first pleasure. To feast in a grand hall, listen to music in the rooms behind it, and welcome a house full of guests amid drifting shadows of flowers and flowing robes: this is the second pleasure. To have a tower filled with books, gather more than ten kindred friends 0Votes285.8kRecs370.1kFans
- 5 Blood Will Tell 将血 Have you not seen Han Zhongjun, who at twenty bound a captive and asked for a long tassel to seize the enemy? Have you not seen Ban Dingyuan, who led light cavalry into distant lands and stirred up the clouds of war? A true man should dare to face danger, not let his scholar’s robes ruin his life. With the nation teetering on the brink, urgent dispatches race back and forth without pause! Zhao Shi’s life was destined to be spent amid slaughter and bloodshed. From the vast northern deserts to the 0Votes501.5kRecs236.4kFans
- 6 The Chongzhen Chat Group 崇祯聊天群 [A shortlisted work for the New Era of History writing contest] Emperor Chongzhen was tricked into hanging himself and losing his empire. But in this book, though the emperor is shut away in the palace, he has a group chat where he can talk to people outside. Could he still be fooled? Oh no, the emperor has transmigrated too! This cheat is so overpowered that even the Earth is trembling! It's over: before long, the Ming dynasty will rule an empire on which the sun never sets! My new book, Beyond 0Votes187.2kRecs168.9kFans
- 7 When the Golden Scales Unfurl 金鳞开 A seasoned professional manager is reborn as Zhu Cilang, the last crown prince of the Great Ming. A soul that has never accepted defeat therefore sets off a storm to revive the Ming dynasty. From this moment on... The age when other peoples carved up the lands and seas is gone forever. The mighty Great Ming also needs more land to line up its cannons! 8Votes247.7kRecs196.5kFans
- 8 The Little Chef of the Northern Song Dynasty 北宋小厨师 Li Qi, head chef at a five-star-plus hotel, has a little too much to drink and miraculously transmigrates to the late Northern Song dynasty. Alone in this unfamiliar world, with no family or friends, Li Qi has no choice but to fall back on his old trade and take a cooking job at a restaurant in Bianjing that's about to be sold off for next to nothing. Li Qi only wants to be a low-key little chef. But gold shines wherever it is, and being an outstanding man isn't always a good thing. “Grand Marsh 0Votes277.6kRecs311.2kFans
- 9 Lost in 1629 迷失在一六二九 You! Yes, you. Take a look at yourself. What can you do? What do you know how to do? If you were dropped into the year 1629, the second year of the Chongzhen reign in the Ming dynasty, in the age of Li Zicheng and Hong Taiji, could you survive? Without a golden finger, without a protagonist’s destiny, relying entirely on your own skills and knowledge, could you survive? The one stroke of luck is that you wouldn’t be fighting alone. Behind you would be a group, a community of modern people. Come 4Votes884.8kRecs229.9kFans
- 10 A Lowly Soldier on the Ming Frontier 明末边军一小兵 In the third month of the seventh year of Chongzhen, a severe drought struck Shanxi and Shaanxi. A thousand miles of land lay barren, and the people were starving. In the fourth month, Li Zicheng entered Henan and joined forces with Zhang Xianzhong to seize Chengcheng. In the seventh month, the Later Jin army laid siege to Xuanfu and raided Datong, taking many border forts. The Ming faced internal strife and external threats, teetering on the brink! That July, Wang Dou unexpectedly arrived in th 16Votes656.2kRecs585kFans
- 11 The Dashing Illegitimate Son 庶子风流 He was an ordinary young man until an accident gave him an AI supercomputer and sent him back to the Zhengde era of the Ming dynasty, where he became the illegitimate son of a gentry family. A wife is formally brought home, while a concubine is taken in secretly. His father had eloped with his mother, and that was how he was born. His mother came from humble origins, but as a son born outside the main line, Ye Chunqiu vows to make a remarkable life for himself. His family looks down on him? He'l 0Votes850.5kRecs535.2kFans
- 12 The Southern Ming Continues 续南明 “The Great Ming has unified the four seas, surpassed the Three Dynasties and outshone the Han and Tang. Its reach extends to the ends of the earth, and all under Heaven bow as its subjects...” In the sixth year of the Xuande era, Zheng He set sail on his seventh voyage to the Western Ocean. He proudly proclaimed these words on the Stele of the Heavenly Consort’s Divine Manifestations. At the time, the might of the Ming dynasty was at its height. But by the end of the Chongzhen era, the great edi 2Votes722.2kRecs228.1kFans
- 13 Lotus Blossoms at Every Step 步步生莲 Yang Decheng, a community worker, unexpectedly returns to ancient times after doing his job conscientiously, becoming Ding Hao, the least favored illegitimate son of the Ding family. Without power or money, Ding Hao works as a carriage driver for his half-brother. His dream is to become a carefree young master in this wretched society and live out his days in peace. Though the dream seems distant, Ding Hao doesn't take it to heart. Drawing on the social experience he gained from community work, 8Votes4MRecs842.9kFans
- 14 A First-Rank Official 官居一品 Count the heroes, weigh their triumphs and defeats: a century passes like a dream, yet their hearts burn with purpose. They strive to govern wisely and save a crumbling realm, even if a flood of infamy follows them beyond the grave. They scorn death and cherish the rise and fall of nations, traveling alone through storms and tempests. Who wouldn't wish the Great Wall to stand forever? Yet none can know if the River of Sorrow will flow eastward, back into the sea. 43Votes1.4MRecs892.1kFans
- 15 Commoner Shi Buyi 草根石布衣 In The Memorial on the Northern Expedition, Zhuge Liang wrote, “Your servant was originally a commoner, tilling the fields in Nanyang.” Scholars and strategists throughout the land humbly call themselves commoners. This is the spirit of the commoner: withdraw, and cultivate oneself; step forward, and serve the world. It has been passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years. But by the year 2000: “Occupation?” “…Military strategist, aide, adviser?” “Are you kidding me? What er 7Votes1.4MRecs279.2kFans
- 16 Late Ming 晚明 In the final years of the Ming dynasty, the northern frontier is shrouded in the smoke of war, with mountains of corpses, while the south of the Yangtze enjoys tranquil streams, stone bridges, song, and dance. Amid the internal strife and external threats of a dynasty on the brink of collapse, a calculating office director rises to power and sounds the last call for China. A true hero can change fate. Brutal, bloody ancient wars and authentic scenes of everyday life in the Ming, where ordinary p 116Votes768kRecs830.3kFans
- 17 Ninefold Purple 九重紫 Dou Zhao thinks she may not have much longer to live. Lately, she keeps dreaming that she’s back in her childhood, sitting beneath a wisteria-covered trellis and swinging her chubby little legs while her plump, white nursemaid, round as a steamed bun, feeds her... But if she really returned to her childhood, how different would her life be? Ninefold Purple is a story of being reborn! ※ Unless something unexpected comes up, updat 5Votes1.5MRecs658.9kFans
- 18 The Wisdom of the Great Song 大宋的智慧 Yun Zheng opened a door and could never turn back. That's how life is: once the bow is drawn, there's no taking back the arrow. By the time you want to turn around, a hundred years have passed. This is a novel about the way of being a teacher. It speaks of the wisdom needed to survive, the warmth of human kindness, and the bonds between brothers. It celebrates humility, gentleness, and goodness. Here you'll find the most beautiful love and the deepest brotherly bonds... Perhaps I simply want to 17Votes1.3MRecs860.7kFans
- 19 Su Can's Journey Through Time 苏灿的时光羁旅 Su Can returns to a summer from years ago. The key question isn’t how he will adapt to this fresh start. It’s that, come tomorrow, the entrance exams will arrive whether he’s ready or not, leaving him no choice! Having crossed the boundaries of time and space, he stands on this side of time, facing a past that once brought him to tears. How will Su Can reclaim his lost chances, one step at a time, and soar like an eagle through this era, carving a brilliant arc across the sky? 1Votes843.5kRecs572.5kFans
- 20 EN A Top-Rank Scholar of Humble Birth 上品寒士 A seasoned modern-day backpacker transmigrates to the Eastern Jin dynasty, inhabiting the body of Chen Caozhi, a poor young man. His family’s farmland is about to be seized, and his virtuous widowed sister-in-law is being forced to remarry. How can Chen Caozhi overcome prejudice against his low-born status and change his fate, while protecting the interests of himself and his clan? Watch as this young man rises step by step through the rigid hierarchy of the Nine-Rank Official System, befriends 30Votes785.5kRecs822.7kFans
- 21 Return to the Ming Dynasty as a Prince 回到明朝当王爷 [The animated adaptation, The Beacon Fire of March, is now airing] Through a series of mishaps, Zheng Shaopeng, a well-meaning fool for nine lifetimes, finds himself back in the Zhengde era of the Ming dynasty. It is a colorful age, filled with the wickedness of the Eight Tigers of the capital, the romantic flair of the Four Great Talents of Jiangnan, the teachings of the great Confucian Wang Yangming, and the absurd antics of the Zhengde Emperor, Zhu Houzhao. Having stumbled into this world in 12Votes5.2MRecs2.3MFans
- 22 Joy of Life 庆余年 A family that does good deeds will surely enjoy blessings in abundance. Leave blessings for the future, leave blessings for the future, and in time meet a benefactor. How fortunate, how fortunate, that my mother accumulated hidden merit. I urge people to help the needy and support the poor… But who could know that, though we inherit the blessings of those who came before us, in the end we must choose our own path in life? Thus, at the fork in the road: The east wind brings clouds and rain, and y 76Votes4MRecs5.6MFans
- 23 I Want to Be Emperor 我要做皇帝 By the Mandate of Heaven, may the dynasty endure forever. I have drawn on the hard-won achievements of three generations and invoked the great cause of all under Heaven. With a three-foot sword in hand, I shall become ruler of all the world. The head of the Wiman king of Joseon now hangs above the northern gate of the Han capital. The Zhao rulers of Nanyue have surrendered their lands and submitted to the empire. The Central Empire, the Celestial Empire above all nations, is about to take shape. 0Votes1.4MRecs739.6kFans
- 24 The Shadow of Espionage 谍影风云 An ordinary civil servant returns to 1936 by a twist of fate. He searches for underground resistance groups and tracks down Japanese spies, contributing his share to the liberation and revival of his country and people amid an extraordinary era. Thus begins his legendary career in the world of espionage. Spy Tide readers’ group 1: 833528943; Spy Tide readers’ group 2: 879936725; Spy Tide helmsman group: 940510849 43Votes7.9MRecs2.1MFans
- 25 The Matrilocal Husband 赘婿 In the final years of the Wu Dynasty, the age was turbulent and the realm was in chaos. Jin and Liao faced off against each other, the situation was unstable, and after a century of humiliation, the first faint glimmer of dawn signaling its end had finally appeared. Emperor Tianzuo, Wanyan Aguda, Wuqimai, Genghis Khan Temujin, Jamuka, Chilawen, Mukhuali, Bo'erhu, Bo'ersu, Qin Hui, Yue Fei, Li Gang, Zhong Shidao, Tang Ke, Wu Min, Geng Nanzhong, and Zhang Bangchang: loyal ministers and treacherous 438Votes13.5MRecs5.1MFans
