Returning to the Golden Age

Sorry, I'm from rural Anhui and don't understand Shanghainese. Goodbye, this is a book written for Shanghainese people. Bye-bye!

I suggest you stop writing in Shanghainese all the time. How many of your readers are actually from Shanghainese? They won't understand a lot of the nuances. Use vernacular Chinese instead. Don't use regional dialects. A few sentences are fine, but constantly using "seriously" will only attract more criticism. I suggest you change your writing style as soon as possible.

The writing is alright, but I feel like I, a Cantonese person, am not worthy to read novels written by people from Shanghai!

Years ago, I took a bus in Shanghai, and the bilingual (Shanghainese and Mandarin) announcements of arrival times felt very awkward. That month, I traveled to places like Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, and Nanjing, but Shanghai was the only city that felt special to me.

This book lacks any clear main plot. The protagonist is reborn and goes back to university, but for some reason, he learns nothing and has no goals; he just drifts through life. His business is handed over to a friend from the start, and a few chapters are vaguely written about it.

Here's a joke: During the Qing Dynasty's maritime ban, Shanghai's history, from its founding to the present, is only a little over 100 years old. There are practically no truly long-standing Shanghainese; it's all outsiders. This bunch of people, gathered together, actually created a Shanghai dialect, and then collectively discriminated against outsiders...

The beginning was alright, but it got boring once we got to the university section. The whole thing about pulling all the close friends into one company, giving everyone a share and even giving them free shares, was ridiculous. Gu Jie, who contributed from the beginning, got nothing, while Ying Caixia, who came along to help, forcibly gave him 10% of the shares – a bizarre move that exuded pettiness. I really regret subscribing to the whole thing; I couldn't finish reading half of it.

Oh my god, there's a proper way! Quickly travel back to the late Ming Dynasty, raise the banner of rebellion, overthrow the Ming Dynasty, drive out the Qing Dynasty, and colonize Southeast Asia! That's the right path! Why write about urban life? There are too many restrictions—you can't write this, you can't write that. Let's just write history!

I was put off by the book reviews before even starting to read it. It's an urban rebirth business novel, and according to my reading habits, the dialect isn't a major issue for me. What I found extremely problematic were the following: 1. The protagonist lacks goals, or rather, he has no strategic plan for his business. He's haphazard and indecisive.

A bootlicker? Trying to lick the boots of a Shanghai tycoon? Too bad, Shanghainese don't even look at a dog like you. Isn't that pathetic? The text subtly expresses dissatisfaction with policies, hinting at an attempt to gain favor with Shanghainese but failing miserably.