The Cold Window Guide to Chinese Internet Literature, Part 1
Students and fan translators recommend the best novels for new readers
Welcome back to the Cold Window Newsletter. This is the first of three installments of the Cold Window Guide to Internet Literature, featuring Chinese internet novel recommendations from experts all over the world. Today’s installment covers recommendations from students and fan translators. Read more about the project, and about the book club that will accompany it, in yesterday’s post:
The Cold Window Guide to Chinese Internet Literature: Introduction
Welcome to a very special edition of the Cold Window Newsletter! This week, I will be releasing the three-part finale to my year-long 13 Ways of Looking at Internet Literature series. This post is an introduction to the finale, which will run through the rest of the week.
A quick introduction to some key platforms:
JJWXC is 晋江文学城 Jinjiang Wenxuecheng, China’s top platform for female-oriented novels.
Qidian 起点 is a major novel platform best known for male-oriented and fantasy novels.
Novel Updates is a fan-maintained directory of translated novels and is generally a pretty reliable resource for tracking down unlicensed fan translations.
Below, I’ve included a link to the original Chinese text of each novel, as well as links to the licensed English translation (if it exists) or Novel Updates page (if only an unlicensed translation exists). I won’t provide direct links to unlicensed translations unless they were specifically provided by the recommender. Most of the recommendations were translated by me from Chinese, and in some cases I’ve edited the translations for brevity.
Happy reading!
Lu Peiyi
Lu Peiyi is a graduate of the Peking University Chinese department and a serious lover of good stories. Recommendation translated from Chinese by A.R.
I’d like to recommend two “female-oriented” novels: 《穿进赛博游戏后干掉BOSS成功上位》 After Transmigrating into the Cyber Game, I Defeated the Boss and Successfully Rose to the Top by 桉柏 An Bai (2021-2022), and 《我在废土世界扫垃圾》 I Clean Up Garbage in a Wasteland World by 有花在野 You Hua Zai Ye (2022-2024). In my view, these novels are both strong examples of a new development in recent Chinese female-oriented novels: the stories all take place in a highly fantasized fictional world, where the female protagonists are all extremely powerful, resilient, decisive, and even messianic. The emphasis on romantic storylines with male characters is reduced, and the emphasis on family and friendship storyline between relatives or companions is greatly increased in proportion. Of course, most importantly, these novels offer an extremely well-rounded reading experience. The stories are bold, unconstrained, and engagingly paced, making it nearly impossible to stop reading.
桉柏《穿进赛博游戏后干掉BOSS成功上位》
After Transmigrating into the Cyber Game, I Defeated the Boss and Successfully Rose to the Top by An Bai
Serialized 2021-2022 (370 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWXC // Translation information at Novel Updates
有花在野《我在废土世界扫垃圾》
I Clean Up Garbage in a Wasteland World by You Hua Zai Ye
Serialized 2022-2024 (457 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWXC // Translation information at Novel Updates
正肆叁
正肆叁’s bio: Casual baihe1 enjoyer, professional lamenter of its lack of translations.
《问棺》 Reading the Remnants by 七小皇叔 Qi Xiao Huang Shu is one of the most celebrated mythic fantasy works in the baihe community. Unlike most xuanhuan or xianxia novels, its core lies in a reimagining of history. It challenges our understanding of Chinese folktales (think The Ballad of Mulan) while offering its own unique interpretations. I’m a history nerd, and I’ve never felt more drawn to a work of historical fiction. It’s full of fascinating “what ifs,” and I love how the author leaves subtle, hidden messages in each chapter for readers to reflect on.
七小皇叔《问棺》
Reading the Remnants by Qi Xiao Huang Shu
Serialized 2019-2020 (108 chapters)
Original Chinese at Changpei // Translation information at Novel Updates
Ji Shuling
Ji Shuling is a master’s student studying Comparative and World Literature at Nanjing Normal University whose research formerly focused on internet literature. As a reader, she likes to follow new trends and enjoys stories that combine a serious tone with entertaining content. Recommendation translated from Chinese by A.R.
I’d like to recommend two works of internet fiction that I think are particularly excellent: the wuxia-themed novel 《天之下》 Under the Heavens by the Taiwanese author 三弦大天使 San Xian Da Tian Shi, and a Grave Robbers’ Chronicles2 fanfic called 《观棋不语》 Silent Observer by type_omega and 三品不良 San Pin Bu Liang.
As the popular trends of xuanhuan, xianxia, and cultivation novels constantly push the boundaries of fantasy writing, wuxia seems to have followed 金庸 Jin Yong and 古龙 Gu Long into the sunset and faded into history. Even 《英雄志》 Tales of Heroes is already twenty or thirty years old by now (I recommend that one too, but be warned that it has a terrible ending). 《天之下》 Under the Heavens is a new take on that old material. Its primary strength is in its wuxia-inspired Eastern aesthetics: the ties of friendship, loyalty, and vengeance between men and women of the jianghu; feats of arms and chivalry; and, passed down from generation to generation, the bravery to wield arms in defiance of the powerful. Another strength is how brilliantly the semi-fictional world is constructed, as well as the excellent characterization of the ensemble cast. Background characters who appear for only a single chapter are often just as interesting as the protagonist. Finally, the story intentionally delves into meaningful topics like whether there is “universal justice,” the proper way to maintain social order, and the dilemmas that face “perfect victims” when they try to seek revenge. It also explores religious conflicts between orthodoxy and secularism; ideological sectarianism; the class dynamics between aristocrats, nomads, and slaves; and how women can learn to search for and value the “self” in a patriarchal martial society.
三弦大天使《天之下》
Under the Heavens by San Xian Da Tian Shi
Serialized 2020-present (450 chapters)
Original Chinese at Qidian // Not translated
The fanfiction 《观棋不语》Silent Observer takes the eccentric, suspenseful, disjointed story from the original Grave Robbers’ Chronicles and brings it into a new narrative frame. It also carries over much of the worldbuilding and foreshadowing from the original work, effectively wrapping up the story in a complete package. The best parts are the payoffs to mysteries. Through recollections and reincarnations, the novel uncovers unaddressed inconsistencies and enigmas hidden in the original story and offers rational explanations even as it extends the story. There’s a particularly compelling setup used to justify continuing the story, which touches on the “immortals’” secret to long life, a science-fictional explanation of the “World Ultimate,” and the characters’ discovery that history itself leaves a space open for them in the transmigrations and cycles of their existence. The overall story advances a theme of “committing to dignified conduct, even when faced with the temptation of ultimate immortality.” As an approach to fanfiction, this is undeniably fresh.
type_omega、三品不良《观棋不语》
Silent Observer by type_omega and San Pin Bu Liang
Serialized 2019 (17 chapters)
Original Chinese at Archive of Our Own // Not translated
Qi Xinxin
Qi Xinxin is a PhD student in the Chinese department at Peking University. Recommendation translated from Chinese by A.R.
In 《女主对此感到厌烦》 The Protagonist Is Getting Sick of This by 妚鹤 Fou He, the female protagonist transmigrates into an otome game3 and becomes the game’s villain, Lilith. In order to escape the game, she is forced to outwit all of the male love interests, running through the game over and over until, in her last run-through, she finally gains an opportunity to choose her own fate. Except that she has really started to lose patience by this point. So she smashes the selection interface, and a heretofore unknown open world opens up before her.
As a defining work of “iFemale” literature, The Protagonist Is Getting Sick of This is about how women can band together and rebel against feudal patriarchal society. The author’s pen name, “Fou He,” is a homonym for the English words “for her,” and the whole book is shot through with feminist consciousness and startling power. It also started a craze for “non-couple” female-channel webnovels and was adapted into a musical with the same title.
妚鹤《女主对此感到厌烦》
The Protogonist Is Getting Sick of This by Fou He
Serialized 2021-present (158 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Not translated
Douqi
Douqi is a fan translator of baihe novels and related media.
《焚情》 To Embers We Return by 宁远 Ning Yuan: In an alternative version of Tang Dynasty China that has been irrevocably changed by the early advent of cybernetic technology, protagonist Shen Ni must navigate her arranged marriage to her first love Bian Jin, heal her wife’s physical injuries and recover lost memories, and unravel the mysteries underpinning the empire. This novel is notable for its ambitious world-building, a large and colourful cast of complex female characters, and the intricate relationships (both romantic and otherwise) between them.
宁远《焚情》
To Embers We Return by Ning Yuan
Serialized 2024-2025 (173 chapters)
《造物的恩宠》 The Creator’s Grace by 宁远 Ning Yuan. In this near-future sci-fi thriller, protagonist Chi Yu returns home to investigate the murder of her formidable older sister. The most likely suspect is her sister’s ex-girlfriend Ran Jin, who now controls the business empire her sister built up — but why would Ran Jin turn on the Chi sisters now, after so many years of being utterly devoted to them? A fast-paced novel about fractured identities and family secrets, which raises the age-old question of what it means to be human.
宁远《造物的恩宠》
The Creator’s Grace by Ning Yuan
Serialized 2021 (120 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Translation forthcoming from Rosmei
《小羊驼》The Little Alpaca by 无聊到底 Wu Liao Dao Di. Veteran webnovel reader Yi Qiu, outraged by the slapdash ending of the fantasy novel she’s been following, chokes on a drink of water and finds herself transported into the world of the novel... and into the body of the villainess’ pet alpaca. A funny and unexpectedly heartwarming tale of how one determined camelid manages to turn a fantasy world teetering on the brink of ruin into one filled with love and friendship.
无聊到底《小羊驼》
The Little Alpaca by Wu Liao Dao Di
Serialized 2021 (208 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Translation information at Novel Updates
《穆小姐与金丝雀》 Miss Mu and Her Pet Canary by 靳安 Jin An. It’s 1920s not-Shanghai, and courtesan Bai Yan is on the lookout for a rich, young, credulous man whom she can talk into buying out her indenture and setting her up in a home of her own. She sets her sights on dashing, earnest Young Master Mu Xing, who has recently returned from his medical studies abroad; little does she know that Young Master Mu is actually Miss Mu, a tomboy who delights in gallivanting about in men’s clothes. This novel wears its feminist colours proudly on its sleeve, and is suffused with the youthful optimism and progressive ideals of the era in which it is set.
靳安《穆小姐与金丝雀》
Miss Mu and Her Pet Canary by Jin An
Serialized 2018-2019 (99 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Not translated
Zhang Jiayuan
Zhang Jiayuan, a master’s student in Modern and Contemporary Literature at Nanjing Normal University, is a reader and researcher of internet literature who has lately been especially into “infinite flow” and suspense novels. Recommendations translated from Chinese by A.R.
The popularity and evolution of the “no-couple” tag on the female-oriented literature website Jinjiang Wenxuecheng has been a major development in Chinese internet literature over the last few years. 《姥姥炸的》 Grandma’s Cooking by 匿见渊 Ni Jian Yuan is one of these “no-couple” stories. It follows thirty years in the lives of the protagonists Kou Zhuanshi and Tu Ling, in the process bringing to life ties of love and resentment spanning three generations. The part of the story that moved me the most was how the main characters’ life paths reflect each other. In adolescence, both characters were defined by and ultimately abandoned by their mothers, and yet from this shared foundation of trauma head off into dramatically different directions—Kou Zhuanshi chooses to use her body to try to break out of the path that fate has set for her, while Tu Ling retreats into introspective exploration, searching for herself in the cracks in the system. Between memory and forgetting, they become mirror images of each other—each one the other’s “what if,” her “way out,” each the answer to the other’s question.
匿见渊《姥姥炸的》
Grandma’s Cooking by Ni Jian Yuan
Serialized 2025-present (176 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Not translated
In 《我的治愈系游戏》 My Iyashikei Game by 我会修空调 I Repair Air Conditioners, a downtrodden actor named Han Fei starts playing a game called My Perfect Life, hoping it will soothe and rejuvenate him. Instead, he’s plunged into a treacherous, psychedelic underworld. In this other world, full of ghosts, bizarre characters, and lurking evils, anything could happen. And yet what happens in this other world seem to have a subtle connection to events in the real world. As one mystery after another is solved, and one soul after another shrugs off the shackles of its past, you can gradually feel light and warmth starting to fill your heart.
我会修空调《我的治愈系游戏》
My Iyashikei Game by I Repair Air Conditioners
Serialized 2021-2023 (999 chapters)
Original Chinese at Qidian // Translation information at Novel Updates
Alfie
Alfie (also known as Bobbu) is an aspiring translator working on May Fourth era lesbian literature, baihe games, and Taiwanese lesbian literature.
A personal favourite baihe rec of mine: 《入迷》 Fascinating by 清汤涮香菜 Qing Tang Shuang Xian Cai, a modern setting romance between an intern (24) and her executive (30). Featuring “I’m not gay, am I???” moments from both parties and fluffy moments such as the executive’s 5 year old cousin being the ultimate matchmaker, it’s a very lighthearted, fun, and comfy read. Also really enjoyed how the author tackled the “misunderstanding” trope that commonly occurs—all misunderstandings were resolved fairly quickly and weren’t dragged out for too long.
清汤涮香菜《入迷》
Fascinated by Qing Tang Shuang Xian Cai
Serialized 2020 (114 chapters)
Original Chinese at JJWCX // Translation information at Novel Updates
Wang Deyong
Wang Deyong is a master’s student at Capital Normal University in Beijing, where his research focuses on the international dissemination of Chinese internet literature. Recommendations translated from Chinese by A.R.
Although it looks like a brainlessly fun xuanhuan novel on the outside, 《太平令》 The Peace Order by 阎ZK (Yan ZK) incorporates many elements of traditional Chinese culture, with the Confucian credo of “cultivate the body, stabilize the family, order the country, and pacify the realm” as its spiritual throughline. But the protagonist’s method of achieving this ideal is not to become a “heavenly king,” like in many similar stories. Instead, the story brings in many modern notions of revolutionary organization and liberation. The protagonist doesn’t save the world through his own independent prowess; from beginning to end, he devotes his efforts to awakening and organizing the common people, amassing disparate individuals into a collective with the power to change the world. In this way, “pacify the realm” is transformed from an elitist, moralistic credo into a magnificent struggle for liberation arising from the lower classes. Even more unusually, compared to the typical way that xuanhuan novels end (the protagonist defeats the final boss and becomes the eternal ruler of the realm), the self-revolution and reflection on endless struggle in this novel make it more deeply meaningful than usual. As entertaining as the The Peace Order is, it also conveys the appeal of ancient culture in equal measure. Its interpolation of contemporary ideology about popular revolution elevates a “xiaobai” (lowest-common-denominator, suitable only for novice readers) xuanhuan story into a “laobai” (sophisticated and creative enough for experienced readers) one.
阎ZK《太平令》
The Peace Order by Yan ZK
Serialized 2024-2025 (606 chapters)
Original Chinese at Qidian // Translation information at Novel Updates
《1984：从破产川菜馆开始》 1984: Starting from a Bankrupt Sichuan Restaurant by 轻语江湖 Qing Yu Jiang Hu understands that, for any good food story, the true hero has to be the descriptions of the food. In solid, skillful prose, the author calls each dish to life: seductive, tender qiaojiao beef; slippery, spicy mapo tofu... Each of the hundred tastes of Sichuan cuisine gets its time to shine. If you’ve tasted these dishes yourself, you’ll find your appetite getting awoken again and again. In terms purely of salivating prose, this novel is already worth the price of admission.
The plot is simple and comforting. There’s no family drama, no beautiful women devoting themselves to the protagonist for no reason or “face-slapping” revenge scenes. The protagonist Zhou Yan serenely runs his little restaurant, using his supernatural system to unlock recipes and amassing loyal customers in a simple historical setting. The family cast is especially appealing—the vigorous and forgiving Zhao Niangniang; her father, a stolid, taciturn butcher; and Zhou Momo, a three-year-old with an old soul. Together, they form an evocative portrait of a classic Sichuan family.
The one thing that takes you out of the story are the historical inaccuracies—it’s a bit fanciful to imagine that beef noodles could be treated like an average, everyday meal in a tiny southern Sichuan town in the mid-1980s. But for a reader who mainly just wants to read about good food, these anachronisms don’t distract from the feast. Overall, this novel is a work of hand-crafted art that knows what it’s meant to achieve and achieves it well. Read it before bed, paired with a bowl of instant noodles—perfection.
轻语江湖《1984：从破产川菜馆开始》
1984: Starting from a Bankrupt Sichuan Restaurant by Qing Yu Jiang Hu
Serialized 2025-present (553 chapters)
Original Chinese at Qidian // Translation information at Novel Updates
That’s it for Part 1. Tomorrow, more reading recommendations, this time from webnovel authors and academics. Thanks for reading.
Girls’ love (lesbian) literature, the female counterpart to danmei/boys’ love literature.
《盗墓笔记》 Grave Robbers’ Chronicles (2007) by 南派三叔 Nan Pai San Shu, a classic internet novel and the foundation of a whole genre of tomb-robbing literature. Also the earliest internet novel I’m aware of to get a print English translation (2011).
A genre of decision-based romance game, primarily for female players, in which the goal is typically to pick a romantic interest from the male supporting cast and develop a relationship with him.