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Chinese webnovels are addictive.
On a more serious note, in between seeing face slaps and beatdowns, I do sometime read about the overarching themes behind these novels.
If you prefer urban novels in modern China, the focus on 'success' is lots of face slapping on people who looked down on you. Lots of "Junior, do you dare" and Jade beauties falling in love. Climbing up by stepping on others and having conspicuous signs of wealth. I take it as a sign of an ultra competitive society.
The protagonists of Chinese webnovels are sometime murder hobos and self centered. Systems and old magical grandpas offer an easy way to escape the Rat race and get to the top - whatever that means. I think it does reflect the preferences of the millions of chinese youngsters who face gruelling hours of exam prep and millions of potential rivals for few spots.
Contrast with Japanese novels where protaganists are sometimes irritatingly dense and introspective. Perhaps it reflects the different nature of pain and success in Japanese novels.
This might seem like an off beat post and it is. But there are few things as revealing as cheap webnovels written for the lowest common denominator. Espescially given the prevailing rates of exhaustion among Asian youngsters. Me just wanting to talk about webnovels is entirely unrelated.
"Losing money to become a tycoon" is genuinely an amazing novel that I would recommend as it indirectly covers these topics of 'pain' and success. Mao Ni is also amazing but has absolutely nothing to do with the topic.