庆余年

Reading roadmap: Start at chapter 1 with the glossary open. The first major cultivation beat lands around the mid-point — that's when the "face-slapping" payoff hits. Save the glossary tab; you'll reuse it.

Cultural note: The honorifics and family-rank jokes land harder if you've read one xianxia first. If this is your first, Coiling Dragon is the gentler on-ramp.