Fan Kang 范康
| Occupation | RNOther | Faction | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appears | N | Biography in | |
| Born | Native place | Bohai Commandery | |
| Existence | Historical | Mentions |
Profile
Fan Kang (范康), courtesy name Zhongzhen, is a figure whose name appears in Chapter 6 of the Romance as a friend of Liu Biao, Inspector of Jing Province. The Romance says that Liu Biao, a member of the Han imperial clan, loved making friends from his youth and befriended seven renowned scholars, so that people of the time called them the 'Eight Talents of Jiangxia', and as the fourth of those seven it names 'Fan Kang of Bohai, courtesy name Zhongzhen'. Romance, Ch. 6 §35
Of the Romance's 120 chapters he appears only in one, Chapter 6; no chapter has his name in its title, and there is no scene in which he speaks or acts himself. He does not appear in Chen Shou's main text and is recorded only in Pei Songzhi's notes. The Biography of Liu Biao in Chen Shou's main text states only that Liu Biao was known from his youth and was called one of the Eight Talents, without recording the names of those counted with him, while the Records of Eminent Scholars of the Late Han (Hanmo mingshi lu) quoted in Pei Songzhi's notes lists him, among those counted with Liu Biao as the Eight Friends, as 'Yuan Kang (苑康) of Bohai, courtesy name Zhongzhen', so that the character of his surname differs from the Romance. Romance, Ch. 6 §35Records, Wei 6 §82
In the Romance
In Chapter 6 of the Romance, Yuan Shao presses Sun Jian to hand over the Imperial Seal, saying that he is hiding it and about to leave. Sun Jian points to Heaven and swears that if he has obtained and hidden that treasure he will die beneath swords and arrows, and when Yuan Shao calls out a soldier who was present when it was drawn up from the well, Sun Jian draws his sword to cut that soldier down. Yuan Shao also draws his sword, and Yan Liang and Wen Chou face off, blades in hand, against Cheng Pu, Huang Gai and Han Dang until the lords restrain them all together, and Sun Jian breaks camp and leaves Luoyang. Yuan Shao, greatly enraged, has a trusted man carry a letter through the night to Liu Biao, Inspector of Jing Province, telling him to block Sun Jian on the road and seize the seal. Romance, Ch. 6 §29–31
At this point the Romance introduces Liu Biao. Liu Biao, courtesy name Jingsheng, was a man of Gaoping in Shanyang and a member of the Han imperial clan. From his youth he loved making friends and befriended seven renowned scholars, so that people of the time called them the 'Eight Talents of Jiangxia'. Those seven were Chen Xiang of Runan, courtesy name Zhonglin; Fan Pang of the same commandery, courtesy name Mengbo; Kong Yu of Lu State, courtesy name Shiyuan; Fan Kang of Bohai, courtesy name Zhongzhen; Tan Fu of Shanyang, courtesy name Wenyou; Zhang Jian of the same commandery, courtesy name Yuanjie; and Cen Zhi of Nanyang, courtesy name Gongxiao. Romance, Ch. 6 §35
The Romance goes on to state that Liu Biao befriended these seven, and that Kuai Liang and Kuai Yue of Yanping and Cai Mao of Xiangyang assisted him. Having read Yuan Shao's letter, Liu Biao has Kuai Yue and Cai Mao lead 10,000 troops to block Sun Jian. In the Romance, Fan Kang does not appear again after this introduction. Romance, Ch. 6 §36
Written by 3KDEX (not yet reviewed) — The tags at the end of each paragraph link to the exact passage in the Records volume or Romance chapter it is based on.
Abilities
There is no record in the main text of Chen Shou’s Records, so only the Romance score is given.
- LEA31
- STR31
- INT40
- POL40
- CHA50
- VIR45
- ADP40
- SCH55
- DIP40
- DIS38
Evidence by ability
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NPeople of the time called them the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NA renowned scholar who befriended Liu Biao and was counted among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
NNo direct record — estimated from his role as a scholar among the Eight Talents of JiangxiaCh. 6 §35
Romance Unverified No direct record; scored from their actions (evidence grade C)
3KDEX scoring — the Records use the main text of Chen Shou’s Records of the Three Kingdoms; the Romance uses the 120-chapter Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Click a source tag to open that passage in the reader.
Romance chapters (1)
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