Kang Pian was a literary figure of the Tang dynasty whose life is now difficult to trace in detail, and the available public information is limited. His principal surviving work is Jutan Lu (Record of Conversations on the Theater), a collection of biji-style fiction that chiefly records anecdotes and trifles from court and common society during the mid- and late Tang, involving people's words and deeds, social observations, and strange tales. The book has both historical value and literary interest. Its narration is concise and its tone plain, often sketching characters and unfolding events in short passages, reflecting the typical Tang biji approach of jotting down notes and incorporating hearsay. Later studies of Tang social customs and the development of fiction often cite Jutan Lu as a reference.
