This lecture can be divided into two main parts: first, how to conduct historical fieldwork, sharing personal experiences and insights from various field studies; second, focusing on the scholars and gentlemen of late Ming Quanzhou, exploring issues related to commerce and religion in Quanzhou.

To understand social history or the history of the people, rural areas are crucial, and field research often corrects our unreliable stereotypes. The gentlemen of Quanzhou, though holding various views on Neo-Confucianism, are all influenced by its tenets in their studies and thoughts. Their lifestyles and styles often differ significantly from those of the eminent scholars in the Jiangnan region. The scholars of Quanzhou exist in an environment interwoven with commerce and religion, developing characteristics distinct from Jiangnan. The rich and engaging intellectual traditions of Quanzhou reflect its multiculturalism. Throughout the lecture, the interaction between the speaker and the audience was lively, and the audience gained much in terms of learning about field research and understanding the scholars of late Ming Quanzhou.