"This is so interesting, Sister Zhao," Wu Jiaxin said to Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan nodded, "I find it quite interesting too."
Wu Jiaxin looked up at Wang Xianzhi and asked, "Brother Wang, what do you think?"
Technically, she should have called Wang Xianzhi "Grandpa," but since Zhao Yan was Wang Xianzhi's master, she addressed him as "Brother."
Wang Xianzhi smiled, "It's good, very good."
"Master, I want to discuss the renovation plans for the Taoist temple with you again."
"Alright."
Zhao Yan discussed the renovation plans for the Taoist temple with Wang Xianzhi.
As they talked, Zhao Yan felt increasingly impressed.
She gave Wang Xianzhi a thumbs-up and said, "Well done, disciple. Your plan is excellent. We'll proceed as you suggested."
She felt at ease entrusting these matters to Wang Xianzhi.
What Zhao Yan hadn't expected was the massive surge in viewership after the first episode of "Let's Travel Our Hometown" Season 2 aired.
In just one day, a single platform had garnered a hundred million views.
Of course, Zhao Yan didn't take all the credit.
She knew in her heart that even without her participation, the show would have been a huge success, given how well the previous season had performed.
However, Zhao Yan's involvement had caused her own follower count to skyrocket.
It had been just over a million, and now it was approaching three million, with the numbers still climbing.
"This is terrifying, Sister Zhao. This variety show has only been airing for over three hours, and it already has so many views. It's truly astonishing," Wu Jiaxin exclaimed.
Wang Xianzhi chuckled, "It's quite normal, Xin Xin. Given the scale of this variety show, if Master appeared in a few more episodes, it's possible I could break five million followers."
"Wow! Five million! My goodness!" Wu Jiaxin gasped, covering her mouth.
She couldn't even imagine such a follower count.
With five million followers, Zhao Yan's fame would surpass that of many minor celebrities.
Zhao Yan, however, remained calm, "Let's take it one step at a time."
Together with Wang Xianzhi, Zhao Yan made arrangements for various matters in the village.
She was confident that within a few weeks, she could completely transform Linjia Village.
"Master, I'll handle this. You should go back to the shop; it needs someone to mind it," Wang Xianzhi said.
Zhao Yan considered his words and agreed. She had great faith in Wang Xianzhi's abilities.
She was starting to feel that the staff at "Wo Cao Master!" was too small, and they were short-handed for certain tasks.
With only Wang Xianzhi and Wu Jiaxin, it was difficult to manage everything.
"Xin Xin, tomorrow, please create a recruitment advertisement. Let's hire some talented individuals to join us, and also expand the shop by moving to a larger storefront," Zhao Yan suggested after some thought.
"A larger storefront? Sister Zhao, our current storefront is already quite large. If we move again, we might have to rent an entire floor for our office space," Wu Jiaxin replied.
Zhao Yan pondered this, then waved her hand.
Renting just one floor wouldn't be ideal. She asked Wu Jiaxin to look for a spacious storefront, preferably one where they could rent floors one through three, to accommodate future growth.
"Then, Sister Zhao, how many people do you think we should hire?" Wu Jiaxin inquired.
Zhao Yan held up five fingers, "Let's start by hiring five people. If five aren't enough, we can hire more."
Wu Jiaxin acknowledged the instruction and immediately set about carrying it out.
Joining "Wo Cao Master!" wouldn't be easy. Applicants would need to have a passion for talismans, a basic understanding of drawing them, and a demonstrated talent in this area.
Zhao Yan had Wu Jiaxin write down all the requirements.
"Sister Zhao, what will the monthly salary be?" Wu Jiaxin asked.
Zhao Yan held up one finger, "Let's say ten thousand for now, and we can adjust based on performance later."
Ten thousand yuan was considered upper-middle income in Jiangcheng. Not everyone earned over ten thousand a month; many in the lower to middle strata earned around three thousand a month.
"Alright, Sister Zhao, please take a look. If anything needs to be changed, let me know, and I'll make the necessary adjustments," Wu Jiaxin said, presenting the recruitment draft to Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan scanned it and replied, "This is fine."
"Oh, and please post a message on our account to see if we can attract some fans to join us. I believe their presence will create a great working atmosphere."
"Ah! That's a great idea!" Wu Jiaxin exclaimed, clapping her hands. "I'll post it right away."
The recruitment information was then posted online.
To Zhao Yan's surprise, it received over twenty thousand comments almost immediately.
Zhao Yan decided to leave the task of screening applicants to Wu Jiaxin, as she was more adept at it.
With some free time, Zhao Yan picked up her yellow talismans and continued drawing them.
She feared that as she became busier, she would have less time for drawing talismans.
As her fame grew, so would the invitations, which was an inevitable consequence.
Within two days, Wu Jiaxin had screened ten candidates for Zhao Yan.
Wu Jiaxin was torn. These ten individuals were undoubtedly the most dedicated fans.
They could answer many questions, and one female fan, in particular, knew Zhao Yan better than Wu Jiaxin herself.
She wanted to keep all ten of them, and upon asking Zhao Yan's opinion, Zhao Yan agreed.
"You're Lin Miaomiao, aren't you! You answered all one hundred questions about Sister Zhao!" Wu Jiaxin asked the short, cute girl.
This girl had truly astonished Wu Jiaxin.
One hundred questions?
Zhao Yan listened, slightly bewildered.
Lin Miaomiao nodded, her words tumbling out like a machine gun, "Yes, including what Sister Zhao likes to eat, what kind of clothes she wears, and even her measurements and weight, I know them all by heart."
"I've watched over a dozen videos of Sister Zhao. She likes to wear white with a touch of black the most."
"And I even know Zhao Jie's underwear color, it's..."
Wu Jiaxin quickly stepped forward and covered Lin Miaomiao's mouth, realizing that some things were not meant to be said.
Zhao Yan rolled her eyes and asked Wu Jiaxin for the assessment criteria.
She took a page from Wu Jiaxin's hand.
The page was titled "Zhao Jie's Hundred Questions."
"Question one: Sister Zhao's height and weight."
"Question two: Sister Zhao's favorite color."
The initial questions seemed normal, but as they progressed, they became increasingly unusual.
Zhao Yan realized that this could easily attract stalkers.
"Sister Zhao, all ten of them are excellent, especially Lin Miaomiao. She's a hundred percent super fan," Wu Jiaxin reported.
Zhao Yan could see it, especially in Lin Miaomiao's gaze, which made her feel a little unnerved.
"Arrange these ten people. You decide what they will do and teach them," Zhao Yan instructed.
She had initially planned to hire five people to help her with video titles or editing, tasks that would be useful later on.
However, upon further consideration, ten people would also be manageable, especially with her growing follower count.