After the Fake Young Master Betrayed the Australian Farmer - Chapter 23

Han Yan thought for a split second that he was hallucinating. What did he just hear? Adams actually wanted to continue being his Friend with Benefits (FWB)? An FWB relationship, just sex and no feelings?

Wait, what did he mean by “only” being his FWB? Since when did being fuck buddies become an exclusive arrangement?

Seeing Han Yan’s expression shift unpredictably, Adams gripped his wrist and slowly sank to his knees. He rubbed his cheek against the denim fabric of Han Yan’s jeans.

“Han Yan, only do it with me. I will do it better than them.”

Within his aggressive gaze, there was a faint flicker of grievance and stubbornness. Han Yan’s eyes darkened as he grabbed Adams’ hair and pulled it downward, forcing the man to look up at him.

“Adams, who taught you this?”

An inexplicable surge of annoyance rose in Han Yan’s heart, his brow furrowing with impatience. Adams blinked and answered honestly, “The internet.”

Han Yan suddenly felt a wave of nostalgia for the version of Adams who did not have internet access. He had no idea what Adams was looking at online all day to have ended up learning this!

The tension in Han Yan’s brow softened slightly. He let out a heavy breath and grabbed Adams’ arm to pull him up.

“Get up first. What do you look like, kneeling like that?”

“But you have a reaction.”

Han Yan: “…”

Han Yan closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. Please, he was a normal man, alright? When someone with a face that hit all his personal preferences was flirting with him like this, if he did not have a reaction, he would need to see a specialist.

“Enough, stop messing around. Let’s talk business.”

Han Yan cut off whatever Adams was about to say and went straight to the point. “Adams, I am not going to be your FWB anymore.”

Adams’ expression froze. He pursed his lips, and his hands hanging at his sides clenched into fists.

“Why? Where am I lacking compared to others? You like my face, you like my body, you like the food I cook, and I can satisfy you in bed. If you like a better physique, I will go train. If you like a different cuisine, I will learn to cook it. If there is a certain way you like to play, I can accept it and I am willing to learn. Since you are looking for someone to sleep with anyway, why can’t that person be me?”

Confronted by Adams’ questioning, Han Yan actually found the logic quite sound; he was even slightly tempted. Wait, no. Is this a matter of logic?

“But Adams, you like me.”

Han Yan spoke those few words flatly. Adams was struck speechless. Adams knew that if his feelings were not such a burden, Han Yan would have been more than happy to keep playing with him.

Just as Adams’ lips moved to speak, a phone ringtone abruptly pierced the silence of the room. Han Yan pulled out his phone and glanced at the unknown number. Usually, he treated any unlisted number as a spam call, but given the current situation, he chose to answer.

His intuition told him that whatever Adams was about to say next might steer things in a direction he did not want them to go. This feeling of losing control made him let out an almost inaudible “tsk.”

“Hello, this is Yan Han speaking.”

Fang Jianan’s pitiful voice came through the receiver. “Han Yan, can you take me in for the night?”

By the time Han Yan arrived at the police station, Fang Jianan had just finished his statement. Sitting on a bench in the station lobby, Fang Jianan looked up as Han Yan approached, his eyes immediately welling with tears.

“Fang Jianan, are you okay? You did not suffer any serious injuries, right?”

Han Yan looked him up and down. There were various degrees of scrapes on the man’s cheeks and arms, and a muddy footprint was stamped onto his white short-sleeved shirt. He looked incredibly disheveled.

“I am alright. I was dragged off a bench while waiting for the bus and kicked a couple of times. It is not too bad; my stomach just hurts a bit, probably because I have not had dinner.”

Fang Jianan rubbed his stomach. Actually, when they were taking photos for evidence, there was a large bruise on his abdomen, but he did not feel the need to mention it. It was not a big deal; it would heal in a few days.

Han Yan noticed that the backpack Fang Jianan had been wearing earlier that day was nowhere to be seen and could not help but sigh. “Everything was taken?”

“Yes. They even took the groceries I collected! Accursed teenagers!”

Fang Jianan was filled with grief and indignation. That was his food supply for the next week! The fresh cash he had just earned from tutoring was gone, and so were his phone and house keys. Fang Jianan felt like the world was going dark.

Han Yan patted his shoulder sympathetically. “Let’s go, brother. I will take you in for the night. You can go get a spare key made after class tomorrow. I will go say a word to the police, then we will go grab some dinner.”

Fang Jianan hurriedly waved his hands, saying he could just make do with some instant noodles, which earned him a look of disapproval from Han Yan.

“Today is New Year’s Eve. After something like this, you need a good meal to wash away the bad luck.”

Without waiting for a response, Han Yan turned and went to get the details from the officers. Watching Han Yan’s back, Fang Jianan’s face was full of gratitude. He had only called Han Yan on a whim; at the end of the day, they were not even that close—just classmates who had picked up free food together a few times. He really did not expect Han Yan to actually come pick him up late at night and agree to let him stay over.

Han Yan was a real friend!

As Han Yan led Fang Jianan out of the station, he suddenly remembered something and turned to ask, “By the way, your phone was stolen, right? How did you manage to memorize my number?”

Hearing this, Fang Jianan gave him a deadpan look and spoke gloomily, “Your number is literally all eights. Does that even require memorizing?”

True. After all, Han Yan had spent a lot of money to get that number—a string of eights; lucky and imposing.

The phone rang for the second time that night. Han Yan wondered how there could be so many unknown calls today as he pressed the phone to his ear.

“Han Yan, when are you coming back?”

The tone on the other end was quite resentful, sounding like a husband at home complaining about a wife who had not returned. Han Yan was startled by his own thought. He rubbed the goosebumps on his arms and asked suspiciously, “Adams? You are still at my place?”

“Today is New Year’s Eve. I cooked for you. There are your favorite sweet and sour pork ribs, poached sliced beef in hot chili oil, and crispy chicken.”

Just hearing the names of the dishes made Han Yan’s mouth water involuntarily. His empty stomach felt even hungrier.

“You did not need to do all that.”

Han Yan’s stomach growled in protest, but he was still putting up a struggle verbally.

There was a moment of silence on the other end before a low voice said, “Do not feel pressured. I wanted to do it myself. Anyway, just come back quickly. The food will not taste good once it is cold.”

After hanging up, Han Yan looked at the confused Fang Jianan and scratched his head. Fine. Since Adams had cooked so much, he—holding onto the virtue of never wasting food—definitely had to go back and eat!

The moment Han Yan and Fang Jianan stepped through the door, the rich aroma of food hit them. The two poor souls who usually lived off free food swallowed their spit in unison.

Hearing the door, Adams turned around holding a spatula. His eyes brightened when he saw Han Yan, but his brow furrowed the second his gaze landed on Fang Jianan standing behind him.

Fang Jianan felt that the way Adams looked at him was not nearly as friendly as it had been during the day; it was almost aggressive. His scalp prickled and his heart pounded, fearing the man might charge at him with the spatula.

Wait, this was not the attitude this guy had when he was asking about the time and location for free food pickups earlier today. How exactly had he offended him?

Han Yan did not notice Fang Jianan’s trembling form. All his attention was focused on the enticing dishes on the table. His stomach gave a very timely growl. Adams retracted his murderous glare, his gaze softening only when it landed on Han Yan.

“Hungry? I will get you some rice.”

Han Yan nodded. Watching Adams turn to serve him, he subconsciously followed to explain, “Fang Jianan got robbed. I just went to the station to pick him up. His house keys were in the bag they took, so he is staying here for the night.”

The hand holding the rice scoop paused. Adams whipped his head around, staring at him intensely. “Is he sleeping in the same bed as you?”

Han Yan blinked, then helplessly reached out and ruffled Adams’ hair. “What are you thinking? My bed is so small, it would collapse with two people. Of course he is sleeping on the sofa.”

Only then did Adams’ expression improve slightly. He went back to scooping rice, making sure to pack it down firmly in the bowl. Han Yan suddenly realized how natural his action had just been. His fingers curled slightly as he calmly withdrew his hand.

“By the way, where did the meat and the pots come from? I only bought one bowl for instant noodles and cereal.”

That bowl was something he and Fang Jianan had snagged as a bargain in an international students’ group chat; it cost only a few cents, whereas a new one in the store would be nearly two dollars.

“I bought them through a delivery service.”

In Australia, same-day delivery was rare. If the delivery arrived today, it meant Adams had known his address before today. Han Yan realized he had no idea how the man had gotten his address. He leaned his back against the kitchen cabinet, arms crossed, watching Adams with a faint smile that did not reach his eyes.

“Care to explain, Adams Wilson?”

Adams knew he was in the wrong and did not dare meet Han Yan’s eyes. He handed over the bowl, which was piled high with rice like a small mountain.

“Earlier, during your lunch break, you used your laptop to check rental listings. You did not close it while eating, so I caught a glimpse.”

“And you just memorized it? I looked at several places; some were not even in the same district. How did you know which one I rented?”

Adams went silent, but Han Yan read everything in his silence.

“You followed me?”

Adams remained silent, pursing his lips. Han Yan stared at him for a long while before letting out a sudden, cold laugh. He snatched the rice bowl from Adams’ hand, turned, and sat down at the table, burying his head in his food. He would fill his stomach first, then he would have a proper talk with Adams about this!

Fang Jianan, who had overheard the entire exchange: “…”

He felt like he had just learned something he should not have! Was he going to be silenced later?

Adams’ gaze met Fang Jianan’s, making the latter shudder. “Get your own rice.”

Adams dropped those words and left the stove with his own bowl, taking a seat right next to Han Yan. He placed a piece of the poached beef into Han Yan’s bowl, thoughtfully picking out the bits of chili and Sichuan peppercorns attached to it.

Han Yan lifted his eyelids to glance at him. Seeing the other man’s ears drooping and his eyes looking at him all watery and pathetic, Han Yan let out a sharp, annoyed huff.

“I will settle the score with you later.”