"I don't have that much money at the moment," she typed back.

"Can I make payments over time?"

To her surprise, Holden readily agreed, "Of course, take your time."

This exchange changed Ariana's perception of Holden.

She realized that she might have misjudged him, and he might not be as difficult to get along with as she initially thought.

Ariana took a moment to reflect and sent a heartfelt message.

"I am grateful to you, not just for returning my mother's necklace, but also for coming to my rescue twice before. You have a kind heart, and I believe that goodness will always be rewarded. The universe is just, and even if you have lost something, you will surely gain something else in return."

As Ariana typed away, she felt confident in the wisdom of her words. She believed that the universe was indeed just and that even though Holden had suffered a great loss in his physical appearance, he had been blessed with immense wealth.

With that in mind, she added, “Perhaps by being surrounded by more beautiful things, your perspective will change and you'll even be able to make some friends."

Although Ariana longed to express that Holden should not feel inferior and that appearance was not everything, she thought that being too straightforward might make him feel uncomfortable.

Holden took a moment to read her message, and then replied, “I will try. I'm feeling much more relaxed now, and I could even say I'm happy because you didn't blacklist me."

Reading this response, Ariana couldn't help but feel sorry for Holden.

It seemed that what Jennifer had said was accurate: he was a lonely man who was devoid of friends and love.

Theodore gazed at the phone waiting for a response. The absence of a reply left him wondering. Had he said something wrong?

He waited for a few minutes and finally received a cat emoji from Ariana. The cat emoji meant to offer some comfort.

Theodore rubbed his chin, as he pondered over the reason for her sending this emoji, speculating that she might feel guilty for blocking him earlier.

His mood brightened and a smile graced his face. He eagerly tapped the screen and asked, “Does this mean we're friends now?"

However, Ariana did not reply to his message.

Theodore set aside the phone momentarily and took out another one from his pocket to call Adrian.

As soon as the call was connected, Theodore was greeted by the sounds of heavy machinery.