The Bombyx family of that time were stable and an old family with a long history and wealth that would soon become a trump card for the family once a marriage was formed.
Agnes was handling raising a son but also managing the family business on her own and Adam was reaching the stage where he was taking up some of the responsibilities of the family.
He was the only child of the family and at the right age to be married, so they took the opportunity and made use of their daughter who they held no value to them after all of her worth had been erased after leaving the capital.
During that time, their overall power had declined and they needed to rebuild it from scratch in a new location.
Initially they planned to use their connections with their daughter to use the Bombyx families wealth and influence after the marriage is finalised but also get her to send money over to support their rebirth.
However Agnes back then was not someone to be fooled so easily, she had long adapted to the business world a long time ago and knew that their were often hidden intentions behind a deal or partnership.
Some could be a promising relationship where they share a mutually beneficial trading relationship with each other or the other is when an offer is made to look mutually beneficial but is in fact to take advantage of the partnership through various means.
Right away she spotted their hidden intentions and met with the daughter alone to see if she was fit for her son and then began to draw up a deal that would allow the families greed to be satisfied in exchange for cutting off all ties with their daughter.
Her tough stance and ability to read their intentions made them step back and accept the deal as they knew that even with their daughter as the heirs wife, they would not get anything extra so long as Agnes was still alive because she would most likely notice any shady dealings and missing money.
Elizabeth may have been raised to be a filial daughter but once she married into the Bombyx family and was abandoned by her family for the monetary benefits, she accepted her new married life with her loving husband.
After they got what they did from Agnes, they set up their new home in a city that was close to the east and slowly built up their connections and power there.
The heir to their family married his wife a year later and formed a connection with one of the more influential families that were competing for control over the city with the main family that was in control during that time.
They used this new location and the conflicts and fanned the flames to let them destroy each other until the final victor was that family that they had drawn an alliance with.
The family had been weakened and their place was becoming even more unstable but Elizabeth's family had long taken control of most parts of the city whether it be business, the locals support or the underground.
After regaining some control over their lives and the city they began to recruit followers and expand their power but over the past couple of years, their influence has begun to weaken as they gained another competitor and the increasing drop in their reputation that has been created the the acts of their spoiled heir.
His actions have continued to bring disgrace to the family but also attract a lot of enemies that wished to get revenge on them.
Those people who were eager for revenge joined the other family to help with their desire to knock them off their high position and claim it for themselves.
Just like they had been kicked out of the capital in the past because of Elizabeth's brother's actions during his younger years, the pattern repeated itself with the son but in a much worse outcome and series of events.
Although they had gained power and were connected heavily to the wife's family that officially had the position as the lord of the city after their long fought battle, they began to show weakness because of the young heirs actions which brought across some doubts on whether they should maintain their partnership.
The enemy family had also been approaching the city lord's family to make a partnership between them and break off the previous deal which made the trust between the families begin to weaken over time.
While their reputation was falling and their currency was plummeting along with it because they had failed to properly educate their son and punish him when he is wrong, the enemy family had been controlling the public opinion to suppress their family and had to use various ways to quieten the voices.
If this continues then they would be forced to either leave the city or remain to be picked apart by their enemies so when they remembered about their blood relative and the Bombyx families expansion but also Elizabeth's clothing and jewellery stores, they began to see hope to turn things around.
Unfortunately for them, Elizabeth took out a document with no emotional fluctuation on her face and placed it on the table while speaking in a cold voice. "Many years ago, you signed away your rights to request help. Even if you are my father, we have long been strangers since you accepted the terms of this agreement."
On the desk was the old man's written signature along with the contract that was drawn up for her marriage.
The middle aged man stepped forward and tried to speak up for his father. "Sister, you should know that back then we were in a desperate situation. We had no choice but to agree to the terms because it was in your best interests to marry into a respectable family."
Elizabeth had long discovered the truth and knew about the nature of her family.
Like most families that live in the capital, they are obsessed with creating social, power or business related alliances and competing among themselves to survive in the competitive environment.
In that kind of environment, the emotions towards those they seem to be useless or unable to take up the position as the heir are either discarded to marry a rich but old man or to form some form of alliance or to attempt to infiltrate and take control of the families wealth.
They are like wolves tearing at each other while they sacrifice the foxes for their own benefit but some of them survive and thrive if they have enough cunning or luck.
Her family highly valued males over females because they would continue the family name and legacy, much like those in the capital but most of all, they did not learn from their mistakes during the previous generation.
They had failed to properly educate and scold their children because they were the prized, favoured one and were the sole male heir.
They simply accepted the deal back then because they were in a hurry to get the deal over with but also to not have a burden like her being them down.
However looking at the comparison now… Elizabeth was looking to be so much better than her brother but in her fathers eyes, she was an outsider who could be made use of.
Elizabeth continued to restrained herself from raising her voice to her brother and said coldly. "Do not joke around. Whatever has happened to your family is your business and whatever your family has done… you all should know so do not try to get anything out of my family. You have not so much as sent a letter to inquire about how I have been or about my children and only decide to show up now that you are in trouble. Do you think I am that naive and filial girl from back then that believed in your lies? Whatever is causing your downfall is most likely of your families own making so do not try to drag my families reputation down with you."
Ki looked at her mother who was defending her new family against her old family and smiled. 'Mom has grown stronger..'