One night, Lady Choe was praying for the deposed Queen's well-being when Sukjong, who was returning to the palace from a trip, overheard her and was moved by her words.

The book Sumunrok (수문록; 隨聞錄) authored by Yi Mun-jeong (1656–1726)[1] describes the events that led to the execution of Jang Hui-bin.

The author who lived during Sukjong's time, recorded the encounter as follows: Lady Choe's status within the palace rose rapidly.

Lady Choe openly supported Queen Inhyeon and was against Jang Ok-jeong, whom history had described as an evil and cruel woman.

According to one version, Sukjong found Jang Hui-bin in her room with a shaman, making merry over having caused the Queen's death through black magic.

[2][3] Another interpretation based on a vague passage of the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty states that it was Choe Suk-bin who told the King that sorcery had been used to try to bring harm to the Queen.

Regardless of how the King learned of this, he decided to look into the matter and discovered the truth behind the rumors that Jang Hui-bin had built a shamanist altar within her quarters, where effigies with the name of the Queen were found.

Later, her ladies-in-waiting declared that she had ordered them to shoot arrows at a portrait of Queen Inhyeon three times at day, and had buried dead animals in her palace's garden.

[4] Despite the many pleas of the Soron faction to pardon her, King Sukjong felt her conduct was too wicked, and in 1701, he ordered that Lady Jang and all the others involved should die by poisoning.

[6] The Annals state that later that same year, Sukjong gifted his winter house, the Ihyeon Palace (where he had spent the days of his youth), to Choe Suk-bin.

In 1716, Choe Suk-bin was taken out of the palace while ill. Later that same year, Sukjong received a message from Yeoning informing him that his mother's health had worsened and asking for more medical help.

He wrote many poems and said in one of them: Yeongjo fought the court to have Choe Suk-bin recognized as a public mother, instead of being treated like other concubines—mothers of Kings, but regarded as a "private parent".

In 1739, the day before the scheduled visit to Lady Choe's tomb, dissatisfied with the protocols that the Board of Rites had drawn up, he censured two officials who were directly responsible for them.