diff --git a/.github/workflows/ci.yml b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
index 32563bc..22ab41e 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/ci.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/ci.yml
@@ -23,6 +23,8 @@
 #     make the architecture in docs/adr/ true rather than aspirational.
 #   - A single `ci-required` aggregation gate is the one status context branch protection
 #     references, so the ruleset never desyncs as jobs are added or renamed.
+#   - Pull requests mutation-test only changed Rust product lines; weekly/manual and release
+#     gates retain exhaustive, sharded coverage.
 
 name: CI
 
@@ -195,6 +197,29 @@ jobs:
       - uses: Swatinem/rust-cache@6323deb102c322ba6fcbdcafc7e3dddab59af2b6 # v2.9.2
       - run: just coverage
 
+  mutation-smoke:
+    name: mutation smoke (changed Rust product lines)
+    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
+    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
+    timeout-minutes: 45
+    steps:
+      - uses: actions/checkout@3d3c42e5aac5ba805825da76410c181273ba90b1 # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          fetch-depth: 0
+      - uses: dtolnay/rust-toolchain@4cda84d5c5c54efe2404f9d843567869ab1699d4 # stable
+      - uses: taiki-e/install-action@ba47c86ac325773530516bb756137ac718732518 # v2.86.5
+        with:
+          tool: just@1.50.0,cargo-mutants@27.1.0,nextest@0.9.140
+      - uses: Swatinem/rust-cache@6323deb102c322ba6fcbdcafc7e3dddab59af2b6 # v2.9.2
+      - run: just mutants-smoke '${{ github.event.pull_request.base.sha }}'
+      - if: always()
+        uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
+        with:
+          name: mutants-smoke
+          path: mutants.out/
+          if-no-files-found: ignore
+          retention-days: 14
+
   purity:
     name: purity (no std, I/O, font, or float in the core)
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
@@ -430,6 +455,7 @@ jobs:
       - wasm
       - fuzz
       - coverage
+      - mutation-smoke
       - purity
       - design
       - semver
diff --git a/.github/workflows/mutants.yml b/.github/workflows/mutants.yml
index e7e7b9a..91ecc06 100644
--- a/.github/workflows/mutants.yml
+++ b/.github/workflows/mutants.yml
@@ -1,22 +1,14 @@
 # SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 jlreq contributors
 # SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT OR Apache-2.0
 
-# Pull requests smoke-test changed Rust code. Weekly/manual runs cover both handwritten
-# products in four shards. Generated tables and five exact, proof-backed equivalent mutants
-# are the only configured exclusions and are pinned in docs/mutation-ledger.toml; a missed
-# or timed-out mutant fails the workflow.
+# Weekly/manual runs cover both handwritten products in four shards. Pull-request smoke
+# mutation belongs to CI so its result feeds the single required aggregation gate there.
+# Generated tables and five exact, proof-backed equivalent mutants are the only configured
+# exclusions and are pinned in docs/mutation-ledger.toml; a missed or timed-out mutant fails
+# the workflow.
 name: Mutants
 
 on:
-  pull_request:
-    paths:
-      - "**/*.rs"
-      - "**/Cargo.toml"
-      - "Justfile"
-      - ".cargo/mutants.toml"
-      - "docs/mutation-ledger.toml"
-      - "scripts/verify-mutation-ledger.sh"
-      - ".github/workflows/mutants.yml"
   workflow_dispatch:
   schedule:
     - cron: "38 4 * * 4"
@@ -29,32 +21,8 @@ concurrency:
   cancel-in-progress: true
 
 jobs:
-  smoke:
-    name: changed-surface smoke
-    if: github.event_name == 'pull_request'
-    runs-on: ubuntu-latest
-    timeout-minutes: 45
-    steps:
-      - uses: actions/checkout@3d3c42e5aac5ba805825da76410c181273ba90b1 # v7.0.1
-        with:
-          fetch-depth: 0
-      - uses: dtolnay/rust-toolchain@4cda84d5c5c54efe2404f9d843567869ab1699d4 # stable
-      - uses: taiki-e/install-action@ba47c86ac325773530516bb756137ac718732518 # v2.86.5
-        with:
-          tool: just@1.50.0,cargo-mutants@27.1.0,nextest@0.9.140
-      - uses: Swatinem/rust-cache@6323deb102c322ba6fcbdcafc7e3dddab59af2b6 # v2.9.2
-      - run: just mutants-smoke '${{ github.event.pull_request.base.sha }}'
-      - if: always()
-        uses: actions/upload-artifact@043fb46d1a93c77aae656e7c1c64a875d1fc6a0a # v7.0.1
-        with:
-          name: mutants-smoke
-          path: mutants.out/
-          if-no-files-found: ignore
-          retention-days: 14
-
   full:
     name: full (${{ matrix.crate }}, ${{ matrix.shard }})
-    if: github.event_name != 'pull_request'
     runs-on: ubuntu-latest
     timeout-minutes: 90
     strategy:
diff --git a/Justfile b/Justfile
index 7b97527..d92a1c5 100644
--- a/Justfile
+++ b/Justfile
@@ -305,7 +305,7 @@ mutants crate="" shard="":
 # workflows run the complete sharded gate above.
 mutants-smoke base:
     sh scripts/verify-mutation-ledger.sh
-    cargo mutants --workspace --in-diff {{base}} --test-tool cargo --minimum-test-timeout 120 --no-times --colors=never -j 4
+    sh scripts/run-mutation-smoke.sh {{ quote(base) }}
 
 # Hold generated and equivalent-mutant exclusions to their individual source hashes and
 # require every cargo-mutants regex to have one proof in the reviewable ledger.
diff --git a/scripts/run-mutation-smoke.sh b/scripts/run-mutation-smoke.sh
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..efb71a0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/scripts/run-mutation-smoke.sh
@@ -0,0 +1,34 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+
+# SPDX-FileCopyrightText: 2026 jlreq contributors
+# SPDX-License-Identifier: MIT OR Apache-2.0
+
+set -eu
+
+if [ "$#" -ne 1 ]; then
+    echo "usage: $0 BASE_COMMIT" >&2
+    exit 2
+fi
+
+base=$1
+if ! base_commit=$(git rev-parse --verify --end-of-options "${base}^{commit}"); then
+    echo "mutation smoke: base is not a commit: $base" >&2
+    exit 2
+fi
+
+mkdir -p target
+diff_file=target/mutants-smoke.diff
+git diff --no-ext-diff --unified=0 --output="$diff_file" \
+    "${base_commit}...HEAD" -- '*.rs'
+
+if [ ! -s "$diff_file" ]; then
+    echo "mutation smoke: no changed Rust lines"
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+cargo mutants -p jlreq -p jlreq-conformance --in-diff "$diff_file" \
+    --test-tool cargo \
+    --minimum-test-timeout 120 \
+    --no-times \
+    --colors=never \
+    -j 4