diff --git a/codex-rs/core/src/codex/compact.rs b/codex-rs/core/src/codex/compact.rs
index 79f49d0c89..580f0a19df 100644
--- a/codex-rs/core/src/codex/compact.rs
+++ b/codex-rs/core/src/codex/compact.rs
@@ -220,7 +220,7 @@ fn trim_recent_history_to_previous_user_message(
     }) {
         turn_input.split_off(last_user_index)
     } else {
-        turn_input.drain(..).collect()
+        std::mem::take(turn_input)
     }
 }