diff --git a/asks/faketelegram_test.go b/asks/faketelegram_test.go
index 15fadd9..b00f9fd 100644
--- a/asks/faketelegram_test.go
+++ b/asks/faketelegram_test.go
@@ -3,8 +3,10 @@ package asks
 import (
 	"encoding/json"
 	"fmt"
+	"html"
 	"net/http"
 	"net/http/httptest"
+	"regexp"
 	"strings"
 	"sync"
 	"testing"
@@ -100,6 +102,11 @@ func (f *fakeTelegram) serve(w http.ResponseWriter, r *http.Request) {
 	case "sendMessage", "editMessageText":
 		chat := int64(num(body["chat_id"]))
 		text, _ := body["text"].(string)
+		if mode, _ := body["parse_mode"].(string); mode == "HTML" {
+			// What a message shows, and what a tap on it carries back, is its text with the markup read: tags gone,
+			// entities unescaped — as the service gives it (novox/hq issue 692).
+			text = shownOfHTML(text)
+		}
 		m := tgMessage{Chat: chat, Text: text, Buttons: buttonsOf(body["reply_markup"]), At: time.Now()}
 		f.mu.Lock()
 		if method == "sendMessage" {
@@ -324,3 +331,21 @@ func firstLine(s string) string {
 	}
 	return s
 }
+
+var htmlTag = regexp.MustCompile(`</?[a-zA-Z][^>]*>`)
+
+// shownOfHTML is a text sent in Telegram's HTML as the service shows it and gives it back: its tags read and taken
+// out, its entities written as the characters they stand for.
+func shownOfHTML(text string) string {
+	return html.UnescapeString(htmlTag.ReplaceAllString(text, ""))
+}
+
+// The fake phone shows a message sent in HTML as Telegram does (novox/hq issue 692): the words without their
+// markup, so a tap carries back what the channel digests, as on the real service.
+func TestTheFakePhoneShowsHTMLAsTelegramDoes(t *testing.T) {
+	in := "<b>Flip the lab&#39;s switch?</b>\nA &lt;b&gt; &amp; c\n<code>+ k: v</code>\n\n<blockquote expandable>Asked by lab-asker.</blockquote>"
+	want := "Flip the lab's switch?\nA <b> & c\n+ k: v\n\nAsked by lab-asker."
+	if got := shownOfHTML(in); got != want {
+		t.Errorf("%q, want %q", got, want)
+	}
+}
diff --git a/asks/merge-check.sh b/asks/merge-check.sh
index 11070dd..0ecb971 100644
--- a/asks/merge-check.sh
+++ b/asks/merge-check.sh
@@ -26,7 +26,7 @@ sh -n live-acceptance.sh
 go vet ./...
 out=$(mktemp)
 status=0
-go test -count=1 -timeout 25m -v -run '^TestTheOperatorsAnswerEndToEnd$' . >"$out" 2>&1 || status=$?
+go test -count=1 -timeout 25m -v -run '^(TestTheOperatorsAnswerEndToEnd|TestTheFakePhoneShowsHTMLAsTelegramDoes)$' . >"$out" 2>&1 || status=$?
 grep -E '^(--- |    --- |ok|FAIL|PASS)' "$out" || true
 if grep -q 'NOT RUN' "$out"; then
 	echo "NOT RUN: THE PROOF OF THE OPERATOR'S ANSWERS DID NOT RUN HERE:"