Chapter 139: Hypothesis Confirmed! Rose Was the Victim’s Roommate

An Mortician?

When Su Ming brought up this unusual profession, everyone present couldn’t help but light up, excitement rippling through the room.

Because—

When considering all the current clues, compared to professions like beautician or makeup artist, the role of Mortician actually seemed far more likely.

Standing at the whiteboard, Gao Chao also seemed moved when he heard this suggestion and began explaining:

“An Mortician might very well be the key.”

“In fact, it’s not just about the detail of peeling off the victim’s facial skin. Think carefully…”

“The only fatal wound on the victim’s face was that one stab to the back of the heart. There were no other wounds.”

“Doesn’t this suggest that the killer had absolute confidence—only that one strike to the back was enough to take the victim’s life quickly?”

“To have such a deep understanding of the human body, and combine that with knowledge of human-skin masks, it really narrows it down to professions like Morticians or plastic surgeons.”

“Then, if we tie that back to the earlier deduction—”

“A graduate in horticulture would find it much harder to become a plastic surgeon than to work as an Mortician at a funeral home.”

“After all, being an Mortician is a specialized job, and years ago, universities didn’t even offer related majors.”

“Most Morticians learned through apprenticeship—so long as someone had the courage and confidence, there was no real barrier to entry. Plus, the income is actually quite decent.”

“And most importantly—”

“Morticians deal with all sorts of clients, including those who are completely disfigured and need facial reconstruction. So cases requiring facial repair aren’t uncommon.”

“So if the suspect was an Mortician, they’d definitely have a natural advantage in this case.”

“I’m going to have someone look into the victim’s college classmates—see if anyone became an Mortician after graduation for work or financial reasons.”

“This shouldn’t take long. Morticians are a specialized group—it’s not like looking for someone in a common profession.”

After saying this, Gao Chao immediately took out his phone and instructed the technical team of the Yuhua Criminal Investigation Unit to identify potential suspects as quickly as possible.

—

At the same time, Su Ming’s phone in his pocket began vibrating with a series of text message alerts.

Taking advantage of a quiet moment, he pulled it out and read the contents—his eyes narrowing as his fingers tapped rhythmically on the table, clearly thinking about the information he just received.

Lin Tian, who had just pulled out a cigarette and was about to step outside the meeting room to smoke, caught sight of Su Ming’s expression and seemed to realize something. He asked curiously:

“Xiao Ming, what’s up?”

“Did the Gusu case make a breakthrough? Or did you uncover a new identity?”

That question pulled Su Ming from his thoughts. He gave a light nod and his eyes gleamed slightly.

“Yeah.”

“Just like we suspected—the original identity of ‘Poison’ was a janitor at Vanke Cloud City.”

“From all angles, the only people who had both the access and opportunity to carry out this crime, aside from coworkers in the same department, were the janitors.”

“But even after discovering the janitor identity, we’ve hit a dead end. In fact, the trail cuts off right there.”

Hearing this, Lin Tian raised his brows in confusion. It didn’t quite make sense—why would finding the original identity cause the entire lead to vanish?

But in the next moment—

Lin Tian suddenly realized—

The “gold cicada shedding its shell” technique that Zhou Shirui used. If Su Ming hadn’t considered the possibility of plastic surgery at the time, they would’ve kept chasing Zhou Shirui’s false identity.

They could’ve torn Happy World apart and still never found him—because the murderer Zhou Shirui had long since transformed into Zhou Jack through surgery.

Recalling just how difficult that arrest had been, Lin Tian turned to Su Ming and asked:

“Are you saying Poison pulled the same trick? That his original identity has been erased or hidden?”

“If that’s the case—”

“First, it means Poison is still most likely in Gusu. Second, he might be wearing Rose’s human-skin mask.”

“Or perhaps, just like Zhou Shirui—he got plastic surgery?”

“Either possibility is likely. But now it might be a good time to look into luxury cars and designer goods—maybe that’ll help uncover Poison’s new identity.”

Su Ming gave a slight nod in agreement, then narrowed his eyes meaningfully and added:

“Director Lin.”

“Poison’s method of concealing his identity is even more ruthless than Zhou Shirui’s.”

“He directly found a scapegoat, staged a car accident, and used that to fake his own death—completely erasing his original identity.”

“He clearly had no intention of ever using that identity again. What he wanted was a new identity more suited to his spending habits.”

“And now, I strongly suspect—”

“Thanks to Rose’s exquisite human-skin masks, or possibly advanced plastic surgery, abandoning one’s identity may be the drug ring’s most common method of concealment.”

“Just like now… Poison’s original household registration has already been deleted.”

“Although we all know Poison is still hiding in Gusu, his current identity leaves no trace—we’ll have to dig it up ourselves.”

“But I do have a lead to chase.”

Su Ming paused for a moment, then gave a faint smile as his eyes deepened.

“Poison’s personality changed—from timid and cowardly to arrogant and reckless.”

“Given the chance to choose a new identity, would he want to remain a nobody, or would he prefer an identity that is—”

“Respected, prestigious, and able to support extravagant spending?”

“Whether the new identity is flashy or not, I don’t think that matters much. After all, in Poison’s eyes at the time, the drug operation was so airtight there was no risk of exposure.”

Su Ming’s theory clearly stunned Lin Tian. He hadn’t expected Su Ming to dare make such a bold deduction.

Starting from Poison’s personality shift, Su Ming concluded that if he could start over, he’d definitely abandon his humble background in favor of an identity he had once longed for.

It was a risky theory—but highly plausible. And it just might be the key to flushing Poison out.

Just as Lin Tian was about to speak—

Gao Chao’s unusually excited voice rang out in the meeting room:

“Found her!”

“Among the victim’s classmates in the same major, there’s a female student who really did become an Mortician!”

“And she used to be… the victim’s roommate!”