Niu Gur's destiny was thereafter tied to illustrating. As China's fortunes in the war waned, three of the Li brothers, led by their elder sister, fled to Hong Kong. Life was hard, and they couldn't even afford school fees.
抗戰失利，三兄弟隨著大姊由湖北逃返「故鄉」香港，過著寄人籬下的生活，日子過得相當困苦，連學費都繳不起。