After failing his mandarin examinations and spending his travelling money, the young man wandered, destitute and down on his luck, until he was saved by beggars who survived by busking at the roadside.
他早年功名落第而盤纏用盡、落魄江湖，幸賴丐幫兄弟相救，遂加入沿街歌唱行乞的行列。