Chi was born in a family of Peking opera actors, on December 23, 1952.
During the Down to the Countryside Movement, he became a sent-down youth and worked in Heilongjiang Production and Construction Corps, then he became a soldier and serving in Yunan.
He entered China Broadcasting Art Troupe while he leaving the Army, two years later, he was accepted to Shanghai Theater Academy.
After graduation, he was assigned to China Television Production Center (CTPC) as an actor.
In 1990 Chi married Chen Lihua, one of China's richest women.