In 1960 Liu worked shortly as a teller in Sanguan Grain Management of Fengxian County before joining the People's Liberation Army in 1961.

He was a part-time student at PLA Military Academy (September 1980-July 1982), PLA National Defence University (December 1993-April 1995) and Central Party School of the Chinese Communist Party (August 1996-December 1998).

In 1985 he was promoted to become the chief of staff of Nanjing Military Region, a position he held until 1990.

Liu was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general (zhong jiang) in July 1993.

[3] Liu entered politics in February 2000, when he served as Vice Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress.