[3] Wu was born in Jiangyin, Jiangsu, Republic of China (1912-1949) on 3 January 1932.
In July 1952, he studied, then taught, at Renmin University of China, he served in several posts there, including instructor, professor, doctoral supervisor, and vice-president.
In August 1989, he was appointed president of Peking University,[4] replacing Ding Shisun, who did not prevent students of Peking University from joining the Tiananmen Square protests.
[5][6] When his term ended, he continued to serve as a professor, honorary director of the council and president of Education Foundation at the university.
On 10 January 2020, he died of an illness at Beijing Hospital [zh], aged 88.