Before he graduated from high school he went to work for the Hangzhou Daily newspaper as a reporter.
He graduated from the Journalism Department of Renmin University of China in 1969 and joined the Chinese Communist Party in 1973.
Seven years later he joined the Chinese Photographers Association and later chaired the Anhui Photojournalist Society.
[5] He has been chosen to host high-level foreign delegations, including an August, 2009 visit to Zhengzhou by seven lieutenant governors from Arkansas, Idaho, Montana, Minnesota, Mississippi, North Dakota and Puerto Rico.
[7] Xu left office as Chinese Communist Party Committee Secretary of Henan in 2009, after having reached the typical retirement age for provincial-level officials of 65.