When the universities reopened in 1977, he passed the entrance exams and became a student in Heilongjiang University's English department. After finishing his undergraduate degree, he became a graduate student in Anglo-American literature at Shandong University. On completing his MA in 1984, he received a scholarship to Brandeis University and traveled to the US to pursue a PhD.
一直到 1977 年高考（大學聯考）恢復，他考進黑龍江大學英語系，然後是山東大學英美文學研究所，1984 年拿到位在波士頓近郊的布蘭戴斯大學獎學金，赴美攻讀博士。