Cao Pengsheng, male, Han nationality, is a native of Leting, Hebei Province. He was born in 1930, joined the PLA in 1946 and the CPC in 1949.
In his late teens, Cao did propaganda work in the 4th Field Army, and from there he moved up through various jobs in security and political guidance to the position of political commissar at the division level. Thirty years after joining the PLA, in 1979, he graduated from the PLA Political Academy and continued in the political commissar role, serving in Shandong, Jinan, and finally, in 1990, as political commissar of the Lanzhou Military Region.
Cao was a member of the 14th CPC Central Committee and a member of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. He was promoted to major general in 1988, lieutenant general in 1991, and general in 1994. In 1998, he was elected to the Standing Committee of the 9th CPPCC National Congress.