<p>In Asia, the issue of children in rural regions is becoming increasingly prominent. Recent scholarship has increasingly recognized the educational challenges faced by children in rural regions, especially in the realm of foreign language education. Despite this growing interest, there is a significant gap in research addressing the distinct psychological traits that influence these children’s foreign language learning experiences. The study seeks to fill this void by applying a positive psychology framework to investigate how resilience and academic engagement impact English language achievement among this demographic, with a particular focus on the mediating role of academic emotions, including enjoyment, anxiety, and boredom. Utilizing structural equation modeling (SEM), the data from a questionnaire survey of 780 junior high school students engaged in learning English were analyzed. The results indicate that resilience and academic engagement are robust predictors of enhanced English academic achievement, both directly and indirectly, mediated by the academic emotions highlighted. Specifically, enjoyment serves as a positive mediator, while anxiety and boredom function as negative mediators. This research deepens our understanding of the interplay between resilience, academic engagement, and academic emotions. It highlights the necessity for educational policies specifically tailored to the unique challenges of disadvantaged groups, aiming to empower them and foster a more inclusive learning environment.</p>