Research has documented a bidirectional relationship between forgiveness and self-control, influencing adolescent satisfaction with life. However, the potential psychosocial mechanisms underpinning this association remain nebulous. In that study, two hypothetical models were compared to disentangle the unique role of forgiveness and self-control independently on life satisfaction. Four hundred and forty-eight adolescents completed a multisection questionnaire. After controlling for age and gender, results showed: (a) Forgiveness, rumination, and self-control are significantly associated with life satisfaction among Chinese adolescents; (b) Rumination and self-control played serial mediating roles in the association between forgiveness and life satisfaction in Model A; (c) Rumination and forgiveness serially mediated the relationship between self-control and life satisfaction in Model B; (d) Furthermore, the total effect of self-control on life satisfaction was stronger than that of forgiveness on life satisfaction. This study provides a new entry point for the unique mechanisms between self-control/forgiveness and life satisfaction, which has important practical implications for developing effective interventions to improve life satisfaction among adolescents.