As someone who lived in Italy myself, although didn't do any stabbing or slashing during my time there, I thought it was an interesting story.
> Evidence of his craft was seen in his tactics, which included feigned retreats, ambushes and the use of false information.
Reminds me of "Intelligence in War" by Keegan, which discussed the use of such strategies, mostly in naval battles, from antiquity to the modern era.
> In the 30 years that he served as a captain, Hawkwood's earnings ranged between 6,000 and 80,000 florins annually (in comparison, a skilled Florentine craftsman at the same time earned 30 florins a year).
Quite the pay for a soldier, even if a mercenary!
But some of their compensation probably also came from whatever they were allowed to loot when they took a city -- which of course gave commanders an incentive to let their men loot a lot, so they'd be happy with that and not demand as much regular pay out of the commander's gross fee from his employer.